With Christmas decorations beginning to show up all over Walt Disney World, fans have wondered when the popular Lights of Winter archways linking Epcot’s Future World and the World Showcase would be installed. The answer: they won’t. Today Disney announced that the Lights of Winter have officially been retired: From the official Disney Parks Twitter [...]

By Andy Guinigundo Mini Vietnam Memorial for Veterans Day Carlsbad, Calif. – While many attractions around the U.S. have ongoing specials for military and sometimes family, I haven’t personally heard of too many Veterans Day events that are taking place in the parks. Well, Legoland is honoring veterans by dedicating a Vietnam War Memorial Lego [...]

Now that our clocks have been pushed back an hour, guests at Universal Studios finally have a chance to ride the new Hollywood Rip Ride Rockit roller coaster after dark. The ride was certainly designed to be ridden this way, featuring a number of lighting effects along the track and on the sides of the [...]

It’s been almost a month since our last update on the ongoing construction of the Wizarding World of Harry Potter in the Islands of Adventure theme park at Universal Orlando Resort. Since then, it’s been all about the details as scaffolding has popped up surrounding nearly every square inch of Hogwarts Castle and the buildings [...]

Following our refurbishment update last night, Disney has posted this pair of images on their blog showing what the newly-enhanced interactive queue looks like inside Space Mountain at the Magic Kingdom. From disneyparks.disney.go.com: As you know, with any Imagineering project, the story comes first. And the updated Space Mountain attraction at Walt Disney World Resort is [...]

The construction walls have come down around the front of Space Mountain at the Magic Kingdom as its lengthy refurbishment begins to wind down. Bright green is the new accent color of choice, replacing the strong orange color closely associated with the attraction’s former sponsor, FedEx. New additions to the outside of Space Mountain include [...]

The 17th annual Epcot International Flower & Garden Festival kicks off March 3, 2010 – earlier than ever (Last year’s festival began March 18.) – and continues for 75 days through May 16, 2010, with many brand-new features. “The advantage of starting earlier is that we’ll be able to feature more brilliant color than ever, [...]

After experiencing more than 120 attractions and events; producing hundreds of tweets, Facebook updates and pictures and writing more than 160 blog posts, best friends from New York City, Kyle Post and Stacey Doornbos completed the Orlando/Orange County Convention & Visitors Bureau’s (CVB) 67 Days of Smiles. After beating out hundreds of applicants from more [...]

Sure, it’s an honor just to be nominated… but we’d like your help in winning a few categories in The Orbbies, awards created by the Orlando Sentinel honoring “Orlando’s Rockin’ Blogs.” We’re nominated in the Theme Parks & Tourism category and if you enjoy this blog, you can vote for us by clicking the graphic [...]

It’s become an annual tradition around Central Florida’s theme parks to raise ticket prices by a few dollars. However, SeaWorld is now making an enticing offer for Florida residents to keep them coming back all year. Florida residents can now purchase SeaWorld or Busch Gardens 2010 Fun Cards for $69.95, which is $5 less than their most [...]

There are only two nights remaining to experience Halloween Horror Nights at Universal Studios. As an added treat, Universal added an all-new scare zone this week. Located within a New York area alley, characters from past Horror Nights events (like Jack the clown pictured above) have emerged to greet guests once again, previewing what’s to come [...]

If you’re looking forward to the Wizarding World of Harry Potter opening at Universal Orlando’s Islands of Adventure theme park in 2010 and wish you could conjure up a way to be part of the magic, you will soon have your chance. Thanks to a post on Orlando United, we’ve learned that Universal Orlando is [...]

Following on the heels of a number of iPhone apps that purportedly provide access to Disney theme park attraction wait times (through user submissions) comes Disney’s first official cell phone app called Mobile Magic. This app, however, will as of now not be available on the iPhone but rather compatible Verizon Wireless network phones. The [...]

By Andy Guinigundo Cedar Fair has announced that after a 26-year run at Cedar Point, The Demon Drop will be dismantled and reassembled at sister park Knotts Berry Farm near Los Angeles. First opened in 1983, the Demon Drop is an elevator-style drop ride that simulates a free-fall drop from a 10-story building. In the [...]

In addition to being able to see Princess Tiana from Disney’s upcoming film “The Princess and the Frog” in her new show at the Magic Kingdom, Tiana’s Showboat Jubilee, little girls now have the opportunity to get made over like Tiana in the Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique. Here’s a video of what a Princess Tiana makeover [...]

A host of Disney characters welcomed Princess Tiana this morning following her horse-drawn carriage ride to Cinderella Castle in the Magic Kingdom. Tiana is featured in the upcoming Walt Disney Pictures animated film “The Princess and the Frog” which marks Disney’s return to traditional 2-D hand-drawn animation. Today’s special welcome was a one-time event in [...]

The R&B group “Boys II Men” pose with Princess Tiana Oct. 26, 2009 at the Magic Kingdom. From left are Wanya Morris, Shawn Stockman and Nathan Morris. Below, they also pose with their family and Prince Naveen. Boys II Men are performing in Epcot’s Eat to the Beat concert series, a part of the International [...]

It’s a well-known “secret” that Disney’s annual Christmas Day parade is actually taped a few weeks before Christmas Day. This year, it’s being taped at the Magic Kingdom on Dec. 3, 4, and 5 (Thursday – Saturday). Registration is now open for anyone who wants to sign up to be part of the crowd and [...]

Princess Tiana and several other characters from the upcoming Disney animated film “The Princess and the Frog” will be part of a new show premiering at the Magic Kingdom on Monday, Oct. 26. After a music-filled processional down Main Street, U.S.A. Monday morning, Tiana’s Showboat Jubilee will premiere along the Rivers of America in Liberty [...]

By Andy Guinigundo Let’s go over the scorecard: The Blackstone Group describes itself as an “alternative asset manager and financial advisory firm”. In this layman’s definition it is a company that owns companies. Most recently, it acquired Busch Entertainment Corporation – the company that owns Busch Gardens and SeaWorld. Blackstone also jointly owns Universal Orlando [...]