Manta, SeaWorld newest roller coaster, opened 16 days early to a crowd of park guests eager to ride Orlando’s next great thrill ride. The attraction is the first “flying” coaster to come to Orlando, offering a unique angle on the world for its riders. It’s apparent from the moment you enter the Manta queue that [...]

Club Penguin characters Rockhopper and Blue Penguin made their first appearance in a Disney theme park at Disney’s Hollywood Studios in Walt Disney World on April 30, 2009: httpvh://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7uT-mX3nwuw You can download standard and high-definition copies of this video in our Video section. Rockhopper, the pirate penguin, and Blue Penguin have several scheduled meet-and-greet times [...]

Today, May 1, 2009, marks the 20th anniversary of Disney’s Hollywood Studios. When it opened two decades ago as the Disney-MGM Studios, it was Walt Disney World’s third theme park rand revolved around the idea of television and movie-making. In honor of the 20th anniversary, Disney held a special rope-drop ceremony this morning at 8 [...]

I spent a few hours in the Magic Kingdom the other day and kept my eyes peeled for anything new or interesting. Here’s what I found: Space Mountain is closed for refurbishment officially until Winter, though signs point to a November opening. Disney is making it very clear to all Tomorrowland visitors that the famous [...]

SeaWorld is just over three weeks away from officially opening its newest roller coaster, Manta, and they’re giving Web visitors a chance to receive free digital on-ride photos and front-of-the-line passes by simply spreading the word about the attraction. Visit ridetheflyingray.com to take part in a variety of online activities including following @RealShamu on Twitter, [...]

Disney’s first-ever Chief Magic Official Justin Muchoney celebrated his final day in his role at Epcot, where he randomly invited park guests to join him in a surprise Unbirthday Party in The Odyssey, featuring Alice in Wonderland decorations and characters – as well as a few surprises for Justin. On Earth Day 2008, Justin Muchoney was named [...]

For those who think they have eaten all there is to eat at Walt Disney World, a new African/Indian restaurant called Sanaa is opening up at Disney’s new Kidani Village on May 1, one week from today. Kidani Village is a Disney’s Vacation Club addition to the Animal Kingdom Lodge. To decide if the cuisine at Sanaa [...]

The Characters in Flight helium balloon ride at Downtown Disney officially opened on April 21, 2009. The balloon, operated by Aerophile, takes up to thirty guests 400 feet in the air for around five minutes, providing 360-degree views of all of Walt Disney World and the surrounding Orlando area. One of the most-discussed aspects of [...]

As revealed to Disney cast members via their online web portal called the Hub, Walt Disney Imagineering is working with Raytheon to develop a new motion simulator attraction for Innoventions at Epcot. The attraction is called “The Sum of All Thrills” and will allow guests to design a roller coaster, jet plane, or bobsled ride using real-life [...]

As a follow-up to our previous post about Ratatouille’s Remy the cooking rat appearing at Epcot’s Les Chefs de France restaurant, Disney has provided us with this video of “Chef Remy” in action: httpvh://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0KsI0qtPsdA

(This was cross-posted on the Distant Creations blog) Prior to moving to Orlando, I had a to-do list of thrilling activities that I wanted to try some day. It included skydiving, learning to fly an airplane, and zip lining through an exotic forest (amongst others). Having now lived in Orlando for several years, I’ve found [...]

Recently, we have added downloadable high-definition versions of our most recent videos to our Videos section. These include: MC Hammer at Universal Studios Mardi Gras A tour through The Holy Land Experience Racing experiences at the Walt Disney World Speedway Zipline Safari at Forever Florida 2009 Epcot Flower & Garden Festival opening celebration The American [...]

The Holy Land Experience in Orlando, FL showcases architectural recreations of Jerusalem, beautiful and serene landscaping, historical exhibits and live religious shows, including the popular Passion drama which reenacts the crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus Christ. It is a theme park like no other. This video summary takes you on a brief tour of some [...]

The Walt Disney World Speedway is home to the Richard Petty Driving Experience as well as the newer Indy Racing Experience, both of which allow guests to ride in and/or drive real race cars at speeds of over 100mph. This video is a quick summary of the racing experiences now available: httpvh://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W-h-eu3p3TI Find out more [...]

The Zipline Safari at Forever Florida is the only zipline experience available in Florida and the only pole-based flat land zipline adventure in the world. This video gives a quick summary of what the zipline safari is all about, including a first-person trip down one of the zips: httpvh://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bkoB65pvQrg You can read more about the [...]

Earning distinction as two of the world’s best Jungle Cruise skippers, Walt Disney World cast members Beth Schafer and Alex Williams were recently chosen to represent the resort at Tokyo Disney Resort’s 25th Anniversary Celebration. Emerging from their helm in the darkest wilds of the Magic Kingdom, Schafer and Williams earned their overseas excursion thanks [...]

A design company out of California had posted (and has since removed) a compilation of images from apparent design work they created for The Wizarding World of Harry Potter, slating to open at Universal Studios’ Islands of Adventure theme park in 2010. While I am personally not a big enough fan of Harry Potter to [...]

httpvh://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S7cGhiDFQmc Actor John Stamos filmed this short video of himself saying “I’m going to Disney World” after finishing the final ER episode. Sure enough, he did come to Walt Disney World just a few days ago.

Volume 2, Issue 3 (April / May 2009) of Orlando Attractions Magazine is now available for preview and pre-Order. FEATURES: • COVER STORY: Idol Opportunity Visitors to Disney’s Hollywood Studios get into the act in the new American Idol Experience. • Unleash Your Inner Celebrity VIP tours offer a unique way to see Orlando’s theme [...]

From cruisenewsweekly.com: Royal Caribbean and Universal Orlando Resort, are joining forces to introduce the Way More Than a Cruise vacation package. The land and sea vacation packages combine a three- or four-night stay at Universal Orlando with a three- or four-night Bahamas cruise aboard Royal Caribbean’s Monarch of the Seas, or a seven-night Caribbean cruise [...]