The best time to visit Walt Disney World will soon be here! The weeks between Thanksgiving and Christmas is one of the best times to go to WDW! The weather is great, gone are the humid 90 plus days of summer with their daily rain showers, it’s been in the 70’s this week. Gone also are the crowds, once the Thanksgiving weekend is over the crowds disappear.

It’s such an enjoyable time to be in the parks. They aren’t open as long but with less people in them you can get so much more done. Disney will be have up the Christmas decorations, it will really get you in the mood! They have an after hours “party” in the Magic Kingdom, for an additional charge, called Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Party.

This years dates are

November 10, 11, 14, 16, 20, 21, 30
December 2, 4, 5, 7, 9, 11, 12, 14, 16, 18, and 19

Tickets are on sale now

Premium date prices:
November 14, 21
December 4, 5, 11, 12, 14, 18, 19
$59.59/adult
$53.20/child

Advance purchase prices for the following dates:
November 10, 11, 16, 20, 30
December 2, 7, 9, 16
$52.13/adult
$45.74/child

Annual Pass holder/Disney Vacation Club Discount Available for
November 11, 20
December 7, 9, 16
$48.94/adult
$42.55/child

Back to the Home Page

More…

Back to the Home Page

Tonight the night clubs at Disney World’s Pleasure Island will close their doors for the last time. Opened in 1989 as an on-property nightspot geared towards adults Pleasure Island has suffered cutbacks over the years as well as competition form Universal Orlando’s City Walk. This past June Disney announced that Pleasure Island would be closed and the area renovated into a more family oriented venue.

Pleasure Island is the second of three sections built in Downtown Disney and located in between Downtown Disney Marketplace and Downtown Disney West Side. This was an awkward arrangement as families had to bypass the adult oriented area by walking through the parking lot to get from one family oriented area to the other.

Disney World has made no announcement about what will replace the Pleasure Island clubs to date, they’ve said after the first of the year they’ll make an announcement. They have said that there will be a phased approach to the renovation and venues will open over time rather than all at once.

In the meantime Ragland Road restaurant, Fuego Cigar Bar by Sosa Cigars and two retail outlets will remain open.

Walt Disney World Resort Announces Family Friendly Facelift For Pleasure Island

Back to the Home Page

You may or may not know that there is a tunnel that runs under Walt Disney World’s Magic Kingdom Park. The story goes that Walt Disney was dissatisfied with the setup of Disneyland in California where cast members from one themed area in costume had to walk through another themed area to get to work and looked out of place. He wanted to fix this when he built his Florida theme park. He envisioned a tunnel running under the park so a castmember in a Tomorrowland costume didn’t have to walk through Fantasyland. Also deliveries could be made through the tunnel keeping the inner workings behind the magic hidden from the guests.

Other articles I’ve found on the internet love to refer to the tunnel as the Utilidor which while it sounds cool, no one who works there calls it by that name. Perhaps Utilidor might have been the name for it on some original design drawings but I’d never heard that term till the advent of Disney sites on the internet. During the three years I worked there one of my office doors opened into it. Everyone who works at the Magic Kingdom simply calls it the tunnel.

The tunnel wasn’t built as a tunnel in the traditional sense. Because the elevation in Florida is so low and the ocean so near the water table is very near the surface. Digging as deep as was needed for the tunnel would have yielded trenches filled with water, which would continuously have to be dealt with for the life of the park. Instead the tunnel and lots of rooms off it were built at the original ground level, covered over and the Magic Kingdom was built on top of that. The tunnel isn’t level in several areas it dips under structures and waterways above.

Back to the Home Page

Wow I’ve been so busy this month… I’d wanted to really get going on the site but Hurricanes Fay, Gustav, and Ike had other ideas. This week we finished up an intense almost month of high tempo operations for the hurricanes. Working mostly every day and numerous 12-hour plus  shifts. Getting rescue forces ready, positioned, and then and moved around again for each different storm culminating in the the rescues the night before and the day after Ike’s landfall.

In two weeks I go TDY to a two month long school. I’m going to try to work on the site some before I go and definitely while I’m at school. I’ll have a lot of free time there.

Well going to get to work…

I’ve been thinking about doing a piece on the tunnel under the Magic Kingdom.

Back to the Home Page

As expected Shades of Green has posted new discounted attraction ticket prices on their web site. I’ve updated all of the prices here. Earlier this month Disney increased the price of a one day one park admission ticket to $75 which effects all other admission prices. Experts have said this is an important price point and should hold for a while. Going above $75 is significant. 

I remember prices in the low to mid 20’s when I worked there!

Universal Studios Orlando followed Disney’s lead and raised their one day admission to $75 also.

Shades of Green Attraction Ticket Prices

Back to the Home Page

This time it’s Shades of Green that is offering a golf package. With their “Golf Like a Pro” Package.

This September, play golf the way it is meant to be — on lush green fairways and tournament-ready surfaces. Play the same courses that Tiger, V.J., and others compete on every November. Step into the shoes of the champions and experience Disney’s® award-winning golf courses!

More…

Back to the Home Page

LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla.(Disney) – Disney’s Oak Trail golf course, a relaxed, nine-hole walking course designed for the entire family, has been added as an entitlement on select Walt Disney World tickets. 

The ticket entitlement, which covers green fees, has been added to the Water Park Fun & More option of Magic Your Way Tickets and to Premium Annual Passes.
  
The nine-hole, par-36 Oak Trail course, located adjacent to Shades of Green

More…

Back to the Home Page

Today Disney World raised the price of a one day park admission ticket to $75. This anticipated increase sets a very hard to pass price point. It should be quite a long time before we see another increase. This increase affects all other types of tickets.

Shades of Green has not changed their ticket prices listed on-line as of this weekend but may be selling at increased prices in their ticket sales office today. I’m leaving for a one week TDY today so won’t be able to post updated prices until next weekend.

If you are going to WDW in the future and want to try to get the old rates on tickets try your base ticket sales office Monday! They might not have the new rates yet!

Back to the Home Page

Disney’s six adult oriented night clubs (Adventurers Club, Comedy Warehouse, 8-Trax, BET Soundstage, Mannequins Dance Palace, and Rock and Roll Beach Club) will close for good after 27 September 2008.

More…

Back to the Home Page