jedimaster1227

http://disneyparks.disney.go.com/blog/2012/09/amc-downtown-disney-24-at-walt-disney-world-resort-offers-monthly-sensory-friendly-shows-geared-toward-autistic-guests/

http://disneyparks.disney.go.com/blog/2012/09/nighttime-spectaculars-new-celebrate-the-magic-images-expanded-seating-for-fantasmic/

http://disneyparks.disney.go.com/blog/2012/09/all-in-the-details-the-first-photos-from-under-the-sea-journey-of-the-little-mermaid-at-magic-kingdom-park/ http://disneyparks.disney.go.com/blog/2012/09/nighttime-spectaculars-new-celebrate-the-magic-images-expanded-seating-for-fantasmic/

^^^The Illuminations Dessert Parties are reserved for private events typically for larger groups and are booked through the events group at the resort. ^If it had been installed, it would've had at least 50 photos.

Holiday World has sent us a press release about its latest honor from the Golden Ticket awards.

http://www.proactiveinvestors.com/companies/news/34272/lo-q-partnership-deal-opens-door-to-key-asian-market--34272.html

Six Flags Great Adventure has sent us two new press releases, the first regarding Fright Fest... The second press release is about a new species of otters who have joined the park...

^That's a good point. The Rose & Crown does have seating on the water, but I do believe that that area is not always available due to Illuminations Dessert Parties.

^If you are planning on watching the show during dinner, the best place to do so would be at La Hacienda de San Angel at the Mexico Pavilion. It was built just over a year ago out onto the water so it is the closest table service offering you'll be able to have near the water. They actually will loop in the music from Illuminations Reflections of Earth in the restaurant so you get the whole experience while viewing. The food is spectacular and the pricing is reasonable for sure. That being said, you'll probably have to work at it to get a reservation (and a window-view seat) around the time of Illuminations, but it is well worth it. http://disneyworld.disney.go.com/dining/la-hacienda-de-san-angel/ The only other restaurant with a direct view of Illuminations from the window that I can think of is Les Chefs de France, but that also requires having a window view, and that is farther from the water, since there is a walking path in front of the windows. http://disneyworld.disney.go.com/dining/les-chefs-de-france/ The only other option I would recommend is to eat before the show (reservations are easier to get before Illuminations anyways) and then find a good viewing spot after you eat.

http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/accesso-to-incorporate-attraction-ticketing-into-apples-new-passbook-app-169156576.html

Also on Thursday, I had the time to stop by Epcot for the first time in a while. What do you to stay out of a Florida rain storm? You go an an Energy Adventure! Inside of the ride, new vehicle shells are slowly being installed on the old ride vehicles. Blue is new versus the old red/purple. Not much more visible progress outside of Test Track yet. It was a really slow day... Unreal! Is anyone here? No, really. This place was empty! Over in World Showcase, a ton of the International Food & Wine Festival Booths have been installed. It looks like the locations might have been switched up this year for some booths. The popular Australia booth is normally closer to Germany. Lingenberries! Potstickers! I normally skip the South Africa booth, but maybe this year there'll be something I'm interested in trying. More work going on over by Germany. Poland is over by Italy this year. Over near the American Adventure several random characters like Bolt have appeared for guest photos. Wendell from the Country Bear Jamboree was also out to meet guests. Here's a cool new World Showcase shirt for you foodies! And a more retro one also sold at the American Adventure. The Hops & Barley Market (one of my more recent favorites) has moved to the side of the American Adventure. Here's another fun shirt I hadn't seen before! New for this year is the Fresh from Florida booth. I'm hoping it is as good as the old Florida booths from the past used to be, because those shrimp and citrus items are some of my all-time favorites! Singapore also moved from its previous location. Morocco on the other hand is exactly where it always is. The plot used for the Belgium booth is currently being prepped. France looks like it is almost ready to go! Construction work continues on what is rumored to be a more permanent DVC booth at the Canada pavilion... But I'm really hoping that this ends up being a quick service location that serves the cheese soup and chicken sausage with polenta... I'd eat there all day! I can't wait for this to return! Same here! And who can forget about those Kahlua Pork Sliders?

I had the chance to visit Disney's Hollywood Studios last Thursday, and there was plenty of new things to see while there, including new FastPass+ readers and more work on the new Captain Jack attraction in the old Prince Caspian space. It's a little hard to see (I didn't realize they were here until I looked at the photo later on), but FastPass+ readers have been installed at the entrance of Rock n' Rollercoaster. I think this is a good idea! Never gets old! Readers have been installed in front of Tower of Terror as well. Over in The Magic of Disney Animation, Wreck-It Ralph has moved in to the Production Gallery. John Lasseter in Wreck-It Ralph form! Detailed displays about the film's characters and their development fill the gallery. Here's a display for the protagonist of the film, King Candy. And here is Jane Lynch's character. Sarah Silverman's character. "Will do a barrel roll" This film is going to be fantastic! Over at the developing attraction "The Legend of Captain Jack Sparrow" the studio building is receiving a new paint scheme. Tape shows evidence of new signage or paint designs to be added to the front of the new attraction's entrance. Just a normal day, right? Scratch that! Over to the left of the American Idol Experience, a new entrance canopy has been added along with FastPass+ readers for the upcoming test. Between these posts is the future of the FastPass experience...

http://www.nctimes.com/news/local/temecula/temecula-waterpark-developers-push-back-opening-to/article_ea49b0c0-6365-5a92-a548-4d7ca1b06563.html

http://www.amusementtoday.com/the-national-roller-coaster-museum-obtains-the-holy-grail-of-artifacts/

http://www.yomiuri.co.jp/dy/national/T120910003016.htm

Had the chance to stop by SeaWorld Orlando today to check up on the latest construction progress on Antarctica: Empire of the Penguin, as well as the recently reopened Shamu Underwater Viewing space near the Dine with Shamu offering at Shamu Stadium. What better way to start an update than by fulfilling TPR's Turtle Fancy? In the weeks since I last visited, the main attraction structure for Antarctica: Empire of the Penguin has grown to be visible from many new angles. A portion of the old Penguin Encounter building was retained for the creation of the new attraction, but it is clear that this new ride will be far more complex. At least two floors are clearly defined, one more likely for the ride and the other for exhibit or queue space. A smaller section of the building juts out away from the main structure, likely serving as the entrance and exit for the ride. The concrete section at the back of the building is from the old Penguin Encounter building, but the rest is all brand new. The old Friends of the Wild and Antarctica Market buildings have been kept to be reutilized in the completed expansion. How they will be integrated into the new complex has yet to be revealed. The unique shapes of the building's layout indicate likely placement of the rock work (penguin mountain as Elissa called it) seen in the expansion's concept art. A taller section of the building might indicate a larger show scene... Or possibly even the location for the live penguins in the ride. Defined access ways lend credence to the idea that this could be the entrance and exit for the attraction. When you look at it at an overview, it is easy to see just how big this expansion really is! It will be interesting to see just how different this building looks when it is completed... With the reopening of Dine with Shamu came the reopening of the old Shamu Underwater Viewing location. During the tank's downtime since the tragic incident over two years ago the tank has undergone modifications to install a quick-rise floor as a preventative measure for all future trainer interactions performed in the water. It is expected that this system will eventually be rolled out to all SeaWorld tanks used for killer whales. It is hard to believe it has been over two years since guests could access this viewing area. But there really aren't many other experiences that allow you to get this close to a killer whale! Let's take a closer look at the quick-rise flooring. You really do get some unrivaled views here! Just another awesome day at SeaWorld Orlando!

It is great to see Village Roadshow continuing to do well enough to expand in Australia. Those renderings for the looping slide complex look awesome!

It is neat to see those overhead shots of the former Disaster Transport plot. It is interesting to see just how much space is available now that the ride is gone. As for the Space Spiral, I'm curious to see if the ride will be scrapped or disassembled to be sent to another park.

Those are some really fantastic opening day photos! Thank you for sharing them with us!

Sounds like someone got a bit of inspiration from Progress City... The project has got a very EPCOT feel to it, and while I don't expect the it to come to fruition on the same scale as what was announced here (as these things rarely do), it is always nice to see a major announcement like this come down the pipeline.

It is neat to see the park continuing to maintain and even update something as old and awesome as this Schwartzkopf. Between this and Walibi updating Turbine, it is clearly a good year for Schwartzkopf fans!

Lake Compounce is a wonderful park situated in a beautiful location, so camping there would likely be an awesome experience. Plus several other parks have successfully integrated camping/RV parks into their properties (Knoebels, Indiana Beach, etc...), so this seems like a positive step with some historical success to back it.

This isn't the first issue that Cedar Fair has had with the Windseekers, right?

I had the chance on Friday to check out the latest happenings at the Universal Orlando Resort including the adding of thematic elements for Halloween Horror Nights 22, as well as the rapidly growing Jaws replacement and some other miscellaneous items throughout the park. Over in New York's Sting Alley several graveyard pieces have been added. Can any Horror Nights experts provide us with a backstory for Jonathan Hawthorne? It is like the graveyard sprung up from the ground! Amity stands for progress! The frame for what is rumored to be a Gringotts themed coaster has gone up in just over a week and should continue to be built at a brisk pace. Amity stands for dirt! The ride building is pretty huge... Comparable to one of the studios, I believe. Universal's expansion has actually given up retail and food & beverage space in favor of creating a larger waterfront opposite its new land. The new waterfront draws inspiration from the Thames Embankment in London. Despite being trimmed down significantly, you can see the old wall lines from Amity's shops and food options that once were. More of the graveyard can be found on the other side of the park. These set pieces have a fair share of creative nods to Horror Nights and Universal Studios' past. Might we see the Caretaker actually present at the event? I'd imagine not, but it would be neat to see him guarding the graveyard grounds. A tribute to the recently demolished Hercules & Xena building... Any idea who this is? Over at The Simpsons Ride, the front of the Krustyland facades are being reworked to allow for the installation of actual midway games at the front of the queue. Plenty of work still to be done. The new games will only annex a small portion of the ride's massive queue. This will be a very different view in a few years. It was really hard to appreciate just how much land Jaws took up until it was removed. Expect to see a lion with a ring in its mouth installed at each of these indents in the columns. There's simply no sign of slowing... Relocated once again thanks to the construction on the plot of the former Xena building, the Back to the Future Delorean and train have now been given a home in the Central Park section of Universal Studios. And the location is really a great one. I'm really glad they preserved these iconic pieces of film history and kept them in the park for guests to see! More Halloween Horror Nights decor popping up. Doc Brown! I'm probably one of the few... But I really love that Universal has kept Doc Brown as a roaming character in the park, despite the significantly decreased presence of Back to the Future in the park after the ride closed in 2007. One of the shops in the park recently underwent a slight transformation to allow it to sell Oakley, RayBan and Gucci accessories. More props from Horror Nights were put off to the side due to Rock the Universe, but these will soon be placed in the park following the end of the event. More details! So there's more to this Hawthorne story... So Jonathan Hawthorne has several tombs? Over at the Hard Rock Cafe, the pink cadillac has been replaced with a new guitar that lights up at night. It is reportedly designed to be a scale replica of the first item to join the Hard Rock vault, a guitar donated by Eric Clapton. Over in the Lost Continent a new wall has been put up, closing off the Frozen Desert and the palm reader's tent. It is rumored that this space will be needed to allow for the slight expansion of Hogsmeade to include an actual train station for the Hogwarts Express, which is rumored to link both parks when the Amity expansion is complete. Treasures of Poseidon is being slightly reworked to allow for the addition of The Pearl Factory to its retail space. That's all folks!

^It may not reach speeds of 60 mph, but there is a new spinning coaster in Japan that does have an inversion... http://www.themeparkreview.com/forum/viewtopic.php?p=1207589#p1207589