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Margaritaville Resort Orlando has sent us a new announcement about the second phase of homes being built at the resort, Paradise Cay!

The 2019 lineup for the Real Music, Real Masters concert series has been announced! Check out all of the new and returning favorites performing in the Stanleyville Theater! https://buschgardens.com/tampa/events/real-music-real-masters/

(Continued) I never thought I'd experience the Shanghai version of this attraction first, but it was neat to see the original inspiration after having done the more modern take. This is the most amazing Ewok plush I've ever seen. Some cool figures to be found in the maze! Considering how much land this takes up (and how long it took us to get through the maze), it always amazes me that the parks would yielded so much valuable real estate to a walk through attraction. Didn't expect to see the Queen of Hearts' castle here! Still love this version of the ride the most! Time for another ride! As a Star Wars fan, I was happy to experience Hyperspace Mountain... As a parks fan, I was a little bummed to have missed out on Space Mountain: Mission 2... And the chance to see the Columbiad Cannon in action. Tokyo's Star Tours has the best queue... I'd argue that Paris' Star Tours has the best gift shop. Love this! Love this even more! I was super excited to experience this walk through attraction! Flashbacks to Tokyo DisneySea... Some neat things to look at... And a few nods to the film that inspired the attraction. For the longest time I thought the Hyperion was something designed specifically for Discoveryland... I learned later in life that it was actually featured in the Disney film, The Island at the Top of the World. Next we checked out the Aladdin walk through attraction... I really liked this one! Super cool! Adventureland in Disneyland Paris is super unique! I loved seeing this from the Swiss Family Robinson Treehouse! I love seeing the Disneyland Paris Hotel so prominently towering over the entrance of the park! There's a Disney Legends statue near the entrance of the park! Having witnessed three different Disney Legends presentations, this was cool to see here! The World of Disney store was neat to visit. This statue and the Minnie statue on the opposite side came from the former Times Square store in New York City. So many unique Ewok plush to find here! In the store that was equivalent to the Art of Disney in the stateside parks, we found this awesome model of the castle. I love that this LEGO dragon can be found in every Disney LEGO Store location around the world. Looks familiar! Also familiar! Time to head to the city to explore Paris!

Our second day at the Disneyland Paris Resort continued with us taking in some more great food and more of the experiences not found at the other parks we'd been to... And by the end of our day and a half at Disneyland Paris, we regretted not being able to stay for another day or so. We found the cast to be incredibly friendly, the operations to be highly efficient, and the unique charm and beauty of Disneyland Paris Park enthralling. We're already talking about planning another trip back to the resort once their major expansion efforts are done in a few years. We had time during our visit for one table service meal and while Walt's was on our list, Bistro chez Remy seemed like the more unique option of the two. Time for a flash back to my youth... The interior decor is incredibly clever! You're dining in Remy's restaurant for mice seen at the end of the film (and at the end of the ride). We each got variations of the premium prix fixe menu... My wife started with the cold vegetable gazpacho. Duck foie gras! This was authentic and smooth--not my normal fare but there wasn't a drop left on my plate when I was done. We went with the premium prix fixe particularly because of the signature ratatouille and it did not disappoint! My dessert was a truffle-laced cheese and it was easily one of the best cheeses I've ever consumed! My wife got the Apple Tarte Tatin, and it was unbelievable--the best cooked apple dish we've ever eaten. Despite being stuffed to the brim after Remy, we did continue to force ourself through noshing at the food and wine booths. "Earily" familiar... While not a carbon copy of the version of the Studio Backlot Tour that existed at Disney's Hollywood Studios for so many years, there are many similarities. The set from the "hit show" Dinotopia... I had to look this one up to know what they were talking about. This seems familiar. Where have I seen this before? SKLOOSH! Something else familiar on the Horizon... Another set on the Studio Tram Tour is inspired by the "hit film" Reign of Fire... For those of you that remember that one. Cars from the live action 100 (and 101) Dalmatian films... These I actually recognized! Having just been in California two weeks earlier, it was a little strange not seeing the Guardians of the Galaxy Mission Breakout experience here... The Tanaleer Tivan statue would be here. Waiting for the Rocket animatronic to come out. Toy Story Land here is pretty cute! Though I prefer Florida's Slinky Dog ride... Oddly enough, RC Racer was the first halfpipe coaster I'd ever ridden... And it was quite fun! The queue is designed to look like slot car tracks! Mini Cars Land... Deju vu all over this park. So many flashbacks. Interesting to see the Partners statue here. The park's dedication plaque. TIKI!!!! Back in the Discovery Arcade in Disneyland Paris, I found this gem of a nook. Such a cool little thing! Sadly Phantom Manor wasn't open during my visit... But even the refurbishment signage was awesome. Love the nods to the other Frontierlands of the Disney Parks around the world. Nothing prepared me for how amazing Big Thunder Mountain is in Paris. The tunnel that brings you to the island where the coaster is based is unreal! Long, dark and fast and I loved every bit of it! Without a doubt, this ended up being our favorite ride in the ENTIRE resort! I see you Phantom Manor! Such a gorgeous mountain range! The Molly Brown is beautiful! The setting of this Big Thunder Mountain cannot be beat! TAKE THE TUNNEL!!! I haven't stopped thinking about this ride since our visit. Another look at the unique Molly Brown. Coco has found his way into Frontierland! TOAD. HALL. RESTAURANT!

Kennywood has been sharing some great updates on Twitter on the construction of Steel Curtain!

https://news.monsta.com/check-out-the-thrilling-new-cattus-coaster-ride-at-maps-perak/ [fbvideonew] [/fbvideonew] [fbvideonew] [/fbvideonew]

Canada's Wonderland has sent us some new Yukon Striker construction photos and video as the installation of the coaster track nears completion. Here's a summary of where they're at with the project so far: [twitter] [/twitter]

Fun Land of Fredericksburg has sent us a press release announcing that ground has been broken on their 2019 go-kart expansion, the largest capital investment in the park to date.

Margaritaville Resort Orlando has sent us a press release about a special offer that guests can take advantage of for travels in the early part of the new year!

https://www.facebook.com/kentuckykingdom/

Huey Magoo's in Central Florida is hosting a new Christmas charity event across their company's locations, benefiting the Christmas Dreams charitable organization. If you're in Central Florida today, be sure to stop by one of their locations for a great set of chicken tenders that will go towards a great cause!

Disney has announced that Kingdom Hearts III will be featured in a new limited time pop-up experience at Disney Springs!

https://www.usj.co.jp/company/company_e/2018/1205.html

http://www.olc.co.jp/en/news/news_tdr/20181206_01e/main/0/link/20181206_01e.pdf The above is a concept image and only shows the approximate location of the facilities. © Disney

The first track pieces for Tigris have been installed at Busch Gardens Tampa Bay!

Your photos make me really yearn for another Halloween trip to Disneyland... Maybe next year! Thank you for continuing to share such great reports with us!

This looks like such a great event! I love that the water park is taking on a different form for the holidays! And the food booths look like an excellent plus for the event! Thank you so much for sharing such a great report!

Universal Studios Hollywood has sent us a press release announcing details for this year's EVE event, celebrating New Year's Eve at the park!

The final day of the D23 Destination D 2018 was focused on a lot of company history surrounding Mickey Mouse's 90th birthday. Several of the presentations had photo/video restrictions but here are some photos from the segments we were allowed to capture! We’re back at Walt Disney World for the final day of Destination D! Check out what’s in store for today! Here are some of the earliest concept sketches found in The Walt Disney Archives for attractions envisioned for Walt Disney’s “Mickey Mouse Park,” the idea that later became Disneyland. Here’s another look at the new Disney Skyliner! Here's a peek inside of the cabin. The morning started out with a little Mousercise! The audience loved this throwback! This was the first known written mention of Walt Disney's "Mickey Mouse Park," the concept that would evolve into Disneyland. An early concept sketch for the park when it was planned to be based near the Disney Studios in Burbank. This is the earliest concept art showing a complete Rivers of America-style waterway in the park. This next piece is the earliest art that shows a railroad encircling the park's borders. A more fleshed out concept piece of the park plan above. An early Swan Boat concept... The Swan Boats ended up being an opening day attraction at Walt Disney World's Magic Kingdom. An aquatic themed carousel... This concept would not be fleshed out in any way until King Triton's Carousel opened at Disney California Adventure in 2001. A concept for a ride featuring Monstro... Monstro would later play a part in the Storybookland Canal Boats ride at Disneyland. A concept for a swinging ride inspired by Mickey and the Beanstalk. A Babes in Toyland ride was considered for Disneyland. The concept of entering the queue through a storybook has been done several times at Disney parks around the world. Bambi's Forest might have been a petting zoo, but it featured an animatronic Thumper in the middle. Walt Disney once intended for the Mickey Mouse Club to have its own island in his themed park. This concept would later become Tom Sawyer Island in the park that became Disneyland. Before the New Fantasyland project at Disneyland, a Dumbo's Circus Land concept was proposed for the park. A clown restaurant, Dumbo Circus Nursery and a band stand show featuring a variety of Disney characters were all concepts intended for the proposed Dumbo’s Circus land at Disneyland. The clown restaurant's facade concept art... Dumbo Circus Nursery is an interesting concept as it is hard to tell what the experience would have actually been... A show, an exhibit or an actual petting zoo. Before Pinocchio’s Daring Journey ended up in Fantasyland at Disneyland, it was designed to be a part of the proposed Dumbo’s Circus land in the park! Another concept for Disneyland took place in a barn... Inside guests could see clips from different animated shorts... This concept was fleshed out at the Main Street Cinema at Disneyland Park. Another abandoned concept for Disneyland was a "making of" experience where guests would see the making of the classic Steamboat Willie short. More concept art from Dumbo's Circus... And another piece from the planned band stand show. Here is some concept art from the proposed Disneyland Dumbo’s Circus dark ride that was meant to be a part of a Dumbo-themed land in the park! The concept got far enough along that character vignettes were designed with the circus story in mind. These are fantastic! Check out this concept art that was produced for Disneyland where the Carousel of Progress would have become an attraction dedicated to Mickey’s 60th Birthday! Original concepts for The Three Musketeers involved using more established Disney characters including Mr. Toad! We had the chance to learn more about the Mickey the True Original Exhibition in New York! It looks really neat! There's a full recreation of the Mickey Mouse Club set in the exhibition! We also had the chance to learn about the making of Mickey and Minnie's costumes... They even came out to model a few examples! Next thing you know, the whole gang came out wearing their Mickey’s 90 Birthday Celebration costumes! In the "Totally Minnie" segment, we were able to learn about Minnie's history and we were able to watch this cute music video of her performing "Don't Go Breaking My Heart" with Elton John. We had a chance to meet with Darren Romanelli (curator of Mickey the True Original Exhibition), Bret Iwan (the voice of Mickey Mouse), Bill Farmer (the voice of Goofy and Pluto) and AShley Eckstein (the founder & designed for Her Universe and the voice of Ahsoka Tano on Star Wars Rebels and Star Wars The Clone Wars). We even got some animation lessons this weekend from real Disney animators! The event closed out with a Pajama Party featuring a few special guests! The came out to dance and play! It was a great way to end the weekend's event! Of course there were treats! There was a cake! Artists were positioned throughout the room so that guests could watch them create pieces inspired by Mickey Mouse! It was quite cool to watch! Definitely a fun little bonus for the evening! Everyone had the chance to sing Mickey & Minnie "Happy Birthday!" The dancing was fun too. And guests could enjoy a photo moment with the Skyliner cabin.

(Continued) Time for something I've been waiting a LONG time to experience. Just a great show overall! The new trains on Space Mountain are really fantastic! I didn't find the ride experience to be rough at all! Hyperspace Mountain is a very fun experience. I would have loved to see Space Mountain: Mission 2, but as a Star Wars fan, this was still a fun first experience for a looping Space Mountain. I love the setup of the Star Tours corner of Discoveryland, almost as much as the one in Tokyo. Best vending machine design ever. Illuminations was one of the best castle fireworks shows I've seen (outside of Happily Ever After in Florida). I love the World of Color-style fountains in the show. And there was no shortage of pyro! The projections are great... Seeing Star Wars projected on the castle was something special for me! Loved every moment of it! I spent a lot of time exploring the Discovery Arcade on Main Street. Just a gem that I can't imagine would be built ever again. Time for my first Cornetto cone! Back the next day, we got to enjoy the park in the light. This castle is something special! I love the marquee for this version of Pinocchio! It amazes me that the hardware for the old ferris wheel-style Old Mill ride remains attached to the thematic Old Mill all these years later. I was in for a pleasant surprise... I hadn't done a lot of research on the parks to preserve as many possible surprises as possible... I'll explain why shortly. A closer look... They really took the Casey Jr. and Storybook Boat concepts from Disneyland and plussed them when they built Disneyland Paris. The Boy Who Cried Wolf! A Night on Bald Mountain! Enter the Cave of Wonders! Belle's village with Beast's Castle in the background. Another surprise? Seeing The Wizard of Oz represented here. Most interestingly, it is the animated version of the story. I love the interaction between these two attractions! Remember when I mentioned a pleasant surprise? "it's a small world" in Paris was just that! While I love the Mary Blair style that makes the classic attraction so distinct, I really love the artistic direction they took with this version. Everything feels more grand and vibrant! Proper representation found! The winking hippo is still here! Just awesome! The America section of the ride is really fun! Miami Dolphins? Love it so much! The backside of this gorgeous castle! The dragon underneath this castle was as amazing as I'd hoped! The inside has unique fantasy architecture to distinguish this from actual European castles nearby. The Discovery Arcade is gorgeous, complete with its authentic gas lamps! The window displays inside are awesome! The futuristic poster art is wonderful too. So neat! We ran back over to Studios to get a few more things accomplished... Neat to see a drum band roaming the park. I love this fountain! The detail is great... Stay tuned for more photos from these parks as our Grand European Adventure continues!

Updates: ------------------ Disneyland Paris Day 1 Photos Disneyland Paris Day 2 Photos Paris city photos! Churches, culture and CHEESE! Huge Harry Potter Studio Tour London photo report! London Dungeon, Fortnum & Mason & lots of food! Tower of London, Tower Bridge, London Eye & more! Disney Magic - Dover, Embarkation & Stonehenge Disney Magic - Cobh, Ireland - Blarney, Junnk & food! Disney Magic - Four Days at Sea! Food, fun and more! Disney Magic - Sydney & Halifax! Food, fun and Frozen! Disney Magic - Bay of Fundy & Moosehead Brewery Tour! Disney Magic - Final Sea Day & the Voyage into NYC! New York City - Scott's Pizza Tours, Coney Island, shows & more! ------------------- Original Post: After my wife and I's Shanghai and Tokyo adventure last year, I thought we were done with bigger trips for a while. We took a very short trip to Disneyland in California but other than that we didn't have anything planned... Until the opportunity to take a transatlantic cruise from Dover, England to New York City, NY came up. And we figured, if we were going to go all the way to Europe to catch the ship, we might as well take some time in Paris and London, two cities that we hadn't had much time in previously to experience all that we wanted to... Our trip amounted to 24 days, with 3.5 days in Paris, 3.5 days in London, the 11 night transatlantic cruise on the Disney Magic (stopping along that trip in Portland, Cobh, Sydney (Nova Scotia), Halifax and Saint John (New Brunswick)) and then four days in New York. Our first stop was Disneyland Paris... During my last visit to Paris I was on a high school trip and couldn't break away to visit the resort. This time around we had 1.5 days to experience both parks. With this in mind we opted to stay on property at the recently refurbished Hotel Cheyenne, getting early morning access to the parks (much like Extra Magic Hours at the domestic resorts). We honestly loved the resort more than we expected, between the unique versions of classic lands (the opulent Main Street in particular), the charming walk through experiences and some of the rides we don't have stateside... Plus we were there during Le Rendez-vous Gourmand de Disneyland Paris, the equivalent of Epcot's International Food & Wine Festival at the Walt Disney Studios Park Paris. There was so much to enjoy during our visit that we're definitely working on figuring out when we can go back! The long flight would lead us to Paris and after a short Uber drive we arrived at the Disneyland Paris Resort. The Guardians of the Galaxy Awesome Dance-Off show from California also runs during the Marvel Season of Super Heroes. Having seen it in California, it was fun to see it performed in French here. We have a strange habit of always going to the parks not equal to the ones we have in Florida first... We never plan for this way but in Tokyo we went to DisneySea first and in California we almost always go to California Adventure first. We were thrilled to find out that Le Rendez-vous Gourmand de Disneyland Paris would be running during our visit! I was also genuinely excited to ride this Tower of Terror, as it was the last in the world I'd yet to ride. The sugar waffle with caramel from the festival booth was a delicious start to our tasting experience in the parks. More food! It was neat to check out this Toy Story Land, as the one in Florida had just opened a few months earlier, It is charming in its own way... Not as spread out as the one in Disney's Hollywood Studios but it has some fun attractions for all ages. The Studio Courtyard area was Marvel-ized during the Marvel Season of Super Heroes event. Sadly, this unique attraction was closed for refurbishment during our visit. I was eager to experience the other Rock 'n' Rollercoaster... Especially knowing that this one will close soon to become a new Iron Man-themed coaster. At Disney's Hollywood Studios you ride to the concert... In this version, you ride through the concert! The Marvel Season of Super Heroes also brought a new seasonal show to Walt Disney Studios Park Paris: Super Heroes United. This entrance corridor has some amazing lighting! Lighting envy! I genuinely appreciate how the resort accommodates their mix of English and French speaking guests. Everything is presented in both languages in tandem, which is pretty cool. I wanted to see just what a Marvel show would look like in a Disney park and I wasn't disappointed! All of the major Marvel characters are represented perfectly on stage. I didn't expect to see Nebula included in the show! They also used drones in the show, which was a cool surprise. The Hulk makes an appearance as well. Overall, it was a really neat experience! Still fun! Delicious falafel! CHEESE!!! And cheesy potatoes! The Ratatouille-inspired area is really awesome! And the transition to Toy Story Land is clever too! Time to head in! We ended up riding this one four times during our trip and we're super excited to get the ride closer to home at Epcot! Crush's Coaster was also a really fun coaster! We were able to ride it twice during our visit! Cute! I can't imagine this park before the addition of the Toon Studio Area. It amazed me that there was plush for Experiment 629 (Leroy) from the film Leroy & Stitch... Pretty obscure these days! Time to head to the other park! I enjoyed this park more than I expected overall! Absolutely gorgous! This entry experience blew me away! The park was still celebrating its 25th anniversary during our visit! I absolutely adore the grander architecture of this Main Street USA. Everything has been built out to more grandiose proportions and it really is overwhelming how different the land is by comparison to the others around the world. Just look at City Hall! Pretty sure the Ocean Steamship Co. is the company behind the Sailing Ship Columbia in the American Waterfront at Tokyo DisneySea. A deli on Main Street? Be still my heart! Hello beautiful! Even the entrance to Adventureland is different here! I would have loved to have experienced Colonel Hathi's Pizza Outpost when it was the Explorer's Club Restaurant. I was actually super excited about this one. I love the way the queue runs throughout the ruins.

https://buschgardens.com/tampa/shows/opening-night-critters/

Track pieces for Tigris have begun to arrive at Busch Gardens Tampa Bay!

I actually really like the addition of the auto-play Youtube frame on the side of the screen! It is really great to see footage from the Youtube channel across the site now and it is a neat way to show videos that I may not have realized had been posted yet.

The 2019 FAIRWINDS Broadway in Orlando season started its main season with the touring revival of the classic show, Hello Dolly! Originating in 1964, Hello Dolly has been a longstanding success with numerous tours domestic and international and five revivals since its original run. The current touring production is based on the 2017 revival (most people familiar with this run will know it for Bette Midler's turn as the titular character) but the charm and fun of this show has maintained itself through every iteration of the show to the one we saw onstage at the Dr. Phillips Center for the Performing Arts. Dolly Gallagher Levi is a jack of all trades, admittedly in the business of meddling as a way to make ends meet. She is a matchmaker, a dance instructor, a mandolin tutor and she has an excessive number of other (questionably promised) skills that seem to be exactly what is needed for the situation at hand. She's five steps ahead of all of the other characters around her, slowly manipulating the cast around her like chess pieces on the board... Her end game, to marry the well known half-millionaire of Yonkers, New York, Horace Vandergelder. Also in the mix are Horace's ambitious store clerks Cornelius and Barnaby, and two equally ambitious women of a New York hat shop, Irene and Minnie, and Horace's niece and her determined suitor, Ermengarde and Ambrose. These six characters are pushed towards their own desires as if by fate, but in reality moved by Dolly's designs on them all, often in the most humorous of ways. Hello Dolly is one of the older shows making the rounds these days and it definitely has a different style than the more modern musicals we're used to seeing on tour... But there is a humor to this show that is refreshing and more often than not had the entire theater erupting in fits of laughter. It feels like it comes from a more "innocent" time and that isn't a bad thing! The dialog is witty and at times subtle but ironic...The best direction I can give to describe what I mean is to recommend you to listen to "It Takes a Woman" from the first act... Hilarious and catchy but not spelling out the irony behind the song. For a show rooted in the 1960's, the staging, costuming and dancing is vibrant and enthralling. Betty Buckley gets top billing as the tour's Dolly and she nails the role... Her wit, timing and energy make it easy to invest in her character's moves, especially when they pan out to help others other than just herself. The rest of the cast more than keeps up, with Lewis Stadlen's Horace and Nic Rouleau's Cornelius delivering showstoppers across both acts. Hello Dolly! is a period piece but a timeless one at that and for that reason it makes its mark over fifty years after its original debut. As a fun aside, Disney fans will be sure to recognize several tunes from the show, as instrumental versions of "Elegance," "Put on Your Sunday Clothes" and "Before the Parade Passes By" have been a part of the Main Street USA background loop at Disneyland and Walt Disney World for years! Hello Dolly! is being shown at the Dr. Phillips Center for the Performing Arts from November 27th through December 2nd and tickets are still available for purchase. For more information about the show visit: https://www.drphillipscenter.org/events/tickets/2018/hello-dolly/