jedimaster1227

Thank you for sharing such a great look at this park! Based on the crowds it looks like this park really stands a great chance of being consistently successful for a long time to come! I can't wait to see what the next few seasons bring to the park!

^Already bought my ticket!

That bubble dome concept art screams "Happy Magic Water Cube" and I love it!

http://blog.universalorlando.com/whats-new/entertainment-interactive-experiences-wizarding-world-harry-potter-diagon-alley-revealed/

Yesterday I had the chance to visit Disney's Animal Kingdom Park to check out the newest addition, or rather re-introduction of one of the park's most popular shows. The opening of the Harambe Theatre and the relocation of Festival of the Lion King is a major part of the park's expansion efforts. Let's take a look and see just how much was done to move the show from its previous home to Harambe! Time for another great day in the park! Such a nice, new area! I love the detail that went into integrating this new venue into Harambe! Rumor has it a dragon lives in this cave! Certificate of Authenticity! Lots of extended queue space for this very popular show... Festival of the Lion King has returned with some slightly modified choreography along with new lighting and fog effects... But it is the same show that guests have known and loved for years! The new fog effects are awesome! Are you ready? Time for some photos for those of you that have never seen the show! Here's the path to the former Camp Minnie-Mickey, soon to be home to Pandora: The World of Avatar (title not confirmed). In case you were wondering, these were parade floats before they were ever used in the show at Animal Kingdom. The show is seriously an overload of awesome! Simba plays a large part in the show as well! May I introduce to you, the Tumble Monkeys! More fog! FIRE!!! Festival of the Lion King moved from the lower portion of the park to the left of the Oasis to a brand new theater in the back of Africa. This is new! Let's head over! Rather than disassembling the old theater and moving it to Harambe, Disney built a brand new theater for the Festival of the Lion King and blended it beautifully into the existing Harambe area. The backside of the Tusker House is beautiful! This corner of the park used to only be seen from the Discovery River Boats that ran during the park's first year. Almost ready to head in... So awesome! Never get tired of seeing this! There's an aerial acrobatic section of the show set to the tune of "Can You Feel The Love Tonight." Fun stuff! An elephant for the elephant section! So much going on, it is great! So much fun! I really do love this show! And the finale! The new Harambe Theatre is an incredible additional to an already amazing park. It is great to see this fantastic show returning to the park after a brief hiatus in a brand new, beautifully themed theater with new effects and lighting. If this is a sign of things to come for this park, there's a lot to be excited about!

^The PTC trains were not designed to navigate the tracks' twisted turns, causing them rip up the track.

Earlier this week Disney hosted another 24 hour event at the Magic Kingdom Park at the Walt Disney World Resort in Florida (along with a similar event encompassing both parks at the Disneyland Resort). The event included special entertainment, the return of a few elements of past events/seasons, a full day of operation of the new Seven Dwarfs Mine Train and some neat food items to along with it all. Having not been able to participate in the last few 24 hour events, I dove in headfirst for this one and had an incredible time! Throughout the Magic Kingdom Park there were DJ set ups prepped for later in the evening, including this bridge between Frontierland and Adventureland. Over in the Big Top Souvenirs tent in Storybook Circus there were plenty of themed sweets in which to indulge like these gorgeous looking Maleficent-inspired candy apples. Exclusive to the event were these Heroes vs. Villains cupcakes. Maleficent cake pops! Oh. My. Gosh. Do you want to eat a snowman? I couldn't resist! Sadly, this Orange Bird had to be peeled to be enjoyed. The duck was wondering what everyone was lining up for... The massive line was for the soft opening of the Seven Dwarfs Mine Train, the final piece of the New Fantasyland expansion of the Magic Kingdom Park. The interactive queue features a touchscreen sluice where you sort gems into their respective bins. There's also this neat musical water feature... Sadly it doesn't play Stairway to Heaven when you cross the watery strings. Deep into the vault we go! Noted! Spinning the barrels actually makes the projections/reflections on the cave ceiling move! The queue is extremely well designed! Here's my ride! So my first ever ride on the Seven Dwarfs Mine Train worked out to take place exactly during the finale of Wishes, the park's fireworks spectacular. And the ride's finale happens to be a perfect location to enjoy the final bursts of pyro. It was an awesome view! The cottage plays a pretty important role in the ride's storyline but also comes into the view from the exit. In case you haven't already seen it, here is TPR's official POV footage of the fantastic new Seven Dwarfs Mine Train! Needless to say, the park was pretty crowded for the event. With the upcoming release of Maleficent in theaters, there was no shortage of Maleficent-inspired merchandise available for purchase in the park. Citrus Swirlfie! You read that right. People were willing to wait five hours to meet Maleficent and The Queen in the Scarytale Hall (normally the Princess Fairytale Hall). Anna and Elsa held their own with a wait time of 210 minutes. Cinderella's carriage was out for photos for the evening. It wouldn't be a visit to the Magic Kingdom Park without a viewing of Celebrate the Magic! Such an incredible show! I'm gonna Wreck-It! One of the best parts of the show. Stunning! Then something magical happened! It turns out that each of the three showings of Celebrate the Magic during the Rock Your Disney Side event pulled a different segment from the former The Magic, The Memories & You! projection show that was found at the park before Celebrate the Magic debuted. For this show, the Halloween/Villains segment from last year was brought back! Steampunk Cinderella Castle! Ursula takes over the castle! Such an amazing effect! Later in the evening we caught the show from the side (it is also projected on both forward-facing sides of the castle to allow guests the ability to watch from the sides of the castle), noticing that the Summer segment from The Magic, the Memories & You! was being shown, featuring scenes from The Little Mermaid and Lilo & Stitch. Exclusive to this event was a brand new pre-parade that rolled out before the Main Street Electrical Parade, called the It's Good To Be Bad! Villainous Celebration! The show pulled two floats from the spectacular Boo to You! Parade found at the Mickey's Not So Scary Halloween Party, using a retooled version of the "It's Good To Be Bad!" song featured as a part of the show. Some rare villains out to play! Could it be??? Oogie Boogie!!! Jafar and Maleficent take the lead. The Queen wraps up the pre-parade. Check out Orlando Attraction Magazine's footage of the It's Good to be Bad! Villainous Celebration pre-parade! As the night started to come to a close (for us), we were fortunate to get our hands on a limited option card that invited us to Cinderella's Royal Table for a special opportunity. Very exclusive! I'd never been in here before, so just walking into the Cinderella's Royal Table lobby had me giddy. But this was why we were here! Check out Orlando Attraction Magazine's video footage of this totally unique Maleficent meet & greet experience! Disney actually brought out the film version of Maleficent for one night only to meet a handful of guests at the Rock Your Disney Side event, and she was amazing! It wouldn't be a trip to the Magic Kingdom without a ride on Space Mountain! A mainstay of the 24 hour events, Cinderella Castle became host to a DJ dance party to close out the night. Always fun to witness. The Fab Five rolled out into the Hub to join the party! This was such an incredible event! I can't wait to see what Disney cooks up for next year's 24 Hour Magic Kingdom event!

It definitely looks like it is still wooden track, just with a steel structure. GCI built White Lightning at Fun Spot with a steel structure too, so they've already successfully dabbled in that arena...

http://www.bizjournals.com/orlando/blog/2014/05/fdot-oks-american-maglev-s-orlando-airport-to-i.html?ana=twt

That's a very interesting lift structure those coasters have going on there...

^It is definitely not open.

Holiday World has sent us a press release about the teaser campaign for their 2015 expansion, billed as the largest in its nearly seven decade history!

Great to see this park brought back to life. I was skeptical that we'd ever see it up and running again after Six Flags bailed... Serious props to Ed Hart for his persistence in bring Kentucky Kingdom back. I'm not sure it would've ever had another shot if it weren't for him.

^The Cinderella Castle Suite and the Disneyland Dream Suite were built for the Year of a Million Dreams campaign(s), but since the conclusion of those promotions the suites have been used for internal purposes like hosting special guests.

Thank you for sharing these amazing photos with us Shane! Can't wait to see how the park looks when it is open!

Great pictures! Fun Spot really has "grown up" with the recent expansions.

Those trains kind of remind me of the ones from Cliffhanger at Ghost Town in the Sky. I'd be curious to hear what people think of them once the ride reopens.

^^Just imagine what my reaction to Falcon's Fury will be.

http://touch.orlandosentinel.com/#section/-1/article/p2p-80202275/

^Very Hydrolator/Journey to the Center of the Earth-esque for sure. I just hope the elevator experience ends up being a little more themed than the elevator scene from Men in Black: Alien Attack.

It is heavily rumored that the track was developed by Premier Rides while certain ride elements were built by Dynamic Attractions. There's been whispers of possible Intamin and/or Vekoma involvement as well when it comes to specific track elements.

Busch Gardens Tampa Bay has sent us a press release about this year's returning Island Nights Summer event at Adventure Island!

Official Press Release: UNIVERSAL ORLANDO RESORT REVEALS FIRST-EVER DETAILS ABOUT HARRY POTTER AND THE ESCAPE FROM GRINGOTTS – THE HIGHLY-ANTICIPATED ATTRACTION IN THE WIZARDING WORLD OF HARRY POTTER – DIAGON ALLEY Grand Opening Date for The Wizarding World of Harry Potter – Diagon Alley to be Announced at a Later Date ORLANDO, Fla. (May 13, 2014) – Today, Universal Orlando Resort revealed details about Harry Potter and the Escape from Gringotts – the revolutionary attraction found in the heart of The Wizarding World of Harry Potter – Diagon Alley. The Grand Opening date for the spectacularly themed environment will be announced at a later date. Imagine being part of the iconic moment from the Harry Potter film series where Harry, Ron and Hermione break into one of the most guarded places in the wizarding world – Gringotts bank – to retrieve a magical object that will help defeat Lord Voldemort. You’ve seen the action on-screen, and now you get to be part of it. Universal’s creative team worked hand-in-hand with Stuart Craig and his production team from the Harry Potter films to immerse guests in this pivotal scene from the final Harry Potter book and film. During an action-packed, fully-immersive journey on Harry Potter and the Escape from Gringotts, you will: - Marvel at the 60-foot, fire-breathing Ukrainian Ironbelly dragon atop Gringotts Wizarding Bank - Tour Gringotts bank and pass through the marble hall where you’ll see goblins hard at work - Race through a labyrinth of underground Gringotts vaults - Encounter the villainous Death Eater, Bellatrix Lestrange, as she attempts to send you to your doom - Come face to face with He Who Must Not Be Named - Experience even more mind-blowing moments The multi-dimensional, multi-sensory attraction, Harry Potter and the Escape from Gringotts, will revolutionize theme park entertainment. This next generation thrill ride seamlessly integrates a compilation of the most innovative technology ever created, 360-degree themed sets, 4K digital high-definition animation, state-of-the-art 3-D Infitec projection systems and live special effects with beloved characters and breathtaking moments from the Harry Potter books and films. “Harry Potter and the Escape from Gringotts will change the way you think about theme park attractions,” said Mark Woodbury, president of Universal Creative. “We’ve created an entirely new type of ride that propels guests into the story like never before, and guests will remember it long after their visit to Diagon Alley.” The Wizarding World of Harry Potter - Diagon Alley will bring even more of Harry Potter’s adventures to life. The new area will double the size of the sweeping land already found at Universal Orlando, expanding the spectacularly themed environment across both Universal Studios and Islands of Adventure. Inside the land, guests will enjoy themed shops, dining experiences and the groundbreaking thrill ride – Harry Potter and the Escape from Gringotts. For additional information about The Wizarding World of Harry Potter, visit http://www.UniversalOrlando.com/WizardingWorld. NEW VIDEOS! And check out this video, too! Another article: http://www.bizjournals.com/orlando/blog/2014/05/death-eaters-dragons-goblins-your-insider-guide-to.html?page=all And yet another article: Slashfilm also has a VERY interesting article with a few more details: http://www.slashfilm.com/harry-potter-and-the-escape-from-gringotts-secrets/#more-232795 I took note of this part, though: That description of the elevators and the boarding area could be word for word how I would describe Journey to the Center of the Earth at Tokyo DisneySea. Not that that's a bad thing, but I guess I hope it plays out a bit more "original" and different than that, you know? And Universal now seems to be backing off on calling it a "roller coaster" And apparently Universal have released the height restriction for the ride: 42" aimed at being a little more of a "family ride" than Forbidden Journey. Harry Potter and the Escape from Gringotts — the signature attraction found in The Wizarding World of Harry Potter – Diagon Alley at Universal Orlando — will open this summer. The ride, which takes guests through the underground labyrinths of Gringotts, lasts four minutes and will seat up to 12 people. Guests will come face-to-face with dragons, maybe even that Ukranian Ironbelly that's perched above the bank's exterior. Death Eater Bellatrix Lestrange isn't going to let us get away with trying to bring an end to her master, Lord Voldemort. Universal Orlando will also be able to show off the detail of its Gringotts goblins animatronics, which are pretty realistic. Guests will interact with goblins as they are there to help the Muggles open up accounts. So what is your policy if I plan to close my Gringotts account? Oh, I get to meet that dragon? Gotcha, no thanks. Higher Res Version of the ride vehicle.

^The people that work in the call center are probably not the best people to go by when it comes to operational updates for Falcon's Fury. Right up there with tram drivers and the Dippin' Dots guy.