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February 2013

EPCOT Flower & Garden Festival Unveils Expanded Food and Drink Options

EPCOT Food and Wine festival fans, you might want to pack your bags early this year and come down during the Flower and Garden festival. Some of the fall magic is being added to the spring festival and beautiful things are happening.

This year, new Garden Marketplaces are making their food and beverage debut at the 20th Epcot International Flower & Garden Festival which runs from March 6-May 19, 2013. The annual festival will highlight the natural progression from garden to table at the 12 Garden Marketplaces around World Showcase.

Frankly, this move is long overdue. It makes no sense for Disney to restrict the goodness we all love about the Food and Wine festival to just those six weeks of the year. Yes, the festivals are meant to draw guests to the parks in what is usually a down time in terms of tourism visits. But to be honest, there really isn’t an off-season at Walt Disney World anymore. EPCOT could take advantage of this shift by becoming known world wide as a mecca for amazing food and drink and the chefs and artists who bring them to the public. There are a few obstacles in the way (Disney Dining Plan for one), but many of the facilities required to make this happen already exist.

“That progression is showcased with raised garden beds around the marketplaces that will be growing some of the produce and herbs in the dishes,” says Epcot Executive Chef Jens Dahlmann. “We want to show our guests how food grows to help make that connection from the kitchen to the garden.”

“Each marketplace has three to four dishes, and they are unique to the festival,” says Dahlmann. Culinary creations from Epcot chefs range from smokehouse barbecue to sweet “frushi” made with fresh fruits and coconut rice, and are paired perfectly with refreshing brews and beverages at each location.

Of course, some have started calling this Booze and Blooms. But it’s in good spirit, I think. I mean how can it not be after looking at this amazing menu of food and drinks Disney is preparing:

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Desire for Family Time Driving Disney Vacations

If you know Disney, you know they rarely make a move at the themeparks with a lot of research to back it up. This year’s Limited Time Magic promotion is no exception. The science behind playing to family’s sense of vanishing time together, is revealed in a new study conducted by Kelton – a leading research firm.

Between long work hours, busy after school schedules and countless distractions, today’s American family is feeling more disconnected than ever – creating a deficit in “quality time” amongst U.S. parents and their children. According to Kelton, quality family time not only increases while on vacation but parents and children say they learn something new about one another during this time, as opposed to when at home.

More than 1,000 parents of children age 5-17 participated in the Disney Time Survey, which asked families to think about and share thoughts on quality time when at home – versus when on vacation.

So, how do parents define quality time? Ninety-one percent of parents report that quality time is achieved when they learn something new about their child, while 84 percent of parents say quality time means their child learned something new about them. From favorite to least favorite activities and food, to details about their children’s friends – the survey found that moms and dads saddled by hectic lifestyles are craving more time together with their kids.

Disney Time is Family Time

View larger image on Flickr.

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No Southern California Discounts at Disneyland This Season

Normally there is a little dip in the tourism levels in the late winter and early spring at the Disneyland Resort. To help keep the parks busy, they’ve offered incentives for locals to visit and spend a little of their hard earned cash on food… Read More »No Southern California Discounts at Disneyland This Season

Top 10 Tips To Get the Most from the Disney Dining Plan

I’ve already written about whether or not the Disney dining plan is a good deal, but I haven’t discussed how you use it. Chances are if you’re a first-timer using the plan, you’re a little overwhelmed: You’ve got credits and refillable mugs and desserts that you might not even want coming out of your ears! Fortunately, using the plan doesn’t have to be confusing and it can be easy to maximize your credits so that you get the most out of the plan. Here’s how.

1. The dining plan starts as soon as you check into your resort and get your Key to the World Card. Contrary to popular belief, “check-in” at a Disney resort doesn’t start when you get your room, which may be as late as 3:00 in the afternoon, but when you check into the resort, which can be any time of the day. You’ll get all your dining credits and then you can start using them immediately. On a related note, your credits are good until midnight the day you check out.

2. Quick-service and table-service meals each come with one entrée, dessert, and a non-alcoholic drink. At buffets, this means access to the buffet and drinks.Read More »Top 10 Tips To Get the Most from the Disney Dining Plan

Castle 5-15: Target

Every year, Castle has a two parter during February sweeps. (This should not been a shock since I have mentioned it every week for a couple months now. And the first season doesn’t count because they didn’t start until March.) These episodes are always big, involve a major guest star, and leave you with a cliffhanger. They’re usually on the more serious side of things, but this year’s is the most dramatic they’ve had to date. Why? Because the case gets very personal for Castle and by extension the rest of the characters.

It starts out simple enough. Castle is having a conversation with his mom about how much they both miss having Alexis around when he’s called to the scene of another murder. He’s doing his usual freak out thing with Beckett where he tries to be the cool dad but really wants to lock Alexis up to keep her safe and his little girl.Read More »Castle 5-15: Target

ABC Family Green Lights Two New Series: “Dancing Fools” & “The Vineyard”

Along with The Fosters and Twisted ABC Family has just announced that they will be adding two more series to their summer 2013 lineup.  Michael Riley, President of ABC Family has announced that the network has picked up two new series, Dancing Fools a half-hour… Read More »ABC Family Green Lights Two New Series: “Dancing Fools” & “The Vineyard”

Oz: The Great and Powerful…The 1st of Many Risks

John Carter is now considered one of the biggest movie blunders of all-time. You would think that Disney would start to stray away from big budget flicks for a little while, then work its way back up. Unfortunately…they went the opposite direction. Oz, coming out… Read More »Oz: The Great and Powerful…The 1st of Many Risks

Poster for Pixar Short “Blue Umbrella” Echoes Classier Era

The next animated short from Pixar just debuted at the Berlin International Film Festival. Guests there were each given a wonderfully minimalist poster for the short that echoes some of Hollywood’s classiest films. If you want a chance to see “The Blue Umbrella” stateside, your… Read More »Poster for Pixar Short “Blue Umbrella” Echoes Classier Era