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Disney Parks Frozen Christmas Celebration Details Announced

Robin Roberts and Tim Tebow Tape the 2014 Disney Parks Frozen Christmas Celebration TV Special

There’s something about the holiday season that makes me think of visiting Disneyland or Walt Disney World. The parks are just a little more magical with all the holiday decorations and special entertainment offerings, that it doesn’t even bother me that the crowds are huge this time of year. I know it’s not always possible to sneak in a trip, or you may just want to avoid the crowded season. Thanks to the yearly Disney Parks Christmas Parade, you can still get in the highlights.

This year, Disney has put a “Frozen” twist on its 31st annual Christmas Day telecast, which has been renamed the “Disney Parks Frozen Christmas Celebration.” As usual, it will air on Dec. 25, 2014 on ABC-TV.

Robin Roberts of ABC’s “Good Morning America” will host the reimagined television special inspired by the blockbuster hit’s message of uniting family and loved ones. Roberts will lead the telecast from Walt Disney World Resort in Florida with support from GMA Contributor and ESPN and SEC Network analyst Tim Tebow.

Good Morning America Anchor Robin Roberts Hosts the 2014 Disney Parks Frozen Christmas Celebration TV Special

They will be joined by Rob Marciano, senior meteorologist of ABC’s “Good Morning America” from the “The Happiest Place on Earth” at Disneyland Resort. Sarah Hyland, star of ABC’s Emmy award-winning show “Modern Family,” joins the fun from Aulani, a Disney Resort & Spa in Ko Olina, Hawai‛i. The festivities will also feature a special appearance by Miss America 2015, Kira Kazantsev, making this year’s Christmas special a magical “Frozen” celebration not to be missed.

Disney Parks will celebrate this Christmas with more than a parade, but with a heartfelt wish for the holiday season, the coming together of loved ones and family. In keeping with the spirit of “Frozen” where two sisters are united through the power of true love, Disney will bring together three groups of families and friends who have been apart or separated for the holidays, providing the ultimate Christmas gift. The reunions will take place at three magical Disney destinations – Disneyland Resort, Walt Disney World Resort, and Aulani – making these reunions bigger, brighter and merrier.Read More »Disney Parks Frozen Christmas Celebration Details Announced

Magic Kingdom Plaza Improvement – November 2014 Construction Update

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The Plaza (or Hub) at the Magic Kingdom is undergoing a major renovation in order to improve guest flow during the busy show and parade times. We’re back with another look at the progress made so far. We had two updates in September, but we actually skipped October. So there’s been quite a bit of progress since we last checked in.

The side closer to Crystal Palace is closer to completion. You can start to see where the viewing area/garden area will take shape as well a the new path that will lead from near Crystal Palace into the hub. The Tomorrowland Terrace side is a bit further behind, and there’s more work to be done as they also have to build a new seating area in front of the Plaza Restaurant.

The end result of this construction will be a wider area leading from Main Street to the Hub. There will be two garden areas that can be used for fireworks viewing parties, expanded outside seating for Casey’s Jr and some much needed seating for the Ice Cream Palace and Starbucks.

Continue the tour below:Read More »Magic Kingdom Plaza Improvement – November 2014 Construction Update

Ten Years of Stitch’s Great Escape

I really can’t believe it, but it has already been 10 years since the Magic Kingdom installed the little blue alien creature Stitch in Tomorrowland and the former home of Mission to Mars and Alien Encounter. Foxfurr at Passport to Dreams blog is out with… Read More »Ten Years of Stitch’s Great Escape

7 Walt Disney World Upgrades I would like to see.

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There’s a lot of talk about a major upgrade coming to Disney’s Hollywood Studios and Disney’s Animal Kingdom is getting a whole land based on James Cameron’s Avatar. Both big projects that will help Disney stay relevant for another generation. But there are some smaller projects Disney could implement on a shorter timescale that would also have a big Impact.

1. Night time parade at the Magic Kingdom – With “Festival of Fantasy,” the Magic Kingdom finally has a modern day parade, now it’s time to re-light the night. It’s time to ditch the 70s era tech of the Electrical Parade and paint the street and sky with a parade as-yet unseen in the states. There are a couple candidates out there in Asian parks, but I’d also be happy to see something original.

2. Rivers of America – First, Disney needs to bring back more boats to the river, something like a steamboat from “The Princess and the Frog” would do nicely. Then they need to upgrade existing show scenes and add more to make a cohesive story. Ideally, the River would transform at night into a dinner or dessert cruise with a Jazz Band aboard the new ship.

3. Conservation station/ Rafiki’s Planet Watch – Update the animal care message, include more success stories (Disney has a ton of them), remove train and add more up close animal encounters with new-to-the-park animals. I suggest animals from Polynesia / Australia to capitalize on upcoming movies and Finding Nemo.Read More »7 Walt Disney World Upgrades I would like to see.

Magic Kingdom Merchandise Line

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Sometimes the merchandise Disney creates is a home run and it flies off the shelf as fast as Disney can stock it and sometimes it just fails to move. Take a look at this recently released collection of Magic Kingdom souvenirs and tell me which category you think it belongs in.

Head below the jump for my thoughts and a closer look at some of the souvenirs.

Read More »Magic Kingdom Merchandise Line

Main Street U.S.A. Music Lesson

Disney theme park historian and analyst Foxxy Hooves of the excellent Passport to Dreams blog is known for her long and very detailed articles on the esoterica of Disney’s theme park design. I always learn something, even on a subject matter I consider myself very… Read More »Main Street U.S.A. Music Lesson

2014 Once Upon A Christmastime Parade Highlights

Each year during Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Party, the Once Upon A Christmastime Parade makes its journey around the Magic Kingdom bringing the spirit of the holidays to everyone in the crowd. This year, the Kingdom of Arendelle has joined in the celebration including special… Read More »2014 Once Upon A Christmastime Parade Highlights

A Frozen Holiday Wish – New Cinderella Castle Lighting Show

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There’s a new Queen at the Magic Kingdom. Queen Elsa from Disney’s Frozen will get her due this holiday season. Not only will she be featured in the Christmas parade, she also gets the honor of lighting up Cinderella Castle each night as part of a new holiday stage show – A Frozen Holiday Wish.

In it, the cast of Frozen (Anna, Elsa, Kristoff, and the first walk-around Olaf) join together and encourage Elsa to use her powers to cover Cinderella Castle in Ice and Snow. Then through the magic of Disney’s Digital Mapping Projection, Elsa turns Cinderella Castle into an ice palace.

If you can’t make it to the park yourself and still want to see the show, you can watch it live tonight on the Disney Parks Blog as they live stream the 6:15pm ET show. If you can’t watch the livestream, I have the complete show assembled from the first two showings on Wednesday night.

More photos below the jump:

Read More »A Frozen Holiday Wish – New Cinderella Castle Lighting Show