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Mickey’s Not So Scary Halloween Party Report


A slice of the holiday decor up on Main Street. As usual, click to see a larger version. This one is available in desktop size.

On Friday night Disney World treated some of us local media to a fun night at the Magic Kingdom enjoying Mickey’s Not So Scary Halloween Party. We had a great time, saw many marvelous costumes, and scored a metric ton of candy. There are still plenty of nights available between now and Halloween. It’s an separate ticket but if you like the spirit of the holiday, Disney does the night right.


Although they were handing out free trick or treat bags, this merchandise cart was available for those who wanted to upgrade. We recommend upgrading and consolidating your candy into a larger bag throughout the night.

Many more photos below the jump:

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Monorail Peach Announced for Walt Disney World.

The Disney Parks blog has announced the addition of a twelfth monorail returning to the Walt Disney World fleet. That will bring the fleet back up to its full complement after the tragic accident in July of 2009. Monorail Peach will begin testing soon, albeit… Read More »Monorail Peach Announced for Walt Disney World.

The Monorails Must Roll

The monorail station could be looking like this a lot more when Disney institutes its new reduced hours for the trains.
The monorail station could be looking like this a lot more when Disney institutes its new reduced hours for the trains.

One of my favorite Robert Heinlein short stories is “The Roads Must Roll.” Written in 1940, it speculates about a rapid transit system that would move people across the country in speed and comfort. The high speed nature of the rolling roads meant that maintenance was a huge deal. When the employees decided to organize for better working conditions, well, the shit hits the fan. In some ways it foretold the air controller strike of the Reagan era. These days there is an odd tie-in to the Walt Disney World monorails system too.

Walt Disney World just announced they would be reducing the operating hours of their monorail fleet. They used to run 1.5 hours after the parks closed or after the last scheduled event (extra magic hours, christmas party, etc). Sometimes these hours were stretched even further on the EPCOT line. Now they will all shut down 1 hour after the posted closing time for the park with no allowance for extra magic hours or other events. Guests will be placed on buses or water craft to be returned to their hotels or the TTC and EPCOT parking lots.

Initially, there was a lot of outcry directed at Disney for reducing benefits to resort and park guests at the same time they are raising prices, but soon word leaked out that there was an important reason behind the shift. The reason? The monorail fleet is just breaking down under the strain.

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Monorail Pilot Family’s Lawsuit Against Disney Voluntarily Dismissed

The wrongful death lawsuit filed against the Walt Disney World resort over the death of a monorail pilot on July 5th 2009 has been voluntarily dismissed by the pilot’s family. This is very likely a sign that a settlement has been reached between Disney and… Read More »Monorail Pilot Family’s Lawsuit Against Disney Voluntarily Dismissed

Tokyo Disneyland closed to assess damage, Monorail testing underway

A few quick updates from Tokyo Disneyland.

Although entertainment cast members had been called in to rehearse on Monday, the rehearsals were canceled due to rolling blackouts scheduled for mid-day at the resort. Cast Members are dealing with their own blackouts and struggles for food and water, but a group of Disney entertainment cast members who found themselves freed up from the canceled rehearsal, picked up rakes and shovels and went out into the community to help clear away some of the debris and silt from the homes of elderly.

Here’s a pic of the crew from Disney performer @JarrodLentz‘s twitter stream. Lentz said of the adventure, “The human spirit will not be broke” and “Helping people was the best medicine so far.” I continue to be astounded by how professional and caring Tokyo Disneyland cast has been in the face of tragedy.

Although myself and others had speculated that liquefaction damage near the Monorail stations would result in a long delay in the trains returning to service. That has not been the case. Here’s a short video showing damage near one of the monorails and in the second half you can see them testing the monorail. So that’s good news for Tokyo Disneyland and OLC.

The parks themselves continue on a schedule to open after the 21st. Meanwhile they’re assessing damage and making small repairs. Below the jump is a press release put out by the Oriental Land Company after the quake:

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SUV strikes Monorail Pillar closes EPCOT loop for an hour

Disney fans are everywhere. No, she wasn’t driving the SUV that struck the Monorail support pillar, but Amanda Tinney (of DisneyEveryDay.com) was on the scene yesterday in the EPCOT Parking lot and took the above photo on her mobile phone. Those beams are pretty strong,… Read More »SUV strikes Monorail Pillar closes EPCOT loop for an hour

NTSB unloads documents related to Fatal July 2009 Monorail Accident

The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) has released a group of documents related to its investigation of the fatal July 2009 monorail accident. I’ve opened a “group source” wiki to try and make sense of it all, establish a timeline, and identify any errors or… Read More »NTSB unloads documents related to Fatal July 2009 Monorail Accident

Disneyland Hotel turns 55

Another milestone anniversary has just been celebrated at Disneyland. The self-proclaimed “World’s Most Exciting Hotel” has just turned 55. When it opened the Disneyland Hotel was the first major hotel in Orange County. Things have changed a bit since then. Taken in 1961, the photo… Read More »Disneyland Hotel turns 55