Update: Disney has confirmed the 10AM motorcade and a 10:15AM Fan Q&A outside the American Idol Experience attraction. Better get their early if you want a front row to the Kris Allen mania! American Idol winner Kris Allen is making good on his promise to… Read More »Kris Allen at Disney World this Friday May 29th
Continuing the tradition started last year by David Cook, this year’s American Idol winner Kris Allen participated in the famous “What’s Next?” promotion where the winner of the super bowl of other major event gets asked what they’re going to do next and screams to… Read More »Kris Allen is going to Disney World, American Idol Tradition Continues
Students who traveled to Walt Disney World with a school group have returned sick to Greenville, South Carolina with flu like symptoms. They are being tested to see if they have swine flu. Meanwhile their school is closed as a precaution. Update: I think it’s… Read More »Walt Disney World Visitors Being Testing for Swine Flu
A ribbon awaits its severing for the grand opening.
Although the winds of fate prevented any actual guests from going up, up, and away, the new “Characters in Flight” balloon from Aerophile officially opened Tuesday morning in Downtown Disney, Orlando.
A single tether connects the balloon to the launch platform.
Many who have been on the ride during its soft opening days, claim it’s the best deal in Downtown Disney. Of course, the problem is that sometimes the ride isn’t open. Wind gusts can keep the balloon grounded. This has led to some issues with guests who get upset they can’t experience the ride. Disney has to put safety first even if the guest is leaving for the airport in 30 minutes. So plan accordingly and perhaps visit the balloon early in your trip.
Prices at the ticket booth.
Another problem is the unfortunate name of the attraction. The name “Characters in Flight” has led some guests to expect actual characters on the flight for a meet and greet. Alas, that’s just not the case. With all the other possibilities to name this attraction you have to wonder why they chose one that would be so misleading. Kind of like Disney marketing insisting on calling “Toy Story Midway Mania” Toy Story Mania, which makes it sound like a soft horror film instead of the fun midway games it actually is.
More info and photos below the cut:
Read More »Characters In Flight Balloon Officially Up, Up, and Away
We’re still a few months away from Hurricane season, but preparation for storms is always ongoing at Walt Disney World. Disney has a “Hurricane Policy” (not yet updated for 2009) for their Magic Your Way Guests whose vacation might be affected by a severe storm, but what else do they do?
With picture-perfect skies outside his window most days, Walt Disney World Emergency Operations Coordinator Eric Alberts dedicates his time to preparing for inclement weather. “Safety for everybody that works or stays here is our top priority,” Alberts says as he checks the latest forecasts.
By expertly planning for severe weather in advance, Walt Disney World Resort made history in 2006 as the first theme park and resort area to be recognized by the National Weather Service as a StormReady® Community. Committed to maintaining its leadership in emergency management, Walt Disney World Resort just renewed its StormReady status through 2012 and remains the only recognized commercial site in Florida. Disneyland Resort in Anaheim, Ca. has also earned recognition as StormReady.
The Walt Disney Company revealed it has recently eliminated 1900 positions through a combination of layoffs, severance, and the closing of open positions at its Disney theme park locations (Disneyland, Walt Disney World, and a few other suppot locations). That works out to be about… Read More »Carnage Numbers Revealed for Disney Parks Layoffs
John Stamos you just finished filming the last episode of NBC’s longtime series ER what are you going to do next? I’m Going to Disney World!!!! Okay, so it’s not an official entry into Disney’s “What’s Next?” campaign as John Stamos filmed this himself. But… Read More »John Stamos films own “What’s Next?” Commercial
Local news CFNews13 reports that layoffs began yesterday at Walt Disney World. The story mentions executive level employees who had the option to receive a severance package or take their chances with layoffs. We’ve actually known of some of the executive layoffs for a few… Read More »Layoffs at the Magic Kingdom of Disney