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Welcome to T-Rex at Downtown Disney

Tuesday night we made it over to Downtown Disney’s Marketplace to experience “T-Rex” the latest addition to the food and entertainment options. Lines were long, but moved fast as guests were entered into a virtual queue to wait for their tables. Inside the place was loud, but everything seemed surprisingly well run for the first night open to the public.

Walt Disney World opens on-site health and wellness center for cast members and families

This morning in a backstage area behind Epcot, the Walt Disney Company redeemed a prescription for healthy cast members when it opened the Center for Living Well as a one stop shop for primary medical car for 40,000 eligible Cast Members and their families. Disney partnered with Take Care Health Systems a provider of over 375 similar on-site facilities to bring this valuable resource to the cast members of Walt Disney World.

As a primary care center, the Center for Living Well includes Labs, Facilities, Pharmacy, and the ability to handle any urgent care matters. Additionally there are staff members who will help patients to develop the tools required to stay healthy for the long run.

With the Center for Living Well “Cast Members gain a tool for healthier living,” said Meg Crofton, president of Walt Disney World Resort. “It will make it easier than ever before for them to take advantage of the many health and wellness resources Disney offers.”

President of Walt Disney Parks and Resorts Al Weiss, who has been appointed the Executive Champion for health and well being at the Walt Disney Company, said the center will provide cast members Holistic look at health with teaching opportunities. It will also tie-in with other facilities provided around the resort, such as health clubs, to ensure a healthy cast. That makes it a win-win in the long term.

Another benefit of the center is the outreach to the many cast members who come from overseas to work at the resort. Large populations of Haitians, Vietnamese, and Spanish speaking people work around the resort. The center for Living Well features signage in multiple languages, staff members who are fluent in one or more of the common languages, and resources available via telephone for other translation needs. This will no doubt be a big selling point as Disney attempts to attract more workers from these communities.

In addition to cultural sensitivities, they’re also taking privacy into concern. The design and layout of the facility means you’re unlikely to run into your boss while waiting for service. Wait times will be minimized and exam rooms are specially designed to protect the identity of whomever is in the room.

The Center is open to all Disney Cast Members who are enrolled in one of the 5 Cigna plans. It will be open 7 days a week (M-F 7A-7P and S-S 9A-5P) with the pharmacy open the same hours. They are recommending that everyone make appointments, although walk-ups will be accepted.

I have a full set of photos from the event this morning and a tour of the facility over at my flickr account. You can also read the whole press release below the cut.

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Video: Wildest Ride In The Wilderness

Walt Disney World guests answer the question, “What’s it like riding Big Thunder Mountain?” and give a tour of every hair-raising drop, twist and turn for this ‘wildest ride in the wilderness.’ Almost as good as being there… not really. Better than actually being there… Read More »Video: Wildest Ride In The Wilderness

How To Make the delicious Canadian Cheddar Cheese Soup from Epcot

The Le Cellier restaurant at the Canadian pavilion at Walt Disney World’s EPCOT Center features this out of the world Cheddar Cheese Soup. It’s also featured in the Canada booth during the popular Food & Wine Festival. Now you can learn how to make it yourself from Master Chef Brian Piasecki of Jiko-The Cooking Place (although he’s at neither restaurant for this demonstration)

T-Rex opening at Downtown Disney Tomorrow

_MG_7084 Originally uploaded by lilabrooke Update: Not so much a rumor, there is a sign out front saying it opens tomorrow. Rumor is that T-Rex will be opening to the public tomorrow. It’s the new Dinosaur themed restaurant at Walt Disney World’s Downtown Disney shopping… Read More »T-Rex opening at Downtown Disney Tomorrow

Disney World Restaurants No Longer Serve Fois Gras

Although it was only served in four fine dining restaurants (Victoria & Albert’s, California Grill, Citricos and Les Chefs de France) in the Walt Disney World Resort, Foie Gras has been quietly removed from the menus. This has generated glee in activists who believe the… Read More »Disney World Restaurants No Longer Serve Fois Gras

Tinker Bell and her Fairy friends coming soon to Disneyland and Magic Kingdom

Tinker Bell and her Pixie Hollow Fairies made a very brief appearance at a media event this morning. I was only able to get this poor shot.

Sorry about that. Hopefully, we’ll get a better view in the coming days.All I could think was “thank god they don’t have those freaky masks like the Fairies in ‘Light Magic’ did.” As you can see, this might become one of Daddy’s favorite attractions at the parks.

The five fairies are taken from the upcoming Tinker Bell Movie that will be released on DVD October 29th. Their names are:

  • Tinker Bell, a tinker fairy;
  • Fawn, an animal fairy;
  • Iridessa, a light fairy;
  • Rosetta, a garden fairy; and
  • Silvermist, a water fairy.

“Tinker Bell,” Disney’s most famous fairy and four of her best friends will debut in a meet-and-greet experience in Mickey’s Toontown Fair at Magic Kingdom.  The Pixie Hollow attraction is scheduled to open October 24th at Walt Disney World. Disneyland will get a slightly different version (it’s outdoor for one) that should open by early November.

The guest experience will be more than just the meet and greet. A magical forest will gradually shrink guests down to fairy size as they enter Pixie Hollow. As guests hear Tinker Bell speak for the first time, they also are sure to meet one or more of her fairy friends. Additionally there will be storytelling and other interactive experiences for guests.

Learn more about the Disney Fairies at DisneyFairies.com. I’ve also included two earlier press photos below the cut.

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Disney Parks New Promotional Theme: Celebrations

Disney Parks has announced their new promotional campaign for 2009. The theme is ‘Celebrations’ and the tag line is “What Will You Celebrate?” The goal — get you and your family to book a trip to Disneyland or Walt Disney World to celebrate an event or occasion together.

The campaign website (www.disneyparkscelebrations.com – Note there’s a video that starts automatically on this page with no way to pause or mute it. Bad form on Disney’s part.) is where you’ll find a contest where you can win a Disney Vacation, learn about fun ways to celebrate milestones in your life, and find out the schedule for a new promotional tour. Also highlighted are tools to plan your vacation with. Additionally, they’re promoting Disney Environmentality with a message not to release your ‘Mickey Balloon’ into the air. The biggest news would seem to be that you can register to get free admission to a Disney Theme Park on your birthday in 2009 (you must register first, and there are other treats available if you already have admission).

Without even reading the Disney Press Release on this. It would appear that Disney is hoping to capitalize on what is already a major trend in their customer base. Disney has known for years that since families tend to save for years to make the trip to the parks, they often do it around a special occasion. A few years ago the campaign was called “Magical Gatherings” and it was essentially the same thing where Disney would organize special events for you based on the occasion you were celebrating. Finally, the whole campaign ties into a vacation planning package that will walk you through hotel, dinner, and event registrations. It was obviously successful enough they want to try it again.

I hope this is a successful campaign for Disney and brings in hordes of guests. However, my initial response is to be a little underwhelmed. Disney is probably facing a significant drop in attendance and spending at its domestic parks for at least the next 12-18 months and this all they came up with to bolster the numbers?

What happened to the great promotions of the past where Parks, Films, and Parades were all tied together. Mickey Mania, Party Gras, The Lion King Celebration? Where’s the exciting Tagline? In the past we had “Where the Adventure Begins,” “Where the Magic Never Stops,” and “Where Dreams Come True.” Where we should have inspiration, instead we get a question. Where’s the announcement of the new parades, shows, and attractions that will encourage repeat visitors to return and send prospective new visitors to travel agencies to book. Instead we get a ‘Street Party’. What is that?

What disturbs me most about this promotion is how Disney is equating themselves with the local Chuck-e-Cheese. Little Johnny’s having his Birthday? Where do we want to celebrate? How about Chuck-e-Cheese? Or maybe Disneyland? That’s not an effective way to get people to drop their “staycation” and travel to Anaheim/Orlando instead. You have to offer excitement and value.

Disney isn’t in the same category as local options, and they shouldn’t act like it either. I’m not saying Disney should not offer Birthday and other Celebrations. But it should be part of the whole package, not the cornerstone of the big promotion for the year.

Okay. It’s the 3rd year in a row of less than exciting promotions for Disney Parks. So let chalk this one up to being an ‘off-year’. Due to the soft economy Disney isn’t expecting much to happen this year. They’ve planned no new shows, no new parades, and only one new attraction (American Idol at DHS) for 2009. Perhaps there is some fiscal merit to not going overboard with a major promotion. But then again, maybe they could have done something that would knock your socks off.

A promotional video and the full press release is below the cut:

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