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Magic Kingdom to Serve Adult Drinks Starting This Fall

Magic Kingdom Beer

Snuck in at the bottom of a blog post on the Disney Parks Blog is a huge piece of news. When the Beauty and the Beast themed Be Out Guest restaurant opens as part of the New Fantasyland expansion it will serve beer and wine as part of its dinner menu. Outside of private parties, this will be the first time alcohol has been served at the Magic Kingdom, breaking a tradition that goes back to an edict from Walt Disney himself.

Walt did not want adult beverages served at Disneyland. He didn’t think it belonged in a family theme park. He did allow beer at the Holidayland corporate party pavilion, but it was outside the berm. Even then, the park had repeated issues with guests leaving for lunch and then re-entering a few sheets to the wind. Before Walt died, he did approve alcohol sales at Club 33, but went pretty far to make it a private club where the day guest would not be able to get served a drink.

We know that Walt was still against general sales of alcohol in his parks because of his attempt to build a second theme park. After Disneyland was a success, Walt looked east for a great place to build another park. After a lot of research, Walt settled on St. Louis, but when city founders insisted that Walt allow Annheuser Busch to sell beer in the park, Walt declined to build there. Instead he headed south for a little crossroads he remembered from an earlier trip to Florida – Orlando.

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Today’s Moment of Zen: A Squirrel’s Life at Walt Disney World

Sometimes Disney Magic comes in odd doses. Remember Monorail Squirrel? The poor squirrel that found its way onto the monorail track only to be chased by a monorail all the way from the Grand Floridian to the Magic Kingdom Monorail Station? It looks like Monorail… Read More »Today’s Moment of Zen: A Squirrel’s Life at Walt Disney World

Disney Takes Social Media Moms On The Road

Somehow how this flew under my radar, but thanks to Suzanna Keith (pictured above with Olympian Shannon Miller) who submitted a report, I learned that the Disney World Moms Panel has scheduled mini-Disney Social Media Moms events across the country. I love to see Disney… Read More »Disney Takes Social Media Moms On The Road

Enchanted Tales With Belle In Limited Soft Opening

When the original Fantasyland Expansion was announced it was going to have not one, not two, but three next-generation princess encounters. Guests wouldn’t just line up to get a photo with their favorite Disney princess, they would enter their world and participate in the story in some way. When the decision was made to add a coaster to the mix, two of those encounters went away.

The one encounter that’s left is the Enchanted Tales with Belle attraction. It takes place in Maurice’s Cottage, which sits in a lovely wooded setting, just like in Beauty and the Beast. Guests enter Maurice’s cottage and see some special family mementos, then enter the work shop where a magical moment happens. (I don’t want to give too much away. If you want to see it, there are a couple of walk-throughs on YouTube.)

At the end of last week, the Magic Kingdom started offering limited testing of the attraction. Guests are taken behind the construction walls in small groups and then allowed to enter Maurice’s cottage. I have yet to make it myself, but on Sept 8th Duy Truong (friend of The Disney Blog) was invited.

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New Fantasyland Minisite Hides Mystery

Walt Disney World is attempting to drive up a little virtual excitement for New Fantasyland via a new micro-site. The site claims there is a curse preventing all the information about the new land from being revealed and a hero is needed to remove the… Read More »New Fantasyland Minisite Hides Mystery

Inside The Little Mermaid Wing at Art of Animation Resort

The last wing to open at Disney’s Art of Animation Resort is actually the first set of buildings built. Of course, it was still called “Pop Century – Legendary Years” at the time. Later these buildings became known as Disney’s Ghost hotel. Now we’re just… Read More »Inside The Little Mermaid Wing at Art of Animation Resort

U.S. Soldier Returns from Afghanistan to Surprise Family with Walt Disney World Reunion

Walt Disney World is known as a place where families can have a great time together. But what happens if time, distance and service to one’s country keeps them apart? Well, sometimes magic happens. That was the case when the children of SPC Scott Halquist… Read More »U.S. Soldier Returns from Afghanistan to Surprise Family with Walt Disney World Reunion

Walt Disney World Moms Panel Accepting Applications for 6th Time

Since launching the Walt Disney World Moms Panel in 2008, thousands of families have had a better vacation as a result of advice given directly from parents who know the best. The panel has been such a success that it has lately been expanded to… Read More »Walt Disney World Moms Panel Accepting Applications for 6th Time