Our first evening in Disney World included a press conference at the Disney Wide World of Sports which will re-open within the next couple of weeks as the ESPN Wide World of Sports. We were informed about several new and exciting developments happening at Disney World, Disney Cruise Lines and the ESPN Wide World of Sports.
Photo courtesy of Disney World One thing that is really exciting for me, is the return of "The Main Street Electrical Parade." I LOVED it as a child and the music alone brings back fond memories.
It will headline a season of after-dark excitement. WDW parks will light up the night with "Summer Nightastic!"
The Tower of Terror will have new surprises as well. New lighting effects and a new drop sequence which was created especially for "Summer Nightastic!"
I, personally, am also looking forward to the return of "Sounds Like Summer" concert series in Epcot.
Photo courtesy of Disney World A huge Fantasyland expansion is scheduled to break ground in 2010 qnd construction will last approximately 3 years. They call it the largest expansion in Magic Kingdom history. I cannot really do it justice, so here it is straight from the official press release:
For the first time, guests will be able to step into their favorite Disney fairy tales to have more magical & immersive encounters with Disney princesses. Each princess will have her own themed village within Fantasyland Forest. At Dreams Come True with Cinderella, guests can meet Cinderella face to face in her country chateau, share a dance or train to be one of her Royal Knights. At A Birthday Surprise for Sleeping Beauty, it is a party inside the Briar Rose Cottage, nestled in a lush, forest setting. The three good fairies give Aurora the Sweet 16 party she never received, and everyone's invited to join in the surprise celebration. An enchanted mirror will transport guests from Belle's father's cottage to Beast's castle for an enchanting storytelling performance during Enchanted Tales with Belle.
The new district will include the Be Our Guest restaurant inside Beast's castle and another themed eatery in Belle's Village called Gaston's Tavern. The area will also includ a ride through adventure called "Under the Sea: Journey of the Little Mermaid."
Photo courtesy of Disney World
One other addition to Fantasyland will be Dumbo's Flying Circus. This will be twice the size of the current attraction and will fly high above the new circus grounds. There will be midway games and other fun activities inside the tent.
Although I know that change is good, I stll miss a lot of the "oldies". I hope that I still recognize Fantasyland after this change.
Disney Cruise Line will be welcoming the Disney Dream in 2011 and the Disney Fantasy in 2012. The new ships will be two decks taller than the Magic & the Wonder and will more than double passenger capacity.
The new ships will have virtual portholes. The virtual portholes hang over beds in inside staterooms and stream live footage from video cameras mounted around the ship, with 24-hour views of the water and sky, punctuated occasionally by the appearance of a Disney character on the screen. Passengers have the option of turning the video off, so no worries.
Another addition to the new ships is water coaster, called the AquaDuck. It will send a two-person raft on a flume ride around the perimeter of the ship's top deck, propelled up and down by water blasters. One loop of the ride juts 13 feet over the side of the ship, 150 feet above the ocean.
As for the Magic, she will be sailing to Europe in 2010. In the Summer of 2011, the Wonder will sail to Alaska for the 1st time.
After the press conference, we were led to the Tailgate Dinner party. We were treated to fun food & drinks. Including peanuts & Cracker Jacks in keeping with the Sports theme. I could have sworn that I had taken pictures of the food but I can't find any on my drive, except for this one :
This was our table!
I found the food to be very good. Actually, I had the best hot dog of the entire trip at the Tailgate party. Oh and Beer Cheese Soup with croutons... 'nuff said! Yummy!
We were also entertained by a DJ, Mickey & the Gang, Streetmosphere Characters and a performance by the cast of High School Musical 3.
On the way out we were given ESPN Wide World of SPorts caps to add to our SWAG!
It was a great night and a fantastic beginning to the Disney Social Media Moms Conference.
Although I did pay a greatly reduced rate for this event, all opinions are my own. I was not asked to write about the events or The Walt Disney Company.
Next Up Day 2: Give a Day, Get a Day & Dinner Impossible!
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