WDW

Sneak Peeks: The World’s Most Magical Celebration – Walt Disney World’s 50th

19 February 2021 by Suzannah Otis Leave a Comment

The anticipation and speculation have been building for years, and the year is finally here. Starting October 1 of this year, the World’s Most Magical Celebration will begin at Walt Disney World Resort here in Orlando, Florida. Until that time arrives, we have some Walt Disney World 50th sneak peeks to share. While we don’t yet know what special events, foods, or merchandise will commemorate this celebration, we do now have some artist concepts of how the icons for each theme park will be decorated. We also have a look at Mickey and Minnie’s EARidescent new outfits to celebrate.

Mickey and Minnie Earidescent — Beginning Oct. 1, 2021, Mickey Mouse and Minnie Mouse will host “The World’s Most Magical Celebration” honoring Walt Disney World Resort’s 50th anniversary in Lake Buena Vista, Fla. They will dress in sparkling new looks custom made for the 18-month event, highlighted by embroidered impressions of Cinderella Castle on multi-toned, EARidescent fabric punctuated with pops of gold. (Matt Stroshane, photographer)

Of course prior to now, we’ve watched several changes taking place throughout the Walt Disney World Resort. These include a makeover of the Magic Kingdom toll booth plaza, also featuring an iridescent look. The main entrances at Disney Springs, World Drive and Western Way are also all getting new paint jobs to match the shades of blues and greys used elsewhere. Lastly, Cinderella Castle has received phase one of her makeover, with the new pink shade and bright blue turrets. But what else is in store?

Cinderella Castle 50th Anniversary Decor — In this artist rendering, Cinderella Castle shines with new golden and EARidescent décor at Magic Kingdom Park as part of “The World’s Most Magical Celebration,” which begins Oct. 1, 2021, in honor of the 50th anniversary of Walt Disney World Resort in Lake Buena Vista, Fla. (Disney)

According to Disney,

…the castle will add even more magic at night, joined by icons at each of the other three theme parks as they transform into Beacons of Magic. In the video above, you can get a feel for what they’ll look like, with pixie dust on Cinderella Castle, magical fireflies inhabiting the Tree of Life at Disney’s Animal Kingdom Theme Park, and special new touches coming to life on the Hollywood Tower Hotel at Disney’s Hollywood Studios.

Hollywood Tower Hotel Beacon of Magic — (Disney)

And at EPCOT, new lights will shine across the reflective panels of Spaceship Earth, connecting to one another and resembling stars in a nighttime sky. This permanent new lighting will continue beyond “The World’s Most Magical Celebration” as a defining feature of the park.

Spaceship Earth Beacon of Magic — (Disney)

I’m all for lighting package upgrades, but messing with Spaceship Earth is always risky business. Of course back in the Y2K years, there was both outrage and excitement (by some perhaps?) for the hand with the “2000” on it, later turned into an “Epcot.” Later, during the “Monstrous Summer Celebration” of 2013, Spaceship Earth was turned into Mike Wazowski. Briefly, Sulley appeared on there as well, along with the Death Star. Many believed marring the architectural and engineering perfection that is Spaceship Earth is an act of blasphemy. (As was projecting a space station responsible for destroying entire planets and their inhabitants onto a structure which represented hope and understanding at its very core…but I digress.)I do tend to agree, as I really think Spaceship Earth is such a marvel as it is. Its current lighting package really just highlights that simplistic yet awe-inspiring beauty.

It’s also important to note that Disney says this new lighting will be permanent, beyond the 50th celebration. Personally, I’m waiting to see what it looks like. I do love a good night sky, and perhaps it will be a rotating situation where it appears occasionally, reverting to the original look in between. What do you think?

As far as the Tree of Life, I love what they’ve done recently with the “Awakenings” projection show. I’m sure that what they add will be great. For Tower of Terror, normally I’d say it would take away from the theming Disney worked so hard to create. However, they’ve kind of already set the precedent there with the holiday projection shows. I do think the projections are fun too, if you take yourself out of the “Hollywood Tower Hotel” mindset.

Cinderella Castle will be a wonderful centerpiece for the celebration. I am excited to see how things come together as October draws near. What are some additions or events you hope will take place during the 50th celebration?

We’ll of course be covering more as the date draws near. Be sure of follow @zannaland on instagram and watch our Up the Waterfall live show each Thursday at 8pm eastern on YouTube!

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Magic Kingdom Attractions – RANKED! Up the Waterfall Episode 35

12 August 2020 by Suzannah Otis Leave a Comment

This week, we wanted to do a fun palate cleanser episode after our deep discussions on Waking Sleeping Beauty, Most Unecessary Changes to Walt Disney World and Reasons You MUST Visit Disneyland. After the fun of our Disney Hotels RANKED episode, we wanted to rank ALL the Magic Kingdom attractions. For this ranking, we are using all the official attractions, as well as some experiences that have an added component. Examples are Enchanted Tales with Belle, and Sorcerer’s of the Magic Kingdom, both of which have more to them than a traditional meet and greet, or “show.”

Will our ranking match up with yours? Did we commit any cardnial sins with our list? Let us know! My criteria for ranking was kind of subjective, not a “thrill factor” or technology, sometimes it was more just the classic nature of the ride or “Disney Imagineering” at its finest. We’d love to know your thoughts on all the Magic Kingdom attractions! You can create your own Magic Kingdom Attractions Ranking too! Feel free to screenshot your ranking and share it with us on any of our Zannaland social media channels (see below) or email us!

Don’t forget you can email us your Disney Trivia Question answers too!

Watch for our next LIVE show, Monday, August 17, 2020. We’ll be broadcasting live from the Zannaland facebook page, so be sure you are following along there and like the page to be notified when we go live!

As always, we thank you for watching and listening! If you enjoyed, please share with a friend so more folks can learn about our growing podcast! Thank you!

Listen to Up the Waterfall:

You can listen anywhere you download and listen to podcasts, including:

(If there’s a podcast service where you can’t find our show, let us know and we’ll get it added there!)

Watch Up the Waterfall:

Head to our Up the Waterfall YouTube Playlist – where you can see our opening sequence and see some unique images during some episodes.

Feel free to comment below with your opinions on ANY of these hot button topics, any questions or info you’d like to add, or if it’s easier, head to the Zannaland Facebook page and join the discussion there with fellow Disney Parks fans!

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FOLLOW THE ZANNALAND FAMILY ON SOCIAL MEDIA, WATCH OUR VIDEOS, VLOGS AND PODCAST TOO:

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Festival of Fantasy Parade in Words and Pictures

14 March 2014 by Suzannah Otis 7 Comments

As was all the buzz this week, a brand new daytime parade debuted over at the Magic Kingdom. Kicking off on Sunday, March 9, the Festival of Fantasy Parade has been well-received with praise and adoration. I lined up Sunday to see for myself and share some photos and video (see Instagram and Facebook) and was also invited as a guest of Walt Disney World on Monday March 10, to see the parade again and speak to some of its creators. What has struck me overall with Festival of Fantasy is the absolute spectacle that this parade is. I don’t think it’s news to anyone that the daytime parades at Magic Kingdom have been severely lacking in the last, oh, 10+ years. We’ve had several incarnations of basically the same style of float and general parade feel for ages now. And visitors or locals to California’s Disneyland will no doubt evangelize about their Mickey’s Soundsational Parade and with good reason. Soundsational is a fun, unique look at the songs and characters we all love and have come to expect at Disney parks. A lot of comparisons have been made with Soundsational and Festival of Fantasy and I’ll go into a bit of that below. So read on for my thoughts on Festival of Fantasy and enjoy some of my favorite photos from the parade.

First, I must say that Festival of Fantasy is visually stunning. From the unique and sometimes outrageous costumes to the gigantic, kinetic, sensory-overloading floats, this is an impressive parade. After my first viewing, I quickly realized that it is a parade which needs to be viewed multiple times to take everything in or notice each detail. And that makes it a perfect fit for Walt Disney World, a resort catering to tens of millions of visitors each year, many of whom will visit the park just once, or perhaps every few years or so. While Walt Disney World does have a large and dedicated group of locals, it does not begin to compare to that of Disneyland, whose majority of visitors are locals – making the frequent changing of parades and entertainment a wise decision for the most part. Here, in Walt Disney World, if you are planning your yearly vacation, you will probably look forward to seeing this parade again and count on it being there. My point is, Festival of Fantasy is a great repeat-viewing parade, because you will likely see something new each time.

There have been some comments online about this parade being disjointed and just a random mix of themes and floats. And while I agree that, compared to Soundsational, which features a cohesive color-scheme and design element throughout, I don’t think Festival of Fantasy lacking that cohesion is a bad thing. Certainly the design and feel of Soundsational matches, until the very last float, which looks like a completely different style of float and artistry. Festival of Fantasy just happens to do this with each float, I think. This is a parade dedicated to Fantasyland, both its spirit and its presence within the park. Of course there is no “Sleeping Beauty” attraction other than a princess meet and greet, yet an entire float features one of Disney’s most famous animated villains. Snow White, while not having her own attraction any more, will have the Seven Dwarfs Mine Train opening up soon, yet all we see of them in the parade are Snow and the Dwarfs themselves. It is not so much a literal definition of “everything in Fantasyland” but more of the essence of what we love about these parts of Disney in film. In a sense, we get eight mini parades rather than one long one.

{Enjoy the gallery of photos below – click to see full-size – more text after the pictures!}

Festival of Fantasy Princess Garden Frozen

A constant throughout Festival of Fantasy are the innovative and eye-catching costumes. I’ll let the photos speak for themselves on this one, but I am in love with all of these designs and love how each set of dancers preceding a themed float seems to represent the elements from each movie, from coral and seahorses, to thorns and ravens, to Pleasure Island treats and circus tents. The costumes and choreography are a show unto themselves. The Lost Boys receive a fun make-over in the style of Broadway’s Newsies with some fun dance moves. Randy Wojcik, Senior Show Director, Walt Disney Parks and Resorts, Creative Entertainment, likes to call each float a “mini Broadway show rolling down the street.”

I spoke to Randy about the costumes, wondering if they would survive wear and use, 365 days a year and he let me know how extensive the design and testing process was, getting approval for ergonomic wear and support. He’s rightly very proud of both the costumes and floats, especially the jaw-dropping Maleficent, represented as a steampunk contraption of a fire-breathing dragon. When I asked which came first, wanting Maleficent in the parade, or wanting a steampunk element in the parade, he said they always knew they wanted Maleficent, and the steampunk just came about through various pitch ideas and boardroom sessions.

Maleficent is definitely the show-stopper of the parade, but really, so many of the floats can stand up on their own merit. Maleficent, however, is part of a larger scene where Prince Phillip is battling the “thorns” (represented by stilt-walkers) conjured by Maleficent, as stylized ravens circle around. The battle then turns to Maleficent, who rears her head and breathes fire, a sight unparalleled outside of a nighttime spectacular in the parks. If you are looking to catch a photo of the fire, watch for Maleficent to lean her head all the way up, as that’s the only way she breathes fire. It seems to happen twice in Frontierland and twice around the hub turn by the Castle. I’ve yet to catch a perfect fire photo, but I plan to return and get one soon (research!). Be sure to enjoy all of Maleficent though; take note of her moving wings, her eyes and teeth, the thorn-spiked spinning wheel in the center of the dragon, all of it is amazing. It’s quite a detailed and impressive piece at 53 feet in length and 26 feet tall, designed in partnership with Tony Award-winner Michael Curry.

Next up is a float which, despite it being borrowed from Tokyo Disneyland’s Jubilation parade (along with the opening Princess float), is one of my favorites design-wise. It’s such a fun, brightly-colored and unique take on Monstro and the Pinocchio film itself, along with various other early films like Fantasia and Dumbo. The parade ends with Mickey and Minnie, which I think is a great finale. Since Mickey and Minnie aren’t really represented in Fantasyland (aside from Mickey in Philharmagic), they are a good reminder of the rest of the Magic Kingdom and Disney in general. I love Mickey and Minnie in this float and to me, their costumes are very reminiscent of the characters we see in Tokyo at their parades. All of the classic characters have wonderful, fun costumes in this parade, making for some great photos.

As far as the music goes, there is a catchy and familiar-sounding “Festival of Fantasy” theme, composed by Mark Hammond, known for his work on World of Color, Mickey’s Soundsational Parade, Flights of Fantasy Parade at Hong Kong Disneyland, and Tokyo Disneyland’s Jubilation Parade and Happiness is Here Parade. I am hopeful that soundtrack will be released, and other merchandise too. All in all, I think Festival of Fantasy is a wonderful, vibrant, captivating parade, which actually makes me want to line up to watch it at 3:00! I’d love to hear your thoughts below if you’ve seen the parade – what is your favorite part?

Thoughts on Glow With the Show at Walt Disney World’s Fantasmic!

22 October 2013 by Suzannah Otis 1 Comment

On a whim, I decided to bring my family to the east coast premier of Glow with the Show at Disney’s Hollywood Studios Fantasmic! It had been quite some time since we’d all seen Fantasmic! since, after 15 years, you feel like you’ve seen it all. Also, my children recently got a taste of Fantasmic! west coast sister out in Disneyland, and it’s hard to argue that that is a better show. With the Sailing Ship Columbia with Peter Pan and Captain Hook swordfighting as they float by, and ending with the Mark Twain full of your favorite characters, along with many other better effects, it makes our little Fantasmic want for something. And I think that something may just be Glow with the Show!

I made a quick highlight video of the opening show at Fantasmic! on my iphone (please excuse any nighttime auto-focusing as a result!) to showcase the Glow with the Show ears effects:

I know Glow with the Show has been running with Disneyland’s Fantasmic! for some time, but I think what makes Hollywood Studios a great match is the stadium seating. If you sit in the back, you can see all of the ears before you, but, if you sit closer to the front, you can choose to look to your right or left and see the full effect of the colors. It really adds to the show, rather than detract. I loved how it looked on opening night and think if the ears are a success, the pairing with the show will be to. Whether guests will bother to pay $24 for, let’s face it, pretty heavy and uncomfortable ears, remains to be seen. I know in Japan, they recently debuted similar technology, but in a handheld wand type of product, which makes much more sense as far as viewing the lights (rather than depending on your neighbors to have purchased ears to really see the effects yourself).

Glow with the Show also began working with Wishes and the Celebrate the Magic castle projection show earlier this week. I will admit, I really had no desire to watch this. I’m not sure why I think it’s okay to work with Fantasmic! but not Wishes, but I do. I guess because for Wishes and Celebrate the Magic, your attention should really be focused on one thing – the castle and the sky, while at Fantasmic, there are moments of darkness where the lights are a good filler, and there is also so much going on at once, that it seems okay for the ears to be a part of that show. It also could be that I’m really ready for a new fireworks show at the Magic Kingdom! Glow with the Show will also work with the Osborne Family Spectacle of Dancing Lights later this year. I think the ears will be an easy addition because everything is already flashing around you, but I don’t think they are *needed* by any means. I will have to see how things look when the switch is flipped for the lights.

What are your thoughts on Glow with the Show? Which nighttime shows do you think they work best with? I dare say I like them at Hollywood Studios’ Fantasmic better than World of Color, because I just think World of Color is so perfect on its own! Please share your opinion in the comments below, I’d love to hear what you think!

Photo Tour of Be Our Guest Restaurant With Quick Serve Areas!

15 October 2012 by Suzannah Otis 3 Comments

Over the weekend, you may have seen the buzz about the Magic Kingdom’s New Fantasyland opening up with a “Dress Rehearsal” of its completed areas. I’ll have many more photos to come if you missed some of my Instagrams on Twitter or Facebook, but I thought I’d start with some of the Be Our Guest Restaurant, since it is such a highly anticipated new dining location and boy, does it live up to its hype as far as appearances go.

The Walt Disney Imagineers have done an amazing job of bringing the classic Beauty and the Beast animated movie we all know and love, to life. We see familiar creatures and architectural details as well as some new interpretation of how Beast’s home would look. The details and tiny surprises are just perfect and will provide hours of enjoyment as something new is discovered each visit.

Be Our Guest Restaurant opens to the public on November 19. You can find menu info and more over at The Disney Food Blog.

See the wonder for yourself:

New Fantasyland — The mountains and cascading waterfall are just breathtaking.

I hope you enjoyed the photo tour, I’ll have many more photos of New Fantasyland to come in the next few days. The photos above are free to share, but if you do, please provide a link back to zannaland.com. Thank you!

Mickey’s Not So Scary Halloween Party Delivers Treats For All!

18 September 2012 by Suzannah Otis Leave a Comment

Once the holiday decorations appear on the train station and light posts at the Magic Kingdom, the best time of the year begins in the place where dreams come true. The crowds are drastically reduced after Labor Day, and some really unique events start up for lucky visitors. One of my favorites to attend each year is Mickey’s Not-So-Scary Halloween Party. The “Not-So-Scary” is important because so many area theme parks do offer super-scary events for those looking for a more haunted Halloween experience. However, in the Magic Kingdom, the tradition has always been to offer family fun with a sprinkling of Haunted Mansion-style spookiness.

Mickey’s Not-So-Scary Halloween Party is a hard-ticketed special event, which means on certain dates, the Magic Kingdom will close early and a special ticket will be required to attend the party. Is it worth it? I always answer a resounding “YES!” when asked. Here’s a quick run-down of why:

No Crowds – The party is limited to a certain number of guests, which means you can ride Space Mountain, Big Thunder Mountain Railroad, Splash Mountain and yes, even Peter Pan’s Flight with almost no wait. Pro Tip: If you go during the parades or fireworks, it’s virtually walk-on.
Free Candy – That’s right, you can trick-or-treat during the event, and not just little ones. Adults and grumpy teenagers with no costumes alike can all fill their bags with candy at various locations throughout the park.

“Boo-to-You” Parade – Veteran Disney guests may think, “eh, a parade, how exciting could it be?” but let me tell you, this is the best parade of the season and worth the party ticket! First, you get a visit from the Headless Horseman who trots down the parade route prior to its start. It’s always an exciting sight to witness and gets everyone fired up for the parade to follow. The parade itself is full of unique and amazing floats. The Haunted Mansion attraction is brought to life, with dancing gravediggers who make quite the “spark” followed by hitchhiking and ballroom dancing ghosts. Next up, the villains we know and love pass by, and just for fun, some cowboy and cowgirl action followed by Clara Cluck, a crowd favorite. Goofy rounds out the parade with his Candy Company contraption, as more candy is handed out among the crowd. Pro Tip: visit attractions during the first parade and stick around for the second one at 10:30.

Here is the Headless Horseman’s ride:

Boo to You Parade — The Gravediggers are my favorite part of the parade!

Happy HalloWishes Fireworks Spectacular – You may have seen fireworks, you may have even seen Wishes, but HalloWishes will blow them all away. Favorite spooky music and villains’ voices fill the air as fireworks fill the sky, and I do mean FILL the sky. HalloWishes is known for its perimeter fireworks, meaning you are surrounded by them at various points in the show, especially the finale. It’s a truly amazing experience.

Costumes – one of my favorite parts of attending the Halloween party is just people watching. You see some real creativity on display as folks appear as their favorite Disney or other characters, sometimes as a group theme. It’s just so fun, especially when you see really obscure things that you have to try and guess. There are always some great Hitchhiking Ghosts on hand, and over the last few years I’ve seen quite a few characters from Disney-Pixar’s UP, including young Carl and Ellie, Russell and Carl, and more. It’s a unique experience at every party of the season! Also – you’ll find some of your favorite Disney characters in their own costumes for photo opportunities too, so keep an eye out.

In addition to the above, there is a fun Villains Mix & Mingle show at the Castle stage, and a few Character Dance Parties throughout the park, if your little ghosts have some sugar to burn off. Speaking of, there are healthy non-candy choices available for trick-or-treating as well, just ask the costumed cast members where those options are as you get your treats.

Some of my other favorite parts of attending Mickey’s Not-So-Scary Halloween Party are the unique decorations and lighting designs throughout the park. Keep an eye out for spooky shadows projected on the ground – new this year is a skull shining on Big Thunder Mountain, and the Halloween-colored lighting down Main Street, U.S.A. is a fun sight to see.

Bottom line, get thee to the Halloween party! It is so worth it and I think it’s virtually impossible not to have a good time. I haven’t even touched on all of the things you can only see during these special events, some of them, you’ll just have to head over and experience for yourself. I did mention the free candy, right?

Party dates in 2012 are:

Sept. 11, 14, 18 21, 25, 28, 30;
Oct. 4, 5, 8, 11, 12, 14, 16, 18, 21, 22, 23, 25, 28, 30 and 31;
Nov. 2.

Advance savings of $6 per ticket are available for select dates. Special after-hours tickets are required. For additional information, guests may visit www.disneyworld.com/halloween. Tickets may be purchased online or by calling 407/W-DISNEY.

Disclosure: Disney provided me with four tickets to this event, but did not ask me to write about it. All opinions are my own.

Retro Walt Disney World-1975-Name That Location

27 September 2011 by Suzannah Otis Leave a Comment

I thought in honor of Walt Disney World’s 40th Anniversary coming up this Saturday, October 1, I’d post some retro photos all week long. I’ve shared some old photos in the past here in Zannaland, but I managed to find a few more this weekend from my mom’s photo albums. This one in particular caught my eye because I really couldn’t tell where it was taken. There is a flag pole, but it’s clearly not in Main Street, U.S.A.’s Town Square. Then friend and Disney history (and present and future) expert, Scott Otis pointed out the Cinderella Castle spire to the left of the balloons. So it must be somewhere to the left of Main Street, in the Crystal Palace or Baby Care/First Aid area? That double little wall area in the background is throwing me off. If you have an exact thought, feel free to share! (Click to enlarge)

Retro WDW 1975 — My brother and sister, 1975 And as with all Disney photos from the 70's, it's difficult to tell which people are cast members are which are actual guests due to attire!

In a funny coincidence, I see that Jud’s Disney Photo of the Day he just posted looks like it could be in a very similar spot! I’m now questioning the date…because photo I have in the other post lists it as 1972, which would make sense because if it was 1975, I’d be almost 2, and probably would’ve been in more pictures. But my mom has this trip listed in the photo album as 1975. Hmm. This may remain a mystery!