Walt Disney World Resort Update For December 31, 2019 - January 6, 2020

Walt Disney World Resort Update for December 31, 2019 - January 6, 2020

 

Writer's note: When you wish upon a happy New Year, hopefully, you too find yourself at Walt Disney World Resort!

And, to those of you who are regular listeners of The Garry Meier Show, you may have noticed my new frequent short segments with Garry now that our sponsor, Get Away Today is also a sponsor of his show. For those that don't know, Garry's a National Radio Hall of Fame inductee who now hosts five-days-a-week podcasts which are available to stream or download any time: new free episodes are posted Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays, and longer premium subscription shows are posted on Tuesdays and Thursdays. Garry's shows cover all sorts of topics (but no politics) and sometimes contain some adult humor or words. I have regularly appeared on his show talking about Disney since 2017.

For my brief chat about the newest additions to Star Tours: The Adventures Continue, and Garry's promotion of Get Away Today, jump to 19:48 of Episode 581.

Lots of new things are coming to Walt Disney World Resort in 2020, including at least three new movie-based attractions at Epcot on January 17 (at Canada, France, and The Land pavilions), the first new ride for Epcot's World Showcase in decades this Summer (Remy's Ratatouille Adventure - yes, the Mexico and Norway attractions have been re-themed in the past decade, but the rides are not new to the park), and the first ride-through attraction featuring the mouse that started it all coming to the Chinese Theater at Disney's Hollywood Studios on March 4 (Mickey & Minnie's Runaway Railway). As we get in to the year, we expect that the Resort will start announcing more details of the sure-to-be-huge celebration to come in 2021 when Walt Disney World marks its 50th Anniversary with, at minimum, the new TRON Lightcycle Run at Magic Kingdom and Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind at Epcot (and a whole lot of that park's on-going Transformation, including the Play pavilion) all scheduled to be ready for guests in time for that celebration.

NEW Just announced yesterday, Florida Residents that want to visit the parks in the first half of 2020 will be able to purchase the new Florida Resident Discovery Disney Ticket starting January 2. The 4-Day Ticket is $195/person plus tax ($49/day) and the 3-Day Ticket is $175/person plus tax ($59/day) for one park per day admission on any dates through June 30, 2020, with no block-out dates (Park Hopper and Park Hopper Plus upgrades available for extra charges). Tickets must be purchased by June 27, 2020.

For our final Views Around the World for 2019, be sure to check out @MousePlanet on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter feeds for December 30-January 1, as I am queuing the Update for its usual Tuesday publication quite a few hours earlier than I usually do. Some highlights may appear in next week's Update. If you are in the parks, tag us on social media too! If you are not in the parks, as we note below, Disney Parks Blog also has you covered for your dose of Disney as the East Coast rings in 2020.

News and Views

Headlines are auto-generated here

Celebrating the New Year Around Walt Disney World

As ususal, there are lots of ways to spend New Year's Eve in the parks. In the next section, we note some of the suggestions for dealing with the crowds (repeated largely from last week when we discussed Christmas), and this week we have the highlights planned in each of the four theme parks for those who are not blocked out and choose to brave the crowds. Be on the lookout in the afternoon for "hat and horn" distribution locations in the parks - though, so far, there has been no official announcement about the return of this long-standing tradition, and, indeed, to spare the animal inhabitants of Disney's Animal Kingdom, there may be no horn distribution planned there.

Magic Kingdom

Last night, December 30, Magic Kingdom kicked off its usual early celebrations of the new year with two presentations of its traditional New Year's Eve "Fantasy in the Sky" fireworks and countdowns. For those that want to see this particular fireworks show, the December 30 showings always provides a somewhat less crowded option than December 31 itself. Indeed, for those that want to get the kids (or themselves) in bed early, the park actually does the same show at both 6:30 p.m. and at 11:50 p.m.

Magic Kingdom presents "Fantasy in the Sky" fireworks twice on December 31. Image ©Disney.

Tonight, for New Year's Eve, the park will repeat both showings at 6:30 p.m. and, again, at 11:50 p.m. with the final countdown to 2020. As it did last night, the park will also hold DJ-hosted parties in both Frontierland and Tomorrowland. For its final #DisneyParksLIVE stream of 2019, Mark Daniel and Jennifer Fickley-Baker will again host on Disney Parks Blog starting around 11:45 p.m. Eastern (all you have to do is go to the top of the blog's page to find the stream).

Epcot

As the nations represented around World Showcase celebrate the midnight start of 2020 today, each pavilion will offer "a festive announcement" to celebrate. At 6:30 p.m., the park will offer an early showing of the new Epcot Forever fireworks show. From 7 p.m. until 1 a.m. Eastern, unique entertainment and DJ-hosted dance parties (including the return of Silent Groove to Future World) will be offered around the park and America Gardens Theatre will offer live music throughout the evening.

The park will present "Epcot Forever" for a second time at 11:40 p.m. which will be followed by a countdown and a "pyrotechnic salute to the New Year." With this year's retirement of Illuminations and the video globe that used to be at the center of the show, this presentation is bound to be a bit different than what the park has offered for the past two decades.

Disney's Hollywood Studios

At 6:05 p.m. the park will offer a showing of the Wonderful World of Animation projection and pyrotechnics show on the Chinese Theatre facade. That will be followed at 6:30 p.m. with a performance of Jingle Bell, Jingle BAM!

Starting at 7 p.m., the park will hold a DJ-hosted dance party at Center Stage which will continue leading up to a countdown to midnight and fireworks. Shortly after midnight, the park will present Star Wars: A Galactic Spectacular.

Disney's Animal Kingdom

For the first time, Disney's Animal Kingdom is scheduled to remain open until midnight for New Year's Eve, with entertainment planned to ring in the new year. Starting at 6:15 p.m., DJ-hosted dance parties at Discovery Island, Asia, and DinoLand U.S.A. will get underway. Each location will have countdowns to 2020 as midnight approaches with "special celebratory moments" and the Tree of Life will feature a special "Awaken the New Year" projection show. Of course, do not expect the park to launch any noisy fireworks of its own for the sake of its animal inhabitants and, indeed, Kilimanjaro Safaris and other animal attractions will close before the park does.

For pin traders, the park is also featuring a special one-day-only opportunity in each of its lands except Pandora-The World of Avatar. Pin Trading boards with over 90 pins each, including Hidden Mickey pins and pins from Disney theme parks around the world, will be available during the following times:

• 1:00 - 2:00 p.m.
• 2:45 - 3:45 p.m.
• 5:45 - 6:45 p.m.
• 7:30 - 8:30 p.m.

According to Disney Parks Blog, during each of those pin trading opportunities, each guest will have only one minute to point to two Disney pins off the designated boards, and that once the cast member pulls them from the board, the trade is final.

The park will also offer a Limited Edition New Year's Day Pin for purchase beginning at 7 p.m. (with only 1,000 produced). For a chance to purchase this pin, Discovery Trading Company will distribute numbered wristbands starting at 7 a.m. Then, in the evening, a queue for those with wristbands will open 15 minutes before the posted return time, and guests will be assembled in sequential order (and guests must return no later than 9 p.m.). Each guest with a wristband has the opportunity to purchase two Limited Edition pins.

A Limited Edition Pin will be released at Disney's Animal Kingdom on December 31, 2019. Image ©Disney.

New Year's Week Crowd Adaptation Strategies

Like Christmas week, the days around the New Year at Walt Disney World Resort tend to be the busiest of the year. So, like last week, we remind you of some strategies for dealing with the experience -- and, indeed, yours truly has been at the Resort all but one December 31 since 2002!

As regular readers and visitors know, it can be a rather different experience park-to-park. Especially today, December 31, it is usually a pretty safe bet is that Magic Kingdom will reach capacity and close to new admissions at one or more points today, and Epcot probably will not. Even with its reconfiguration earlier this decade, the toll plaza for Magic Kingdom parking may back up World Drive all the way to Epcot and, perhaps beyond. This year, the on-going transformation at Epcot and the opening of Star Wars: Galaxy's Edge at Disney's Hollywood Studios may change things in unpredictable ways. Remember, to get a Boarding Group assignment for Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance, you need to be inside Disney's Hollywood Studios around early in its operating day (its scheduled opening today is 6 a.m., and its scheduled opening each morning the first week of 2020 is 7 a.m.).

Although this is the busiest time of the year, all but Platinum, Platinum Plus and Premier (two-Coast) Passholders are now blocked out through January 2, and quite a few Cast Member maingate blockouts (like at Disney's Hollywood Studios for quite awhile and on many dates at Magic Kingdom) are in place. The in-park crowds will largely consist of vacationers and day ticket holders with varying degrees of Disney Parks experience, and then, on Friday, when Gold and Silver blockouts end, Florida Passholders will return in greater numbers. As we said last week, since you're here and reading this Update, take advantage of our experience to make the most of your visit - and share this Update with your friends and family that are visiting the Resort!

Buy your tickets in advance!

Our top tip, year after year: Buy your tickets before you ever approach the main entrance. There is almost no reason to make your first line after the security checkpoint at one of the Florida Parks the line at the vacation planning booths that sell park tickets. By purchasing tickets in advance, you avoid standing in a long ticket-buying line. Buying in advance saves you a lot of time and headache, and leaves you with more options than those who show up without a ticket.

The easiest way to buy tickets is online from the Walt Disney World website itself. Print them at home before you leave and walk straight to the touchpoints at the park gate (or even just show the cast member at the touchpoint the bar code for each ticket) and you will be provided a plastic card to use at other touchpoints during your visit. You can also purchase tickets using the My Disney Experience app for iPhone and Android smartphones. In fact, if you already have a My Disney Experience account and MagicBands or previously used cards personally assigned to members your party (they are, after all, non-transferable), once you buy new tickets, you can link them in your account to those MagicBands and cards, and (as discussed below), start making FastPass+ reservations as soon as you buy them (three per park per guest per day, 30 days in advance of your visit, or 60 days in advance if you are staying in a Disney hotel or some of the Disney partner hotels like those at Disney Springs, Bonnet Creek, and the Walt Disney World Swan & Dolphin Resort.

Tickets are also available at the Disney hotels and partner hotels, at the Ticket Center at Disney Springs, Disney Store, and from quite a few authorized resellers (like our Sponsor, Get Away Today), but, as we always note in the Discounts section below, don't get scammed by deals that seem too good to be true!

Take advantage of Extra Magic Hours

For Disney Resort hotel guests and select partner hotels, different parks offer exclusive admission either an hour before scheduled opening in the morning or for two hours after scheduled closing in evenings. Check with your hotel for eligibility; check the My Disney Experience app to see which parks are offering the benefit on a particular day.

Today, December 31, for example, for whatever amount of extra effort it takes to get your family on their feet and inside Magic Kingdom by 7 a.m. will be repaid by the opportunity to check off at least some of your must-do rides before most people even have their first cup of coffee. Of course, with many guests planning to be in the parks to ring in 2020 at Midnight, lots of folks probably can get lots of favorite rides in around park opening today, with Disney's Animal Kingdom opening at 7 a.m. and Epcot opening at 8 a.m. Again, as we noted above, because of Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance at Disney's Hollywood Studios, that park is opening to all guests at 6 a.m. today too! As always, check the My Disney Experience app for the latest information.

FastPass+ Reservations

Since the introduction of FastPass+ and MagicBands several years ago, Walt Disney World theme park planning has taken on the new dimension of having some of the "best" rides seemingly sell out 60 days out. FastPass+ advance reservations are no extra charge for guests. Each guest can make advance reservations for three attractions in one park each day and, importantly, after those three are used (or cancelled), each guest can make one more in any park (if they have the park hopping option), and continue to make one more after each prior one is used or expired.

Though FastPass+ reservations may appear sold out, between cancelations by guests and "surprise and delight" releases of same-day reservations, guests should keep checking My Disney Experience to see if favorite attractions have availability. Do not be disappointed when you initially search, say, "Afternoon" and see no availability. Try searching specific times. Sometimes, you may just find those Avatar-Flight of Passage FastPass+ reservations pop up when you select 4 p.m. and hit search. Try repeatedly, it's free and, if you are waiting in another queue, it is something else you can do! (Well, it may depend on WiFi and cell data, but that it out of our jurisdiction.)

Reserve your table

The reality is that the most popular table service locations are already booked solid this week, but that doesn't mean you're completely out of luck. Use the My Disney Experience app to find a table or snag a last-minute cancellation. If you prefer phone calls, try (407)WDW-DINE, but prepare for long wait times.

Mobile order meals

If your favorite restaurant was sold out, or a long table-service meal just isn't your holiday style, there are a bounty of counter-service locations available to fill you up on the go. Wherever possible, use the handy mobile ordering feature on the My Disney Experience app to pre-order your meal and skip the line for ordering. The app does let you use Dining Plan credits at restaurants that take them, but it does not let you use a Disney Gift Card or Disney Rewards Card as a form of payment; you need to link a credit or debit card in the app.

Schedule your entertainment, and enjoy attractions that "eat people"

Shows are a great way to take a break during the day, but the entertainment-heavy holiday schedule means you can't see it all. The Times Guide lists the offerings at the park you visit, but to see what is going on at other parks, you need to check the My Disney Experience app if you are thinking about Park Hopping. The printed Times Guide is usually available just inside park's main entrance gates (including Epcot's "back door," International Gateway), but you can ask for one at Guest Relations, Guest Experience kiosks, many merchandise locations, and even some cast members wearing aprons with a pocket showing lots of them sticking out.

Each park has one or more theater-type attractions that "eat people" - in other words, they have a high capacity, and you usually do not have to wait more than one complete show to see the next. Great examples at each park include:

• Magic Kingdom: Carousel of Progress, Hall of Presidents, Enchanted Tiki Room, Country Bears Jamboree
• Epcot: The American Adventure, Reflections of China, Disney and Pixar Short Film Festival
• Disney's Hollywood Studios: For the First Time in Forever-A Frozen Sing-along, Voyage of the Little Mermaid, Indiana Jones Epic Stunt Spectacular, Muppet-Vision 3-D
• Disney's Animal Kingdom: Festival of the Lion King, Finding Nemo-The Musical, It's Tough to be a Bug

Theater attractions, like Indiana Jones Epic Stunt Spectacular at Disney's Hollywood Studios, provide seating for a large number of guests simultaneously, making it an especially good entertainment option on busy park days during the holidays. File Photo by Alan S. Dalinka.

Use Disney transportation

Theme park parking lots may fill before the parks themselves reach capacity. Sure, with the expansion of the Disney's Hollywood Studios parking lot, it is not as tiny as it once was, but competing with the tourists and locals on the roads in the resort is probably not going to be ideal.

Disney buses and Minnie Van (Disney-run, Lyft app summoned private transportation) will compete with regular traffic on some roads but also get to go places that other vehicles and rideshares are not allowed (like the Magic Kingdom bus loop).

The new Disney Skyliner allows for road-less connection between Disney's Hollywood Studios and Epcot's International Gateway in about 10-15 minutes (plus whatever queues build up to board and change lines at Disney's Caribbean Beach Resort). Indeed, the Epcot station is not un-walkable for guests at Disney's BoardWalk Resort, Yacht & Beach Club Resorts or even the Walt Disney World Swan & Dolphin. Indeed, water transport connects Studios and Epcot with those same resorts too, and separate water transports connect Magic Kingdom with each of the Magic Kingdom area resort hotels and the Fort Wilderness Campground.

If your plans include using Disney Skyliner transportation, be sure to note the operating hours. Signs are posted at each station. Photo by Alan S. Dalinka.

And, of course, the monorail operates around Seven Seas Lagoon to Magic Kingdom and offers a connection between Epcot and the Transportation and Ticket Center.

M&M's Orlando Moving to Disney Springs

Since 2005, M&M's World Orlando has operated at The Florida Mall, about half an hour's drive from Walt Disney World Resort. This week, Disney and Mars Retail Group announced that the Orlando store is relocating to Disney Springs in a 10,200 square-foot store on the West Side replacing the recently closed Fit2Run and Curl stores.

Construction is expected to begin immediately on the new M&M's Orlando store which is replacing Fit2Run and Curl on the West Side. Photo by Alan S. Dalinka.

In the new state-of-the-art store, "[g]uests will be fully immersed into an interactive chocolate experience that will create more moments and more smiles through the colorful fun of M&M'S," said Patrick McIntyre, director of global retail at Mars Retail Group. The new store is expected to open in 2020, but a specific closing date has not yet been announced for The Florida Mall location. M&M's other "experiential stores" owned and operated by Mars Retail Group are located in New York City, Las Vegas, London, and Shanghai.

Photos by Alan S. Dalinka.

Orlando Sentinel quotes McIntyre as saying that the new store will be "an upgrade over the Florida Mall shop," but the Sentinel article also notes that the store's square footage will be over 1/3 smaller. It will feature more than 100 tubes of different varieties and colors of M&M's according to the Sentinel.

Epcot Festivals News & Calendar

The 2019 Festival of the Holidays Has Concluded

Performances of Candlelight Processional, wrapped up last night, December 30, at America Gardens Theatre, along with the park-wide Festival of the Holidays. The Candlelight Processional performances that combine a live orchestra, massed choir and celebrity narrator in the retelling of the traditional Christmas story no doubt, will return late in 2020. As noted above, special entertainment offerings are available on New Year's eve around Epcot.

The 2019 Epcot International Festival of the Holidays officially concluded December 30. Photo by Alan S. Dalinka.

While the Festival of the Holidays has ended, the actual celebration of The Feast of The Three Kings is January 6, 2020. While the Feast of the Three Kings Holiday Kitchen closed with the Festival, Disney Parks Blog published the recipe for making its chocolate crinkle cookie that was part of this year's cookie stroll.

Festival of the Arts

From January 17 to February 24, 2020, Epcot International Festival of the Arts returns. This year, the new "Wonderful Walk of Colorful Cuisine" debuts with food creations "that make you look twice and delight all your senses." Based on the description on the Festival's website, ArtfulEpcot.com, the Walk is like the Holiday's Cookie Trail, if you purchase 5 menu items from the Cuisine locations and receive stamps in your Passport, you can bring the completed Passport to Decadent Delights for a "colorful culinary prize offered exclusively at the Festival." Passport stamps do not have to be collected on the same day; the Passport may be completed at anytime before the end of the Festival. The menus for all the Festival's "Food Studios" (kiosks) are also on the Festival's website, ArtfulEpcot.com.

Returning Disney on Broadway Concert Series performers Alton Fitzgerald White & Kissy Simmons discus their upcoming return to the Festival of the Arts. Video ©Disney.

At Germany pavilion, a "brand new to Epcot" performing group, Lebendig ("Alive") will take to the stage during published times January 17 through February 25. The four-piece pop/rock group performs "its contemporary interpretation of the beloved German Schlager style, including covers and originals."

The America Gardens Theatre will again host nightly Disney on Broadway Concerts Series, three times nightly: 5:30 p.m., 6:45 p.m., and 8 p.m. The performing duos scheduled to appear this year are: Kissy Simmons & Alton Fitzgerald White, Heidi Blickenstaff & Gavin Lee, Kara Lindsay & Kevin Massey, Liana Hunt & Adam Jacobs, Ashley Brown & Josh Strickland, and Syndee Winters & Michael James Scott. Each duo is scheduled to perform several times, and three evenings over the course of the Festival (January 25, February 9 and 24), two duos combine for three concerts. More information about both the whole Festival and the shows themselves is available on ArtfulEpcot.com or by calling (407)939-5277. Booking for dining packages and workshops is also now open for the entire 2020 Festival.

Chalk artists and Living Statues will return for the 2020 Festival of the Arts. Some of the artists demonstrated their talents during the media event ahead of the opening of Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance. File Photo by Alan S. Dalinka.

Remember, that the 2020 opening of the Festival of Arts also marks the opening of the permanent new films at the Canada and The Land pavilions, along with the Beauty and the Beast Sing-Along (plus the return of Impressions de France, upgraded to 4K projection), opening at the France pavilion.

"Canada Far and Wide in CircleVision 360," is scheduled to debut at Canada pavilion January 17, 2020, with narration by Catherine O'Hara and Eugene Levy, and a new score by Andrew Lockington. File Photo by Alan S. Dalinka.

The new 10-minute film "Awesome Planet" is scheduled to debut January 17, 2020, inside The Land pavilion with in-theater effects and an original musical score by Steven Price. File Photo by Alan S. Dalinka.

Flower & Garden Festival

The longest running Epcot festival—the one that started them all back in 1994 as "a 38-day celebration of Disney-style gardens and topiaries"—the 2020 Epcot International Flower & Garden Festival, runs 90-days from March 4 to June 1, 2020. The 27th edition of the Festival includes the Garden Rocks Concert Series three times nightly at America Gardens Theatre, and, the list of scheduled performers so far includes both returning and new names including: Peabo Bryson, STARSHIP, Sister Hazel, Rick Springfield, Plain White T's, Don McLean, Herman's Hermits, Daughtry and Survivor. As the Festival gets closer, we expect we expect we will increasingly see the gaps in the schedule filled. The official website for the festival, FreshEpcot.com.

Garden Rocks Concert Series Dining Packages are now available. Booking a breakfast, lunch or dinner package at select Epcot restaurants provides guaranteed concert seating for a 5:30, 6:45, or 8 p.m. show.

If you are new to the Festival, you may not otherwise know that this is the one that features the most topiaries around the park. New this year will be a Remy topiary that will be unveiled as the centerpiece of Ratatouille Garden at France pavilion. The garden will include vegetables that make up the traditional ingredients of a ratatouille recipe. Remy's Ratatouille Adventure attraction opens at the pavilion during the summer, with a specific date not yet announced.

Other topiary displays that have been announced so far are the return of Anna & Elsa, Buzz Lightyear, Miss Piggy & Kermit the Frog, Tinker Bell, Snow White, and Bambi. The Goodness Garden Butterfly House will also return, as will the "Play Full Garden" where "families can celebrate spring at a unique playground experience." The Floating Gardens, Flower Towers, and more bedded blooms will be planted as well. Behind the scenes tours are available during the Festival from the no-additional-charge 20 minute English Tea Garden tour to the Spring edition of the 3 hour Gardens of the World tour ($85/person plus tax).

Like the other Festivals, Flower & Garden Festival will include food and beverage kiosks. This year, 16 "Outdoor Kitchens" and other "stops" will include three Florida-centric locations: The Honey Bee-stro, The Citrus Blossom, and Florida Fresh.

Food & Wine Festival

The 2019 Epcot International Food & Wine Festival just concluded back in November, and the park has not yet announced its return for 2020. It is a pretty safe bet that the hugely popular festival will return for a near 90 day run in the late summer/fall of 2020. The official website for the festival is TasteEpcot.com.

Festivals Calendar

For the convenience of our readers, all of the scheduled Celebrity Narrators for Candlelight Processional at America Gardens Theatre are shown in our Google Calendar of Epcot Events. We will have also added the announced Disney on Broadway Concert Series performers so far, and we will add Garden Rocks Concert Series performers when they are announced. You can add the entire Event calendar to any calendar that supports the iCal format (like iPhone and Mac) by copying this link and, as we get additional information and update the calendar, the calendar will update on your subscribed device as well.

While our Google Calendar of Epcot Events lists announced performers, it is still always best to check the My Disney Experience app, Times Guide, and, yes, sometimes even signs posted at the park entrances and at the theater noting any last minute changes. The calendar is provided as a courtesy "as is, where is" without any guarantees. We do respectfully request that you do not post our entire calendar on another site without first asking our permission. Walt Disney World Resort does provide schedules in the My Disney Experience app, but does not allow you to add dates to calendars outside the app itself.

Views Around the World

Epcot

Photos by Alan S. Dalinka.

Photos by Alan S. Dalinka.

Disney's Saratoga Springs Resort

Disney's Saratoga Springs has begun its scheduled major room refurbishment, as mentioned at this year's Disney Vacation Club Members annual meeting earlier this month. Photo by Alan S. Dalinka.

This and That…

…LAST CHANCE: Want a chance to participate in the Super Bowl Celebration Parade at Magic Kingdom as part of a four-day vacation for four at Walt Disney World with a VIP Guide and including a night in the Cinderella Castle Suite? The NFL is holding a contest as part of its "#NFL100 Experiences of a Lifetime" series where that prize package goes to the winner. Through December 31 (11:59:59 p.m. Eastern Time), entries can be submitted by Instagram or Twitter tagging @NFL and #NFL100Contest along with a brief video performance of your best "I'm going to Disney World" and explanation of why you deserve to win. The published judging criteria is:

• Passion, Enthusiasm and Fandom for the NFL (40%)
• Delivery Style – How Well You Articulate Your Reasons (30%)
• Quality, Uniqueness and Creativity of Your Submission (30%)

For the prize package with an approximate retail value of $17,000, there are a whole lot of details and fine print about your entry that you need to read at NFL.com/100/contests including, specifically, the very detailed Official Rules. We, at MousePlanet, are not in any way connected with or responsible for this contest sponsored by the National Football League, we just want our readers to know about it! If you enter, share your post with us on Instagram and Twitter too @MousePlanet.

…REMINDER: For a chance to dine at Space 220 Restaurant in Epcot, Patina Restaurant Group’s latest signature table-service restaurant and lounge expected to open this Winter, the non-profit Give Kids the World Village has an opportunity for you to win a package for two including roundtrip airfare to Orlando, lodging for two nights at a Walt Disney World®Resort, 2-day Theme Park Tickets with Park Hopper option and dinner for two at Space 220 at Epcot. Chances to win start at as little as $10. No purchase is necessary. To participate visit www.gktw.org/space220 to enter to win by January 15, 2020. Guests will be able to redeem the package following the opening of the restaurant and the availability of the resort. Donors help Give Kids The World provide life-changing wish trips to critically ill children and their families while getting a chance for an out-of-this-world experience. As we have mentioned many times before, Give Kids The World Village is an 84-acre, nonprofit "storybook" resort in Central Florida where critically ill children and their families are treated to weeklong, cost-free vacations, complete with accommodations, donated attraction tickets, meals, and more. For more information, visit givekidstheworld.org.

…REMINDER: Disney PhotoPass Service is celebrating its 15th anniversary this month, having launched at Epcot in December 2004. To mark the occasion in Epcot, now through January 6, 2020, PhotoPass is offering two special nighttime photo opportunities. A special "pixel stick" photo opportunity is available at the "back" side of Spaceship Earth (near the floral bed) featuring a design inspired by Spaceship Earth. On the entrance side of Spaceship Earth, PhotoPass offers an opportunity for a photo in front of an enhanced Spaceship Earth. Also through January 6, PhotoPass is offering a 15% discount plus free domestic shipping on "select orders" when customizing and ordering photo gift products through EZ Prints. Visit this page of DisneyWorld.com for links to the product offerings. Disney Parks Blog also lists other special photo opportunities available around all of Walt Disney World during the Holidays celebrations.

…The MousePlanet Newsletter is here! The newsletter contains a recap of the week's articles (in case you miss a day), news that may have developed since the weekly Updates were published, and tips about what's happening at the Disney theme parks for the coming weekend. We'll also include a fun bonus, such as an Eye Spy or a trivia question. To subscribe to our free newsletter, just enter your email in the box below.

Disney Springs News & Views

This section collects all of the Disney Springs retail and dining events we are aware of in one place along with our most recent views of the area (including those immediately under this paragraph). Some items are repeated week to week until they occur, while other items NEW to the Update are marked accordingly. For even more of the latest news around Disney Springs, follow its official Twitter Feed: @DisneySprings.

NEW Views Around Disney Springs

Photos by Alan S. Dalinka.

Wine Bar George

NEW From 11 a.m. until close on New Year's Day, January 1, all sparkling wine and champagne at Wine Bar George is buy one get one free (while supplies last) to celebrate the start of 2020.

Jaleo

Jaleo at Disney Springs will celebrate Three Kings Day on January 6. From noon until 4 p.m., the restaurant's inaugural Three Kings Day celebration will give kids 10 and under the chance to meet the Three Kings during storytime, receive complimentary slices of Roscón de Reyes (King Cake) and chocolate milk, and, for those that find the traditional bean in their slice of cake, prizes. Roscón de Reyes cakes can also be pre-ordered to enjoy at home through January 2 for pickup between January 4 and 6 (between 11 a.m. and closing). Cakes are $40/each (or $45 with cream) and serves 6-8 people. Visit Jaleo.com/roscon/ for more information and to pre-order.

The Edison

To kick off its Second Year Anniversary, The Edison will again host a New Year's Eve Gala of food, cocktails, and entertainment including performances by a live band, burlesque dancers, aerialists and more. The tickets (available on this page of PatinaGroup.com) are $150/person (plus tax and gratuity) include admission at 7:30 p.m. with "tray-passed" hors d'oeuvres, live-action food stations, and a wide selection of beer, wine, and premium spirits "until the Time Square ball drops at midnight" (which, of course, also happens to be midnight here in Central Florida), and a midnight champagne toast. The evening will also offer a selection of coffee and desserts, as the party continues until 2 a.m. on January 1, 2020. Additional VIP Table Packages are available as well.

NEW The Edison's YouTube channel is now home to a video series providing a behind the scenes look at exclusive specialty cocktails. A lead bartender from The Edison provides step-by-step mixology lessons on how to re-create some of The Edison's specialty drinks at home. We have been told to expect new additions to the channel quarterly.

Learn to make "The Last Coconut in San Juan" from The Edison's winter cocktail collection. Video courtesy The Edison.

Join Our Networks

On Facebook:

---

Resort Events

Check here to see if a park event might fall during your next trip to the Walt Disney World Resort. If you know of any in-park events, official or unofficial, that should be listed here, please send us an email. More runDisney event information

Just click the year you want to expand (or close).

2020 Resort Events

2021 Resort Events

Refurbishments and Attraction Closures

Note: Not all attraction closures have been officially confirmed by Disney, and are all subject to change at any time. All refurbishment schedules are estimates only. We recommend checking for updates as you plan your visit. All information is subject to change without notice. To get the most recent updates, visit DisneyWorld.com or use the MyDisneyExperience App on your iOS or Android device.

View the different areas of the Resort by scrolling horizontally and selecting the one you want to read about.

---

Current Discounts and Promotions

Note: MousePlanet does not edit past Updates to reflect price increases; for up-to-date prices, check the most recent Walt Disney World Resort Update. For your convenience, we have grouped the discount offers based on the intended audience. Check out the category that best matches you, and pick the offer that works best for you. And keep those tips coming—let us know if you find a better or different offer, so we can share it with other readers.

As regular readers know, Walt Disney World Resort theme park tickets are rarely offered at deep discounts unless you are a resident of Florida or eligible for U.S. Military Personnel benefits. It is increasingly true that non-Florida residents tend to benefit the most by purchasing tickets in advance (and, of course, being mindful of the rules relevant to those tickets). As prices go up, it becomes even more important to pay heed: Don't get scammed! Never buy tickets from an unofficial or secondary outlet, such as through eBay or Craigslist. Never rent or purchase tickets from people approaching you outside Disney property stating they have remaining days or leftover tickets. This practice is against the terms of use for Walt Disney World Theme Park admissions, and may result in denial of entry. There is no way to determine if these tickets are valid until you try to use them to enter the parks. Only purchase Disney theme park tickets directly from Disney, an authorized seller, or a travel agency like MousePlanet travel partner Get Away Today. Be sure to move the calendar to at least seven (7) days out, to see what ticket options and discounts are available for your planned visit.

For more discounts and offers we know about, click the category below that you want to expand (or close).

For Everyone

For Annual Passholders

For Disney Rewards VISA Credit Card Holders

For Military Personnel

For Florida Residents

For Disney Vacation Club Members

For Canada Residents

For U.K. Residents

Share, Links, Comments & More