Fantasmic Articles
14 Venues, Show Temporarily Close In Disney Parks
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Disneyland Resort parks have 14 venues and one show that are temporarily closed during May, mostly for major makeovers or special events.
Many of the projects are ending this month as the two parks -- Disneyland and Disney California Adventure -- prepare for the summer season.
Along Disneyland's Rivers of America, four attractions and the Fantasmic! Show are shut down for preparations of the ...
Disneyland Closes Attractions For Pirates Premiere
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Disneyland this week temporarily closed five attractions as the park prepares for next week's celebrity-studded premiere of the upcoming "Pirates of the Caribbean 4" movie.
Crews are building a screen and seating along Rivers of America for the outdoor viewing May 7 of "Pirates of the Caribbean On Stranger Tides" for celebrities, invited guests and ticket holders. The screening follows "black" ...
Disneyland Fireworks Temporarily Stopped
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Disneyland's nightly holiday fireworks show was canceled Tuesday night for the fifth time in the last week.
The display, "Believe in Holiday Magic," was first canceled on Dec. 22 because of weather conditions and a technical issue. The same night, a Disney employee was transported to a local hospital and released for a noise-related injury from the operation of the fireworks.
"We are working ...
Officials Evaluating Disneyland Fireworks Safety
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Disney officials and experts are evaluating the safety of the Disneyland fireworks on a daily basis after an employee was injured last week, officials said.
Disneyland is canceling its nightly fireworks again Wednesday the sixth time in the past seven days because of technical issues.
The fireworks show, "Believe in Holiday Magic," is a major attraction during the holiday season, which runs ...
7 Attractions Temporarily Close At Disney
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Visitors to Disneyland resorts may want to check ahead to see if their favorite rides are operating as the park begins its annual maintenance.
Starting Monday, seven attractions will close for refurbishment as well as some shows and restaurants.
The 52-year-old Matterhorn Bobsled ride will be closed until summer while crews update the ride and add new vehicles featuring three seats.
Crews ...
Dining At Disney's Club 33: The Good, The Bad And The Shopping
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There is a special population obsessed enamored with all things Disney, and a completely unrelated group that wants to be a part of all things exclusive. Rarely do these two collide, except when discussing a certain door adjacent to the Blue Bayou in New Orleans Square, its only marker being their address, the buzzer behind a discreet panel your only way in. Happiest place on Earth? Try toughest ...
Disney Parks Switch Fireworks Entertainment
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Disneyland Resort's two parks are changing their entertainment schedule, including the fireworks show, during the slower winter months.
Some of the entertainment features are switching to a weekends-only schedule until the spring.
Here are some of the changes at Disneyland:
Fireworks: "Remember Dreams Come True" fireworks show returns Friday (today) after going on a break during the ...
Disney Temporarily Closes 8 Attractions, 1 Show
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Eight Disney parks attractions, one show and some hotel pools will be temporarily closed for at least part of February mostly because of maintenance projects.
Disney traditionally conducts most of their big renovation projects in the winter months following the busy holidays when tourism slows down.
On Friday (today), Disney is reopening two of those attractions -- Redwood Creek Challenge Trail ...
5 Disney Rides Temporarily Close Fantasmic! Show Returns
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Five rides in Disneyland Resort parks will be closed for at least part of March as the park prepares for spring-break crowds.
Four of the rides are set to re-open within the week after undergoing routine maintenance projects: Grizzly River Run in Disney California Adventure and the Mark Twain Riverboat, the Disneyland Monorail and the King Arthur Carrousel in Disneyland.
The Matterhorn Bobsleds ...
7 Tips For Tackling Disneyland In A Day
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I've been to Disneyland hundreds of times over the last two decades and have been writing the Funland theme park blog for about four years now. As a result, people are always asking me how to do everything at Disneyland in a single day.
The short answer is you probably can't. It can be a struggle for even hard-core fans with military assault-like strategies. The longer answer is there's lots of ways ...
Suspicious Object Found At Disneyland Was Spiritual Message
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The suspicious object that forced Disneyland officials to lock down the theme park Saturday morning was a rolled-up piece of paper with a "spiritual message" discovered in a tree near the entrance, authorities said.
A Disney employee spotted the item in the tree outside a ticket booth shortly after 7 a.m. while greeting visitors at the park entrance, officials said.
Visitors were temporarily ...
24 Consecutive Hours In Disneyland
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Normally, I'm quite neurotic about thoroughly planning Disneyland trips. Normally, I plan my trips in advance to fall during less-crowded times of year, I make reservations for the best Disneyland restaurants and I find hotel and airfare deals for my anticipated travel dates. However, when Disney announced on New Year's Eve that Disneyland in California and Walt Disney World's Magic Kingdom in Florida ...
Disneyland Resumes Weekday Fireworks
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Are you hearing the boom of Disneyland fireworks on school nights again?
That's because school is out in some places.
Disneyland has resumed fireworks showings on weekdays for about five weeks during the spring break period when crowds pick up. During the slower off season in the winter and spring, Disneyland usually only shoots off fireworks on weekends.
The nightly fireworks schedule ...
Disney Changes Fireworks And Entertainment Schedule
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Disneyland fireworks will return to a weekends-only schedule starting Monday, now that the spring break crowds have subsided.
For about five weeks, the park shot off fireworks every night because of increased tourism during the busy spring break period. School vacations usually run anywhere from mid-March to after Easter. During the slower winter and spring seasons, the show only is held on ...
Disney Plans Exclusive Events For Show's Anniversary
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Disneyland is inviting annual passholders to exclusive events to mark the 20th anniversary of the Fantasmic! show.
Disney sent email invitations starting Wednesday to passholders, who can sign up to attend one of four nights. No anniversary events are planned for regular park visitors, said Michele Himmelberg, a Disneyland Resort spokeswoman.
On May 13, Fantasmic! will turn 20 years old. ...
Special Fantasmic Anniversary Dessert At Cafe Orleans
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Disneyland annual pass-holders witnessed a special 20th anniversary, after-hours performance of Fantasmic! on Monday.
The multimedia show began with a four-minute prologue showing planning and preparation for the attraction and its premiere in May, 1992.
The event took place at 11:30 p.m., after the park was closed to all but pass-holders who had picked up tickets in advance to attend.
Even ...
Did Disney Raise Annual-Pass Prices To Thin Crowds
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Disneyland Resort parks have faced an unusual business dilemma in recent years: Too many regular customers.
Nearly 1 million people now have annual passes, prompting Disney to make changes to its program that could thin out crowds and possibly weed out some passholders, a Disney watchdog blog reports.
The company last week dramatically upped prices for annual passes by as much as $150 each, ...
Fantasmic Fun At Anaheim Disneyland
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As summer winds down, be sure not to miss the musical extravaganza Fantasmic! at Disneyland in Anaheim. The show depicts Mickey's rousing dream of good versus evil. This colorful phantasmagoria pits famous Disney characters heroes and villains in sweeping battles rendered with symphonic majesty.
Disney characters perform in digital movie form on enormous screens of water and live. Dazzling ...
A Guy A Girl And 366 Straight Days At Disneyland
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If, like Jeff Reitz and Tonya Mickesh, you go to Disneyland oftenvery oftenyou know that asking for a roast beef melt made without horseradish, as opposed to a roast beef melt with horseradish removed after the fact, will require a ten-minute wait at the Jolly Holiday Bakery Cafe. You know that, if conditions are right, you may ride in the wheelhouse of the Mark Twain Riverboat and help steer. You know ...
California vs. Paris: Frontierland (Part Two)
In Anaheim, Frontierland has five very distinct shops (Bonanza Outfitters, Pioneer Mercantile, Silver Spur, The Spirit of Pocahontas Shop and Westward Ho Trading Company) whereas there is really only one store in the Frontierland of Disneyland Paris. This is the Thunder Mesa Mercantile Building, although it is split into three separate parts: Tobias Norton & Sons, Bonanza Outfitters and Eureka Mining ...
Glow Ears Join Disneyland Holiday Fireworks
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Max Brauer brings his glowing Mickey Mouse ears to Disneyland several times a week.
But he has rarely seen more than a handful of visitors wearing the interactive ears during the "Believe in Holiday Magic" fireworks show, when the ears change colors and twinkle to the music.
"Not very many people know about it," said Brauer, 19, of Loma Linda.
Disneyland this year added what it calls Glow ...
Disney Begins 4 Million Dollar Big Thunder Overhaul
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Disneyland's Big Thunder Mountain Railroad will undergo its biggest project in more than three decades when the ride closes Monday for at least nine months.
The Frontierland ride, which mimics a runaway mine train through an Old West canyon, will close so crews can begin a makeover that will last until fall. A reopening date has yet to be announced.
The renovation will cost $4 million, according ...
California vs. Paris: Rivers of America
I learned something today.
My comparison article for January 2013 was always going to be about the Rivers of America in Anaheim's Disneyland Park, and its counterpart in Disneyland Paris.
However, until perhaps five minutes ago, I had assumed that the Paris equivalent was also called Rivers of America. Turns out, it's the Rivers of the Far West.
Whilst it has been made clear which rivers ...
Dazzling New Live Show Mickey And The Magical Map Opens May 25 In Fantasyland Theatre
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Mickey Mouse and a cast of beloved Disney characters will embark on a series of musical adventures through the magical powers of a sorcerer's map in "Mickey and the Magical Map," the all-new live show coming to the Fantasyland Theatre in Disneyland Park May 25.
Created by Disney Creative Entertainment, "Mickey and the Magical Map" was conceived for children of all ages and represents the return of ...
Music is Magic
I don't even remember my first trip to Disneyland as a child. My first trip with my high school band, on the other hand, I do remember, if a little vaguely. Hey, I've been going since I was a kid, and even with my makeshift leash, all the wonderful memories have always tended to blend together. It was when I was a freshman in high school and we were to march down Main Street, something we did every year. ...
Lunch With Disney Legend Marty Sklar In Disneyland's Club 33
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I have to admit, I was getting a little nervous.
It was 1:20 in the afternoon of Nov. 22. I was standing -- actually, pacing back and forth - near the steps of City Hall in Town Square at Disneyland.
Rain was falling pretty steadily, as it had been since daybreak, and it was downright chilly, a far cry from the "warm California sun" we've been hearing about for decades.
I was scheduled to ...
Disneyland Turns 60 Ranking Its Attractions by Land
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Oh, boy! The Disneyland Resort Diamond Celebration begins today!
Disneyland Park opened in Anaheim, Calif., on July 17, 1955, and ever since, it has entertained millions of guests from all over the world. That's no small feat!
"It's amazing to contemplate all that Disneyland has come to mean to so many people around the world," Tom Staggs, COO of the Walt Disney Company, recently told the ...
Disneyland 60th Anniversary Could Pack The Theme Park
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The gripes about Disneyland crowds started on opening day - July 17, 1955 - when so many people showed up that refreshment stands ran out of food and drinks.
Sixty years later, Disneyland is celebrating its diamond anniversary with a new pulsating nighttime parade and upgraded fireworks show plus a sparkling veneer on Sleeping Beauty's castle. Theme park experts predict that visitors will pack the ...
How Southern California Attractions Like Disneyland Cater To Theme Park Junkies
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Can theme parks become even more addictive? That's what parks in Southern California and around the country are hoping to do with their new crop of attractions for this summer.
Anyone in business knows it's more cost-effective to get your current customers to come back and buy more than it is to find a new customer for every sale. So park owners always design attractions with the hope that visitors ...
A Diamond Celebration In Sardineland
It had been three or four years since I had last been to Disneyland. But, on May 22, my mother and I went, just the two of us. That day was the opening day, for lack of a better term, of the park's Diamond celebration. As a part of that, the parks were open for 24 hours, closing at 6 A.M. on May 23 for a few hours.
Rather inadvertently, we ended up parking in the "Toy Story" parking lot instead of ...
Disney Voice Over Actors Bring Theme Park Rides To Life
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Voice-over actors are the hidden artists who provide the audio atmosphere and essential back stories that bring theme parks to life..
From the parking lot tram spiel to park-wide announcements to ride narrations, the best work of voice-over actors often goes unnoticed simply because it blends so seamlessly into the overall theme park experience.
During the upcoming ScareLA convention on Aug. 8 ...
