Without reservations, you might miss out on great dining at Disney World

By

-

July 6, 2010

This article comes to us from Kristin Ford at the Daily Disney.

To dine at a table-service restaurant at Disney World on any holiday means planning ahead with a reservation. Sure, a few lucky folks may squeeze in when they walk up, but for the most part, you need to book it in advance.

This was apparent Sunday at the Polynesian Resort when we waited for our table. The lines just to check in at Ohana’s and Kona Cafe stretched down the lobby hallways.

Sometimes, even securing that Advance Dining Reservation (ADR) can be difficult if you want to dine at the most popular places on Disney property. I learned that a few years ago when we wanted to schedule lunch at Cinderella’s Royal Table in her castle at the Magic Kingdom. I called months in advance only to learn the my kids’ birthdays were already booked.

So, what’s a parent to do? Call exactly 180 days prior to the date you want to request an ADR. Guests staying at a Disney resort can call 190 days ahead of time. Make sure you call when Disney Dining opens at 7 a.m. EST and be prepared to be on hold. When I called to make castle dining reservations the second year, I phoned when the call center opened. Though I was on the line for 45 minutes, I did get an ADR for the meal and date I wanted. If you still are unable to book your preferred ADR, call back often to check for cancellations.

According to one Disney dining agent, the most difficult ADRs to secure are, in this order:

** Le Cellier steakhouse in Canada at Epcot

**Chef Mickey’s at the Contemporary Resort

** Cinderella’s Royal Table at Cinderella Castle in the Magic Kingdom

Click here to keep reading.

The Disney Blog Carnival for July is now LIVE!

By

Chip

-

July 6, 2010

It’s back! The new improved Blog Carnival is now live on the Dismarks site. This months edition has some great articles from all the best Disney blogs, including some brand new ones!

Check it out here!

There is even a link to the previous editions in case you missed it.

Free Dining Extended through December 21st.

By

Chip and Co Past Writers and Friends

-

July 6, 2010

A bit of a surprise given that Disney recently announced that they were going to cut back on our beloved discounts, but a welcome one nonetheless. Here are the details:

Disney values will get the quick service dining plan. Deluxes and moderates will get the regular dining plan. It is very economical and easy to upgrade these packages.
The promotion covers packages, which means you’ll need to purchase at least a 2-day theme park ticket.
The dates are as follows: August 15 – Ocober 7, October 22 – October 28, November 12-18, November 27 – December 2, and December 10 – 21. Note the blackout dates during ThanksgiviPop Warner and the D23 event taking place in December.
You must stay at least 3 consecutive nights.
Book by August 14.
Suites are excluded from this offer.

Remember, if you already have a reservation, you can call your travel agent or Disney and have this added. This is a very limited promotion, so call as soon as possible.

Good luck!

Best Place to Grab a Steak at Walt Disney World

By

Chip

-

July 6, 2010

I am a sucker for Steak! Give me one hot off the grill, forget the potatoes or veggies. A plate full of steak and I am a happy man. Personally when I make steak I let it marinade for 24hrs in a flavorful marinade called Allegro. To enhance the flavor you can cut orange or lime slices to give the flavor even more of a kick.

While at Disneyworld we always make it a point to eat at Le Cellier Steakhouse. I love the steaks and atmosphere there. It is one of my Favorite Disneyworld Restaurants.

I am a regular troll over at Passporter and they have a thread running for favorite steak at Walt Disney World. Having watching the posts form I am amazed on all the great places people love to get steaks.

So I thought why not put together a poll and see which one receives top honors. So now is your chance to vote for your favorite place to grab a steak at Walt Disney World.

If I missed one let me know in the comment section below and I will add it..I am sure I did as there probably is a hundred places to get one at WDW. Also let us know why its your favorite in the comment section too.

All this talk of steak is making me hungry..

Photo Credit kobolila via flickr.com

[poll id=”21″]

Wizarding World of Harry Potter Top 5 Butterbeer Recipes

By

Chip

-

July 5, 2010

I know this it not quite Disney News but with Harry Potter fever hitting the Orlando Area and the Deathly Hallows set to release in a few months I thought of no better time to share with you the Top 5 Butterbeer Recipes from around the interwebs. When I did a search there are probably about 100 different recipes out there, these seem to be the most popular.

Universal is keeping a tight lid on the recipe but there are some very talented people out there who have come up with both alcoholic and nonalcoholic varieties of this wonderful concoction.

1. This comes to us from Mugglenet.com

Ingredients:

1 cup (8 oz) club soda or cream soda
½ cup (4 oz) butterscotch syrup (ice cream topping)
½ tablespoon butter

Directions:

Step 1: Measure butterscotch and butter into a 2 cup (16 oz) glass. Microwave on high for 1 to 1½ minutes, or until syrup is bubbly and butter is completely incorporated.

Step 2: Stir and cool for 30 seconds, then slowly mix in club soda. Mixture will fizz quite a bit.

Step 3: Serve in two coffee mugs or small glasses; a perfectly warm Hogwarts treat for two!

2. This is the same as #1 minus the butter

Ingredients:

8oz ginger ale or cream soda
2-3 tablespoons of butterscotch syrup

Directions:

1. Mix in a tall glass and serve over ice

3. Here is a nice Alcoholic version for the Adults

Ingredients:

1 cup butterscotch schnapps
7 cups cream soda (2 liter bottle)

Directions:

1. Carefully mix just before serving, adding the schnapps to the soda then stirring gently to mix well, or the fizz will dissipate too soon

4. Here is one from the Food Network show Semi-Home Made with Sandra Lee

Ingredients:

1/4 cup sweetened condensed milk
1/4 cup butterscotch topping
2 tablespoons whipped butter, room temperature
1 1/2 cups vanilla cream soda

Directions:

Combine condensed milk, butterscotch topping, and butter in a glass heatproof measuring cup. Heat in microwave for 1 minute. Remove and stir until butter has melted and incorporated into mixture. Meanwhile heat cream soda in another heatproof measuring cup for 1 minute 30 seconds.

Divide butterscotch mixture between 2 (10 to 12-ounce) mugs. Fill mugs with heated cream soda and stir thoroughly. Serve garnished with an old-fashioned butterscotch candy stick.

5. Here is a very different one from CD Kitchen.com

Ingredients:

1 pint vanilla ice cream (softened)
1/2 stick butter (softened)
1/3 cup brown sugar
2 teaspoons cinnamon
1 teaspoon grated nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
1 quart apple cider

Directions:

Cream butter, sugar and spices together. Beat in the vanilla ice cream. Re-freeze the mixture. Scoop out the frozen mixture into a glass. Pour hot Apple cider over the ice cream mixture.

Optional: add an ounce of rum for an adult treat.

Ilene Woods dies at 81 voice of Disney’s Cinderella

By

Chip

-

July 5, 2010

Woods was an 18-year-old radio singer when Walt Disney asked her to give voice to the sweet stepdaughter who finds her Prince Charming. Woods gave the character warmth and made her likeable.

Ilene Woods, who provided the speaking and singing voice for the title character in Walt Disney’s classic 1950 animated feature ” Cinderella,” has died. She was 81.

Woods, a Calabasas resident, died of causes related to Alzheimer’s disease Thursday at a nursing and rehabilitation center in Canoga Park, said her husband, Ed Shaughnessy, the former longtime drummer on Johnny Carson’s “Tonight Show.”

Woods was a busy 18-year-old singer on radio in 1948 when, as a favor to two songwriter friends, Jerry Livingston and Mack David, she recorded a “demo” of a few songs they had written for Walt Disney’s upcoming animated feature.

Source

Disney testing new entertainment options in Pleasure Island

By

Chip

-

July 5, 2010

This article comes to us from Attractions Magazine:

Disney has been testing some new entertainment options at Downtown Disney for the past few weeks. It seems the Celebrate Tonight show in Pleasure Island which featured DJs and stilt walkers is no longer running. There are some new entertainment options in the area.

During a trip to Pleasure Island last night, many different acts were taking turns entertaining the crowds as Disney managers looked on. Acts were set up in the spot where Celebrate Tonight performed, in front of the old BET Soundstage Club and in the steps in front of the old Adventurers Club. A Disney manager we talked to said they’re trying out some new options and that guests may see these acts in the future, or they may see different ones.

Click here to see more.

Five Arrested in Disney World and Universal Ticket Scam

By

Chip

-

July 5, 2010

An Orlando police officer has been charged with selling discounted employee passes to Walt Disney World on craigslist.com, court documents revealed.

Officer Wendell Robey was charged along with his wife and three other individuals with grand theft for allegedly selling tickets to the amusement park as well as Universal Orlando, The Orlando (Fla.) Sentinel said.

Robey moonlighted at the Universal theme park and obtained employee passes marked “Not for Sale” that he sold to buyers who responded to Internet ads.

According to the court documents, Robey and his wife, Shaton, also sold parking passes and room keys from the nearby Hard Rock hotel that allowed pass holders to park free at the hotel and move to the front of the line at Universal. Two of those arrested worked at the hotel.

The arrests culminated an undercover investigation by the Metropolitan Bureau of Investigation.

Source

Disney Parks Blog Weekly Recap July 5th

By

Chip

-

July 5, 2010

As we’ve shared, there’s a nice choice of fireworks shows to see this Fourth of July at the Walt Disney World Resort. And at Disneyland Resort, you won’t want to miss our salute to America’s Independence Day: “Celebrate America! A Fourth of July Concert in the Sky.” To get you started this week, we posted video featuring some of our fireworks shows – past and present. Here it is if you missed it:

And now, take a look at a few other stories that grabbed your attention this week:

Coffee With Walt – Did you see this one-of-a-kind snapshot of Walt Disney enjoying his morning coffee at the Plaza Inn?

Celebrity Sighting: Gloria Estefan at Walt Disney World – Grammy Award-winning singer Gloria Estefan dropped by Magic Kingdom Park and spent some time with “Toy Story 3” characters Jessie and Woody.

‘World of Color’ Road Show – The “World of Color” Road Show is bringing special colorful and animated changes to California icons in cities across the state this month. Find out how to watch these transformations online.

Wedding Trends – Making New Traditions – Disney’s Fairy Tale Wedding shared some hot new wedding trends they have seen lately.

The Fortune Teller on Main Street, U.S.A – Have you had your fortune read by Esmeralda, the fortune teller on Main Street, U.S.A.? Check out this video of park guests receiving predictions from Esmeralda in Disneyland park.

Moms Panel: Top 5 Restaurants Where You Get The Most For Your Money – Doug I. of the Walt Disney World Moms Panel shared his tips for eating at the Resort.

Great News for ‘World of Color’ Fans and Guests Who Stay at Disneyland Resort Hotels

By

Chip

-

July 5, 2010

This article comes to us from Disney Parks Blog:

We have some exciting news to share this holiday weekend. Starting tomorrow morning, Sunday, July 4, the Disney California Adventure park gate at Disney’s Grand Californian Hotel & Spa will open at 9:00 a.m. exclusively for Disneyland Resort Hotel guests so they can get in line for Disney’s FASTPASS tickets to each evening’s performances of “World of Color.” The Disneyland Resort hotels include the Disneyland Hotel, Disney’s Paradise Pier Hotel and Disney’s Grand Californian Hotel & Spa.‬ The main entrance will open, as scheduled, at 9:30 a.m. for all other day guests.

While Park hours may vary, please check disneyland.com for the most up-to-date schedule. The early access for Disneyland Resort Hotel guests at the Disney California Adventure park gate at Disney’s Grand Californian Hotel & Spa will be 30 minutes earlier than the opening listed for main entrance.

This is a great benefit for guests staying at Disneyland Resort Hotels, but guests not staying at the hotels will still have access to Disney’s FASTPASS tickets for “World of Color.

Classic Disney Walt Disney World 1984 Video Brochure

By

Chip

-

July 5, 2010

This is probably the quirkiest promotion for Walt Disney World you will ever see. Here is the Classic Disney Walt Disney World Video Brochure from 1984.

Toy Story 3 Box Office Totals Approach $400 Million

By

Chip

-

July 5, 2010

toy story 3 logo disney pixar june 18 2010

The Toy Story 3 box office totals will pass $400 million this weekend. These amazing Toy Story 3 box office totals prove Pixar really make the right decision to bring out a third film in the franchise. Through July 1st, the domestic box office for Toy Story 3 had passed $258 million, and the foreign box office totals had passed $114 million. That is a combined $372 million that should only grow as the Fourth of July weekend sees the theaters flooded with even more viewers. It likely means that Toy Story 3 will soar past the $400 million mark, and set sights on possibly making it through the $500 million mark in less than a week from now.

Toy Story 3 just hit theaters on Friday, June 18th, and after just 14 days in theaters around the world, was about to hit the $400 million mark in box office receipts. That is about as impressive as it gets when it comes to theatrical film releases, and there are at least a couple great weekends in July that could really increase those totals. It is becoming quite obvious that Toy Story 3 will be moving towards possibly being the highest grossing film in 2010. There are still a couple of movies that could compete for that title, including Eclipse and Inception (which debuts July 16th), but Toy Story 3 sure has a great head start, and could soon get close to passing what Iron Man 2 was able to achieve back in May.

Sure, there is a lot of summer left in front of us, and in that time any number of movies could rack up box office totals that compare favorably to what Toy Story 3 has done so far. It’s hard to predict that anything else will come close though, and with such highly regarded reviews of the film, it has only led to more and more people turning out at the box office. Can this latest Pixar cartoon continue to show well against Twilight: Eclipse? Well it seems like they are catering to different audiences, and it also appears as though both films will be in theaters deep into the summer of 2010. What we might see on the other end is anyone’s guess, but right now Toy Story 3 is producing some amazing box office totals, and doesn’t show any signs of slowing down yet.

It is definitely going to be interesting to see where Toy Story 3 stands on the all time box office list when its run in theaters comes to an end, and equally interesting to see if it can become the highest grossing cartoon of all time.

Toy Story 3 Box Office Results (Through July 1, 2010)

Opening Weekend: $110.3 million
Domestic Box Office: $258.8 million
Foreign Box Office: $114.2 million

Source