It’s a big year for Universal what with the re-opening of Spiderman, the Despicable Me ride and the introduction of the Universal Superstar Parade that was announced back in February. A preview of the parade went out on the 5th of this month, with the Superstar Parade making itself a regular fixture at Universal Studios on the 8th May.

The daily parade features huge, elaborately themed floats and a great opportunity to interact with the dancers and characters, including the ever popular Spongebob Squarepants, Dora the Explorer and the guys from Despicable me, ahead of the opening of the new attraction ‘Minion Mayhem’ that has replaced the Jimmy Neutron attraction.

Also debuting will be Universal’s Cinematic Spectacular: 100 Years of Movie Memories. The show will take place on the park’s lagoon, and will be topped off with fireworks and pyrotechnics providing a visual tour of movie memories brought to us by Universal Studios, narrated by Morgan Freeman. The show replaces the Universal 360: A Cinesphere Spectacular.

We’ve discussed that Fastpass system many times but I think its worth re-visiting how it works every now and again. The Disney World Fastpass is a great system that means you can spend less time in the lines. It’s also free and available to all.

To get a Fastpass ticket, simply insert your park ticket in one of the Fastpass machine that stand outside the attraction you want to visit. So, if you want a Fastpass ticket for Rock ‘n’ Roller Coaster you have to go to the machines outside that ride. You will need to do this for each person who wants to a Fastpass ticket. When you put your park ticket in the machine it will give you something similar to the Fastpass below…

So you can see on that ticket that it has a return time of between 11:05 AM and 12:05 PM. So you must return to the attraction between these times and give the ticket over to the cast member who will let you join the Fastpass line. Yes you read that right… Fastpass line. You may still have to wait in line, but the wait will be much shorter than the standard line.

The eagle-eyed among you will have noticed that there is another time on the ticket telling you when the next Fastpass ticket is available. So if you put your ticket in a Fastpass machine before this time, you will not be given another ticket.

Another thing to note  is that there is a limited amount of fastpass tickets available for each attraction. For most rides at most times of the year this isn’t an issue. For example, Star Tours – The Adventure Continues rarely runs out of tickets. The same can’t be said for Soarin’ or Toy Story Mania. These rides often run out of tickets so it is still advisable to get fastpasses early for the ride you most want to visit.

If you find that it’s a bit of a pain phoning WDW-DINE to make your ADR’s then there’s some good news for you. Walt Disney World now have a site that lets you search online and book your favourite restaurants online.

Simply visit http://disneyworld.disney.go.com/restaurants/ and search for your favorite restaurant.

If you are in the UK you have to do a little bit of a fudge. First visit http://disneyworld.disney.go.com/?forceDomestic=true followed by http://disneyworld.disney.go.com/restaurants/

It appears that special event dining such as the Fantasmic Dinner Show can’t be booked online yet, and you can only book a couple of months in advance. That said, you can pretty much search for any of the Restaurants in WDW such as the T-Rex Cafe and complete the bookings online.

It’s that time of year again when I want to do my best Wookie impression. Disney’s Hollywood Studios have announced the preliminary lineup for this years Star Wars Weekends (don’t time fly). Obviously more news will come out closer to the event, but the lineup looks pretty solid to me. Anyhow here goes…

The celebrity host for each weekend will be Jay Laga’aia (Captain Typho) while Clone Wars: Behind the Force will be hosted by Ashley Eckstein (Ahsoka).

May 22-24 – Ray Park, Warwick Davis, and James Arnold Taylor

Ray Park thrilled audiences as the unforgettable Darth Maul in The Phantom Menace, and will be joined by Warwick Davis, who played Wicket in Return of the Jedi as well as Anakin’s young friend Wald in The Phantom Menace. James Arnold Taylor, who voices Obi-Wan Kenobi in The Clone Wars, will appear as a guest in Behind the Force.

May 29-31 – Peter Mayhew & Matthew Wood

Peter Mayhew has of course appeared in four of the six Star Wars movies as the mighty Chewbacca. Also appearing will be Matthew Wood, Supervising Sound Editor for the Star Wars Prequels and The Clone Wars as well as the voice of General Grievous and the battle droids.

June 5-7 — Jeremy Bulloch, David Prowse, and Matt Lanter

Jeremy Bulloch is best known for his role as Boba Fett in The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi, and also made a brief cameo in Revenge of the Sith as Captain Colton. David Prowse played ultimate villain Darth Vader throughout the original trilogy as the man behind the mask. Matt Lanter, the voice of Anakin Skywalker in The Clone Wars, appears as a guest in Behind the Force.

June 12-14 — Dave Filoni & Temuera Morrison

The creative force behind The Clone Wars, Supervising Director Dave Filoni is also a die-hard Star Wars fan! Filoni will be joined by Temuera Morrison, who plays Jango Fett as well as the unmasked clones of Episodes II and III!

The 2009 “ESPN The Weekend” details have been announced, and will take place at Disney’s Hollywood Studios over the Feb 27 – Mar 01 weekend.

Events include ESPN Live Telecasts and Taping, ESPN Radio Live Broadcasts and the ESPN Sportszone.

Athletes at the ESPN Weekend include:

Tedy Bruschi
Jason Campbell
Joba Chamberlain
Dennis Eckersley
Donnie Edwards
John Franco
Matt Garza
Steven Jackson
Brandon Jacobs
Shawn Johnson
Jim Kelly
Rick Mahorn
Mist May-Treanor
Warren Moon
Jim Palmer
Aaron Rodgers
Charles Tillman
Hines Ward
Kurt Warner
Brian Westbrook
Roy E. Williams
Adam Vinatieri

There is also a host of ESPN Personalities at the weekend, including:

Skip Bayless
Colin Cowherd
Jay Crawford
Peter Gammons
Mike Golic
Mike Greenberg
Dana Jocobsen
Al Jaffe
John Kruk
Steve Phillips
Karl Ravech
Howie Schwab
Trey Wingo

ESPN The Weekend have their own website with more details about what is happening at the event.

For the more athletic visitor, you can sign up for the “ESPN The Weekend 5k”, a fun-run around Disney’s Hollywood Studios benifiting the V Foundation for Cancer Research. More details about signing up for the event can be found here.

Stich fans everywhere, get ready for Stitch’s SuperSonic Celebration due to hit the Tomorrowland area of Magic Kingdom in April 2009.

News of the new show came via a notice for auditions for the new show.

“Disney Auditions is seeking male vocalists and comedic actors for a brand new show in the Magic Kingdom® Park at the Walt Disney World® Resort near Orlando, FL opening in April, 2009! Stitch’s SuperSonic Celebration will incorporate cutting edge technology, comedic improvisation, and dynamic choreography all set to energetic, stylized music that will make this party out of this world!”

Courtesy of thecrystalskull, flickr

As this is to be held in Tomorrowland, I guess the obvious venue would be the Galaxy Palace Theater, although it had been rumored that this would be replaced with cast member parking.

Anheuser-Busch was recently gobbled up by Inbev, to make one of the biggest brewers in the world. What has this got to do with Orlando Florida you may ask? Well, along with Inbev getting their hands on the Anheuser-Busch beer brands, they also now own a clutch of theme parks. This article covers the story pretty well, stating that Inbev could get up to $3bn for the sale of the Seaworld and Busch Gardens theme parks. Lets face it with companies finding it difficult to raise cash from banks and theme parks not really being part of the “core” Inbev strategy you can understand why they may want to offload them. It is suggested that Inbev may look to offload the parks as soon as Summer 2009.

Who would be interested in the parks?

So, who would be interested in buying the Seaworld and Busch parks. It has been hinted that Merlin Entertainments Group from the UK would be interested. They have a clutch of parks in the UK including Alton Towers, as well as its Sealife Centres (which are aquariums not theme parks) dotted around Europe. They also own a number of Legoland parks in the US.

What about a counter-bid from the current management of the theme parks, or maybe a direct purchase from the Busch family? We can’t forget Disney and Universal in all of this, but is it likely that the two Orlando giants would be looking to expand at the start of an economic downturn?

From a personal perspective I guess that whoever takes over has a responsibility to maintain the high level of welfare that is shown to the animals in the parks, as well as maintaining the conservation work that is carried out by the Seaworld & Busch Gardens Conservation Fund.

Universal Orlando have put out details for the 2008 Christmas festivities that will be taking place at Universal Studios and Islands of Adventure this year. A few of the traditional attractions at the parks (Blues Brothers, Barney) will be getting a Christmas flavor for the holidays, along with the return of some old favorites. The main one being the return of the Grinch in the now traditional “How the Grinch Stole Christmas” show, one of my favorite shows at the parks over the holidays.

Christmas Events at Universal Studios

Macy’s Holiday Parade

Every night at dusk

Head to the New York streets of Universal Studios for Macy’s Holiday Parade! This seasonal favorite features authentic floats and balloons (including several brand new ones this year) direct from the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade® in New York City. You’ll also enjoy festive street performers and talented marching bands from around the country, and of course Santa Claus himself. Afterwards stay for a spectacular tree lighting ceremony with music and a dazzling display of lights.

KidZone Holiday Show

Join your character friends as they dance to holiday hits in this live show.

Barney’s Christmas Show

Join Barney and his friends for a magical sing-along, clap-along show at A Day In The Park With Barneyâ„¢.

Blues Brothers Christmas Show

Add some rock and roll to your Christmas with the Blues Brothers! Catch them live, performing holiday favorites like “Santa Claus is Coming To Town” and “Blue Christmas” with snow on Delancey Street at the end of each show.

Universal 360 – A Cinesphere Spectacular

Dec 26 – Dec 31 • At the end of every night

Wrap up your day at Universal Studios with the big Hollywood finish of Universal 360–A Cinesphere Spectacular.

Through the unique “Cinesphere” technology you’ll experience the sights and sounds of some of Hollywood’s biggest films projected onto huge spheres in the Universal Studios lagoon, plus one of the largest laser displays in Florida, dazzling pyrotechnics and more.

It’s the most explosive, jaw-dropping cinematic adventure you’ve ever seen!

Christmas Events at Islands of Adventure

Grinchmasâ„¢

Join in the fun at Islands of Adventure as Seuss Landing™ is once again transformed into the wintry wonderland of Grinchmas™… featuring our incredibly popular live musical performance of “How The Grinch Stole Christmas.” This hilarious and heart-warming live show stars The Grinch™ himself and features music recorded by Mannheim Steamroller, along with a whole town full of singing and dancing Whos. Then stroll around the Whoville Wonky Tree Lot and take in the whimsical Wholiday decorations.

Meet The Grinch

Get an autograph, shake his hand, or have your photo taken with the mean, green one himself for a one-of-a-kind holiday memento!

Mannheim Steamroller

Live in Concert at Universal Studios®
Saturday, Dec. 6, 2008
Show times: 6:00 pm & 8:00 pm

Kick off the holiday season with the unmistakable sound of Mannheim Steamroller. On Saturday, December 6th, catch Mannheim Steamroller as they perform for the first time ever at Universal Studios®.

Enjoy a special LIVE concert of their world-renowned holiday music as Mannheim Steamroller celebrates the release of their newest CD, Christmasville. It’s all part of the one-of-a-kind holiday festivities your family can experience at Universal Orlando® Resort.

Mannheim Steamroller will have two bands touring the country this Holiday Season, but this will be Chip Davis’ only scheduled appearance.

City Walk also features its annual New Years celebration. This year ’70s group The Doobie Brothers will bidding so-long to 2008.

Click here for the official site for Christmas at Universal Studios and Islands of Adventure Orlando Florida.

We discussed the Kim Possible World Showcase Adventure a while ago now. It has been confirmed that this will be rolled-out in early 2009 to all visitors to Epcot.

Disney and Verizon have also announced that they will be bringing further services to visitors to the park. Some examples have been delivery of up-to-minute news about what events are going on around the parks with updates sent direct to your cell. I guess one thing that would really excite me would be fastpass updates and ride wait times that I could check on the fly. Any other suggestions, then drop them in the comments.

November 12, 2008 – Marking a first in both the travel and mobile industries, Walt Disney Parks and Resorts and Verizon are teaming up for a multi-year relationship designed to enhance the guest experience – before, during and after guests arrive at Walt Disney World Resort and Disneyland Resort. This alignment allows guests to have a personal tour guide right in their wireless phones along with reliable new services at the parks. Early next year guests will also use Verizon Wireless’ technology when experiencing Disney’s Kim Possible World Showcase Adventure, an ultra-interactive attraction coming to Epcot in Walt Disney World Resort.

“With more than 90 percent of families bringing a mobile phone into our Parks, our objective was to enhance the magical Disney experience through innovative wireless technology,” said Jay Rasulo, Chairman, Walt Disney Parks and Resorts. “Imagine receiving up to the minute tips on special Park activities with just the touch of a button or receiving a call from Buzz Lightyear welcoming you to the Magic Kingdom.”

Beginning next year, guests will be able to access an array of features on their Verizon Wireless phones while at the Walt Disney World or Disneyland Resort to help them make the most of their Disney experiences. Planned services include an exclusive mobile application that will give guests with Verizon Wireless service the ability to easily locate shows, restaurants and the Disney characters anywhere inside the Parks; get real-time attraction availability information; access mobile games; receive messages from characters and more. Verizon Wireless is also continuing to invest in its wireless network from coast to coast, and the relationship with Disney means the wireless users will benefit from further enhancements to the Verizon Wireless network in the Parks.

John Harrobin, senior vice president of digital media and marketing for Verizon, said, “All of our efforts focus on one goal: making the Disney experience even better for our customers. There are few life experiences that are more memorable than visiting a Disney Park, and now guests with Verizon Wireless service will unlock even more magic from their visit – by navigating the Parks easier and faster with instant access to key information such as ‘Where’s Mickey now?’ and other special features – even when they travel home and share their experiences with family and friends.”

In addition, guests visiting Epcot in Walt Disney World Resort in early 2009 will be among the first to experience Disney’s Kim Possible World Showcase Adventure. An ultra-interactive attraction, Kim Possible World Showcase Adventure invites guests of all ages to team up with members of Team Possible to save the world from various comical villains and their mad inventions. Armed with an official Verizon Wireless “Kimmunicator,” guests will use these handheld devices to help maneuver through the mission. The interactive wireless theme park game was inspired by Disney Channel’s Emmy® Award-winning animated series, “Kim Possible.”

While Verizon Wireless customers will have exclusive access to an array of enhanced features, Disney and Verizon are also working to ensure that some mobile information such as dining locations, show times and locations will be available to all Parks visitors, regardless of their wireless company.

Additional details will be available next year as the companies expect to add a suite of services and functionalities to help guests at Disney Parks have the most magical experience. For more information about Walt Disney Parks and Resorts, visit www.disney.com. For more information about Verizon, visit www.verizon.com.

Disney Parks and Resorts – Taking Guests to New Frontiers

The agreement between Disney and Verizon is another step in a series of new initiatives that highlight the latest technologies from Disney Parks and Resorts with a continued focus on improving guest experience and providing immersive entertainment. Disney Parks and Resorts continue to exemplify how technologies can be used to build new connections and redefine how guests plan and enjoy their vacations. From the time guests begin planning their vacation using Walt Disney World Resort in 3D on Google Earth or tuning into Disney Travel on Demand, the experience is designed to make their lives easier. Guests can take their vacation experience to a new level with Kim Possible World Showcase Adventure, an interactive wireless theme park game for families, and by personalizing and sharing their Disney experiences when they return home, using DisneyLink, a desktop application.