Category — p. News and Changes

One of my best sources let me know this morning that Cinderella’s Royal Table will be closed for rehab from January 5 through March 6, 2015.

The best alternative, if you are going to Epcot, is Akershus, with buckets of princesses–but usually not Cinderella (and thanks, KE, for reminding me to note this). Next best, or the best option if Epcot is not in your plans, is dinner at 1900 Park Fare at the Grand Floridian with Cinderella and her family.

Another option–and thanks, Jacob!!–is the princess breakfast and brunch at Citricos at the Grand Floridian, added temporarily while Cinderella’s Royal Table is down.

I’ll post more as I learn more!

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This month’s WDW Magazine has hit the stands. Available on iTunes, for Android, and on the web, the issue focuses on Disney World in the summer–special summer offerings and summer coping strategies.

My article for first timers gives some options on how to run your days.

The usual advice to arrive early and take afternoons off is perfectly sound.  But the whole reason it works is that most people don’t want to arrive early.

My article notes how FastPass+ makes later arrivals much more practical.

I’ve been at Disney World a million times in the summer–most recently both last August and last September, and with more Disney World summer coming up soon later in June.

I will never forget one August trip tent camping at Fort Wilderness. You don’t want to tent camp in the summer heat…but I was lucky enough to have pouring rain every day–destroying all my shoes within the first three days of the trip.

That was when I turned to Mickey Crocs as my basic Disney World footwear–impermeable to water, and cooling in the heat!

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I’ve been busy building the daily agendas for all the core itineraires this site offers, revising them for FastPass+.

In doing such for the lower-crowd itinerary, which applies beginning August 16, 2014 (though often with modifications, see this), I realized some minor changes that took even more advantage of FastPass+ flexibility could make it much better.

So I’v re-done it. The new itinerary is here, and the new To-Do List for it is here.

So what’s different?  Specifically, it’s now cheaper and easier. Especially easier.

• With one exception, dining is all the same. Gospel Brunch Sunday morning is now out, so you need to cancel that. But all other scheduled dining remains the same.
• You now have three more mornings off than you had in the old itinerary
• You have to buy one more ticket day–which of course is much cheaper than the Gospel Brunch, so you come out ahead.

Above is the overview of the revised itinerary. And here’s the links:

Any questions or comments? Use the form below.

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DO YOU HAVE A FREE DINING PIN CODE? ARE YOU SURE?

Disney World released its free dining offer today, with many excluded resorts and dates.

But also today Disney has been emailing lotsa people with “pin codes” for free dining as well. These are for a wider set of dates and more resorts than the offer available to the general public, including Port Orleans Riverside. And they will come out in waves…

From the offers I’ve seen so far, the eligible arrival dates are:

• 8/25 – 10/3/14
• 10/19 – 11/1/14
• 11/9 – 11/22/14
• 12/12 – 12/23/14

…more than what’s in the general public deal, especially in later October.

Moreover, more resorts are in this deal than the general public deal, including Port Orleans Riverside and Port Orleans French Quarter. The image at the top of the page is an email confirming free dining at a date before the general public offer is available, and at a resort that the general public deal does not allow.

This pin codes come by mail and email, and lots of you have asked how to get one of these pin codes emailed to them and my answer has been consistently that I have no idea.*

So call Disney and ask.  If a pin code is attached to your account, they will tell you; and if not, call again in a week or so, as these codes are released in waves!

*Oh, I have lots of ideas, but none I have any confidence in…

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Disney World did something very rare–it changed Evening Extra Magic Hours at Disney’s Hollywood Studios from Monday to Sunday many dates from early September through mid-November.

As a result, those Sundays are now lousy days to go to the Studios, and below are the suggested changes to the FastPass+ Lower Crowd Itinerary and To-Do List for the entire period–the new changes, the changes that already existed, and weeks where no changes are need:

• For an August 30, 2014 arrival date swap Tuesday and Second Saturday, and also Monday and Thursday
• For a September 6 arrival date—no changes
• For September 13 through October 4 arrival dates swap First Sunday and Tuesday
• For an October 11 arrival date swap Tuesday and Thursday
• For October 18 through November 1 arrival dates swap first Sunday and Tuesday
• For a November 8 arrival date–no changes
• For a November 15 arrival date swap the first Sunday and Tuesday, and also Monday and Thursday

If you’ve made dining reservations that you can’t re-do, the “Sunday-Tuesday” swaps can be left ignored. Just expect to be able to complete less at Hollywood Studios on Sunday, and as a result to perhaps need to arrive there earlier on Thursday to catch what you missed.

And note any questions in the comment box below!

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The latest edition of WDW Magazine is out—focused this month on cooling off at Disney World.

Topics include the waterparks, the rides where you get wet—or soaked—and more.

There’s a couple of articles from me in it.

One is on what first timers should do if it rains. Those who have been reading this site for a bit know that the art of Disney World is figuring out what everyone else is doing, and then doing the opposite. That’s the hint—for more, see WDW Magazine!

The second is a review of Art of Animation excerpted from the book Josh and I are working on coming soon from Theme Park Press.

Resort reviews in the book are very different from those on this site, partly because they represent the best thinking of the two of us together rather than the thinking of just one of us, and partly because we mean for the book to be short and easily actionable!

On this site I’ve got more than 6,000 words on Art of Animation (starting here, here, and also here!) but the book has fewer than a thousand words on this hotel.

I’ll be interested to hear what you all think once it comes out…

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