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Toy Story Land opened at Disney’s Hollywood Studios at the end of June 2018. It offers two new rides—Alien Swirling Saucers and Slinky Dog Dash—a re-imagined entrance and exit to the already existing Toy Story Mania that now puts it in this land rather than its old location of now-closed Pixar Place, a fun new dining venue, and meets and greets.

The overall theming presents a terrific atmosphere—especially at night (during the day, there may be a bit too much atmosphere, as there’s little in the way of shade, rain protection or air conditioning in the queues for the new rides).

Toy Story Land itself is themed as Andy’s backyard, with the conceit that visitors have not only shrunken down to the size of toys (specifically, the size of Green Army Men), but also have become toys—which is what lets the other toys like Woody, Buzz Lightyear, etc., be present and in motion in the land. (Toy Story Mania happens in Andy’s bedroom, which is why its queue gets to be enclosed and air-conditioned…)

Moreover, the three rides are presented as though Andy had created them from his own toys, so in theory Slinky Dog Dash is assembled from a toy roller coaster construction set, mashed up with others of Andy’s toys, and topped with Christmas lights—of course, just like in his bedroom!

As the father of a couple of boys, I recognize Andy’s overall approach to his yard, which quite simply is to leave his toys everywhere, in whatever spot they might have been when last he played with them.

As a result, besides the toys enmeshed in the three rides, Toy Story Land is suffused with other toys, both as objects and in the basic shapes of the land—the fences, the benches, even the gift kiosk (a Fisher-Price camper!).

You’ll see playing cards and balsa gliders and Tinkertoys and crayons and Scrabble tiles and K’nex and dice…

…and also the Toy Story crew, including Woody, Buzz Lightyear, Jessie, Wheezy, Rex, Slinky Dog, and plenty more!

The open and playful setting of Toy Story Land is unlike anything else at Disney World. Slinky Dog Dash dominates the feel and adds tremendous kinetics to the land, and when combined with the Christmas lights at night creates the color and energy of the midway at a county fair—and I mean that in a good way.

The rides themselves are a mixed bag, but mostly quite positive.

Toy Story Mania remains a standout…

…but Alien Swirling Saucers, while it will put a smile on everyone’s face, is worth a re-ride only for the youngest of visitors—which is fine, as there is little else at the Studios well-suited for toddlers. (You need to be 32” tall to ride it, even in a lap—but that’s a height most exceed by the time they turn three years old.)

Slinky Dog Dash is the real surprise here—it manages to be both hardly scary and tremendous fun, and will be an all-ages favorite at the Studios for years to come. Slinky Dog comes with a 38 inch height requirement—a height most kids hit during their fourth year.

Since it opened, there has been a curious amount of fussing about Toy Story Land—specifically that it might be a failure because standby waits at Slinky Dog have not been punitively long. The Disney fan community, I suppose, complains only about two type of waits: waits that are too long, and waits that are too short. A moment’s thought will remind you that the true test of waits at Slinky Dog will only come after Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge opens in late 2019.

Toy Story Land largely occupies space that had been devoted to the Backlot Tour, which had not been much of a thing for years. Disney’s Hollywood Studios in general has seen a lot of closures over the past few years, to make way for Toy Story Land, the upcoming ride Mickey and Minnie’s Runaway Railway (maybe the late spring or summer of 2019), and the upcoming land Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge.

With the exception of the Great Movie Ride (where the Runaway Railway is going) most of what closed was low capacity, low popularity, or both. Much poorly-informed slander followed these closures—many called the Studios a half day park. Well, if you write itineraries for first-timers like I do, the only way the Studios was a half-day park was if you skipped half of what was available there.

That said, the opening of Toy Story Land without question breathes new life into the park. Each Toy Story Land ride is now in the first tier of FastPass+, meaning you can only pre-book one. For most, Slinky Dog Dash will be the right FastPass+ choice.

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WHAT IS FEBRUARY LIKE AT DISNEY WORLD?

Early February 2019 will have some of the lowest crowds and prices of the year, but also the risk of ride closures.

The end of the month brings slightly higher prices and crowds, but better weather and few closures.

In between–in 2019, the period from Thursday the 14th through Saturday the 23rd–we will see high crowds and high prices.

[Read more →]

Welcome back to Fridays with Jim Korkis! Jim, the dean of Disney historians, writes about Walt Disney World history every Friday on yourfirstvisit.net.

STAR WARS: GALAXY’S EDGE

By Jim Korkis

Anticipation for the newest addition to Disney’s Hollywood Studios, Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge, continues to build at an alarming rate, since its opening is roughly only a year away.

WDI Story Editor Margaret Kerrison shared the name of the village on Batuu that will be the setting of the land: Black Spire Outpost. The planet Batuu has not previously appeared in other Star Wars media. The story is that it was once a busy crossroads along the old sub-lightspeed trade routes, but its prominence was bypassed by the rise of hyperspace travel. It also has become a convenient safe haven for those intent on avoiding the expanding reach of the First Order.

Black Spire Outpost is “the largest settlement on the planet and is known as being a hive of scum and villainy, where traders, adventurers, and smugglers traveling around the Outer Rim and Wild Space can stay off the beaten path; this outpost has become a haven for the galaxy’s most colorful — and notorious — characters. Famous for its once-gigantic prehistoric petrified trees, the spires now tower over the landscape. To the first settlers, these looming spires became more than just landmarks; they became the fortress of the outpost itself.”

This new location that is the largest single land expansion in Disney theme parks history is the result of cooperation between LucasFilm, Walt Disney Imagineering, and Disney Parks.

Imagineer Scott Trowbridge says that the same teams who provide makeup, special effects, and costumes to the saga movies at Pinewood studios also contributed to creating material that will bring Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge to life.

The team had to take things more than a step further than the movies by actually building elements in the real world that guests will actually experience rather than digital recreations. In other words, actual-sized AT-ATs and X-Wing fighters are under construction.

One of the attractions guests will get to board and fly is the Millennium Falcon on a customized secret mission. The other new attraction involves an entirely new, life-sized Resistance troop transport ship that guests will climb aboard and feel like they’re inside a hangar bay in the middle of a battle between the First Order and the Resistance. There will also be a cantina serving blue milk with Rex, the troublesome pilot from the original version of Star Tours, as the DJ at the cantina.

In addition, there will be a toy stall overseen by a Toydarian, a creature first seen on Tatooine in Star Wars: The Phantom Menace. Eric Baker, the creative director of Disney Imagineering, is overseeing the creation of a “creature stall” as well, which is essentially a petting zoo full of aliens.

“Everyone loves the creatures of Star Wars, be they cute or cuddly or creepy and scary – you’ll get to see them all in this place,” Baker said. “The creatures will come to life, and you’ll get to take one home with you if you’re lucky.”

The team has sought out the same sources of props as those used in the films. It has also taken the additional step of working to bring many of the creatures to life, such as a loth-cat that appears in the Star Wars Rebels animated series.

Due to the popularity among fans of the supporting character Nien Nunb from Return of the Jedi who co-pilots the Millennium Falcon alongside Lando Calrissian, he will appear and interact with guests. The WDI team searched for the original voice actor, Kipsang Rotich. He was a Kenyan student studying in the San Francisco area at the time that film was made and had returned to Kenya after the completion of his studies.

He later also voiced the character in The Force Awakens and The Last Jedi. The character of Nien Nunb was portrayed both by a puppet and costumed actor. The character was an arms dealer of the Sullustan species who joined the Alliance to Restore the Republic during the Galactic Civil War. He became a starfighter pilot in the Resistance who fought during the Battle of Starkiller Base. Other characters including Harkos the bounty hunter will also appear in the new land.

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Thanks, Jim! I have some forecasts for Galaxy’s Edge here. And come back next Friday for more from Jim Korkis!

In the meantime, check out his books, including his latest, More Secret Stories of Disneyland, and his Secret Stories of Walt Disney World: Things You Never You Never Knew, which reprints much material first written for this site, all published by Theme Park Press.

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DISNEY WORLD NEXT WEEK: AUGUST 25 TO SEPTEMBER 2, 2018

The material below details next week’s Disney World operating hours, Extra Magic Hours, parades, and fireworks.

OPERATING HOURS AT WALT DISNEY WORLD 8/25-9/2/18

The Magic Kingdom will be open from 9a-11p 8/25, and 9a-10p 8/26 and 8/27, 9a-6p 8/28, 9a-9p 8/29 and 8/30, 9a-6p 8/31, 8a-12MN 9/1, and 9a-11p 9/2

Epcot will be open from 9a-9p 8/25 through 8/30, 9a-10p 8/31 and 9/1, and 9a-9p 9/2

Disney’s Hollywood Studios will be open from 8a-10.30p 8/25, 9a-10p 8/26, and 9a-9p 8/27 through 9/2

Disney’s Animal Kingdom will be open from 9a-9.30p 8/25, 9a-8.30p 8/26 through 9/1, and 8a-10p 9/2

EXTRA MAGIC HOURS AT WALT DISNEY WORLD 8/25-9/2/18

Saturday 8/25 Morning: Animal Kingdom, Hollywood Studios Evening: none

Sunday 8/26  Morning: Hollywood Studios Evening: none

Monday 8/27  Morning: Animal Kingdom, Hollywood Studios Evening: none

Tuesday 8/28 Morning: Hollywood Studios Evening: Epcot

Wednesday 8/29 Morning:  Hollywood Studios Evening: Magic Kingdom

Thursday 8/30 Morning: Epcot, Hollywood Studios Evening: none

Friday 8/31 Morning:  Magic Kingdom, Hollywood Studios Evening: Hollywood Studios

Saturday 9/1 Morning: Animal Kingdom, Hollywood Studios Evening: none

Sunday 9/2  Morning: Hollywood Studios Evening: none

PARADES AT WALT DISNEY WORLD 8/25-9/2/18

The Magic Kingdom: Afternoon Festival of Fantasy Parade: 2p every day

FIREWORKS AND EVENING SHOWS AT WALT DISNEY WORLD 8/25-9/2/18

Happily Every After at Magic Kingdom:8.55p  8/25 through 8/27; 8.55p 8/29 and 8/30; 8.30p 9/1 and 9/2

IllumiNations at Epcot:  9p 8/25 through 8/30; 10p 8/31 and 9/1; 9p 9/2

Fantasmic at Disney’s Hollywood Studios: 8.30 and 10.30p 8/25; 8.30p 8/26 through 9/2

Star Wars Show and Fireworks at Disney’s Hollywood Studios: 10p 8/25; 9p 8/26 though 9/2

Rivers of Light at Disney’s Animal Kingdom: 8.45 and 10p 8/25; 8.45p 8/26 through 9/1; 8.45 and 10p 9/2

SHOW SCHEDULES FOR WALT DISNEY WORLD 8/25-9/2/18

See Steve Soares’ site here. Click the park names at its top for show schedules.

Follow yourfirstvisit.net on Facebook or Twitter or Pinterest!!

Welcome back to Fridays with Jim Korkis! Jim, the dean of Disney historians, writes about Walt Disney World history every Friday on yourfirstvisit.net.

HIDDEN MICKEYS

By Jim Korkis

A Hidden Mickey is an image of Mickey Mouse found unexpectedly in a theme park, resort, cruise ship or other Disney location.

It is most commonly the tri-circled silhouette of Mickey’s head that might be found in a swirl on a piece of furniture, or an arrangement of rocks and plants, or a carpet pattern or some other grouping in a context that might not normally contain Mickey.

However, some of these designs are intentional and are considered “Decorative Mickeys” because, after all, Mickey is the icon of the Disney Company and is utilized throughout these same locations.

Some Hidden Mickeys are much cleverer than just a simple three circles like one of my favorites which was Mickey’s foot on a 1930s movie poster peaking out beneath the Public Enemy movie poster in the gangster scene of The Great Movie Ride for over two decades at Disney Hollywood Studios.

Like many Hidden Mickeys, with the closure of the Great Movie Ride, that one no longer exists, which is why the parks do not publish an “official” list–because it is constantly changing.

Walt Disney World is home to the rarest Hidden Mickey of them all. In the Under the Sea: Journey of the Little Mermaid attraction at the Magic Kingdom, the rarest Hidden Mickey can only be seen on November 18, Mickey’s birthday, at noon if the sun is shining.

Imagineers drilled three holes in the ceiling that on that day and time will create the famous three-circle Mickey image on the wall on the queue line at about knee-level. It has appeared for just a few minutes every year since the attraction was first opened in 2012.

There have always been unofficial Hidden Mickeys. One of the first was in the 1955 Disneyland Rocket to the Moon attraction where the rapidly diminishing spaceport (designed by Imagineer John Hench) in the bottom viewport had a remarkable resemblance to Mickey’s head including the proper proportion and vector of the ears to Mickey’s main circle.

However, the current unofficial “Hidden Mickeys” originated at Epcot in 1982. The secret was revealed to the general public in the December 1991 issue of Disney News magazine in an article by Imagineer David Fisher:

“When EPCOT Center opened at Walt Disney World in 1982, a conscious decision was made to give the new Theme Park a distinctly separate identity from the older, more familiar Magic Kingdom. One of the ways this was done was to purposely keep all references to the Disney characters out of the new Park.

“Leave it to the devious denizens of Walt Disney Imagineering to work the familiar ears or silhouette into just about anything they could during those early, no-Mouse days of EPCOT Center.”

Once Michael Eisner became CEO, he put an end to the moratorium of Disney characters at Epcot because he knew guests wanted the characters there.

Actually, Disney cast members had been alerted to Hidden Mickeys two years earlier in a magazine article by Disney cast members Arlen Miller and Bob Weir in their “Hidden Disney” article for the November 30, 1989 edition of the cast member newspaper Eyes and Ears (Vol. 19, No 48).

Today, there is a very popular series of books beginning in 2002 and constantly updated by Steven M. Barrett (who also maintains a website HiddenMickeyGuy.com) to help fans locate some of these Hidden Mickeys since they are constantly being added and removed.

Some Imagineers prefer not to encourage the guests’ fascination with the phenomenon because they feel it distracts the guests from being immersed in the entire experience. They have even less patience with cast members who deliberately create Hidden Mickeys since they consider it as solely an Imagineering prerogative.

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Thanks, Jim! And come back next Friday for more from Jim Korkis!

In the meantime, check out his books, including his latest, More Secret Stories of Disneyland, and his Secret Stories of Walt Disney World: Things You Never You Never Knew, which reprints much material first written for this site, all published by Theme Park Press.

Follow yourfirstvisit.net on Facebook or Twitter or Pinterest!!

DISNEY WORLD NEXT WEEK: AUGUST 18 TO AUGUST 26, 2018

The material below details next week’s Disney World operating hours, Extra Magic Hours, parades, and fireworks.

OPERATING HOURS AT WALT DISNEY WORLD 8/18-8/26/18

The Magic Kingdom will be open from 8a-12MN 8/18, 9a-10p 8/19 through 8/23, 8a-6p 8/24, 9a-11p 8/25, and 9a-10p 8/26

Epcot will be open from 9a-9p every day

Disney’s Hollywood Studios will be open from 8a-10.30p 8/18 through 8/25, and 9a-10p 8/26

Disney’s Animal Kingdom will be open from 8a-9.30p 8/18, 9a-9.30p 8/19 through 8/25, and 9a-8.30p 8/26

EXTRA MAGIC HOURS AT WALT DISNEY WORLD 8/18-8/26/18

Saturday 8/18 Morning: Animal Kingdom, Hollywood Studios Evening: none

Sunday 8/19  Morning: Hollywood Studios Evening: none

Monday 8/20  Morning: Animal Kingdom, Hollywood Studios Evening: none

Tuesday 8/21 Morning: Hollywood Studios Evening: Epcot

Wednesday 8/22 Morning:  Hollywood Studios Evening: Magic Kingdom

Thursday 8/23 Morning: Epcot, Hollywood Studios Evening: none

Friday 8/24 Morning:  Magic Kingdom, Hollywood Studios Evening: Hollywood Studios

Saturday 8/25 Morning: Animal Kingdom, Hollywood Studios Evening: none

Sunday 8/26  Morning: Hollywood Studios Evening: none

PARADES AT WALT DISNEY WORLD 8/18-8/26/18

The Magic Kingdom: Afternoon Festival of Fantasy Parade: 2p every day

FIREWORKS AND EVENING SHOWS AT WALT DISNEY WORLD 8/18-8/26/18

Happily Every After at Magic Kingdom: 9.15p 8/18; 8.55p 8/19 through 8/23 and 8/25 through 8/26

IllumiNations at Epcot:  9p every night

Fantasmic at Disney’s Hollywood Studios: 9 and 10.30p  8/18; 8.30 and 10.30p 8/19 through 8/25; 8.30p 8/26

Star Wars Show and Fireworks at Disney’s Hollywood Studios: 10p 8/18 through 8/25; 9p 8/26

Rivers of Light at Disney’s Animal Kingdom: 8.45 and 10p 8/18 through 8/25; 8.45p 8/26

SHOW SCHEDULES FOR WALT DISNEY WORLD 8/18-8/26/18

See Steve Soares’ site here. Click the park names at its top for show schedules.

Follow yourfirstvisit.net on Facebook or Twitter or Pinterest!!