This summer there will be a new way to celebrate your Saturday evenings at the Walt Disney World Resort.  Food, Drink, Music, and a special never seen before performance of The Festival Of The Lion King in its new theater with accompanying orchestra and celebrity narrator.

Celebrate the grandest tales and tastes of Africa during Harambe Nights!

During this intimate engagement, the jungle beats in Harambe create a street party, and soon you can be a part of the wildest celebration in Disney's Animal Kingdom Theme Park history!

• Take part in an all-new, never-before-seen theatrical experience celebrating the 20th anniversary of The Lion King!

• Immerse yourself in a live orchestra and choir, as celebrity narrators such as Viola Davis, Montego Glover and David Alan Grier help bring the story of The Lion King to life like never before.

• Enjoy the all-inclusive, buffet-style African cuisine bursting with flavor, beer, wine and desserts through the streets of Harambe. All the while, Guests enjoy a festive street party full of performers and music!

Harambe Nights

Voyage into Harambe Village for a roaring summer celebration featuring the grandest tales and tastes of Africa.

Every Saturday, from June 7 to August 9, 2014, pay tribute to the 20th anniversary of Disney’s The Lion King at an all-inclusive extravaganza inside Disney’s Animal Kingdom theme park.
The excitement kicks off with a warm welcome reception before moving into Harambe Theater for a private performance of the all-new show The Lion King: Concert in the Wild—complete with a special celebrity narrator and a live orchestra!

Then, once the show comes to a close, you’re invited to hit the streets for an exotic party where you can explore all sorts of sizzling seasonal fare, magical merchandise offerings and a series of Character appearances and artist signings.

The Lion King: Concert In The Wild

Surround yourself in the Savannah setting of the Harambe Theater as you experience The Lion King like never before!
Marvel at the sights and sounds as iconic scenes from the film are recreated with splendid theatricality, all while a celebrity narrator and a live orchestra provide the soundtrack for a never-before-seen take on The Lion King tale.
Celebrity narrators currently scheduled to appear include:

• Viola Davis – June 7, 2014
• TBD – June 14, 2014
• Montego Glover – June 21, 2014
• David Alan Grier – June 28, 2014
• Michael Beach – July 5, 2014
• Harry Lennix – July 12, 2014
• Joe Morton – July 19, 2014
• Alfre Woodard – July 26, 2014
• Brian Stokes Mitchell – August 2, 2014
• Patina Miller – August 9, 2014

Disney World Guests during the late Spring of 2014 will be among the first to experience the new 'Disney Festival Of Fantasy Parade' in the Magic Kingdom.

The Disney Imagineers went all out to create a completely new parade for the Magic Kingdom to fill the famous "3:00PM Parade" slot.  They have used the new additions to Fantasyland to serve as their inspiration for the floats that make up this parade.


Previously revealed on the Disney Parks Blog was the Maleficent inspired Dragon float that is shown above.

Additionally you will see floats for Peter Pan, Merida from Brave, Mickey Mouse & Minnie Mouse, Ariel and her Little Mermaid friends, & Rapunzel from Tangled.

Effective June 12, 2011 Disney World Magic Your Way (MYW) Ticket Prices have gone up an average of $3 per person per day.  The Magic Your Way Tickets are the tickets that are used at Disney World to visit the four main theme parks (Magic Kingdom, Epcot, Disney's Hollywood Studios, and Disney's Animal Kingdom) in a flexible system that allows the Disney World Guest to choose the duration of the ticket from 1 day up to 10 days in length.

2011 - 2012 Disney World Ticket Prices

Magic Your Way Base Tickets - These tickets allow you to access one of the 4 Disney World Theme Parks (Magic Kingdom, Epcot, Disney's Hollywood Studios, & Disney's Animal Kingdom) per day for the number of days purchased. The tickets are good for 14 days from date of initial use. During each day you are permitted unlimited entry and re-entry of the same park. Tickets are coded to only work for the initial user.

 All prices reported are before Taxes are added.

# of Days               Adult (10+ )     Child (3 - 9 )
1                                 $ 85                  $ 79
2                                 $168                 $155
3                                 $232                 $214
4                                 $243                 $224
5                                 $251                 $232
6                                 $259                 $240
7                                 $267                 $248
8                                 $275                 $256
9                                 $283                 $264
10                               $291                 $272

The Magic Your Way Tickets continue to be priced to benefit those who stay 4 days or longer and penalize those looking for the 1 - 3 day visit. Once you get to 4 days each additional day costs $8 per day to add to the ticket. This is much better than the $85 one day ticket.

Park Hopper Option: This option allows you to visit multiple parks per day. It costs a flat rate of $55 to add this option, no matter how many days you purchase for your base ticket. Again this makes it very expensive to add to your ticket if you have 4 days or less.


Water Park Fun and More Option: This option entitles guest to a specified number of visits (between 2 and 10) to a choice of entertainment and recreation venues. Choices are Disney’s Blizzard Beach water park, Disney’s Typhoon Lagoon water park, DisneyQuest, Disney’s Oak Trail golf course, ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex.

Again this option costs a flat rate of $55 no matter how many days are on your base ticket. The number of visits equals the number of days on your ticket. You do not have to use a theme park day the same day you use one of these option days.

No Expire Option: This option makes the unused days on your ticket last forever and are not subject to the 14 day expiration. The cost for this option is steep and it is adjusted based upon the number of days on your Base Magic Your Way Ticket.

Here are the costs:

# of Days         No Expiration Option
2                                $ 25
3                                $ 35
4                                $ 75
5                                $ 115
6                                $130
7                                $160
8                                $195
9                                $220
10                              $225

Disney Parks has announced that for 2011 the theme will be "Let The Memories Begin."  There will be a new approach with making the Disney Park guests the star of the show!

According to the Disney Parks Blog:

As you just learned during our live coverage out of New York City, Disney Parks has officially launched “Let the Memories Begin” – our special celebration of family vacations and magical memories. And yes, you’re going to be the star. For the first time, your home videos and snapshots will be featured in Disney television ads and other print and online communications.
To kick things off, we’ve launched DisneyParks.com/Memories. It’s a new destination where you can upload your Disney vacation memories captured in photos and videos and share with the world. And getting started is easy:
•Choose to share your memory on DisneyParks.com/Memories; Facebook.com/WaltDisneyWorld; Facebook.com/Disneyland; Youtube.com/DisneyMemories; or Myspace.com/DisneyParks.

•Describe your memory. Memories can upload as photos, videos or text-only.

•Then all it takes is hitting the “submit” box and, once reviewed, a lifetime Disney memory is stored and shared.

Simple, right? So, what should you submit? Your favorite memories – whether it was a first meeting with a Disney princess, a laugh-filled Splash Mountain ride or a magical moment around a holiday fireplace when mom and dad surprised everyone with a “We’re Going to Disney!” announcement – We’re looking for videos and photos that capture your never-to-be-forgotten experiences. Take a look:

And there’s more – beginning in January of 2011, you’ll also become the star of a nightly spectacular at Disney Parks. Photos of magical memories made in the park during the day will be projected that night on Cinderella Castle at Walt Disney World and “it’s a small world” at Disneyland Resort. Pretty cool, huh?

In both locations, Disney PhotoPass photographers will provide images of guests shot during the day to be shared on the icons. While we’re still working on the show details, producers estimate as many as 500 photos will be shown in each location every day.

So, let us know about your favorite Disney memory and share it at DisneyParks.com/Memories.

Effective August 5, 2010 Disney World Ticket Prices are increasing.  This is part of Disney's annual ticket price increase prior to setting the rates for 2011 Disney World Vacation Packages.  The increases are roughly 4% over the 2009 - 2010 prices.

2010 - 2011 Disney World Ticket Prices

Magic Your Way Base Tickets - These tickets allow you to access one of the 4 Disney World Theme Parks (Magic Kingdom, Epcot, Disney's Hollywood Studios, & Disney's Animal Kingdom) per day for the number of days purchased.  The tickets are good for 14 days from date of initial use.  During each day you are permitted unlimited entry and re-entry of the same park.  Tickets are coded to only work for the initial user.

All prices reported are before Taxes are added.

# of Days             Adult (10+ )                  Child (3 - 9 )
      1                         $ 82                               $ 74
      2                         $162                              $146
      3                         $224                              $202
      4                         $232                              $209
      5                         $237                              $214
      6                         $242                              $219
      7                         $247                              $224
      8                         $252                              $229
      9                         $257                              $234
     10                        $262                              $239

The Magic Your Way Tickets continue to be priced to benefit those who stay 4 days or longer and penalize those looking for the 1 - 3 day visit.  Once you get to 4 days each additional day costs $5 per day to add to the ticket.  This is much better than the $82 one day ticket.

Park Hopper Option: This option allows you to visit multiple parks per day.  It costs a flat rate of $54 to add this option, no matter how many days you purchase for your base ticket.  Again this makes it very expensive to add to your ticket if you have 4 days or less.

Water Park Fun and More Option: This option entitles guest to a specified number of visits (between 2 and 10) to a choice of entertainment and recreation venues. Choices are Disney’s Blizzard Beach water park, Disney’s Typhoon Lagoon water park, DisneyQuest, Disney’s Oak Trail golf course, ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex.

Again this option costs a flat rate of $54 no matter how many days are on your base ticket.  The number of visits equals the number of days on your ticket.  You do not have to use a theme park day the same day you use one of these option days.

No Expire Option: This option makes the unused days on your ticket last forever and are not subject to the 14 day expiration.  The cost for this option is steep and it is adjusted based upon the number of days on your Base Magic You Way Ticket.

Here are the costs:

# of Days             No Expiration Option
     2                             $ 22
     3                             $ 28
     4                             $ 67
     5                             $ 95
     6                             $106
     7                             $142
     8                             $182
     9                             $208
    10                            $213

Annual Passes and Premium Annual passes

Annual Pass entitles guest to unlimited admission for 365 days from the activation date (except activities/events separately priced) to Magic Kingdom, Epcot, Disney’s Hollywood Studios and Disney’s Animal Kingdom, as well as complimentary parking.


Premium Annual Pass entitles guest to unlimited admission for 365 days from the activation date (except activities/events separately priced) to Magic Kingdom, Epcot, Disney’s Hollywood Studios, Disney’s Animal Kingdom, Disney’s water parks (Blizzard Beach and Typhoon Lagoon), Disney’s Oak Trail golf course, DisneyQuest and ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex, as well as complimentary parking.

 
                                             Adult (10+)                        Child (3-9)
Annual Pass                            $499                                  $450
Premium Annual Pass            $629                                  $567

Disney World has announced that the Main Street Electrical Parade which has returned to Disney World this summer as part of the Summer Nightastic! celebration in the Magic Kingdom will be staying on past the August 14th Summer Nightastic! end date.

Due to the overwhelmingly positive reaction to the return of this Disney World favorite attraction the end date has been extended indefinitely.  Those of you who were not able to visit Disney World this summer do not have to fear that you have missed your opportunity to catch the Main Street Electrical Parade.  It will be sticking around for awhile.

Here is the official Disney World press release:

LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. (July 29, 2010) – With its glittery galaxy of 23 illuminated floats, 80 performers, and trademark synthesizer music sweetened with Disney theme songs, Disney’s “Main Street Electrical Parade” has been leaving Magic Kingdom guests aglow all summer.

Now, the cherished entertainment spectacular is being extended by popular demand, Walt Disney World announced today.

“The return of Disney’s ‘Main Street Electrical Parade’ to the Magic Kingdom has been an overwhelming success,” said Magic Kingdom Vice President Phil Holmes. “Guests begin cheering as soon as they hear the opening fanfare and see those fantastic floats covered in lights. The parade is a magical part of a visit to the Walt Disney World Resort, so we’re thrilled to be announcing we’re leaving the lights on.”

Fronted by a new lead float starring Tinker Bell, Disney’s “Main Street Electrical Parade” officially bowed at Magic Kingdom June 6, 2010.

Beloved by generations, the parade anchors Disney’s multi-park “Summer Nightastic!” entertainment extravaganza of attractions and events. Once “Summer Nightastic!” draws to a close on Aug. 14 as previously announced, Disney’s “Main Street Electrical Parade” will continue an open-ended run.

Disney's Art Of Animation Resort
Disney announced today their plans to build a new 2,000 room Value Resort Hotel called Disney's Art Of Animation Resort.

The new resort will feature theming from classic Disney Animated Films: The Little Mermaid, The Lion King, Cars, and Finding Nemo.

The Walt Disney World Resort has officially announced today that "Captain EO" starring Michael Jackson is returning to Epcot after a 16 year absense.

Captain EO was a landmark, Sci-Fi musical 17-minute 3-D film experience created for the Disney Parks.  It debuted in 1986 when Michael Jackson was at the height of his popularity. 

The Walt Disney World Resort has announced a new round of discounts for Disney World Resort Hotels for Summer 2010.

Disney World Summer Vacation Discounts
The newest discounts are for vacation stays in a Walt Disney World Resort Hotel from May 2nd through August 14th, 2010. 

The discounts are available to the general public and are discounts off of the regular rack rate for Disney Resort hotel rooms.  No package purchase is necessary, but packages can be purchased including the discounted rooms.

Only WDWorld has launched a new Disney World Community on Lunch.com to create a place for Disney World Fans to interact utilizing the tools on the Lunch.com site to write reviews about their favorite Disney World topics and rate the reviews of others.

Lunch.com
LOS ANGELES, CA and AUSTIN, TX--(Marketwire - March 12, 2010) - Lunch (http://www.lunch.com), a social media website that connects people to their common ground with others, today announced the release of 'Communities on Lunch,' its most significant expansion to date. The feature allows people to create and curate their own personalized review websites on the Lunch platform. Communities on Lunch uniquely provide the 'review' context, an unprecedented format for connecting around shared interests online. This environment draws out more useful content around niche topics, encouraging substantially more people to feel comfortable contributing quality content that can genuinely benefit others.


The release of Communities on Lunch represents the next evolution of user generated content, culminating the brand's overall strategy to elicit the most thoughtful, relevant, and compelling content online.

Only WDWorld Community
The Only WDWorld Community on Lunch.com is different in that YOU are asked to share your knowledge and your experiences to contribute by writing reviews, lists, discussions, or micro-reviews. By having many different people with many different experiences to share, it is the hope that this site will become a fantastic resource for all Disney World fans and people looking to learn more about the Walt Disney World Resort.


The combination of many, many Disney "experts" contributing to their favorite Disney World topics will create a virtual Disney World Guide that will far surpass that of any one person's opinion. By using the Lunch.com rating system, the best reviews for each topic will make their way to the top of the list, allowing you to find the information that you are looking for.

 Here are some screenshots from the actual site:

The Only WDWorld Community has gotten off to a great start through the help of some fellow Disney Bloggers that have been contributing reviews:

• Chip from Chip and Company
• Chris from EverythingWDW
• Gray from SoloFriendly
• Lisa aka @UnbalancedLibra on Twitter 

Join the Only WDWorld Community
The Only WDWorld Blog will continue to bring you Disney World news and articles on various Disney World topics ranging from the Disney Dining Plan to unadvertised activities to try during your next Disney World vacation.

The new Only WDWorld Community will utilize the powerful Lunch.com platform to create a more intelligent interactive site that will allow you to leave reviews and read the best reviews from others on the Disney World topics that you are interested in.  This will be a much more useful platform that just a message board site, with honest, first hand experienced reviews to check out.

This community is for the Disney World Expert, as well as the family planning their first trip.  I hope you will take the time to check it out, and become a member of our growing community.  It will continue to get better as it grows.

To join:  Only WDWorld Community

To follow on Twitter:  OnlyWDWorldComm

Disney World has announced new additions coming to Downtown Disney starting on March 5th, 2010.

3D Theater Technology
Just in time for the debut of the new Alice in Wonderland movie on March 5th, AMC Entertainment is upgrading auditorium #1 to be the first Enhanced Theater Experience (ETX™) in the United States. The ETX auditorium will include a 20 percent larger, floor-to-ceiling screen, 3D technology, 12 channel audio and digital projection that delivers higher resolution than HD.

RIDEMAKERZ
Opening on March 25th will be a new retail addition to Downtown Disney's West Side.  RIDEMAKERZ will integrate full-sized cars and a supercharged interactive experience that lets guests build, customize and trick out their very own radio-controlled vehicles. Kids of all ages will be able to satisfy their need for speed with over 649 million ways to create a mean machine.

This will be the 6th U.S. location for RIDEMAKERZ.  Current plans are for this Downtown Disney location to be temporary and only be around until Fall. 

Having personally visited the RIDEMAKERZ located in Myrtle Beach, SC I have to admit that this is a pretty cool shop, where you make your own customized RC car by choosing from a wide variety of styles and options. 

D Street
D Street will build upon the success of Trend-D in the Downtown Disney Marketplace. Different from Trend-D is the fact that D Street will have merchandise for both men and women.  It will have urban inspired products mixed with a Disney creative flair.

The store will have edgy apparel, pop culture novelties, Vinylmation™ figures and collectibles, artwork, handbags, accessories, jewelry and more. Opening in April, the D Street will feature a raw, unfinished industrial look and provide a great venue to showcase Disney art created by local artists.

Exciting New Additions To Downtown Disney
Downtown Disney continues to be a place for entertainment, shopping, and dining while visiting the Walt Disney World Resort.  These newly announced additions build upon the others recently added attractions like Characters In Flight, Paradiso 37, Trend-D, and the recently announced Pollo Campero.

As part of this special night time parade will be a new float with Tinker Bell leading the festivities.  This float will look like a hot air balloon with Tinker Bell in the basket.

Pinocchio and Snow White will also be seen in new floats during this parade that will arrive at the Magic Kingdom for its summer-long run starting in early June.

The Magic Kingdom will also be getting a new special fireworks show for the summer.  This show will feature fireworks in vivid colors and brilliant visual effects as whimsical music fills the air.

The Magic Kingdom is not the only park that will see changes during the summer as each of the 4 Disney World theme parks will be part of the Summer Nightastic! fun.

At Epcot you will see a return of the Sounds Like Summer Concert series, where great tribute bands perform nightly at the America Gardens Theater recreating the music of legendary performers.  Showtimes are scheduled for 5:45 p.m., 7:00 p.m., and 8:15 p.m.

The Tower of Terror at Disney's Hollywood Studios will see a special change this summer.  New lighting effects and the addition of a new drop sequence, created especially for “Summer Nightastic!”, will bring unexpected frights to guests who step into that infamous service elevator. If they dare.

Lastly, Disney's Animal Kingdom will see more night time hours added to the park schedule on certain nights of the week.  Enjoy your favorite Animal Kingdom attractions during these extended hours.

Pollo Campero, in conjunction with franchisee Levy Campero, is opening up a new restaurant in the Downtown Disney Marketplace.

Pollo Campero is a Guatemalan based fast food restaurant that is very successful in Latin America.  The chain now has over 300 restaurants in 12 countries, serving over 85 million customers annually.  Pollo Campero is known for its chicken. 

According to the company website: "Our Latin flavored chicken is hand-prepared every day, seasoned with our special herbs and spices, marinated slowly and served with a zest and passion for making our guests feel at home."

This new addition to Downtown Disney will be replacing the McDonald's currently found near the Lego Imagination Center.  Construction is beginning soon for an expected opening in November of 2010.

From an interview of Pollo Campero President, Juan Jose Gutierrez by Prensa Libre, Only WDWorld has learned that:

• Negotiations have been going on with Disney for 4 years in preparation for this restaurant.
• "It represents great pride and satisfaction to have completed negotiations, both as a company and as a mark of Guatemala."
• They expect 15 to 20 times more traffic than a typical Pollo Campero restaurant, so they had to redesign their logistics, equipment, and processes to be able to handle the increased number of customers.
• This 10,000 sqft space is 5 times bigger than a typical Pollo Campero.

Expanded Menus
In addition to the great, flovorful chicken that they are known  for, they will also offer tasty alternative dishes such as fried yucca, sweet plantains, and Latin drinks including horchata and tamarind.  You will also find other healthy alternatives, such as salads added especially to this Downtown Disney location.

Great Addition To Downtown Disney
The addition of Pollo Campero continues the trend of Disney World partnering with outside firms to bring great international flavors and options to Downtown Disney.  Add this to the list of current choices: Cooke's of Dublin, Raglan Road Irish Pub and Restaurant, Portobello, & Paradisio 37 Street Foods Of The Americas.

We'll close with a (translated) quote from Pollo Campero President Juan Jose Gutierrez: "For decades, Walt Disney World has introduced its visitors to a rich cultural experience. We contribute to the cultural heritage of the park, helping visitors discover the unique flavors and the proximity of Latin-style family meals."

The well advertised Disney Parks promotion for 2010 "Give A Day.  Get A Disney Day." has begun.

As a follow up to the wildly successful program in 2009 where anyone could get a free one day park ticket to a Disney World or Disneyland theme park on their birthday, 2010 brings a new element to the free park ticket giveaway.

For 2010 Disney will give away 1 million one day theme park tickets to people who follow the requirements and volunteer a day of their time to one of the available charities.  The time involved varies depending upon the volunteering task, but may be as little as 2 1/2 hours.

To get started you need to go to the DisneyParks website to register.

Once you are there you will see the 3 steps to receiving your free park ticket:

1. Search & Sign Up
2. Volunteer
3. Redeem & Celebrate

You can search for available volunteering opportunities in your area by entering your zip code.  If you don't see anything that fits you, try again in a couple of weeks as it gets updated with new opportunities as the year progresses.

Some key program stipulations include:

• Each person can one earn 1 free ticket, no matter how much they volunteer.
• Anyone who lives in the United States, Puerto Rico, or Canada age 6 or above is eligible to volunteer.
• You must sign up to volunteer through the official Disney Site to qualify.  Volunteer activities outside of thissign-up process do not qualify.
• Ticket quantities are limited and program may end early if allotted tickets are all distributed.
• Volunteer service must be verified, then you will be eligible to print a vocher to take to the park to be traded for a one day ticket to one of the major theme parks.
• There are black out days.  For Disney World you cannot use the free ticket from March 29 - April 8 and July 4th..
• Tickets are non-transferrable.

See the entire program rules and stipulations at the website.

Program Benefits The Community And The Guests
This program sounds like a great way for Disney to help the commuinty and give people an opportunity to easily earn a park ticket to Disney World or Disneyland.  Hopefully it will run smoothly and be a win-win situation for all involved.

Roy E. Disney, nephew of Walt Disney and son of Roy O. Disney, passed away today (Dec. 16, 2009) at the age of 79.  He died following a year long battle with stomach cancer.

The beauty of the Disney experience for me, and the thing that makes this all very universal and brings it all together, is that it still originates with the mind and the hand and the paper and the vision.  And it's art.  No matter how you define it and what the technological, architectural, engineering, or construction processes bring to the final result, the vision begins with an imaginative idea and beautiful art, and that's what makes the Disney park experience so culturally  resonant, emotionally reassuring, and, most of all, perpetually memorable.

Mickey Mouse has a new look.  He will be sporting a salior's outfit for Thanksgiving to represent the Disney Cruise Line. 

A new Mickey Mouse helium balloon will make its debut at the 2009 Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade in New York City.




This will be the 83rd annual rendition of this beloved holiday event that millions of people watch each year either in person or on television.

Mickey Mouse has a long standing tradition in the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade dating back to his first appearance as a balloon in 1934. 

















A second version flew from 1968-82.

The 3rd Mickey Mouse Balloon to appear at the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade was "Bandleader Mickey", debuting in 2000.


 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
"Sailor Mickey" is now the 4th version of Mickey Mouse to participate in the parade.

Enjoy the "new" Mickey while you are watching this year's parade.  Happy Thanksgiving!

When you are looking for the finest dining experience at the Walt Disney World Resort, the place to choose is Victoria & Albert's, located at the Grand Floridian Resort.  AAA has awarded Victoria & Albert's it 5 Diamond award for the 10th consecutive year!  This prestigious award is only currently bestowed upon 52 restaurants in the United States.


















Here is the Disney World Press Release marking the event:

LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla., Nov. 24, 2009 - For the 10th year in a row, Victoria & Albert's restaurant at Disney’s Grand Floridian Resort & Spa has been awarded the AAA Five Diamond Award. As one of only 52 restaurants to receive this symbol of excellence in North America, Mexico and the Caribbean, Victoria & Albert’s delivers “haute cuisine” with seven-course prix-fixed menus, wine pairings and the finest ingredients from the world market.

At the helm of this critically-acclaimed restaurant is 15-year Victoria & Albert’s veteran, Chef de Cuisine Scott Hunnel.

“It takes every individual on the team to achieve such a great honor consistently, from the reservationists to the wait staff and culinary team,” remarked Hunnel about reaching this prestigious milestone. “The secret to our success is realizing that it’s a continuous journey of reinvention in the restaurant and what we’re doing today has to be better tomorrow.”

Only 0.27 percent of AAA's 60,000 Diamond Rated lodgings and restaurants in North America received this honor for 2010. According to AAA's ratings guidelines, to achieve Five Diamond status, restaurants must "consistently provide a world-class experience.”

The culinary team’s impeccable artistry and unique recipes, combined with an expert service staff and maître d’, is what exceeds guest expectations daily in an effortless and unobtrusive manner.

“Our guests expect more and that’s why we travel extensively to keep our minds open to develop new and exciting delicacies,” said Chef Scott. “Over the years, we’ve visited other highly ranked restaurants in Paris, New York and Barcelona to get a perspective on what the competition is doing and to keep bringing the freshest and most original ideas home to our guests only the way Disney can.”

To keep up the world-class culinary standards, the team at Victoria & Albert’s inspect every detail of the presentation and are totally immersed in the delivery of the operation. Under Chef Scott’s direction, the focus for 2010 is on taking the restaurant to the next level and in pleasing guests with new and exciting gastronomic surprises.

If you are planning on being at Disney World this Thanksgiving, hopefully you have already made your dining reservations, because few options remain available.

Thanksgiving is one of the most popular holidays to spend at the Walt Disney World Resort.  As the week gets closer to Thursday the crowds will get larger and larger.

Thanksgiving Day, Thursday, is one day that most people staying at Disney World choose to eat at one of the table service restaurants.  This brings most restaurants full to capacity with no openings available to those who did not make reservations ahead of time.

If you haven't made reservations yet, don't fear, there are still a few options left. Don't count on a traditional turkey dinner though at the remaining restaurants. 

After searching for openings for a typical party of 4, there were no openings available for Thursday from 12:00 pm - 9:00 pm in Magic Kingdom, Hollywood Studios, or Animal Kingdom.  There were a few openings at a couple of the Epcot restaurants.  We found openings for: San Angel (Mexico), Restaurant Marrakesh (Morocco), Tokyo Dining (Japan), and Nine Dragons (China).

In Downtown Disney there were also several options available, especially closer to noon.  The House of Blues had the most available times, but there were also some openings at: Portobello and Captain Jack's.

The Boardwalk area restaurants were full, and there were next to no openings in the resort restaurants either.

If you haven't made reservations yet, I would highly recommend making reservations before Thursday if you would like to eat at a Table service restaurant.  Call (407) 939-DINE or use the on-line reservation system.

Disney World is a great place to spend your Thanksgiving.  Enjoy all the magic that Disney World has to offer and the special Christmas decorations that are all over the resort.  Expect the parks to be crowded and don't let it stress you out.  Have a Happy Thanksgiving!

Disney released details about their newest cruise ship - Disney Dream that will sail its maiden voyage on January 26, 2011.

The ship looks amazing.  Some of the highlights include a 765 foot long water coaster called the AquaDuck that races guests at 20 feet per second with high powered water jets.  The see through tubes also extend 13 feet over the edge of the deck so you can see 150 feet down to the water surface.  This feature is certainly unique and sounds awesome.

State of the art technology will be used throughout, including the creation of virtual portholes for the inside staterooms, where you may see some of your favorite Disney characters swimming by.

The official Disney Press release is here:

CELEBRATION, Fla. (Oct. 29, 2009) – A first-of-its kind water coaster that sends guests racing above the upper decks of the ship. An animated turtle that engages children in conversation about life in the ocean. A sophisticated lounge where the sun sets over the skyline of a different world-famous city each night. When the Disney Dream debuts in early 2011, the newest ship in the Disney Cruise Line fleet will bring to life these innovations and more.