Monstrous Summer All Nighter Is Happening Now At The Magic Kingdom!

Hi everyone! As I reported a couple of weeks ago, the Magic Kingdom at Walt Disney World is open for a full 24 hours today for only the second time in its history. It opened at 6am this morning, and will continue to be open throughout the night, finally closing at 6am tomorrow. The event kicks off the 'Monstrous Summer' being celebrated at the parks this year, featuring a series of exciting events, with this one a contender for the best, to celebrate the release of Disney and Pixar's newest movie, Monsters University. Today's event, which is also featuring at the two parks of Disneyland California, is in full swing as I write this, having gone just over 12 hours quite recently.

One of the best things about these kinds of events is that Disney couples the unique celebrations, which I'll explain in a minute, with awesome and exclusively unique merchandise and food, which is I'm told already proving a huge hit on both coasts for this event. Not only is there the attraction of having the opportunity to spend (or at least attempt to spend) 24 hours in the world's best theme park, but by offering these unique items to guests exclusively on this day, Disney are giving them great ways to remember this rare magical experience which is an opportunity seldom encountered in life. The fact that this event is such a massive thing is, taken on its own terms, more than a good basis to create great memories for all those lucky enough to attend it, but when the opportunity to take home these 'one day only' souvenirs also arises, it makes for some pretty strong memories.

The Magic Kingdom has already seen Sulley and Mike, stars of Monsters University, be Grand Marshals for the Celebrate a Dream Come True Parade, with social media buzzing with news and views about this awesome appearance. Also planned for the next few hours are special late night character meet and greets, dance parties by Cinderella Castle, as well as many other exciting things. I'll be reporting tomorrow on all the goings on!

I really wanted to share that the Disney Parks Blog (which has had a cool makeover to celebrate this event) has been blogging live all day from the parks. Each update comes complete with a cool feature showing the time on both coasts at which it was posted, with posts from all of the blog's top authors a ubiquity today. Particularly intriguing is Stephen Miller's coast to coast expedition, with the Merchandise Communications Manager on his way to Disneyland from Orlando International Airport as I write this. To check out the Disney Parks Blog team's awesome live blogging, please click here! It's definitely worth taking a look!

Thanks for reading! Don't forget to check out the awesome We're Going To Walt Disney World Podcast! If you yourself are at the parks for today's unique event, I'd love to hear about it! Please feel free to comment below! Thank you and have a magical weekend!

Update On Blog Changes

As you may know if you follow the Blog on Facebook or Twitter, you probably know that yesterday's scheduled Photo of the Week was delayed until today. This was due to behind the scenes changes I've been making to the blog recently, which have now been prolonged in unforeseen circumstances. I'm trying to find a way to make the images I post of a better quality than when I originally took them on my iPod, so therefore will postpone this week's photo. I am aware that the Blog hasn't seen any new posts recently, which frustrates me incredibly. I hate not being able to reach the deadlines I set myself, and will ensure that no more posts are late following the changes.

Thank you for your patience, and have a magical day!

Why I Haven't Yet Published The First 'My Top Seven'

I am sorry to announce that the first 'My Top Seven' post will be delayed until this Sunday. Having almost completed it, I went back onto the app I sometimes use to write blog posts, and opened the article. After a couple more minutes of writing, the app crashed, much to my extreme dismay, taking my article (which had taken upwards of three hours to plan and write) with it. I was obviously really upset about this, as not only did I lose my article, but I missed the date at which I said it would be available for you to read. Luckily, I still have my plan, so will re-write the article and publish it this coming Sunday. Thank you for your patience and understanding, and have a magical day!

George

Exciting MyMagic+ News!

Exciting new information has surfaced this week regarding the $1 billion+ MyMagic+ program, which Disney announced a few months ago now. Whilst I regrettably didn't cover the initial announcement on the blog, I hope to share information with you regarding any developments in the future!

The big news this week is that the so far elusive Magic Bands, special RFID wristbands which will replace Key To The World Cards and become a key component of the entity of MyMagic+, will begin testing next week! The testing will at this stage will only be for important Cast Members and their guests, and is anticipated to progress to include some guests by summer, before being fully launched later in the year. The controversial Fastpass+ system, which has already seen some testing, will also feature next week.

I hope to write an article detailing my personal views of MyMagic+ as we currently know it, but for now I would strongly encourage you to check out this this amazing article on WDW Info which shares a lot of interesting information about the Magic Bands themselves.

This week's Attraction Review has been delayed to next week to accommodate this article- this is such big news I want everyone to read it!

Thanks for reading! Don't forget to check out the awesome We're Going To Walt Disney World Podcast!

World of Dreams Photo of the Week

One of the great things about the Disney Parks and Walt Disney World in particular is that there are always celebrations at the parks, no matter when you go. Even before the days of this year's Limited Time Magic event, the parks are always celebrating, if not a major event then simply and amazingly the fact that you're at this magical place. One celebration which has been running for some time now at the parks is Let The Memories Begin, which promotes the value of the memories made at the special places that are the Disney Parks.

This week's image showcases a prime example of the breathtaking decorative signage installed by Disney to introduce the concept of memories to guests. The sign in question is situated at the entrance to Disney's Animal Kingdom, with the sign's text fitting in perfectly with the theming and atmosphere of this unique theme park. The text is itself surrounded by pictures of guests enjoying the Animal Kingdom's many incredible experiences, and thus does a splendid job of building anticipation for the excitement which awaits you in this awesome park.




This sign is another great example of the Disney Difference in my opinion. The Imagineers have taken what conceptually is a mere sign, and have made it so much more than that. The fact that the sign is themed to comply with the park it ushers guests into alongside the impressive landscaping around it shows the talent of the Imagineers for me- making things amazing is after all what they do best!

Whilst on the subject of Disney's Animal Kingdom, in case you haven't heard, Adventurer's Outpost opened yesterday on Discovery Island, replacing the Beastly Bazaar store which previously resided there. The cleverly themed area will now serve as the park's primary Character greeting spot, with Mickey and Minnie Mouse the most notable characters here. For Disney's coverage, see this post on the Disney Parks Blog.

Thanks for reading, and have a magical day! Please also check out the amazing We're Going To Walt Disney World Podcast!