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Epcot restaurants lays off Cast Members ahead of reopening

Epcot restaurants lays off Cast Members ahead of reopening Epcot Mexico Pavilion

Palmas Restaurant Group has just laid off a number of Cast Members in the Mexico Pavilion in Epcot.

According to Bay News 9, the layoffs were due to “extended closures and loss of business resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic.”

Details on how many Cast Members were not released at this time. Palmas Restaurant Group operates San Angel Inn, La Hacienda de San Angel, La Cantina de San Angel and La Cava del Tequila in Epcot’s Mexico Pavilion.

Employees who participated in a company-sponsored health plan will continue to have coverage through July 31st. The company said in the event of a rehire, union cast members would be given priority.

Recently Paddlefish and Terralina Crafted Italian in Disney Springs also laid off more than 100 workers.

From our friends at chipandco.com
Filed Under: News, Parks & Resorts, Walt Disney World, Cast Members Laid Off, Disney Lays off Cast Members, Disney World, Epcot, Mexico Pavilion

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Disney Parks

First look at the Discovery River Character Cruise in the Animal Kingdom

First look at the Discovery River Character Cruise in the Animal Kingdom Discovery River

Today, Disney’s Animal Kingdom opened for a special preview day for Cast Members to visit the theme park. Due to the new social distancing procedures, Disney has temporarily changed how we will see popular Disney characters in the park. For instance, those visiting Disney’s Animal Kingdom will now see characters aboard watercraft in Discovery River instead of the former meet and greet opportunities for guests.

Below you can watch a demonstration of the new character cruises at Discovery River. A visitor, Tradzak, shared a video of their experience today on Instagram. We see popular Lion King characters Timon and Rafiki saving to passengers as they journey down the river.

More characters!!  Swipe to see both videos! #discoveryriver #discoveryrivercharactercruise #charactercruise #discoveryisland #reopenwaltdisneyworld #castmemberpreview #castmemberpreviews #covid19 #facemasksrequired #dak #animalkingdom #disneysanimalkingdom #disneyanimalkingdom22 #dak22 #treeoflife #thetreeoflife #wdw #waltdisneyworld #disney #disneyboy #disneyparks #disneyside #disneyworld #passholderlife #ilivewhereyouvacation #disneygram #instadisney #nowmorethanever #disneymagicmoments #disneymagicalmoments

A post shared by Thomas Radzak (@tradzak) on Jul 7, 2020 at 8:09am PDT

Seeing the characters from afar is certainly both entertaining and great for Disney fans who missed seeing their favorite characters. This new procedure helps ensure the health and safety of Disney guests by maintaining an appropriate social distance.

First look at the Discovery River Character Cruise in the Animal Kingdom

We also see Mickey Mouse and his friends are cruising down the river as well! Mickey, Minnie, and Pluto were joyfully greeting guests as they walked through the park.

Disney’s Animal Kingdom officially reopens to the public on July 11, 2020. We hope our fans stay tuned as we provide coverage on the reopened theme park!

Photo Credit: Tradzak

From our friends at chipandco.com
Filed Under: Parks & Resorts, Characters, Walt Disney World, animal kingdom, discovery river, Disney characters, Disney’s Animal Kingdom, Kilimanjaro Safari

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Disney News

Inspired Schoolgirl Asks for Disney Princesses with Glasses

Inspired Schoolgirl Asks for Disney Princesses with Glasses Disney princesses

Inspired Schoolgirl Asks for Disney Princesses with Glasses

Eleven-year-old Lowri Moore, from Nottingham, England, wrote a letter to Bob Iger last year requesting the creation of Disney princesses that wear glasses. According to BBC News, Lowri, who wears glasses, said that she wanted to see more characters “wearing glasses like me.”

Lowri’s letter to Bob Iger read: “I’ve grown up watching Disney princesses and I’ve always admired them and thought they were beautiful. Unfortunately, none of the princesses wear glasses and that made me feel as though I’m not beautiful enough.”

Lowri described that the Disney characters featured with glasses were typically portrayed as “geeky or nerdy instead of beautiful.” She felt so strongly about the need for a glasses-wearing Disney princess that she came up with her own!

Inspired Schoolgirl Asks for Disney Princesses with Glasses Disney princesses

Photo credit: Cyrilyn Moore.

A local illustrator, Natalie Owen, heard about Lowri’s letter and character idea, and was a Disney fan herself- so she decided to help out! According to BBC News, Owen decided to create the story, ‘Princess Rose and the Golden Glasses,’ featuring a beautiful princess in an orange gown and, you guessed it…glasses!

Lowri was thrilled about the glasses-wearing princess- “The illustrations are amazing and I’m so excited this has happened. Rose has blue-ish glasses, brown long hair, kind of like me. Even if it’s not Disney it’s still a role model for young people. I’m happy I got to create one.”

Lowri’s mother was also touched by the new book- “[The character] thinks she’s not beautiful because she’s wearing glasses. A bit like someone else I know. And she goes on a bit of an adventure where she discovers she actually is beautiful. To come from a nine-year-old’s mind it’s so clever. I’m super proud.”

Although there is no response from Disney to Lowri’s letter, it would be great to see a glasses-wearing Disney princess in the future!

Check back here on Chip & Co. for the latest theme park & entertainment news updates!

Source: BBC News.

From our friends at chipandco.com
Filed Under: Animation Studios, Books, Characters, Disney & Co, Disney+, Movies, News, Other Disney Stuff, Walt Disney Pictures, Bob Iger, disney movies, Disney Pictures, Disney Princesses, Glasses, Schoolgirl

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Other

Orange County might give Universal Orlando $5 million towards new theme park

Orange County might give Universal Orlando $5 million towards new theme park Orange County

There’s a chance Orange County Mayor Jerry Demings could vote to spend up to $5 million for helping Universal Orlando build their upcoming Epic Universe theme park. With this proposed deal, Orange County would give Universal Orlando up to $5 million in credits against future utility connection charges to help the company with the cost of relocating an existing wastewater pipeline.

Universal Orlando needs to relocate the line as part of the construction of Epic Universe, which would be its third theme park. Construction of the new park, which was initially slated to open in 2023, has been delayed by the coronavirus pandemic.

County commissioners have already agreed to give Universal as much as $125 million to help pay for a new road through the property. Orange County officials said Universal Orlando representatives came to the county with the plan to share the cost of relocating the pipeline. County staffers said the deal will save the county from incurring other easement, design and engineering consulting charges, and that the agreement is broadly “in the public interest.”

“Orange County has determined the developer’s improvements will provide certain public benefits including, but not limited to, enhanced tax revenues, enhanced wastewater fees, and increased employment opportunities,” Raymond Hanson, Orange County’s director of utilities, wrote in a memo recommending the mayor and commissioners approve the $5 million deal.

Universal spokesman Tom Schroder said the agreement means Universal will end up replacing a 35-year-old existing utility pipe “that would have to be replaced at some point anyway.”

“We will spend between $13 million and $14 million to provide the materials and do the work and receive $5 million in future impact fee credits,” Schroder said. “This is frequently how the county gets developers to help replace aging infrastructure.”

Source: Orlando Sentinel

From our friends at chipandco.com
Filed Under: Universal Studios Orlando, Other Orlando Attractions, Universal, SeaWorld, Legoland and More, Epic Universe, Islands of Adventure, Orlando Theme Parks, Universal Orlando, Universal Studios

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Other

Relaxation Station locations for the Magic Kingdom and the Animal Kingdom

Relaxation Station locations for the Magic Kingdom and the Animal Kingdom Magic Kingdom Animal Kingdom

Relaxation Station locations for the Magic Kingdom and the Animal Kingdom

Today is cast member previews at both the Magic Kingdom and the Animal Kingdom. This is the first time the parks have been open for months!

While visiting the Disney World Theme Parks guests 2 and up are required to wear Face Masks.  You can imagine it can be quite hot in Florida in the summer so sometimes you need to take a break and take your mask off for a breather.

Disney World has setup Relaxation Stations throughout the parks to give guests a chance to take a breather and remove their masks.

Let’s take a look where you can find the Relaxation Stations in the Magic & Animal Kingdom theme parks:

Magic Kingdom

  • Tomorrowland Terrace in Tomorrowland
  • Pete’s Silly Sideshow in Storybook Circus
  • Golden Oak Outpost in Frontierland

Disney’s Animal Kingdom

  • Pizzafari in Discovery Island
  • Upcountry Landing across from UP! A Great Bird Adventure

Please note guests will be spaced 10 feet apart from other parties inside the relaxation zone.

 

For other social distancing measures at Walt Disney World check out the articles below:

From our friends at chipandco.com
Filed Under: Parks & Resorts, Do and See, Walt Disney World, COVID-19, Disney World, Face Masks, Relaxation Stations, Social Distancing Measures