Author: disneyfoodblog.com

We’ve been hopping around Magic Kingdom and Animal Kingdom during Cast Member and Annual Passholder previews this week.

Some attractions are missing major scenes while others have remained about the same. Every attraction is receiving extra sanitation and most are spacing out seating to create distance between travel groups. We headed to Expedition Everest at Disney’s Animal Kingdom to experience the thrill ride under the new conditions.

The first thing we noticed was the social distancing markers located on the ground. Guests are asked to stand on the marks to stay their distance from others.

Every once in awhile, Cast Members will stop the ride to clean the ride vehicle seats.

Once we got to the front of the line we were given our line number. Plexiglass was put in place between the numbered lines to separate us from other guests.

The first time we rode Everest we were spaced out from another group. The row between us was left empty. The second time, we were sat behind another group. We will continue to monitor this once the parks reopen to see which process they are implementing.

The Rider Switch and Disability Access Service are operating as normal. Guests using either service will enter through the line that is usually designated for FastPass.

Despite some enhanced safety and sanitation measures, our ride was very similar to past experiences. (And yes, the Yeti still makes an appearance!) Just make sure you secure your face mask properly while on the ride. Guests are still required to wear them while riding roller coasters and other attractions on property.

Curious about what it’s like riding water rides under the new conditions? Learn about our experience here!

Will you be riding Expedition Everest soon? Let us know!

From our friends at www.disneyfoodblog.com
Filed Under: Animal Kingdom, Disney News, Walt Disney World, annual passholder preview, Disney World, disney world closure, Disney World Re-Open, Expedition Everest, mount everest, mt. everest, roller coaster

Florida can be a pretty steamy place — especially in the summer!

In addition to following all the new health and safety measures Disney World has recently implemented, you’ll want to make sure you’re still drinking plenty of water and staying hydrated in that blazing Florida sun! Now that masks are required to be worn at all times while in the theme parks except when eating or drinking, you may find yourself feeling even hotter and thirstier than normal, so you’ll want to take those water breaks frequently!

Luckily, there are still plenty of ways to find water at Disney World right now. Let’s explore each one!

Bottled Water for Purchase

Bottled water is always available for purchase throughout the parks at various locations. It’s chilled and available to grab-n-go — plus you can use a contactless method of payment such as your MagicBand of Apple Pay to buy it!

The only downside is how expensive bottled water is! On average, bottled water costs about $3.50 per bottle at Disney World and you’d likely need to buy A LOT of it to stay hydrated all day!

Refillable Water Bottle

Bringing a refillable bottle from home is a more economical approach and still makes good sense if you’ll have access to a bottle refill stations. We’ve passed by several stations that are currently operating and the best part is they are contactless! Each refill station is equipped with a sensor and will begin dispensing a stream of water when it senses a bottle’s presence underneath the spigot!

But there are a few issues with relying on this water source. There aren’t nearly as many contactless water bottle refill stations as there are standard drinking fountains, and we’ve noticed that some of the refill stations aren’t currently operating. Because standard drinking fountains require contact, many people will likely want to avoid these for now.

It wasn’t that big of a deal to refill your water bottle at a drinking fountain before, but ever since the closures, we’re being super mindful about not coming in close contact with frequently touched surfaces. In addition, we were never huge fans of the drinking fountains because the water isn’t very cold and sometimes has a funny after-taste!

Free Cups of Water

That brings us to our last, but certainly not least, water source, which is always ice-cold and totally FREE: a cup of ice water.

Before the closures, every Disney World quick-service restaurant gave out free cups of water. Guests could walk up to the counter and ask Cast Members for one any time they wanted! And now that the parks have reopened, we are happy to confirm free cups of water are alive and well! Just keep in mind, not every dining location has or will be reopening during Disney World’s initial reopening period.

Fewer restaurants might be open, but we spotted free cups of water at plenty of places at Magic Kingdom today, like the Popcorn Cart next to Cinderella Castle, Pinocchio Village Haus, and Joffrey’s Revive in Tomorrowland. We’ll do some more exploring this weekend, but it appears smaller kiosks and stands with soda fountains might be able to provide you with a free cup of water!

And here’s another thing you need to know — many quick-service restaurants are now strongly encouraging guests to use the contactless Mobile Order feature on the My Disney Experience app to order and pay for their food. Guests must show their order to a Cast Member at the door before they’re allowed inside.

So what happens if you just want a free cup of water at one of these locations? Let the Cast Member at the door know you need one, and they’ll direct you to the appropriate pick-up window. Several restaurants had free cups of water pre-made and ready to give away.

And just like that, you can pick up your free cup of water and enjoy a quick cool down! Remember, since the tables are socially distanced inside the restaurants, you’re free to remove your mask once you’re seated while you eat and drink. You can also locate a nearby Relaxation Station where you can temporarily remove your mask if you need a break!

Nothing hits the spot quite like an ice-cold cup of water and we’re so happy the free ones are still a thing at Disney World. To see what else we’ve been investigating at the newly reopened theme parks, click here!

Two more restaurants at Epcot have just confirmed they’ll be reopening soon! Find out which ones here!

How do you like to get your water at Disney World? Let us know in the comments below!

From our friends at www.disneyfoodblog.com
Filed Under: Animal Kingdom, Counter-Service, Disney News, Featured, magic kingdom, Snacks, Walt Disney World, bottle refill stations, bottled water, cups of water, Disney World, drinking fountains, drinking water, free cup of water, free water, hydrated, refill, Water, water fountains, water source

Almost a week ago, some Disney World Annual Passholders who had opted to postpone their payments until the end of the closure noticed something rather strange.

A bizarre processing error had occurred and many Passholders were unexpectedly charged for all four months of the park closures AT ONCE.

Disney World later released a statement about the erroneous charge and began processing refunds shortly thereafter. We reached out to Disney and a Cast Member confirmed that everyone who was charged should see the reversal processed automatically, without needing to call. As of last weekend, many Annual Passholders had reported that they had seen the unexpected charges removed from their accounts.

Now, Passholders have started to receive emails from Disney apologizing for the inconvenience. The message states all charges have been reversed and should be reflected on your bank account or credit card statement at this time.

The email also notes that, “If you were accidentally charged on July 3rd and still haven’t been reimbursed, you could contact V.I.PASSHOLDER Support at (407)939-7277. And for the lastest information regarding travel to Disney World and new updates for Annual Passholders, click here!”

See what our experience was like yesterday at the Annual Passholder preview of Disney’s Animal Kingdom!

Were you accidentally charged on July 3rd? Let us know if you were impacted by this processing error in the comments below!

From our friends at www.disneyfoodblog.com
Filed Under: Disney News, Featured, Walt Disney World, accidental charge, Annual Passholder, apology, Disney World, email, four months, processing error, Update

We’re just a few short days away from Hollywood Studios’ reopening on July 15th.

We know we’re not alone when we say we’re pretty excited to ride Rise of the Resistance in Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge again. Initially, Disney had announced that the Virtual Queue would NOT be returning as rides would not use virtual lines. However, Disney just announced that Rise of the Resistance will be using a MODIFIED Virtual Queue when Hollywood Studios reopens.

Unlike the initial queue which opened at the start of the theme park day, the new Virtual Queue will give guests an opportunity to join the queue at 10AM, 1PM, or 4PM. Keep in mind, guests will need to have valid park admission and Disney Park Pass reservations so that they can be IN Hollywood Studios.

We will be updating this post with more information soon.

This comes as a pretty big surprise since Disney had initially said that this would not be happening. We’re interested to see how the mutliple queue windows helps to alleviate the massive demand we saw prior to the park closures. Stay tuned to DFB for all of the latest reopening updates!

Click here to see ALL of the attractions that will be reopening in Hollywood Studios!

Are you headed to ride Rise of the Resistance in a reopened Hollywood Studios? Tell us in the comments! 

From our friends at www.disneyfoodblog.com
Filed Under: Disney News, disney parks, disney’s hollywood studios, Featured, Walt Disney World, Disney World reopening, Hollywood Studios, hollywood studios reopening, Rise of the Resistance, Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge, Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance, virtual queue, virtual queues

From its rosy-colored flower beds to the newly refurbished Cinderella Castle, our trip to Magic Kingdom yesterday was a rhapsody in PINK!

And now we’ve just learned that a new pair of Designer Ears will be dropping tomorrow featuring our new favorite hue!

Fashion maven Trina Turk is known for her use of poppy bright colors and bold, contemporary prints! Whether you’re a follower of her brand or not, make sure you’re sitting down before you scroll any further — are you ready? GOOD, ’cause here comes a pic of the new Trina Turk Designer Minnie Ears! 

They’re sparkly HOT PINK and insanely gorgeous! We love the pink, orange, and white fabric bow and headband! The new Trina Turk Designer Ears are so modern and retro all at the same time.

Although we don’t know how much the ears will cost ya, we know they’ll be available on shopDisney tomorrow starting at 7 AM PST or 10AM EST, so make sure you set your alarms! If they’re anything like the Joe Rohde and Ashley Eckstein Designer Ears, these little beauties are going to sell out quickly!

Click here to see this adorable new Inside Out dress we just spotted online!

What do you think of the new Trina Turk Designer Ears? Let us know if you’ll be trying to snag ’em tomorrow in the comments below!

From our friends at www.disneyfoodblog.com
Filed Under: disney merchandise, Disney News, Featured, News, Designer Ears, disney parks, new ears, new merchandise, online, Pink, shopdisney, trina turk, trina turk minnie ears