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Disney Parks Other

Guess What Epcot Update Just Hit the Disney World Website!

Do you ever have a nagging feeling that you’re forgetting something IMPORTANT like — oh say — a DATE?

Walt Disney World

With the big news that Disney World will be proposing its reopening plan tomorrow, we almost didn’t realize what TODAY IS!

Remember waaaay back before the Disney parks closed when Disney announced Spaceship Earth would be closing down to undergo a rather-lengthy refurb? Well, guess what, friends? That day is TODAY, May 26th!

Epcot’s Spaceship Earth

Learn more about Disney’s BIG CHANGES for Spaceship Earth here!

And rather sadly, when we checked Disney World’s website today, we couldn’t believe our EYES! After lots of rubbing, and maybe a few stray tears (it’s just our allergies acting up, we swear…) Disney has officially updated Spaceship Earth’s status as under refurbishmentSAY IT AIN’T SO!

Disney World’s Website

Read more about the Epcot Transformation here!

UGHHHH! We were soooo crossing our fingers hoping that Spaceship Earth might be SPARED! Or at least the refurb would be temporarily delayed so we’d have the chance to say goodbye to the version of Spaceship Earth we know and LOVE!

Disney World’s Website

Will we get the chance to say goodbye to Spaceship Earth? As of right now, it isn’t looking good!

Shout-out to our buddy @jim.disney on Instagram for pointing out this rather sobering bit of Disney news. We haven’t heard any official word from Disney regarding Spaceship Earth since the temporary closure, so maybe it’s just a computer thing?! We can still dream, right?!?!

Going Up!

We’ll let you know if we hear ANY more news the second we find out, but for now it seems like once Epcot reopens, Spaceship Earth might NOT!

Read about MORE construction projects at Disney World that could be affected by the temporary closure here!

Are you surprised to see Spaceship Earth’s refurb could be happening as planned? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below.

From our friends at www.disneyfoodblog.com
Filed Under: Disney News, Epcot, Featured, Walt Disney World, construction, Disney World, Disney World Website, Epcot transformation, project, refurbishment, remain closed, Spaceship Earth, spaceship earth closed, temporary closure, under refurb, under refurbishment, will we have the chance to say goodbye to spaceship earth

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Disney Business Disney News Disney Parks

Disney World to present reopening plans to Orange County Wednesday

Walt Disney World officials will be presenting reopening plans to Orange County’s economic recovery task force tomorrow, Wednesday, May 27th.

Orange County Mayor Jerry Demings said Tuesday that Disney is slated to make their presentation about reopening during the 10 a.m. meeting Wednesday. Demings also said two health officials with the county were at the theme parks on Tuesday conducting inspections.

“Walt Disney World will submit a proposal tomorrow, May 27, to the Orange County Economic Recovery Task Force in Florida for a phased reopening of the resort’s theme parks,” Disney said in a statement Tuesday.

If the task force approves Disney’s reopening plans tomorrow, it will go to the mayor. Once the mayor signs off, it will be sent to Governor Ron DeSantis for approval.

We can’t wait to find out what Disney’s plans are for reopening Disney World!

Source

From our friends at chipandco.com
Filed Under: News, Parks & Resorts, Walt Disney World, Disney World, Disney World Reopening, Orange County, Orange County Economic Recovery Task Force

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Disney Business Disney News Disney Parks

Disney World Presents Reopening Plan TOMORROW

Now that Univeral Orlando has successfully had its plan approved to reopen its theme parks to the public on June 5th, Disney World is about to undergo the same process.

Cinderella Castle

Disney World will be presenting its plan to Orange County Mayor Jerry Demings at 10AM Eastern tomorrow morning. If accepted by the Mayor and his committee, it will be passed to Florida Governor Ron DeSantis for final approval along with a possible reopening date for Disney World’s theme parks.

Mayor Demings said the highly-anticipated presentation will be happening tomorrow morning and that he’s already previewed Disney World’s plan this morning. “We’re looking forward to sharing good news about their plans,” Demings stated.

Disney World Monorail

Florida’s Orange County Economic Recovery Task Force will vote first on the plan before submitting it to the Governor’s office. SeaWorld is also expected to present its reopening plan tomorrow as well.

Magic Kingdom

In preparation for tomorrow’s big meeting, an Orange County Inspection team visited Disney World and SeaWorld today to determine if they were in compliance with recommended guidelines. We’ll continue to follow this story as it develops.

See what our experience at Disney Springs has been like since some of the shops and restaurants have recently started to reopen here!

When do you think Disney World will announce its reopening? Let us know what you think in the comments below.

From our friends at www.disneyfoodblog.com
Filed Under: Animal Kingdom, Disney News, disney’s hollywood studios, Epcot, Featured, magic kingdom, Walt Disney World, florida governor, florida reopening, florida theme parks, jerry demings, Orange County Economic Recovery Task Force, orange county mayor, Orange County Task Force, reopening theme parks, ron desantis, seaworld, task force, temporary closure, theme parks

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Disney Food Disney Parks Other

Review! Where to Find Pizza Slices the Size of Your HEAD in Disney Springs!

We’ve been munching our way around Disney Springs lately as many third-party stores and restaurants have recently reopened!

Pizza Ponte Menu

And while last week we dug into some Pepperoni Pizza Bread at Earl of Sandwich, today we’re seeking out a different masterpiece of bread, cheese, and sauce!

That’s right, we’re swinging back around to Pizza Ponte, one of our favorite by-the-slice Disney Springs pizza joints!

Pizza Ponte

Although Pizza Ponte wasn’t part of the first batch of restaurants to reopen in Disney Springs last Wednesday, it did reopen last Friday along with a few other Patina Group locations.

Check out the safety measures Pizza Ponte has implemented since they’ve reopened here!

Pizza Ponte Bakery Case

You can work up quite an appetite doing recon at Disney Springs these days, so we stopped by Pizza Ponte to grab a quick lunch bite! Their menu is pretty straight-forward and simple to read through at-a-glance if you’re in a hurry like us! In addition to pizza, you’ll find a few Sandwiches, Salads, and dessert offerings including Tiramisu, Cheesecake, and Cannolis!

Pizza Ponte Dessert Menu

We went straight for a giant slice of their Pepperoni Pizza for $7.25 along with one of their irresistible-looking Cannolis for $8! There were two varieties of Cannolis available in the bakery case today, but only one of them had extra chocolate chips which sealed the deal on this one for us!

Pizza Ponte Lunch

Now the pizza slices here at Pizza Ponte are New York-style, meaning they’re two paper-platers and sometimes require strategic folding to get them into your mouth — not that we mind the extra effort in the slightest!

Pepperoni Pizza

And if you consider yourself to be pepperoni aficionados like us, you’ll be happy to know Pizza Ponte uses the GOOD kind of peps on their pizza. These are the ones that curl up into little cups of deliciousness when they’re baked in the oven — we’re talking pure out-of-body pepperoni BLISS!

The pep cups are crunchy and yummy while the sauce is tangy and sweet. Plus the cheese is salty and all ooey-gooey — the folks at Pizza Ponte will even throw your slice back into the oven when you order it to make sure it’s nice and toasty right before you chow down!

Pepperoni Pizza

For us, we definitely prefer this type of pizza over Disney World’s standard quick-service pizza which is thicker and doughier. The cheese-to-bread-to sauce ratio is much better, plus Pizza Ponte’s slice packs a ton of flavor. The oils from the pepperoni really send this one over the top for us. Glancing at our watches, we just realized it must be Cannoli o’clock because it’s time for dessert!

Cannoli

Both types of Cannolis at Pizza Ponte had today were stuffed with the same sweet orange chocolate chip filling but the one we picked up had extra chocolate chips on the outside! Just like our pizza slice, Pizza Ponte has some pretty hefty-sized Cannolis too!

Cannoli

We loved the crunchy shell which wasn’t super sweet and balanced out the rich, creamy filling nicely! If you’re a fan of Vivoli il Gelato’s Cannolis (including their more-unique seasonal flavors!), we think you’ll also really enjoy Pizza Ponte’s since they’re owned by the same restaurant group!

Nosh or Not?

Check out Pizza Ponte if:

  • If you didn’t snag a dining reservation to one of Disney Springs’ table service restaurants
  • Need to grab a quick meal on the cheap
  • Enjoy tasty NY style pizza made from quality ingredients

Don’t go to Pizza Ponte if:

  • Have time to enjoy a sit-down meal at one of Disney Springs’ other restaurants
  • Pizza is just pizza to you — you don’t really notice a difference between one slice and another
  • Haven’t tried more unique Disney Springs fast-food spots like Chicken Guy! yet

Overall

Pizza Ponte ticks all the boxes if you’re looking for a quick ‘n easy meal option for adults and kids alike! After all, who can resist gigantic floppy slices of delicious cheesy pizza with high-quality toppings? We know we CAN’T! While it’s not the BEST place to grab a slice of pizza in all of Disney World, for the price, it’s hard to find a tastier or more convenient pizza option at Disney Springs!

And don’t forget — there are many other places to grab a bite at Disney Springs.

For another equally fast and tasty option, check out the lunch we just enjoyed at Morimoto Asia Street Food here!

Have you ever had a slice at Pizza Ponte in Disney Springs? Let us know in the comments below!

From our friends at www.disneyfoodblog.com
Filed Under: Counter-Service, Disney Springs, Featured, Snacks, Walt Disney World, cannoli, cheap, disney springs, disney springs fast food, Disney World, fast and easy, lunch, patina group, pepperoni pizza, Pizza Ponte, quick bite, quick service, reopened, restaurant, Snack

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Disney News Disney Parks

Disney World Is Polling Guests About the New Health Measures. Take a Look at the Survey Here!

The reopening of Disney Springs has meant for a lot of changes to the guest experience.

New Protocols to Enter Disney Springs

With health measures such as temperature checks, social distancing, and mandatory face coverings; Disney is prioritizing guest and Cast Member safety. Of course, this is still an unprecedented situation, so it looks like Disney is measuring how well these measures are being received. Let’s take a look at the Disney Springs survey!

While we were on our way out of the complex the other day, we ran into a Disney World Research Cast Member who asked us to scan a QR code to complete a survey on our phones about our Disney Springs experience.

Disney Research Cast Member

If you’re asked to complete a survey, you’ll scan the QR code with your smartphone and it will take you straight to the Disney Springs survey. The survey itself is fairly brief and is meant to help Disney to “continue improving our services and standards.”

Disney Springs Survey

The first questions are based on demographics and the situation to find out where you’re from, whether you’re of legal age to have your results used, how many people you visited Disney Springs with, your purpose for visiting Disney Springs, and what time you arrived and left the complex.

Disney Springs Survey

Then it’s on to questions about your overall experience and, more specifically, health measures you encountered. The survey asked about our experience with the screening process and our likelihood to return to Disney Springs in the next three months.

Disney Springs Survey

Beyond that though, guests are being surveyed on how the health measures made them feel with queries like “Requiring face coverings to be worn by Guests reassured me” or “Limiting the number of people at Disney Springs and in both the retail and restaurant locations reassured me.”

Disney Springs Survey

Some of the final questions check in on how easy it was to follow health measures. Guests have the opportunity to mark how they felt about signs and markers for physical distancing and the ease of maintaining a safe distance in more crowded areas.

Disney Springs Survey

After the health measures portion of the survey, you return to more logistical questions about what purchases you made in Disney Springs including how much you spent on those purchases. A few more demographic questions wrap the survey like parking location, special Disney groups, demographics, and willingness to participate in further surveys.

Disney Springs Survey

This survey shows that Disney is interested in monitoring the experience of guests especially in relation to the new health measures. We will continue to keep you posted on the new Disney World policies and be sure to let us know if you have any questions.

Click here to learn EVERYTHING you need to know about the reopening of Disney Springs.

What do you think of the Disney Springs survey? Tell us in the comments!

From our friends at www.disneyfoodblog.com
Filed Under: Disney News, Disney Springs, Featured, Walt Disney World, Disney Research, Disney Research Survey, disney springs, disney springs reopening, Disney Springs Survey, guest survey, health and safety measures