Disney Planner
May thru December 2008

Toys are back in town as Disney Parks unwraps Toy Story Mania!

Summer 2008 brings the opening of Toy Story Mania! a cutting-edge and interactive ride-through attraction that combines the fun of a video game, whiz-bang 3-D technology and interaction with favorite Disney-Pixar stars. Set to bow at Walt Disney World Resort and Disneyland Resort, Toy Story Mania! adds to the fun on both coasts. (Exact opening dates will be announced at a later date.)

Guests board colorful ride vehicles to see who can rack up the most points playing -- actually being in -- midway-style games.

Toy Story Mania! matches the delightful Disney-Pixar characters with games that best suit their very animated personalities -- and Walt Disney World Resort puts Disney's Hollywood Studios guests in the middle of the action. Sporting 3-D glasses, they twist and turn along a colorful midway-themed route.

At each game booth, they aim for animated targets using their own special onboard spring-action shooter. The attraction features games that audiences of all ages and skill levels -- from beginner to serious gamer -- can enjoy. Players pair up and sit side-by-side for a friendly competition that delivers an ever-changing variety of targets and surprises.

Out-of-this-world fun coming to Disney's Hollywood Studios

Star Wars Weekends return to Walt Disney World Resort in June 2008, as Disney's Hollywood Studios becomes Star Wars Central for sci-fi fans of all ages. (Exact event dates will be announced at a later date.)

With the popular Star Wars film saga as the inspiration, Disney's Hollywood Studios becomes the temporary home for a band of out-of-this-world characters, including Wookiees, Sith, droids, Jedi, Ewoks, bounty hunters and Rodians.

A giant, "A to Z" gathering of Star Wars characters -- from Queen Amidala to Zam Wesell -- will roam the streets of the theme park during meet-and-greet sessions. Jedi Training Academy -- one of the interactive entertainment experiences featured during Disney's "Year of a Million Dreams" -- takes place on the main stage and allows young guests to learn from a Jedi Master before testing their newly acquired skills in a battle with Darth Vader.

Also featured: the chance for fans to purchase one-of-a-kind Star Wars memorabilia, Star Wars trivia contests, special Star Wars parades, rides on the famed Star Tours simulator attraction, and autograph sessions and star conversations with famous Star Wars actors.

Star Wars Weekends take place Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays. Event activities are included in theme park admission. For more information, guests may go online to www.starwars.com or disneyworld.com/starwarsweekends.

Whole new world of Disney World dining greets summer guests

Whether it's a meal or a cooling liquid libation, summertime guests to Walt Disney World Resort will find exciting new choices.

Epcot, with fresh new dining options at Italy (Tutto Italia) and Japan (Tokyo Dining) also welcomes guests to China, where a new Joy of Tea outdoor cart features hot and cold teas, frozen green tea concoctions and alcoholic choices such as plum wine and wine green tea slush.

In Mexico this summer, a 50- to 60-seat tequila bar replaces a retail shop in the pavilion's spacious indoor courtyard. Also in time for summer, the pavilion's waterfront Cantina San Angel is expanding with a new menu and more seating featuring optimal views of World Showcase. At Disney's Contemporary Resort, summer guests will be treated to The Wave, a new eatery serving up American cooking blended with world flavors. A stylish lounge sets the stage with New World wines and trendy cocktails.

Epcot International Flower and Garden Festival expanded to 75 days

Green thumbs or "all thumbs," there's something for everyone at one of the most popular events at Walt Disney World Resort -- the Epcot International Flower & Garden Festival.

Now in its 15th year, the festival bursts into bloom with the theme Fun in the Sun and keeps on flourishing for a record 75 days -- running through June 1 (from its start date of March 19). Whimsical character topiaries, brilliant beds of flowers, rose displays, water gardens and many more verdant exhibits set the scene around Epcot Future World and World Showcase for a garden party like no other. Guests can participate in daily seminars focused on gardening, crafts and other topics and enjoy evening music concerts featuring top acts from the 1960s and '70s.

As guests enter the park near Spaceship Earth, they'll spot a 14-foot Goofy topiary riding a six-foot wave of flowers and plants. Sandcastles, palm trees and starfish will surround Mickey and Minnie topiaries posed on a floral beach towel spread upon a sandy "beach." At World Showcase Plaza, Disney topiary specialists will craft a volleyball beach scene starring Donald Duck and Daisy. Nearby, a topiary Pluto will frolic with topiary sand crabs while colorful Stitch from "Lilo and Stitch" keeps watch from a lifeguard stand.

For youthful "green thumbs," there's plenty of fun, too, including a special children's garden, plus a butterfly garden -- a screened enclosure that will include a live exhibit showing how caterpillars form a chrysalis and emerge as butterflies.

More information about the 15th annual Epcot International Flower & Garden Festival is available by visiting disneyworld.com/flower or by calling 407/W-DISNEY (934-7639). The festival is included in regular Epcot admission.

Summer guests cruise to special offerings aboard Disney Cruise Line

Disney Cruise Line has announced special offerings for 2008 including a summer season of sailings to the Mexican Riviera, select cruises with multiple stops at Castaway Cay, and an enhanced Land and Sea package. Disney's seven-night Land and Sea Package Plus Dining includes all the perks of the existing seven-night Land and Sea package that combines a Disney cruise with a stay at Walt Disney World Resort along with the added benefits of the Disney Dining Plan, which provides guests one sit-down meal, one counter-service meal and one snack per person for each night of their Walt Disney World stay.

And for planners, beginning in 2009, St. Croix will be a featured stop on one new seven-night itinerary, and Tortola will be featured on another seven-night itinerary. Both islands are new to Disney Cruise Line, increasing the seven-night Caribbean choices on the Disney Magic to four itineraries (Disney's traditional eastern and western Caribbean itineraries will continue).

To learn more about Disney Cruise Line or to book a vacation, guests can contact their travel agent, visit disneycruise.com or call Disney Cruise Line at 888/DCL-2500.

Tampa Bay Bucs return to Walt Disney World for training camp in July

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers are expected to begin preparing for the 2008 NFL season with the start of training camp in late July at Disney's Wide World of Sports Complex. This will mark the seventh straight year (2002-2008) the Bucs have held training camp at Disney's Wide World of Sports Complex, the leading venue for amateur and professional sports in the country.

The Bucs are coming off a successful 2007 season in which they went 9-7 during the regular season to win the NFC South division title and advance to the playoffs. They will look to build on that success starting with training camp at Disney where they will once again hold practices twice a day before beginning their preseason schedule of games.

Once again, Bucs training camp practices will be free and open to the public during the team's three-week stay at Disney. There will also be periodic autograph opportunities with Bucs players and coaches each day.

Jostens Center to open at Disney's Wide World of Sports Complex

The state-of-the-art Jostens Center opens in summer 2008 at Disney's Wide World of Sports Complex. The multi-sports field house is expected to play host to events such as basketball, volleyball, wrestling and martial arts, allowing Disney's Wide World of Sports Complex to double the number of indoor events that can potentially be held at the facility.

The venue, which will encompass more than 75,000 square feet, represents the latest expansion of Disney's Wide World of Sports Complex, which is the leading venue for amateur and professional sports in the country. In all, Jostens Center will be able to accommodate six college regulation-size basketball courts or 12 volleyball courts or two roller hockey rinks, plus locker rooms and meeting space. In addition, Jostens Center will offer personalized memory books and other memorabilia to recognize athletic achievements and preserve memories for the teams and athletes that compete at Disney's Wide World of Sports Complex.

Pick your passion: Whether it's food, wine, music, art, sports, stargazing, celebrating a milestone birthday, holiday mirth or Mickey Mouse, September through December 2008 is a season when vacation wishes and dreams come true for Walt Disney World guests of many interests as Disney's "Year of a Million Dreams" showcases nearly a dozen special events.

Here's a snapshot of what's in store:

Epcot International Food & Wine Festival

Delectable foods and stellar wines and beers from some of the best "foodie" cities in the world -- places such as Lyon, France; Bologna, Italy; Cape Town, South Africa and trendy Cork, Ireland -- will tempt Walt Disney World guests Sept. 26-Nov. 9 at the 13th Epcot International Food & Wine Festival. New festival flavors representing great "Cities in Wonderland" will deliver blissful bites with wine and beer pairings ($2 to $5 each) at more than 25 international and regional marketplaces surrounding the park's World Showcase. Cultural exhibits along the promenade will showcase entertainment and traditional crafts of several countries.

Eat to the Beat! concerts at America Gardens Theatre, with three performances each evening, offer a lineup of classic rock, oldies, jazz and funk hit-makers such as Spyro Gyra, Kool & The Gang and Jon Secada.

Other festival highlights include:

• The Festival Welcome Center, with a Champagne and Wine Bar, complimentary wine seminars, book signings and festival keepsakes.
• Some 250 Disney chefs and guest chefs conducting culinary demonstrations and hosting elegant dinners and tasting events.
• The weekly Party for the Senses grand tasting event featuring tempting tastes from eminent chefs, more than 70 wines and beers and live entertainment.
• Music, dance, acrobatics and "improv" acts at Epcot pavilions.

Most activities, such as wine and beer seminars, concerts and cooking demos, are included with admission. Activities that require reservations and separate admission include Party for the Senses, Food and Wine Pairings at Epcot restaurants, Epcot Wine Schools, Regional Feasts and other specialty events.

Guests can call 407/WDW-FEST (407/939-3378) to make reservations for special events and programs. Festival details are available at: disneyworld.com/food.

Mickey's Not-So-Scary Halloween Party

The Disney characters are decked out in their Halloween finest, and guests are invited to do the same on 25 evenings between Sept. 5 and Oct. 31 when Magic Kingdom hosts this popular after-hours event. There's trick-or-treating galore and a chance to experience popular attractions during a 7 p.m.-midnight party which features two scheduled entertainment extravaganzas guests can see at no other time: the "Boo-to-You" Halloween parade and the bewitching "Happy HalloWishes" fireworks spectacular.

Parties are slated for Sept. 5, 9, 12, 16, 19, 23, 26, 28, 30 and Oct. 2, 3, 5, 7, 9, 10, 13, 16, 19, 21, 23, 24, 26, 28, 30, 31. For more details and to purchase advance tickets, guests can call 407/W-DISNEY or visit disneyworld.com/halloween now.

Disney's Royal Quinceañera Weekend

For the first time, Walt Disney World Resort is offering a weekend dedicated to celebrating the most magical time in a Latina's life: turning age 15. The "weekend" (Aug. 29-Sept. 5 -- around Labor Day) will include a tradition-steeped extravaganza at Epcot that celebrates the passage from flat-soled shoes and dolls to high heels, elaborate gowns and young womanhood. Every young woman will walk into a breathtaking ball held in her honor and into a world of princesses, beauty and enchantment that only Disney can create, capped by a private viewing of the fireworks spectacular, "Illuminations: Reflections of Earth."

The exclusive Disney's Royal Quinceañera Weekend includes a 3-, 4-, or 5-night stay at Disney's Coronado Springs Resort, theme park tickets and the Quinceañera celebration at Epcot. For more information, guests may visit www.disneyworld.com/quinceanera or call 321/939-4555.

Night of Joy

Regarded as one of the top contemporary Christian music events in the country, Night of Joy is on the move to a new venue in 2008. Disney's Hollywood Studios will host two talent-packed evenings Sept. 5-6 featuring a total of 16 acts including Gospel Music Association Dove Awards winners such as 2008 Artist of the Year tobyMac, Male Vocalist of the Year Chris Tomlin, Group of the Year Casting Crowns and New Artist of the Year Brandon Heath plus 2004 Artist of the Year MercyMe and internationally popular Grammy Award winners Rebecca St. James and Marcos Witt.

Guests attending Night of Joy, which takes place from 7:30 p.m. to 12:30 a.m. (after regular theme park hours), can combine an evening of rockin' Christian music with the thrills and chills of Rock 'n' Roller Coaster Starring Aerosmith and The Twilight Zone™ Tower of Terror plus the shoot-'em-up fun of the newest Walt Disney World attraction, Toy Story Mania! For more information about the 2008 event and to purchase tickets, guests can visit disneyworld.com/nightofjoy or call 407/W-DISNEY. (Youth groups of 10 or more can visit www.nightofjoy.com/2008 or call 877/648-3569.) Guests are encouraged to buy tickets early as the event has sold out in recent years.

More than one million guests experienced Night of Joy from 1983 through 2007, a 25-year period during which the event was held in Walt Disney World Magic Kingdom.

Festival of the Masters presented by Sharpie®

More than 150 award-winning national and local fine artists will showcase their diverse creations at Downtown Disney West Side Nov. 7-9 during Festival of the Masters. An art festival for all ages, the 33rd annual 'Masters' includes live music and entertainment, chalk art sidewalk displays at Downtown Disney Marketplace and a children's activity area where budding young artists can create their own masterpieces.

Event hours are 9:30 a.m.-5:30 p.m. each day of the festival. Admission and parking are complimentary. For more information about Festival of the Masters, guests may contact 407/824-4321 or visit disneyworld.com/artfestival.

Children's Miracle Network Classic presented by Wal-Mart

PGA TOUR tradition continues Nov. 6-9 when pro golf's top tier returns to Walt Disney World Resort and to Disney's Magnolia course for the 38th consecutive year -- the eighth longest streak of same-course use in pro golf. As the last official money event of the year, the Classic promises a scramble among players jockeying for positions in the final money standings, a key factor in determining who makes the fields of TOUR events in 2009. Stephen Ames is reigning champion. Ticket information is available by calling 407/824-2250 or by visiting www.childrensmiraclenetworkclassic.com.

ABC Super Soap Weekend presented by Colgate® Total®

One of the largest annual soap opera fan events held anywhere in the world, ABC Super Soap Weekend presented by Colgate® Total®, returns to Disney's Hollywood Studios theme park Nov. 15-16. Stars from the ABC Daytime dramas "All My Children," "One Life to Live" and "General Hospital" step off the television screens and into the theme park in meet-and-greet autograph and photo sessions, celebrity motorcades, star conversations, interactive games and more.

Admission to the 13th edition of the soap fanfest is included in regular admission to Disney's Hollywood Studios. Fans will be able to visit disneyworld.com/SuperSoapWeekend for additional information.

Old Spice Classic

NCAA "Sweet 16ers" Tennessee and Michigan State top an eight-team lineup that ESPN Regional Television is serving up as a Thanksgiving weekend feast of college basketball in The Milk House at Disney's Wide World of Sports and on ESPN2 and ESPNU Nov. 27, 28 and 30. The third edition of the Old Spice Classic also features five more teams that played in the NCAA and NIT tournaments in spring 2008.

Georgetown, Maryland, Oklahoma State, Gonzaga, Siena and Wichita State round out the lineup of teams that amassed a combined 181 victories during the 2007-08 season. They will play 12 games over the three days of the Old Spice Classic. North Carolina State won the tournament in 2007.

Mickey's Very Merry Christmas Party

On 18 select evenings in November and December, guests can experience the enchantment of "Mickey's Once Upon a Christmastime Parade" and the excitement of a holiday-themed fireworks spectacular, "Holiday Wishes--Celebrate the Spirit of the Season," during a special after-hours party inside the Magic Kingdom theme park.

The jingle-jolly event also features live Disney character stage shows, like "Celebrate the Season," Mickey's "Twas the Night Before Christmas" Show and Fantasyland Pavilion Cotillion, character greetings, cookies and cocoa, and even "snow" on Main Street, U.S.A. Plus, the most-popular Magic Kingdom attractions are open to party guests.

Dates are: Nov. 10, 11, 14, 16, 20, 21, 30; Dec. 2, 4, 5, 7, 9, 11, 12, 14, 16, 18, 19. Admission to this event requires a separate ticket. Guests can visit disneyworld.com/holidays or call 407/W-DISNEY now for advance tickets and information.

• Holiday Highlights: It was once suggested that while there's no place like home for the holidays, the next best place on the planet may be Walt Disney World Resort. The good news is that guests don't have to choose: They can experience the sparkling decorations and joyous seasonal entertainment throughout the Vacation Kingdom and still be home for Christmas, because the festivities begin weeks before December 25. Here's a sampling of what's in store:

• The Osborne Family Spectacle of Dancing Lights -- As "snow" falls overhead, the Streets of America backlot cityscape at Disney's Hollywood Studios comes alive with millions of holiday lights that dance to music, animating sparkling displays to create twirling carousels, marching toy soldiers and even Santa and his reindeer taking flight. The synchronized music and light show is presented in collaboration with famed Arkansas businessman Jennings Osborne, who developed the dazzling display for his daughter more than a decade ago at his Little Rock, Ark., home. The spectacle is included with Disney's Hollywood Studios admission.

   

• Holidays Around the World / Candlelight Processional -- An Epcot tradition continues with holiday customs from around the globe, international storytellers, a nightly tree-lighting ceremony featuring Disney characters, a stunning display of snow-white and colored lights, and Candlelight Processional. A beloved Disney tradition that began long before Epcot, Candlelight Processional features celebrity guest narrators accompanied by a mass choir and 50-piece orchestra for a retelling of the Christmas story. All of the Epcot holiday fun is included with regular theme park admission.

   

• Castle Dream Lights -- A dazzling lighting spectacle transforms the iconic Cinderella Castle in Magic Kingdom into a glimmering, shimmering ice palace at holiday time. Bathed in more than 200,000 tiny white lights, the castle glows and glistens nightly. It's all a fulfillment of Cinderella's holiday wish, as guests learn during a special show that climaxes with the transformation of the famous Magic Kingdom icon.

   

• Mickey's Jammin' Jungle Parade -- A Disney's Animal Kingdom tradition, the procession results from Mickey Mouse's invitation to a special group of friends to join him on a holiday adventure. The parade is filled with gaiety -- the sights, sounds, smells, tastes and feelings of the season. Mickey and his friends are no exception. They've added holiday accessories to their safari costumes. Add in some special music and you have a combination that celebrates the holidays as only Disney's Animal Kingdom can.

The holiday fun begins as early as Nov. 10 with the first Mickey's Very Merry Christmas Party, which will showcase the Castle Dream Lights. Disney park officials are currently checking in with Santa's elves to find out when they'll have everything else ready to meet and treat Walt Disney World guests. Specific information will be available at www.disneyworld.com/holidays or from vacation planners at 407/W-DISNEY.

Disney Parks is encoring its 2007 "Year of a Million Dreams" in 2008 with more dreams, even bigger dreams, more dreams money can't buy, dreams only Disney can make come true. Among the over-the-top experiences for the 2008 Disney Dreams Giveaway being awarded to eligible lucky guests in the right place at the right time is a New Year's Eve night stay inside Cinderella Castle Suite. Talk about a dreamy way to usher in 2009!

For more general vacation planning information, guests can visit www.disneyworld.com and choose from a variety of menu offerings on the home page. Other options: local travel agents or Disney vacation planners at 407/W-DISNEY.