Dads Plan Disney

Episode 249 for the week of March 10, 2025 ... and this is what is going on in our Disney World...

Opening Quick Hits
- Dinoland closure timeline - Disney confirms that Restaurantasaurus and The Bone Yard will be open throughout 2025. Source: Blog Mickey

- Flower and Garden Festival is underway - which means update to Communicore Hall. Source: WDW Magic

- Poster revealed for Disney Starlight. Source: Disney Parks Blog

Starts @ ...

Disney News From SXSW Conference and Latest “We Call It Imagineering”
- Disney had a session at the latest SXSW conference and we got a number of small news tidbits for updates to the parks. Additionally a new episode of We Call It Imagineering showed us more glimpses of upcoming ride vehicles

- This included updates for Smugglers Run, the Monsters Door Coaster, and the Cars Land ride.

- Which are we more excited for, and which do we have some concerns about?

Source: Disney Parks Blog

Starts @8:31 ...

Construction Update
-  Concretasuarus is no more and additional small updates continue to happen around the parks

Starts @33:38 ...

Rank’em: Coming Attractions on Thrill Level
-  With all the new experiences coming to Walt Disney World of the next few years, we look at what our expected thrill level is for each of them - from tamest to most extreme. Which ones are we most unsure about?

Starts @44:32 ...

DBC Engagement: What Are You Most Looking Forward To at Epic Universe
-  With Team Member previews having started we are getting some early takes on what lands and elements of Epic Universe are standing out. 

- Our Community shared which areas are they most excited for following these updates. 

Starts @57:11 ...

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Episode 248 for the week of March 3, 2025 ... and this is what is going on in our Disney World...

EPIC News
- Team Member previews have started with Epic Universe and so far feedback is positive - though still areas to be complete before ready for opening day

- Map in the Universal App was updated with Epic

- Universal already eyeing expansion pads 

Starts @2:04 ...

Reduced Content to Be Created for Disney+
- There will be less original, long form content, made for Disney+ - and this includes the cancelling of the upcoming Tiana show

- What do we think this means for the platform but also theatrical releases

Source: The Hollywood Reporter

Starts @9:02 ...

Phil's Musings: The Consequences of FP+
- While we look back with nostalgia, did one element that made the trips to Walt Disney World great, FastPass+ actually contribute to some of the negative feelings about the parks now? Would we, as Disney Parks fans, be better off if the system never existed?

Starts @13:19  ...

Construction Update
-  More small updates/fixes/enhancements around the parks and more destruction of Dinoland

- Plus we discuss the series of videos Disney has put out about the day in the life of young Imagineers working on the Test Track and Pirates Tavern projects 

Starts @34:11 ...

DBC Engagement: What Were Your Disney Golden Years
-  The community shares their thoughts for what time was the best for them to visit Walt Disney World - from the experiences, the perks, the pricing, etc

Starts @43:52 ...

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Episode 247 for the week of February 24, 2025 ... and this is what is going on in our Disney World...

RUMOR: Dynamic Ticket Pricing Coming to WDW
- Strong rumors suggesting that a dynamic ticket pricing model is coming to WDW, meaning it would function like how airlines do it that the price for any given day will fluctuate based on demand.

- How does this impact planning a WDW vacation?

Starts @3:18 ...

Virtual Queues are Gone at WDW
- Disney announced that the virtual queues at both Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind and Tiana's Bayou Adventure would be removed and replaced with traditional standby. Cosmic Rewind would also now be part of Early Entry.

- How does this impact strategy for touring the parks, especially rope drop at EPCOT?

Source: Scott Gustin

Starts @7:28 ...

Universal News
- A lot of Universal related news dropped this week including firework testing at Epic Universe (source: Alicia Stella), the IP released for the upcoming Universal Kids Resort in Texas, and tickets are on sale for Horror Unleashed in Las Vegas

Starts @12:34 ...

Disney Quick Hits
- Level 99 replacing the NBA Experience and a rumor that the track at Space Mountain will be replaced with a single track

Starts @17:56 ...

Phil's Down & Back Trip Report
- Phil is back from his quick trip to escape the cold and say goodbye to Muppets. Did the trip go as planned? 

- Also discusses the Pros and Cons of doing an After Hours event vs a regular park day.

Starts @23:55 ...

Construction Update
-  More details from the permits filed for land clearing related to Villains Land at Magic Kingdom - and lots of small improvements around the parks.

Starts @1:19:47 ...

DBC Engagement: Villains Dark Ride Ideas
-  The community shares their thoughts for what the dark ride in Villains Land should look like and we question if heroes should be present in the land at all

Starts @1:25:08 ...

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Episode 246 for the week of February 17, 2025 ... and this is what is going on in our Disney World...

Disney Responds to WSJ Article - Says Trips Are Affordable
- Disney responded to a recent Wall St Journal article that featured data from Len Testa about the affordability (or lack there of) of a Walt Disney World Trip. Disney response was that a family of 4 can do a trip for cheaper than Len outlined, and for only $3,026 (before food and transportation)

- Did this surprise us? What does this tell us about Disney's view of the situation?

Starts @1:28 ...

Villains Show Runtime Fake Out
- As part of their Villainstine's Day celebration, Disney released the "splash page" on their website and app for the upcoming Villains Show at DHS - with an indicated run time of 40 mins!

- Disney then took that information down and sources confirmed it was not correct. But would a 40 min run time even be a good thing?

- Also, prompted by an article by The DIS - do people unfairly expect Disney to be affordable when other costs are going up so much? 

Starts @13:31 ...

EPIC Universe Height Restrictions
- Universal release the height restrictions for attractions at Epic Universe and they appear to be more inclusive than some of the rides at the other parks

Starts @16:40 ...

Phil's Trip Details Update/DBC Engagement
- Phil provides some last minute updates to his trip planning and goes through some suggestions from the community

Starts @20:24 ...

Construction Update
-  Permits filed for land clearing related to Villains Land at Magic Kingdom - what does this tell us about the project and timeline?

Starts @39:42 ...


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Episode 245 for the week of February 10, 2025 ... and this is what is going on in our Disney World...

Epic Universe Ready to go?
- Universal has revealed team member uniforms for HTTYD area and new wands for the Harry Potter area

- Also rumors that team member land-by-lad previews will start this week

Starts @2:34 ...

More Characters in Galaxy's Edge?
- Disneyland will add Luke Skywalker to their Galaxy's Edge ... how would we do it if they expanded the scope of Galaxy's Edge at DHS?

source: Disney Parks Blog

Starts @5:59 ...

Phil's Trip Details
- Phil Leaves for his Down and Back trip next week and goes through the general plan for the trip - but also some options he has ... the DBC Engagement for this week includes providing thoughts on what Phil should do!

Starts @9:47 ...

Jason's Theory on WDW Pricing and Crowd Control
- Tying into a recent WSJ article and work done by Touring Plans, we look at what elements of a Disney Trip appear to have hit their pricing ceiling vs where they can still increase pricing more and what it could mean for the future of Lightning Lanes

Starts @29:40 ...

DBC Engagement: IP Missing from Walt Disney World
-  Per Drew's suggestion, we asked the community what IP that is currently not being used at Walt Disney World would you like to see?

Starts @55:03 ...


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Episode 243 for the week of February 3, 2025 ... and this is what is going on in our Disney World...

BREAKING: Closing Date for It's Tough To Be A Bug Announced
- The last day to experience this opening day Animal Kingdom Attraction is March 16th

- We give our predictions for when the replacement, Zootopia: Better Zoogether, will open and our overall thoughts

Starts @1:52 ...

DAS Changes
- A few changes have happened this past week to the Disney Disability Access Service (DAS) and we go through them and discuss the potential benefits to guests of the changes

Starts @9:32 ...

Star Wars Parks News
- The Star Wars Galactic Starcruiser will be reopening! ... as offices for Imagineering. 

- Also, it was announced that the cannon effect on Rise of the Resistance was fixed at Disneyland after years of not working. Could we see this update happen at Walt Disney World too?

Starts @11:36 ...

Construction Updates
- It was reported that Disney will increase CapEx in 2025 by $3bn up to $8bn - we discuss what this could mean and the general construction plans for the next 5 and 10 years

- We also go through the construction updates of the past week and get Drew's thoughts on the timing and predictions for when we could see new attractions open

Starts @ 21:58...

Draft: Pick 1 Attraction from Each WDW Park
- We do a fantasy draft where we have to pick one attraction from each of the four main parks at Walt Disney World - who would up with the best lineup?

Starts @51:58 ...

DBC Engagement: Must Eats for First Timers
- The community members provided their input related to what food item from each park you would tell a first timer are "must haves" to get the full Disney experience

Starts @1:00:59 ...


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Episode 243 for the week of January 27, 2025 ... and this is what is going on in our Disney World...

Cold Opening: A Disney Dining Story
- Jason shares a story of someone he is working with planning their trip who wants to do a lot of dining - including a number of signature locations and how, to Jason's surprise, it worked out better financially to get the Disney Dining Plan
Starts @1:52 ...

Stella Nova Opening Reactions
- The first Epic Universe hotel has opened - Stella Nova - and there were song strong reactions for folks who stayed there opening night.
- This also made us think about what is most important to us when picking a resort
Starts @6:19 ...

Construction Updates: Muppet*Vision Closing Date
- Disney has now provided closing dates for Muppet*Vision and all of Muppet Courtyard - and it is way sooner than we expected
- Phil then brings up that his family decided to book a down and back to experience it one more time - and to escape the cold.
Starts @16:49 ...

Debate: Hoppers vs Non-Hoppers
- Continuing a discussion that started Discord, Phil and Jason debate the value of adding Park Hoppers and if having them gives you more freedom - or something else to maximize the value of
Starts @31:56 ...

Must Eats for First Timers
- A suggested topic from board member Weezy, we list out what food item from each of the 4 parks we would tell first time visitors are "must gets"/quintessential Disney food.
Starts @44:51 ...

DBC Engagement: In-Park Dining
- The community members provided their input related to in-park dining for the following categories:

• Favorite "fancy" / signature:
• Most underrated:
• Surprised you the most:
• Character Meal:
• Want to do but haven't yet:

Starts @57:40 ...


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Episode 242 for the week of January 20, 2025 ... and this is what is going on in our Disney World...

Quick Hits: News and Rumors
- Lots to hit on from the past week including another change to Lightning Lane Premier Pass, new Bride at the Haunted Mansion at Disneyland, Communicore Hall looking great for Festival of the Arts, and more!
Starts @1:20 ...

Construction Updates
- New segment where we track the construction work from the past week
- Kick it off by going over all the projects currently underway at Walt Disney World
Starts @20:39 ...

Tropical Americas Groundbreaking
- What will Disney do to market Animal Kingdom when Dinoland is completely closed?
- Rumors of what ride vehicle type will be used for the Encanto ride
Starts @27:27 ...

Skeleton Crew Review
- The latest Disney+ Star Wars show concluded and we have some thoughts and what Disney can learn for future projects
Starts @33:41 ...

In-Park Table Service Dining
- We each list our:

• Favorite "fancy" / signature:
• Most underrated:
• Surprised you the most:
• Character Meal:
• Want to do but haven't yet:

Starts @49:28 ...


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Episode 241 for the week of January 13, 2025 ... and this is what is going on in our Disney World...

Arrival Day Water Park Perk Value
- A new perk went into effect for Disney World Resort guests - access to a water park on their arrival day
- We discuss the value of this, the scenarios we think it makes the most sense to use, and if we are planning to take advantage of it or not.
Starts @2:57 ...

Construction Timeline Predictions
- Cranes are at Big Thunder, walls are up at Dino-Rama, and work at Test Track is in full swing.
- We give our predictions for when all the remaining work will start, when each element will open and if you have an annual trip in July, what will be open for you each year
Inspired by: Andrew25 @ WDWMagic Forums
Starts @17:08 ...

Top 3/Bottom 3: World Showcase Pavilions
- We share our top 3 and bottom 3 World Showcase Pavilions at EPCOT ... do you agree or disagree with our take?
Starts @46:01 ...

DBC Engagement: 2025 Discounts and Promotions
- We asked the community if they plan to take advantage of the recently announced room only and free dining promotions
- Bonus: will you take advantage of the Arrival Day Water Park perk?
Starts @58:07 ...


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Episode 240 for the week of January 6, 2025 ... and this is what is going on in our Disney World...

Simpsons at Disney?
- Disney survey about Simpsons in the Theme Parks (Source: Drew the Disney Dude)
- What would we like to see - if anything?
Starts @2:01 ...

Free Dining and Room Only Discounts for Summer 2025
- Disney released information on Free Dining as well as some room only discounts for the summer of 2025 - and we react
- We compare availability at different resorts and do a cost compare of taking the room discount vs Free Dining
Source: Blog Mickey
Starts @6:37 ...

Low Holiday 2024 Crowds at Disney?
- Len Testa shared some statistics about wait times at Disney during the 2024 Holidays compared to 2023 and they are down significantly
- We speculate why and if it is really due to lower total crowds or just people moving around dates and what attractions they are at
Source: Len Testa post at WDW Magic
Starts @23:43 ...

Top 3/Bottom 3: WDW Bathrooms!
- We share our top 3 and bottom 3 public bathrooms at the Walt Disney World resort, explain our rationale ... did your favorite (or least favorite) make the list?
Starts @34:26 ...

DBC Engagement: 2025 Disney Plans
- The community shared about their Disney related plan for 2025 as well as their wishes for the coming year
- We got a lot of responses so check out the DBC Pod channel on the Discord Server for more!
Starts @48:11 ...


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