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News and Views

Sub return greenlighted

by David Koenig

The submarines at Disneyland are an unannounced go. Executives at both
Burbank and Anaheim were very happy with the test at the end of last year,
and gave the subs a thumbs up.

Disney doesn’t want to announce the project right now, however, because
they’re afraid the message will get lost in all the 50th anniversary hoopla.
So the idea is to unveil the Finding Nemo redo plans several months down
the line, when people come to the realization that after Buzz Lightyear
opens and Space Mountain reopens later this year, Disneyland doesn’t have
anything else under construction. Then, just when people start grumbling
that there’snothing new on the horizon, Disney can say, “But, wait!
We’re bringing back the subs in ’07!”

Special MousePlanet offer of restaurant tour

As we previously reported, the Patina Group of restaurants is offering
a tour of their Downtown Disney restaurants (Catal, Naples Ristorante,
Tortilla Jo’s) on February 28. The offer was limited to Disneyland Annual
Pass holders and was supposed to be promoted in newsletter received by
all pass holders. Unfortunately for them mailing of the newsletter has
been delayed so they’ve put together a special offer for MousePlanet readers
that allows each Annual Pass holder to bring three guests:

The game’s afoot

MousePlanet is pleased to announce the return of our popular MouseAdventure
event. This time around, we’re going to be in Disneyland Park on Sunday,
March 13, 2005.

In an effort to present a challenging event for our returning teams while
making the game accessible to new players, we are hosting two different
MouseAdventure games on the same day: MouseAdventure Open and MouseAdventure
Invitational: The Enchanted Race. If you are a returning MouseAdventure
participant, this event is unlike any you’ve ever attended. If you’re
new to MouseAdventure, this event is the perfect chance to “get your
feet wet.”

For the first time, we are hosting a post-game dinner and the award ceremony
inside Disneyland. You can read all the general details on the
registration page (link).
Registration closes on March 4 or when the event sells out, whichever
comes first.

Astro Blasters soft opening

Disneyland cast members have been informed that they can pick up tickets
to ride Buzz Lightyear’s Astro Blasters March 7 through 10. In the wording
of that announcement, they are told they can “join Disneyland Resort
Guests” in experiencing the attraction, though no details are provided
on whether all guests will be able to ride, or if it will be some more
limited method. Speculation on our message
board suggests that park guests might be used to test the standby
queue while ticketed cast members use the Fastpass queue.

New blue paint showing up in Tomorrowland. The highlights show the old brown and the new blue. Photo by Adrienne Vincent-Phoenix.

Interactive trash

David Koenig also forwarded this e-mail from an unknown cast member:

Expect to see a talking trash can in Disneyland, but more likely in
DCA very soon. Auditions and tests for “Push-the Talking Trash
Can” were being done this past weekend. Push is a gold-colored
trash can that can roll around and talk to guests. It is controlled
by a CM dressed as a guest nearby.

A couple similar “robots” can be seen at Walt Disney World
(for example, an interactive, roving palm tree at Animal Kingdom). Kids
love them, and once you identify the cast member attendant it is interesting
to watch them do their thing.

Disney Vacation Club

Disney has announced internally that the Disney Vacation Club is expanding
its sales presence around the Disneyland Resort, including information
booths inside the two parks and a presentation center somewhere on property.

The eventual locations aren’t known, but presumably will be similar to
the booths sprinkled throughout Walt Disney World parks. In the world
of timeshare sales, Disney Vacation Club representatives are among the
most restrained, but don’t stop to look at the pictures without expecting
someone to start the sales pitch.

Ice Skating at El Cap

Details of the enhanced screenings of Ice Princess have
been released. Starting Wednesday, March 18, audience members can head
next door after the movie for some ice skating on a specially constructed
“Disney Princess Ice Rink,” get their hair done at the Princesses
Make-Up Counter (including a free tube of Lip Smacker lip balm), and try
on princess outfits in the dress-up area. For information or tickets call
800-DISNEY6 (800-347-6396) toll free, or 818-845-3110 for parties of 20
or more.

Apparently they’re not expecting this one to be big with the young boys.

Additional discounts

We’ve added a couple of discounts the discounts
chart below.

Southern California 2-Day Park Hopper at 1-Day Park Hopper Price
through April 28, 2005 – Residents of Southern California
and Baja California, Mexico, can purchase a standard 2-Day Park Hopper
pass for the price of a 1-Day Park Hopper. It appears this offer is
available only online at Disney’s Web
site (you’ll need to enter an eligible zip code).

Tickets: $73 for ages 10 and older, $63 for ages 3 to 9. You must use
the second day of admission within 30 days of the first admission, or
by April 28, 2005, whichever comes first.

According to the official promotion details, Southern California residents
can buy up to eight passes per day, but on only two days in any seven
day period. Expect each member of your party must be able to provide
proof of Southern California (zip codes 90000 through 93599) or Baja
California (zip codes 21000 through 22999) residency when presenting
the tickets at the main entrance.

Additionally we heard from reader Rick W. that our link for the Costco
City Pass offer was no longer working and it appeared that it was no longer
available. The offer
is still available, though the URL has changed; the terms remain the same.

More parade information

Reader Jim says he saw some incorrect information in last week’s e-mail
about the Parade of Dreams floats. We’ve not yet been able to independently
verify either e-mail, so we wanted to make sure both are shared.

The Toy Story float hasn’t even arrived yet… They were looking
at the Toy Factory Float from the Christmas Parade. Nothing in Block
Party is “recycled.”

The Beauty and the Beast float has arrived, but I think this person
was actually talking about the Christmas Ball Float (which is now being
used for the Sleeping Beauty Celebration). Maybe they didn’t recognize
it being pink and covered with flowers?

And as to “all the gold,” I don’t think they realized that
the Parade of the Stars floats are all still around. The Parade of Dreams
floats are beautifully designed, and the little bit of gold on those
floats is tasteful and not at all gaudy like POTS.

Speaking of Parades

Speaking of parades, Sleeping Beauty’s Royal Celebration has been going for a little while now, but we finally had our schedules align to see it and get some photos (so, of course, it rained).

Snow White and others on their way to the castle. Photo by Adrienne Vincent-Phoenix.

Sleeping Beauty’s Royal Celebration begins at the Main Street parade gate, and makes its way up Main Street. Belle and Beast, Snow White and her Prince, Cinderella and Prince Charming and Aladdin and Jasmine ride aboard the main float, while two units are pushed ahead and behind them. The procession stops in front of Sleeping Beauty Castle, where Aurora and Prince Philip come out from their castle to greet the rest of the Disney princesses and their escorts.

Each couple then takes their turn atop the central float for a short dance to their theme music. As the couples rotate off the float, they join parade dancers and characters at street level. Some of the dancers wear costumes borrowed from “A Christmas Fantasy” parade. When not performing center stage, the choreography for the royal couples seems to be limited to swaying back and forth in time to music.

Jasmine and Aladdin dancing in the rain. Photo by Adrienne Vincent-Phoenix.

Near the end of the performance, the audience is invited to join the festivities. Weather permitting, the characters will invite children to join them in a simple ring dance set to “The Silly Song” from Snow White. After the children are returned to their parents, the procession continues around the hub and back down Main Street.

For the best view of the performance, stand in the Central Plaza facing the castle. For the best chance of being selected to participate in the dancing, take a seat on the curb on either side of the street in front of the castle. However, be sure to sit so that your feet are not in the street – cast members will come down the route slightly ahead of the floats, and ask you to put your feet up on the curb.

A soda after the movie

Disney has posted a job announcement (link)
for an assistant manager of a new classic soda fountain and studio store
that opens next to the El Capitan theater in Hollywood. MousePlanet has
been unable to track down any additional infomation about this, so we’d
love to hear from anybody in the know (e-mail
us).

Who’s the fairest of them all?

Over the weekend of March 18–20, World of Disney in Downtown Disney
is hosting a Snow White-themed merchandise release. The main feature is
a Magic Mirror porcelain sculpture as part of the Walt Disney Classics
Collection. The 11.5-inch-tall mirror includes a holograph. If you make
the purchase at World of Disney during the event, you also receive a glass
apple from Arribas Bros. Also available is an Evil Queen sculpture from
Disney artist Ken Melton. Both pieces are $150. For full information and
contact information about a DelivEARS waiting list see the Disney Gallery
page (link).

Don’t forget to keep paying attention. Belle manages to get some shopping done without being noticed. Photo by Lisa Perkis.

Selling History

A couple of eBay auctions this last week have sparked some interest. Disney Auctions has posted a couple Skyway buckets (yellow and blue), a Space Mountain car (link), a PeopleMover vehicle (#39), and a Mr. Toad’s Wild Ride car (Weasel). Suspicion is that at least some of these were in the Rocket Rods queue and became available when Buzz Lightyear’s Astro Blasters began moving into that space.

Buying any of these won’t be cheap, though. With a couple of days to go in all of these auctions have topped $2,000, with the blue Skyway bucket over $5,000.

Main Street Opera House in your living room

Though the Disney Gallery has not yet confirmed it on its Web site, Olszewski
Studios is telling people that the next piece from Robert Olszewski is
being released on March 26. The piece will be the Main Street Opera House
and Cinema Building for the Main Street/Theme Park collection.

No information has been provided about signings or appearances by Robert
Olszewski.

Still More Mickeys

Statue #46, “Mickey Reigns,” designed by Anita Hurst. Photo
by Adrienne Vincent-Phoenix.

Statue #47, “Mickey Through the Years,” designed by Tuck Morgan for Disney Consumer Products. Photo by Adrienne Vincent-Phoenix.

Statue #49, “Mickey’s Shadow,” designed by Trey Hoyumpa for Parsons School of Design. Photo by Adrienne Vincent-Phoenix.

Statue #50, “Monday Night Mickey,” designed by Al Michaels and John Madden.
Photo by Adrienne Vincent-Phoenix.

Statue #54, “Music Royalty,” designed by Sir Elton John. Photo
by Adrienne Vincent-Phoenix.

Statue #55, “National Pastime Mickey,” designed by Major League Baseball. Photo by Adrienne
Vincent-Phoenix.

Statue #56, “Patchwork Pal,” designed by Thomas Knechtel. Photo
by Adrienne Vincent-Phoenix.

Statue #59, “Reflections on Mickey,” designed by Disneyland Resort Entertainment Department. Photo by Adrienne
Vincent-Phoenix.

Statue #60, “Rockin’ Mickey,” designed by Mario Vaiana. Photo by Adrienne Vincent-Phoenix.

Statue #61, “Saxophonic Mickey,” designed by Dave Koz. Photo by Adrienne Vincent-Phoenix.

Statue #63, “Space Mouse,” designed by Tom Hanks. Photo by
Adrienne Vincent-Phoenix.

Statue #64, “Super Fan Mickey,” designed by Regin Philbin.
Photo by Adrienne Vincent-Phoenix.

Statue #66, “Tron Mickey,” designed by Syd Mead. Photo
by Adrienne Vincent-Phoenix.

Statue #68, “Tune In,” designed by Anthony Rietta for Radio Disney. Photo by
Adrienne Vincent-Phoenix.

Statue #71, “Undersea Mickey,” designed by Wyland.
Photo by Adrienne Vincent-Phoenix.

Statue #73, “Wild for Mickey,” designed by Star Jones. Photo by Adrienne Vincent-Phoenix.

Statue #74, “Wonderful World of Mickey,” designed by Kathryn E. Morgan. Photo by Adrienne Vincent-Phoenix.

Now that we’ve shown them all off, we wanted to show off the impressive effort of MousePlanet reader Wandee. She put her Flash production skills to use in creating a presentation of all 75 of the statues. You can view it here (warning, it is about 5MB, so you probably want a broadband connection), and you can convey any appreciation in this MousePad thread.

Ears to the ground

…Word is that the Calling All Space Scouts… A Buzz Lightyear
Adventure stage show in Tomorrowland will close on April 2. Apparently
exiting the new Buzz Lightyear’s Astro Blasters ride into a Buzz Lightyear
stage show is a bit redundant. This will not nearly be the most lamented
show closure in the history of Disneyland.

…A bright and shiny new piano is in use at Refreshment Corner (more commonly known as Coke Corner).

Alan Thompson breaking in the new piano. Photo by Adrienne Vincent-Phoenix.

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Don’t keep it to yourself! Send us your news tips,
rumors, and comments. E-mail us here.

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Current Refurbishments and Attraction Closures

Disneyland

Note: Disneyland is progressively refurbishing more and more attractions
as the park readies for its 50th anniversary celebration in 2005.

Construction is moving forward at the Tomorrowland station. Photo by Lisa Perkis.

• Great Moments with Mr. Lincoln closed February 22 – April
  15 to install the 50th Anniversary exhibit in the Main Street Opera
  House
• Mr. Toad’s Wild Ride closed February 28 – March 17
• Minnie’s House opens March 5
• Aladdin’s Oasis opens March 12
• Plaza Pavilion opens March 12
• Enchanted Tiki Room opens March 12
• Disneyland Railroad opens March 18
• Mark Twain Riverboat opens March 18
• Splash Mountain opens March 18
• Disney Gallery closed March 28 – May 4
• Honey I Shrunk the Audience closed April 4–8
• Disneyland Railroad Tomorrowland station opens May 3
• Jungle Cruise closed February 28 – May 3
• Casey Jr. Circus Trains closed April 4 – May 3
• Storybook Land Canal Boats closed April 4 – May 4
• Haunted Mansion closed September 6–29 to install Haunted
  Mansion Holiday overlay; closed Jan. 9–25, 2006 to remove overlay
• Space Mountain closed thru Nov. 4

A tarp and scaffolding is up around much of Innoventions. Photo by Adrienne Vincent-Phoenix.

Disney’s California Adventure

• Jumpin’ Jellyfish reduced capacity Feb. 22 – March 4
  
• Playhouse Disney closed Feb. 22 – March 10
  
• Maliboomer reduced capacity (2 of 3 towers operating) thru
  Feb. 22
  
• It’s Tough to be a Bug! closed April 4 – May 4
  

Note: Refurbishment schedules are estimates only. All information is
subject to change without notice. To get the most recent updates, call
Disneyland at (714) 781-7290.

Park Events

February

• Dining Around Downtown Disney at the Disneyland Resort –
  exclusive annual passholder event at Joachim Splichal’s Downtown Disney
  Restaurants. Monday, February 28, 4 – 9 p.m. Taste the flavors
  of the world at the Patina Group’s Downtown Disney District restaurants.
  Visit Tortilla Jo’s for real Mexican food and a live mariachi band,
  Catal for Mediterranean cuisine, and Naples Ristorante e Pizzeria for
  Italian favorites. RSVP to events@patinagroup.com or (714) 776-4000.
  $10 per passholder, each guest must show valid annual passport to participate.
  

March

• Indiana Jones Adventure 10th Anniversary event. March 3 at
  Disneyland. Tickets on sale now (link).
  
• MousePlanet’s MouseAdventure event – Sunday, March 13
  at Disneyland. Registration now open (link).
  
• Magic Mirror event – Merchandise event at Downtown Disney’s
  World of Disney March 18-20 (link).
  

May

• Disneyland closed on May 4, 2005
  to “put the finishing touches” on the 50th Anniversary celebration.
  DCA open on May 4.
  
• Disneyland’s 50th Anniversary celebration begins May 5.
  

June

• 2005 Summer Pin Festival. June 24 – Aug. 15 at the Disneyland
  Resort. No details have been announced (link).
  

July

• Disneyland 50th Anniversary special event. July 15 – 17. No
  details have been announced, but Disney is taking an interest list (link)
  for those who want to receive e-mail updates about the event.
  
• July 2005 NFFC convention. July 9–13. The Show and Sale
  is scheduled for July 10.
  

Current Discounts & Promotions

Several current promotions offer discounted admission to the Disneyland
Resort. For convenience sake, we have grouped the discount offers based
on the number of days the tickets are valid. Check out the category that
best matches the amount of time you plan to spend at the resort, and pick
the offer which works best for you. And keep those tips coming – let us
know if you find a better / different offer, so we can share it with other
readers!

Alaska Airlines “Kids Fly Free” promotion returns

Alaska Airlines is repeating the popular “Kids Fly Free” promotion
for travel to the Disneyland Resort, and is offering park ticket and hotel
discounts as well.

If you book an Alaska Airlines Southern California Vacations package
for travel through June 29, one child (age 2-11) can fly free with each
paid adult ticket. The package also includes four nights at the Holiday
Inn Buena Park and airport transfers via Karmel Shuttle (children 2-11
are free). The packages, including airfare and hotel, start at $429 per
person.

Even better, if you travel through April 28, you also receive a free
child’s 5-day Disneyland Resort park hopper for each paid adult. If you
are traveling without children, you can instead purchase the adult 5-day
park hopper ticket at the children’s price. Be aware, however, that Disneyland
considers 11-year-olds to be adults for the purpose of admission pricing.

If Buena Park is too far away from Disneyland for you, you can upgrade
to a Disneyland Resort hotel and receive up to $200 Disney Dollars with
a stay of four nights or more before April 24, 2005.

Finally, if you book the package through alaskaair.com, you get 1500
Alaska Airlines Mileage Plan Bonus Miles per passenger. For more information,
visit the Alaska Airlines Web site (link).
You must book packages by March 21, 2005.

50th Anniversary Package, revised

The Happiest Homecomings on Earth package has been revised for the new
year. The previous promotion was good only for three-night stays at the
Disneyland Resort hotels; the new offer is valid on longer stays and includes
Good Neighbor Hotels as well.

Instead of the 50th anniversary commemorative clock and Walk in Walt’s
Footsteps tour, the new packages include all the following:

• “Enchanting” commemorative certificate (one per package)
• Park Hopper bonus ticket, which includes one early entry into Fantasyland
  and a $10 ESPN Zone game card. (Park hopper tickets can be upgraded
  to an annual pass for an extra fee)
• Preferred seating to select shows at Disney’s California Adventure
• Entry into Mickey’s Toontown Madness
• Walt Disney Travel Co. lanyard and pin (one per person)
• Walt Disney Travel Co. luggage tag
• Walt Disney Travel Co. fun book (one per package)

The “Happiest Homecoming on Earth” package is available for
arrival dates through December 31, 2005. The package can be booked through
the Disneyland Web site (link),
or by calling (714) 520-5060.

Park Schedule/Blockout Dates

DL: Disneyland

DCA: Disney’s California Adventure

Annual Pass blockout dates:

• SL – Southern California Select Annual Pass
  
• SC – Southern California Annual Pass
  
• DX – Deluxe Annual Pass
  

Visit our Annual
Passholders Blockout Dates 2005 page to see more dates. You can
see future calendar schedules at Disneyland.com here.

Entertainment schedule: Go directly to the Disneyland Resort schedule
for this week at Disneyland.com here.