Avalon at Windsor Palms - your vacation home base for Starwars Weekends 2012
Star Wars Weekends
Walt Disney World has announced dates for the 2012 Star Wars Weekends at Disney’s Hollywood Studios theme park. The galactic fun begins on May 18 and will run through June 10. Let Avalon on the Windsor Palms Resort be your vacation home base for these fun weekends
The 2012 Star Wars Weekend dates are:
May 18-20
May 25-27
June 1-3
June 8-10
Star Wars Weekends is an annual event that celebrates the Star Wars film saga and the hit animated TV series Star Wars: The Clone Wars. During the celebration Disney hosts special shows, presentations and offer some out of this world memorabilia.
Now is the time to book your stay at Avalon located on the Windsor Palms Resort for Star Wars Weekends 2012.
Richard Petty’s Exotic Driving Experience - drive a supercar!
Exotic Driving Experience at Walt Disney World
Do you want to drive a supercar during your stay at Avalon, located on the Windsor Palms Resort? Well you soon can. Starting January 16th 2012, Richard Petty Driving Experience at Walt Disney World will offer an Exotic Driving Experience. The Richard Petty Driving Experience and Exotic Driving Experience can be easily reached from your vacation home, Avalon on the Windsor Palms Resort
Starting at $199 for 6 laps around the circuit, you will be able to take the wheel of a supercar by Ferrari, Lamborghini, Audi or Porsche.
Petty Holdings recently completed an interior road course-style section at the WDW track, specifically for Exotic Driving Experience. The new section features a series of quick, challenging right and left-hand turns, known as “switch backs.”
Reservations can be made at www.exoticdriving.com or by calling 855-822-0149
You’ll need more Disney Dollars this summer!
Walt Disney World Castle (c. Kay Robinson)
Effective Sunday, June 12, ticket prices have increased at Walt Disney World. The second time in under a year a price increase has occurred.
The price of a one-day ticket has risen to $85 before tax (from $82), up 3.7 percent. But that is just the start!
A five-day ticket will increase to $251 (from $237), up 9 percent. A 7 day pass has jumped 8.1% to $267. The 10-day pass has increased 11.1 percent to $291.
All this is adding an extra ‘ouch’ to your wallet this summer vacation.
Staying at Windsor Palms Resort? Take advantage of dinner and a movie made simple!
A New In-Theatre Dining Experience with a Menu of Choices
Opens May 16 at Downtown Disney at Walt Disney World Resort
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (May 6, 2011) – AMC Theatres® (AMC), a leading theatrical exhibition and entertainment company, announced today that guests will be able to watch the latest movies while enjoying their favorite food and beverages at AMC Downtown Disney 24 located in Downtown Disney at Walt Disney World Resort. AMC Dine-In Theatres, the only theatre of its kind in the Orlando area, debuts at this location May 16 and combines restaurant cuisine and cocktails with AMC’s noted immersive movie theatre experience and hit movies.
- Casual, in-theatre dining
- Upgraded, comfortable reserved seating
- Table-top dining
- Seat-side service and a personal call button that discreetly alerts a server
- An extensive menu including a wide array of entrees such as an enticing selection of quesadillas, burgers, flatbread pizzas, grilled sandwiches, house specialties, as well as appetizers and deserts
- A wide variety of alcoholic and non-alcoholic specialty drinks, beer and wine
- Fork & Screen guests must be at least 18 years old unless accompanied by a parent or guardian
- A full-service bar and lounge area inside AMC Downtown Disney 24
- The perfect place to hang out with friends before the show or discuss the movie after it ends
- Named after a term coined by famed filmmaker Alfred Hitchcock
- Features a variety of beer, wine, cocktails and the full Dine-In Theatre menu, including appetizers and desserts
- MacGuffins Bar & Lounge guests must be at least 18 years old; minors accompanied by a parent or guardian (at least 21) are welcome
- Ticket prices range from $6-13, depending on day of week and showtime, for the Dine-in Theatre experience.
- Menu items start at $6.59-8.99 for appetizers and adult entrees range from $8.59-11.99.
- Specific pricing information, including value pricing and senior/student pricing, for the Dine-In Theatres at AMC Downtown Disney 24 can be found at www.amctheatres.com/dinein (click on the Downtown Disney 24 link).
Disney Junior–Live on Stage! debuts March 4th
Guests at Disney’s Hollywood Studios will find that the pre-school favorite “Playhouse Disney - Live on Stage” is no more. Instead it is being replaced by “Disney Junior - Live on Stage” to coincide with the new Disney Junior Channel on television.
This is a great show for the younger Disney fans. As the show is inside, it can also be a welcome break from the summer heat.
The full Disney press release is below.
Ahoy, Mateys! Jake and the Never Land Pirates Landing at Disney’s Hollywood Studios as Part of Show Debuting March 4
LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. — Jake and the Never Land Pirates are landing at Disney’s Hollywood Studios March 4, 2011, less than a month after they cast off on their first adventure on Disney Channel as part of the launch of Disney Junior programming designed for 2-to-7-year-old children.
At the Walt Disney World theme park, they are playing a role in “Disney Junior–Live on Stage!”, a theme park show created for young guests. Co-starring roles in the show are played by the cast of Mickey Mouse Clubhouse, Handy Manny and Little Einsteins — other shows that are part of the Disney Junior schedule.
“Ever since ‘Playhouse Disney–Live on Stage!’ premiered in 2001, it has been a chance for our younger guests to experience their Disney Channel friends at Disney’s Hollywood Studios,” said Dan Fields of Walt Disney Imagineering, the creative director for “Disney Junior–Live on Stage!” “As their circle of TV friends has grown and changed during the years, we’ve endeavored to make sure those new friends are part of their vacation fun, too.”
Like the previous show (”Playhouse Disney–Live on Stage”), “Disney Junior–Live on Stage!” will be presented several times during the theme park day. Guests should check their Times Guide for show times
Fastpass System to include Mickey Mouse
FASTPASS TO THE BIG CHEESE: For the first time in Disney Parks history, Magic Kingdom guests will be able to reserve meet-up time with Mickey Mouse.
Magic Kingdom Guests Will Be Able To Determine a Time To Meet with Mickey Mouse Beginning Later This Spring
LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. — Magic Kingdom officials have a hunch a really “hot ticket” in their realm this summer is going to be something other than a ride, a snack or a show. Rather, it’s a first-ever opportunity to nail down a time to meet with Mickey Mouse.
When meet-and-greets with Mickey move into a permanent new location in Town Square later this spring, Magic Kingdom guests will be able to obtain a Disney’s FASTPASS ticket specifying a one-hour window when they can return to see the popular character for hugs, photos and autographs — without waiting in the standby queue. It will mark the first time the complimentary, computerized service has been available for a character meet-and-greet at any Disney Park.
Since spending time with Disney characters is at the top of the “must-do list” of many guests, the FASTPASS ticket will allow them to experience their Mickey Mouse meet-and-greets more conveniently. As a result, guests will be able to devote more time enjoying other Magic Kingdom experiences with family and friends.
The new meet-and-greet location, Town Square Theater, will be located inside the current Exposition Hall area just inside the park entrance. Imagineers already are working to completely transform the space for the new experience. “This isn’t just remodeling Expo Hall; it is completely re-imagining this entire venue as a beautiful Victorian-era theater and the new home for Mickey Mouse,” Jon Georges, WDI Director, Senior Show Producer, said.
Image: Walt Disney Company
“Mickey and Main Street, U.S.A. are great examples of pure Americana that complement each other very well,” Concept Designer Jason Grandt said. “We drew a lot of inspiration from classic Mickey animated shorts such as The Nifty Nineties and Mickey’s Grand Opera. Many of the scenes in these shorts look like they take place right on Main Street.”
Guests arrive at a building befitting Mickey Mouse’s stardom — with a grand-Victorian-theater elevation, including a marquee that glistens with gold-leaf trim and sparkles with lights. Inside, there’s a mosaic floor, lush curtains with gold rope tie-backs and polished-brass chandeliers. Imagineers are creating new elements and surprises for Magic Kingdom guests, including an interactive queue — with an extra touch of Disney magic — and highly themed retail shops.
The queue takes guests “backstage,” where Mickey is waiting to greet them in a rehearsal-room environment amid posters, steamer trunks and stage props.
In addition, during the New Fantasyland construction, royalty will be visiting as the Disney Princesses will be in Town Square Theater to meet and greet their loyal subjects.
Currently, guests can visit with Mickey Mouse in Tomorrowland, in a location to the right of Space Mountain. Meet-and-greet experiences with the Disney Princesses are currently at Adventureland Verandah.
Epcot promises to be a spectacle for visitors to this year’s Epcot International Flower & Garden Festival
(photo - Disney)
LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla.
More blooming fun for 2011!
Epcot promises to be a spectacle for visitors to this year’s Epcot International Flower & Garden Festival
Thirty million blooms, half a million plants, dozens of Disney character topiaries and 1,000 butterflies add up to a wonderful world of theme park color at the 18th annual Epcot International Flower & Garden Festival, March 2-May 15 at Walt Disney World Resort.
Among this year’s fun festival facts:
- 30 million blooms blanket the park throughout the festival, which runs 75 colorful days.
- Dozens of Disney character topiaries represent the largest collection of Disney character topiary in the world and include classic film stars like Mickey Mouse, Minnie Mouse, Woody, Buzz Lightyear, Donald Duck, Goofy, Pluto, Cinderella and Tinker Bell.
- 1,000 native butterflies represent up to 10 species at the larger-than-ever Bambi Butterfly House. Among the garden’s two dozen nectar plants are Cape Royal plumbago, passion flower, coral honeysuckle, blazing star, butterfly bush, scarlet milkweed and canna lily.
- More than 500,000 plants, trees and shrubs are planted for the festival; 250,000 of those are annual blossoms installed for the festival.
- Festival plants include 60 different species of trees, 47 types of palms, and 48 varieties of bedding plants.
- At least 25 different plants, grasses and mosses of various colors, including pink and red begonias, dusty miller, palm fiber, palm seeds, ficus and lichen, are used to create and define features of the festival topiaries. More color has been added to the topiaries than in any previous topiary presentation.
- More than 15 floral, herbal and spice ingredients of 8 popular perfumes are revealed in the Fragrance Garden presented by Guerlain at the France pavilion. Guests can sniff the enduring fragrance Shalimar to discover botanical notes that include lemon, Arabian jasmine and vanilla. Some components of the other Guerlain fragrances include mimosa, magnolia, rose, nutmeg and vetivergrass.
- 198 hands-on gardening demonstrations and seminars will be presented.
- Thirty “flower towers” of impatiens line Innoventions Plaza.
- 240 floating mini-gardens, each three feet in diameter, of multi-hued impatiens provide splashes of color on two ponds that border the walkway between Future World and World Showcase.
- 700 container gardens of flowers, herbs, plants and vegetables in clay pots, barrels and urns enhance the landscape throughout Epcot.
- 400 Walt Disney World horticulturists are needed to install the festival landscape, topiaries and many exhibits; 100 Epcot horticulturists maintain topiaries and other festival displays.
- It takes more than one full year and about 24,000 cast member hours to prepare for the annual festival.
- The festival’s weekend Flower Power concert series includes 11 artists and groups with 133 Top 40 hits, including 16 No. 1 songs. This year’s musical hit-makers from the 1960s and ’70s include Jose Feliciano, Paul Revere & The Raiders, Melissa Manchester, Starship featuring Mickey Thomas, Herman’s Hermits Starring Peter Noone, Ricky Nelson Remembered Featuring the Nelsons, Davy Jones, Juice Newton, The Guess Who, Marilyn McCoo & Billy Davis, Jr. and Chubby Checker & The Wildcats.
Guest information for the 18th annual Epcot International Flower & Garden Festival is available at disneyworld.com/flower or at 407/W-DISNEY.
Epcot’s Via Napoli Ristorante to open during August 2010
Via Napoli (Artist's renderering: Walt Disney World)
Via Napoli Ristorante e Pizzeria is scheduled to open during August 2010. Located in the Italy Pavillion at Epcot, this 300 seat restaurant expands the dining options at this multicultural part of Walt Disney World.
The Patina Restaurant Group’s CEO Nick Valenti created the authentic menu based on his travels in Southern Italy. A feature at Via Napoli is its three wood-burning ovens which are named after the three active volcanoes in Italy – Mount Etna, Mount Vesuvius and Stromboli.
The Walt Disney World blog gave a sneak peek at the new menu which includes
Appetizers
- Sicilian eggplant with olives and raisins
- Salad of lettuce, fagiolini (string beans), fennel and tomatoes; arancini (fried saffron risotto balls) with meat ragù, mozzarella and pomodoro sauce
- Corn-crusted fried calamari
- Minestrone with basil pesto
- A plate of arancini, mozzarella, calamari, portobella mushrooms, asparagus, zucchini and carciofi (artichokes).
Main course salads
- Manzo (filet of beef) with greens, red onion, gorgonzola, apple and cucumber with a red wine-mustard vinaigrette;
- Chopped salad with lemon chicken, greens, cantaloupe, cucumber, red pepper, green beans, onions, almonds and pasta crisps with honey-citrus vinaigrette;
- Calamari with arugula, carrots and fennel with orange vinaigrette.
- Pastas: candele (long, tube-shaped pasta) with sausage ragù; linguine with seafood; malfadine (ribbon pasta) with guanciale (unsmoked Italian bacon) and pomodoro sauce; lasagna verde.
- Piatti alla Parmigiana: (dishes topped with Parmesan and mozzarella gratinée): veal, chicken and eggplant
Wood-fired pizzas
The pizzas will be made with caputo flour imported from Southern Italy, San Marzano tomatoes, handmade mozzarella and water from a local spring just like in Italy’s Campania region – 10-inch, 20-inch or 1/2 meter to share: a dozen choices include
- Margherita with tomato, mozzarella and basil
- Arciofi with artichoke, potato, pecorino cheese, prosciutto and cantaloupe.
Deserts
- Tiramisù
- Zeppole di ricotta (ricotta cheese-fried dough, whipped cream and chocolate sauce)
- Apple cake with almond sorbetti
- Gelatie
- Vanilla gelato with almond cookies and amarena cherries
Yum!
–Kay
- Providing special vacation home rentals and advice for over 5 years to families and friends wanting to make the most of their time and money while visiting Walt Disney World.
- Windsor Palms Resort Vacation Rental http://www.windsorpalmsorlando.com
- Emerald Island Resort Vacation Rental http://www.emeraldislandorlando.com
Luxury Pet Resort to Open Aug. 27 at Walt Disney World Resort
Photo: WDW News
LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. – Gourmet dog and kitty treats, plush pet bedding and all the creature comforts of home are on tap for Pluto wannabes and other pet pals at Best Friends Pet Resort, opening Aug. 27 at Walt Disney World Resort.
Best Friends Pet Care Inc. will operate the one-of-a-kind, 27,000-square-foot luxury facility complete with cat “condos,” doggy suites, and special accommodations for smaller “pocket pets.” Park and resort guests, as well as visitors staying off property, can reserve the pet hospitality services to include overnight boarding for pampered pups, cats and pot-bellied pigs.
The new resort, built to accommodate 270 dogs, 30 cats and a small menagerie of pocket pets including hamsters and guinea pigs, will replace the five existing pet care facilities now operated by Best Friends Pet Care Inc. throughout Walt Disney World Resort.
Services and amenities offered at the resort are designed to create a fun and comfortable environment for all pets. Dogs staying overnight and accustomed to curling up with a child for bedtime stories will be all ears when they settle down for staff-read “tuck-in” tales. Discriminating cats with a taste for tuna can get their own custom treats. TVs will be tuned to favorite pet films like “Milo and Otis” or “Homeward Bound.”
Guests also can board pets by day and take advantage of services like the resort’s doggy day camp and grooming services.
Best Friends Pet Care’s luxury pet resort includes:
- 17,000 square feet of air-conditioned indoor space
- 10,000 square feet of covered outdoor runs and play areas
- A full-service grooming salon with lobby view
- Two 1,100-square-foot doggy-day-camp rooms opening onto a play-yard
- Nearly a quarter-acre private, nature-scaped play park with water-play area and protected trail
- Accommodations for 270 dogs in standard and luxury indoor-outdoor suites. Oversized luxury suites include raised bedding (hop up Fido!) and TVs
- A separate “Kitty City” pavilion accommodating up to 30 cats in “purr-fect” two- and four-story cat condos
- A special room for boarding of pocket pets that include birds and hamsters
As guests and their pets approach the resort, located at 2510 Bonnet Creek Parkway, Lake Buena Vista, Fla., 32830, across from Disney’s Port Orleans Resort, they’ll drive beneath a stylized porte cochere canopy. From the airy lobby, they can watch grooming experts at work on pets of all shapes and sizes.
The resort’s exclusive dog park features a fenced walking trail that borders the natural wetlands around the park. Inside the trail, a 3,300-square-foot play area is covered in artificial turf, and another 4,500-square-foot area is dotted with shade trees for owners who want to sit and watch their pets play. Dogs even can enjoy a 1,300-square-foot water park in their own splash-and-shake zone. Several park spaces are equipped with benches where guests can sit and watch their pets play. The park is secured for guests and their pets only and is illuminated for use after dark.
Directly off the resort’s lobby, a grooming salon offers “go-home-fresh” baths and haircuts for pets. A la carte activities for dogs range from one-on-one playtimes and social playgroups to “cuddle time” and bedtime stories with resort staff. Dog owners also can choose from pet amenities that include ice cream treats, bottled water and premium orthopedic bedding. Cat owners can treat their feline favorites to private playtimes or gourmet snacks like “Tuna on a Ritz” or Cookies and Milk.”
Guests who wish to book accommodations for their pets can visit www.wdw.bestfriendspetcare.com or call 877/4-WDW-PETS.
Top Soccer Clubs from Around the Globe Compete in Disney Cup International Youth Soccer Tournament
Photo: Disney Photography
LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. (July 8, 2010) – On the heels of the FIFA World Cup, nearly 200 elite youth soccer teams from around the world, including the Haitian National Women’s Under 17 team, will compete in the Disney Cup International Youth Soccer Tournament at ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex at Walt Disney World Resort, July 12-17.
Clubs featuring boys and girls (ages 9-17) from countries such as Brazil, Great Britain, Mexico, Puerto Rico, Malaysia, the United States and others will be joining the Haitian team in creating the largest field in the tournament’s 12-year history.
More than half of this year’s field comes from outside of the continental United States with Puerto Rico leading the international team count with 18 registered clubs. Canada is next (16), followed by Brazil (11). In all, 18 countries are represented.
“This year’s field is one of the most diverse and largest we’ve had in our tournament’s history,” said the event’s tournament director Mark Luster. “The Disney Cup continues to be a great opportunity for teams from around the world to compete against other top young athletes while also getting to relax and enjoy a vacation at Disney.”
Each team will play at least four games before advancing to a single-elimination tournament format. Championship games in various age divisions from under-9 through under-18 take place July 17.
Since 1999, the tournament has attracted teams from more than 20 countries giving participants a unique opportunity to compete on the same fields as teams from the English Premier League and Major League Soccer. For instance, Celtic Football Club, Blackburn Football Club, the MLS Chicago Fire, Houston Dynamo, New York Red Bulls and Real Salt Lake have all competed or trained at ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex.
