It sure is a weird time to be visiting the theme parks. While Disney World has been open for a little less than two months, and guests are no doubt missing the mouse . . . the parks must be busy . . . right? We’ll check it out for you! And then there’s all that bad news about Halloween being canceled . . . not so fast, there’s actually some good news for the not so spooky season. Plus, there’s been some testing for EPCOT’s new nighttime spectacular, new merchandise, and lots more! Well, what are we waiting for?!
Fall Festivities at Magic Kingdom
While Halloween merch has hit shop shelves, we’ve yet to see any hints of autumnal decor at Magic Kingdom… but that will change very soon! From September 15th through October 31st, Magic Kingdom will once again celebrate the cozy and spooky season with fall decor and special offerings.
And though we’ll miss Mickey’s Not-So-Scary Halloween Party this year, it turns out that there will still be plenty of other seasonal (and safe) fun to be had at Magic Kingdom!
- For the first time ever, guests of all ages are invited to wear their Halloween costume to Magic Kingdom during regular park hours, from September 15th – October 31st! Note that costume masks are only permitted for guests 14 years and younger, and proper facial coverings will still be required for all guests.
- Character cavalcades and socially-distanced character experiences will receive a Halloween makeover, starring Mickey & friends dressed in their Halloween costumes.
- Special Halloween-themed food, beverage and merch items will be available throughout all four parks, beginning September 8th.
The Magic Kingdom will be getting all sorts of treats. Check out those Cinnamon Donuts in the Hitchhiking Ghosts container. Fun!
Fun popcorn buckets and sippers will be everywhere as well.
I like the Poison Apple treat at Disney Studios. Plus cakes and pumpkin cannoli . . .
And speaking of poison apples, You can get a Rotton Apple punch and corresponding glow cube at Animal Kingdom.
(for a complete list of treats and locations, you can check out Disney’s blog post)
Merchandise Savings & Sales
While the limited-time 30% Annual Passholder merchandise discount has gone away, quite a few Disney Parks collections are now on sale for everyone. Plus, the typical 20% Annual Passholder discount still applies!
Currently, the parks close well before sundown, and oddly there’s an assortment of Halloween-themed glow items now on sale. While you can’t use them in the parks (because the sun is still up) you’ll get a discount on them, from $16 down to $10:
Making way for new merchandise, the Summertime Fun, Americana, Neon, and Rainbow collections are all 30% off. Passholders save an additional 20% off after the 30% has been applied.
You can find these collections at Disney Springs, as well as most parks and resort gift shops:
Food & Wine Additions
While EPCOT reopened with its first-ever “hybrid festival”… it seems like the Flower & Garden part is slowly fizzling out with the arrival of the fall season. There are only two topiary displays still in the park – Remy at the France Pavilion, and Bambi & friends near the temporary MouseGear location in Future World.
As a result, Flower & Garden merch is on sale for 30% off; ultimately making room for the new Food & Wine collections debut on September 1st!
While some Food & Wine menu items have been available since July 15th, more are on the way! An undisclosed number of Food & Wine booths will be added. So far, we’ve noticed the return of Spain and the Alps booths in World Showcase, and what looks to be a Wine/Cheese Studio booth in Future World. Each of these booths have signs that read “COMING THIS FALL”:
This year’s International Food & Wine Festival marks the park’s 25th consecutive year hosting the event, which is also the longest-running festival in Walt Disney World history. Interestingly, Food & Wine does not have a set end-date just yet. For now, it’s running “through fall”.
A Walk Around EPCOT
What’s it like at the park now? Empty. Perhaps it’s the extra-wide walkways, fewer new attractions or visiting on a weekday… but in our experience, between the four Walt Disney World parks reopening during the pandemic, EPCOT looks and feels the most empty.
We briefly visited the park this week, re-trying some of our favorite festival dishes. Join us for a quick jaunt.
We stopped by Brazil to try the Pão de Queijo (Gluten-Free Cheese Bread). These grew in size since last year! For $4.50 you receive two lumps of warm, doughy and cheesy goodness.
In and around each pavilion, safely-distanced seating areas and standing tables have been added to remove your mask and enjoy your festival selections. We had no problem finding a safe and shady place to eat.
Passing Morocco, Italy and Germany; you can get a good look at how empty the countries were on my visit!
Looking out into World Showcase Lagoon, you’ve got to wonder what those boats and barges are for, but it seems like Disney is testing for HarmonioUS – the new nighttime spectacular originally set to debut this year. Sadly, I don’t see nighttime entertainment returning any time soon; as safely social-distancing and guest-monitoring would prove to be more difficult after sundown.
At the American Adventure, the funnel cake kiosk is offering a Food & Wine Festival-exclusive: Street Corn Funnel Cake. Could this be one of those “so wrong, it’s right” dishes? I’ll be trying this once the weather cools off a bit…
Taking in the weird emptiness…
It gets hot pretty quickly, so we ducked into Norway. Frozen Ever After just *sounds* like a nice, cool break.
A favorite World Showcase stop, Kringla Bakeri, is still closed:
Frozen Ever After was listed at 10 minutes on this weekday. How can we pass this up?
Everything was in working order over in Arendelle. But, please Elsa, do the magic… make it snow!
Back out into the park…
I seem to always end up at Earth Eats, next to Mexico:
Bloomin’ Blueberry Lemon & Ginger Tea is the perfect summertime refresher. And if you’re looking for a savory treat, the Impossible Beef Slider with Wasabi Crema deliciously completes the job.
Rounding out our EPCOT trip, we exit through Future World:
Active construction continues over at Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind…
Make Some Magic
Theme parks are reopening, and whether you are ready to travel yet or not, there’s no better time to lock in low rates on future travel. But waiting on hold and not knowing what questions to ask isn’t the magical part of a vacation. That’s why MiceChat has partnered with Get Away Today to handle all the difficult stuff for you . . . all for no extra cost. That’s right, they do all the work and it doesn’t cost you extra. In fact, it can actually save you money.
Our travel partners at Get Away Today are here to help you with your theme park booking and rescheduling plans. We know you’re as uncertain about the future as we are. That’s why Get Away Today is offering the most flexible Disney travel options available. Ask about:
Price Protection – When you book a Walt Disney World Resort vacation that includes a minimum of 2-nights Disney hotel and at least two theme park tickets with Get Away Today, if a better special that you qualify for comes out after you have booked, they’ll automatically it.
Concierge Service – Get detailed planning assistance with all qualified Walt Disney World Resort vacations. A certified Disney Travel Agent is more valuable now than ever before as there have been many changes to the Park experience.
Flexible Payments – Lock in your 2020 or 2021 Walt Disney World Resort vacation for just $200 down. By booking early, you secure your availability and have the flexibility to pay as you go. Make as many interest-free payments as you’d like, whenever you’d like, with final payment due just 30 days prior to travel.
Flexible Dates – If you’re traveling in 2020, you can make any changes up to 24 hours prior to check-in with no penalties. In 2021, you can make changes up to 30 days prior to check-in with no penalties.
Give your family something to look forward to:
Let’s Hear From You
Thanks for making it to the end of our Walt Disney World Update! What do you think about the upcoming Halloween merch and foods? Have you been visiting the empty parks at WDW? Are you excited to hear about testing for HarmoniUS? Share your thoughts in the comments below!
You must be logged in to post a comment.