A lot has been going on with Walt Disney World this week, so we figured we’d take the time to round up the news and explain the situation as much as we can. From the political, involving the changes with the former Reedy Creek Improvement District, and a new union agreement involving all cast who fall under it, to the end of the 50th-anniversary celebration and the return of a few entertainment favorites, this has been a busy time for the resort.
So let’s break it down, shall we?
Genie+ Prices Soar to New Heights
Disney World’s Genie+ service recently hit a new record-high price due to the influx of visitors during the busy Easter holiday. As families flocked to the park to enjoy their vacations, demand for the popular add-on surged, leading to a notable increase in the cost for expedited access to attractions and personalized itinerary planning.
On April 4th, Genie+ cost $35 per person. That’s more than double the rollout price of $15 in October of 2021.
The price hike, while significant, did not deter guests from opting for the Genie+ service, as it has sold out on multiple days this Spring Break season.
What’s your breaking point? How much are you willing to pay per person for Genie+?
The District Formerly Known as Reedy Creek Improvement
Perhaps the biggest piece of news to come out of the resort this past week was the fight between Governor Ron DeSantis’ office and Disney via the Reedy Creek Improvement District (DeSantis’ office has renamed this special tax district the Central Florida Tourism Oversight District).
The Reedy Creek Improvement District was formed in 1967 by a special act of the Florida Legislature in conjunction with The Walt Disney Company, which allowed Disney to operate with limited supervision from the Florida state government, including special taxation and building code rules. The Reedy Creek Improvement District ran the towns of Bay Lake and Lake Buena Vista and kept up with all municipal duties of those two towns, from EMS services to waste management and everything in between.
With the cessation of the Reedy Creek Improvement District, these exemptions would no longer be in effect, and the state legislature-appointed board could make numerous changes that would involve higher tax payments and poorer infrastructure management, to name just a few.
However, it appears Disney wasn’t just going to let this intervention go without a fight.
The King Charles Clause
With Governor DeSantis making his intentions regarding the Reedy Creek Improvement District known, the board members — along with The Walt Disney Company’s numerous lawyers — had plenty of time to come up with a plan to counteract these changes. And boy did they.
Prior to the installation of the new state legislature-approved board members and the creation of the Central Florida Tourism Oversight District, the previous board members of the Reedy Creek Improvement District essentially stripped all power from the new board members. As part of the changes they made, which is called a Declaration of Restrictive Covenants, the board ceded basically all of its power to Disney. As such, Disney will now have the final say on any alterations to the Walt Disney World Resort’s property and also requires the board to inform the company of any plans they have for alterations without conditions or delays. This essentially resigns the board to doing nothing more than maintaining the roads and other basic infrastructure.
But what’s even more interesting is that the former board members set these restrictive covenants using the “Rule Against Perpetuities” clause, which is a fancy way of saying the changes will stay in effect until a named person dies.
And in this case? That named person is the last survivor of the descendants of King Charles III. (The actual clause states the changes will be in effect until 21 years after the death of the last descendant of King Charles III). Given the importance placed on the British monarchy for maintaining their familial line, well, these board members knew what they were doing. Especially because Governor DeSantis often calls Walt Disney World a “corporate kingdom.”
Is this legal?
Surprisingly (though is it really surprising, given Disney’s world-class legal team), yes, the actions of the former members of the Reedy Creek Improvement District are, ostensibly, 100% legal. While Governor DeSantis and the current Central Florida Tourism Oversight District board members have vowed to fight these changes in court, it seems everything was done above board.
Not only were the Reedy Creek Improvement District’s board meetings announced publicly (as is required by law), but they also made these changes in a public forum, meaning that if a member of DeSantis’ office was paying attention, they would have known what was happening before it occurred.
As for the current power of the Central Florida Tourism Oversight District to revert the changes, the restrictive covenants placed on the board state they cannot make any changes, and if they do attempt to, The Walt Disney Company can sue them. Additionally, the changes are only revocable if they can be found to be illegally done. Considering all the steps the former Reedy Creek Improvement District board members took when making these changes, we doubt DeSantis’ lawyers will find anything.
But they are going to try, so we’ll keep our eyes peeled for updates regarding this ongoing situation.
A New Union Agreement
On Wednesday, the Service Trades Council Union — a coalition of six labor unions that represent about 42,000 Walt Disney World cast members — came to an agreement with The Walt Disney Company to raise their minimum wage and provide extended paid parental leave.
Currently, the minimum wage for Walt Disney World cast members is $15/hr, which will be raised to $18/hr by the end of the year under this new agreement. And those non-tipped cast members who are under the union will receive an immediate bump from $15/hr to $17/hr upon ratification of the contract. Finally, they will receive a retroactive pay of $1/hr (meaning they will be making, at minimum, $16/hr) for all hours worked from October 1, 2022, which was when their previous contract expired.
There is also an addition to the contract involving parental leave for full-time workers. This leave is available for those workers who have been with the company for more than a year and will give them eight paid weeks of leave, whether they give birth to a child, become a parent, or adopt or foster a new child under the age of 18.
An Ending 52 Years In The Making
April 1st saw the end of the 50th-anniversary celebration at Walt Disney World. The celebration, which had been ongoing since October 1, 2021, saw the introduction of two new shows — the Enchantment fireworks spectacular at Magic Kingdom, and Harmonious at EPCOT. Both shows have officially retired as of April 2nd, and for many fans (including ourselves), that’s a welcome relief.
April 3rd saw the return of fan-favorite Happily Ever After to Magic Kingdom (now with projections down Main Street!), and the EPCOT Forever lagoon show at EPCOT. These are incredibly popular nighttime spectaculars, and we figure that they will be enjoyed for quite a while until something new takes their place (specifically with EPCOT Forever).
Speaking of EPCOT, the Harmonious barges will be removed beginning this week, and a demolition crane parked backstage near the lagoon maintenance area can now be seen from in the park.
Other changes have been made as well: The 50th-anniversary bus marquee messaging has been removed, with the messages returning to their non-celebration content. The EARidescent costumes of the characters have also been replaced with new costumes for Mickey’s Magical Friendship Faire, and Mickey is back in his magician’s costume in the Town Square Theater.
As for Cinderella Castle, while the blue and pink EARidescent color scheme will be staying for now, the actual 50th-anniversary plaque, ribbon, and decorations are starting to be removed.
Yesterday, the large 50 in front of the clock had been removed.
The four park icons’ Beacons of Magic will be no more – but Spaceship Earth’s Points of Light are here to stay!
This may be the one gift from the 50th anniversary we remember the longest.
The 50th-anniversary annual pass cards have been retired and all 50th merchandise is now heavily discounted and can only be found at World of Disney in Disney Springs.
However, the golden 50th-anniversary statues found around the park (which are interactive with a MagicBand+) will be staying for now.
While we’re sad to see the 50th anniversary go, we’re excited to usher in the 25th anniversary of Animal Kingdom this month and to see the 100 Years of Wonder celebration fully begin at the resort later this year.
What’s Next?
With the end of a mostly anti-climactic 50th-anniversary celebration, what’s next for the Walt Disney World resort? Disney is now putting an emphasis on how thrilling it is to visit Walt Disney World, specifically with their new campaign #AllTheDisneyThrills. Here’s what to look forward to in the near future:
- TRON Lightcycle Run officially opened today, April 4th, at Magic Kingdom. While the coaster is only 60 seconds long, it’s a welcome thrilling addition to the park and completely sold out for the day!
A variety of merchandise is available for the attraction, and even some special treats.
Due to expected heavy demand for TRON merchandise, guests are queuing up in the TRON shop and then being taken to the former Stitch’s Great Escape attraction building for shopping and purchases.
Read everything you need to know about Tron Lightcycle Run HERE:
Walt Disney World TRON Lightcycle / Run – Everything You Need To Know!
- Journey of Water – Inspired by Moana, will be the next attraction opening at EPCOT later this year. This will be a walk-through attraction within the World Celebration area, offering guests the opportunity to play and interact with water, just like Moana. During Monday’s shareholder call, Bob Iger highlighted this project as it nears completion, along with announcing a live-action adaptation of Moana, which is already in the works.
- EPCOT will host the Disney100 celebration at Walt Disney World later this year, with more projects finishing up at the park, including the heart of World Celebration which has been torn up for years, and a new nighttime spectacular with *mobile barges*. Read all about it below!
- Work continues at Splash Mountain, as Imagineering transforms Chickapin Hill into Tiana’s Bayou Adventure, opening in late 2024.
- This year’s Destination D23 event takes place at Walt Disney World on September 8-10. This is an opportunity for Disney to peel back the curtain and show off future projects with fans. Here’s hoping for some more WDW parks news soon! How about that Villains land?
Ready or not, we have a feeling we’ll hear more about the Moana and Zootopia projects coming soon to Disney’s Animal Kingdom. Remember seeing this concept art at D23 2022? DinoLand’s days are numbered… what do you think of these Disney stories being added to Animal Kingdom? Do you think dinosaurs should remain a part of the park in some way?
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Let’s Hear From You
There’s been quite a bit of news coming out of Walt Disney World recently. Have you been following the Reedy Creek Improvement District saga? Do you have plans to watch the returned fan-favorite nighttime spectaculars at Magic Kingdom and EPCOT? What upcoming projects are you looking forward to at Walt Disney World? Share your thoughts in the comments!
