Disney Insights

"Third time's the charm" is a saying that suggests perhaps the third attempt will be more successful than the two prior failures. By no means has the past two versions of Test Track been failures. But it seems like this is a huge opportunity to learn from the previous experiences and truly come up with something that could be loved for years to come. We chart out not only all three, but also talk about its forefather, The World of ...

While last week's post shared lament over the closing of Tom Sawyer Island and the Rivers of America, we return to Disneyland's 70th Anniversary to celebrate the heritage of Frontierland. While you might think Frontierland is a thing of the past, knowing the past of this land will give you appreciation for the remarkable role it has played in four of Disney's theme parks around the world. We'll step inside the fort entrance to hear...

It's been nearly a year since the wake of D23 where we learned that the Rivers of America, the Liberty Belle, and Tom Sawyer Island would be changed out into a new off road Cars experience. The way we learned that news was troublesome--hiding it from the official D23 presentation. But even if they had been more transparent about it, it would still be hard to lose. I've come to terms as I've shared in previous podcasts what's workin...

In recent weeks there have been a large number of details released not just for Walt Disney World but for Disneyland as well. While previous podcasts have been reminiscing all things Muppets the end of MuppetVision 3D and taking a look at Adventureland at Disneyland, there have been considerable announcements, hints and insights that have occurred. And we want to cover them all! From Disneyland we'll look at Avatar and Coco at Disn...

Welcome to our ongoing celebration of Disneyland's 70th anniversary. In many ways, Adventureland is truly the most immersive of all the lands of Disneyland. And yet, from a pedestrian space, it's perhaps one of the smallest. If you're just walking through it you can go from entrance to exit in about a minute. Unless of course Fantasmic! is going on in New Orleans Square and Fireworks are getting ready on Main Street. Then it's one ...

Something happened over the weekend that I probably never quite envisioned. And neither did thousands of guests who always found time to spend a few moments with Jim Henson's Muppet-Vision 3D. We celebrate this film, and its creator, sharing some insights of how all this came to be. We'll take a look at the Muppets over the years as they've come to be a part of The Walt Disney World Resort. We'll talk about all of the components th...

News this week and last has broken out about happenings at the Magic Kingdom, and they include some very important dates. Last week was an announcement of Disney Starlight Parade's opening date. Plus they showcased the finale as well as the order of the parade floats. We'll talk about that and the implications of this date to its nightly schedule and what it means to thousands of pass holders who will want to go to the Magic Kingdo...

This summer has not only brought a completely new theme park to the Orlando tourist scape, but within it, two impressive theatrical shows within its park's gates. At the same time, Disney's Hollywood Studios has opened two theatrical shows within its studio gates. In a showdown, we'll look at Le Cirque Arcanus in The Wizarding World of Harry Potter--Ministry of Magic as well as The Untrainable Dragon from the Isle of Berk--both pre...

There is so much to love about Universal’s new Epic Universe. And if they get it to work, it will be even better. Many have already done podcasts early on and shared what they loved or didn’t love about the park. Reviews of favorite attractions, food, souvenirs and so forth are out there. My wife and I, two of my daughters and my son-in-law have all attended, and for the most part, we had not only a sol...

We are on the monorail heading to the Magic Kingdom to canvas many updates from the Emporium to Big Thunder, from the Astro Orbiter to the new DVC lounge, McKim's Mile House. In the process we'll check on all sorts of construction activity, visit a number of shops throughout the park, and take in Gaston's Tavern, where we try out some new tasty treats. Join us on the Magic Kingdom Update here at Disney Insights.

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Yes! We predicted yesterday that Disney was going to announce a new park in Abu Dhabi, and that announcement has come to pass! "A whole new world" is coming to this corner of the world. With over four billion guests having visited some six Disney theme park destinations around the world, let's look at this newest Disney resort in Abu Dhabi, which will be the seventh in the world. This was part of its 2025 2nd quarter presentation, ...

Breaking news this morning as rumors about that Disney could be announcing a brand new theme park slated for United Arab Emirates. The possibility is that an announcement could be made Wednesday morning, May 7th, but some sources suggest this may be happening and in time with the 2nd Quarter 2025 announcements from Disney happening at the same time. Check it out!

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More Disney I...

We continue our celebration of Disneyland's 70th anniversary. We started this series at Disneyland with a look at Tomorrow. We now wind the clock backwards and start at the entrance of the park. Main Street U.S.A. at Disneyland is a remarkable place. It is the only land in the only park that had an apartment for Walt Disney where he stayed regularly to "walk in the shoes of his guests." That kind of immersion allowed him to see new...

While it’s been more than 5 years since Disney has opened up a brand new park in Shanghai, there is something to be said for the enormous transformation that has been underway for Disneyland Paris as a whole, and in particular, Disney Adventure World, formerly known as Walt Disney Studios Paris. Since Avengers Campus first opened, work has been spent on improving existing rides and shows, as well as creating whole new lands and att...

Since debuting in December just a few months ago, The Disney Treasure has been the talk of the cruise line experience. Part of a new class of ships, and a sibling to the Disney Wish, this Disney Cruise Line offering has become very popular. We're fortunate to have Chris Konecny, also known as DCLCruisingDad, to share with us his family's experience aboard this eight day, seven night journey. We talk about getting there, getting on,...

We visit Walt Disney World to check out Disney's Hollywood Studios and to get an update about everything going on in the park. We canvas the entire property, check out some retail plus food & beverage. Did we mention meeting up with all 7 of the Dwarfs?! Where Star Wars first showed up in this park (and it's not Star Tours)?! How about the best fried chicken in Disney's parks?! Or the cremated remains of Don Onar's Parents?! Jo...

As if little announcements would keep attention away from the opening of Epic Universe, Disney keeps dropping posts and instagrams about what's on their docket in the next months to come. We'll take a look at this, and give insight to what it means. Disneyland has a big 70th anniversary coming, but what of The Walt Disney World Resort? We'll share what we've learned and what it means, especially in the context of a FastCompany arti...

With a new live action film out, There is much to be said about the importance of Walt Disney’s classic, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. Not only was the original animated Snow White successful in the box office, it has been an important part of the Disney theme park experience world-wide. Since Disneyland opened in 1955, Snow White has come alive for guests to visit and experience. Through character meet ‘n’ greets, parades, merc...

This weekend fans said their final farewells to "It's Tough to be a Bug." This film has entertained guests since Disney's Animal Kingdom opened in 1998. It was the centerpiece of the Tree of Life, which serves as the icon to the park. We look at the origins of how the attraction came to be. We'll look at what was so great--and what was not so great about this attraction. With the official closing this week, we'll talk about the tra...