MIckeyBlog Disney News for March 23, 2018

MickeyBlog News is here to brighten your week! And we’re going to start today’s update with the best possible news…that won’t help you until August of 2019!

D-23 Dates Announced!

Yes, Disney confirmed today that their biennial exhibition, D-23, is a go for 2019! The only event of its kind in North America, D-23 is the place where fans come together to celebrate their love of all things Disney. And it’s also the place where The Walt Disney Company reveals many of its major news items.

With the 50^th anniversary of Walt Disney World coming in 2021, the next D-23 is likely the last one before that celebration begins. You should expect plenty of bombshell announcements akin to what happened at D-23 2017. You’ll want to attend this seminal event if at all possible.

This week, Disney revealed that tickets for the event go on sale on August 23^rd. While you attend, you can double down on your vacation with a lovely trip to Disneyland Resort, which is only 2.1 miles away from the Anaheim Convention Center, the location of D-23. Unfortunately, you cannot make resort reservations just yet.

Disney confirmed to me that they won’t accept hotel bookings until this summer. You can and should, however, speak to a Mickey Travels agent. Just give them your contact information, and an agent will tell you when your booking window opens!

Quick Marvel Update

You may be tired of Black Panther box office updates by now, so I’ll be brief. As I indicated in the prior edition of MickeyBlog News, the latest Marvel release did in fact pass The Avengers to become THE most successful comic book movie ever in North America. It also beat another recent Disney offering, Star Wars: The Last Jedi to become the fifth biggest box office hit ever!

With $631 million in the bank, it’s likely to overtake Jurassic World and Titanic over the next couple of weeks. When it does so, Black Panther will become the third biggest film ever released in North America. Importantly, Disney will also own the rights to all three franchises in the top three: Star Wars, Avatar, and Black Panther! Since two of those are about to have themed lands, the natural question is whether Disney will follow suit with Black Panther.

Of course, you’re much more excited about another Marvel film right now, aren’t you? Yes, Avengers: Infinity War introduced its final extended trailer during March Madness. Disney was even smart about it. Rather than paying for a short 30- or 60-second trailer, they paid for a series of 15-second ads highlighting the fact that people could watch the 150-second trailer on YouTube.

Within 48 hours, 150 million (!) people had watched the extended trailer. Not coincidentally, Avengers: Infinity War also shattered pre-sales ticket records. I warned you with Black Panther, and I’m going to say it again now. BUY YOUR AVENGERS TICKETS ASAP! Otherwise, you’ll get stuck sitting in the front row on opening weekend. By the end of May, Disney will have two Marvel comic book movies that earned at least $1.25 billion between them in North America. It’s March, and the Mouse House has already had a phenomenal year.

Toy Story Land Will Arrive Sooner Than You Think!

Okay, that’s a clickbait header, and I apologize for it. No, I’m not talking about Disney’s Hollywood Studios, so lower your expectations, the ones that I cruelly raised in highly misleading fashion. What I mean is that Shanghai Disneyland is getting a version of Toy Story Land, too, and its arrival date is almost here.

Technically called Disney·Pixar Toy Story Land, this seventh themed land at Shanghai Disneyland debuts on April 26th. I realize that you likely don’t have impending travel plans to China, and so I understand why you’re wondering why this information is useful. Well, we live in a world of cellphones, and these cellphones are capable of recording video.

On April 26^th, images and videos from this themed land will appear on social media. They’ll quickly be shared, allowing those of us who aren’t in Shanghai to know what to expect from the Orlando version of Toy Story Land. While the parks aren’t building duplicate rides, they will share some of the theming. Think of the Shanghai Disneyland version as a sneak preview of what you’ll see at Walt Disney World this summer!

Let’s All Eat, Drink, and Be Merry!

Popular annual events are the big news at Walt Disney World this week! Disney made several exciting announcements about dates for many of their favorite exhibitions. The most important one to most is the confirmation of dates for the 2018 Epcot International Food & Wine Festival.

This event is the end-all, be-all of Epcot festivals, even if it does have competition from three other annual affairs now. It will always be the most popular and important to Epcot fanatics, who will have 75 days to engage in the festivities this year.

The 23^rd annual event will open on August 30^th this year and run through November 12^th. As you’re about to see, it will have some overlap with some other wildly popular Disney events.

The 2018 version of Food & Wine will start one day earlier than last year, but it will also end one day earlier, meaning it’s the same overall length. Disney’s clearly decided that Thursdays are the optimal days to start the exhibition while Mondays are the preferred day to end it.

Disney is scarce with additional details about the event. Expect them to leak additional information at regular intervals over the next few months. As you’re about to see, you should absolutely start planning a trip for the Fall, though. Walt Disney World’s going to have plenty of special draws this autumn!

Do You Like to Party?

Well, I have some great news for you! You may see March on your calendar, but Disney’s already thinking ahead to the Fall and Winter. They’ve announced the official dates for two of their most popular events. Mickey’s Not-So-Scary Halloween Party, the most delightful of gothic celebrations, will start singing Boo to You again on August 17^th. In fact, if the idea of celebrating Halloween in August appeals to you, I have great news! You’ll get four shots at this joyous ticketed event. The official dates are:

• August 17, 24, 28, 31
• September 3, 7, 9, 11, 14, 16, 18, 21, 23, 25, 28, 30
• October 2, 4, 5, 8, 9, 11, 12, 14, 16, 18, 19, 21, 23, 25, 26, 28, 30, 31

Are you more of a holiday season fan? I’m with you! I’m suffering from chronic depression right now that Hallmark isn’t running holiday movies non-stop. Well, here’s a happy thought to cheer us up while we wait for yuletide bliss, probably starring TV’s Danica McKellar.

The Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Party is back for 2018. And it too is getting an early start on the festivities. The first night of this ticketed event is only eight days after Halloween! We’re getting to the point where Disney could combine the two shows and make Jack Skellington fans ecstatic! The full list of dates for 2018 is:

• November 8, 9, 12, 13, 15, 16, 25, 27, 29, 30
• December 2, 4, 6, 7, 9, 11, 13, 14, 16, 18, 20, 21

So, that’s a total of 34 showings of Mickey’s Not-So-Scary Halloween Party along with 22 Very Merry Christmas Parties! Remember that these are ticketed events, generally with a price tag in the range of $99 per person, give or take a bit. Also, you should understand that they WILL sell out virtually all of these dates. Plan to buy your tickets at first opportunity to avoid getting shut out of two of the finest Disney exhibitions on the annual calendar.

Finally, while we’re speaking of annual holiday events, Disney’s bringing back Return to Sleepy Hollow this year! As in 2017, this celebration takes place at Disney’s Fort Wilderness Resort & Campground. At this event, you’ll watch The Legend of Sleepy Hollow in a most unusual setting: the Tri-Circle-D Ranch stables!

Disney goths up the event by having the proverbial Headless Horseman ride by during the film. Also, some of his victims, now galloping ghosts, are also doomed to ride horseback and spook classic movie lovers. Disney fans can watch this ticketed event at 8 pm and 10 pm nightly on:

• September 28-30
• October 3-7
• October 10-14
• October 17-21
• October 24-31

This event is a bit different from the others. You can buy tickets up to 180 days in advance when you stay at a Disney resort. In other words, you can already purchase tickets to some Return to Sleepy Hollow events! Ask your MickeyTravels agent for assistance in booking your room and event tickets.

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