MickeyBlog News for September 1, 2019
What’s going on at Disney parks this week? Food, wine, The Force, and the weather. If anything, the latest edition of MickeyBlog News involves too much excitement. Let’s get you all caught up.
Hurricane Dorian
A few days ago, I watched with bemusement as someone in a Disney group confidently told someone else that this weather event would never become a hurricane.
I had to laugh because the most impossible idea from Back to the Future 2 isn’t a time-traveling car. It’s the joke that weather forecasts in the future are precise down to the second. Even as I type this on September 1st, nobody’s quite sure what Dorian’s going to do next. There’s a meme circulating of Dorian’s point of ingress being…basically anywhere on the East Coast.
I’m certainly not making light of a terrifying situation. To the contrary, my thoughts are with all affected parties, some of whom are assuredly reading this. It’s more to say that nobody can ever tell what’s going to happen with the weather.

Cancellations and Impacted Areas
Given the uncertainty, Disney’s done the right thing by canceling a few events. Blizzard Beach isn’t open today, and all activities at ESPN’s World Wide of Sports are rescheduled.
Hotel officials at resorts by the waters of Bay Lake also notified guests about potential issues. The Bungalows at Disney’s Polynesian Village Resort, the Cabins at Disney’s Wilderness Lodge, and the Treehouse Villas at Disney’s Saratoga Springs Resort & Spa are the primary concerns. And Disney’s Fort Wilderness Resort & Campground has affected areas, too.
Overall, the situation right now is surprisingly positive at Walt Disney World. Current forecasts call for Hurricane Dorian to remain off-shore until the Carolinas, and the Category-5 event may not reach land. Disney even updated a previous press release to remove some of the details that I’ve mentioned here. I’m including it just to be safe in case the situation changes yet again.
Still, one of the secrets that long-time Orlando residents know is that Disney’s the safest place to be during a hurricane. In fact, a well-known Disney influencer made the front page of CNN with his comments about the situation. He mentioned that he books his mother a Disney hotel room during hurricanes since he knows she’ll be out of harm’s way there.
Similarly, I’ve had conversations with people who just moved to Central Florida. In all of these discussions, one of my first tips is to stay at Disney during weather events as a precautionary measure. I also compiled this list of stories during Disney’s Hurricane Irma a couple of years ago. Long story short, Disney’s the best at taking care of their guests.
Those of you who are traveling to Orlando soon should be aware of the airport situation. Orlando International Airport (MCO) initially announced that it will close on Monday, September 2nd, at 2 a.m. EST. At the time, the airport stated that no commercial flights will arrive or depart from MCO on this date.


Photo credit: WestJet.com
HOWEVER! MCO officials have since flip-flopped on the situation. Due to the new course of Dorian, Orlando International Airport will open and operate as scheduled on Monday. You should monitor this information if you have a flight planned into or out of the airport on Monday, though. The situation is understandably still fluid.
Welcome to Batuu!
From May 31st until August 29th, Disneyland fans claimed strange bragging rights over Walt Disney World aficionados. The Happiest Place on Earth opened their Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge three months before the one in Orlando. Well, the playing field is level now, my friends! Black Spire Outpost is finally hosting guests at Disney’s Hollywood Studios!
The opening of Walt Disney World’s version of Batuu was mostly anticlimactic. Imagineers ran way ahead of schedule on the project, allowing the park to offer exclusive sneak previews throughout August.
MickeyBlog’s already broadcast from Batuu a couple of times, which is a strong reason why you should follow us on Facebook. Of course, it helps that Disney already had three months’ worth of data about Disneyland traffic patterns to use as a predictive model at Hollywood Studios.
https://www.facebook.com/MickeyBlogCom/videos/384093292261236/
How to Visit Galaxy’s Edge
As expected, Hollywood Studios employs the same virtual queue system from Disneyland. On crowded park mornings, guests request entrance to Batuu via My Disney Experience. An entire boarding party may join together in the queue, which is extremely convenient for large groups.
When your boarding party is eligible to visit Black Spire Outpost, you’ll receive a push notification on your phone. This statement assumes that you’ve enabled push notifications for My Disney Experience, which you absolutely should.
The process is smooth and efficient. The system also allows for special reservations. Those of you who have scheduled time at Savi’s Workshop, Oga’s Cantina, and the Droid Depot receive automatic admission to Batuu a few minutes before your reservation window opens.
Other Galaxy’s Edge Updates
Disney has also clarified some information about Extra, Extra Magic Hours at Walt Disney World. The company’s kindly offering special pre-opening park time to guests staying onsite at official Disney resorts. Guests can and should visit Galaxy’s Edge during these exclusive windows.
The latest information involves the restaurants at Walt Disney World MickeyBlog had suspected that some of them would open early to account for early birds. Sure enough, several resort Quick Service joints will serve super-early breakfasts for a while.
Here’s the list of participating hotel restaurants:
- Disney’s All-Star Resorts – All Quick Service Restaurants
- Disney’s Animal Kingdom Lodge – The Mara
- Disney’s Art of Animation Resort – Landscape of Flavors
- Disney’s Beach Club Resort – Beach Club Marketplace
- Disney’s Contemporary Resort – Contemporary Grounds
- Disney’s Pop Century Resort – Everything POP Shopping and Dining
- Disney’s Port Orleans French Quarter – Sassagoula Floatworks and Food Factory
- Disney’s Port Orleans Riverside – Riverside Mill Food Court
- Disney’s Wilderness Lodge – Roaring Fork
- Disney’s Yacht Club Resort – The Market at Ale & Compass
These restaurants ordinarily open at 6 a.m., but they will operate starting at 4:15 a.m. until November 2nd. Also, please remember that Capt. Cook’s at Disney’s Polynesian Village Resort and Gasparilla Island Grill at Disney’s Grand Floridian Resort & Grill are open 24 hours anyway.
On a merchandising note, Hollywood Studios is selling a limited edition Funko Pop! for a limited time. It’s a figuring of Hondo Ohnaka, the character from The Clone Wars who is integral to the ride experience at Millennium Falcon: Smugglers Run. These little beauties WILL sell out. So, buy one asap if you don’t want to pay a massive mark-up on eBay.
Finally, Star Wars fans have emerged victorious in a strange battle with TSA. The drink products at Galaxy’s Edge look uncomfortably similar to hand grenades. Understandably, TSA initially banned them from travel. Thankfully, TSA has reconsidered and categorized Star Wars bottles as oversized liquids.
Food & Wine Is Here!
As I’ve mentioned several times over the past couple of years, the Epcot International Food & Wine Festival is one of my favorite times on the Disney calendar. The food kiosks during this event deliver exquisite food at modest prices. It’s like having an Earl of Sandwich every hundred feet at the World Showcase!
Alas, the 2019 version of the event has gotten overshadowed. The opening of Galaxy’s Edge has been the story for a while now, and the recent hurricane concerns have dominated headlines in recent days. Don’t overlook this festival, though!
As of August 29th, the Food & Wine Festival is back for its longest run ever! And the early reviews of the food are absolutely glowing. Somehow, Disney keeps surpassing its own previous accomplishments. You’ll want to visit the World Showcase as much as possible from now through Thanksgiving week! Please don’t forget about it just because other fascinating stuff is happening at Walt Disney World right now.
https://www.facebook.com/MickeyBlogCom/videos/386244058748839/