MickeyBlog News for August 7th, 2023
Hello, and welcome to year seven of MickeyBlog News!
That’s right, my friends! Our weekly news update turned six years old on August 4th!
You can glance back at the hot news of the day in August 2017, but Disney news never waits.
So, let’s talk about yet another big week for Disney in our 313th edition of MickeyBlog News!
Christmas at Disneyland
Okay, we’ll start with Christmas, even though Halloween will get some Disney love, too.
I’m leading with Disneyland Resort because all these updates are entirely new.
For whatever reason, the Parks Blog Announced Walt Disney World’s Yuletide schedule a month before the one at The Happiest Place on Earth.
So, we’re catching up now.
The big news is that the holidays officially begin on November 10th this year. They’ll also run longer than in recent years.
The final date for this year’s event is January 7th, which reflects that New Year’s Day falls on a Monday this year.
Disney has learned from the July 4th on a Tuesday issue this year and found a way to take full advantage of it.
Those of you who have spare vacation time can take advantage of spending the (late) holidays during the first week of January.
Based on past history, the parks will likely slow down as soon as January 3rd, giving you the run of the place for the rest of the week.
While you’re at Disneyland, you can celebrate various holidays like Christmas, Navidad, Diwali, Hanukkah, Kwanzaa, and Three Kings Day.Disney California Adventure (DCA) will feature tributes to all during its version of Festival of the Holidays.
As usual, you can get a Sip and Savor pass that will provide you with eight entitlements during your visit(s).
You exchange the entitlements for drinks and food at various Holiday Marketplaces and DCA restaurants.
Disney ¡Viva Navidad! will also return at Paradise Gardens Park, and DCA has promised character appearances by the Three Caballeros!
Other Disneyland Resort Festivities
Obviously, you can meet Santa Claus at several locations, and he’ll happily shout ho-ho-ho while taking a picture with you.
Note that Santa will only appear through Christmas Eve, though. After that, he has presents to deliver before he takes a hard-earned vacation.
Disney will also bring back its popular holiday ride overlays. You can expect all your favorites to return this year.
The full list includes Haunted Mansion Holiday, It’s a Small World, Luigi’s Joy to the Whirl, and Mater’s Jingle Jamboree.
As far as park decorations, the hub will be Sleeping Beauty’s Winter Castle, but at night, Disneyland will create “snow” in a few sections of the park, too.
Disney has promised that other characters like Mirabel from Encanto will appear at Disney California Adventure as well. And that’s not all!
According to the Parks Blog, you’ll spot “Mexican folklorico dancers and mariachis, Brazilian samba dancers and percussionists, giant mojiganga puppets and Mickey Mouse and Minnie Mouse.”
Disneyland will announce even more aspects of its holiday celebration over the next few weeks, but here’s what’s most important!
You’ll have nearly two months to enjoy the festivities, starting on November 10th!
I 100 percent support the idea of making Christmas a two-month event!
Halloween Comes First
What we didn’t expect was for Disney to accelerate the timeline. Magic Kingdom added Halloween decorations during the last week of July!
I’m a bigger fan of Halloween at the parks than pretty much anybody, and even I think that’s a bit early.
MickeyBlog has chronicled many of the decorations, starting with the beloved pumpkins at the front of Magic Kingdom. Click for pics!
Halloween accessories are now on sale at the parks as well, and Disney has announced other updates.
For starters, whether you’re ready for Halloween or not, you should be aware that the schedule for Happily Ever After performances will change soon.
Starting on Tuesday, the show will begin at 9 p.m. rather than its current 9:20 p.m.
So, if you’re at the parks right now, you can catch Happily Ever After tonight and tomorrow (Monday) night at 9:20 p.m. EST.
On Tuesday evening, that time changes to 9:00 p.m. EST. Since pretty much all nightly park behavior depends on the fireworks, please keep this in mind.
Disney also announced the performances for another show, one held during Mickey’s Not-So-Scary Halloween Party.
You can watch the Sanderson Sisters in the Hocus Pocus Villains Spelltacular at 8:35 p.m., 9:45 p.m., and midnight.
As a reminder, this event begins on August 11th, which is Friday! That’s why Disney has added park decorations for the fall so early.
The other big party news involves pop-up bands. You’ll find pirate musicians in Adventureland and Powerline Max playing on Main Street, U.S.A. at random intervals.
By the way, we’ll get another nightly presentation in November. Disney will bring back Tree of Life Awakenings at Disney’s Animal Kingdom.
Disney Miscellany
The holidays will remain the big story this week, but we do have some other news to relay.
For starters, Disney has cleaned up some of its transportation. You’ll find a splashy, remodeled Monorail Green and new colors for Friendship VIII.
The other Walt Disney World update is a bit silly, but I’m a fan of the band. So, I’m going with it.
In case you missed the story, the Bacon Brothers had to drop out of the Eat to the Beat concert series because Kevin Bacon is on strike.
He couldn’t perform a Disney gig with actors protesting the payment structure of studios like…Disney.
The Bacon Brothers dropped out with fairly late notice. But Disney found a worthy replacement anyway.
The Fray will perform at Eat to the Beat on August 13th and 14th instead. That’s a huge upgrade, and I wish I could be there.
The other update involves the former Steakhouse 55 at Disneyland Hotel.
Sadly, this restaurant won’t return, which we already knew. What we just learned is that Disney plans to convert it into a lounge instead.
Finally, Disney Cruise Line fans who love spa days should be aware of a change.
Starting on October 2nd, guests will make appointments for spa and salon services based on time blocks.
Okay, that’s it for now, but Mickey’s Not-So-Scary Halloween Party starts Friday. It’s gonna be a massive week, my friends!
Thanks for visiting MickeyBlog.com! Want to go to Disney? For a FREE quote on your next Disney vacation, please fill out the form below, and one of the agents from MickeyTravels, a Diamond Level Authorized Disney Vacation Planner, will be in touch soon!