IT’S TIME! We’re back again with a roundup of all of the new updates we got at Disney World this week.

You might be wondering just how many things could possibly happen at Disney World in just a week, but the answer is A LOT. We’re at Disney World every single day keeping track of all of the changes — big and small. While we couldn’t possibly include all of these things in just ONE post, we can show you all some of our favorite updates. You ready? Let’s go! 

We’ll start over at Disney’s BoardWalk.

Something NEW is at Cake Bake Shop!

The Cake Bake Shop has been under construction for a while now, and progress has been a bit slow-going. However, during a recent visit to the BoardWalk, we spotted a HUGE update.

Yep, the restaurant now has SIGNS up. The restaurant’s logo is designed in gold on a white background. Faaaancy! We spotted two large signs on either end of the building. They don’t look to be complete just yet, surrounded by unfinished supports. Based on the holes above the signs, we’re wondering if Disney will add lights to illuminate the lettering at night.

We love how they look and can’t wait for the shop to open!

Click here to see what else is new at the Disney World hotels! 

We were EXCITED to see an EPCOT wall!

we were walking by Dreamers Point in World Celebration and noticed that the walls there that had previously been covered are now UNCOVERED. That’s one more construction wall GONE. YAY! This is what it looks like now! 

Here’s a close-up of what the walls look like. The design is VERY EPCOT, we think. It also looks like there are some speakers or something embedded into the wall — we see these little breaks in the design and underneath, it LOOKS like it might be speakers?

However, that’s one more thing crossed off the list of the EPCOT transformation. The entire transformation will be complete when CommuniCore Hall and CommuniCore Plaza open on June 10th.

Click here to see what else is new in EPCOT

The candelabra is BACK at the Haunted Mansion! 

Not long after the installation of the Hatbox Ghost in the Haunted Mansion attraction at Magic Kingdom, we noticed that the floating candelabra in the Endless Hallway scene was MISSING. Just last month, we were beginning to worry that change was permanent. Fortunately, we can gladly report that is NOT the case!

Recently, we rode the Haunted Mansion and noticed the floating candelabra is BACK in the Endless Hallway! The floating candelabra is an optical illusion in the Haunted Mansion attractions at Magic Kingdom, Tokyo Disneyland, and Disneyland Park, as well as in Phantom Manor in Disneyland Paris.

In the Haunted Mansion, the candelabra is carried by a ghost and seems like it is floating. This effect is created through mirrors and forced perspective. The mirrors give off the impression of an endless hallway while the candelabra is connected to a mirror and motor to create that floating effect. We’re SO excited it’s back!

Click here to see what else is new at Magic Kingdom

Of course, that’s not all that happened! There are plenty of things that happen every single day at Disney World. Check out EVERYTHING by clicking through the links below! Our reporters and writers keep these pages updated with all the latest things that take place in the parks — from merchandise drops to new menu items. See for yourself!

We’ll be sure to keep you updated with more Disney news, so make sure to follow along so that you don’t miss a thing.

Looking for more big Disney World news? Click here! 

What do you think of these big Disney World updates? Let us know in the comments! 

The post These 3 Disney World Updates Are PROOF It’s All In the Details ✨ first appeared on the disney food blog.

Disney Legend Richard M. Sherman passes away, “Fantasmic!” returned with an updated finale (and no dragon), Disney released a Stanley-inspired Pirates of the Caribbean tumbler, crews added foliage to the Tiana’s Bayou Adventure entrance, and “Inside Out 2” is expected to have a big box office — all this and more in today’s daily recap for Saturday, May 25, 2024.

Walt Disney World

Magic Kingdom

• Tiana’s Bayou Adventure has gained more fake foliage and fresh paint, just one month before its opening.

Disney’s Hollywood Studios

• “Inside Out 2” concept art and maquettes are on display at Walt Disney Presents and a sneak peek is playing in the theater.

Typhoon Lagoon

• A woman is suing Walt Disney World alleging that she suffered a brain injury on the Humunga Cowabunga body slide because lifeguards are not stationed at the end of water park rides.

New Merchandise

• A new Pirates of the Caribbean tumbler resembles a trendy Stanley.
• Pandora released new “Deadpool & Wolverine,” “The Lion King,” Mickey & Friends, and “Alice in Wonderland” charms.

Disneyland Resort

• “Fantasmic!” has returned to Disneyland over one year after a fire destroyed the Maleficent dragon figure. The show has an updated finale and the “Peter Pan” sequence returned.
• A limited edition “Bicoastal Adventures” Astro Orbitor pin is available at Disneyland.
• Check out our latest Haunted Mansion construction update as work continues on expanding the attraction’s ground (and story).
• A rainbow Pride Spider-Bot has arrived at Avengers Campus.
• More details have been added to Tiana’s Bayou Adventure at Disneyland Park.

Tokyo Disney Resort

• A building is taking shape for the new Space Mountain at Tokyo Disneyland.

Entertainment and Media

• Disney Legend Richard M. Sherman passed away today at the age of 95. His exemplary career as half of the Sherman Brothers spanned half a century.

• “Inside Out 2” is expected to have the biggest box office of the year to date, which would mark a big win for Disney and Pixar post-COVID-19 shutdowns.

WDW News Today

Fantasmic! Returns to Disneyland After Fire with Peter Pan and Altered Maleficent Finale

That’s it for today; we hope you enjoyed this Daily Recap. Thanks for stopping by, and we’ll see you tomorrow!

The post Richard Sherman Passes Away, Full ‘Fantasmic!’ Show & More: Daily Recap (5/25/24) appeared first on WDW News Today.

While Tiana’s Bayou Adventure is a month away from opening at Walt Disney World, the Disneyland version still has a few months of construction to go. This week, we noticed more flowers and foliage on the ride’s façade.

Tiana’s Bayou Adventure Construction

Several crew members were on or around the ride flume on this side of the mountain. Flower-covered vines now wrap around the themed supports for the track.

Vines also wind up the legs of the Tiana’s Foods water tower. New to the area are shrubs with pink flowers around the base of the tower and on the cliffside.

We saw one crew member installing more shrubs of pink flowers near the ride’s drop.

Speaking of the drop, we peeked inside the mountain’s opening, but couldn’t see much. The two lights on the left look like work lights. The wooden fencing around that corner is temporary for crew members.

Another crew member was atop a rocky outcropping that’s still gray. It will be repainted the same reddish-brown as the rest of the rockwork and then decorated with fake foliage.

Black tarps hang from the front of the millhouse. In our previous update, we noted that roofing had been removed from the building.

Some shingles have been replaced on the left side.

Tarps are taped to the front of the mill. In Florida, the planks in this section were painted green.

Some guests have seen water and ride vehicle testing at the attraction in the afternoons and evenings. We didn’t see any testing during our most recent trip.

Tarps on temporary fences enclose this section of the flume, visible from the Mark Twain Riverboat.

From the Riverboat, we also saw several more crew members right behind construction walls. Three stood on top of a dirt pile, surveying the area.

A nearby tree is blocked off by scrim. One crew member was in a construction vehicle, possibly a digger.

A few yards away, there are spray-paint marks on the cliff wall. These may mark spots that will get theming or that will be demolished.

Most of Critter Country closed for construction work, including turning part of Pooh Corner into Louis’ Critter Club and The Briar Patch into Ray’s Berets.

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Crews are constructing a new building on the Universal Studios Florida lagoon, presumably for the upcoming “CineSational” lagoon show.

Universal Studios Florida ‘CineSational’ Lagoon Show Structure

Earlier this month, we saw a new platform in this section of the lagoon, located in front of the Starbucks in the park’s New York area. Several crew members were actively working on the platform when we visited on Thursday and it now has cinderblock walls.

We viewed construction from the recently reopened Central Park. The structure is an extension of the dock. Temporary wooden railings are around the edge and yellow barriers in the water keep stray construction materials from floating away.

“CineSational: A Symphonic Spectacular” will “celebrate the emotional power of music by leveraging the iconic scores and scenes from blockbuster films that have inspired Universal Orlando’s past, present, and future attractions.” Featured IPs will include “Harry Potter,” “Jurassic World,” “Jaws,” “Shrek,” “Ghostbusters,” “Trolls,” “Back to the Future,” “Universal Monsters,” “Transformers,” “How to Train Your Dragon,” “E.T.,” “Fast and Furious,” “The Super Mario Bros. Movie,” “Minions,” “The Mummy,” and “King Kong.” The nighttime spectacular will use over 600 drones, 228 fountains, 4K projection mapping, and a new score.

Universal Orlando Resort has not offered a nighttime lagoon show since 2022. The Halloween Horror Nights show Ghoulish: A Halloween Tale was canceled after a hurricane damaged the projectors around the lagoon. In 2023, Universal announced that Universal Orlando’s Cinematic Celebration would not return and a new show would take its place.

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A lawsuit filed in Orange County, FL alleges that Walt Disney World Resort failed “to warn of any dangerous conditions about which it knew or should have known about” on the Humunga Kowabunga waterslide at Disney’s Typhoon Lagoon. The “dangerous conditions” alleged in the suit are that there are “no lifeguards at the end of water park rides.”

The suit, filed by Laura Reyes-Merino, claims that on May 11, 2024, the plaintiff “went tubing on the Humunga Kowabunga ride but at some point went unconscious after banging inside the ride.” Humunga Kowabunga is a 214-foot-long body slide that does not use tubes.

Her mother and fiancé found her “limp body at the end of the ride and frantically asked the attendants to help.” The attendants “were not lifeguards and would have to find lifeguards to help.” A lifeguard arrived and called an ambulance. The suit claims that if Disney “had lifeguards at the end of the ride … the plaintiff’s brain injury would not have occurred as she wouldn’t have been drowning in the water coughing up blood.” How exactly a lifeguard at the end of the ride would have prevented the rider from going “unconscious after banging inside the ride” is not explained.

This lawsuit comes on the heels of one filed by Emma and Edward McGuinness against Walt Disney Parks and Resorts over a 2019 incident in which Emma McGuinness suffered a “painful wedgie” on the same slide.

You can read the full text of the lawsuit for all of the details.

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Five months ago, foundation work had begun on the new Space Mountain at Tokyo Disneyland. Now, the skeleton of a large circular building is taking shape.

New Space Mountain Construction

Behind the current ride, a patch of land has been set aside for the new attraction. Three cranes tower over the new structure. One side is round, with steel beams surrounded by scaffolding.

On the right are more squared sections. Paneling to enclose the building has not yet been installed. There are openings for construction vehicles to move in and out of the space.

Dozens of pieces of plywood cover the ground around the construction site, which was previously a Cast Member parking lot.

The shape of the building as it currently stands roughly reflects how the new building will look, as seen in concept art (below). However, most of the final shape will come from decorative white paneling.

The current version of Space Mountain, which is a clone of the Disneyland version, will close permanently on July 31, 2024. Tokyo Disneyland is honoring the old ride with Celebrating Space Mountain: The Final Ignition featuring a themed sparkling jelly drink, decorations, a photo op, and farewell merchandise. The exit queue teases the new iteration.

The Oriental Land Company announced the new version in 2022 and it’s scheduled to open in 2027. OLC is spending ¥56 billion ($437 million) on the attraction, which is rumored to be named “Space Mountain Earthrise.” Crews began clearing the construction site in late 2022 and OLC held a groundbreaking ceremony in May 2023.

The original Space Mountain opened at Magic Kingdom in 1975. The Disneyland version opened in 1977, the Tokyo Disneyland version opened with the park in 1983, the Disneyland Paris version opened in 1995 (originally as De la Terre à la Lune before becoming Star Wars Hyperspace Mountain), and the Hong Kong Disneyland version opened with the park in 2005 (later becoming Hyperspace Mountain).

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