WOW WOW WOW. What a week it has been for Disney news!

We’ve got some BIG updates on a new ride and a new restaurant coming to Disney World THIS YEAR(!!); a whole park (a water park that is) has reopened at Disney World; we got a sneak peek at the Spider-Man ride in Avengers Campus and MORE!

We aren’t kidding — this was QUITE the week for Disney news. Let’s dive into all the stories you need to know.

1. We Have an OPENING DATE for Remy’s Ratatouille Adventure and More

This year, Disney World is celebrating its 50th Anniversary beginning October 1st. And now it looks like Remy’s Ratatouille Adventure and more of the France expansion in EPCOT will be getting in on the anniversary fun!

This week, Disney officially announced that Remy’s Ratatouille Adventure will be opening on October 1st, 2021!

But, that’s not all. La Crêperie de Paris, a new crêpe restaurant coming as part of this expanded area, will also be opening on October 1st!

We’ve already gotten to walk through some of the France expansion area, and we cannot wait to explore all of it once it is fully open. But, Park Pass reservations for October 1st, and even October 2nd, are starting to fill up. So, if you’re thinking of visiting right when these new things open, be sure to book your Park Passes as soon as you can!

Click here to see videos and photos INSIDE the France expansion area!

2. FIRST LOOK at Moana Rooms Coming to the Polynesian

Last year, Disney’s Polynesian Village Resort delayed its reopening in order to refurbish parts of the hotel. As part of the refurbishment, guest rooms at the Polynesian will be getting a Moana-inspired makeover. And just a few days ago, we got a FIRST LOOK at these new rooms! 

The rooms are truly beautiful! They have little touches from the film throughout, some of which you’ll have to do a bit of digging to discover — like this Hei Hei by the coffee maker.

Reservations are already available for the Moana-inspired rooms for later this year. So, if you absolutely MUST stay in one of these new rooms when they open, be sure to make your reservations well in advance.

Click here to see more photos of the Moana rooms at the Polynesian!

3. Blizzard Beach is OPEN

These past few days, we also saw an entire PARK reopen at Disney World…Blizzard Beach Water Park! We were there on its opening day to see what being in this reopened water park was like.

We got to check out the unique way they are handling refillable mugs, eat a whole BUCKET of ice cream, and more. We also got to experience the water park face mask policy and shared all our thoughts with you on what it was like to wear a mask in Blizzard Beach.

Blizzard Beach is the only Disney World water park that is currently open. We’ll definitely be on the lookout for any big changes there and any news from Disney’s other water park — Typhoon Lagoon.

Click here to see what Blizzard Beach is like now!

4. Use Your Phone As Your MagicBand

Disney is no longer providing free MagicBands to its hotel guests, but you can still use old MagicBands for your future trips, buy new ones, or just skip using a MagicBand altogether. And while your phone can now do some of the things your MagicBand can do (like open your hotel room door), it can’t do some of the other features, like scan you into the park. At least, it can’t do that…yet. 

Disney just announced that soon guests will have a new way to manage part of their vacation — the MagicMobile service. The MagicMobile service will offer contactless access to MagicBand features right from your personal device!

You’ll even be able to add a MagicMobile pass to your digital wallet, which you can then tap at access points, like to enter the Disney World theme parks. MagicBands aren’t going away right now, so there’s no need to worry about that. But, MagicMobile will offer guests more flexibility in terms of how they want to handle their trips.

Click here to check out more about the MagicMobile system!

5. Disneyland Hopes to Reopen Soon

And, finally, we head over to the West Coast for our final piece of big news. Recently, we learned that due to a change in certain rules and regulations, Disneyland could open as soon as April 1st. While we still haven’t gotten an exact opening date yet, this week Disney shared that they’re hoping to open Disneyland by late April!

This is HUGE news. Disneyland’s theme parks have been closed in California since March of last year. The Downtown Disney District has been able to reopen, and Buena Vista Street also reopened as an expansion of Downtown Disney. Disney California Adventure Park is also set to reopen as part of a special ticketed event. But the theme parks have not been able to truly reopen in full as theme parks, with rides and the full experience.

When Disneyland’s theme parks reopen, however, there will be various restrictions including capacity restrictions. Additionally, California residents will be the only guests permitted to attend the reopened parks. We’re keeping an eye out for an official opening date announcement, and we will let you know as soon as we see one!

Click here to see more about Disney’s hope to reopen Disneyland in late April.

And those are just some of the BIGGEST stories that happened this week. What else happened that you might not know about? Well, this week we also get a closer look at the new Spider-Man ride coming to Avengers Campus. And we heard an update about the number of subscribers Disney+ has now (spoiler alert: it’s a LOT). 

We also got some details about a Magic Kingdom staple that will be closed for a lengthy refurbishment soon, Park Passes filling up BIG TIME for spring break, and confirmation that Bob Iger will be stepping away from the Disney company at the end of the year.

We even got updates on the airport train to Disney World and a potential delay there.

We told you, it’s been a BUSY week! We’ll continue to keep an eye out for all of the BIG Disney updates you need to know and share them with you. Stay tuned to DFB for more Disney news!

Click here to see the latest updates on Disney Cruise Line and when we could be sailing again!

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When are you planning to visit Disney World or Disneyland next? Let us know in the comments.

The post 2 BIG Opening Dates and a FIRST LOOK at the Moana Hotel Rooms — The 5 Latest Disney News Drops! first appeared on the disney food blog.