Hey there Disney fans! Another week has passed and boy do we have news updates for you.
Over the last few days, we’ve gotten MAJOR updates about Disney World’s 50th Anniversary celebrations, the new ticketed event INSIDE Disney California Adventure Park, and a whole bunch of awesome International Flower & Garden Festival updates. Let’s dive in so you can get totally caught up on all the BIGGEST Disney news you need to know about to prepare for your next trip (and even some Disney time at home — we’ll get to that in a second)!
1. SO MUCH Flower & Garden Festival News
The Taste of EPCOT International Flower & Garden Festival starts on March 3rd and we just can’t wait!! This week we’ve gotten some huge news about the Festival. First, the menus were announced for the food booths coming to the Festival. This year, there will be some brand NEW booths, including one that will be serving up dishes like Avocado Toast and Fried Cinnamon Roll Bites with candied bacon!!
There will also be some returning favorites like the Bon Bon Chicken Skewer with Sesame and Peanut Sauce at Lotus House.
Check out the EPCOT Flower and Garden menus here!
Aside from the menus, we also learned about a new concert experience coming to the Festival this year. We typically get the Garden Rocks concert series during the Flower & Garden Festival, but this year we’ll be getting something unique. Each weekend, there will actually be a series of concerts featuring local bands from Orlando.
The bands will be performing popular songs from “yesterday and today” at the America Gardens Theatre. We’re definitely interested to see this new offering, as well as all of the other entertainment coming to the festival.
Click here to learn about the new concert series.
This week, we also learned that a NEW Orange Bird souvenir cup is coming to the Festival (finally!)…
…and Disney announced that the Garden Graze Food Stroll is also returning!
If you get all of the food items and stamps as part of the stroll, you can actually get a FREE prize! So, be sure to look for that activity in your Festival Passport.
Click here to see more about the Flower & Garden Festival!
2. 50th Anniversary Celebrations Are Coming!
This year, Disney World is celebrating its 50th Anniversary. This week we got some BIG details about the celebrations. As part of the anniversary, each of the park icons will be getting a new look, special decorations, and/or a new nighttime lighting scheme.
Mickey & Minnie are also getting new costumes and a global ambassador has been announced for the anniversary.
The celebrations are set to begin on October 1st, 2021 and they will last for a whole 18 months(!!) which means we’ll be celebrating the 50th all the way into 2023! So, if you want to join in on the fun, you’ll have plenty of time.
Click here to check out more about the park icon mini-transformations!
3. ALL the Details About the NEW Event Coming to Disneyland
Disney California Adventure Park and Disneyland Park are currently closed, but soon Disney fans will have the chance to walk around Disney California Adventure Park, eat their favorite snacks, take special photos, and MORE. We already knew this event would be coming soon, but this week we got ALL the details. We now know that the event will be priced at $75 per person, and that includes a $25 dining card.
The event is set to take place starting on March 18th. As part of the event, Lamplight Lounge will be reopening AND characters will be coming back to greet guests!
The event will also feature a special soundtrack played throughout the park and LOTS of food spots will be open for guests to buy their favorite Disneyland snacks from.
Just keep in mind that because this event will basically take over the park, Buena Vista Street (which had previously opened as an extension of Downtown Disney) will be closing soon and will then only be available as part of the ticketed event.
This week it was also announced that Disneyland’s Grand Californian Hotel & Spa are also set to reopen later this summer. So, if you’re thinking of visiting Disneyland soon, there are quite a few changes coming!
Click here for more details on this California Adventure event!
4. Character Breakfast is Returning to Hollywood Studios
Little by little, character dining has returned in modified ways to Disney World. Character dining has already returned to Hollywood & Vine, but it has only been for lunch and dinner. But, soon that’s going to change. Character breakfast is coming back to Hollywood Studios at Hollywood & Vine!
And while Mickey & Friends will still greet guests during lunch and dinner, breakfast will be all about Disney Junior! Reservations opened up today, February 26th for breakfast, and the actual breakfasts will start taking place on March 22nd.
Click here for more information about the return of character breakfast to Hollywood Studios!
5. Ready for More Shows on Disney+?
Caught up on WandaVision? All done with Season 2 of The Mandalorian? No need to worry — there’s a LOT more content coming to Disney+ and now we know exactly when some of the most highly anticipated series will premiere!
This week Disney officially announced the premiere date for the new Loki series, the Big Shot series starring John Stamos, Star Wars: The Bad Batch, and more. So, get that popcorn ready — there’s lots more to watch!
Click here to check out these release dates!
And that’s some of the biggest news that’s been released this week. What other big stories were shared this week? Well, Disney has canceled select cruises through August, there’s a Magic Kingdom TV universe reportedly in development, fireworks are returning to Tokyo Disneyland, and new snacks and experiences themed to Raya and the Last Dragon have debuted in Animal Kingdom!
We’ll keep an eye out for more Disney news and updates and let you know what we see. Be sure to come back for all the latest!
Love the PeopleMover? Well, you might not be able to ride it for a little bit longer.
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Heather Sievers is DisneyFoodBlog’s Dining in Disneyland columnist! Check out more of her adventures at @DininginDisney on Instagram!
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