If you haven’t checked out the latest Disney news, you’ve got a LOT to catch up on!
A NEW restaurant has opened in Disney World, 4 more Food & Wine Festival Booths have arrived in EPCOT, and a Skyliner closure has been announced for 2023. This week has been a busy one, so let’s catch up on all the news you need to know right here.
1 — BoardWalk Deli Opens
Over at Disney’s BoardWalk, the brand NEW BoardWalk Deli restaurant has opened, officially taking over the BoardWalk Bakery spot.
This spot is open for breakfast, lunch, and dinner (with lunch and dinner sharing the same menu).
There are bagels, sandwiches, pastries, and much more. We, of course, had to check out LOTS of food from here to give you our full thoughts.
To see our FULL REVIEW of the breakfast menu click here!
For a FULL REVIEW of lunch click here!
You can also click here to see details about the restaurant generally. Don’t forget that other changes are coming to the BoardWalk area soon, so we’ll be on the lookout for more updates there.
2 — MORE Food & Wine Festival Booths Are Open
Over at EPCOT, the 4 Food & Wine Festival booths that did not open initially with the start of the Festival are now up and ready for business!
Click here to see our full review of the now open Noodle Exchange booth! Spoiler: you’re NOT ready for the spice!
Want our honest thoughts on the Mac and Cheese booth? Click here!
The Hawai’i booth is also open now, and it does NOT miss! Click here for our full review!
And finally, the Coastal Eats booth has also opened and it might very well be one of the BEST booths at the Festival! See our full review here.
To see every single one of our Food & Wine Festival booth reviews click here. And you can also check out our guide to the Festival with videos and photos from our first day there.
Click here to see our picks for the food and drink items at the Food & Wine Festival that you MUST try!
3 — FULL Look at Mickey’s Not-So-Scary Halloween Party (and Other Spooky News)
Last week on Friday we got the chance to attend the FIRST Mickey’s Not-So-Scary Halloween Party of 2022 and take you along for the ride! We checked out all of the merchandise, shared a look at the party-exclusive map, grabbed one of the NEW reusable treat bags, found some FULL-size candy, admired guest costumes, and MORE.
To learn about how rides CHANGE during the party, you can click here. You can also see full details about how a rain check could save your night, get a look at the crowds, check out the entertainment, see Max Goof as Powerline(!!), and even get a FULL review of the fireworks dessert party offered there. Plus, see why you should arrive early to the party.
Click here to see ALL the details about our time at Mickey’s Not-So-Scary Halloween Party
Not going to the party? No worries! There are a bunch of Halloween treats you can pick up in Magic Kingdom during daytime hours, including a pumpkin cupcake, a drink that may tempt you to cheat on Pumpkin Spice Latte, a Hocus Pocus treat, and a soft serve that had YOU divided!
You can also grab a popular Halloween popcorn bucket in the park, and admire the Mickey Halloween wreaths that have RETURNED!
Click here to see ALL of our reviews of the 2022 fall and Halloween snacks
And click here to see ALL of the Halloween merchandise you can get online!
4 — Reopenings and Closures
Though many things have been open in Disney World for quite some time following the COVID-19 closures and reopenings in 2020, some things had remained closed or had reopened and later closed (due to supply chain issues or other things). But now things are starting to change! This week we got some exciting reopening news for some things, and some closure alerts for others.
In Magic Kingdom, a store that has been closed for a LONG time over in Tomorrowland (Merchant of Venus) has reopened, but it has CHANGED. The store is no longer a store! Now, it serves as a sort-of cooldown, relaxation, and eating area.
Also in Magic Kingdom, the Winnie the Pooh and Tigger meet-and-greet is back!
At both Disney’s Hollywood Studios and Disneyland, the iconic Fuzzy Tauntaun drink is back at Oga’s Cantina in Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge! While we didn’t notice any changes in the Disneyland version, the Disney World version has undergone some changes! You can read our full review of it here.
Also at Disney’s Hollywood Studios, a shop has reopened after closing due to supply issues, so be prepared to get your shopping on!
At the Disney World hotels, Kona Cafe has closed at Disney’s Polynesian Village Resort for a scheduled refurbishment. It is expected to reopen in the fall of 2022. Click here to learn more about where you’ll find food at this hotel in the meantime.
And finally, Disney has announced that the Skyliner will be closing temporarily in 2023 — from January 22nd to 29th, 2023. It will impact several hotels and parks so be sure to keep that in mind when planning your trips.
We’ll continue to keep an eye out for more news on closures and reopenings all throughout Disney World.
5 — MagicBand+ Updates
And finally, we have some MagicBand+ news. Disney has contacted some guests who ordered MagicBand+ devices in connection with their upcoming trips about how their MagicBand+ devices won’t arrive on time. Some of those experiencing these delays may be offered a REFUND and even a Disney digital gift card to compensate them for their troubles. Keep an eye out for any emails of this sort that might impact your trip.
And finally, LOTS of new MagicBand+ designs dropped online, so if you’ve been hoping to pick one up, NOW might be the time!
Of course, other news was also shared this week. Click the links below to learn more:
- Disneyland Magic Key Pass renewal information (and price increases) were announced, and the renewals went live online
- COVID-19 vaccine rules are changing for Disney Cruise Line
- A Big Thunder Mountain Railroad Movie has been announced for Disney
- One major U.S. airline is cutting thousands of flights this fall
- A Southwest Airlines deal could get you cheap flights to Disney World
- What should you expect from the rest of the hurricane season in Disney World?
- New Starbucks tumbler designs dropped online
And that’s it for this week’s news! Check back with us for more updates.
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What news from this week was most interesting to you? Tell us in the comments.
Sam Spencer says
I wrote to customer service about status of my magicband+ order and possible refund or credit and they said only those who had reservations before Aug 15 were getting that email and offer and suggested I just talk to front desk when I arrive if I have not received my bands before my trip on 9/1.