Orlando Florida Information

Anheuser-Busch was recently gobbled up by Inbev, to make one of the biggest brewers in the world. What has this got to do with Orlando Florida you may ask? Well, along with Inbev getting their hands on the Anheuser-Busch beer brands, they also now own a clutch of theme parks. This article covers the story pretty well, stating that Inbev could get up to $3bn for the sale of the Seaworld and Busch Gardens theme parks. Lets face it with companies finding it difficult to raise cash from banks and theme parks not really being part of the “core” Inbev strategy you can understand why they may want to offload them. It is suggested that Inbev may look to offload the parks as soon as Summer 2009.

Who would be interested in the parks?

So, who would be interested in buying the Seaworld and Busch parks. It has been hinted that Merlin Entertainments Group from the UK would be interested. They have a clutch of parks in the UK including Alton Towers, as well as its Sealife Centres (which are aquariums not theme parks) dotted around Europe. They also own a number of Legoland parks in the US.

What about a counter-bid from the current management of the theme parks, or maybe a direct purchase from the Busch family? We can’t forget Disney and Universal in all of this, but is it likely that the two Orlando giants would be looking to expand at the start of an economic downturn?

From a personal perspective I guess that whoever takes over has a responsibility to maintain the high level of welfare that is shown to the animals in the parks, as well as maintaining the conservation work that is carried out by the Seaworld & Busch Gardens Conservation Fund.

Universal Orlando have put out details for the 2008 Christmas festivities that will be taking place at Universal Studios and Islands of Adventure this year. A few of the traditional attractions at the parks (Blues Brothers, Barney) will be getting a Christmas flavor for the holidays, along with the return of some old favorites. The main one being the return of the Grinch in the now traditional “How the Grinch Stole Christmas” show, one of my favorite shows at the parks over the holidays.

Christmas Events at Universal Studios

Macy’s Holiday Parade

Every night at dusk

Head to the New York streets of Universal Studios for Macy’s Holiday Parade! This seasonal favorite features authentic floats and balloons (including several brand new ones this year) direct from the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade® in New York City. You’ll also enjoy festive street performers and talented marching bands from around the country, and of course Santa Claus himself. Afterwards stay for a spectacular tree lighting ceremony with music and a dazzling display of lights.

KidZone Holiday Show

Join your character friends as they dance to holiday hits in this live show.

Barney’s Christmas Show

Join Barney and his friends for a magical sing-along, clap-along show at A Day In The Park With Barney™.

Blues Brothers Christmas Show

Add some rock and roll to your Christmas with the Blues Brothers! Catch them live, performing holiday favorites like “Santa Claus is Coming To Town” and “Blue Christmas” with snow on Delancey Street at the end of each show.

Universal 360 - A Cinesphere Spectacular

Dec 26 – Dec 31 • At the end of every night

Wrap up your day at Universal Studios with the big Hollywood finish of Universal 360–A Cinesphere Spectacular.

Through the unique “Cinesphere” technology you’ll experience the sights and sounds of some of Hollywood’s biggest films projected onto huge spheres in the Universal Studios lagoon, plus one of the largest laser displays in Florida, dazzling pyrotechnics and more.

It’s the most explosive, jaw-dropping cinematic adventure you’ve ever seen!

Christmas Events at Islands of Adventure

Grinchmas™

Join in the fun at Islands of Adventure as Seuss Landing™ is once again transformed into the wintry wonderland of Grinchmas™… featuring our incredibly popular live musical performance of “How The Grinch Stole Christmas.” This hilarious and heart-warming live show stars The Grinch™ himself and features music recorded by Mannheim Steamroller, along with a whole town full of singing and dancing Whos. Then stroll around the Whoville Wonky Tree Lot and take in the whimsical Wholiday decorations.

Meet The Grinch

Get an autograph, shake his hand, or have your photo taken with the mean, green one himself for a one-of-a-kind holiday memento!

Mannheim Steamroller

Live in Concert at Universal Studios®
Saturday, Dec. 6, 2008
Show times: 6:00 pm & 8:00 pm

Kick off the holiday season with the unmistakable sound of Mannheim Steamroller. On Saturday, December 6th, catch Mannheim Steamroller as they perform for the first time ever at Universal Studios®.

Enjoy a special LIVE concert of their world-renowned holiday music as Mannheim Steamroller celebrates the release of their newest CD, Christmasville. It’s all part of the one-of-a-kind holiday festivities your family can experience at Universal Orlando® Resort.

Mannheim Steamroller will have two bands touring the country this Holiday Season, but this will be Chip Davis’ only scheduled appearance.

City Walk also features its annual New Years celebration. This year ’70s group The Doobie Brothers will bidding so-long to 2008.

Click here for the official site for Christmas at Universal Studios and Islands of Adventure Orlando Florida.

We discussed the Kim Possible World Showcase Adventure a while ago now. It has been confirmed that this will be rolled-out in early 2009 to all visitors to Epcot.

Disney and Verizon have also announced that they will be bringing further services to visitors to the park. Some examples have been delivery of up-to-minute news about what events are going on around the parks with updates sent direct to your cell. I guess one thing that would really excite me would be fastpass updates and ride wait times that I could check on the fly. Any other suggestions, then drop them in the comments.

November 12, 2008 - Marking a first in both the travel and mobile industries, Walt Disney Parks and Resorts and Verizon are teaming up for a multi-year relationship designed to enhance the guest experience – before, during and after guests arrive at Walt Disney World Resort and Disneyland Resort.  This alignment allows guests to have a personal tour guide right in their wireless phones along with reliable new services at the parks. Early next year guests will also use Verizon Wireless’ technology when experiencing Disney’s Kim Possible World Showcase Adventure, an ultra-interactive attraction coming to Epcot in Walt Disney World Resort.

“With more than 90 percent of families bringing a mobile phone into our Parks, our objective was to enhance the magical Disney experience through innovative wireless technology,” said Jay Rasulo, Chairman, Walt Disney Parks and Resorts.  “Imagine receiving up to the minute tips on special Park activities with just the touch of a button or receiving a call from Buzz Lightyear welcoming you to the Magic Kingdom.”

Beginning next year, guests will be able to access an array of features on their Verizon Wireless phones while at the Walt Disney World or Disneyland Resort to help them make the most of their Disney experiences.  Planned services include an exclusive mobile application that will give guests with Verizon Wireless service the ability to easily locate shows, restaurants and the Disney characters anywhere inside the Parks; get real-time attraction availability information; access mobile games; receive messages from characters and more. Verizon Wireless is also continuing to invest in its wireless network from coast to coast, and the relationship with Disney means the wireless users will benefit from further enhancements to the Verizon Wireless network in the Parks.

John Harrobin, senior vice president of digital media and marketing for Verizon, said, “All of our efforts focus on one goal: making the Disney experience even better for our customers.  There are few life experiences that are more memorable than visiting a Disney Park, and now guests with Verizon Wireless service will unlock even more magic from their visit – by navigating the Parks easier and faster with instant access to key information such as ‘Where’s Mickey now?’ and other special features – even when they travel home and share their experiences with family and friends.”

In addition, guests visiting Epcot in Walt Disney World Resort in early 2009 will be among the first to experience Disney’s Kim Possible World Showcase Adventure.  An ultra-interactive attraction, Kim Possible World Showcase Adventure invites guests of all ages to team up with members of Team Possible to save the world from various comical villains and their mad inventions.  Armed with an official Verizon Wireless “Kimmunicator,” guests will use these handheld devices to help maneuver through the mission.  The interactive wireless theme park game was inspired by Disney Channel’s Emmy® Award-winning animated series, “Kim Possible.”

While Verizon Wireless customers will have exclusive access to an array of enhanced features, Disney and Verizon are also working to ensure that some mobile information such as dining locations, show times and locations will be available to all Parks visitors, regardless of their wireless company.

Additional details will be available next year as the companies expect to add a suite of services and functionalities to help guests at Disney Parks have the most magical experience.  For more information about Walt Disney Parks and Resorts, visit www.disney.com.  For more information about Verizon, visit www.verizon.com.

Disney Parks and Resorts – Taking Guests to New Frontiers

The agreement between Disney and Verizon is another step in a series of new initiatives that highlight the latest technologies from Disney Parks and Resorts with a continued focus on improving guest experience and providing immersive entertainment. Disney Parks and Resorts continue to exemplify how technologies can be used to build new connections and redefine how guests plan and enjoy their vacations.  From the time guests begin planning their vacation using Walt Disney World Resort in 3D on Google Earth or tuning into Disney Travel on Demand, the experience is designed to make their lives easier.  Guests can take their vacation experience to a new level with Kim Possible World Showcase Adventure, an interactive wireless theme park game for families, and by personalizing and sharing their Disney experiences when they return home, using DisneyLink, a desktop application.

With the credit crunch taking hold, Walt Disney World are trying to entice would-be visitors with some pretty decent offers.

Top of the tree at the moment appears to be the “Buy 4 Get 3 Free” deal, where you pay for four days room and tickets at a Disney World Resort hotel, and you’ll get another 3 free.

Not suprisingly, this is a limited offer that runs between between 1/4 - 1/9, 1/19 - 3/26 and 4/24 - 6/2. So if you can be super-flexible about the resort you’d like to stay in and when you can visit, you’ll likely grab a bargain.

See the deal here…

The official lineup for the 2008 Super Soap Weekend has finally been announced, and the confirmation that Susan Lucci will be attending this years event. She has the distinction of being the only actor to attend every Super Soap event which has been running since 1996.

As this is the last time that the weekend will be held exclusively in Orlando, Florida it’s great that Lucci who had been appearing in “Dancing with the Stars!” can make the last weekend.

The lineup is as follows:

All My Children
Susan Lucci (Erica Kane) (Saturday ONLY!)
Rebecca Budig (Greenlee Smythe)
Bobbie Eakes (Krystal Martin)
Melissa Claire Egan (Annie Lavery)
Ricky Paull Goldin (Jake Martin)
Vincent Irizarry
Thorsten Kaye (Zach Slater)
Cameron Mathison (Ryan Lavery)
Alicia Minshew (Kendall Hart Slater)
Eden Riegel (Bianca Montgomery)
Aiden Turner (Aidan Devane)
Darnell Williams (Jesse Hubbard)

One Life to Live
Kristen Alderson (Starr Manning)
Brandon Buddy (Cole Thornhart)
Kassie DePaiva (Blair Cramer)
Michael Easton (John McBain)
Farah Fath (Gigi Morasco)
Susan Haskell (Marty Saybrooke)
John-Paul Lavoisier (Rex Balsom)
Erika Slezak (Viki Davidson)
Jason Tam (Markko Rivera)
Brittany Underwood (Langston Wilde)
Bree Williamson (Jessica/Tess Buchanan)

General Hospital
Bradford Anderson (Damian Spinelli)
Brandon Barash (Johnny Zacchara)
Julie Marie Berman (Lulu Spencer)
Tyler Christopher (Nikolas Cassadine)
Jason Cook (Matt Hunter)
Rebecca Herbst (Elizabeth Webber)
Kimberly McCullough
Kelly Monaco (Samantha McCall)
Kirsten Storms (Maxie Jones)
Jason Thompson (Patrick Drake)
Greg Vaughan
Laura Wright (Carly Jax)

Official Release from Disney:

BURBANK, Calif. — “All My Children” and “Dancing with the Stars’” Susan Lucci is confirmed to attend the ABC-SOAPnet Super Soap Weekend on Nov. 15-16, 2008, at Disney’s Hollywood Studios at Walt Disney World Resort in Lake Buena Vista, Fla., presented by Colgate Total.  Lucci holds the unique distinction of being the only ABC Daytime star to attend the event every year since it began in 1996.  Sherri Shepherd, “The View” co-host, will return to the event for the second consecutive year and reunite with her Daytime Emmy Awards co-host, Cameron Mathison, to host the Colgate Total Street Jam.  Also joining the list are “All My Children’s” Vincent Irizarry and “General Hospital’s” Kimberly McCullough and Greg Vaughan.

The complete lineup of talent includes 36 of ABC Daytime’s most popular stars.  As previously announced, the list from “All My Children” includes Rebecca Budig, Bobbie Eakes, Melissa Claire Egan, Ricky Paull Goldin, Thorsten Kaye, Alicia Minshew, Eden Riegel, Aiden Turner and Darnell Williams.  The talent from “One Life to Live” includes Kristen Alderson, Brandon Buddy, Kassie DePaiva, Michael Easton, Farah Fath, Susan Haskell, John-Paul Lavoisier, Erika Slezak, Jason Tam, Brittany Underwood and Bree Williamson.  The list from “General Hospital” includes Bradford Anderson, Brandon Barash, Julie Berman, Tyler Christopher, Jason Cook, Rebecca Herbst, Kelly Monaco, Kirsten Storms, Jason Thompson and Laura Wright.  Due to Susan Lucci’s “Dancing with the Stars” schedule, at this time she will be participating in the event only on Saturday.

As previously announced, this year will mark the last Super Soap Weekend in Orlando, as the ABC’s Daytime Division embarks on the 2009 Soap Nation Tour, a collection of nationwide events designed for interaction with fans on a year-round basis, offering greater access to stars in more cities, more often.  The final Walt Disney World weekend will be dedicated to the fans with special retrospectives and exclusive productions, including special trivia and commemorative clip packages honoring the 45th anniversary of “General Hospital,” the 40th anniversary of “One Life to Live,” “All My Children’s” 10,000th episode and past Super Soap Weekends.  Super Soap Weekend will become more interactive than ever with the introduction of new mobile programs and text trivia. A special musical number will be developed for Colgate Total Street Jam that honors the final event as well.

Throughout the weekend, fans will have the opportunity to meet favorite stars from “All My Children,” “One Life to Live” and “General Hospital.”  Festivities include celebrity motorcades, autograph sessions, game shows, interviews and the chance to purchase one-of-a-kind memorabilia from each of the shows.  The Colgate Total Street Jam will close the event each day with live musical performances by some favorite Daytime stars.

ABC-SOAPnet Super Soap Weekend is included with theme park admission to Disney’s Hollywood Studios – where guests of all ages are caught up in the glitz, glamour and excitement of show business.  For future updates and more information about ABC-SOAPnet Super Soap Weekend, guests may call the Super Soap Hotline recording at 407/397-6808, or visit soapnet.com.

Every little girl loves Tinker Bell, and if you’re visiting the Magic Kingdom, Orlando Florida right now they’ll be able to meet a more “life-size” version now.

The mischevious fairy is visiting Mickey’s Toontown Fair at Magic Kingdom with four of her fairy friends doing Meet n Greet sessions helping to promote the new Disney animated movie called…. “Tinker Bell”.

From the Disney site.

To celebrate the animated film “Tinker Bell,” Disney’s most famous fairy and four of her best friends are featured in a meet-and-greet experience in Mickey’s Toontown Fair at Magic Kingdom. To meet Tinker Bell and her fairy friends, guests enter a magical forest called “Pixie Hollow,” a special place deep in the heart of Never Land. Tinker Bell, made famous in the 1953 Disney animated classic “Peter Pan,” for her “hostess” role in Disney television specials and for “flying” above the Disney theme parks, is joined inside Pixie Hollow by four fairy friends: Fawn, an animal fairy; Iridessa, a light fairy; Rosetta, a garden fairy; and Silvermist, a water fairy.

Last year, the Wild Arctic ride at Seaworld was transformed into the Polar Express Experience over the holiday season. After it’s successful run in 2007, the ride will again be based upon the popular Christmas movie. The attraction will open on Nov. 14 and run through to Jan. 04. Wild Arctic will close on Nov. 04 to allow for the transformation.

Also to return is the Shamu show, “Shamu Christmas… Miracles”. Guests can join Shamu for the holidays during “Shamu Christmas…Miracles.” This captivating show helps guests celebrate the holiday season as a time filled with hope and peace and just possibly, miracles. The 22-minute production comes to life daily from Nov. 12 through Dec. 25 at Shamu Stadium.

The Polar Express Experience and “Shamu Christmas… Miracles” are included in the regular park admission.

SeaWorld’s Makahiki Christmas Luau will be available from Nov. 12 to Jan. 4 (with the exception of Dec. 25). It features island cuisine and ancient Pacific Island traditions. It’s $46 general, $29 for ages 3-9. Theme park admission is not required for the Luau.

There’s been a fair few questions around the net concerning whether or not you can make an advanced dining reservation (adr)  at the new T-Rex cafe that’s just opened at Downtown Disney. It appears the answer is not at the moment.

Over on the Orlando Visiting forum, someone has gone to the effort to contact the manager of the T-Rex Cafe and got the following response.

Thank you for your inquiry into the new T-REX Orlando! We are proud to announce that our restaurant is open today!

We will be on a walk-in basis only until 2009. You may check our website at anytime or call 407-828-TREX (reservations are currently not being taken). We will be accepting the Premium, Platinum and Wine and Dine Disney Dining Programs for those on Disney Dining.

Have a T-REXcellent day!

So, for the time-being, just pitch up and hope the wait isn’t too long. To read the thread, click here.

From the amount of buzz going around the internet, the arrival of Downtown Disney’s latest restaurant is set to be a huge hit. The T-Rex Cafe is brought to you by the Landry’s group, who are also responsible for the Rainforest Cafe’s that are also at Downtown Disney and the entrance of Animal Kingdom.

In what seems to have been an age in construction, it’s recently been announced that the T-Rex Cafe will be opening on the 16th of October. The food looks like standard fare, but with groovy dinosauresque names such as the “Bronto Burger”. I’m guessing that most people will be drawn not by the food but the dinosaur theming and other entertainment such as the Paleo Zone, an set of interactive games where you can pan for gems and fossils in Discovery Creek.

To look at the full menu, visit the official T-Rex Cafe site here.