Every week is a busy week when it comes to Disney news. To help you keep up with all of the updates coming out of Walt Disney World and other Disney resorts, here’s WDWNT’s weekly recap of the Disney news from July 15-21!

Walt Disney World

• It was officially announced that the Disney Skyliner will be opening on September 29th
• The new road which connects Floridian Way and Reams Road has now opened near the Magic Kingdom
• Also, the Osceola Parkway overpass at Victory Way has now opened near Hollywood Studios
• A portion of the Epcot Resorts Boulevard near the Beach Club resort will be closing in mid-August for bridge work

Magic Kingdom

• Check out this week’s photo report for the Magic Kingdom, including a look at the entrance construction, new merchandise and more
• The entertainment lineup for Mickey’s Not-So-Scary Halloween Party 2019 has been announced, including brand-new “Disney’s Not-So-Spooky Spectacular” fireworks, attraction overlays and more
• It has been announced that Tony’s Most Merriest Town Square Party will be returning to Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Party this year
• We reviewed the new “Not So Secret” menu at Skipper Canteen, featuring highly addictive Brazilian Cheese Bread
• A limited-time Disney DescenDANCE party will be coming to Mickey’s Not-So-Scary Halloween Party and Disney Springs
• The Astro Orbiter is now closed for refurbishment, and will remain closed through August 14th
• The queue awning is being replaced at the Haunted Mansion, for some reason now during the hottest, rainiest time of year
• Construction has also now begun on the entrance area of the Magic Kingdom, as part of the ongoing “Arrival Experience Enhancements” project

Animal Kingdom

• Check out this week’s photo report for Disney’s Animal Kingdom, featuring the newly-instated Guest Experience Team, baby Grace the gorilla and more
• A new scavenger hunt experience, inspired by The Lion King, is now on offer in Animal Kingdom – check out our photos and video of the full experience here
• The closure of Primeval Whirl has been extended through July 27

Epcot

• Check out this week’s photo report for Epcot, featuring a lot of renovation work, even more Food & Wine Festival booths, a mischievous squirrel and more!
• The date month has been revealed for “A Celebration of Disney Music”, the new nighttime spectacular coming to Epcot as the permanent replacement for IllumiNations
• Advance dining reservations are now available for the newly-opened Signature restaurant in Epcot: Takumi-Tei
• Check out our construction update on the Rose Walk pathway widening project, with new concrete now being poured
• We reviewed the fresh croissant doughnuts which are now available over at the Electric Umbrella
• It’s disappointing to report that Beverly, the fan-favourite drink over at Club Cool, is currently unavailable

Hollywood Studios

• Check out this week’s photo report for Hollywood Studios, featuring preparations for Galaxy’s Edge, a lot of The Lion King merch and more
• It has been announced that the popular “Jingle Bell, Jingle BAM” holiday show will be returning to Hollywood Studios this festive season, starting on November 8th
• We’re pleased to report that the interactive queue elements have finally been activated over at Alien Swirling Saucers
• Darth Vader will be replacing Kylo Ren for meet & greets over at Star Wars Launch Bay from August 29th

Disney Springs

• Check out this week’s photo report for Disney Springs, featuring new apparel (for pets and humans), construction walls and more

Walt Disney World Resort Hotels

• The booking window for the Fall and Winter 2019 free dining plan offer is now open at Walt Disney World
• Along with this are the Fall and Winter discounted room rates at select resort hotels
• New discounted summer room rates exclusively for Disney Visa cardmembers are now available at select resorts

All-Star Resorts

• We reviewed the adorable Blue Raspberry Stitch cupcake from All-Star Sports
• We also had to try the new Cinema Popcorn Caramel Sundae from All-Star Movies
• And we made way for the new Moana POG Juice cupcake from All-Star Music

Animal Kingdom Lodge

• We reviewed the new The Lion King eclair and the Simba cookie sandwich over at the Mara
• We took a tour of the impressive remodeled rooms over at Jambo House

Coronado Springs

• Check out our photos, video and review of the newly-opened Gran Destino Tower at Coronado Springs

Grand Floridian Resort & Spa

• Citricos, the Siganture restaurant at the Grand Floridan, will be converted into “Victoria and Albert’s Bistro“, as part of an ongoing “Lobby-Gutting” project at the resort

Riviera Resort

• Check out our construction update for the Riviera, featuring pool slide construction, the landscaping of the Skyliner station and more
• New concept art and exterior design details have been released for the Riviera

Disneyland Resort

• Disneyland celebrated it’s 64th birthday this week, with celebrations including the Disneyland Band, The Dapper Dans, rare characters and more
• A new annual passholder-exclusive refillable tumbler is now available at the Disneyland resort, offering 99-cent refills for a limited time through summer

Disneyland Park

• We’re pleased to report that select Kyber Crystals and Droid personality chips are now back in stock in Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge, following their near-immediate sell-out just a day after the land’s official opening
• Watch the last-ever performance of Mickey’s Soundsational Parade, which has been running at the Disneyland Park since May 2011
• A new water bottle refill station has been installed in Tomorrowland

Disney California Adventure

• We reviewed the incredible new Seasonal Cherry Cheesecake Bread Pudding from Pacific Wharf Cafe

Downtown Disney Resort

• Guests looking to buy new, limited-edition pins at the Disneyland Resort will now have to enter either of the parks, with them no longer being sold at Downtown Disney

Disneyland Paris

• A Phantom Manor themed pin trading event will be coming to Disneyland Paris this September

Tokyo Disney Resort

• Check out our latest photo report for Tokyo DisneySea, featuring a visit to the BellaVisa Lounge, preparations for the opening of Soaring: Fantastic Flight, new character greetings, FastPass scanners and more!

New Merchandise

• The July Disney Wisdom collection is now available on shopDisney, this month featuring wise words from Jiminy Cricket
• Another cool new windbreaker has arrived at Walt Disney World, this one featuring the Animal Kingdom “Fichwa! Fellow” design
• New items have been released as part of the Disney Tails pet collection, including colorful harnesses, collars, shirts and bowls
• The popular Disney Classic Cozy Knit plush collection is now available in it’s entirety on shopDisney
• The new The Lion King collection by Dooney & Bouke has officially arrived on shopDisney
• This adorable Sleepy Figment Dream Friend plush was spotted dozing away in Epcot

• New character pens have arrived in the parks, featuring the Genie, Little Green Aliens, Remy and Timon
• New “Chef Remy” Ratatouille merchandise has scurried into the France pavilion at Epcot
• These awesome new Star Wars purses by Harveys have arrived at Hollywood Studios
• The Halloween merchandise is starting to appear, with new and returning Hocus Pocus merch available now on shopDisney, including a Spirit Jersey, Tsum Tsums, Loungefly and more!
• New Haunted Mansion merchandise is being released by Funko, including more Pop Vinyls, mystery minis and tees
• This new Pandora charm has arrived in the Magic Kingdom, resembling a Walt Disney World vintage ticket book
• There’s a new line of retro-inspired Mickey Mouse apparel over at the Disneyland Resort
• New merchandise is now available celebrating the 30th anniversary of Splash Mountain in the Disneyland Park

• New Disney Tails shirts for pets are now available at the Marketplace Co-Op in Disney Springs
• Three new achievement pins have been released for the Play Disney Parks app, featuring Haunted Mansion, Star Tours and Pirates of the Caribbean designs!
• Wearable The Lion King Simba tails are now available at the Magic Kingdom, cause why not?
• There’s a new line of Union Jack and London-inspired merchandise in the UK pavilion at Epcot
• New ornament versions of the Starbucks “Been There” series mugs have arrived at Walt Disney World and Disneyland

• There’s also new Minnie Ear Headband ornaments available now at the parks
• In Spirit Jersey news, there’s these new teal and purple ombre designs available now at DisneyStyle
• There’s also a new basketball Spirit Jersey has bounced into the newly-opened NBA Experience store in Disney Springs
• This new The Lion King 2019 Limited Edition MagicBand is now available at Walt Disney World and on shopDisney
• Adorable new Donald and Chip ‘n’ Dale Dino-Bash plushes are now available at Animal Kingdom
• These ghoulishly delightful new The Nightmare Before Christmas snow globe ornaments have found their way into the Disneyland Park
• A new line of Mickey-inspired kitchenware has arrived on shopDisney – Disney Eats: Pizza Night Collection

Entertainment & Media

• Read our review of The Lion King, the visually stunning but overall lacking live-action remake of the beloved classic
• National Geographic will be joining the D23 Expo this year, bringing panels, interactive experiences and cuddly animals
• A Disney Parks “Imagining Tomorrow, Today” pavilion has also been announced for the D23 Expo, which will showcase plans for Epcot and Marvel lands in the parks
• Read our recap of all the titles and dates of upcoming Marvel movies and Disney+ shows, which were announced during the Marvel Studios panel at the San Diego Comic-Con

Other Disney News

• Abigail Disney, Walt Disney’s great-niece, recently expressed how “livid” she is with working conditions for cast members at the Disneyland resort, following an undercover visit
• A “Black Box” interchangeable, screen-based “Flex Ride” is in development for a 2022 opening at Disney California Adventure and Disney’s Hollywood Studios
• A concerning but interesting article by LA Times has deduced that Disney are data-mining theme park guests “now more than ever”

That’s all of the Disney news for this past week! Make sure you check back at the end of each week for our weekly recaps!