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 August 5-11!

Walt Disney World

• A lawsuit has been filed against Disney following an incident in which a scooter fell on a woman on board a Walt Disney World resort bus
• New Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge and Halloween 2019 designs have been added to the Build-A-Band MagicBand upgrade options for Walt Disney World Resort guests

Magic Kingdom

• Check out this week’s photo report for the Magic Kingdom, including The Haunted Mansion 50th Anniversary activities, construction updates and more
• The Festival of Fantasy parade will be changing its performance time to 2pm daily from next Friday through the end of 2019
• “it’s a small world” will be adding Disney characters to the attraction in time for the 50th anniversary of Walt Disney World in 2021

• In celebration of the 50th anniversary of The Haunted Mansion, we tried the limited-time Host-A-Ghost cupcake 
• We tried the huge new Monster Brownie Sundae over at the Plaza Ice Cream Parlor
• Work on replacing the queue awnings has been continuing at the Haunted Mansion
• Disney has shared it’s first look at the brand new “Disney’s Not So Spooky Spectacular” fireworks show, coming to Mickey’s Not So Scary Halloween Party soon
• The Disney Villains After Hours events have now come to a close, with the final event on August 8th a complete sell-out
• The Haunted Mansion lenticular “Spirit Photography” at Memento Mori is no longer being offered, and will soon be replaced
• New railings have been installed along the expanded pathway by Cinderella Castle, which is coming along nicely
• We reviewed the new Raspberry and Pineapple Dole Whip Swirl Float from Aloha Isle

Epcot

• Check out this week’s photo report for Epcot, including Land and Seas pavilion updates, new merchandise and more
• Construction walls have gone up around the final remaining section of Leave a Legacy monolinths to be removed at Epcot, as work continues on the entrance to the park
• The scaffolding has been removed around the Future World space restaurant, revealing a partially finished building facade behind
• If you’re riding the Living with the Land attraction you may notice a new digital film scene with an updated narration
• A Toy Story Land display has been added to the Shanghai Disneyland exhibit in the China pavilion
• The widened and redesigned Rose Walk pathway is starting to take shape between Future World and World Showcase, whilst the Future World East pathway will be closing for expansion from Monday

Animal Kingdom

• Check out this week’s photo report for Animal Kingdom, including new Lion King souvenir canteens, cute animals and more
• Take a look at the construction progress on the upcoming Club 33 location at Animal Kingdom
• Further FastPass cancellations for Primeval Whirl indicate that the unannounced attraction closure may not be ending any time soon

Hollywood Studios

• Check out this week’s photo report for Hollywood Studios, including a look at the new entrance area, new merchandise and more
• Reservations are now open for Oga’s Cantina, Savi’s Workshop and Droid Dept at Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge!
• A faulty fire curtain resulted in the rerouting of the Toy Story Mania queue line through a backstage area
• The new entrance expansion and security checkpoint areas are now open
• Oga’s Cantina in Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge will feature a new alcoholic boba dessert
• The reopening dates for the remodeled Hollywood and Sunset Boulevard stores have been set, with each store reopening either side of the Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge opening date
• In order to help manage crowds for the opening of Galaxy’s Edge, a second performance of Fantasmic! has been added each day from August 29 through September 2
• The refurbishment on Tower of Terror is now quietly wrapping up, meaning the recent extension in wait times will be soon dropping back to normal

Disney Springs

• Check out this week’s photo report for Disney Springs, including Candy Corn Minnie Ears, new Splash Mountain Funko Pops and more
• The new “Almuerzo Rapido” prix-fixe weekday lunch is a great option to try Jaleo for $25
• A new wheelchair and ECV rental station has opened over by Cirque du Soleil in the West Side
• It was announced that Beatrix Health Foods Restaurant, Coffeehouse and Grab-and-Go Market will be replacing Bongos Cuban Cafe at Disney Spings’ West Side
• There’s a tonne of new offerings coming to Disney Springs, including new limited-time treats, a Cookie Dough food truck, Sunshine Churro Cart, and an Ample Hills Creamery location
• Curl by Sammy Duvall will be closing next week in the West Side, possibly for the aforementioned Ample Hills Creamery?
• An exclusive new Basketball Mickey Mouse Funko Pop! Vinyl figure will be released next week at the NBA Experience store

Walt Disney World Resort Hotels

• A host of characters will be visiting select Walt Disney World hotels for limited-time interaction experiences

All-Star Resorts

• We reviewed the unimpressive new Hades cupcake over at All-Star Music

Grand Floridian Resort & Spa

• An all-new Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique location has now opened at the Grand Floridian, where you can find these new “Best Day Ever” Minnie Ears 
• A new Beauty and the Beast photo op has opened on the second floor of the resort’s main building
• The arrival of a drawbridge has confirmed the construction of a walkway connecting the Grand Floridian to the Magic Kingdom

Riviera Resort

• Check out this week’s construction update on the Riviera
• As construction is finalized, a shimmering new gold marquee has been installed on the roof of the resort

Disneyland Resort

• Bob Iger has admitted to lower than usual crowd levels at Disneyland this year due to the opening of Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge
• Mobile ordering has been added to six more locations across the Disneyland Resort, making ordering food during a busy park day much easier
• The booking window for 2020 Disneyland Resort vacation packages is now open

Disneyland Park

• Disneyland hosted a ghoulish celebration this week for the 50th Anniversary of The Haunted Mansion in which, live actors and special decor were added to the attraction and many more haunted happenings took place at the park
• There are lots of exclusive treats available at the Disneyland Park in honor of The Haunted Mansion’s 50th Anniversary this week! We tried the Bride Churro, the Groom Churro, the Wedding Cake from French Market Cafe, the Blackberry Midnight Julep and “Honey… I Do” Beignets from Mint Julep Bar, Dead-Cadent Funnel Cake and The Caretaker Sandwich from Hungry Bear, “Sliders Materialize” and “Hitchhiking” Ghost Blue Velvet Trio from River Belle Terrace, and Sarah ‘Sally’ Slater’s Seafood Fries and Swinging Wake Cake from Cafe Orleans. You can take a look at the full list of speciality food and beverage offerings for The Haunted Mansion 50th Anniversary here
• An adorable set of three Haunted Mansion 50th Anniversary Hitchhiking Ghosts Snack Vessels has been released, inclduing an Ezra sipper, a Gus beignet holder and a Phineas popcorn bucket
• A piece of rockwork on the Matterhon Bobsleds attraction fell during after-hours maintenance, resulting in the temporary closure of one ride track
• We reviewed the new Sour Apple Mickey Beignets from Mint Julep Bar

Disney California Adventure

• In celebration of 80 years of Marvel, Disney have announced a host of limited-time treats, Annual Passholder extra hours, special costumes for Mickey & Minnie and more, coming to Disney California Adventure later this month
• The map and layout of the upcoming Marvel-themed land at Disney California Adventure has been revealed, giving us a better idea of what to expect
• The Red Car Trolley station on Buena Vista Street is now under refurbishment, with the whole station behind construction walls
• Donald Duck has been out meeting guests in Hollywood Land, dressed up as The Incredible Hulk

Downtown Disney District

• We reviewed the limited-time S’mores Shake and Old Fashioned Burger over at Black Tap

Disneyland Paris

• We learned that a holiday overlay is currently in development for the Phantom Manor
• New details were released for Disney’s Enchanted Christmas at the parks, including information on the parade, character experiences, advent activities and more

Tokyo Disney Resort

• New details have been released for the 2019 “Disney’s Christmas” celebrations at Tokyo Disneyland, including “Disney Christmas Stories”, festive foods and jolly merchandise

New Merchandise

• These limited edition silver Disney Dollars has been released at Art of Disney stores across Walt Disney World
• A spookish amount of merchandise materialized this week in celebration of the 50th Anniversary of the Haunted Mansion this week, including a wallpaper MagicBand, this character Loungefly purse, a collection of Pop! Vinyl figures by Funko, Disney Parks Wishables plushes, new D-Tech phone cases, Disney Parks Designer collection Mouse Ear Headbands, a line of apparel and stationery, a “50 Years of Happy Haunts” commemorative bangle by Alex and Ani, a commemorative charm by Pandora, a Madam Leota charm set by Pandora, a wallpaper-inspired purse collection by Dooney & Bourke, a wallpaper dress by The Dress Shop, a Hatbox Ghost Loungefly purse, and these… interesting… interactive Host-A-Ghost jars

• A new Disney Parks “Hidden Mickey” line of kitchen and housewares has debuted in Epcot
• This new light-up Zero on a leash toy is now available at the Disneyland Park
• The cover art has been revealed and sample recipes released from the upcoming Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge – The Official Black Spire Outpost Cookbook
• In pin news, a collection of Disney Skyliner pins will be coming soon to Walt Disney World, including an Annual Passholder exclusive design. You can also check out the August 2019 pin releases for Disneyland Paris, including some Christmas additions
• Over in Tokyo Disney Resort, we spotted this life of retro-inspired “Team Disney” merchandise and apparel
• This Disney Parks Perfection game has been released at Walt Disney World, replacing the regular game shapes with ride vehicles and park icons
• These new Briar Rose Gold glitter Crocs are now available in the Disneyland Resort
• There’s a bunch of new attraction-themed ear hat ornaments available at the parks, featuring Splash Mountain, Big Thunder, Seven Dwarfs Mine Train and more
• Halloween apparel has started to hit the shelves, including this Hocus Pocus dress from The Dress Shop and spellbook clutch by Loungefly. These items, along with this sweet new The Nightmare Before Christmas backpack by Loungefly and this open-edition Jack and Sally The Nightmare Before Christmas MagicBand will be perfect for the spookiest season
• Also new in MagicBands is this exclusive, limited edition design for the Epcot Disney Fairy Tails Pin Trading event

Entertainment  & Media

• Freeform will be airing “Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge – Adventure Awaits”: an exclusive, two-hour “behind the scenes” special hosted by Neil Patrick Harris as part of the network’s “30 Days of Disney” in September
• A brand new poster has landed for Maleficent: Mistress of Evil, which will be released this October
• A newly-priced bundle has been announced for Disney+, ESPN+ and Hulu, which will be made available upon the service launch in November
• Limited-time achievements have materialized on the Play Disney Parks app, in honor of The Haunted Mansion 50th Anniversary
• People Magazine revealed a first look at the canine cast from the live-action Lady and the Tramp, which will be premiering on Disney+ in November
• The Duck Tales: Remastered game has now been removed from digital retailers
• Disney have announced they are working on rebooting some of the 20th Century Fox movie library, including Home Alone, Cheaper by the Dozen and more for Disney+

The Walt Disney Company

• Disney has shared a financial fall after it’s disappointing Quarter 3 results

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!

Madeleine