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 December 2-8!

Walt Disney World

• Monorail Black is back and sporting a sleek new interior and red deltas on the lines across the resort
• Quick service dining locations across Walt Disney World are transitioning to using generic compostable plates

Magic Kingdom

• Check out this week’s photo report for the Magic Kingdom, including new Baby Yoda D-Tech on Demand designs, new Princess teacups, heavy crowds and more!
• In a particularly horrible act of vandalism, some guests climbed up on to the Carousel of Progress stage, damaging props and scenery
• Take a look at the latest construction update on TRON Lightcycle Run
• The new walkway connecting the Contemporary Resort and the Magic Kingdom is now open

Epcot

• Check out this week’s photo report for Epcot, including a look at the Festival of the Holidays collectors coins, a Frozen 2 activity book and more!
• It was confirmed that the Beauty and the Beast Sing-Along, Canada Far and Wide and Awesome Planet will debut at Epcot on January 17
• It has also been revealed that the Beauty and the Beast Sing-Along will feature a LeFou plot twist and a returning cast
• In construction across Epcot, we noticed that walls have gone up inside the Disney & Pixar Short Film Festival theater, ready for Mickey’s new meet & greet location, new walkways were added in the France pavilion expansion, and new landscaping work has begun near the Imagination pavilion
• We reviewed the perfectly soft and sweet Caramel Gingerbread Cookie Sandwich from Karamell Kuche
• A new Festival of the Holidays 2019 collectible coin machine is now situated at Port of Entry
• The first look has been revealed for Remy’s Ratatouille Adventure, which will open in summer 2020
• New concept art has been revealed for Regal Eagle Smokehouse: Craft Drafts & Barbecue coming to The American Adventure
• It was confirmed that Disney’s DuckTales World Showcase Adventure will be replacing the Agent P game

Animal Kingdom

• We tried the new White Chocolate Peppermint Cream Mousse from Satu’li Canteen

Hollywood Studios

• Check out this week’s photo report for Hollywood Studios, including a look at the opening day of Rise of the Resistance, Walt Disney’s birthday and more!
• The big news of the week at Hollywood Studios was, of course, the opening of the highly-anticipated ride at Galaxy’s Edge – Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance. We rode the attraction and hailed it an incredible return to form for Disney Imagineering, (even though it broke down on our first ride!) and you can watch our full ride and preshow POV video here. In order to manage crowds, Disney announced a Boarding Group procedure would be in effect for the ride, however the rules changed on Saturday and guests are now limited to one Boarding Group per day to ride the attraction. The bad news is that the attraction has been experiencing numerous breakdowns, but guests whose groups were unable to be accommodated were granted free 1-day Park Hopper tickets and Rise of the Resistance FastPasses. On the Play Disney Parks app, two new Rise of the Resistance jobs were added for extra fun on visits to Galaxy’s Edge. Also, check out our roundup of every piece of Rise of the Resistance opening day merchandise (with prices), which was available in Galaxy’s Edge
• In construction across Hollywood Studios, the ceiling has been dismantled at the upcoming Mickey Shorts Theater
• The slick new Hollywood Studios logo has been added to the security screening area marquee at the front of the park
• The park opening hours for Hollywood Studios have officially been extended, all the way through January 4
• A new opening date poster of March 2020 has been unveiled for Mickey & Minnie’s Runaway Railway. We also got our first look at the attraction preshow, where guests will be walking through the movie screen
• New concept art has been revealed for Toy Story Land’s Roundup Rodeo BBQ Restaurant

Disney Springs

• Check out this week’s photo report for Disney Springs, including 2020 merchandise, a switch-around in the Co-Op, Anna and Elsa LEGO statues and more!
• It was Passholder Holiday Weekend this weekend in Disney Springs, with a range of limited-time discounts, early access and more available for annual passholders
• Ready for the cold weather, Chef Art Smith’s Homecomin’ Florida Kitchen has built an enclosed patio seating area

Walt Disney World Resort Hotels

Beach Club Resort

• The Wi-Fi upgrades currently in progress at the Beach Club are due to be completed this month

Polynesian Village Resort

• We reviewed the new Chocolate and Peppermint Christmas Tree Cupcake from Kona Island Cafe

Riviera Resort

• Lounge menus have been revealed for Bar Riva and Le Petit Cafe at the Riviera
• The official map for the Riviera has also been released, including highlighted recreation, guest services, shopping, dining and transportation options
• Take a look at Mickey & Minnie’s artist-inspired costumes for their Topolino’s Terrace character breakfast visits
• Check out this beautiful Tangled floating lanterns mosaic which will be on display in the resort

Star Wars: Galactic Starcruiser

• New concept art has been revealed for Star Wars: Galactic Starcruiser, which will officially land in 2021

Disneyland Resort

• The fun new Mickey Mouse globe structure is now fully uncovered and visible at the Mickey & Friends parking lot

Disneyland Park

• It has been revealed that The Haunted Mansion will be closing in January 2020 for an extensive refurbishment
• New themed Coca-Cola and Diet Coke droid carts have pulled into Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge
• A new limited-time discount offer of $1 off Dole Whips with the purchase of a Tiki Cup is now available

Disney California Adventure

• Read our full roundup of every booth (with reviews!) at the Festival of Holidays 2019 at Disney California Adventure
• We reviewed the new seasonal Minty Yule Log Shake at Smokejumpers Grill

Disneyland Paris

• Disneyland Paris Pride is set to return to the resort in June 2020

Tokyo Disney Resort

• Check out this week’s photo report for Tokyo DisneySea, including Christmas decorations, a new security checkpoint and more!
• New concept art has been revealed for Belle’s Village, with shops, restaurants, food and merchandise revealed for Tokyo Disneyland’s New Fantasyland. Also, storylines and more details were revealed for The Enchanted Tale of Beauty and the Beast and more upcoming attractions in the park, such as the newly-named “Mickey’s Magical Music World” show which will be coming to the Fantasyland Forest Theater
• A new “Matcha White Chocolate” flavor popcorn will be coming soon to Tokyo DisneySea

Shanghai Disney Resort

• The construction barriers in Shanghai Disneyland are far from ugly, as even more colorful and fun new walls themed to Zootopia have gone up in the park

New Merchandise

• New basketball Minnie Ear headbands have bounced in over at the NBA Experience
• New commemorative Star Tours merchandise has been released for the attraction’s 30th anniversary at Hollywood Studios
• This adorable new, limited-release Winnie the Pooh Classic Cozy Knits plush has arrived at Walt Disney World
• The latest color trend has hit the parks, and this time it’s “Belle of the Ball Bronze”! Included in the collection are Minnie Ears, purses, apparel and more

• New merchandise has been revealed for Mickey & Minnie’s Runaway Railway, including apparel, toys, pins and a MagicBand
• This fun new Jango Fett souvenir cup has landed in Hollywood Studios
• The posters from the Disney Springs Christmas Tree Trail, featuring Rainbow Tunnel, DINOSAUR, Haunted Mansion and more, are now available at The Art of Disney
• Whether you’ve seen The Mandalorian or not, you must by now have noticed the adorable Baby Yoda popping up here, there and everywhere. Due to his extreme adorableness, demand for merchandise has been high, hence this Yoda display over at Hollywood Studios. We also found new Baby Yoda and The Mandalorian MagicBands, phone cases and more in Walt Disney World, and can’t forget this hugely-popular Baby Yoda Funko Pop! Vinyl and life-size figure which will arrive in 2020

• In MagicBand news, a vintage-inspired new Walt Disney and Mickey Mouse limited release MagicBand is now available
• A collection of Disney Parks Exclusive Toy Story PEZ dispensers has sprung up at Walt Disney World
• The 2020 merchandise keeps coming, as we spotted these park-specific 2020 logo trading pins and 2020 logo pins and trading accessories at Walt Disney World
• This amazing new Jingle Cruise nutcracker tiki mug has arrived at Trader Sam’s Grog Grotto

Entertainment & Media

• An emotional new featurette for Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker sees friends uniting for the last time and saying goodbye to the trilogy, whilst this new TV spot shows The Resistance rallying their forces
• The all-new trailer for Disney’s live-action Mulan was released this week, along with the dramatic official movie poster
• Take a look inside the new “One Day at Disney” companion book, which is now on sale at Walt Disney World
• A new game show titled Star Wars: Jedi Temple Challenge, hosted by Jar Jar Binks actor Ahmed Best will be coming to Disney+ in 2020
• The first teaser trailer landed for Black Widow

Other Disney News

• Catherine Powell, the former president of the Disney Parks Western Region has issued a personal statement regarding her exit from The Walt Disney Company following her position being eliminated
• A Disney Cruise Line worker has been arrested for allegedly raping and molesting a 13 year-old girl
• A judge has ruled that Bill Nye’s $28 million lawsuit against The Walt Disney Company may proceed
• Orlando Sentinel will launch an expose of living conditions and low wages for employees at Walt Disney World and other Orlando attractions
• The criminal trial regarding the Buzzy animatronic begins next month, with NBA player Robin Lopez on the witness list

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!