Welcome to the Magic Kingdom for the first rainy day of the year! It’s also the unofficial end to the holiday season at the Walt Disney World parks, as most out-of-state guests head back home for work and school. Today, we’re caught in the middle of all these thing as the park begins to transition into its off-season form.
First things first, yes, it was somewhat rainy today. While not ‘torrential Florida summer rain’, it was a bit of an annoyance for most of the morning and early afternoon. The plus side of this is the relatively uncommon appearance of the Rainy Day Cavalcade.
“Under the Sea ~ Journey of The Little Mermaid” had a delayed opening of about an hour today, though we can’t imagine the wet conditions were the issue for Ariel.
The soggy weather didn’t prevent a few princesses from appearing at the scrim-laden Main Street, U.S.A. train station, though, and they greeted guests from this perch in lieu of their cavalcade.
Buzz Lightyear also took shelter from the elements at the Tomorrowland stage, limiting his movements to one dry, covered section.
Speaking of character appearances, the Evil Stepsisters have finally returned to Princess Fairytale Hall after a hiatus during the holidays. Their witty interactions were put on pause for a couple months, with a Cast Member advising that this was to avoid additional crowding in Fantasyland, which has been home to the worst choke points in the park during busier times.
Chip and Dale are, of course, still appearing in Frontierland. Like all of the characters in the park, they have done away with their holiday costumes and returned to their usual garb.
Similarly, the “Jingle Cruise” shed its holiday accents and has reverted back to its usual “Jungle Cruise” form, leaving us just as quickly and abruptly as it arrived.
Meanwhile, the “Pirates of the Caribbean” sign sail has been solid black since it was replaced prior to Thanksgiving, with wording for the attraction still not added.
Somewhere between the rapid removal of a holiday overlay, and the snail’s pace replacement of a fabric sign, is the steady refurbishment of the Rivers of America and Tom Sawyer Island. Wire framing for rock work sits on the shore near Harper’s Mill, which is covered in scaffolding itself. The work is currently scheduled through at least February 28th.
Bouncing to our big construction project in the park, “TRON Lightcycle / Run” continues its very deliberate exterior work, which has mostly been focused on the illuminated canopy. A few days ago, exit and entry points for the track were sealed off, further substantiating the rumor that the attraction will not open in 2021.
While the canopy has come quite a long way since the park reopened over the summer, the framing for this structure may be the extent of the work that is intended to be completed in the near future.
While 2021 likely won’t be bringing us TRON, it has brought us COIN, in the form of two net pressed penny sets featuring the year on some of the penny designs.
These two sets are sure to be joined by dated sets in the other parks as they are rolled out with the new year.
A new 2021 backing for these collectible medallions has been introduced as well, while most medallions in the park retain their current, undated designs.
Other new additions to the 2021 lineup are this tumbler and water globe, which didn’t quite make it in time with the bulk of the 2021 merchandise just before Christmas.
These 2021 phone cases and magnets were available on the MaDe kiosk in December, but are now more widely available in pre-printed form around the park.
Finally, lest we forget this is indeed the tail end of a holiday weekend, behold the 50 minute wait for Prince Charming Regal Carrousel in the early afternoon. While the actual wait may have been slightly less, nearly an hour for a carousel should put the holiday crowd levels into perspective.
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