We bring you a lot of stories every single day. Sometimes it’s hard to keep up. So in case you missed anything from our feed, we have rounded up all our stories in one place to get the news at a glance. Here is your Daily Recap for Tuesday, April 26, 2022.

Walt Disney World

EPCOT

• Construction of Journey of Water Inspired by “Moana” is expanding further into the World Nature neighborhood of EPCOT and nearby restrooms are now closed for refurbishment.
• Yesterday, we caught a glimpse of the first rockwork at Journey of Water Inspired by “Moana” in EPCOT. Today, the construction site has been expanded and more rockwork added.
• Mist machines have been removed from the World Discovery neighborhood of EPCOT.
• A new top featuring Orange Bird is now available at Walt Disney World as part of the 50th Anniversary Vault Collection. We first found it at a Festival Market in EPCOT.
• We got a first look at the reverse launch on Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind. Unfortunately, the video is now unavailable.

Disney’s Hollywood Studios

• Disney’s Hollywood Studios got off to a rough start this morning as Rock ‘n’ Roller Coaster, The Twilight Zone Tower of Terror, and Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance all did not open with the park.
• Physical distancing has been mostly removed from performances of “Beauty and the Beast Live on Stage” at Disney’s Hollywood Studios. Since the show returned last year, actors have remained approximately six feet apart from each other, with Belle and the Beast never touching. Now, they once again can touch!
• It seems that Woody’s Lunch Box seating is being expanded even further than the recently added awning in Toy Story Land at Disney’s Hollywood Studios, explaining why work on the area is taking so long.

Walt Disney World Resort Hotels

• Image Design face painting will be available to guests of Star Wars: Galactic Starcruiser at Walt Disney World beginning May 2. These galactic makeovers will be an add-on, like the Captain’s Table, and appointments are limited. 

New Merchandise

• Think orange with some new Orange Bird-inspired candy, available throughout Walt Disney World. We found these at both Port of Entry in EPCOT and Celebrity 5&10 in Disney’s Hollywood Studios.
• The light-up Jack Skellington popcorn bucket previously only available to Annual Passholders during the Halloween season will be available at Walt Disney World again for #HalfwayToHalloween.
• The Vault Collection at Walt Disney World celebrates the opening day and previous anniversaries of Walt Disney World. A “tencennial” 10th-anniversary tee, Mickey and friends shirt, and Mickey and Minnie shorts have joined the collection.

Other Walt Disney World News

• Florida residents can now visit Disney’s Typhoon Lagoon water park with a special $69 2-Day Disney Water Park Ticket. As a reminder, Disney’s Blizzard Beach water park is closed at this time.
• In a piece for Bloomberg Law, Orange County Local Government Attorney Jacob Schumer claims the Reedy Creek Improvement District can not be dissolved, at least not until October 2029, due to language in the contracts of previously issued bonds.
• Reedy Creek Firefighters Association President Jon Shirey expressed concern to the Orlando Sentinel that current and retiree firefighters could lose benefits if the Reedy Creek Improvement District dissolves.

Disneyland Resort

• If you’re on the hunt for a new spring look, there’s a new Minnie ear headband at the Disneyland Resort that’s certainly eye-catching!
• It’s time to relive the “good-ol’ days” and celebrate a party for the decades at the first-ever Disneyland After Dark: Grad Nite Reunion! Debuting on select nights this June at Disney California Adventure park, you can join in a reunion party filled with dancing, fun and plenty of nostalgia from graduation classes of the last six decades.
• A new ear headband inspired by Wanda Maximoff a.k.a. the Scarlet Witch as she appears in “Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness” has appeared at Disneyland Resort. We found these ears in the Emporium at Magic Kingdom.
• From the Monorail, we catch a glimpse of. Finding Nemo Submarine Voyage. Since our last update, green seaweed and other colorful underwater elements have been added to the ground. It was originally supposed to reopen late last year, then in “winter 2022,” but a reopening timeframe has been removed from construction walls altogether.
• New necklaces, bracelets, and earrings mostly inspired by the Disney Princesses have arrived at Disneyland Resort.
• A model of Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge including the Millennium Falcon made of rice crispy treats is now on display in Disney’s Grand Californian Hotel.
• We previously reported that the groundbreaking for the first Storyliving By Disney community, Cotino, would take place on April 26 in Rancho Mirage, California. Now, see the literal first sign of what’s soon to come at the site.
• Though some construction walls were removed, the refurbishment of Pirates of the Caribbean and New Orleans Square in Disneyland continues.
• Disneyland posted showtimes for Fantasmic, which returns on May 28, 2022.
• A new, elaborate wine stopper with Sleeping Beauty Castle on top is now available at Disneyland Resort. We found it at World of Disney in the Downtown Disney District.
• In addition to new rainbow pride jewelry, Disneyland Resort has a new rainbow Mickey keychain. We found this at World of Disney in the Downtown Disney District.
• We headed down to the Disneyland Resort for the long-awaited return of the nighttime spectaculars — the Main Street Electrical Parade, Disneyland Forever fireworks, and World of Color. So join us as we take in the sights at both parks of the Disneyland Resort in our photo report from Friday, April 22, 2022.

Tokyo Disney Resort

• Tokyo Disney Resort has become the first Disney resort in Asia to significantly roll back COVID-19 protocols as approaches to the pandemic change. With this, they have officially removed or nullified all physical distancing markers and lines throughout Tokyo Disneyland and Tokyo DisneySea virtually overnight.

Disneyland Paris

• A rumor that Disneyland Paris would launch a €90 package version of Disney Premier Access for twelve attractions at the resort has now been confirmed. The pass could be used once per attraction.

Hong Kong Disneyland

• Since Hong Kong Disneyland reopened last week, guests have been able to get a better look at the construction of Arendelle: World of Frozen, a new land in the park. Hong Kong Main Street Gazette shared a video of the construction.

Disney Cruise Line

• According to the Disney Cruise Line “Know Before You Go” page, face masks are no longer required on motorcoach transportation or at the Disney Cruise Line Terminal in the U.S.A.

Entertainment and Media

• Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness risks being banned in Saudi Arabia as Disney has refused to remove 12 seconds of dialogue where America Chavez discusses her two moms.
• The Muppets are taking over the season premiere of “Holey Moley” on ABC next Tuesday, May 3 at 8/7c. Watch a preview of the special episode below.

Disney+

• The cameras are rolling and the Electric Mayhem are ready for their moment in the spotlight as filming has begun on the upcoming Disney+ Original Series “The Muppets Mayhem.”
• “Love, Victor,” a queer coming of age series, was originally developed for Disney+ but was moved to Hulu amid Disney executive concerns that the subject matter wasn’t a good fit for Disney+. Now, the series will stream on Disney+ starting June 15, 2022.

WDW News Today

Character Distancing Removed from Beauty and the Beast – Live on Stage at Disney’s Hollywood Studios

That’s it for today; we hope you enjoyed this Daily Recap. Thanks for stopping by, and we’ll see you tomorrow!

Rebecca Davis