Closing date announced for TriceraTop Spin & more of DinoLand at Disney’s Animal Kingdom, an animatronic was removed from DINOSAUR, and we got an aerial view of Epic Universe construction following Hurricane Milton — all this and more in today’s daily recap for Monday, October 14, 2024.
Walt Disney World
Magic Kingdom
- Disney announced Big Thunder Mountain Railroad will close for at least a year, confirming previous rumors.
- Crews have restored another figure to The Haunted Mansion’s tea party scene in Magic Kingdom.
- Jingle Cruise, the Jungle Cruise holiday overlay, will return to Magic Kingdom for another year of holiday fun.
EPCOT
- Even more seating has been added to CommuniCore Hall in World Celebration, giving parkgoers more places to eat during the 2024 EPCOT International Food & Wine Festival.
Disney’s Hollywood Studios
- Disney’s Hollywood Studios was set to open “The Little Mermaid – A Musical Adventure” this fall, but the new show’s debut has been postponed until 2025.
- Disney Live Entertainment has revealed the story of how “Holly Jolly Ollie Wood,” otherwise known as Ollie, the gingerbread man mascot for Disney Jollywood Nights at Disney’s Hollywood Studios, was brought to life.
Disney’s Animal Kingdom
- Disney has announced the first closing date for parts of DinoLand U.S.A. at Disney’s Animal Kingdom, which will become the Tropical Americas-themed land, Pueblo Esperanza
- One of the dinosaur Audio-Animatronics has been removed from DINOSAUR at Disney’s Animal Kingdom, perhaps heralding the ride’s upcoming permanent closure.
- Walt Disney World announced a new pumpkin spice treat, the Pumpkin-Chai Cupcake, coming to Disney’s Animal Kingdom this week.
New Merchandise
- Disney Cast Member name tag keychains are now available for guests to bring home a bit of the magic from Walt Disney World Resort.
- Anakin Skywalker’s iconic homemade Protocol Droid seems to have lost his head, but we found it in Walt Disney World!
- As part of its 31 Days of Drops, Disney Store has released a new Standing Icon Mickey Mouse Collection featuring merchandise for both Walt Disney World and Disneyland Resort.
Other Walt Disney World News
- A Maryland woman was sentenced earlier this month for conspiracy to defraud the government out of thousands of dollars between 2014 and 2018, which was used for various trips — including 31 visits to Orlando, Florida and Walt Disney World Resort.
- The Orange County Commissioners approved Disney’s affordable housing project, which means that construction can now move forward.
Disneyland Resort
- Disneyland Resort has revealed the opening date of Louis’ Critter Club, one of the merchandise shops opening alongside Tiana’s Bayou Adventure in Critter Country, soon to be renamed Bayou Country.
- As work continues on the Haunted Mansion grounds expansion at Disneyland Park, the beginnings of structural walls and roofing have been installed at the new carriage house-themed retail space.
- On today’s trip to Disneyland Park, we discovered that Christmas has started early this year, as some snow caps have already been added to the roof of Sleeping Beauty Castle.
Shanghai Disneyland
- The Figment popcorn bucket, which debuted during the 2022 EPCOT International Festival of the Arts is now available with a new strap at Shanghai Disneyland.
Entertainment and Media
- A new TRON video game will welcome players to the grid in 2025 with “TRON: Catalyst,” coming to PlayStation 5, Xbox Series S and X, Nintendo Switch, and PC.
Universal Studios
- Aerial photographer Bioreconstruct flew over Epic Universe twice this week, sharing photos on X of work on the new Universal Orlando theme park following Hurricane Milton.
- Universal Studios Hollywood has shared details about one of the experiences coming to Super Nintendo World during Universal Fan Fest Nights.
Big Thunder Closing for OVER A YEAR, Dino-Rama Closing Date at Disney’s Animal Kingdom
That’s it for today; we hope you enjoyed this Daily Recap. Thanks for stopping by, and we’ll see you tomorrow!