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DISNEY NEWS ROUNDUP: Multiple Spring Sales Announced; Festival of the Arts; New Disney Springs Dining; PhotoPass Offers; D23 Gift & More

Need some good news? We have some. The latest Epcot festival is now open, and some great spring room and ticket deals were announced! Also, a new Disney Springs restaurant that we’ve been eagerly awaiting since it was announced is now open as well. Don’t miss the two special offers from PhotoPass, and be sure to check the details on the new gift Disney is sending with a membership to D23. All this and more in this week’s news roundup below.





 

1 – 2021 Taste of EPCOT International Festival of the Arts Now Open

The Taste of EPCOT International Festival of the Arts is now open at Walt Disney World Resort, celebrating visual, culinary, and performing arts from around the world. Now through February 22, 2021, guests can experience this celebration as part of regular park admission, with something to satisfy every palate – and every palette! Cindy was there on opening day and just scratched the surface of the festival offerings. She’ll be back Tuesday, January 12, to attend a media event to get an insider’s look at the festival. Be sure to follow us on Instagram for her coverage full of photos and video of the festival offerings. Our full review and guide to the festival will be out later this week. For now, check the links below for more information.

Click here for our Instagram Story of photos and video from our visit on opening day of the festival.

Click here for photos from our Instagram Story of photos of every Menu Board with prices for easy planning.

Click here for the Foodie Guide to the 2021 Taste of EPCOT International Festival of the Arts.

2 – Update of France Pavilion Construction

Cindy recently visited EPCOT and park hopped over to Disney’s Hollywood Studios via the Disney Skyliner. While leaving EPCOT, she had a great view of the newly expanded section of the France Pavilion, home to the new family-friendly attraction, Remy’s Ratatouille Adventure. Check out our Instagram post below of video of the new area that looks complete and ready to go!

 

3 – Disney Releases New ‘Spring Into Magic’ offers for Walt Disney World Resort Guests

After 2020, we could all use some magic in our lives this year. Thankfully, Disney has released new offers for guests, Florida residents, annual passholders to make visiting the most magical place on earth a bit easier. The latest promotions are for resort stays most nights April 18-July 10, 2021. Catch all the details below.

Click here for details on the ‘Spring Into Magic’ room offers for stays most nights April 18-July 10, 2021.

We highly recommend booking with an Authorized Disney Vacation Planner to ensure you are well taken care of and get all the discounts available to you. For more details and help booking your vacation, call our travel partners Magical Vacation Planners at (407) 442-0227. You can also get a no-obligation, FREE vacation quote by clicking here.  Their services are free to you, and they can answer any questions you may have.





 

4 – Two New Disney PhotoPass Offers for Spring 2021

If you’re a fan of Disney PhotoPass, you’ll want to check out two new offers for spring 2021 announced this week. Learn more at the link below.

Click here for more information on the offers from Disney PhotoPass.

5 – Everglazed Donuts Now Open at Disney Springs

Disney Springs has a new restaurant and our waistlines don’t stand a chance. This week, Everglazed Donuts opened across from Splitsville in the West End section of Disney Springs. Here is the description of the restaurant from the Disney Springs website:

Discover hand-crafted confections featuring mouthwatering yeast and cake donuts with an assortment of cold brew pick-me-ups and a few sweet-yet-savory sandwiches. Immerse yourself in a complete donut experience as you gaze through the windows of the Everglazed working show kitchen where the humble donut is fried, glazed and piled high with a rainbow of toppings.

Hours are typically 9:00 am to 10:00 pm but will vary with seasonal crowds. Be sure to check the My Disney Experience app for up to date hours on the day of your visit. We’re looking forward to checking it out!

6 – D23’s New Collector Set is a Walt Disney World Fan’s Dream

This year Walt Disney World celebrates its 50th anniversary, and if you’re a fan, you’ll want to join D23 this year for a special member offering. Here are all the details from Disney Cast Member Jeffrey Epstein:

Starting this week, guests who join D23: The Official Disney Fan Club at the Gold or Gold Duo level will receive an incredible collector set: D23 Celebrates 50 Most Magical Years of the Walt Disney World Resort. This vibrant collection, inspired by a half-century of the Vacation Kingdom of the World, honors the resort as it approaches its 50th anniversary on October 1 of this year.

Credit: Disney

Included in the 2021 Gold Collector Set is a usable tin lunchbox—designed by Kevin Kidney and Jody Daily—featuring Mickey, Donald, Chip and Dale, icons from all four Walt Disney World theme parks, a magical musical band led by Figment himself, and vignettes of scenes from Typhoon Lagoon to Remy’s Ratatouille Adventure. Kevin and Jody also crafted the “Florida’s Fab Five” Pin Set which includes the Orange Bird atop the classic Walt Disney World Logo, Henry the Bear from Country Bear Jamboree at the Magic Kingdom, Figment from EPCOT’s Journey Into Imagination, R3-X from his “Captain Rex” years at Star Tours at Disney’s Hollywood Studios, and the legendary Yeti from Expedition Everest at Disney’s Animal Kingdom. There’s also a full-sized D23 pennant—designed by artist and the Official Voice of Mickey Mouse, Bret Iwan—inspired by the vivid colors and designs of retro Walt Disney World shopping bags.

And in partnership with Walt Disney Records, D23 is proud to present Walt Disney World: Then and Now, a “mini-version” of the ultimate theme park souvenir: the theme park soundtrack album! Pressed on cheerful transparent red vinyl, this exclusive 7” disc features a 1971 classic, “Bear Band Serenade” from Country Bear Jamboree, on one side and a modern classic, “Nothing Can Stop Us Now” from Mickey & Minnie’s Runaway Railway, on the other—on vinyl for the first time. The set also features a 2021 tribute to an original publication, the Walt Disney World News, filled with articles curated to commemorate this milestone. Inside, you’ll find a welcome letter from head of D23 Michael Vargo, a retrospective on the origins of Walt Disney’s “Florida Project,” and a tribute to “50 Favorite Things” found at Walt Disney World Resort—written by the staff of D23 and the Walt Disney Archives to inspire adventures of your own!

The D23 2021 Gold Member Collector Set will be available for new members joining the D23 Gold Membership Individual Plan or the D23 Gold Duo Membership Plan (sent to the Primary member) starting January 1, 2021. For current D23 Gold Members, the Collector Set will ship 2-3 weeks after their D23 Gold Membership renewal in 2021. Limit (1) D23 Gold Member Collector Set per membership plan.

For more details, visit d23.com/CollectorSet2021.

7 – Robo Carts Have Arrived at Walt Disney World Golf Courses

There’s something new and special on the golf courses at Walt Disney World. Here are all the details from Disney Cast Member Emily Amato:

Walt Disney World Golf is continually looking for ways to enhance the golf experience, and their latest innovation is already turning heads up and down the fairways around Walt Disney World Resort.

Introducing the Robo-Cart!

If you’ve ever walked around an 18-hole golf course carrying your clubs or using a push cart, you know that can be exhausting. Disney Golf aims to ease that hardship with the Robo-Cart, a small robotic golf cart that uses GPS and Bluetooth technology to transport your clubs safely around the course.

 

Golfers merely clip on the cart’s small transmitter (I found that attaching it to your belt behind your back works best), load your golf bag on it and then the autonomous cart follows a few paces behind you wherever you go. If you stop, the cart stops. If you start walking, the cart starts moving (max speed is approximately 7 mph).

Obviously you have to be a little careful when you’re walking across narrow bridges or along any lakes on the course, but Disney Golf officials told me the GPS technology in the carts is very accurate and, as a result, they have not had any incidents of golfers leading the carts into any trouble.

Credit: Disney

The Robo-Carts, designed by Club Car, are also equipped with all of the amenities that golfers need –  beverage cooler, cup holder, sand bottle and even a USB port so you charge your smartphone while you play. The front of the cart has a color GPS screen that gives you all of the standard yardage information typically available on full-size riding golf carts.

Walt Disney World Resort is one of only a few places in the surrounding area where you’ll find these robotic carts in use. They are ideal for Disney’s Oak Trail golf course, a 9-hole walking course that appeals primarily to families and younger golfers, however, they are also available if you want to walk the 18-hole Magnolia and Palm championship courses.

The best part is the Robo-Carts rent for only $10 in addition to your green fees. They are available only at the Palm, Magnolia and Oak Trail courses. Check out the Disney Golf website to learn more.

And here’s another tip for you: If you’re interested in playing on Saturday or Sunday mornings, you can book your tee time at least six days in advance to get a 10 percent discount on your green fees ($49 plus tax). It’s part of a new “Early Bird’’ program for weekend tee times before 11:30 am.

These two new features should help elevate your golf experience and maybe even help you get a hole-in-one. If you do, you’ll be added to our new Hole-In-One Club where you’ll be featured on our Hole-In-One Club website and presented with a personalized Hole-In-One Club certificate.

Just book your tee time at www.golfwdw.com and ask about our Hole-In-One Club and our Early Bird program, or rent a Robo-Cart when you check in at the clubhouse.

See you on the tee box!

For a no obligation, FREE Quote on a Disney vacation package, please contact our travel partner Magical Vacation Planner at 407-442-0227 (407-442-0215 for Spanish). You can also request a FREE quote online by Clicking HERE.



 

Chad & Cindy Nykamp

After years of multiple Walt Disney World vacations, Cindy and Chad's dream of living in Orlando came true in 2010. After friends and family made them their go-to-people for Walt Disney World advice, Cindy and Chad launched DisneyLists.com in August 2015 to share their knowledge and love of Disney. Chad and Cindy have been Disney World Annual Passholders for years, DVC members, together have raced more than 70 runDisney races, and particularly love cruising on the Disney Cruise Line. Chad and Cindy also regularly represent DisneyLists.com at Walt Disney World media events. While attending these events, they get an insiders view of all the new things that have come to Walt Disney World. These experiences have helped them gain knowledge and expertise they happily pass on to their followers. They still can't believe how lucky they are to have such an amazing opportunity and will continue to share Disney with anyone who will listen!
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