Disney World Enthusiast Weekly Round Up May 23, 2021

Here’s the Disney World Enthusiast Weekly Round Up for May 23, 2021!

Latest Disney World Enthusiast Articles

Photo Pass LogoDisney Did You Know

With millions of visitors annually, it’s no wonder the Disney parks are among the most photographed places in the United States.  On any given day, Disney’s PhotoPass photographers take between 100,000 and 200,000 photos of guests at Walt Disney World Resort. The PhotoPass service allows guests to view, share and order their Disney photos online and create Disney products such as PhotoBooks and mugs.

Star ToursTip Of The Week

If you want a better chance of being the rebel spy in the Star Tours attraction at Disney’s Hollywood Studios, don’t put on your 3D glasses until right when the ride begins, sit toward the middle, and face the front as much as possible before the ride starts.

Walt DisneyWalt’s Words

“It’s kind of fun to do the impossible.”

dwe logo small size white bkgdComing Up Next Week

Next week I’ll have some information about upcoming additions and changes coming to the resort, plus all of the latest Walt Disney World news!

Have a wonderful weekend!

Cape May Cafe At Disney’s Beach Club Resort

Cape May Cafe 1More dining options have recently reopened at Walt Disney World including Cape May Café at Disney’s Beach Club Resort. According to Disney:

If you ever dream of escaping to the beach and enjoying all the delicious food of an oceanside town, you’ll be happy that Cape May Café at Disney’s Beach Club Resort has reopened! The New England-style restaurant is a perfect location to refuel before and after a day of adventure at Walt Disney World.

Guests returning to Cape May Café will find old favorites and new changes, along with its signature service and quality. The restaurant will serve breakfast and dinner, but Minnie’s Beach Bash Character Breakfast and the Seafood-and-More Dinner Buffet will not return at reopening.

That’s not to say there aren’t plenty of treats in store! The all-you-care-to enjoy family-style breakfast menu will feature popular staples like pastries (including the layered crispy, cream-filled “Lobster Tail”), omelets, and Mickey Mouse and Minnie Mouse waffles. Highlights from dinner will include house-made Parker House rolls and corn bread, a seafood boil with a variety of fresh seafood, The Turf Platter with steak and chicken, and lobster mac and cheese.

Breakfast is served daily from 7:30am to 11:30am and dinner is served nightly from 5:00pm to 9:00pm. Reservations can be made 60 days in advance and are strongly recommended. To check availability or to make reservations, please click here.

Will you be trying Cape May Cafe soon?
Please leave a comment; we would love to hear from you!

Chef Mickey’s Dinner At Disney’s Contemporary Resort

Chef Mickey's Dinner 7If you’re looking for more dining options for your next Walt Disney World vacation, check out Chef Mickey’s Dinner at Disney’s Contemporary Resort. This new offering is sure to be a hit for the whole family! According to Disney:

Chef Mickey’s is now offering an all-you-care-to-enjoy family-style dinner that includes “no touch” appearances like snapping a selfie or waving hello as Mickey Mouse and some of his favorite pals make surprising appearances in each of the dining rooms. Similar to other character dining locations, Guests take home a souvenir with character signatures and colorful artwork.

Seeing your favorite characters isn’t all you can enjoy at Chef Mickey’s! The dinner menu includes items for the whole family, like starters of “Chef Mickey’s Caesar,” citrus-poached shrimp salad, and assorted breads; main courses of gnocchi, roasted garlic potato Gratin, plant-based faro wheat fried rice, prime rib, roasted turkey, and salmon; and an assortment of sweets to top off the meal. Little ones in your family can enjoy mac and cheese, chicken nuggets, turkey corn dog nuggets, and more!

Dinner is served nightly from 5:00pm to 9:30pm and pricing is $55 for adults and $36 for children (tax and gratuity excluded). Reservations can be made 60 days in advance and are strongly recommended. To check availability or to make reservations, please click here.

Will you be trying Chef Mickey’s Dinner?
Please leave a comment; we would love to hear from you!

Tusker House Restaurant Reopening This Summer In Disney’s Animal Kingdom

Tusker HouseIf you will be visiting Walt Disney World soon, I’ve got some great news for you. Tusker House Restaurant will be reopening in Disney’s Animal Kingdom this summer. According to Disney:

The guest-favorite character dining location at Disney’s Animal Kingdom Theme Park, Tusker House Restaurant, will reopen this summer! During the modified character experience, guests will enjoy delicious family-style entrees inspired by the flavors of Africa and can snap photos of Donald Duck and friends, dressed in their safari best as they promenade through the restaurant.

If you’re not familiar with Tusker House Restaurant in Disney’s Animal Kingdom, it has one of the most delicious character dining meals in Walt Disney World. For those of you that have dined at Boma in Disney’s Animal Kingdom Lodge before, many of the offerings were similar. Disney hasn’t released the updated menu yet, but with some health and safety measures still in place, Tusker House will be serving family style instead of its typical buffet style.

Previously at breakfast, Tusker House served bacon and eggs, waffles, cereal, fresh fruit and pastries, beef bobotie (spiced minced meat with egg), and fruit chutneys.

Lunch and dinner offered many options such as spit-roasted chicken, carved beef and Kenyan coffee BBQ pork loin; sides like vegetable samosas, curried rice, tandoori tofu and saffron-infused veggies; classic African tastes such as peri peri salmon, curry chicken and tamarind seafood stew, and pita and lavosh breads plus chutneys, hummus and tabouli. For kids with less adventurous palates, a simpler buffet was available with corn dog nuggets, mac ‘n cheese, mashed potatoes, and assorted meats and cheeses. And, of course my favorite…desserts; there was warm banana-cinnamon bread pudding with vanilla sauce, chocolate fudge volcano cake, cherry-apple cobbler, and passion fruit tart.

Stay tuned for more information here as soon as the menu and pricing information are released!

Will you be visiting Tusker House once it reopens?
Please leave a comment; we would love to hear from you!

Disney After Hours BOO BASH Coming To Magic Kingdom This Fall

If you have been eagerly awaiting the news on what the Halloween season will look like at Walt Disney World this year, Disney recently answered this all important question. Instead of the spooktacular Mickey’s Not So Scary Halloween Party, this fall Walt Disney World will be offering Disney After Hours BOO BASH as a fun and safer alternative. Here’s what we know about this ghoulish event so far, courtesy of Disney:

Boo Bash 2A new special event is brewing this Halloween season at Magic Kingdom park—Disney After Hours BOO BASH! Join this ghostly gathering offering music, decorations, attractions and oh-so-eerie entertainment.

Get in the spooky spirit with Halloween-themed cavalcades. Indulge your sweet tooth at candy stops throughout the park. See some of your favorite and fiendish Disney friends as they lurk about, from Dr. Facilier and Captain Barbosa, to Goofy and Chip ‘n’ Dale. Stop and listen to the Cadaver Dans during their special comeback (from the dead) performance. And enjoy themed offerings, from sweet treats to savory delights.

Disney After Hours BOO BASH will take place on select nights from August 10 through October 31. Tickets for this event will go on sale in June, so continue to check for updates. Disney After Hours BOO BASH tickets will grant admission to Magic Kingdom park as early as 7:00pm without the need for a day park ticket or Disney Park Pass theme park reservation, giving you time to enjoy even more fun.

Halloween Treats 10Event Highlights

This hauntingly happy Halloween event is sure to be spook-tacular! Highlights include:

  • Halloween-themed cavalcades
  • Candy stops, with plenty of sweet surprises
  • Character sightings throughout the park
  • Special performances by the Cadaver Dans
  • Attractions, including favorites like Haunted Mansion and Space Mountain
  • Themed food and beverages available for purchase
  • Special décor, lighting, music and more!

Halloween Party 2Dress in Your Boo-tiful Best

Guests young, old and immortal can don a costume for the occasion. While we encourage creativity, we also value safety and good judgment. Costumes may be worn according to these guidelines. Guests who do not adhere to these guidelines may be refused entry into, and/or removed from Disney parks, unless his or her costume can be modified to meet these standards:

For Guests ages 13 and under:

  • Costumes and some masks may be worn; masks must provide unobstructed peripheral vision at all times with openings that allow the eyes to be fully seen.

For Guests 14 Years of Age or Older:

  • All Guests may dress as their favorite character, but may not pose for pictures or sign autographs for other Guests.
  • Costumes must be family-friendly and may not be obstructive, offensive, objectionable or violent.
  • Costumes may not contain any weapons that resemble or could easily be mistaken for an actual weapon.
  • Costumes may not contain sharp objects, pointed objects or materials that may accidentally strike another Guest.
  • Layered costumes or costume props that surround the entire body are strongly discouraged and may be subject to additional security screening.
  • Costumes may not reach or drag on the ground. (for example, full-length Princess dresses) 
  • Capes may be worn if the length does not go below the waist. 
  • Themed T-shirts, blouses, sweatshirts and hats are acceptable.
  • Acceptable accessories include: transparent wings, plastic light sabers, toy swords and tutus.

With very few details announced officially from Disney yet, we’ll have to wait until next month for exact dates, pricing information, and more specifics on what will be included.

If you’ve ever been to Mickey’s Not So Scary Halloween Party or Disney Villains After Hours, you know how much fun these events can be. I’m really looking forward to the new Disney After Hours BOO BASH this fall. My hope is this party will be the best of both worlds. To give you an idea of what we might be able to expect from the BOO BASH, I was lucky enough to attend both Mickey’s Not So Scary Halloween Party as well as Disney Villains After Hours in 2019, and I absolutely loved them both. Here’s my side-by-side comparison of the two events:

Mickey’s Not So Scary
Halloween Party
Disney Villains
After Hours
———————————- ———————————- ———————————-
Pricevaries based on night
starting at $85 per person, plus tax
$155 per person, plus tax
———————————- ———————————- ———————————-
DiscountsDiscounted tickets for Annual
Passholders and DVC members
Discounted tickets for Annual
Passholders and DVC members
———————————- ———————————- ———————————-
Hours7pm to midnight
early entry at 4pm
9pm to midnight
early entry at 7pm
———————————- ———————————- ———————————-
CrowdsExtremely crowded, waits for some character greetings can be over and hour, body-to-body for fireworks and paradeLight, little to no wait for most attractions, park almost empty in some areas
———————————- ———————————- ———————————-
ThemeHalloween
(lights, music, and decor)
Villains
(lights, music, and decor)
———————————- ———————————- ———————————-
CostumesAllowed for all guestsAllowed for all guests
———————————- ———————————- ———————————-
Free TreatsTrick-or-Treating candyIce cream bars, soda, popcorn
———————————- ———————————- ———————————-
Treats For PurchaseHalloween themed
desserts and drinks
Villain themed
desserts and drinks
———————————- ———————————- ———————————-
MerchandiseLimited edition Halloween party merchandise such as shirts, hats, tumblers, pins, popcorn bucketsLimited edition Villain themed merchandise such as shirts, tanks, tumblers, mugs, pins
———————————- ———————————- ———————————-
EntertainmentStage shows and dance partiesStage shows and dance parties
———————————- ———————————- ———————————-
CharactersMeet & Greets and stage showsOnly in stage shows
———————————- ———————————- ———————————-
AttractionsOver 20 attractions open some specially themed or enhanced for HalloweenOver 20 attractions open some overlayed with Villain themes
———————————- ———————————- ———————————-
ParadeYesNo
———————————- ———————————- ———————————-
FireworksYesYes

As you can see there are definitely pros and cons to both, so hopefully Disney After Hours BOO BASH will make the most of the best parts of each event for this year’s Halloween celebration!

Will you be attending Disney After Hours BOO BASH?
Please leave a comment; we would love to hear from you!