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WDW Radio Newswire: Art of Animation Resort Set to Open Ahead of Schedule

Plus…Storybook Circus Now “Soft Open”, Official Closing Date for Snow White’s Scary Adventures,

Reminder About Test Track, and more

by Don Myers

It’s a BUSY time around the Vacation Kingdom of the World, so let’s dive right into another edition of the WDW Radio Newswire…

Guests itching to get a first-hand look at Disney’s Art of Animation Resort will be elated with this first bit of news. The Finding Nemo wing will still be opening up on Thursday May 31st as was previously announced. HOWEVER  the resort’s other three wings: Cars, Lion King, and The Little Mermaid, will all be opening up ahead of schedule! The Cars section will now take the checkered flag on Monday June 18th, six weeks ahead of the previous target date of Tuesday July 31st. And the Circle of Life will begin accepting guests seven weeks earlier than expected in the Lion King section, as that wing will now be opening up on Friday August 10th as opposed to the previously anticipated date of Sunday September 30th. Rounding out the quartet is The Little Mermaid section, which will now be a “part of our World” on Saturday September 15th instead of Monday December 31st. The Finding Nemo, Cars, and Lion King sections all feature family suites that can sleep six, and The Little Mermaid section is comprised of traditional four person value rooms.

Now let’s head into the Parks for some exciting news out of Magic Kingdom. It seems as if portions of Storybook Circus have begun to welcome in Guests a little bit ahead of the official opening date! Select attractions are now “soft open,” including the newest of the two spinners at Dumbo the Flying Elephant, Fantasyland Train Station, and The Barnstormer featuring The Great Goofini. The official opening date for Storybook Circus is slated for Saturday March 31st, so we’ll have to wait and see if the rest of the land will be opening up shop on that day or not.

For more news out of Magic Kingdom, let’s head to Main Street USA, where Mr. and Mrs. Easter Bunny are now making regular appearances. The duo can be found at their usual spot this time of year, in the garden area just outside City Hall.

Before we Park Hop out of the Magic Kingdom, there’s one more bit of news to report. I’ve been holding off on this one because it’s going to personally pain me to see it drift off into the realm of extinction. But everyone already knew it was an unfortunate inevitability, and now the date’s official. Fantasyland will be losing one of the Park’s opening day attractions on Thursday May 30th, as Snow White’s Scary Adventures is scheduled to close its doors forever at the conclusion of the evening to make room for the new meet and greet location: Princess Fairytale Hall. First we lose Toad, now Snow White. What’s next, the Skyway? Oh wait…

Okay, let’s brighten up the somber mood with some major news out of Epcot Center. It seems as if there will be an all-new interactive gaming experience around World Showcase this summer starring Agent P from Phineas and Ferb! The game, entitled “Agent P’s World Showcase Adventure,” will be replacing the Kim Possible interactive game which had been offered at EPCOT since January of 2009. The majority of the Countries around World Showcase will be participating in the new interactive experience, with Morocco, Italy, Canada, and The American Adventure being the only four exceptions.

Our final piece of news today also comes from EPCOT, and this one is just a little reminder about Test Track. The attraction is slated for a substantial closure, which is set to begin in April and conclude sometime this autumn. So if you want to see the attraction one more time before its overhaul, you’ve only got a few weeks left to do so!

Well, that’s gonna do it for today’s update, but I’ll be back again soon with another edition of the WDW Radio Newswire…

Don Myers covers news and recent events in Walt Disney World.  He has been enamored with the World of Disney since his first trip to WDW in 1986. As they say, the rest is history!  Don also has been a contributing writer for Celebrations magazine since 2009.

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About Lou Mongello

Lou Mongello is a former attorney who left the practice to pursue his passion, and is now a recognized Disney expert, author, speaker, and host of WDW Radio. Learn more…

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