WDW Resorts - Update & Rumor Thread

[awhen]

How much do they charge you for accidentally putting those pillows in your suitcase?

 

[SkiBum]

I mean, there's no reason to ever truly justify spending that type of money to stay there. The only reasons to do it that I can accept is if you are just filthy rich and don't care about money or you are a Disney freak and want to stay as close to MK as possible (and again, kinda don't care how much it's going to cost you)

We really enjoy staying here (though not every time and not for long stays) because we spend more time at MK than other parks. We also use Dave's DVC to rent rooms at Bay Lake which decreases the cost quite a bit. However, I am starting to rethink all of this because the costs are getting out of hand anymore (not that they were cheap to begin with). OKW is a great resort (as long as you have a car) and is the least expensive, especially when renting. So, I am starting to think about only staying when I can get decent prices and, if not, staying offsite, which has been a no-no in my wife's eyes for a while.

 

[Nick]

RUMOR: New "Monorail Resort" Hotel Concept Rekindled, Construction Spotted in Magic Kingdom Area

Walt Disney World news, photos, and reviews! We provide you with daily news from the Walt Disney World theme parks and beyond

blogmickey.com

 

[GAcoaster]

That's not happening right now. If those were the head knocker things for the monorail beam and they were building a resort there they would have made them of big hefty I-Beams like all the others for construction sites around the beams. That is a small, temporary setup for clearing some brush out on the pad site. They do this every few years clearing brush there and on the islands in the lagoon.

 

[GAcoaster]

The Polynesian monorail station reopened this morning, but the lobby doors are still closed at the main entrance while they finish the landscaping.

 

[Nick]

Steakhouse 71 (replacing The Wave) is opening October 1st at The Contemporary.

Steakhouse 71 Menus Released for Breakfast, Lunch, and Dinner

Walt Disney World news, photos, and reviews! We provide you with daily news from the Walt Disney World theme parks and beyond

blogmickey.com

 

[Skold]

I liked The Wave pretty well; it had a neat entrance, waiting lounge, and bar.

It will be interesting to see what else you can do with such a "land-locked" (i.e. window-less) dinning area.

 

[Yabbadabba Doh]

I liked The Wave pretty well; it had a neat entrance, waiting lounge, and bar.

It will be interesting to see what else you can do with such a "land-locked" (i.e. window-less) dinning area.

Liked The Wave as well. If it’s changing to something like Steakhouse 55 at the Disneyland Hotel, it’s got a cool retro vibe and since it’s also window-less it has lots of photos of old Hollywood stars and folks back in the day eating. If they go the same route, I would expect some throwback photos from the early 70’s when the park first opened.

 

[Parkscope Joe]

The Polynesian monorail station reopened this morning, but the lobby doors are still closed at the main entrance while they finish the landscaping.

Everything is open and it all looks wonderful.

 

[HandsomePete]

Steakhouse 71 (replacing The Wave) is opening October 1st at The Contemporary.

Steakhouse 71 Menus Released for Breakfast, Lunch, and Dinner

Walt Disney World news, photos, and reviews! We provide you with daily news from the Walt Disney World theme parks and beyond

blogmickey.com

Sometimes budget cuts can be a good thing.

 

[OhHaiInternet95]

Alright, so I read this a long time ago (like almost twenty years in a WDW kid's guidebook), but is it true that the chandelier in the Boardwalk lobby contains a time capsule that's set to be opened next week?

 

[JoeCamel]

Alright, so I read this a long time ago (like almost twenty years in a WDW kid's guidebook), but is it true that the chandelier in the Boardwalk lobby contains a time capsule that's set to be opened next week?

Well....

Treasures of Disney’s Boardwalk Inn and Villas: Part One

www.mouseplanet.com

The Hippocampus Electrolier Chandelier weighs 3,000 pounds and is finished entirely in 22-karat gold leaf, hand-cut Austrian crystal, and custom-blown glass. Underneath there is a glass globe that used to be filled with sand and a time capsule to be opened on the 50th anniversary of Walt Disney World. The globe developed a leak (or fell and cracked depending upon who tells the story) and the sand and the time capsule were removed and are supposedly in safe keeping.

 

[Yabbadabba Doh]

So Disney announced that All Star Sports will be closed indefinitely and currently All Star Music is only at 30% capacity. While it was alleged that this September lull in attendance was due to a buildup/pause in visits prior to the 50th in October, I think they may be more concerned about bookings since they are pausing more reopenings.

 

[HandsomePete]

A bit buried in Amazon’s product announcement today, but:

Disney and Amazon partner on a custom voice assistant, 'Hey, Disney!' and Echo rollout to Walt Disney World Resort hotels | TechCrunch

Amazon, for the first time, is making another voice assistant available on Echo devices. The company at its fall event today announced a new voice

techcrunch.com

 

[Grabnar]

A bit buried in Amazon’s product announcement today, but:

Disney and Amazon partner on a custom voice assistant, 'Hey, Disney!' and Echo rollout to Walt Disney World Resort hotels | TechCrunch

Amazon, for the first time, is making another voice assistant available on Echo devices. The company at its fall event today announced a new voice

techcrunch.com

I'm torn on this one. On one hand, new technology to make things easier for the guest is cool and good, but I don't trust Disney or Amazon to not have a weird creepy spying "feature" and replacing human workers with robots/AIs always sucks.

 

[JoeCamel]

I'm torn on this one. On one hand, new technology to make things easier for the guest is cool and good, but I don't trust Disney or Amazon to not have a weird creepy spying "feature" and replacing human workers with robots/AIs always sucks.

The real failing of AI is that it really isn't AI but smart programming to pick the best available response to the input. In this case your voice (does it do scots?) is the input and it has to search and respond quickly with what it's algorithm says is the best action. It can never be smart enough or tailored enough to be what you wanted every time.
I hope all Disney is doing is skinning alexa with character voices, custom wakeup phrase and a themed box. It is state of the art for this moment and Disney does not have a solid track record developing IT on it's own

 

[Nick]

New watercraft being added:

Disney World Adds New Watercraft for First Time Since 1990s

Walt Disney World news, photos, and reviews! We provide you with daily news from the Walt Disney World theme parks and beyond

blogmickey.com

 

[JoeCamel]

"“Trade Winds” refers to the nearly constant wind that blows across the equator."

No it doesn't, the doldrums are along the equator with almost no winds

 

[Nick]

A look at the interior of the new watercraft. Definitely very spacious which will help for those with ECVs.

A Ride on Disney's High-Tech(ish) "Tradewinds" Motor Cruiser

Walt Disney World news, photos, and reviews! We provide you with daily news from the Walt Disney World theme parks and beyond

blogmickey.com

 

[GAcoaster]

I understand there was originally a plan for more of these cruisers to finally replace the original launches, but budget cuts...