Mickey’s Toontown to Reopen at Disneyland Park on March 19, 2023

 visit and experience the reimagined land.  

It’s Mickey Mouse and Minnie Mouse’s birthday! In honor of this special occasion, the Disneyland Resort is pleased to announce the official reopening date of Mickey’s Toontown in Disneyland Park – March 19, 2023!

It was this time last year that we first announced Mickey’s Toontown would undergo an ambitious reimagining, and reopen with some all-new experiences for families and young children to have more opportunities to play together inside Disneyland Park. At D23 Expo in September, we shared a bit more about the interactive play areas and how we are stepping into a new era of inclusive experiences in this land for families of all ages.

We are all excited to see just how Mickey’s Toontown will become a vibrant symphony of sights, sounds and sensations very soon. Here’s a look at some of what you can expect when the land reopens on March 19!

The reimagined Mickey’s Toontown will provide open, grassy play spaces for everyone to unwind, starting with CenTOONial Park, the first space guests will see when they enter the land. CenTOONial Park will be anchored by two new interactive play experiences; a beautiful fountain featuring water tables designed for play that invite guests to have a sensory experience, plus a nearby dreaming tree with sculpted tree roots providing an opportunity for children to crawl and explore.

Mickey’s Toontown will be home to the new attraction, Mickey & Minnie’s Runaway Railway! Inside the El CapiTOON Theater, Mickey & Minnie’s Runaway Railway will put you in the wacky and unpredictable cartoon world of Mickey and Minnie, where Guests will board a train with Goofy as the engineer. One magical moment after the next leads you to a zany, out-of-control adventure filled with surprising twists and turns that the entire family will enjoy!

As you may have read, Mickey & Minnie’s Runaway Railway will open on Jan. 27, when the Disney 100 Years of Wonder Celebration comes to life at Disneyland Resort!

Over in Goofy’s neck of the woods, Guests will find Goofy’s How-To-Play Yard, as shown in this new aerial rendering of the area.

Dedicated to all things play, Goofy’s How-To-Play Yard incorporates a whimsical sound garden where kids will discover new ways to make wacky noises, as well as enjoy an all-new, elevated clubhouse.

When Guests step inside Goofy’s House, they’ll find a fun, interactive candy-making contraption that only Goofy could imagine! The confectionary contraption begins high outside of Goofy’s home, as drips of honey fall from a beehive onto a chute that slides the colorful drops around and down into the home. From there, junior candymakers will help Goofy make the candy, and the silly sounds of household appliances will combine to make a truly Goofy symphony.

Donald’s Boat will be perched in the duck pond of the Goof homestead. Imagine larger-than-life spinning water lilies, balance beams and rocking toys at Donald’s Duck Pond that will help little ones get the wiggles out. Kids will definitely love making a splash in this space! Guests can also look into the boat through the portholes to witness bubbles of fun inside the flooded vessel and interact with some familiar ducklings including Huey, Dewey, Louie and Webby.

For those wanting to get a little ‘nutty,’ Guests can head over to Chip ‘n’ Dale’s GADGETcoaster, where Mickey’s Toontown’s favorite tinkerer, Gadget Hackwrench, has created a one-of-a-kind, fun-sized coaster for the town’s tiniest citizens.

And at Mickey’s House and Minnie’s House, Guests will once again be able to step right into their homes and enjoy a self-guided tour as they discover special surprises in every room. They may even be able to visit with Mickey and Minnie while they’re there, should they be home!

Roger Rabbit’s Car Toon Spin will also return, where Guests can board Lenny the Cab and spin through the streets and alleys of Toontown as they follow the adventures of Roger Rabbit.

And when Guests feel a snack attack coming on, they’ll be able to turn to two new places to appease their appetites in the land: Café Daisy, where acclaimed culinary expert, Daisy Duck, serves up diner classics at her sidewalk table eatery; and the Toontown Farmers Market at Good Boy! Grocers, a friendly roadside stand, offering grab and go drinks and treats.

Be sure to stay tuned to Disney Travel News for more information about the transformation of Mickey’s Toontown as we get closer to March 19. And in the meantime, please join us in wishing our beloved Mickey and Minnie a very happy birthday!

Reservations Open Soon for Roundup Rodeo BBQ at Disney’s Hollywood Studios

At the end of January, Disney announced that the new table service restaurant, Roundup Rodeo BBQ, opening in Toy Story Land, will open to guests on March 23, 2023. Until now, we didn’t know when reservations would open up for the restaurant. Thankfully, we now have a date. 

Below, Disney also shared a behind-the-scenes look at the restaurant.

Super Bowl Celebrations Ditched Walt Disney World This Year

This year, the Super Bowl’s winning team did not go to Walt Disney World to celebrate.

With Super Bowl LVII just days away, Disney is preparing for their annual post-game celebration down Main Street, USA. Since 1987, audiences have watched the Super Bowl MVP shout the phrase, “I’m going to Disney World!” This year, after the Kansas City Chiefs and the Philadelphia Eagles face off on Super Bowl Sunday, that phrase will be different.

Walt Disney World Resort will not be hosting its annual Super Bowl celebrations this year. Instead, it has been announced that Disneyland Resort will host the event for the second year in a row. Disneyland Resort is no stranger to hosting football parades. In addition to hosting MVP Cooper Kupp, Aaron Donald, Matthew Stafford, and the rest of the Los Angeles Rams last year, Disneyland Park also hosts the Rose Bowl parade every year.

Nevertheless, Florida football fans will not be getting a Super Bowl parade in the Walt Disney World Parks this year, and some on social media have expressed their disappointment.

User @RealRobGarrison writes, “Omg, I literally spoke to a fam a few weeks ago that planned their trip to FL just so they can be at the parks for the parade 💀💀💀.”

User @Jefflipack writes, “All those “treat Florida fairly” people will not be happy!!”

Many more users express their confusion and disappointment by quote retweeting Disney’s post.

Why Is the Super Bowl Being Celebrated at Disneyland?

Many people are confused as to why the celebration is happening in Disneyland once again. The reasoning:  the locations of the stadiums. Last year’s Super Bowl was at SoFi stadium in Los Angeles, so celebrating at Disneyland Park and staying in Southern California made more sense logistically. This year’s game will be played at State Farm Stadium in Glendale, Arizona, so Disneyland Park was the better choice location-wise. While Walt Disney World Resort locals may be upset, Disneyland locals are rejoicing at this news.

The Disneyland Parade isn’t going to be the only exciting thing happening for Disney football fans. During the game, some brand-new commercials are rumored to be airing. These commercials include one for Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania, The Little MermaidElemental, and Guardians of the Galaxy 3. There is also a possibility that Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny and The Marvels will have teasers as well.

rams disneyland

There are so many reasons to be excited about the game this weekend. Whether you are rooting for Patrick Mahomes and the Kansas City Chiefs or Jalen Hurts and the Philadelphia Eagles, this game is sure to be an exciting matchup.

Viral Video of Smoke-Filled Magic Kingdom

A now viral TikTok video posted by a Guest while on vacation at the Walt Disney World Resort’s Magic Kingdom shows Cinderella Castle surrounded by smoke.

Walt Disney World’s Magic Kingdom is a source of delight for all who enter that happy place, granting it the official title of The Most Magical Place on Earth. The first of the Orlando Resort’s four Disney Parks, Guests can enter realms of Fantasy, Adventure, the Frontier, and Tomorrow while enjoying classic attractions and new offerings like the TRON Lightcycle / Run Coaster alongside some of their favorite Disney characters.

Moreover, fans love Magic Kingdom for its picturesque Main Street, U.S.A., where they’ll find the beautiful Park icon, Cinderella Castle, waiting at the end of the hub. In fact, the towering structure is one of the largest at Walt Disney World, standing a full 189 feet of majestic royal architecture.

However, many Disney fans felt only horror and fear rather than being filled with wonder upon seeing Cinderella Castle seemingly on fire in a video recently shared by TikTok user @sachaofficialmusic. As reported by Inside the Magic, the clip, which now has over 2.5 million views on the social media platform, shows a view of the Castle on a sunny day under a bright blue sky.

Cinderella Stock Photo

In contrast to the lovely day, plumes of smoke rise amongst the Castle turrets, a shocking sight. “Is it just me or is the Castle at Disney World on [fire ]” asks the caption, leaving many to worry something had gone wrong.

@sachaofficialmusic

POV: Is it me or is the Castle at Disney World on 🔥😳 #POV #Disney #DisneyWorld #MagicKingdom #fyp

♬ Oh No – Kreepa

Upon closer inspection, the smoke streaming up behind the Castle came from the Magic Kingdom Park’s daytime fireworks display, which is a normal occurrence conducted by trained pyrotechnicians for safety each time. It’s likely the combination of wind blowing some of the smoke forward and a shadow cast by the bright sunlight onto the Castle facade gave the impression that the icon itself was on fire when captured on the user’s camera.

cinderella castle

Moreover, Walt Disney World employs Cast Members and its own fire department to remain on standby during fireworks shows if an accident occurs to ensure the fastest response time. Luckily, the flaming Cinderella Castle was a false alarm, with no harm coming to Guests or Cast Members.

Although this scene certainly frightened Disney fans online, rest assured the Most Magical Place on Earth, and its iconic Cinderella Castle are doing just fine and ready to shine on your next visit to the Walt Disney World Resort.

Disney World President Gives Up the Reedy Creek Battle

Via DisDining.com

The Florida state legislature has voted in favor of Governor Ron DeSantis’ proposed bill, which would reduce the independence enjoyed by Walt Disney World through the Reedy Creek Improvement District Act and Walt Disney World President Jeff Vahle responds.

Walt Disney himself first began to ratify the Reedy Creek Act, an unfortunate fact that enabled DeSantis to take advantage of a loophole to dissolve any proposed special district agreement signed into law before 1968. Of course, DeSantis holds a more personal vendetta against the Walt Disney World Resort’s specific special district, which allowed it near self-governance for fifty years due to the Walt Disney Company’s vocal support of LGBTQ+ rights after DeSantis passed the infamous “Don’t Say Gay Bill,” regulating visibility for minority identities and histories, particularly in children’s educational curriculum.

In fact, the new HB 9 bill prevents the landowners (AKA Disney Parks) from selecting the new board members, all five of which DeSantis himself will now appoint. Furthermore, board members are restricted to those without theme park or entertainment complex experience within the last three years, effectively eliminating anyone from the Disney brand who actually has the Parks interests in mind.

Many theme park analysts feared the worst for the fate of Disney World if HB 9 passed, and now that it has, they are looking to the theme park mogul itself to see its next move. Moreover, some questioned if Disney would take the case to the Supreme Court to have DeSantis’ eligibility limitations or the entire redistribution of power appealed.

Disney vs DeSantis

However, a new statement released by Walt Disney World President Jeff Vahle suggests quite the opposite: Disney hopes to wash its hands of the matter and accept the new changes. Specifically, Vahle states Disney is more focused on its future than holding onto the District of the pass, opting to adapt to DeSantis’ changes in order to continue operations and innovating the Disney Parks experience for Guests.

You can read the full statement, as reported to WFTV9 below:

For more than 50 years, the Reedy Creek Improvement District has operated at the highest standards, and we appreciate all that the District has done to help our destination grow and become one of the largest economic contributors and employers in the state. We are focused on the future and are ready to work within this new framework, and we will continue to innovate, inspire and bring joy to the millions of guests who come to Florida to visit Walt Disney World each year.

Even so, the bill significantly reduces or completely strips Walt Disney World and Reedy Creek of its self-governing powers, meaning the coming adjustment period may very well determine the Company’s fate.