Magic Kingdom attraction has finally reopened after being closed to Guests for more than 28 months

Posted on by Mathew Corn Disney Parks, Magic Kingdom

A Magic Kingdom attraction that closed to Guests almost 2 1/2 years ago has finally reopened, but Guests who want to experience it are encouraged to make a reservation in advance.

In March 2020, in response to the growing global coronavirus pandemic, The Walt Disney Company made the painful but necessary decision to close its domestic theme parks and its theme parks abroad. For the first time in history, fans were living in a world devoid of a single operational Disney Park. It was a strange time for Disney and for the world as a whole.

The four theme parks at the Walt Disney World Resort remained closed for almost four months, and when they reopened, it was with a very limited capacity and a brand-new tool for crowd control called the Park Pass Reservation System. (Many of us thought it would be a temporary tool, but alas, it has endured for more than 2 years now, and according to Disney, it’s here to stay–at least for now.)

When the parks at Disney World finally reopened, many Guest experiences, rides, entertainment and other attractions were not available, and since that time, thanks to a planned phased reopening of the parks, the majority of those experiences has reopened. But one experience at Magic Kingdom remained unavailable until Sunday.

Magic Kingdom’s Harmony Barber Shop, located at Town Square, hadn’t welcomed a Guest through its doors in more than two years. But on Sunday, the shop finally reopened to Guests.

For some Disney World fans, the experience is a rite of passage. Harmony Barber Shop offers haircuts to men, women, and children–but with a bit of pixie dust and Disney Magic. At this time, adult Guests can get a haircut for $21, and children can get a haircut for $20. The Harmony Barber Shop also offers the My First Haircut experience for little ones. For $28, a child can get a haircut, a Mickey ears hat, a keepsake lock of hair, and a certificate commemorating the experience.

Male Guests who are feeling a bit “scruffy” can enjoy a beard trim at Harmony Barber Shop for $8.

But if you’re hoping to experience a haircut at Magic Kingdom’s barber shop, Disney recommends making a reservation in advance. Harmony Barber Shop does have a limited number of walk-in appointments available each day, but they are only available on a first-come, first-served basis.

harmony barber shop

For more information about Harmony Barber Shop at Magic Kingdom, Guests can visit Disney World’s official website by clicking here.

Lightning Strike Near The Haunted Mansion!

Posted on by Mathew Corn Disney Parks, Magic Kingdom

When hinges creak in doorless chambers, and strange and frightening sounds echo through the halls. Whenever candlelights flicker where the air is deathly still — that is the time when ghosts are present, practicing their terror with ghoulish delight!

Or possibly the candlelight flickered because of a giant lightning strike! Florida is one of the top places for lightning strikes in the world, especially during hurricane season. In fact, last year, central Florida led the entire state with the most amount of lightning strikes, experiencing about 56 lightning strikes per square mile. That’s a lot of lightning! While some lightning strikes can be scary, they can also create some beautiful illusions in the Parks, and that is exactly what happened recently at the Magic Kingdom at the Walt Disney World Resort.

Guests waiting in line at Disney’s Haunted Mansion — located in Liberty Square — were recently treated to quite the show. The clouds were dark, the weather was turning, and lightning struck somewhere behind The Haunted Mansion. The forked lightning went through the clouds in a dozen different directions, which is just perfect for this incredibly spooky Disney Park ride.

A clip of the lightning strike was shared by the Disney Clips Guy Twitter account in both slow motion and full speed.

This is not the first time that lightning has struck at or near The Most Magical Place on Earth. In the past, lightning has struck near both Spaceship Earth in EPCOT and right behind Cinderella Castle in the Magic Kingdom. Although rare, lightning also struck near Disneyland Resort in Southern California, and a woman dressed as Thor for the Oogie Boogie Bash was able to take advantage and create an amazing illusion.

Cinderella Castle lightning

It is important to note that, if you are visiting Walt Disney World Resort and there is lightning within a 10-mile radius, Disney will most likely shut down outdoor attractions like Big Thunder Mountain Railroad, Splash Mountain, Dumbo, Seven Dwarfs Mine Train, The Jungle Cruise, and more. Disney does this as a way to keep both Guests and Cast Members safe. Once the lightning is gone, Disney will reopen the rides when they feel it is safe. The My Disney Experience app will keep Guests updated on all ride closures during their time in the Parks.

Another Day, Another Near Fight at Disney World

Posted on by Mathew Corn Disney Parks, Magic Kingdom

In case you’ve been avoiding Disney Park stories as of late, Guests behaving badly seems to be a recurring theme at Disney Parks lately. We get it, lines are long, temperatures are high, and people are tired. However, people just seem to have tempers that are shorter than ever, putting other Guests and Cast Members in dangerous situations where they could get hurt. Luckily, the most recent fight at Walt Disney World’s Magic Kingdom on a tram headed to the Ticket and Transportation Center did not come to blows, but that was because Cast Members quickly intervened, and one group was on a tram.

The video, shared on TikTok by Disney World Today (@disneyworldtoday), shows one group of people on the tram screaming at another group of people who are in line waiting for another tram. A man is standing on the parking tram, speaking to someone in the crowd. All of a sudden, a woman who is with the man, stands up, begins screaming, and then bangs aggressively on the parking lot tram door. The entire time, theme park Guests yell that it is not worth it, and they want to go home. A woman next to the screaming woman sits her down and tells her to stop.

Thankfully, a Cast Member was there to try to deescalate the situation and worked hard to make sure everyone stayed safe and stayed in their respective areas. You can watch the video of the argument below:

@disneyworldtoday

Can’t even enjoy the Tram now #disney #emo #flashinglights #countrymusic #disneyworld #fight #brawl #fights #fyp

♬ There is only one Disney – Kevin The Arbiter

This is not the first fight to break out recently at a Disney Park and, sadly, it will not be the last. We recently reported on an all-out brawl that broke out in Fantasyland at Walt Disney World Resort that led to arrests and lifetime bans. There was also a fight at Disneyland while Guests waited for Fantasmic! to begin and a fight in Toy Story Land at Disney’s Hollywood Studios. Fights are an absolute no at Disney, and The House of Mouse is not afraid to ban you from its theme parks or have you arrested.

If you ever find yourself in a tense situation with another Guest, simply walk away. It doesn’t matter if you are right, or they are right. Getting into a fight only accomplishes several things: It ruins everyone’s day, it ruins everyone’s Disney experience, it gets you kicked out of the Disney Park, and it can even get you banned. No fight is worth wasting all the money you spent or risking never being able to visit a Disney Park again.

Disney World to Bring Back Classic Magic Kingdom Ride

Posted on by Mathew Corn Disney Parks, Magic Kingdom

All aboard! In an era where the news is usually bad, we’ve got some really great news! While it’s no secret that the Walt Disney World Railroad was not closed permanently, many fans did start to wonder if it was going to become another attraction Disney quietly closed and never reopened. The fear was not completely baseless. Many attractions in the past have been “temporarily closed” only to end up relegated to the graveyard of lost shows and rides (looking at you Horizons, Stitch’s Great Escape, Dream Flight, Honey I Shrunk the Audience, etc.). When there were no signs of life with the attraction for years, many speculated it may be gone for good.

However, recently there have been signs of life at Walt’s beloved attraction confirming that it will in fact be making a comeback! Walt Disney World recently shared a picture of Cast Members training for the railroad’s return and captioned it, “Our week started off on the right track! Our first group of Magic Kingdom Cast Members began TRAINing – the next step in the ongoing process to restore the Walt Disney World Railroad. Welcome aboard, and welcome home Engineers!”

This is certainly a step in the right direction and confirmation that the attraction will be back, sooner rather than later! We cannot wait. It’s been a long 4 years since the Railroad closed to accommodate construction of Magic Kingdoms newest attraction Tron Lightcycle Power Run.

Walt Disney World Railroad

Disney has yet to say when the attraction will reopen but it stands to reason it will be soon. It wouldn’t be logical to train Cast Members if the reopening was a long way away. My guess would be around labor day. We expect lots of big things to happen around then so the Railroad’s triumphant return would fit into that timeline nicely. It’s just exciting to be getting it back. We’ve lost many beloved attractions in recent years but it seems this one, at least, is going to come back to us.

New Details From Eyewitness to Magic Kingdom Brawl

Posted on by Mathew Corn Disney Parks, Magic Kingdom

Via DisDining.com

More details have emerged about the brawl at Magic Kingdom tonight. We spoke to a bystander about the incident who was able to give us an eyewitness account. The fight involved two separate families, names at this time are unknown so for now we will call them “Green Shirt” and “White Shirt Family”. The incident occurred due to a supposed line cutting incident at Mickey’s Philharmagic. 

The sister of the man in the green shirt realized she left her phone in her ECV and left the line to go retrieve it. When she returned  White Shirt family did not want to let her back through at which point they pushed her. 

The sister made her way back to her brother where they proceeded to watch the show without further incident.  

After the show, however, White Shirt Family was waiting for Green Shirt at the attraction’s exit. Green Shirt told them that he didn’t want any trouble, but according to the bystander we spoke with, White Shirt Family ganged up on him and “jumped him”. 

Several bystanders and Cast Members attempted to break it up but the scene was so chaotic no one could get a handle on the situation.  

Expletives were shouted and at one point White Shirt Family called Green Shirt and his sister “terrorists” according to the bystander. 

The bystander estimated that it took approximately 6 minutes for Disney Security to arrive on scene. They were shortly followed by local Sheriffs and EMS. Green Shirt left with EMS and we are told he had a decent cut on his face. 

It’s unknown if anyone involved was arrested, though we did check the arrest log for Orange County for Wednesday July 20 and didn’t find anyone matching the descriptions of either White Shirt Family or Green Shirt. 

The bystander we spoke with said the whole situation was “traumatic” to witness and they wished Disney “had better security measures” because “you just never know these days”. 

We will update you if any new information about this situation comes to light. Here is the video again for those who may have missed it: