Open daily for breakfast, lunch and dinner, the 220-seat restaurant takes casual dining into the health-conscious 21st century. The classic American breakfast menu includes plenty of egg creations, but guests also can make their own Wave muesli or sip a Beta Berry Smoothie with raspberry puree and non-fat yogurt blended with Odwalla Berries GoMega (a great source of Omega-3). The Pure Sunshine breakfast cocktail features organic vodka and orange juice topped with Vitamin Energy Drink. Coffee is organic Colombian (fair trade and "Smithsonian-certified bird-friendly") and teas are whole leaf Pyramid bags in flavors from chamomile blossoms to monsoon chai.
Desserts continue the theme with a dozen choices for mixing and matching three mini-favorites for one price. From chocolate mousse with chocolate ganache, to yogurt sorbet with blueberry compote and coconut panna cotta with passion fruit, guests can indulge their sweet tooth without a big hit in calories. Or go overboard with a dessert cocktail like the Mudslide martini: Baileys Irish Cream, vanilla vodka, Kahlúa and vanilla ice cream.
Wine 'With a Twist,' Innovative Spirits Menu
The Wave is part of a revitalization at Disney's Contemporary Resort that includes a makeover of the hotel's fourth floor with a new game arcade and new quick-service eatery for salads and sandwiches (replacing Concourse Steakhouse). The popular Chef Mickey's restaurant and the monorail station anchor that family-friendly area.
Effective June 1, the Resort Airline Check-In service will implement several changes in its checked baggage policy:
-- Guests who fly AirTran, Continental, Delta, JetBlue, Northwest, and US Airways may check one bag per passenger using the Resort Airline Check-in Service. Guests with multiple bags on these airlines will have the option to check additional pieces through their airlines' ticket counters at Orlando International Airport or they may call Baggage Airline Guest Services at 407-284-1231 to pay their airline's excess luggage fees in advance of checking in at the Resort Airline Check-In desk. The excess luggage fees vary by airline.
-- Guests flying on American who wish to check bags must call Baggage Airline Guest Services at 407-284-1231 to pay their airline bag fees in advance of checking in at the Resort Airline Check-In desk. Otherwise, Guests must check-in at the airport.
NOTE: If paying for excess luggage fees through Baggage Airline Guest Services you must pay with a credit card: MasterCard, Visa, and American Express are accepted. Resort Airline Check-In desks are unable to collect luggage fees on behalf of the airlines.
Baggage Airline Guest Services operates seven days a week between the hours of 7 a.m. and 11 p.m.
-- Guests flying on Alaska and United Airlines are not subject to bag fees at this time. NOTE: Alaska Airlines will be subject to excess bag fees effective July 1.
For all airlines, luggage must be 50 pounds or less in order to use the service and it must comply with their airline's size dimension baggage policy. Overweight and oversized luggage cannot be accepted at the Resort Airline Check-In desks.
Downtown Disney
Magic Kingdom
--Ariel's Grotto will be closed through May 23, 2008.
Disney's Hollywood Studios
Animal Kingdom
-- PetriFries will be closed for refurbishment June 1-20, 2008.
Pop Century
-- Classic Concoctions, the bar/lounge area in the lobby of Pop Century, officially closed on May 6. It will be converted to the Package Pickup area for guests sending items from the parks and some of the hotels. It is set to open on July 26.
Reminder: Concourse Steakhouse will close on May 31, 2008 and will be replaced by The Wave, a new table service location on the 1st floor that will open shortly after Concourse closes. A new quick service location will take the place of Concourse Steakhouse, while traffic flow changes to Chef Mickey's entrance and a new seating area are created. Tempo Grab and Go and Chef Mickey's will remain open during this work.
Walt Disney World Resort and ESPN plan to re-brand Disney's Wide World of Sports Complex with the ESPN brand in the near future. Plans for the re-branding initiative are still in the development stage, but initial concepts involve renaming the sports complex and incorporating the signature elements of ESPN throughout the 220-acre facility, which is a leading venue for amateur and professional sports in the country. The project aims to enhance the experience of both athletes and spectators by connecting them to their favorite ESPN programs, personalities and elements. The re-branding of the Disney sports complex is the latest initiative in the growing sports business at Walt Disney World Resort. In December, the sports complex debuted additional outdoor playing fields for football, soccer, lacrosse and field hockey competitions. This summer the sports complex will open Jostens Center , a new state-of-the-art field house that will allow Disney to accommodate twice as many indoor sports events each year. Additional expansion plans are being explored. The Disney sports complex annually hosts more than 180 events in 50 different sports involving athletes from more than 70 countries. Among those events are the Atlanta Braves spring training season, a Tampa Bay Rays regular-season series, the Major League Baseball Draft, the NBA Pre-Draft Camp, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers training camp, the Pop Warner Super Bowl, Varsity All-Star Cheerleading competitions, and the Walt Disney World Marathon. ESPN televised 20 sporting events from the complex in the last year. Walt Disney World Resort and ESPN also annually work together to host the popular ESPN The Weekend event at Disney's Hollywood Studios.
LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. – Walt Disney World guests start donning 3-D glasses and entering a wild and wooly 4-D world of Woody, Buzz and other favorite "Toy Story" characters when Toy Story Mania! makes its grand premiere May 31 at Disney's Hollywood Studios. As part of Disney's "Year of a Million Dreams," the attraction will also debut on the West Coast, with a scheduled opening in Disney's California Adventure at Disneyland Resort June 17.
Inspired by the Disney-Pixar films "Toy Story" and "Toy Story 2," Toy Story Mania! raises the bar for interactive ride-game attractions. It's a high-energy, immersive adventure that puts guests right in the action as their game play triggers fun surprises that provide a fourth dimension of fun. Toy Story Mania! engages guests in a whole new way with the delightful characters of the films.
In the timeless tradition of Disney storytelling, Toy Story Mania! takes its inspiration from the fact that Andy's toys spring to life whenever he is away. Soon after Andy got a "Midway Games Play Set" for his latest birthday, the toys jumped at their first chance to open the box and set up the game booths and carnival trams so everyone could ride and play. That means "no assembly required" for their game-playing guests -- just nonstop fun. (That is, until Andy gets home!)
Upon entering the attraction, guests are welcomed by Mr. Potato Head, more than five feet tall and looking like he stepped right down from the movie screen. The state-of-the-art Audio-Animatronics Mr. Potato Head makes a perfect carnival barker, capable of engaging guests in two-way conversation and encouraging them to "step right up" for the immersive Toy Story Mania! experience.
Everyone gets a front row seat when guests put on their 3-D glasses, "shrink" to the size of a toy and board Toy Story Mania! carnival tram ride vehicles which add a huge amount of fun to the interactive experience. The exciting and colorful route takes guests through "Andy's Bedroom" filled with oversized murals and toys. The vehicles angle to face Toy Story Mania! game booths -- high-tech yet rooted in classic midway games of skill -- and guests aim for 3-D animated targets using their own on-board spring-action shooters. Players pair up and sit side-by-side for a friendly competition that delivers an ever-changing variety of targets and surprises.
As they play, guests can actually see the "virtual" objects they've launched leave their spring-action shooters and hit (or miss) the targets. And thanks to 4-D special effects technology, they may sense objects whirring past them as they pop out of the 3-D scenes.
The Toy Story Mania! games -- five of them, plus an introductory practice round -- are designed to be enjoyed by audiences of all ages and skills, from beginners to experienced gamers. Play is energized by the spirit of the "Toy Story" characters cast in games that best suit their very animated personalities.
First comes the "Pie Throw Practice" round in which guests can try splattering targets with virtual pies.
Next, Hamm hosts a "Hamm & Eggs" booth in which players launch plastic virtual eggs at various barnyard targets.
"Bo Peep's Baaa-loon Pop" presents a landscape full of balloon sheep, trees and other objects at which guests can launch virtual darts. But players had better be careful! A popped virtual water balloon might add an additional 4-D wet dimension to the game.
From there it's on to "Green Army Men Shoot Camp" where the challenge is to break plates with virtual baseballs.
Next up is "Buzz Lightyear's Flying Tossers," a ring-toss game hosted by everyone's favorite space ranger, with Little Green Aliens as the targets.
For the grand finale game, Toy Story Mania! players ride through Wild West scenes launching virtual suction-cup darts at targets in "Woody's Rootin' Tootin' Shootin' Gallery." A final "Woody's Bonus Roundup" encourages guests to fire their spring-action shooters as rapidly as possible at one last super target for extra points. When scores are tallied, players' skill levels are identified and they can see how they've done compared to the high scores.
The game play of Toy Story Mania! is accompanied by creative musical variations of Randy Newman's "You've Got A Friend in Me," arranged by veteran music editor Bruno Coon, a frequent Newman collaborator, to complement the games -- for example, a military brass band version for "Green Army Men Shoot Camp."
No matter how many times guests return to ride and play, they can be sure every ride-through will seem different.
LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. -- Fine cuisine and wines from some of the best "foodie" cities in the world will take a bow at the 13th annual Epcot International Food & Wine Festival Sept. 26 through Nov. 9 at Walt Disney World Resort.
Epcot guests can explore these "Cities in Wonderland" -- from trendy Cork, Ireland, to the melting pot of Cape Town, South Africa -- around the World Showcase promenade while also discovering blissful bites at international and regional marketplaces brimming with exotic flavors and comfort foods. The six-week festival will showcase tastes from countries on six continents.
More than 25 international marketplaces will serve tapas-sized portions of regional specialties at $2-to-$5 each, and recommended wines and beers make perfect pairings at each kiosk. New festival flavors explore the culinary wonders of Lyon, France; Marrakesh, Morocco; Shanghai, China; Bologna, Italy; Tokyo and Mexico City. Exhibits along the promenade also will showcase entertainment and traditional crafts of several countries.
Daily complimentary wine and beer tastings serve up sips from around the world, and culinary demonstrations dish up featured taste treats. A series of special culinary programs features a lineup of renowned winemakers, guest chefs and speakers participating in elegant dinners, luncheons, seminars and wine schools.
"We wanted to take our guests on a grand gustatory expedition," says Nora Carey, festival manager. "The cities that we'll feature are known for great dining experiences, and the 'Cities in Wonderland' theme will inspire our guests to enjoy great food and wine in a fresh new way."
The Epcot festival continues to grow dramatically, attracting a diverse audience of more than one million guests each fall -- from wine connoisseurs and epicures to neophytes wishing to boost their wine IQs. Beer aficionados can raise their steins at several tasting locations, including Germany's Biergarten, which specialize in brews from light to dark.
Musical entertainment pairs perfectly with culinary fun during the nightly Eat to the Beat! concert series featuring a varied lineup of classic rock, soul, R&B, oldies, jazz and funk hit-makers. Concerts are performed three times each evening at America Gardens Theatre along the World Showcase lagoon. New acts to appear include Kool & The Gang, Spyro Gyra, En Vogue and Big Bad Voodoo Daddy. David Sanborn, Jon Secada and Otis Day and the Knights are among returning crowd-pleasing acts.
Other festival highlights include:
-- The Festival Welcome Center, with a Champagne and Wine Bar, complimentary wine seminars and book signings, and festival keepsakes including exclusive festival pins and an official festival cookbook.
-- Some 250 Disney chefs and guest chefs conducting culinary demonstrations and hosting elegant dinners and tasting events. Guest chefs are now being signed for the event; last year's lineup included Cat Cora, Alan Wong, Jeff Henderson, Roy Yamaguchi, Todd English, G. Garvin, Suvir Saran, Warren Brown and many others.
-- The weekly Party for the Senses grand tasting event featuring tempting tastes from eminent chefs, more than 70 wines and beers and live entertainment.
Festival guests also can enjoy new Epcot experiences including the re-launched Spaceship Earth attraction in Future World, with narration by Oscar winner Dame Judi Dench, new scenes, sets and costumes, updated Audio-Animatronics figures, plus a touch-screen interactive ride sequence. In the World Showcase, there's a new restaurant at the Italy pavilion, Tutto Italia, with cuisine from different regions of Italy. And the Japan pavilion just introduced its new Tokyo Dining and Teppan Edo restaurants. Mexico's new tequila bar is perfect for cool sips on a warm autumn evening.
Included with Epcot Admission:
Wine and beer seminars, cooking demonstrations, special book signings at the Festival Center, Eat to the Beat! concerts, culinary and cultural exhibits, and all attractions and park entertainment are included with regular Epcot admission.
Special Programming by Reservation:
The weekly Party for the Senses grand tasting, Food and Wine Pairings at select Epcot restaurants, Regional Feasts, Epcot Wine Schools, Cheese Tastings, Sweet Sundays, and other special wine and culinary programs require reservations and separate admission.
Reservations are now being accepted for arrivals June 30, 2008, and later at The Wave , located at Disney's Contemporary Resort. The restaurant, a casual dining table service restaurant that features American cooking blended with world flavors, will offer a classic American breakfast, a quick and casual lunch, and dinner. In addition, the stylish contemporary lounge will offer new world wines with a twist and trendy cocktails with natural flavors. The restaurant will accept one entitlement from the Disney Dining Plan and will honor the DVC, Passholder, Disney Dining Experience, and Cast Member discounts as currently accepted at Concourse Steakhouse.