Disney World has a LOT going on for the 50th Anniversary!

October 1st will bring us new resort perks, new fireworks shows, and even a new daytime show and now we know about ANOTHER exciting happening that will join the celebrations!

For the past few months, it’s been a pretty regular sight to spot Disney characters “Caravanning Around the World” to visit the different Disney World Resort hotels to bring some joy to guests.

With the 50th Anniversary celebrations, you can be on the lookout for visiting pals, like Goofy and Pluto, in their 50th Anniversary EAR-idescent costumes!

Ahh! They’re so cute! We can’t WAIT to see these cuties hanging around the resorts to celebrate the big anniversary! As always, stay tuned to DFB for the latest updates about the 50th Anniversary!

Click here to learn more about Disney World’s 50th Anniversary!

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Are you excited to see these pals? Tell us in the comments! 

The post NEWS: Surprise Character Visits Coming to Disney World Hotels Throughout 50th Celebrations! first appeared on the disney food blog.

Hello from Disney’s Animal Kingdom!

We’re here checking out anything new that pops up around this beautiful park, so come with us to see what we found!

Animal Kingdom Food Updates

Restaurantosaurus

Over in DinoLand U.S.A. we found the perfect sweet treat to cool you down in the hot summer heat (hey, we rhymed!). Take a look at the new Pineapple Upside-Down Shake from Restaurantosaurus!

It’s a vanilla milkshake with pineapple caramel sauce, cake crumb-coated rim, pineapple wedge, whipped cream, and a cherry on top!

This was absolutely delicious, but we did think it could have a little more pineapple flavor for $8.99!

Click here to read our review on the Pineapple Upside-Down Shake!

Eight Spoon Cafe

Eight Spoon Cafe reopened a few days ago in Animal Kingdom, but we just wanted to remind you about the incredible Baked Macaroni & Cheese with Pulled Pork because, hello, YUM!

The macaroni also comes with coleslaw, pickles, and barbecue sauce on top.

You can get it over at Eight Spoon Cafe for $6.79!

Click here to read our full review of the reopened Eight Spoon Cafe!

Anandapur Ice Cream Truck

We spotted this patriotic Star-Spangled Sundae at the Anandapur Ice Cream Truck!

The sundae is blueberry and vanilla soft-serve ice cream with a strawberry compote, served in a waffle-cone bowl!

It was SO GOOD. We highly recommend this sundae while you’re trying to get in the spirit for 4th of July! Get it for $6.49.

Click here to read more about the Star-Spangled Sundae

Animal Kingdom Merchandise Updates

Riverside Depot

While shopping around Riverside Depot, we found these ADORABLE Disney Tails Pet Graphic Tee featuring Minnie Mouse and Daisy Duck!

Are you kidding us with this cuteness?! You can let your doggo know they’re your bestie for $24.99!

We also found this cool Stitch Hat, which has some GIANT ears!

And it has a bill that flips up showing Stitch’s mouth, creating an illusion that looks like he’s…about to eat you?

It’s definitely an interesting piece of headware! You can grab it for $24.99.

Click here to see this amazing Stitch treat we found for 626 day!

And then we found this odd Stitch Sculpted Mug the other day, and we can’t decide if it’s cute or weird!

You could put a cookie in his mouth while you drink tea! But the inside is more shallow than it appears.

You can get the Stitch mug for $22.99!

Click here to read more about the Stitch Sculpted Mug!

Animal Kingdom Additional Updates:

Pandora

The drums in Pandora no longer have stickers on them telling you not to touch! Here’s what they looked like before:

And now the stickers are gone!

However, when we tried to hit them, the sound effects weren’t working…maybe soon though!

That’s all we have for what’s new in Animal Kingdom! We’re here allll the time, so stay tuned to DFB to see what other delicious goodies or fun merch we find!

Click here to see which Animal Kingdom spot just got a reopening date!

Join the DFB Newsletter to get all the breaking news right in your inbox! Click here to Subscribe!

Which summer treat looked the best to you? Let us know in the comments!

The post What’s New in Animal Kingdom: 2 New Treats and an Adorably Strange Stitch Mug first appeared on the disney food blog.

With only 93 days until the kick-off to Walt Disney World’s 50th Anniversary celebration, Disney Parks Blog has announced new benefits to staying near the magic in a Disney Resort Hotel.

Early Park Entry

As previously mentioned by Disney, they will be rolling out a new early theme park entry benefit for all guests staying at a Disney Resort Hotel as well as select hotels. This usually includes Good Neighbor Hotels that previously received similar perks. This will begin on October 1st and will take place at every theme park. Previous literature from Disney has stated this time period will be an extra half hour, however, the most recent Disney Parks Blog post does not state a timeframe. Guests will still need a valid theme park ticket and pass to enter the park. This could be a great way to get a jump start on the most popular attractions ahead of the general public.

Extended Evening Hours

Another new perk has been announced for those staying at Disney Deluxe Resort Hotels and Deluxe Resort Villas. These guests will also be able to enjoy extended evening hours on select nights in select parks. This is a big benefit for Disney Vacation Club members and anyone who opts to stay in the deluxe category. This will begin in early October. Current dates and times are not yet available. As with any park entry, a valid ticket is necessary as well as a valid park pass. Guests using this perk may also use park hopping to experience the extended hours as long as they have entered the park in which their original pass was made.

For both of these options, there will be select rides, attractions, merchandise, and food options available. Guests are being encouraged to bring their MagicBand, Disney MagicMobile pass, or other resort identification.

Special Character Appearances

Something we have already seen in action that will be continuing is the presence of characters making surprise appearances at Disney Resort Hotels. It sounds like we should be on the lookout for these characters showing up even more throughout the 50th celebration.

Disney Dining Plan

Lastly, Disney has acknowledged that while they are not quite ready for the return of the Disney Dining Plan, they are planning on bringing this feature back at a later date. They also mentioned they will continue to reopen more resort offerings including restaurants.

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Disney has certainly given us some more to look forward to and it’s noticeable they want guests to see the value of staying on property and close to the magic.

Stay tuned to wdwinfo.com as we continue to provide you with the most up-to-date information on all things Disney. If you are feeling the excitement for the 50th Anniversary Celebration like we are and are interested in booking your next vacation, visit Dreams Unlimited Travel where our expert agents can help you plan the vacation of your dreams.