Thursday, December 6, 2012

DIS and DAT Thursday - The New Fantasyland


Twas a more than a month before opening and all though the land,
all the cast members were stirring, the guests were at hand.
The buildings with fresh paint now could be seen,
with visions of mermaids, beasts and a fiend.
Gaston in a fountain with a tankard of...water?
and who is that great philosopher hanging
in the back of the shop his painting is standing.
Workers banging on metal at night trying to finish
 that attraction in site where some dwarf's will be mining.
Castles in mountains, quaint little homes and a grotto for a princess now to call home.
There's even a tavern for a little delight,
Be Our Guest draws you in for a bite.
It's sure the dinner will be ball,
in hopes you have appetites as big as the hall.
All the guests were excited but barred from the land,
while work continued to bring it to hand.
When what to our wondering eyes did appear,
but a "Soft Opening" sign at the start of the trail.
We heard a tale from that wondrous Beauty,
and sailed a shell to visit a mermaid so moody.
We drank at the tavern,
and shopped at the shops,
and ran into cast members who were off duty.
Goofy and Dumbo were both of flying,
while Casey was getting everyone wet with no hope of drying.
The opening was close.
The land nearly done.
The people were waiting,
to have new fun.
The time was not yet right,
so with a little sigh,
the cast members had to wave us goodbye.
But I heard them exclaim,
as we walked out of sight,
"We'll be open soon for your delight."

We had a chance to see the new Fantasyland while we were there last month because they were having a "soft opening".  A soft opening allows the cast members working in that area to practice working the attractions, stores and restaurants.  Not everything was open when we were there, but we did get to see the following:


Enchanted Tales with Belle:

Big and little kids a like will love this, it is just such a cute way to tell a story and the added benefit is you can join in!  The Disney Photo Pass people are there to catch the memories and everyone gets a photo pass card as you leave to see the photos when you return home.  - Judy

Be Our Guest Restaurant:

We only got to walk inside, but I cannot wait to see how this restaurant is going to be. I can tell you it is beautiful!  - Judy

Gaston's Tavern:

It was here that my husband discovered his new favorite "snack"...the Pork Shank! Food was great. Atmosphere was very cool. Simply can't wait to return! ~Tricia

We all tried the signature drink, a little too sweet for me, but I am sure the kids will love it, the added bonus for me was the princess cup I got (lol always a princess at heart). - Judy

Under the Sea - Journey of the Little Mermaid:

I was like a kid in a candy store being able to be among the first to ride this new attraction! Disney's Imagineers have outdone themselves not only with the attraction itself, but the beautiful queue. It's truly mesmerizing. ~Tricia

Just as Tricia says the ride is amazing, love the queue, really watch as you go though it, you might miss something small. - Judy

Storybook Circus:

Due to limited time constraints  I was only able to experience the New Dumbo ride in Storybook Circus during the soft opening. The highlight of this for me was the new two-story play area that was designed for the kids to blow off some steam while waiting in line! What a spectacular improvement from the original Dumbo ride. Definite thumbs up for ingenuity! ~Tricia

We only walked through this area, but it is arranged well and I think the addition of the second Dumbo ride will help.  I loved the water play area too, this will be great during the hot times of year. - Judy


What can I say about New Fantasyland! It's AWESOME! We were there one day in October and they were having "Dress Rehearsals." We went up to the entrance and were told they weren't letting anyone else in right then and didn't know if they would open it back up again that day. We hung around Fantasyland that day. We headed over the the carousel and got horses that were facing the entrance to the new area so we could see what was going on. Let me tell you that when I say I dragged my son kicking and screaming off his horse, I am NOT kidding. They had opened it back up right before the ride started. Our group was not taking any chances on missing it! Everything was open except for Be Our Guest, but we were able to go inside and take pictures. My son soon got over not riding the carousel once he saw the queue for The Little Mermaid. He, along with another little girl we were hanging with that day, got to have parts in Enchanted Tales with Belle. I do have to say that I was NOT a fan of Le Fou's Brew. Blah!! We did not go to Ariel's Grotto because my son isn't into that and I don't even think we knew it was back in that corner. I cannot wait to go back and see it all again soon! -  Laura


I would like to thank my son Paul and my husband for their help with the poem too! - Judy

3 comments:

  1. Loved going on this journey with you!

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  2. Our friends our there now and I have been getting updates from her, she says it is getting crowded (and she bought me a t-shirt!).

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  3. Wow! Great shots, almost like being there! Loved the poem Judy, your family is quite talented :)

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