Episode 494: Welcome back to Traveling With the Mouse! This week’s episode is packed tighter than a Jungle Cruise boat during rope drop. We’ve got big news, emotional farewells, spicy park debates, and a challenge that will test your park-hopping stamina (and possibly your sanity).
New Park Announced in Abu Dhabi
Let’s start with the headline heard ‘round the globe: Disney is building a new resort and theme park in Abu Dhabi! That’s right—Mickey and the gang are heading to the UAE, bringing a new kind of magic to the Middle East. We dive into what this means for Disney’s global strategy and speculate on what kinds of lands and attractions might make up this new park.
Mama Melrose’s Closed, Muppets are next
We pour one out for Mama Melrose’s Ristorante Italiano, which has officially closed its doors. It’s the end of an era for Hollywood Studios—and soon for PizzaRizzo and MuppetVision 3D, too. This quirky little corner will soon be transforming into Monster’s Inc. Land. But, hey the Muppets have a new skyliner wrap so that makes up for everything.
The Beak and Barrel – Yo Ho, Let’s Lounge!
We break down everything we know so far, from the parts of the story Disney has revealed to the new details on its theming. Will this lounge have a similar time limit and drink limit to Oga’s Cantina? We think Disney will try to maximize throughput but also keep people relatively sober at Magic Kingdom.
Are the Rafts a Ride?
It’s time to answer an age-old question: What counts as a ride at Disney? With AI as our trusty sidekick, we dig deep to define what is actually considered to be a “ride” at Disney parks.
- Do the Tom Sawyer Island Rafts qualify as a ride, or are they just themed transportation?
- Are the Friendship Boats inside Epcot a ride?
- What about the Main Street Vehicles—they move, they’re charming, but are they rides?
We establish a scientific(-ish) framework using Disney’s own classifications, challenge rules and a little sprinkle of theme park philosophy. If you love a good nerdy debate, this segment is for you.
In this episode, I conclude my Paris trip report and discuss the different popular sites that I visited in Paris. I give some advice on how to avoid the opportunists that frequent popular tourist areas. I also answer some of the most common questions that I was asked about the trip. Then I talk about my final day at Disneyland Paris! I got to experience their back-lot tour one last time because it will be going away soon and I didn’t give the one at Hollywood studios in Florida a proper goodbye when it closed in 2014. I rode the Space Mountain at Disneyland Paris which is very different from the ones that we know in the U.S. Parks. We ended our trip with a character meal at Cafe Mickey and I have to say it was one of, if not the best character meal I have ever done! The character interaction was phenomenal and we made a lot of great memories. I end the episode by answering the question…Would I go back?
Today I start my day by day walk-through of my recent trip to Paris, which included 3 days at Disneyland Paris. I discuss how we booked our trip and the price of Disneyland Paris compared to the U.S. Disney parks. I talk about what it’s like to commute to Disneyland Paris by train and how the train system in Paris is pretty easy to figure out. I also talk about some of the frustrations that I had with Disneyland Paris…mainly the app. I had the most expensive lunch ever at Walt’s on Main Street but the experience made it acceptable and I give my thoughts on the Ratatouille attraction that will be coming to Epcot soon! I have a lot more to discuss in Part 2 next week so don’t miss it!