- The new Festival of Holidays celebrates holiday festivities of diverse cultures with music, dance and craft-making, plus food at the Festive Foods Marketplace. The daily lineup of entertainment includes nearly 50 performances of nine unique shows, with special Disney characters, street parties, cavalcades, musical ensembles and dance performances. The celebrations include Diwali, Hanukkah, Kwanzaa, Christmas/Navidad and Three Kings Day. Guests can look for performances of traditional Indian dance that builds to a Bollywood party, a Klezmer band with a new global sound, the Mariachi Divas and an a cappella vocal group that puts an R&B spin on holiday songs.
- Princess Elena, the first Disney Princess inspired by diverse Latin American cultures, will make her Disneyland Resort debut as part of the Festival of Holidays. She will perform a song in “Princess Elena’s Musical Grand Arrival,” and she will appear at a character greeting location. Guests will recognize this brave and adventurous teenager from the Disney Channel series “Elena of Avalor.”
- The popular Disney ¡Viva Navidad! also returns as part of the fun at Festival of Holidays, with a wonderful finale to celebrate Three Kings Day (Dia de los Reyes). The special festivities for Three Kings Day will run Jan. 5-8, 2017, including music and storytelling in Paradise Garden. Treats for this holiday will include traditional Rosca de Reyes bread.
- “World of Color – Season of Light” brings the warmth and heartfelt spirit of the holidays to this stunning, nighttime water spectacular, with its 1,200 powerful fountains shooting water as high as 200 feet to help tell the story. The show’s musical soundtrack features some well-known musical artists performing popular holiday tunes, including “Let it Snow” by Dean Martin and “Baby, It’s Cold Outside” by Michael Buble and Idina Menzel. With classic holiday music, humor and memorable moments from Disney animated films, this becomes an ideal way for guests to conclude their holiday visit.
- Jolly old St. Nick arrives at Redwood Creek Challenge Trail for Santa’s Holiday Visit. His joyful elves have transformed the trail into a magical playground of holiday fun and games, including opportunities for guests to join the ranks of Santa’s elves.
- The residents of Cars Land decorate for the holidays, beginning with a whimsical “snowcar” that greets guests on the road to Radiator Springs. Each address along Route 66–from Flo’s V-8 Café to Luigi’s Casa della Tires–features holiday décor that reflects the personality of the “Cars” character who lives there.
- “a bug’s land” transforms for the holidays, too, as Flik and his bug friends deck their land with oversized lights and ornaments.
- A dazzling, 50-foot Christmas tree adorns Carthay Circle, drawing guests into the holiday magic along Buena Vista Street. The tree and surrounding buildings, inspired by Los Angeles as it appeared when Walt Disney arrived in the 1920s, create scenes of another era with vintage-style decor.
Disney California Adventure Celebrates the Holidays with New Fun
10 Trends to Look out for at Walt Disney World in 2017
Theme Park Tourist takes a look at the 10 Trends to Look out for at Walt Disney World in 2017 in their latest article.
SAVE UP TO 25% ON ROOMS AT SELECT WALT DISNEY WORLD RESORT HOTELS!
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**Valid Theme Park admission and online registration required. Disney FastPass+ attractions and entertainment experiences, the number of selections you can make and available arrival windows are limited.
TV Spot – Magic For Days | Disneyland Resort
There’s magic to be found throughout The Happiest Place on Earth! With its two amazing Theme Parks, three Resort Hotels and the Downtown Disney District, the world-famous Disneyland Resort is where Guests of all ages can discover wonder, joy and excitement. Here, there is Magic for Days!
Disneyland Park Celebrates the Holidays with New Fun
- Disney characters celebrate the season in “A Christmas Fantasy” parade, a daily procession with floats, music, marching “tin soldiers” and holiday cheer. Santa, who makes a jolly appearance in the parade, also will be found welcoming guests at his special location in Critter Country while he visits Disneyland.
- The classic Sleeping Beauty’s Winter Castle brightens the park nightly with magical snowfall moments along Main Street, U.S.A., concluding with “Believe … in Holiday Magic” fireworks and its stirring snowfall finale.
- Twinkling lights, festive holiday garland and nearly 1,800 ornaments decorate the soaring Christmas tree in Town Square, Main Street, U.S.A., an ideal place for guests to begin their holiday traditions. The Christmas tree becomes an enchanting place for guests to take their holiday photos, up close or with all 60 feet of the shimmering tree.
- On Friday, Nov. 18, guests and cast members in Disneyland will celebrate the birthday of Mickey Mouse, applauding him as he appears in a special birthday cavalcade preceding “A Christmas Fantasy”
- Disneyland guests definitely will want to experience the popular seasonal transformations of these park attractions:
- “it’s a small world” becomes “it’s a small world” Holiday for the 20th time, celebrating children around the world and the distinctive holiday traditions of their nations. (The Holiday theme debuted in 1997.)
- Haunted Mansion becomes Haunted Mansion Holiday, with Jack Skellington and his friends from Tim Burton’s “The Nightmare Before Christmas” causing a collision between Christmas and Halloween.
- Jungle Cruise is transformed into Jingle Cruise, as the jungle skippers gather jettisoned holiday gifts and decorations to brighten the rugged landscapes surrounding their riverboats.
Disney just released those Rebels easter eggs in Rogue One, in case you missed them
The Star Wars animated series Rebels is set just a couple of years before the events of Rogue One, and director Gareth Edwards made sure to slip in a few nods for keen-eyed fans. But this should help in case you missed them on the big screen.
Disney shows are coming to Snapchat
Mickey Mouse has quite a story to tell. The Mouse House, or Walt Disney Co., and Snap, Inc., parent company for communications app Snapchat, have agreed to a new deal to have Disney create programming for Snapchat.
A TREE IS A WISH YOUR HEART MAKES ON CHRISTMAS TREE TRAIL
With less than a week left until Christmas Day, no doubt many will be partaking in some last-minute shopping over the next few days, and one place sure to be busy will be Walt Disney’s own shopping and entertainment destination, Disney Springs.
Drones dazzle at Disney World in a new holiday show
Drones are being used for military purposes along with aerial photography and video, and, by many accounts, will soon be used for shipping. There’s another application for the lightweight, unmanned flying devices that you might not have considered: entertainment.
Runner’s World and runDisney Officially Unveil New Digital Runner’s Guide for 2017
December 20, 2016 – As part of its continuing collaboration with Runner’s World, runDisney is officially launching a digital event guide designed by Runner’s World for 2017, helping to customize the running experience for runDisney runners like never before.
The new digital guides will be available at all eight runDisney races in 2017, starting with the Walt Disney World Marathon Weekend presented by Cigna in early January, a designated Runner’s World VIP program event. The online guide will include pre- and post-race versions, allowing runners to personalize their experience from start to finish.
The pre-race version offers logistical information and a full weekend itinerary, as well as expert running tips and videos from Runner’s World editors on topics such as race day preparation, training and nutrition. The post-race version will provide runners with their individual race finish times, overall and age group rankings, and provide links to download their race photos.
Additional benefits of runDisney’s collaboration with Runner’s World include complimentary issues of Runner’s World magazine as part of a “Welcome Runners” trial subscription for all Walt Disney World Marathon Weekend participants.* Runner’s World is also set to take part in a Speaker Series during the runDisney Health & Fitness Expo at the Walt Disney World Marathon Weekend, discussing running topics that will be open to all race participants.
“These digital event guides are among the most sophisticated in the industry, providing runners with the kind of personalized information rarely seen in the running world,’’ said Faron Kelley, vice president of Disney Sports. “This new enhancement is part of runDisney’s continuing commitment to create a running experience unparalleled in the industry.’’
The Runner’s World VIP program is returning to the 2017 Walt Disney World Marathon Weekend presented by Cigna for the fifth straight year. The program is an exclusive opportunity to be coached by Runner’s World’s director of training and four-time Olympic Trials qualifier Budd Coates. Plus participants will receive advice from the magazine’s experts and editors, such as “The Mayor of Running’’, Bart Yasso, on training, nutrition, and injury prevention.
“We’re excited to join runDisney again this year for the Walt Disney Marathon Weekend,” says Runner’s World Editor in Chief David Willey. “We’re looking forward to customizing the race experience for all runners with the new digital event guides–something that’s new to the race industry and leverages Runner’s World’s digital expertise. It’s also fantastic to see the Runner’s World VIP program returning to Marathon Weekend r. This one of a kind program allows our editors and readers to train together and then run together on race weekend.”
The exclusive Runner’s World VIP program at the Walt Disney Marathon Weekend includes:
- A membership in a 16 week (20 weeks for beginners) training plan designed by Coach Budd, who has coached thousands of elites, celebs, and everyday runners
- Access to a customized Runner’s World VIP training plan on TrainingPeaks, an interactive training log, where runners can log their totals, watch their progress, and receive nightly email reminders about the next day’s training
- Pre-race course strategy session at ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex with the Runner’s World experts and editors
- Welcome Party with Runner’s World editors to celebrate the program’s fifth year at Walt Disney
- World Marathon Weekend (included with Dopey Challenge only)
- Entry to the Race Retreat on Saturday and Sunday (Marathon package includes access on Sunday only) and other VIP exclusives
For more information visit RunDisney.com, Runnersworld.com.






