We're mid-way through July and the school supplies are arriving in stores, so it must be time to start turning our attention to fall! There was plenty of fall-related news this weeks at the theme parks. Let's get started with our weekly roundup of the most interesting news around the Walt Disney World Resort, Universal Orlando, SeaWorld Orlando and other theme parks.
This week’s theme park highlights:
- July 31 is the day reservations open for the 2014 Epcot International Food & Wine Festival premium events. These are special parties and dining experiences, including the very popular Party for the Senses. Of course, the Food & Wine Festival itself is free with your theme park admission and one of my favorite fall treats.
- In more fall news, Robert Rodriguez's "From Dusk Till Dawn" will be coming to Universal Orlando as one of the houses at Halloween Horror Nights. The new maze will be inspired by the supernatural crime sage on Netflix. Michael Myers and "Halloween" will also be one of the Horror Nights houses.
- SyFy show "Face Off," a competition in which special effects makeup artists create monsters and other horrific creatures, will be part of this year's Halloween Horror Nights at Universal Orlando and Universal Studios Hollywood's street experiences.
- A new dining experience is coming to Disney's Boardwalk entertainment area this fall. Trattoria al Forno will be bringing Old World Italian food that showcases dishes from the country's various regions in the spot that housed Kouzzina by Cat Cora.
- Dwayne Wade made a new friend at SeaWorld San Diego.
- The Voices of Liberty have added "Let It Go" to its repertoire of songs. The acapella group, which performs at the American Adventure Pavillion in Epcot, will also be singing new tunes "You Raise Me Up," "True Colors," and "Somewhere Over the Rainbow."
- Of course over at Disney's Hollywood Studios there is even more "Frozen" summer fun, and this week the Disney Parks Blog shared photos from the "Frozen" fireworks spectacular that takes place at 9:45 p.m. every night through September 1.
- Happy birthday, Disneyland! The Anaheim theme park celebrated its 59th birthday yesterday and announced plans for its year-long "Diamond Celebration" of next year's 60th birthday.
- Orlando Informer ranked the kid-friendly beverages at Universal Orlando. With the opening of Diagon Alley, there are a lot more choices, so be sure to check out which ones made the list!
That’s it for the theme park news this week. Have a great weekend!
If you’re thinking about a trip to Disney World, make sure to check out the other news, tips and information we post to the blog throughout the week. If you’re ready to plan your trip, we recommend you start with our planning pages.
