News & Rumors 7/7/08 - 7/13/08

News and Rumors are gathered from various different websites. One particular website is not favored over another. All rumors are rumors and are to be taken with a grain of salt.

News

• Dates for the Holiday activities for this year have now been confirmed.

-Epcot's Holidays Around The World will be presented Nov. 28-Dec. 30. (This is where storytellers portray cultural icons of the season from different countries around the world.)

-Also, Illuminations will have a special Holiday Tag for this time of year.

-Candlelight Processional (the retelling of the Christmas Story by celebrity narrators) is set to be performed at Epcot as well, Nov. 28-Dec. 30. This show is staged in the American Gardens Theater and show times will be at 5 pm, 6:45 pm, and 8 pm.

-The Osbourne Spectacle of Dancing Lights will be twinkling from Nov. 28-Jan. 4. This beautiful event takes place on New York Street at Disney's Hollywood Studios.

-Mickey's Jingle Jungle Parade will run through the Disney's Animal Kingdom from Nov. 28-Jan 4. Parade floats are transformed from a jungle feeling to a wintry wonderland feeling.

• For those who will be down during the Free Dining promotion in Aug/Sept., Disney has increased opportunities for people to use their table service credits. Chef Mickey's at the Contemporary will have a lunch offering from 12:30 pm - 2:30 pm. Ohana at the Polynesian will open an hour earlier for breakfast, with the first seating being at 7:30 am and they will be open an hour earlier for dinner, with the hours being 4-10 pm. Also, Whispering Canyon at the Wilderness Lodge will be open an hour earlier for dinner...4-10 pm.
• Starting on July 16, for a limited time, you will not be able to make dining reservations past January 15, 2009 with the exception of Chef Mickey's, Victoria & Albert's, and Cinderella's Royal Table. This is due to the fact that Disney is updating their reservation system and it will take some time for it to be put into place. This squashes the rumor going around that Disney is now moving back their reservation schedule to 90 days as it was in years past. The new software should be in place around mid October and will be booking for 180 days out again.
• Primeval Whirl will be down for refurbishment Sept. 2-Nov. 16.
• The Eat to the Beat Concert series (which plays during Food & Wine Festival) artists have now been announced. They include:

Sept. 26-27 Big Bad Voodoo Daddy Sept. 28-30 Sheena Easton Oct. 1-4 Starship starring Mickey Thomas Oct. 5-7 En Vogue Oct. 8-9 Jonny Lang Oct. 10-12 Peabo Bryson Oct. 13-14 Sister Hazel Oct. 15-16 David Sanborn Oct. 17-18 Jon Secada Oct. 19-21 Spyro Gyra Oct. 22-23 Otis Day & the Knights Oct. 24-26 Exposé Oct. 27-28 Kool & The Gang Oct. 29-30 Boyz II Men Oct. 31-Nov. 2 Atlanta Rhythm Section Nov. 3-5 David Cassidy Nov. 6-7 Night Ranger Nov. 8-9 Los Lobos

• The Country Bear Jamboree is finally getting a refurb! (Took them long enough!) It will be down Sept. 28-Oct. 31. Rumor has it that they will be redoing the sound system and some other general maintenance.
• The Cabins at Fort Wilderness are now being billed as a Moderate category resort. This is just a category change and it will not affect the campsites in anyway.
• The show, Pocahontas and Her Forest Friends at Disney's Animal Kingdom will be ending it's 10 year run on Sept. 27. Pocahontas, however, will remain a character in the park and will be found at meet & greet areas.
• High School Musical 2: School's Out at Disney's Hollywood Studios will have it's final performance on Sept. 13, however, this is to make way for the new High School Musical 3: Senior Year roaming stage show that will hit the studios on Oct. 24, in time for the theatrical release of the new movie.
• Surfing Lessons at Typhoon Lagoon have been canceled from July 10 until after the park's refurbishment later this year. The wave pool will remain open for guests during this time period.