Morning Extra Magic Hours
Magic Kingdom – January 1-3, 8, 15, 22,29
Epcot – January 6, 13, 20, 27
Disney's Hollywood Studios – January 2, 10, 17, 24, 31
Disney's Animal Kingdom – January 3, 5, 12, 19, 26

Evening Extra Magic Hours
Magic Kingdom – January 4, 11, 18, 26
Epcot – January 1, 9, 16, 23, 30
Disney's Hollywood Studios – January 3, 5, 14, 19, 25
Disney's Animal Kingdom – January 2, 7, 13, 21, 28

• Typhoon Lagoon - closed until 21 Mar 2009
• Hall of Presidents closed until 1 Jul 2009
• Dumbo The Flying Elephants closed 7 Jan
• Splash Mountain closed 4-17 Jan
• Mickey's PhilharMagic closed 18 Jan to 6 Feb
• Voyage of the Little Mermaid closed 27-29 Jan
• Ellen's Energy Adventure closed 5 Jan - 22 Mar
• Studio Backlot Tour at DHS closed 4 Jan - 28 Feb
• Click here for latest Park Hours
  
  

Celebrating your childs Birthday at Disney Parks...

If one of your party has a birthday whilst visiting one of Disney's themeparks then why not make it extra special for them.

If you are staying on Disney property then before you arrive or when you check in, let the checkin staff know about the birthday. Usually you will receive a birthday character greeting over the room telephone... a magical way to start the day.

Once you enter a park, call in at Guest Services (City hall for Magic Kingdom) and tell them you are celebrating a birthday, you will receive a birthday badge with their name on it. Wear the badge around the park and the CM's will greet them by name. The characters will also interact and write special messages in their autograph books too...

If you are dining at a table service restaurant then you can order a special birthday cake or greeting at the podium, there is a charge for this. You can also order a custom cake if you call 48 hours in advance.

Be sure to check out all the restaurants as some do special surprises, for example, at the Coral Reef restaurant they have scuba divers that swim down and display birthday greetings.

• DIBB Merchandise can be found HERE
• Latest Trip Reports are HERE
• Villa Location Map can be found HERE
• Download Mousekeeping Envelopes HERE
• DIBB Vacation Planner (DVP) is HERE

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ESTA - Electronic System for Travel Authorisation comes into effect 12th Jan 2009

Visitors to the USA who are traveling under the Visa Waiver Program will be required to complete an online registration called ESTA before they travel. This is mandatory for all qualified Visa Waiver travelers from 12th Jan 2009.

Click here for more details

Norway Pavillion to lose Viking Ship
The Viking ship playground at the Norway pavilion is soon to be demolished. It was originally a children’s playground but since it was renovated in 2006 it has been just a photo opportunity. The ship is now showing signs of rotting away so permission to demolish it has now been approved.

Increase in Duty Free Allowance
As of 1 December 2008, when travelling from a non-EU country (including the Canary Islands, the Channel Islands and Gibraltar) you can bring the following into the UK for your own use without paying UK tax or duty:

• 200 cigarettes; or 100 cigarillos; or 50 cigars; or 250g of tobacco
• 4 litres of still table wine
• 16 litres of beer
• 1 litre of spirits or strong liqueurs over 22 per cent volume; or 2 litres of fortified wine (such as port or sherry), sparkling wine or other alcoholic beverages of less than 22 per cent volume and
• £300 worth of all other goods including perfume and souvenirs.

If you have any more than these allowances you must declare the goods in the red channel or use the red point phone. If you do not, you are breaking the law and we may prosecute you.

From 1 January 2009, the other goods allowance will increase again from £300 to £340. However, there will be no further increases to any of the other allowances.

Additionally, from 1 December you can combine some of your alcohol or tobacco allowances, and there is a lower other goods allowance for passengers travelling by private plane or boat for pleasure purposes.

Please note that there are conditions that apply to your allowances. These include:

• If you are under 17 you cannot have the tobacco and alcohol allowances.
• You are entitled to these allowances only if you travel with the goods and do not sell them.
• If you bring in something worth more than your other goods allowance, you must pay charges on the full value, not just the value above the allowance.
• You and anyone you are travelling with cannot pool your individual other goods allowances to bring in an item worth more than the limit. The person bringing the item in will have to pay charges on the full value of the item.

EPCOT Cutback on Park Hours
From 9th January to 3 April, EPCOT will be closing at 8:00 p.m. instead of 9:00 p.m. Illuminations will start at 8:00pm and evening Extra Magic Hours will run until 11:00 p.m. instead of midnight.
The Friday 9:00pm closing time returns on 10 April.

Illuminations…

"They've got a Golden Ticket!"
Fireworks, lights, lasers, music and a special award light up IllumiNations: Reflections of Earth at Epcot®

Every night, thousands of people hush with awed anticipation as the lights dim over a glistening lagoon nestled among 11 great nations. Within moments, the air swirls with music. The nations glow. Fountains strive for their fullest heights. The skies fill with over 1,100 pyrotechnics and lasers that seem to reach into infinity. Soon, a huge spherical "Earth Globe" reveals the wonders of the seven continents on curved LED screens—a window to the cultures of the world, becoming the centerpiece of the surrounding splendor.

That's just part of the glorious IllumiNations: Reflections of Earth. This gigantic presentation is one of the most acclaimed by Epcot® Guests and Cast Members alike. Even renowned celebrities set aside time from their live Epcot® performances throughout the year to behold the spectacle.

"I'd like to thank the academy…"

It should come as no surprise that IllumiNations: Reflections of Earth is the recipient of the 2008 Golden Ticket Award for Best Outdoor Night Show Production. These prestigious awards are presented in 25 categories to the "Best of the Best" in the amusement industry calculated from an international poll conducted by Amusement Today.

The dedicated, creative artists behind the scenes of the big show, like Walt Disney Creative Entertainment Managing Producer John Haupt, are very humble about the honor. It's just part of what they love to do: making magic for Walt Disney World® Guests.

Coming up with a "kiss goodnight"

A 32-year Disney veteran, John's been involved with the evolution of every World Showcase Lagoon show since they began 18 years ago, when he and his collaborators came up with "Carnival de Lumiere," the first World Showcase Lagoon "kiss goodnight" (that's Disneyspeak for an event that caps off a Guest's day of Disney Park fun in a memorable way).

"The biggest issue was how we could possibly put a show on the lagoon that could be enjoyed 360° around it," John explained. "The first show had four large projection screens that floated in on barges with images timed to music, framed by a proscenium arch with curlicue designs.

"That version ran for a few years, but it couldn't be seen around the whole Lagoon. Soon we had the technology to take it further in a show called 'Laserphonic Fantasy.' Lasers were still a fairly new visual thing then, so we combined that with fireworks."

A new kind of show is born

Each new version led the creative team to more possibilities. "We spent about two years developing what became the first version of IllumiNations, set to famous music of each country. Now we had searchlights and rim lights around the nations and an enormous amount of fireworks. That was extremely successful. We got a lot of press and became one of those things folks told each other they HAD to see on their vacations."

Other versions followed, but the extravaganza reached a new dimension in magnificence with IllumiNations: Reflections of Earth. "All we had done, all we had learned, everything came together with that show," said John. "And most of all, we had an original musical score that not only tied all the elements together, it also could not fail to affect everyone's emotions."

For the music, the Oscar®–winning composer Hans Zimmer recommended the Disney team work with Gavin Greenaway, who with Don Dorsey came up with the stirring music that thrills Guests today. It was recorded in London at the famous Abbey Road recording studios—John and his friends even walked along the same crosswalk immortalized on the iconic 1960s album cover that bore the studio's name.

Music becomes the crowning touch

"The first time I heard that music, it immediately grabbed me," John said. "That's very tough for an original score to do. To this day, it's still as strong as the day when the show opened with its dynamism." Greenaway so impressed the Disney staff, he was asked to do a number of other scores.

John and the team programmed IllumiNations: Reflections of Earth to be fully automated. Once the first cue begins, various elements of the show are checked to be sure they're all in synchronization. Then over 30 different computer systems take over, controlling the Park lighting, fireworks, lasers, barges, video and more in a huge interconnected network. As John said with a chuckle, "It's a lot more than just tossing a bunch of fireworks, lasers and stuff into the air!"

But it still takes skilled people to make sure each Guest gets a thoroughly entertaining experience. "One of the things we do is walk the entire promenade to see what people see and adjust the show based on what we can or cannot see. We want everybody to see as good a show as they possibly can from any vantage point around the World Showcase Lagoon.

"It means a lot to us. We've put everything we know into IllumiNations: Reflections of Earth to create something that will touch people and they'll never forget."

The New parade "Celebrate Dreams Come True parade" at MK will begin January 23rd.
Minnie will now be on Mickey's float. Pinocchio and Jiminy will be together and Snow White and Dopey. The other dwarfs are going away. There will be 3 show stops for this parade. The characters will all stay on the floats and there will be 30 couples dancing on the street. There will be about 6 different sections with lots of rainbow designs.

Secret Tunnels beneath the Magic Kingdom
Utilidors : Fact or Fiction..... See Video HERE

Disney Vacation Club
Beginning January 1, 2009, Disney Vacation Club will begin a partnership with Group RCI, the largest vacation exchange company in the world. DVC members will now have access to over 500 destinations on six continents.

Disney Design-a-Tee
The Walt Disney World Resort and Hanesbrands Inc. are giving Guests a fashionable and innovative way to express themselves while on property. A new T-shirt shop at Downtown Disney called Disney Design-a-Tee will opened Dec. 8 with a plethora of designs and styles.

“We are thrilled to bring this new offering to Walt Disney World and Downtown Disney,” said Dara Trujillo, manager, Merchandise Synergy. “For the first time Guests will be able to customize and personalize their own T-shirt the way they want.”

When Guests enter the shop, located at the former Wonderful World of Memories location, they can use several self-service kiosks to design their own T-shirt by selecting:
 

• A body shape, size and color (12 colors to choose from, depending on body styles)
• Art from more than 100 different character/iconic design
• Placement of the art on the T-shirt
• A logo, name, phrase and, in some cases, font

The T-shirt will then be printed and presented to the Guest during checkout.

"Self expression is what this newest Disney concept is all about,” Dara said. “Some of your favorite characters not typically found in our parks, as well as some of our tried and true favorites, will now be available in this location. 

The new shop is part of the 10-year, multimillion dollar strategic alliance Hanesbrands Inc. and Walt Disney Parks and Resorts announced in October 2007. The partnership gives Hanes and Champion category exclusivity for select apparel at Walt Disney World Resort, Disney’s Wide World of Sports Complex Stadium, Disneyland Resort in Anaheim, Calif., and all eight ESPN Zone stores.

“We are proud to partner with Disney on this innovative store where Guests may celebrate their visit to the Walt Disney World Resort by creating their own customized Disney T-shirt,” said Dudley Gentry, Hanesbrands director of Marketing. “Commemorating their visit with a Hanes T-shirt created at Design-A-Tee combines great comfort with great fun

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