DVC News for July 2023
This past month, Walt Disney World announced its holiday schedule and altered its rules for Disney Genie+.
Meanwhile, at Disneyland Resort, Rogers: The Musical opened and immediately became a blockbuster.
Conversely, ticket sales for Oogie Boogie Bash turned into a debacle. We’ll talk about all of it in this month’s DVC News.
Walt Disney World Changes Disney Genie+
One piece of news will impact your future Walt Disney World park visits the most.
At the end of June, Disney modified its previous “one size fits all” approach to Disney Genie+.
Before then, all guests would purchase Disney Genie+ for all four parks, even if they didn’t plan to Park Hop.
Honestly, that’s fine when you’re visiting Magic Kingdom and Disney’s Hollywood Studios, two parks where you need all day to ride everything anyway.
However, many guests proved reluctant to purchase Disney Genie+ at EPCOT and especially Disney’s Animal Kingdom.
This behavior was understandable, as Disney pros like DVC members didn’t need the service to experience the various attractions.
Now, Disney has accommodated those beliefs with a new system. As of now, your Disney Genie+ purchase is park-specific.
For example, here is how Disney Genie+ pricing worked on July 1st, 2023:
- Disney’s Animal Kingdom — $16
- Disney’s Hollywood Studios $22
- EPCOT — $18
- Magic Kingdom — $25
- Park Hopper — $25
I only have a handful of data to analyze, and you’ll probably read this after July 4th, a time when Disney often raises its prices as a crowd control strategy.
So, what I say here may sound ridiculous in a few days. Still, based on early data, the process looks similar to how I’d described it.
Disney is incentivizing more people to buy Disney Genie+ at Animal Kingdom and EPCOT.
You can save money this way, presuming you don’t plan to Park Hop.
However, if you do, you can upgrade to the four-park version of Disney Genie+ for a few dollars more per person.
In short, this move provides Disney guests with more flexibility regarding their park visits and Disney Genie+ purchases.
It’s Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas
In June, Disney leaned hard into its new practice of celebrating the halfway points for various holidays.
We’d previously learned about Disney’s Halloween plans last month. Now, Walt Disney World just announced how it will celebrate Christmas.
Unsurprisingly, the biggest event at Magic Kingdom will be the annual Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Party.
Tickets to this year’s event will cost $159-$199 per person plus tax, which is…in line with last year. That’s right. Disney hasn’t raised the prices!!!
Disney has promised the return of several of your favorites like Mickey’s Most Merriest Celebration and Minnie’s Wonderful Christmastime Fireworks.
However, there is one change of note. A Frozen Holiday Wish won’t return, but don’t freak out! We’re getting something better!
Disney revealed that the next iteration of this presentation, Frozen Holiday Surprise, will debut instead.
We’ll also get holiday overlays for Space Mountain, Mad Tea Party, and Monsters, Inc. Laugh Floor and the annual Jingle Cruise as well.
Importantly, Tron Lightcycle / Run will operate during the party as well. Disney will offer a virtual queue for it, just like during regular park hours.
Introducing Jollywood Nights
Remarkably, Magic Kingdom isn’t the headliner this year, though. Instead, it’s Hollywood Studios, which will host an entirely new event.
Yes, Disney Jollywood Nights is coming to the park on 10 nights in November and December.
This ticketed event is a lot like Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Party in that guests will enjoy after-hours park access from 8:30 p.m. until 12:30 a.m.
The price for Disney Jollywood Nights is $159-$179…and yes! You can ride Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance via virtual queue reservation.
This new party will include some unprecedented Disney offerings like a jazz club at The Hollywood Brown Derby.
At the Hyperion Theater, you can participate in a Tim Burton’s Nightmare Before Christmas Sing-Along.
Also, Kermit and Miss Piggy will host some sort of show at Theater of the Stars.
Obviously, this event will be vibrant and a must-do if you’re visiting at the end of the year!
The Big Disneyland News
We’ve had some good news and some bad news at Disneyland Resort recently.
At the end of the month, Disney California Adventure introduced its limited-time show attraction, Rogers: The Musical.
I don’t know whether it’ll surprise you to hear this, but the opening day for Rogers: The Musical was even more popular than WEBSLINGERS: A Spider-Man Adventure.
Disney knew it, too. Park officials offered a digital queue for the show, and they even took the idea a step further.
For $29, guests could buy a “Premium Viewing Experience.” I don’t know why they didn’t simply call it a Lightning Lane, as that’s what it is.
I guess the explanation comes from the fact that guests also receive a popcorn bucket, a beverage, and access to a private seating area.
Given the crowds at the park during the first few days of this attraction, $29 strikes me as a deal.
Disney has created a show so instantly popular and beloved that some are already speculating it might become a touring performance.
For Disney California Adventure guests, what matters is that you have two months to watch Rogers: The Musical.
So, act now and expect competition for a seat!
The Oogie Boogie Oopsie
The other Disneyland news this week is ongoing, although it’s temporarily on a break.
Late in June, Disneyland opened sales for the annual Oogie Boogie Bash Halloween party.
Even by our lowered expectations for Disney tech, this one was a debacle. I wish I were joking.
After only a half hour of sales, Disney fans had deduced that the system couldn’t handle the demand. They were reporting some wild error messages.
Park officials closed the digital sales queue for a while to investigate. And that didn’t fix anything.
Eventually, Disney announced that it would pause all Oogie Boogie Bash presales until July 7th.
In other words, management realized it couldn’t fix the problems for at least a week due to the July 4th holiday. So, it had to shut down.
Presumably, Disney will get this all worked out, but nonsense like this has become the norm for Disney online sales…and that’s not acceptable.
Let’s Talk about the Tiana Ride Coming Soon
Magic Kingdom’s conversion from Splash Mountain to Tiana’s Bayou Adventure has entered its next phase.
Management has removed all remaining signs of Splash Mountain at the park. The final one was the pressed penny machine. It’s gone now.
Meanwhile, on a recent morning, excited guests noticed a change at the construction area.
Disney added the water tower for the upcoming attraction. As a reminder, that’s the signature part of the ride’s backdrop. So, it’s a huge deal.
Disney also revealed the new outfit that Tiana will wear during her bayou mission.
I dunno how practical this look is during a swamp visit, but it’s objectively gorgeous.
DVC and Disney Miscellaneous News
In refurbishment news, you’ll notice construction walls in the lobby at Disney’s Grand Floridian Resort & Spa.
Disney started working in the area in June and will likely continue to do so for a while. Please plan accordingly.
In other member news, the popular DVC service, Owner’s Locker, recently increased its prices for the first time in many years.
Please be aware that the Value Plan, Moderate Plan, and Deluxe Plan all raised their monthly/annual renewal rate by a few dollars at the start of July.
In better news, Travel + Leisure recently announced the voting for the Best 15 U.S. Resorts for Families.
In a stunning showing of strength six different DVC properties earned placement in the top 15. I doubt you’ll guess which six, though.
The DVC program is really, really good, folks.
In park news, One Man’s Dream has returned at Disney’s Hollywood Studios.
Disney had temporarily replaced it with the Ariel character meeting in combination with the release of The Little Mermaid (2023). Now it’s back!
Finally, the Ferrytale Fireworks Dessert Cruise has raised its price by $31.
The 90-minute cruise had previously cost $99 for adults and $69 for children aged 3-9. It’s now $130 for adults and $100 for children aged 3-9.