Bitesize Orlando March 2023 – Issue 21

As we race through the year and March draws to a close already, the theme parks are already looking forward to Halloween and beyond. More on that later in my Bitesize Orlando March 2023 catchup but first a quick catchup on what’s been happening with the website. As always please use the links below to jump to a section of interest or read the whole article at your leisure.

Website Updates March 2023

As I promised in last month’s update, Universal Orlando crowd calendars are now live and the first Disney crowd calendar is also live. Please check the crowd calendar page to view the articles.

This month I hope to get the remaining Disney World crowd calendar pages live but there is a lot of work still to do. Once Disney World crowd calendars are live I am going to turn my attention to the planning pages and build them out with more helpful hints and tips for first-time visitors. If there is anything you are struggling with please drop me a message on the contact page link above with what you would like added.

Disney World News March 2023

The big news this month is the early opening of Tron Lightcycle / Run in Magic Kingdom which has been welcoming visitors for the past 10 days or so. In order to ride Tron the process is the same as Guardians Of The Galaxy in EPCOT, you must either secure a virtual line place or book a paid Individual Lightning Lane reservation in order to ride.

Tron Lightcycle / Run Now Open

In order to secure your place in a virtual queue you need to log into My Disney Experience and request a place from 7 am on the day of your visit. In order to secure your place at 7 am you must have a Magic Kingdom theme park reservation but you don’t need to be in the park (it usually opens between 8 and 9 am). There is another opportunity to join the queue at 1 pm if you fail to secure a spot at 7 am. In order to join the queue at 1 pm you MUST be inside Magic Kingdom which rules out any park hopping as you can only enter from 2 pm if you have visited another park (except a water park).

From April 4th, on evenings when there are extended evening magic hours for deluxe resorts, deluxe villas and DVC guests and a few select other hotels, there will be one last opportunity to join the queue from 6 pm. You need not be in the park to book this space but you must be registered at an appropriate accommodation level.

The official opening date for the attraction remains 4th April. Until then the attraction is still classed as a preview and is subject to sudden shutdowns and other technical issues. The attraction won’t be open at all on April 3rd as cast members get it ready for the grand unveiling on the 4th.

Tron Lightcycle / Run Post Show Experience

Once riders have completed their thrilling race through the grid and returned to Tomorrowland they will be greeted by a brand new team, Team Green, in the post-show experience. Sponsored by Enterprise, Team Green’s exhibition space introduces visitors to the most advanced Lightcycle yet devised. The experience will feature stories of all 12 Team Green racers revolving through the display so return visitors will notice a different post-show experience as the year goes on.

Typhoon Lagoon Now Open But Blizzard Beach Closes Again

A few days after last month’s update went live Disney shared that they were doing another year of waterpark swapping with Typhoon Lagoon reopening from an extended winter refurbishment on March 19th. Blizzard Beach meanwhile has closed once again for refurbishment with no reopening date announced.

Disney’s two water parks used to operate in a symbiotic relationship with one park always open even in the winter months but both open for the busy summer period.

Post-COVID things have been different and only one water park has been open at a time. Typhoon Lagoon typically has been open in the summer while Blizzard Beach picks up the slack in the winter. Fans were hopeful that this year could be different but it looks like Disney has other ideas.

Put it down to cost cutting, which certainly could be a driving factor, but labour shortages, especially qualified lifeguards and low-level hotel workers have been the bane of Disney’s operations with hotels only just returning to either every day or every other day cleaning last month.

One thing is certain, you shouldn’t expect both water parks to be open when you visit Disney World for the foreseeable future.

Genie+ Prices Hit Peak Once More

With the busy Spring Break period in full swing in Florida every park is packed, especially Magic Kingdom. Despite Disney stating they are cutting capacity in busy periods by 20% to offer a better guest experience, the on-the-foot experience is one of wall-to-wall people and 2-hour+ waits for attractions.

Disney’s Genie+ service allows purchasers of the service to skip the standard line and move into a faster-moving Lightning Lane queue. Disney has capped the amount of Genie+ sales on any given day in each park according to the park’s capacity but never releases these figures publically.

With crowds thronging all 4 Disney theme parks Genie+ has peaked once more at its previous highest price of $29 (plus tax) per person per day. Despite guests protesting at the cost, all 4 parks sold out of their Genie+ allocations the last time it was this high on Presidents Day weekend indicating that we shouldn’t expect to see these prices dropping any time soon.

Rock N Roller Coaster Closed

I reported on this a couple of months back when it was initially announced but this is a reminder if you are visiting Disney’s Hollywood Studios over the next few months that Rock ‘N’ Roller Coaster is now closed for a multi-month long refurbishment and Disney has shared that the “rocktastic attraction will resume its super-stretch limo rides in summer 2023.”

Summer is pretty vague indicating that this ride is getting a lot of the TLC that it deserves but when exactly should we expect it to reopen?

For a clue to the answer, we need to turn to construction permits for the attraction’s refurbishment. Two permits, one filed with Adena Corporation has an expiry of the 7th of September while Maddox Electrical has an expiry a week later on the 14th of September indicating that the reopening could miss Disney World’s busiest summer peak crowds which finish after the first week of August when US schools return for their autumn term.

There is no definite indication of when the popular attraction will return to normal operation. It’s quite possible that it could open earlier than September but conversely, it could also not open until the busier October Halloween period. You definitely shouldn’t be surprised if you are visiting this summer and see the area walled off.

Galactic Starcruiser Reducing To 2 Voyages Per Week

In news that should surprise no one given the eye-watering cost of this experience, Star Wars: Galactic Starcruiser, an immersive 3-day story-driven adventure at Disney’s Hollywood Studios theme park is cutting down to 2 voyages per week from October due to, well, it not being as popular as Disney had hoped.

Almost a year on from its grand opening and many weeks of sold-out voyages, many Star Wars aficionados who could actually afford to drop at least $4,809 per couple on a 3-day adventure have done so. The general public is baulking at the still sky-high price of this experience leading to plenty of availability and only enough capacity to fill one dinner service instead of the originally intended 2 sittings per day.

More Characters Added To Meet & Greets In Disney World

Although rarely seen, characters Mirabel and Moana will be added to the roster of popular Disney characters that fans can meet on their next Disney World Visit.

Moana will begin regular meet and greets in the Discovery Island area of Disney’s Animal Kingdom park from the 22nd of April.

Over in Magic Kingdom, Encanto star and Madrigal family member Mirabel will begin making regular meet and greets later this autumn in the Fairytale Garden. Current Fairytale Garden character Merida’s situation is as yet unknown. Fairytale Garden will be updated with a recreation of the famous “Casita” from “Encanto” so it’s unlikely she will stay in this area. Mirabel previously only made an appearance in Magic Kingdom during Character Cavalcades despite making regular meet-and-greet appearances in Disneyland.

Lastly, one of the most popular in-park characters of recent years, purple dragon Figment from The Imagination Pavilion in EPCOT, is getting his long overdue dedicated meet-and-greet area within the park.

Aside from a vague late summer opening, no other details were shared by Josh D’Amaro, Disney Parks Chairman. If you are visiting in July onwards keep an eye on the My Disney Experience app for availability and location info. As soon as Disney get a little more specific I will share it here.

Magic Kingdom After Hours Event Sells Out

Lastly, for Disney World news this month, if you were thinking of purchasing a steeply-priced ticket to one of Disney World’s after-hours events your choice just got a little more limited as Magic Kingdom’s After Hours event has sold out for the entire season.

After-hours events are separately ticketed events that include a selection of snacks and 20 of Magic Kingdom’s most popular attractions. The appeal is almost walk-on availability for attractions that you would queue over an hour or more for during regular operating hours.

In Magic Kingdom, ticket holders are allowed into the park from 7 pm when the park is still open to standard ticket holders but stay late once the fireworks have finished, usually until midnight or 1 am, with minimal wait times. If you can afford it After Hours events at Disney World are one of the best ways you can make use of your time in Disney World. Tickets were priced between $135 and $159 per person plus tax depending on the date.

Although it’s now too late for tickets to Magic Kingdom’s current remaining dates in 2023, if you are interested in doing an after-hours event at another park on your visit there is still limited availability on select nights at EPCOT, Hollywood Studios and Typhoon Lagon. More info, dates, tickets and prices are on the Disney World After Hours landing page.

Universal Parks News March 2023

Universal Parks Rebrands, Changes Park Logos

Universal Parks And Resorts is no more! The department inside Comcast that looks after all hotel and theme park operations are now known as Universal Destinations & Experiences. The rebrand better reflects Universal’s diverse and rapidly expanding current offerings plus where it is heading in the future with new parks and resorts.

“Universal Destinations & Experiences aligns with our aspiration to be the Destination of Choice in the markets where we are today and the markets we enter in the future,”

Universal Chairman & CEO Mark Woodbury on the rebrand

Universal Studios in Florida and the original park in Hollywood are well-known around the world. In addition to Universal Studios, Universal Destinations And Experiences also operates Citywalk entertainment districts on both US coasts. Florida is also home to Islands Of Adventure, one of the top-rated theme parks in the world every year since it opened in 2000.

Universal is currently expanding significantly in Florida and California with new attractions and over $1BILLION being spent on the first brand new theme park in Florida since Islands Of Adventure opened over 2 decades ago. Epic Universe is scheduled to open in the summer of 2025 with construction continuing at a rapid pace 2 miles south of the current Universal Orlando Resort campus.

Universal Studios Hollywood just opened its version of Super Nintendo World and an expanded version is already far along in construction in Florida’s Epic Universe. There are also plans for a theme park in Texas aimed at a family market in the planning stages. A year-round experience based around Halloween Horror Nights has already been announced for Las Vegas.

Internationally Universal Destinations & Experiences operates a number of theme parks and has just opened a Pokemon-themed parade at Universal Studios Japan at the beginning of March. Expect more Pokemon-themed experiences to be added to Universal’s US theme parks in the future although no plans have been formally announced.

Universal’s Cinematic Celebration Has Ended

As Universal looks to bring new experiences to new and returning visitors, they have announced that the Universal Cinematic Celebration, a daily nighttime show presented in the lagoon at Universal Studios Florida during peak summer months will not be returning for 2023. A replacement show is being worked on but nothing has been released officially.

Universal’s nighttime celebrations are a more muted affair compared to Disney as they are situated much closer to some residential areas of Orlando with very little land between the parks and the general public. As such they are subject to more stringent noise abatement orders to protect their neighbours.

The current show fused some pyrotechnics with water screens and more than 120 dancing fountains set against some of the cinematic universe’s most popular and soaring scores from iconic movies such as Terminator, ET, Despicable Me and Jurassic Park plus a certain Boy Wizard.

Now that the show is retired permanently after debuting in 2018 rumours are circulating that Universal could be working on a drone show to bring a ‘wow’ factor that some guests felt was missing compared to Disney World’s nighttime spectaculars in Magic Kingdom and EPCOT especially.

Drone shows have been utilised to great effect in recent years, notably in New Year celebrations in London and Sydney. Drones would allow Universal to set themselves apart from Disney while presenting a nighttime spectacular that obeys noise levels but gives a ‘wow’ factor to the end of the day.

As soon as Universal announce something officially you will hear it here first!

Halloween Horror Nights 2023 Dates And Prices Announced

Universal has released dates and prices for Halloween Horror Nights 2023, their annual celebration of everything that goes bump in the night. If you are visiting Universal on the dates below please be aware that Universal Studios Florida will be closing early on event nights that will run from 6:30 pm until 2 am. I will be updating my Universal Studios Florida crowd calendar with the dates very shortly.

• Spetember: 1, 2, 3, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 27, 28, 29, 30
• October: 1, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 31

Prices are dependent on the date of your visit ranging between $79.99 and $119.99 per person plus tax. Horror Nights also offer its own Express Pass for the haunts starting at $109.99 per person plus tax, peaking at $219.99 on certain Saturday nights.

Seaworld Orlando News March 2023

Pipeline Now Testing

Originally announced in October 2022, Pipeline, Seaworld Orlando’s record-setting new Surf Coaster is already testing trains around the track ahead of a grand unveiling, hopefully, in a few short weeks.

The majority of landscaping is still to be done but with principal construction on the track and station now complete, Seaworld’s landscaping team are expected to start the concrete pouring for walkways and landscaping in the next couple of weeks.

No official opening date has been announced but the vague Spring 2023 opening is fast coming to an end. Can Seaworld bring everything together to get their new attraction open for Memorial Day Weekend at the end of May? The pace that this project has demonstrated since October I wouldn’t be surprised if it opened even earlier.

Orlando Area News March 2023

New Country Music Dinner Show Now Open On I-Drive

One thing Orlando isn’t short of compared to your usual city is a dinner show. As the years have gone by, stiff competition in the market has seen some high-profile casualties like Arabian Nights (closed New Year’s Day 2014) and the original Wild Bills Fort Liberty venue in Kissimmee along with King Henry’s Feast off I-Drive (both closed June 2000) fall by the wayside.

If you are looking for some dinner entertainment Orlando still has you covered with the likes of Pirates Dinner Adventure, Medieval Times and Sleuth’s Mystery Dinner Adventure, all located on or near I-Drive.

The Owners of Pirates Dinner Adventure, Orlando Dinner Entertainment, have just opened another dinner show in the same building. Country Nights Live Dinner Show couldn’t be more different than sister show Pirates next door with its intimate theatre setting and a more personal experience.

Orlando’s only country-themed dinner show is complimented by a fabulous southern-style three-course meal including country-style chicken or ribs, mashed potato, coleslaw and warm cornbread.

The show is as interactive as you want it to be so if you want to learn to line dance or strut your stuff on the dance floor, feel free to do so in the second half of the show but you are just as welcome to sip a beverage and enjoy your surroundings.

For more information and to book tickets please visit https://countrynightslive.com/

That’s it for this month’s brief update, thanks for reading. I’ll be back at the end of April for another catchup.