Mouse Magic HD Blogs

Link: http://holidayinsights.com/moreholidays/February/cardreadingday.htm

Card Reading Day is a fun day. It's a day to read cards..... no more, no less.

Beyond a doubt, the stationery and Ecard companies love this day. It encourages you to send cards. They like that.

As we did our research, we thought we'd find some history that suggest it is a day for Tarot card readings. It very well could be. But, we found no written evidence to support our theory.

What we can tell you, is that its very popular to send and receive cards today. In order to read a card, someone has to send one. So, get the ball rolling and send out some cards today. Chances are, you will get a few back.

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Well! Honestly, my first instinct for this day is the card readers that let you in to each park…those wonderful biometric scanners, then I thought of the security line, and the people who simply refuse to learn that they have to open EVERY zippered section of their bag… *shudder*

Then, bizarrely, my thoughts turned towards the Backstage Magic tour I took, and the way cast members had to scan in their uniform / costumes using their ID badges…but that's too obscure.

Finally, I land on the Haunted Mansion at the Magic Kingdom…specifically, the Madame Leota crystal ball seance scene. Nothing evokes the feeling of a creepy tarot session that the floating head-in-a-ball can conjure!

So, on this Card Reading Day, I salute you, The Haunted Masion!

Recently Disney has started testing a queue less (aka no line) system for the E-Ticket Attraction Rock 'n' Roller Coaster at Disney's Hollywood Studios. This concept was first widely mentioned back in September when Jay Rasulo announced the Fantasyland expansion for Walt Disney World. A popular attraction, Dumbo, would be relocated, doubled in size and feature a queue less wait system.

So how can guests not wait in line and yet still keep order for attractions? The idea is simple. When you arrive at an attraction you get a ticket/boarding pass, etc. If you have ever flown Southwest you will know exactly what I am talking about. This pass will let you know what group you are a part of. While you wait for your group to be called there are various activities for you to do in the area. In the case of Rock 'n' Roller Coaster there is a DJ along with Rock Band/Band Hero/Guitar Hero (note I am not sure which games exactly) type games for guests to play.

This system of course has some huge draw to park guests, the obvious one is not having to stand in a line which theme parks are known for. Getting rid of the line will make people happier right? Well I am not so sure about that. You are still waiting the same amount of time to board the attraction, now you have options to entertain yourself and you don't have to be standing in front of the crying kid for the 30 minutes as you snake around in the line.

However, Disney has gone to great lengths to have an entire attraction follow a storyline and this includes the queue. Disney Imangineers have put a lot of details into designing the queue while continuing the story. Rock 'n' Roller Coaster is a great example and now Disney has removed the first chapters of this story they are telling. Sure, guests will still walk through the lobby of G Force Records as they make their way to the recording studio but a lot of those little details will be lost.

I don't see Disney becoming completely queue less in the future. I can see certain attractions where this system makes sense, such as with Dumbo but I believe what makes Disney stand out above all other parks is the ability to tell a story from beginning, when you step into the queue, to the end, when you step into the gift shop.

Photos from Rock 'n' Roller Coaster available at StudiosCentral.com

Disney just recently released an official wait time application called Mobile Magic. It however is limited to the Verizon network, select models of phones on that network and comes with an access fee. Disney did release a non-platform based option that is free at http://m.disneyworld.com/ however the posted wait times (as well as fastpass return) are not listed with times but just descriptions such as "Moderate" wait making it difficult to decide if the wait times is worth it or not.

iPhone users are familiar with a plethora of wait time applications that range from free to a few dollars to purchase. The apps feature current wait times of attractions with some adding additional features such as GPS location, park maps, etc. These apps work by having users submit the wait times while in the parks. Some apps even go as far as storing previous data so when user submitted data is unavailable en estimated time can be shown.

As stated before all the iPhone apps currently rely on users submitting the wait time which of course can be problematic. What if no one is submitting times? What if someone is submitting incorrect times? Now there is an even better solution for wait times on the go. Enter Touring Plans' (ding!) "Lines". It is a web based application that you load in Safari on your iPhone (and now also supports Android or Palm Pre/Pixi) and away you go.

I did an initial browse of Touring Plans Lines and I am highly impressed. The interface is very easy to use, it recommends which parks to visit and which to avoid. It also has which parks have Extra Magic Hours that day as well as the normal operating hours of the parks. Looking to see what the crowds will be like in the parks that day? Well the webapp will tell you that as well using Touring Plans' infamous crowd calendar.

So what makes Lines such a great app over the number of its "clones" in the Apple App store? Touring Plans Research Staff have decades worth of data which is inputted into this web app. That is right, hard numbers and statistics that can be used to estimate actual (not posted) wait times. There is a feature for users to submit the posted wait time, however Lines does not rely on user submissions to post the wait times. (Please still submit wait times while in the parks, the staff would be very appreciative and it will further help their statistics. Even if the wait time is spot on submit the time so they know they are correct in their calculations.) In addition to the current wait times Lines will even take it a step further and let you view the estimated times for later in that day. What other wait time app can predict the future?

So how accurate is Touring Plans' Lines? Well I have not had the pleasure of personally testing the web app yet (research trip anyone?) however those who have, give it high reviews. I personally would be very confident with using the web app as a major tool in my touring the parks as the Touring Plans Research Team have worked a number of countless hours over many years to compile statistical data in order to provide high quality touring plans for families.

Touring Plans' Lines is currently free for registered users (basic membership is free and requires registration) for a limited time. I highly suggest you check out the web app even if you are not in the parks. Even after the service is paid based it will be well worth the $8.95/year (discounts available to those who own certain books, check out the site for more information on registration) to access this web app as well as a number of other features from Touring Plans. Visit http://m.touringplans.com on your phone to sign in and test the web app. Don't forget to add a bookmark to your home screen for quick and easy access with a cool icon.

In this inaugural edition of my book club, we will be discussing Toy Story: The Art and Making of the Animated Film, by the man himself, John Lasseter. I recently recieved this book as a present, so let's talk about it.

The book has a lot of concept art if you are into that king of thing. I like it, but it's not my favorite. But it is cool to see the evolution the characters go through.

Another cool aspect of the book is Lasseter's personal commentary on the making of the film. It is the best part of the book in my opinion.

Other things in the book are scenes from the finished movie and a halographic cover.

The book retails for $40 and can be found at Barnes & Noble online at BN.com and Amazon.com.

Many visitors to Disney see parking as a hassle. It is easy to forget where your car, especially if it is not really your car and is a rental. Parking is not cheap unless you have an Annual Pass. Parking can take a good amount of time, especially at the Magic Kingdom. However, parking does not have to be the "horrible" experience many make it out to be. Below are a few simple tips to help make parking to be less of a chore.

If you are staying on property consider taking Disney transportation, especially if you don't get free parking. The fee alone should deter most on property guests from driving their own vehicle. If you use on property transportation be sure to do your research to know where stops are located, wait times, etc.

If you do decide to drive and park at the parks then be sure to have your money or annual pass ready when you get to the entrance gate. This will help get you and everyone behind you get through the line quicker. Also as the lanes condense down to less and less remember to use both lanes. There is a tendency to line up in one lane leaving the other one completely open. Disney is very efficient at getting people into the parking lots so follow what they are saying, which includes using both lanes.

After you park walk in front of your car and down the aisle that is already fully parked up. The parking attendants will remind you of this but let them not have to worry about you and your party by doing it already. Also remember where you parked. Most phones have a notepad feature, open that and type in the row you are parked in. If your phone does not have that application then send yourself or someone else in your party a text message of the row. You can also open up your dialer and "call" your row quickly ending the call and then the row number is in your recent call list. You can also call your own voicemail and leave yourself a message with the row number. Final suggestion is to use your cell's camera feature and take a picture of the row number. Using one of these tips you will now not have to worry about losing that slip of paper which you wrote the row number on or remembering throughout the entire day where you are parked.

If you rent a car returning to your car can be really confusing as you are not used to the style and color. Again use your cell's camera feature to snap a picture of the car. If the car has an antenna on top of the car tie a color ribbon to it or use an antenna topper. This will make spotting it from the other cars easier.

After parking consider walking to the gate versus taking the tram. Getting a kid out of the stroller, folding it up and getting on the tram is a considerable amount of work when the walk may not be that horrible. This has to be a judgment decision based on your individual situation based on where the tram is, how many people are waiting, the weather, where you are parked, etc. but many times at EPCOT the gate is not far from where you parked. I would highly recommend against walking to the TTC in the Magic Kingdom lot though as that lot is massive and winds around a good amount.

When boarding the trams please pay attention to the tram operators. When they call final boarding call that is not a time for you to sprint to catch that tram. Don't worry another tram is coming right behind the one that is about to depart. By running to the tram you are only saving a few minutes of your own time, not enough to warrant possible safety and you and others and to also hold up an entire tram of people.

When you pay for parking for the day it is good for all parks that day meaning once you pay to park at the Magic Kingdom you don't have to pay to park at DHS, Epcot or the Animal Kingdom for that day. If you are park hopping put this into consideration. I however only move my car if I am going to or from the Animal Kingdom. If I am going between the other three parks I use Disney Transportation. Don't worry if your car will be in the park lot hours after park closing. Disney will ensure you get back to your car. I actually enjoy the private bus ride back to the park hours after that park has closed. It is a nice quite way to reflect on the past day in the park. However also at the end of a long day you may want to just get to your car as quickly as possible to get to bed.

Since I live close to the World and I usually don't stay on Disney property I am usually always driving in to park. I actually enjoy the parking experience as I believe the ride on the parking tram as well as the monorail (if going to the Magic Kingdom) are two of the most exciting non-attraction attractions at the parks. Hopefully with these tips parking will become a little more enjoyable for you as well.