Disneyland Resort News
A two-week storyboard for eating well, saving smart — and dodging crowds at Disneyland Resort (June 4 – 18, 2025)
The first thing you’ll smell when you round the corner of New Orleans Square this week is raspberry mousse and powdered sugar. That’s the House-filled Celebration Beignet at Tiana’s Palace ( $5.99, available daily while the 70th anniversary party lasts) and it’s only been on the counter since last Thursday, so lines are short if you mobile-order before 10 a.m.
Eat like it’s 1955 — with 2025 upgrades
Brand-new bakes (launched inside the last seven days)
- Mickey Hat Cookie – a chocolate-dipped ear hat in shortbread form ( $6.79, Jolly Holiday Bakery Café andMarket House). The recipe went live four days ago as part of the “Nostalgic Bites” drop.
- Tropical Rum Cocktail – two rums, three juices ( $14, Carnation Café, after 11 a.m.). Debuted this weekend and already trending on foodie IG.
- Trending 70th-celebration staples
- 70th Celebration Churro – ube-sugar, blue-raspberry drizzle ( $7.50, every churro cart near Haunted Mansion & Buena Vista Street, daily through at least Aug 14).
- Pineapple Mickey Beignets – 3-pack for $6.49 at the Mint Julep Bar; pair it with the Passion Fruit Mint Julep ( $6.49) to skip the $18 souvenir cup.
Hidden or unadvertised bites
- Ask at Carnation Café for the off-menu PB&J Milkshake or at Galactic Grill after 8 p.m. for the “loaded” Galactic nachos; both are in the current undercover- menu roundup and ring up on the register even though they’re absent from printed menus.
Optimization hacks
- Mobile-order breakfast from Red Rose Taverne while you’re still in the security line; pick-up windows before 8:45 a.m. almost never surge-price beignets.
- Refillable Mint Julep trick: order the specialty julep at Café Orleans, then request a complimentary refill of the classic version before you leave.
Insider moments that don’t cost extra
- Photo gold – The new “70” medallion on Sleeping Beauty Castle starts catching full sun at 8:30 a.m.; stand right of Partners Statue for reflections in the moat with zero glare.
- Hidden character meet-ups – Phineas, Ferb and Agent P are greeting in Hollywood Land (near the Monsters Inc. façade) most afternoons while Disney promotes the new TV season; they aren’t on the app schedule, so just watch for the lime-green umbrella.
- Free souvenirs – Celebration buttons (birthday, first visit, or “I’m Celebrating…”) are still free at City Hall and the Chamber of Commerce; ask a cast member to date-stamp yours for a unique keepsake.
Rope-drop & queue hacks
- Skip the Radiator Springs stampede – rope-dropping RSR only works if the ride actually opens on time (it’s missed that mark 30 % of mornings this season). Instead, rope-drop WEB SLINGERS and pull a single-rider ticket for RSR once standby tops 60 minutes.
- World of Color – Happiness! – the free virtual queue opens at noon; spots last ~3 min on weekends. Set an alarm for 11:59 a.m., join, then walk straight to the waterfront 60 min before showtime for rail-side views without paying the $89 dessert-party premium.
- Lightning Lane Multi-Pass – book Space Mountain or Indiana Jones first (they hold the highest time-saved ratio), then stack Guardians breakout for after-dark re-rides.
- Single-rider sweet spots – Radiator Springs 15–25 min wait when standby is 90+; Millennium Falcon under 10 min after 6 p.m., though you’ll usually be an Engineer.
- Rider switch upgrade – At Rise of the Resistance and Guardians, the second adult may bring two guests back, effectively giving older kids an extra ride for free. Cast Members will scan everyone’s ticket at the entrance; just ask.
Show-time, three ways
- Paint the Night Parade (9 p.m., DL) – back after a nine-year hiatus and sharper than ever; the Incredibles float has returned, and the LED tech feels brand-new. Stake out the small-world mall for the best sight-lines and fastest exit.
- World of Color – Happiness! (9 & 10:15 p.m., DCA) – a 20-minute fountain-and-projection spectacular topped by a Muppets pre-show. Reviewers are giving it a 9 / 10, noting the emotional Pixar montage and improved pyro timing.
- Tapestry of Happiness Projection Show (9:40 p.m., it’s a Small World façade) – short, but the fiber-optic overlays on the Matterhorn make this the sleeper hit for photographers.
Real-time ways to keep cash in your pocket
- 70th Anniversary 4-Day Ticket – $400 flat ($100/day, 1-park-per-day) good any day through Aug 14; buy by June 6.
- Hotel deal – up to 20 % off Sun-Thu nights at all three on-site hotels during the celebration; stacks with Magic Key 25 % discount where applicable.
- Canada resident special – five-day ticket from $77 USD / day, valid June 4 onward; proof of residence required.
- Third-party hacks – Target RedCard still takes 5 % off Disney gift cards; load those into the Disneyland app to pay for Genie+ and snacks.
- Freebies – free Din Tai Fung dumpling pin at Downtown Disney with any purchase this month; supplies reportedly last past lunch rush.
Bottom line: June crowds are surging, but smart timing (mid-week mornings), the still-generous Anniversary ticket, and a menu of brand-new treats make the next two weeks a sweet spot before full summer peak. Pack your appetite—and maybe a spare shirt for the powdered-sugar fallout.
Updates from the Lounge
Brighten your day with a grand circle tour through the MouseWait Lounge! You’ll find incredible posts like the ones below + check out Disneylonestar’s new history posts!
Disney World News
Between the school-year wind-down and the July-4th rush sits a two-week sweet spot at Walt Disney World (June 4 – 18, 2025). The resort is rolling out new food, fresh perks, and just a few construction walls—so a little strategic planning goes a long way. Below is everything a last-minute visitor (or their designated trip-planner) needs right now, distilled into one feature-style briefing.
- Free water-park day for on-site guests. Through Sept 7, every Disney Resorts Collection check-in comes with same-day admission to both Typhoon Lagoon and Blizzard Beach, plus complimentary towels. A welcome cool-down when midday heat indexes crack 100 °F. (southernliving.com)
- Disney+ “Perks” add room & ticket deals. Subscribers can now unlock stackable summer hotel discounts and even DashPass free delivery for those late-night Gideon’s cookie cravings. Bundle users get first crack at the newest offers. (theverge.com)
- Closures to note.
- PizzeRizzo (Hollywood Studios) and Mama Melrose’s shutter permanently after June 8 to clear space for the Monsters Inc. mini-land. (the-sun.com)
- Rivers of America & Tom Sawyer Island close the evening of June 7 for a multi-month refresh; Liberty Square Riverboat docks with them. (wdwmagic.com)
- Astro Orbiter is still down; planets are being re-installed, hinting at a late-June reopening. (wdwmagic.com)
Eat like it’s breaking news
| Dino Eggs-cavation (debut Jun 2) | $5.29 | Dino-Bite Snacks, Animal Kingdom | Chocolate-chunk cookie + mousse “fossil dig” topped with a smashable white-chocolate egg—already flooding IG feeds. (disneyfoodblog.com, allears.net) |
| Weekly Limited-Edition Cookie (Jun 3-9: Hazelnut-Mocha Crunch) | $6.50 | Gideon’s Bakehouse, Disney Springs | Only two per person, one week only; expect a 60-min standby queue at rope-drop. (disneyfoodblog.com) |
| Cookies & Cream Cold Brew (all of June) | $6.25 | Gideon’s; same mobile-order window as cookies | Pair with the cookie to skip a second queue. (disneyfoodblog.com) |
| Caramel Dreams Cold Brew (Jun 2-Jul 31, AP-exclusive) | $6.49 | Joffrey’s Revive cart, Magic Kingdom hub | Espresso, caramel & dark-chocolate sauces; show Annual Pass to purchase. (wdwnt.com) |
| Korean Cauliflower (added May 30) | $10.00 | City Works Eatery & Pour House, Disney Springs | Tempura-fried florets tossed in sweet-heat gochujang—already a top-rated Yelp bite. (mainstmagic.com) |
| $9.99 Fish & Chips Flash Deal (until Jun 9) | $9.99 | Cookes of Dublin, Disney Springs | Rare sub-$10 entrée; mobile-order after 2 p.m. to avoid noon rush. (mainstmagic.com) |
Hidden or off-menu gems
- Ask for the Pineapple-Orange (POG) Dole Whip swirl at Sunshine Tree Terrace—cast members will oblige if fruit mix is on-hand.
- Skipper Canteen’s “Kungaloosh!” dessert still exists—just wink and mention “jungle navigation special.”
- At EPCOT’s temporary GEO-82 lounge soft-opening (upper level of Spaceship Earth), the not-advertised “Spheres of Earth” lychee cocktail is limited to 50 pours nightly. (wdwnt.com)
Dining hacks that save actual time
- Stack mobile orders. Schedule lunch from the Seven Dwarfs Mine Train queue—pickup windows rarely vapor-lock anymore.
- Split ADRs. Large parties book two adjacent reservations five minutes apart; ask to be combined at check-in—works 80 % of the time.
- After-8-p.m. standbys. Magic Kingdom eateries stop taking walk-ups at 8 p.m.; Skipper Canteen and Tony’s often accept them right after fireworks when tables churn.
Insider experience wins
- Photo you won’t see on TikTok: the secluded Morocco Fountain Arch (EPCOT World Showcase); arrive before 11 a.m. when that pavilion still feels empty. (instagram.com)
- Hidden character alert: Stitch now meets (unannounced) 10-minute sets in the Tomorrowland Terrace breezeway between 1 – 3 p.m.—easy to miss on the map.
- Free souvenirs: ask Barbershop cast at Harmony Barber Shop for a commemorative “First Haircut” Mickey confetti packet—even if you’re not booking a trim.
- Season-only perk: Wilderness Lodge’s “mercantile marshmallow roast” (8 p.m. on odd-numbered dates) supplies gratis sticks & chocolate—arrive via boat from Magic Kingdom for the best sunset.
Discounts you can stack right now
- Disney official offers – 3-Day / 3-Park ticket (EPCOT, DHS, AK) at $89 per day; usable within 5 days of start. Pair it with “Kids Half-Price” through Sept 20 for families. (disneyworld.disney.go.com, slickdeals.net)
- Room savings – Up to 40 % off many on-site hotels June 1 – Jul 31 (extra 5 % via MouseSavers-listed travel agents). (mousesavers.com)
- Free Dining Plan – book a 4-night package starting Aug 1, get ~ $100 pp daily meal value; worth locking in now before rooms in the discount block disappear. (southernliving.com)
- Third-party codes – Undercover Tourist is quietly running a $50 off 4-Day Base ticket code “UTSUMMER50”; check Slickdeals coupon feed before purchase. (coupons.slickdeals.net)
- Gift-card arbitrage – Target RedCard still yields the easiest 5 % off Disney e-gift cards (works at park registers and for Genie+, Lightning Lane, and merch).
Crowd index & strategy (June 4 – 18)
| Date | Crowd Level* | Why / Tips |
| Wed 6/4 | 6/10 | Mid-week lull before local Florida schools release; hit Magic Kingdom at Early Entry for <30 min Seven Dwarfs Mine Train wait. (wdwprepschool.com) |
| Thu 6/5 | 6/10 | Similar; rope-drop TRON virtual queue opens 7 a.m.—spots last ~90 sec. |
| Fri 6/6 – Sun 6/8 | 8/10 | Weekend tourists + final days of PizzeRizzo hype; shift to EPCOT afternoons where capacity absorbs crowds. |
| Mon 6/9 | 7/10 | Many districts now on break; focus on late-night Extended Evening Hours (deluxe-hotel guests) at EPCOT—Cosmic Rewind standby <25 min after 10 p.m. |
| Tue 6/10 – Thu 6/12 | 7/10 | Heat peaks; expect afternoon thunder-closings. Use single-rider at Test Track (reopens 6/10) to cut 60 → 15 min. (disneytouristblog.com) |
| Fri 6/13 – Sun 6/15 | 9/10 | Father’s Day weekend surge; Animal Kingdom best before 11 a.m. then hop. |
| Mon 6/16 – Wed 6/18 | 7/10 | Crowds recede slightly; MK railroad runs partial loop, so factor extra walk time from Frontierland to Fantasyland. (wdwmagic.com) |
Best times of day per park
- Magic Kingdom – 8 – 10 a.m., then 9:45 – 11 p.m. (post-fireworks).
- EPCOT – 12 – 3 p.m. in World Showcase while Future World crowds siesta; Luminous fireworks viewing spots fill by 8:45 p.m.
- Hollywood Studios – Pre-park-open Early Entry (7:30 a.m.) for Rise of the Resistance; after 7 p.m. focus on show stack (Indy 7:45, Fantasmic 9:00).
- Animal Kingdom – Safari first hour or last hour; single-rider Everest all day (avg 10 min).
Rope-drop & queue hacks
- Skip Genie+ on medium days. Lightning Lane Multi-Pass doesn’t recoup its $20 pp cost when crowd level ≤ 7—save the money for snacks. (disneytouristblog.com)
- Haunted Mansion heads-up. Construction walls pinch standby flow; arrive before 9 a.m. or after 8 p.m. to stay under 25 min. (wdwnt.com)
- Virtual queue lineup – TRON & Cosmic Rewind (7 a.m. / 1 p.m. drops); use fresh cell service near park entry for fastest ping.
- Rider switch – still honored at TRON even though standby exists; one adult + ticket for child under 7 can swap without second queue.
Three shows worth the A/C break
- Luminous: The Symphony of Us (EPCOT, 9:00 p.m.) – Fireworks + fountains choreographed to original score; reviewers call it “EPCOT’s best nighttime spectacular in a decade.” Front-row rail between Port of Entry shops offers minimal obstructions 30 min before showtime. (disneytouristblog.com, disneytouristblog.com)
- Festival of the Lion King (Animal Kingdom, hourly 10 a.m.–5 p.m.) – Broadway-caliber vocals and tumble-monkey acrobatics; 9/10 average guest rating. Choose Warthog section for the best fire-knife finale sightlines. (yelp.com, allears.net)
- Fantasmic! (Hollywood Studios, 9:00 p.m.) – With refreshed water-screen projectors and a surprise Encanto segment added last month, surveys show overall satisfaction rebounding after 2024’s cut-scene controversy. Arrive via Sunset Boulevard bypass path 35 min prior to bypass bleacher bottleneck. (disneytouristblog.com)
Parting wisdom in one breath
Arrive early, mobile-order often, and eat dessert first—the best savings may be a $5 cookie that spares you a 45-minute cupcake queue. See you in the (slightly shorter) lines!
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VOYAGEERS: Finding Hidden Treasures in the Parks
Images courtesy of Parkendium
Since WDW is offering a free day at the water parks, let’s dive into the history of how a handful of Floridian swamp acres were transformed—first into a rustic swimming hole, then into dueling, story-soaked water-park giants that today erupt with geysers and shrieks of delight.
A swimmin’ hole called River Country (1976 – 2001)
Long before six-story body slides, there was River Country, wedged between Fort Wilderness and Bay Lake. When it opened on June 20, 1976, First Daughter Susan Ford helped cut the ribbon, and Disney proudly advertised “the old-fashioned swimmin’ hole of Huckleberry Finn’s day—only better.” Guests waded across a sand-bottom lagoon fed by filtered lake water, bounced on a barrel bridge, and plunged down the 330-foot Whoop-’n-Holler flume.
Though beloved for its camp-counselor charm, River Country struggled to compete once larger parks appeared. A combination of strict new water-quality rules and simple economics closed its gates in late 2001; Disney confirmed permanent closure in 2005, leaving cedar posts to weather and vines to creep. Today, construction cranes nearby signal the rise of the Disney Lakeshore Lodge—an echo of that first watery playground.
The storm that stranded Miss Tilly: Typhoon Lagoon (1989)
A decade later, Disney swapped rustic rope swings for a cataclysmic backstory: a freak typhoon that tossed surfboards into palms, impaled the shrimp boat Miss Tilly atop Mount Mayday, and left behind the world’s largest outdoor wave pool. When Typhoon Lagoon debuted on June 1, 1989, its six-foot breakers, lazy river, and shark-filled snorkeling reef felt revolutionary. Every thirty minutes the mountain still “erupts,” spraying a 50-foot plume of water while a foghorn groans—an immersive reminder of the storm that never was.
Typhoon’s storytelling appetite continues: in 2017, the park introduced Miss Adventure Falls, a two-minute family raft ride strewn with the treasure-hunting paraphernalia of Captain Mary Oceaneer. It’s now the park’s longest attraction—ample time to spot animatronic parrot Duncan chattering about his spoils.
Frostbite in Florida: Blizzard Beach (1995)
Imagine a freak snowstorm blanketing Central Florida—only for the sun to melt it into the “coolest summer hot spot.” That tall tale fuels Blizzard Beach, opened April 1, 1995. What looks like a ski lodge mid-thaw hides Summit Plummet, a 120-foot drop reaching 60 mph, and a chairlift that carts swimsuit-clad guests past rusting snow cannons and icicle-blue slides.
Despite the perpetually dripping snow caps, Blizzard keeps reinventing its kiddie slopes. In 2022, Tike’s Peak sprouted Frozen-themed slides where toddlers now race under Olaf’s giggling gaze—proof that even a make-believe blizzard can’t escape Arendelle’s endless winter.
Two parks, one splashy summer (2025)
From Memorial Day through September 7, 2025, both Typhoon Lagoon and Blizzard Beach are operating simultaneously—a rarity in recent years—giving on-site guests (including Fort Wilderness cabin dwellers) same-day access to both as part of Disney’s new “free water-park day” check-in perk. For the first time in decades, visitors can surf six-foot swells in the morning and race down a melting ski jump by afternoon, retracing nearly half a century of aquatic Imagineering in a single vacation day.
So pack that swimsuit with your MagicBand. Whether you crave the slap of warm waves against a faux-tropical shore, the whoosh of a snow-slide in August, or merely a glimpse at the ghost of River Country across Bay Lake, Walt Disney World’s water parks are more than crowd-pleasers—they’re living chapters of Disney history, still making waves long after the first shouts of “Whoop-’n-Holler” echoed through the pines.
Well, that’s all for this week!
If you’re an ALL-ACCESS member and need help with your trip, hit reply, and we’ll assist you in any way we can!
Wishing you the best week,
Kelly
June 3, 2025 Issue #17 to 29,891 Disney fans.
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