Disney World News: Lightning Lanes Added, More 50th Anniversary Decor, Mickey Mural
We’re back with a weekend Walt Disney World news roundup. This update shares the latest look at newly-installed 50th Anniversary decorations in Magic Kingdom, the first Lightning Lanes being installed, the reimagined porte cochere and monorail station at the Poly, Living with the Land status update, and much more!
As always, we’ll start with the latest release of new operating hours. All four theme parks have had hours for another week added to the DisneyWorld.com park hours calendar. The current calendar now runs through November 14, 2021. Here are the hours for most dates within the months of October and November 2021:
- Magic Kingdom: 9 am to 9 pm
- EPCOT: 10 am to 10 pm
- Hollywood Studios: 9 am to 9 pm
- Animal Kingdom: 8 am to 7 pm
- Blizzard Beach: 11 am to 6 pm
- Disney Springs: 10 am to 11 pm (11:30 pm on Fridays & Saturdays)
Note that Magic Kingdom closes at 8:30 pm on Disney After Hours Boo Bash nights going forward. That event runs from 9 pm until midnight for the remainder of its run. Additionally, we have the first Disney Very Merriest After Hours dates now on the calendar, and Magic Kingdom closes at 8 pm on those evenings, with that Christmas party running from 9 pm until 1 am.
With the new release of park hours, Epcot’s opening time moves back to 11 am on November 7, 2021. Given the debuts of both Remy’s Ratatouille Adventure and Harmonious on October 1 as part of the World’s Most Magical Celebration, which is a step in the wrong direction. Our expectation was that Epcot’s opening time would move to 9 am as that park would see a spike in attendance beginning in October.
It’s also somewhat surprising that Magic Kingdom is still scheduled to close at 9 am most nights this fall, including on October 1, 2021. The closing time some nights is constrained by the After Hours event, but we’re hopeful Walt Disney World is still waiting to see more accurate attendance projections before making extensions. With Annual Passes going on sale this week, there will likely be a spike in Park Pass reservations soon.
Next, we have more dates for the Extended Evening Theme Park Hours that will allow eligible guests to experience select attractions, shops, and dining after regular park hours–in select theme parks on select nights. As a reminder, we shared Attraction Lists for Early Entry & Extended Evening Hours at Disney World, and that post also has more info about this upcoming guest perk.
Please review the chart below for the current Extended Evening Theme Park Hours schedule*:
| Date | Theme Park | Extended Hours |
| Monday, October 4 | Epcot | 10:00 PM to midnight |
| Wednesday, October 6 | Magic Kingdom | 9:00 PM to 11:00 PM |
| Monday, October 11 | Epcot | 10:00 PM to midnight |
| Wednesday, October 13 | Magic Kingdom | 9:00 PM to 11:00 PM |
| Monday, October 18 | Epcot | 10:00 PM to midnight |
| Wednesday, October 20 | Magic Kingdom | 9:00 PM to 11:00 PM |
| Monday, October 25 | Epcot | 10:00 PM to midnight |
| Wednesday, October 27 | Magic Kingdom | 9:00 PM to 11:00 PM |
| Monday, November 1 | Epcot | 10:00 PM to midnight |
| Wednesday, November 3 | Magic Kingdom | 9:00 PM to 11:00 PM |
| Monday, November 8 | Epcot | 10:00 PM – midnight |
| Wednesday, November 10 | Magic Kingdom | 9:00 PM – 11:00 PM |
| Monday, November 15 | Epcot | 10:00 PM – midnight |
| Wednesday, November 17 | Magic Kingdom | 9:00 PM – 11:00 PM |
With over a month of dates, we’d say the pattern for Extended Evening Theme Park Hours at Walt Disney World is pretty clear. It’ll be interesting to see if dates or parks are added–or anything changes–around the busier Thanksgiving and Christmas holiday seasons.
Next, not a single night has sold out for Disney Very Merriest After Hours. Tickets have only been on sale to the general public for over 2 weeks; by this point, Boo Bash had already sold out multiple dates (and is now totally sold out). Normally, Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Party sees higher demand than its Halloween counterpart.
Hopefully Disney has finally pushed the limit of price increases too far, and guests are voting with their wallets. The cost of Disney Very Merriest After Hours is absolutely absurd, but the only way things change is if people stop buying. We think it’s worth noting that Disneyland announced its Christmas 2021 lineup, and the parade, fireworks, and winter castle lighting are all included with regular admission.
We’re going to provide weekly ‘sales status’ updates on Disney Very Merriest After Hours, so even if you’re on the fence about going, you should have plenty of notice before having to make a decision. Hopefully, until after reviews from the first few events are posted.
Some good news: Living with the Land at Epcot has now reopened after almost two weeks of unplanned downtime. Cast Members stationed out front of the attraction during the unscheduled maintenance indicated that it had to do with the fire alarm system, which needed to pass inspections before it can reopen to guests.
Living with the Land has also had water and leak related issues in the past few months, so perhaps that played a role? In any case, Living with the Land has now reopened. We’re just thankful it didn’t become another “PeopleMover Problem.”
Continuing in Epcot, Walt Disney Imagineering has shared a first look at “Mouse in Motion,” a 35-foot long hand painted mural inside Creations Shop. I still think it would’ve been cool if Imagineering leaned into the history and legacy of EPCOT Center with the artwork in Creations Shop, but this mural is neat.
Both Creations Shop and Club Cool are still slated to open later in Summer 2021. For those keeping score at home, summer ends on September 22. Based on the progress we’ve seen recently while making laps of Epcot, they appear on target for making that goal. This definitely won’t be a “Space 220 Situation.”
Outside the parks, work continues on the new porte cochere, gardens, and monorail station at Disney’s Polynesian Village Resort. Work is moving at a brisk pace, and it looks like the monorail station will be ready to open within the next few days (I’m somewhat surprised it’s not already open–it appeared finished.)
Aside from the nets of balls (?) underneath the porte cochere, we really like this transformation. It’s an undeniably more grand arrival experience, and the new panel designs really pop. The various changes to the Poly over the last several years have been a mixed bag, but this is an unequivocal positive.
Lightning Lanes have started to pop up around Walt Disney World, replacing FastPass+ signage.
As a reminder, Lightning Lanes are physical queues guests will walk through when using the Disney Genie+ service or buying individual attraction access (what we’ve been calling Magic Carpet Access).
Line Lanes exist in real life, whereas the other two exist in the digital world—on the Grid. You can walk through a Lightning Lane—you can scroll through the Genie+ service with your fingers.
Read more about the differences in Lightning Lanes v. Genie+ at Walt Disney World.
While some Lightning Lane signage is going up right now, it’s typically the simpler stuff that can be done with a temporary sticker.
More dimensional signage like the ornate (and underappreciated) Seven Dwarfs Mine Train one will probably take more time.
As you can probably see in the photo above, the new Lightning Lanes going up are literally being affixed to existing marquees on top of the FastPass+ signs.
Unsurprisingly, this has already been controversial with fans, many of whom are annoyed that Walt Disney World is “cheaping out” on the visuals for something that will undoubtedly generate a lot of revenue. In theory, we don’t necessarily disagree with that–but we think those complaints are premature, and low hanging fruit.
This whole FastPass+ replacement initiative has been surprisingly last minute by Disney standards. (Just seeing how much is still up in the air and the lack of clarity in communications should make this obvious, even from the outside.)
As we’ve said before, there were competing concepts for the paid FastPass+ replacement until recently. While the Genie app was announced 2 years ago and the Lightning Lane name has been floating around for a few months, there were a few potential candidates for the various components of the project would look and function. (Among many other things and contrary to the prior announcement, there is no Genie app–it’s a feature in My Disney Experience.)
Accordingly, it’s highly likely that Walt Disney World Sign Shop has been given almost no notice and limited turnaround time for designing and fabricating Lightning Lane signs. The end result is probably a scramble to mock up the easy low hanging fruit first, install test versions of those, and then move on to the more ambitious and elaborate signage.
In short, our expectation is that what we’re seeing right now won’t be reflective of the permanent Lightning Lane visuals. We could be entirely wrong, but at this point it seems premature to criticize what’s going up. Aside from the occasional hilarious typo, the Sign Shop typically does good work. Obviously, there’s a lot of understandable anger and frustration about FastPass being monetized, but there’s no sense in misdirecting that at a group of talented artists who had no say in that decision whatsoever.
In other Walt Disney World signage news, a marquee has gone up at the Main Street USA Train Station for the World’s Most Magical Celebration.
It wasn’t too long ago that celebratory signage right here was common, but that hasn’t been the case for several years now.
We don’t have any strong opinions about this. It’s relatively small, a nice photo op to commemorate a visit during the anniversary, and has a nice dimensional quality to it. (Some of the past displays were literal banners.) Seems like a nice touch.
Finally, we’ll end with another nice touch on Main Street, where the clock has returned with a fresh coat of paint and some anniversary ornamentation:
I spent a good 30 minutes standing on Main Street taking photos of the new-look clock, as one does. Between moving cloud coverage casting shadows on the clock or Cinderella Castle and guests randomly stopping right under the clock and blocking its banners, it was surprisingly difficult to take ‘clean’ shots. Not that most of you care, but figured I’d share. Sometimes the most ordinary photos actually require the most time and effort–the “better” empty park evening shots are usually pretty easy by comparison.
That’s a wrap on this weekend’s Walt Disney World news roundup. Hope everyone is enjoying a happy, healthy, and safe holiday weekend. We’ll be back with another crowd update, park reports, theoretical Genie+ itineraries, and more news in the coming week. Stay tuned!
Planning a Walt Disney World trip? Learn about hotels on our Walt Disney World Hotels Reviews page. For where to eat, read our Walt Disney World Restaurant Reviews. To save money on tickets or determine which type to buy, read our Tips for Saving Money on Walt Disney World Tickets post. Our What to Pack for Disney Trips post takes a unique look at clever items to take. For what to do and when to do it, our Walt Disney World Ride Guides will help. For comprehensive advice, the best place to start is our Walt Disney World Trip Planning Guide for everything you need to know!
YOUR THOUGHTS
What do you think about all this Walt Disney World news? Happy to hear that Living with the Land has returned? Thoughts on the Lightning Lane signage? Think we’re giving the Sign Shop too much benefit of the doubt, or is it fair to assume these are early and temporary mockups? Are you a fan of the new-look monorail station and porte cochere at Disney’s Polynesian Village Resort? Do you agree or disagree with our commentary? Any questions we can help you answer? Hearing your feedback–even when you disagree with us–is both interesting to us and helpful to other readers, so please share your thoughts below in the comments!
You mentioned the hours generally for October so far, but I’m wondering if you have any thoughts on why hours haven’t been expanded for 10/1, or really that whole weekend? Even with the cancellations, it seems the crowds are going to be pretty crazy especially at EPCOT and MK. Is 9-9 really going to be enough for MK that day (or are the cancellations even more extreme than has publicly leaked, in which case yikes)? They’re already used to keeping the parks running until midnight for the after hours events, so I’m just surprised there hasn’t been an extension yet. And on the flip side 9 am and 10 am (for EPCOT) are late enough morning hours that everyone can come flooding in at the same time in the mornings. If they bumped it up to when 8, some people would opt to sleep in a little and might make park open a little less chaotic. Do you think there’s still a chance of hours getting extended, or are we really only getting a 12 hour day for the anniversary?
Forgot to include….our vaca is at WDW!
June
We have a Dec 8th through Dec 16th 2021 vaca planned, what are your thoughts on what the crowds may look like? Do you have thoughts on any specials disney may roll out? Thoughts on the dinning plan?
As always, we appreciate your insights!
I did three videos on youtube called A Busy Day At Epcot. About 150 photos and some of them took twenty minutes to get the right shot. Even on light days circumstance can make you wait for the right shot.
Hello All,
I am currently staying at Polynesian and the monorail is open! As for all of the other updates Tom, thank you so much for what you do. I’m sure in ways you love tackling all of this day in day out but on the other hand Disney can be frustrating. I’m not a fan of nickel and dimein but I feel Disney is just feeling things out and will work to improve the parks. Some of the perks we lost will get folded back into vacation packages throughout the year some will not. Just want to point out Friday at magic kingdom it poured rain but still enjoyed my self. Yesterday at Universal it was a disaster! I am assuming the locals with annual passes and the lax mask rules are pro universal at the moment but Customer Service/employees sorry it’s no contest. Disney all the way. Tom it’s not something I always see when the you tubers and bloggers do the vs battle!
Great shots of the clock, Tom. I appreciate the patience it almost always takes to get a clean shot. And this is the period that you say the crowds are super small! Your photos are always superb. I’m pretty frustrated with Disney at this point, but your running commentary on how things are changing is incredibly helpful in understanding what is going on, for better or worse. We will be on the property starting Oct 6 for a few days. That experience will tell us whether or not to renew our annual passes. Thanks gain for keeping us so well informed.
“And this is the period that you say the crowds are super small!”
In my experience, there could be one other person in the entire park and they would choose to stand directly in front of whatever I want to photograph. 😉
I don’t care nor do I ever say anything, but that seems to be my luck. Fortunately, I have all the time in the world for this sort of thing!
I look forward to all of your updates. I am taking a group of 12 (5 sixteen year olds, with their moms and my daughter for her Sweet 16 mid November) and read all of your information intently in my planning. Thanks so much!! Feel free to share any ideas you have that are unique. I’ve planned all days and waiting to book Space 220. Thanks for your articles.
I’m probably the last person to ask for tips on a girls Sweet 16 trip. Space 220 definitely seems like a good idea–maybe one of the afternoon teas or dessert parties if those are back? (I assume they will be.)
Tom, I remember a few years back, you writing a piece about Disneyland losing some of the magic once you moved to SoCal and were in the parks so much more than before. I’m curious if any of the magic at WDW has been lost as you’ve moved to the regular park reporting over the last year. And if it HASN’T, what are your methods for magic maintenance?
Not really, but the circumstances are very different.
We started to take things for granted in late 2019/early 2020 when Rise of the Resistance was such a pain and that was the bulk of our coverage for a few months, but the shutdown changed our perspective.
It also helps that Walt Disney World is so much larger with a ton of different things to do. That’s both the biggest upside and downside. Also, I hate Florida weather for ~8 months of the year, but that’s hardly Disney’s fault. To the contrary, we often go to the parks on summer nights because the bugs are far worse in our neighborhood.
Tom,
Thank you for all your wonderful pictures and reporting. Your photography is absolutely amazing! At this point in my life, I am an AP holder, have retired and moved to Florida (18 miles from the main gate). My love of Disney is high, my discretionary income is abundant, but with everything that has been taken away and previously free perks are now monetized, I find myself spending less and less at Disney. If I keep my annual pass I will drop down to the lowest level because I don’t like to go on weekends anyway. I treat the cast members with utmost respect and enjoy interacting with them. My son did the college program and was a professional intern after graduation. He did leave Disney after five years as they could not provide a living wage. If I thought these pricing increases would benefit the average Disney employee I wouldn’t be upset, but I don’t see that happening. Shame on upper management for squeezing the magic out of my happy place. JMHO
I am concerned about the roll-out for Genie and Genie+. Knowing Disney’s track record for having lots of IT issues on MDE and their website, I feel like when they update everything to include the new system and when it goes live, those first few days might be a mess. Especially to those who will be making virtual queue selections for ROR/Remy’s then trying to purchase Genie+/Magic Carpet. We are arriving on Sept 29th and staying until Oct 6th. I truly hope that delays happen and we miss out on being there for when it goes live. Planning on going back a second time in early 2023, near the end of the 50th, so by then the bugs will have been ironed out and we can make a better decision about purchasing Genie+ and the Magic Carpet individual attractions. I would also like to add that I appreciate your photography skills, as I have taken a million pictures myself at the parks just to get that one perfect photo!!!
Agree on Disney IT.
I really hope to be wrong and that the Genie system will roll out when crowds are lower in late September to give them time to test and adjust under less “intense” crowd circumstances, but I’m 95% sure that won’t be the case.
I love the clock photographs! I appreciate similar clock photos from downtowns and Main Streets everywhere, especially at Disney World. Thanks for sharing these images!
Is the EPCOT monorail running again yet?? And masks are only required indoors and transportation, correct?? We are out of state APs and just booked a last minute trip to take advantage of the Remy sneak peek I booked last month. While I try to keep up on all the Disney updates, I miss a few here and there. Thanks for all your useful articles!
Yes and correct!
I just cancelled our family vacation for 9 people due to the price increases. We were going Oct 3-8. We refuse to perpetuate Disney’s careless price hikes.
I agree with everything you said about seniors. I guess we are in the”weed out “ group.
Should add – we love your blog alot. Thanks for letting us live vicariously through your and Sarah’s visits!
Hi Tom
As a Brit we haven’t been over for ages, and looking realistically at 2022. How long are the 50th celebrations going on to (officially and in your opinion)? We favour that sweet fortnight where you can pick up Halloween. Food and wine and early Christmas, so planning to head around then, but would like to try and be there for the 50th if we can!
Officially, it’s an 18-month celebration. While that’s already pretty long, I wouldn’t be surprised in the least if there’s some sort of extension in early 2023 given how many people can’t visit right now and probably still won’t be able to in early 2022.
Future post idea: provide examples and photos of the Sign Shop’s most egregious “occasional hilarious typos”! Those are always fun 🙂
“We’re going to provide weekly ‘sales status’ updates on Disney Very Merriest After Hours”
Call me bitter and childish, but I am looking forward to these. I’m really rooting against the House on this one, and I hope the sales are abysmal.
I’m not a photographer, but from other pursuits I can appreciate how difficult things can seem easy to the uninitiated. Great photos!
I am hopeful I will still be able to go to Disney going forward. I am a senior on SS now, that doesn’t leave much for anything extra. I have always been a passholder but I don’t think I can afford the extras for the Lightning Lanes and it is very hard to wait in long lines as you get older. Plus, the cost of the rooms – I do have a DVC membership but we need two rooms so only are able to get about 4 days a year from that. Time will tell if people stop buying due to the increased prices. We can’t afford the Christmas or Halloween parties so do not attend those.
Thanks for the update Tom. Do you think Genie+ will debut by October 1st? Also, do you think the current low crowds have anything to do with the changes that have been made or are you just attributing that to school/Covid.
Thanks
Everything I have heard suggests the week after October 1 at the earliest.
Even now, there is still a lot up in the air about the whole system–it sounds to me like it’s going to be a last minute scramble to get everything up and running. I wouldn’t be surprised if the date slips 2-3 weeks, but I’d be shocked if it rolls out this month.
I care, enjoy and appreciate all your spectacular photos and informative commentary.â€â™€ï¸