TouringPlans Travel Beat 2-17-2024

At Travel Beat we have all the “other” news from the last week or so—the stuff that wasn’t big enough to stop the presses for. What did the newsroom bring us this week? (Sneak peek: Festival menus.) Bullets are just ahead if you’re in a hurry, and more details follow below. Don’t forget to check out the Headline News Recap, in case there was something you missed!

• Disney Shares Bow Artwork for the Treasure
• Tiana’s Bayou Adventure Scheduled for Summer 2024 at Disney World
• New Food in Muppets Courtyard
• Baby Elephant Debuts at Animal Kingdom
• Headline News Recap

Disney Shares Bow Artwork for the Treasure

Disney Cruise Line ships are decorated on the inside and the outside. This week’s Ships Log shared the artwork for the Disney Treasure, which is a portrait of Captain Minnie.

Tiana’s Bayou Adventure Scheduled for Summer 2024 at Disney World

OK, I gotta laugh. People in the theme park community joke about how Universal builds a thing under everyone’s noses and then just announces it the day before it opens. On the other hand, in a classic Disney move, this week the official timeline for Tiana’s Bayou Adventure at Disney World went from “2024” to “Summer 2024”. (If there had been an actual date, now that would have been headline news.)

In all seriousness though, the flume has been filled and there are reports of log testing on social media. It’s getting close. And the new animatronics look great – here’s a Disney pic of Tiana’s AA.

New Food in Muppets Courtyard

Having just said that Disney slow leaks everything, I’m compelled to note that we did report last week on a “mystery project” in Hollywood Studios that looked like a new Quick Service location. And this week Disney confirmed that, with an opening date of “soon”. I’m down for Mini cinnamon rolls topped with Coca-Cola-infused glaze and toasted nuts, how about you?

Also on the menu:

• Bouncin’ Mini Churros: Savory churros topped with Coca-Cola and bourbon candied bacon, sriracha aïoli, and scallions
• Frozen Slushies: Fanta Blue Raspberry, Minute Maid Lemonade, or Coca Cola (Also available with Jack Daniel’s Whiskey, Bacardi Superior Rum, or Stoli Vanil Vodka)

Baby Elephant Debuts at Animal Kingdom

Do you remember when Baby Elephant Corra was born back in December of 2023? Even if you missed it, this week had the news that matters to you — Baby Corra and mom Nadirah have rejoined the herd on the Animal Kingdom savanna and can now be seen by guests on the Kilimanjaro Safaris. And there’s even more exciting news: if you can’t make a trip to Disney this year, Animal Kingdom has announced that they are expecting two more baby elephants in 2025!

Headline News Recap

Some Florida-focused people don’t know that the West Coast has a Food & Wine Festival too. That event starts on March 1, just a couple of days after the EPCOT Flower & Garden Festival. 2024 Disney California Adventure Food and Wine Festival Menus

Flower & Garden starts in a little under two weeks. Here at the blog, we were beginning to think we were going to need to put together a menus post based on pictures of the actual menu boards at the event. Fortunately, Disney finally released the menus. 2024 EPCOT Flower & Garden Festival Menus

Disneyland after Dark events were announced earlier in the year, but ticket sales and themed entertainment for Star Wars Nite was only posted this week. Disneyland After Dark Themed Nights for Spring 2024 – UPDATED

That’s it for this week’s Travel Beat. What news are you most excited about? Let us know in the comments!