TouringPlans Travel Beat 7-27-2025

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? 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!

• Fantastic Four Meet & Greets at Disneyland and Elsewhere
• Virtual Queue Discontinued at Walt Disney – A Magical Life
• New Theme Park Theme Music on Streaming: Starlight, Celestial Park
• Disney World Annual Pass Promo: Gift Card With New Purchase
• Halloween Bites at Disneyland
• Earl of Sandwich Timeline Changes in Disneyland
• Headline News Recap

Can you guess which story inspired this week’s cover image? Leave your guesses in the comments!

Fantastic Four Meet & Greets at Disneyland and Elsewhere

In conjunction with The Fantastic Four: First Steps movie release, characters from the Fantastic Four began meeting at Disneyland in California this week. Look for Mister Fantastic, Invisible Woman, Human Torch, or The Thing as they make appearances in Tomorrowland, along with their robot assistant, H.E.R.B.I.E.

On Disney Cruise Line, you’ll be able to catch the movie in the ship’s cinemas, and meet with some of the characters throughout your sailing. Internationally, The Thing and Invisible Woman will take the stage in Tomorrowland at Hong Kong Disneyland, and The Thing will do solo appearances at Avengers Campus in Disneyland Paris.

In addition to the character appearances, you can look for limited-time menu items and merch at each location.

Virtual Queue Discontinued at Walt Disney – A Magical Life

It had been out of use for a few days, but this week Disneyland officially discontinued the Virtual Queue for the new Walt Disney – A Magic Life attraction. It’s been removed from the Disneyland app, as the attraction is using a standby queue full time.

New Theme Park Theme Music on Streaming: Starlight, Celestial Park

Many of us love to play our favorite music from the parks, even when we’re not in the parks. This week, the soundtrack from the brand new Starlight parade debuted on popular streaming platforms, including Spotify and Apple Music. And if you’re a Universal Orlando fan, you can find a three-song preview of the Celestial Park soundtrack right now, with the full soundtrack slated for release in 2026.

Disney World Annual Pass Promo: Gift Card With New Purchase

Those purchasing a brand-new (i.e., full regular price) Disney World Annual Pass will receive a gift card rebate according to the schedule below:

• $100 with a Disney Incredi-Pass (regular price $1,549 plus tax)
• $75 with a Disney Sorcerer Pass (Florida residents and eligible DVC members only, regular price $1,079 plus tax)
• $50 with a Disney Pirate Pass (Florida residents only, regular price $829 plus tax)
• $25 with a Disney Pixie Dust Pass (Florida residents only, regular price $469 plus tax)

Already have a pass? If you are within the renewal window, you can find renewal savings of up to $250 (based on pass type), a significant bump over the regular renewal discount.

We’re not sure how long these discounts will last, but if you’re looking for some math to say whether the savings might be worth it to you, try When Is a Disney World Annual Pass Worth It? – Out of State Edition.

Halloween Bites at Disneyland

It will be spooky time at the Disneyland Resort soon enough, and Disney would like you to begin planning your noshing. The lineup of seasonal menu items was released this week for Disneyland Resort, and for Plaza de la Famlia. Look for pumpkins, ghosts, and other seasonally-inspired treats. And if you’d like something with a longer shelf life, the Merchandise Guide for Halloween season at Disneyland was also released.

Earl of Sandwich Timeline Changes in Disneyland

One of the Earl of Sandwich locations (the one in the former La Brea Bakery space) in Downtown Disney at Disneyland was scheduled to close this weekend. The closure would kick off a changeover into Porto’s Bakery, and a new two-story Earl of Sandwich is being built elsewhere in Downtown Disney. But construction timelines for Porto are not quite ready yet, and so Disney announced this week that both locations will remain open for the nonce.

Headline News Recap

If you’re looking for tickets to Jollywood Nights or Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Party, they’re now on sale to the general public. We updated our articles with prices for all dates.

• 2025 Jollywood Nights Dates, Details, and Ticket Info
• 2025 Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Party Dates, Details, and Ticket Info

The much anticipated Starlight Parade launched this week; our thoughts and details are here: Five Things to Know About Disney Starlight: Dream the Night Away. And Test Track officially reopened: Len had a preview a few weeks ago and put down his thoughts: Test Track 3.0 Review: An Improvement.

Star Wars Launch Bay will be launched out of the Hollywood Studios attraction lineup, making way for a reimagining of Animation Courtyard. Animation Magic Takes Over From Star Wars Launch Bay in 2026

On the home front, we updated the Crowd Calendar forecasts for Disney World, Disneyland, and Universal Orlando. If you have a trip planned, make sure to reoptimize your touring plans. Crowd Calendar Update for July 2025 – Lighter Crowds, Lower Waits, and Why Crowd Forecasts Are Changing for All Parks

Last but not least, Disneyland confirmed its lineup of holiday season entertainment and activities this year, including a new character dining offering: Mickey’s Christmas Carol Feast at Storytellers Cafe. 2025 Guide to the Holidays at Disneyland

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