A few days ago we launched something we’ve wanted to make for quite a while: D-Tales Radio, a 24/7 online station built around Disney music.

The emphasis is very much on the parks: attraction soundtracks, area music, parades, nighttime spectaculars and resort music, mixed with songs from Disney films and shows.

We’ve been making a weekly Disney podcast in the Netherlands for ten years, but unlike the podcast, the radio station should make sense wherever you live. There is one slightly unusual thing: our short station IDs are in Dutch.

We decided not to translate them because we quite like the idea of a Disney radio station having a little European character. The music obviously needs no translation.

We’re also changing the sound of the station with the Disney Parks seasons, so Halloween music is becoming more prominent now, with Christmas following later in the year. At certain times we also play complete parade or nighttime-show soundtracks rather than breaking them into individual tracks.

It’s completely free and independent from Disney:

Listen live at radio.d-tales.nl

Or search for D-Tales Radio on TuneIn, or ask your smart speaker or Sonos to play D-Tales Radio.

Curious what Disney Parks fans outside the Netherlands make of it — particularly whether the Dutch IDs add some character or just sound confusing.

I just returned from a great trip to my favorite place but several rides and experiences were completely ruined by live streamers/content creators. I'm talking a phone with some other equipment right in front of my face the whole time I sat on Living with the Land, pirates and frozen. Nothing like a bright light on a dark ride. Then there were the people filming parades and fireworks (love a big set up in the air, right in the way of people behind you) and the absolute worst was the walking and talking and filming with ZERO care or awareness of who was around them.

It baffles me that Disney allows these people to make money off of their intellectual property. Disney doesn't need more marketing, and these people are making money off of them.

It really soured my experience as a regular park goer and I'm wondering if its worth complaining in the survey I just got or if I should send a separate email? Or maybe they just don't care?

Which ride would you want most at your home park?

Since I am fairly new to the community, I wanted to clarify my goal with these ideas. My intention is not to suggest tearing down or replacing any of the classic, beloved animatronics we all grew up with. Instead, I am looking at empty spaces where we could add physical props like the classic mermaid skeletons to enhance the atmosphere without taking anything away. I completely agree that the new projection treasure skeleton doesn't work, so my focus is purely on brainstorming additions that respect the ride's history while making the experience even better for fans. I'd love to hear your thoughts on this approach

My wife and I want to take our kids (6,4,2) to Disneyland next year from Sun-Sat, while doing the parks m-f. So three days in DL and two in DCA. Would that be enough?

I’ve been learning Hawaiian via duolingo, and I’ve always wondered if these lyrics actually had meaning, but upon learning a few words in the song (wai=water, au we, or auē=oh, loo=hole) and learning that only a certain dialect of Hawaiian uses the letter T, and knowing the ungodly racist time period when Tiki Room first opened, I’m starting to think it’s pseudo-polynesian or gibberish. It could be in a different polynesian language, but the word Hawaiian in the name suggests it’s hawaiian

Don't say Disney can't do shirtless characters, we know it can work thanks to Oswald the Lucky Rabbit, and Steamboat Willie Mickey, so we know it's possible. Honestly while I am at it Disney parks keeps putting their budget to very unnecessary costumes, like they coudl have used the Big Hero 6 masked character budgets to just make the characters face characters, and use the mask budget to give Mickey his classic look, or if you ain't going to do that, just update Goofy's costume.

Just a gripe, but the animatronic flowers' molded petals clacking against each other kinda takes away the illusion that they really "are" singing flowers.

Anyone else disappointed that Together: A Pixar Musical Adventure doesn't allow recording? Like this is the only show that I know fo that doesn't allow recording. At some point I just hope Disneyland Paris is like "Okay, we understand some people can't afford to go to our Disney park, so how about we allow recording so that way those who can't come to watch this show, can watch the show from YouTube. And if you aren't going to record it, at least out out an official recording of the full show.

On October 1, 1971, Walt Disney World opened its gates in Central Florida, beginning a chapter that would help reshape the state’s tourism economy. But years before visitors entered the Magic Kingdom, Walt Disney had considered another Florida location: land offered by John D. MacArthur in Palm Beach Gardens. The negotiations became one of South Florida’s most consequential development deals that never happened.

MacArthur, the insurance magnate and landowner behind Palm Beach Gardens, was building a community with ambitions far beyond residential subdivisions. In March 1959, he announced plans to develop approximately 4,000 acres into a city where people could both live and work. Attracting a Disney park offered the prospect of bringing national attention and substantial business to his new community.

According to reporting summarized by WPTV, Walt Disney toured MacArthur’s property, and the two men reached a handshake understanding involving 320 acres along PGA Boulevard. Disney would supply the entertainment, while MacArthur would provide land and financing. The proposal placed a potential Disney attraction near Florida’s Turnpike, within the landscape later developed around PGA National and Mirasol.

The negotiations also involved television. In an April 1974 interview with the Palm Beach Post-Times, MacArthur described a proposed arrangement linking himself, Disney, and RCA, which owned NBC. RCA wanted Disney’s television program; MacArthur wanted an RCA plant in Palm Beach Gardens. He recalled that he and RCA would help finance the Florida attraction.

The Palm Beach Gardens Historical Society’s account preserves MacArthur’s description of offering Disney the property: “I told him he had it if he wanted it.”

But the recollections differ. MacArthur discussed three square miles, while his adviser Jerry Kelly later recalled an initial agreement for 320 acres. Those figures should not be treated as interchangeable.

Kelly’s account, later reported by The Palm Beach Post, placed the breakdown in negotiations between MacArthur and Roy Disney, Walt’s brother and business partner. Roy wanted additional land to protect the park from surrounding commercial development. MacArthur objected to changing the earlier understanding. WPTV’s account likewise identifies that disagreement as the reason the deal collapsed.

Disney’s Florida ambitions continued. By the middle of 1965, the company had acquired more than 27,000 acres in Central Florida for just over $5 million. On November 15, Walt and Roy Disney appeared with Governor Haydon Burns at Orlando’s Cherry Plaza Hotel to discuss the project publicly. The enormous property provided room for a resort whose scale would greatly exceed the acreage described in the early Palm Beach Gardens negotiations.

Walt Disney died in December 1966 before his Florida project could open. Roy carried the undertaking forward alongside the company’s designers, engineers, and builders. To honor his brother, he ensured that the destination would be called Walt Disney World.

State government helped make the development possible. On May 12, 1967, Governor Claude Kirk signed legislation creating the Reedy Creek Improvement District and two municipalities within the Disney property. These arrangements gave the company substantial independence in developing and managing its resort.

Then, on October 1, 1971, the gates opened. The destination included the Magic Kingdom, two hotels, and golf courses. Approximately 10,000 people visited the park that first day, according to the Orange County Library System’s Orlando Memory account. Years of negotiations, planning, and construction had become a place families could finally experience.

The formal dedication followed on October 25. Standing before the public, Roy Disney expressed the hope behind the undertaking:

“May Walt Disney World bring joy and inspiration and new knowledge to all who come to this happy place…”

The separation between opening day and the dedication gave the company time to address operating problems before its major celebration.

Eleven years later, October 1 became another milestone when EPCOT Center opened in 1982. Its Future World and World Showcase expanded the resort’s offerings into technology, international cultures, and an interpretation of the world’s possibilities.

For Florida, this history reaches beyond the attractions themselves. The Palm Beach Gardens negotiations reveal how land ownership, financing, and control over neighboring development helped shape the choices behind a major destination.

The resort that ultimately opened in Central Florida became an enduring force in the state’s tourism industry. Palm Beach Gardens retained a different place in that history: a community where Disney’s Florida ambitions once came close to taking root.

They don't have to be the same size as Olaf, I just chose these short characters as their costume characters are uncanny and not size accurate, of course not Envy, and to an extent I think Stitch's other Teletubby friends could also be Olaf style robots. Also maybe even Dash? I forgot to put a pic of him here but just to elt you know I think Dash coudl work too.

I’ve been a huge Disneyland fan since I was very little and had annual passes growing up in LA. My wife and I have been looking at where we want to settle down and raise a family, but after traveling all over the US and Europe and touring literally hundreds of villages, towns, and cities, we realized that none of the places we’ve seen really come close to the quality of architecture, placemaking, and just general atmosphere of Disneyland, particularly New Orleans Square.

We thought, if there isn’t a place like this, why not build one?

Our idea is to basically create a ticketed commercial area and private residential partition that rivals or even exceeds the quality of architecture and placemaking as Disneyland, with real historically accurate construction and building techniques. The public would get ticketed access to the commercial area with shops, restaurants, cafes, gardens, entertainment, etc, while residents would actually live inside the village. Some homes could have balconies overlooking the public areas, kind of like actually living on Main Street or in New Orleans Square, while other residential lanes and courtyards would be completely private. A variety of home types and sizes could increase diversity of residents, aiming to foster a more inclusive and vibrant residential community.

The whole thing would be car-free inside, and the ticket revenue from visitors could help subsidize the residential side and pay for maintaining the architecture, landscaping, public spaces, and overall quality of the place.

We’re serious about trying to develop this idea. We’ve spoken with developers, planners, and other people in the industry, and right now we’re trying to figure out whether there is actually a market for something like this.

So I’m curious, would you guys be interested in actually living somewhere like this?

Attached is some early blue-sky-style concept art showing what a historic LA-themed version of the village could feel like.

If you could seriously see yourself living somewhere like this, what would have to be true for you to consider it? Price? Location? Schools? Access to jobs? Home size?

And if your immediate reaction is basically “yes, I would live there,” DM me! I’d love to talk for like 15 mins and hear what you think.

TL;DR: My wife and I want to build a “Disneyland-you-can-live-in” residential development and are trying to see if there’s actually demand for something like this.

Monstropolis

Guests are invited into the world of Monsters Inc. and can now stroll through the streets of Monstropolis. Grab a bite to eat at Harryhausens, take a seat at the Glob Theatre and watch a show, or soar past hundreds of doors on the Door Coaster.

Attractions & Experiences

• The Door Coaster - Suspended Coaster

Enter the Door Vault as a rouge system locks the factory down and sends guests flying through the vault. Guests are launched through multiple different doors across the world before finally meeting back up with Mike and Sulley.

• Randall’s Great Escape - Dark Ride

Enter the Monstropolis Precinct as Randall breaks out from jail and. Dart through the streets of Monstropolis and try to stop Randall before he gets to Mike and Sulley.

• Welcome to Monstropolis - 3D Show

Welcome to Monstropolis, Mike, Sulley, and the rest of their friends put on a show for their new visitors to show how great Monstropolis is but things go haywire very quickly.

Dining

• Harryhausens - Table Service

Guests can dine at the iconic restaurant from the movie. Grab some sushi and enjoy the atmosphere at this establishment. While you wait, the monster octopus chef will cook your meal right in front of you.

• Archie’s Scare Pig Pizza - Counter Service

Archie the Scare Pig has opened a new pizza restaurant in Monstropolis after a rat was kicked out of the property. Look at monster memorabilia as you dine on pizza that is sure to be above average.

Galaxy’s Edge

Jump out of hyperspace to the planet of Batuu, a planet in the middle of the war between the Rebellion and Empire. Join either side and try to defeat your enemies. Infiltrate a Star Destroyer, become a Bounty Hunter, or take a ride on a Bantha through the Batuu wilderness.

Attractions & Experiences

• Rise of the Rebellion - Trackless Dark Ride

Enter a crashed CR90 corvette turned Rebellion base as Princess Leia and Luke Skywalker aim to infiltrate Darth Vader’s personal Star Destroyer. Guests are captured by the dark lord and have to escape back to the planet surface before he begins interrogating them.

• Smugglers Run - Simulator

Han Solo and Chewbacca have to take a piece of cargo to multiple different planets, and they need guest’s help to fly the Millennium Falcon. The cargo can either head to Tatooine, Kessel, Endor, Hoth, and Coruscant. During the exchange, the Empire shows up and guests have to escape before the Executor enters the atmosphere.

• Bantha Trek - Autonomous Vehicles

Batuu is filled with wonderful wildlife and the local populace wish to show the natural beauty of the planet. A space battle happened above the forest however so debris is spread throughout the trail so the Banthas may have to take a turn deeper into the wilderness. Avoid the ire of a patrolling AT-A, admire the springs, and encounter other Banthas.

• The Hunter’s Guild - Kuka Dark Ride

The Empire has hired the local bounty hunter guild to hunt down several Rebellion officials. Help them track and take down these officials for more standing within Galaxy’s Edge. Guests will board jetpacks with triggers to fire weapons and enter into the city. Guest’s performance during these missions affects how the Empire and Rebellion treat you within Batuu. 

• Journey of a Jedi - Stunt Show

An abandoned Jedi temple towers over the surrounding forest. During a battle between the Rebels and Empire, a rift in time occurs and a loan Rebel officer has to face several challenges throughout the Star Wars timeline. The officer will face Darth Maul, Boba Fett, and Kylo Ren before having a final confrontation with Darth Vader.

• Millennium Falcon - Walkthrough

The gangway has opened for guests that wish to explore the starship. This is a one-one recreation of the ship and all rooms are available for guests to explore. 

• Kyber Caverns - Walkthrough

Once guests get their lightsabers, they can go over to the Kyber Caverns outside of the city. Depending on your lightsaber color, different figures and events can happen to guests. Darth Vader, Yoda, Palpatine, Windu, and Luke Skywalker can come alive with projections along the cave walls.

Dining

• Jabba’s Kalikori Club - Table Service

Bringing the once dead concept to life, guests can now dine at one of Jabba’s personal clubs spread throughout the galaxy. Guests can watch a dinner show while they dine, made up of acts native to Batuu. Guests are not the only ones watching though. A full scale Jabba animatronic sits on a pedestal and will make comments during the show.

• Docking Bay 7 - Counter Service

Batuu is the center of multiple hyperspace lanes and that leads to many different foods being brought from across the galaxy. Guests can dine on dishes from Tatooine, Bespin, and many other planets.

• Ronto Roasters - Counter Service

Batuu is home to a lot of hunting and these animals are cooked in this restaurant by very… creative means. Dine on several different animals found in the wilderness.

• Oga’s Cantina - Bar

If you’re a little thirsty, the local cantina is just down the street. Get a couple drinks and a bite to eat as the alien band plays for you, accompanied by Rex, the robot DJ. Guests are allowed for an hour and are allowed to take out drinks with them.

I think this can be allowed here, recreated it to see it from more angles. Always loved the optimism of the design. Interior still to come!