Disney Facts: Stitch's Great Escape

Santa Stitch

When fans thought "The ExtraTERRORestrial Alien Encounter" in the Tomorrowland section of the Magic Kingdom was too violent, Disney decided to replace it with "Stitch's Great Escape." The show remained basically the same, but it was redressed and the story revamped. Instead of an alien escaping and running amok in the audience, it's Stitch from "Lilo and Stitch."

Here are some quick facts about the ride:

• Skippy, an alien seen previously in The ExtraTERRORestrial Alien Encounter attraction, returns.
• The two plasma cannons that track Stitch’s DNA were inspired by devices seen in "Lilo & Stitch." Each weighs more than 1,600 pounds.
• Stitch is the first Audio-Animatronics figure to spit.
• The alien language seen throughout the Prisoner Teleport Center was inspired by designs created for the opening scenes of "Lilo & Stitch." The designs were turned into an alphabet that can be decoded into English.

Source: Walt Disney World

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Smile of The Day: Jungle Cruise "Free Kitten" Shirt

There are always great details in the attraction queues. The Jungle Cruise at the Magic Kingdom in Disney World has a lot of great signs and audio jokes. Here is one one of my favorites.

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Innoventions at Epcot getting new exhibits

Innoventions is getting a couple of new exhibits, one focusing on green building and another looking at a group of superheroes promoting good habits.

Green Builder Media is sponsoring a a green home exhibit highlighting whole-home automation, energy efficiency, water conservation, indoor environment quality, security, multi-generational design, and durability, according to a company news release.

Guests will take a guided tour and show building science fundamentals, integrated design elements, green products, and intelligent systems that enhance the home’s sustainability. Guests will then head to interactive stations which contain additional information.

The goal is to teach people how to "reduce their personal impact on the planet, as well as changes they can implement in their own homes to make them more sustainable, healthier, safer, and more durable," the release states.

The second exhibit is one that there is not a lot of information on - Habit Heroes. Some of have called it an interactive game. That's about all that has been out there. Posters plastered around Innoventions with statements like "It takes a special kind of hero to break a bad habit."

What we do know is that on Sept. 26, Disney Enterprises Inc. registered the trademark "Habit Heroes" under the category of Education and Entertainment Services. The description provided to the United States Patent and Trademark Office states that "HABIT HEROES" is for amusement park services.

Then between Dec. 12 and Dec. 19 Disney put out an open casting call for voice over actors for a Habit Heroes Online Game.

Hopefully, more to come soon.

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Toy Story Mania opening in Tokyo Disneyland

The Toy Story Mania attraction will be opening in Tokyo DisneySea on July 9, 2012, according to a news release.

This will be the first ride at the Tokyo Disney Resort to incorporate 3-D technology with a ride. The attraction will be located in Toyville Trolley Park, a new area themed to an old-fashioned amusement park. Guests will enter through a 26-foot giant Woody head, to board the ride, the release states.

Tokyo Disney announced last month it was updating its Star Tours ride. That update should be complete by 2013.

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Disneyland through the eyes of a Walt Disney World fan

After heading "home" to Disney World every year for almost 20 years, my wife and I decided it was time to make a pilgrimage to the "Happiest Place on Earth." So in October we made our first extended visit to the Disneyland Resort.

It's impossible not to compare the two, even though we know that's not fair, because there is a major size difference and 16 years between the opening of Disneyland and the Magic Kingdom. Below are some of the differences we noticed. Go here for the Ride Rundown.

1. The one fear we had was that there was not going to be enough to do to keep us busy for five days, but that was never a problem. We were endlessly entertained.

2.  The queues in California are primarily outdoors, while in Florida they are primarily inside the buildings where the attractions are located. This even goes for rides like Space Mountain. Some of the newer rides such as Roger Rabbit's Car Toon Spin have more elaborate themed queue similar to those in Disney World. The reasons are obvious: the park is small; many of the attractions were built in the 1950s, before today's massive crowded; and the average rainfall is 11 inches in Aneheim versus 48 in Orlando (plus: no hurricanes in California).

3.  There are fewer FastPass rides in California. Even some rides that consistently have 45- to 60-minute lines don't offer FastPass. This did become a bit annoying since getting a FastPass is almost always the easy way to get on a ride.

4.  After seeing Cinderella's Castle all these years towering 189 feet above Main Street USA, Sleeping Beauty Castle looks more like the summer cottage at a mere 77 feet high. This is not a knock against the castle, but looking down Main Street and not seeing the dominant spires does make it seem a bit empty.

5.  There is more attention to detail at Disneyland than in the Magic Kingdom. Yes, there are a lot of bells and whistles at MK and great-behind-the-scenes stuff, but there does not seem to be an inch of "dead" space in Disneyland. This also may be because the park is smaller, but there are gems throughout the park: the sounds of a piano student getting a music lesson in the cul de sac near the Main Street Cone Shop; dancing musical fountains near Pixie Hollow; or Snow White Grotto.

6. Hand stamps. You may have thought that was a quaint practice that went out of style with Disney, but you still need to get your hand stamped for re-entry in California.

7. Disneyland always seemed mobbed. This could be our imagination, but it seemed like there were people everywhere, and even when it was supposed to be a light week, it didn't feel that way.

8. There is no better-located hotel in all the Disney Universe than Disney's Grand Californian, situated just a short jaunt to Disneyland and actually inside the California Adventure park and Downtown Disney.

9. The shopping at Disney World is much better. Maybe that's just because it is much bigger, but the variety of stores and merchandise were disappointing in Disneyland.

10. Disney World has more fine dining, while Disneyland is a great noshing park (love those corn dogs).

11. California Adventure gives more of a Universal Studios vibe than anything else. If you haven't been to Universal's original Florida park, it's designed around a lagoon and is a little lacking in E-ticket rides, although Disney is clearly changing that with the addition of Cars land.

12. Disneyland is your neighborhood park rather than your vacation destination. The kids come out on Friday nights for dates, adults will take a day off to celebrate a birthday, parents take the toddlers for the day -- it is exactly as Walt intended.

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Ride Rundown: Disneyland versus Walt Disney World

The eternal debate has always and will always take place as to which rides are better when comparing Disneyland and Disney World. There are some subtle differences between a few of the rides, some are no different, but the cues will make one appear better and some are extremely different, such as the extra time on the Pirates of the Caribbean.

Below a quick look at 17 rides that appear in both locations and a quick handicap. Note there are plenty of other rides that are in both locations and plenty of other opinions. Check out some links below to other people's thoughts. Here's a better look at Disneyland through the eyes of Walt Disney World fan for my full impression of Disneyland Walt Disney World.

• Touring Plans gives you and idea of the 10 rides that are better at Disneyland than Walt Disney World.
• Disneygeek gives a larger rundown of comparisons.
• Mouse Planet gives you its ride by ride comparison.

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