Disney Makes Group Vacations Easier to Manage
Disney had to evacuate two rides due to a break room mishap. Mears Connect has already updated its policies to everyone’s detriment. And Beach Club is about to get the good TVs.
Here are the Disney updates of note from the past week.
My Disney Experience Adds QR Codes
Here’s a headline that doesn’t sound sexy, but it should come with far-reaching implications for Disney Vacation Club users.
The Walt Disney World app has been updated to include QR code usage. What does that mean for your future trips?
From now on, you can easily share upcoming plans with friends and family members.
When you log into the app, you’ll navigate to My Profile. From there, you’ll choose the new option, Show My Linking Code.
You’ll immediately have a QR code you can share with others. They will just open their camera phones and click the link that pops up.
At this point, the other parties can look at your current itinerary and know when/where they should book.
In other words, you can show others your Lightning Lane, Disney Genie+, and restaurant reservations in one convenient location.
I frequently travel with two other families. If you’re like me, you appreciate the tremendous aggravations of trying to organize plans across traveling parties.
Disney has made plan management night and day easier with this one simple enhancement.
You should start playing around with QR codes immediately to learn the ins and outs.
The Fridge Fiasco
Let me start with what’s important here. Everyone’s okay, and nobody was ever in danger!
Still, Disney cast members evacuated two Tomorrowland attractions at Magic Kingdom the other day.
The cause for this panic-inducing decision is something that will blow your mind.
Attentive employees spotted smoke wafting through Space Mountain and dutifully pulled the fire alarm as they should.
When the Reedy Creek Professional Firefighters arrived on the scene, they traced the smoke to a cast member break room.
One of the firefighters noticed that a refrigerator had smoke emanating from it. So, according to the Orlando Sentinel, a firefighter unplugged the fridge.
That was all anybody needed to do to save the day. So, if you heard that Space Mountain and the PeopleMover caught fire, that’s factually incorrect.
A few cast members lost their leftovers, though.
Miscellaneous Disney News Updates
We’re barely six weeks into the era of Mears Connect, and it’s going about as well as most people expected.
The service had already increased prices from $200 to $250 before Mears Connect debuted.
Now, Mears has updated the terms of service to remove one of the most significant selling points.
Initially, Mears Connect had promised that guests would always leave the airport within 20 minutes of check-in at the service desk.
Well, Mears removed that guarantee from its FAQ. That’s…not great.
FWIW, some reviews of the new service have poured in. Here’s the always-interesting Summer Hull at The Points Guy with one take.
Also, here’s one of my favorite Disney influencers with a video demonstration:
Long story short, Mears Connect works quite similarly to Magical Express, only it’s not as good. So, it’s about what we thought.
In other parks news/video, the Disney Adventure Friends Cavalcade officially reopened. Here’s a look at the show:
On the downside, the Mickey & Friends Motorcade has ended at Disney’s Hollywood Studios. That’s not all bad news, though.
You’ll once again find Mickey holding court with Minnie Mouse at Red Carpet Dreams!
For DVC Points users, change is afoot at Disney’s Beach Club Villas. The resort is gradually adding new interactive TVs to the various hotel rooms.
These are the televisions that caused quite the stir when Disney’s Riviera Resort introduced them.
You can stream from your devices to them via the Chromecast app, which is built into the TV.
They also include free Disney movies on demand, making them perfect for rainy days when you want to hang out in your room.
Finally, have you seen this Instagram post? No, this car isn’t street legal…but it is all kinds of awesome!
Start planning your next Disney vacation TODAY! Book your next Disney vacation visit by browsing our current DVC Confirmed Reservation Specials, or use our DVC availability tool to see if the dates for your vacation are available. From there, you can start the booking process and one of our team members will reach out to assist!
