Tuesday, 25th January 2022

New in 2022: Disneyland Paris 30th Anniversary celebrations revealed!

Disneyland Paris 30th Anniversary: What's New in 2022. Mickey Mouse and Minnie wearing iridescent costumes in front of Sleeping Beauty Castle, surrounded by images of Avengers Campus, birthday decorations and events.

With less than 40 days to go until Disneyland Paris launches its 30th Anniversary celebrations, the resort has finally confirmed what to expect with a series of new announcements and reveals.

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Monday, 19th July 2021

Bookings open for summer 2022 as Disneyland Paris swaps discounts for price guarantee

Disneyland Paris "Get the Pick of our Best Prices Book Early" logo

Disneyland Paris has opened bookings for resort hotel and park ticket packages through to summer 2022, right up until 30th September 2022, allowing many to book their planned return to the Disney resort after two years of upheaval.

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Friday, 26th September 2014

See the first 10 days of Disney’s Halloween 2014 events and times in new Programme

Disney's Halloween Festival 2014 Programme Disneyland Paris

Mickey’s Halloween Celebration, Maleficent’s Court and the Maleficent Disney Villains Promenade are all on the latest official Disneyland Park Programme, published today for the first ten days of Disney’s Halloween Festival in 2014. Read More…

Wednesday, 9th July 2014

Marvel’s Spider-Man extends Walt Disney Studios Park residence to end of August

20140709_spiderman_5

Meet Spider-Man, the “temporary” character opportunity in Backlot at Walt Disney Studios Park, is set to continue beyond its original 14th July end date until at least the end of August.

Positioned next to Disney Blockbuster Café at the very back of the park, the meet ‘n’ greet experience has been a huge success since opening on 19th April.

Primarily said to be funded as part of Sony Pictures’ European marketing of The Amazing Spider-Man 2, it has nevertheless been keenly marketed by Disneyland Paris themselves, including on the front of the Studios’ weekly Programme guide. Disneyland Paris is the first and only Disney resort to feature the character.

Meet Spider-Man, Walt Disney Studios Park, Disneyland Paris Marvel Backlot
Meet Spider-Man, Walt Disney Studios Park, Disneyland Paris Marvel BacklotMeet Spider-Man, Walt Disney Studios Park, Disneyland Paris Marvel Backlot

Despite the off-route location, queues have been steady and strong to meet the masked Marvel hero. Inside, guests themselves surrounded by giant newspaper pages reporting his victories, before literally stepping into the front page of the Daily Bugle to pose with Spidey themselves. It’s a light but very polished experience which has at last breathed life into Backlot, perhaps the most characterless Disney theme park area in history.

Many had therefore hoped Peter Parker’s alter ego would extend his stay, and several sources report there is now no currently confirmed end date with Spidey definitely sticking around until 31st August.

• Previously — Andrew Garfield and Emma Stone visit Walt Disney Studios Park during the movie’s European promotional tour

Meet Spider-Man, Walt Disney Studios Park, Disneyland Paris Marvel Backlot
Disneyland Paris Marvel Backlot

Besides the current movie release, this integration of Spider-Man into the land chimes perfectly with longstanding rumours for a Marvel makeover of Backlot. Much grander than a simple meet ‘n’ greet room, most rumours point to a complete re-theming of the area’s three attractions to Marvel themes, with street sets and building façades (perhaps depicting New York or similar) finally providing a story between them.

Just last week rumours surfaced of a minor Marvel-themed extension to Hollywood Land at Disney California Adventure, Disney’s second Californian park. MiceAge suggests a series of modest walk-through exhibits and meet ‘n’ greet opportunities are in the works, expanding on the current Marvel tie-ins at Disneyland’s Innoventions.

In Paris, the Marvel redevelopment could be rather more ambitious, with three genuine (and already reasonably strong) attractions to work with. Rock ‘n’ Roller Coaster setting your Spidey senses tingling? Marvel superheroes in the Moteurs Stunt Show arena? Perhaps they just need to sell a few more souvenir character meet ‘n’ greet photos to fund it…

Tuesday, 15th April 2014

Confirmed: Spider-Man to make first Disney park appearance at Walt Disney Studios Paris

Andrew Garfield, Emma Stone, Spider-Man, Walt Disney Studios Park, Disneyland Paris

In a world first for Disney Parks, Disneyland Paris confirmed on Friday that Walt Disney Studios Park will soon welcome Spider-Man to an exclusive meet and greet location in Backlot.

This followed a day exciting enough to set the spidey senses tingling in the park itself, when Andrew Garfield and Emma Stone, stars of The Amazing Spider-Man, paid an impromptu promotional visit for the film’s imminent sequel.

Andrew Garfield, Emma Stone, Spider-Man, Walt Disney Studios Park, Disneyland Paris20140415_spiderman_5

Giving Walt Disney Studios Park a rare air of real “Hollywood” excitement, the pair, who star as Peter Parker (Spider-Man) and Gwen Stacy, conducted interviews in a red carpet event on Hollywood Boulevard.

Garfield later posed with Disney Voluntears and children from French organisation SESSAD inside Disney Blockbuster Cafe, just metres from where the Marvel meet ‘n’ greet tie-in is taking shape at the back of the park.

Andrew Garfield Spider-Man at Walt Disney Studios Park, Disneyland Paris

• Previously — Spider-Man photo location rumoured for Backlot in Walt Disney Studios Park

As reported previously, the new photo location will be housed within the disused side room of the restaurant. Disneyland Paris was typically vague in its announcement, stating on Twitter:

Very soon, Walt Disney Studios Park will be even more exciting with the opportunity for our guests to meet #SpiderMan himself !

And on Facebook:

It’s a first! Spider-Man is coming to pay us all a visit in Walt Disney Studios Park! Just a few more days and we’ll be sharing some truly epic moments with Spider-Man himself.

No dates were officially given, with only InsideDLParis reporting Spider-Man will meet guests from 19th April to 14th July 2014, a disappointingly short stay for the superhero.

Surprisingly, the tie-in appears to be taking place with the full support of Sony Pictures as part of a promotional deal with Disneyland Paris, proved not least by the appearance of the principal actors at the park. While The Walt Disney Company owns Marvel outright and has embarked on a new Spider-Man TV series, Sony Pictures continues to own the feature film rights.

Spider-Man at Walt Disney Studios Park, Disneyland Paris

Perhaps it’s due to this promotional aspect with the new film that Spider-Man apparently won’t be staying longer. Could Disneyland Paris extend his stay with their own money if he proves popular? Backlot needs permanent fixes, not temporary tie-ins, and making this unpopular land the permanent home of Marvel superheroes is without doubt the perfect fix.

For now, this new meet ‘n’ greet will be a tiny but welcome taste of what could be

Update — An official press release confirms the 19th April to 14th July dates and suggests that visitors “will be able to go home with their photo on the front page of the Daily Bugle”, the New York newspaper renowned for publishing photos of Spider-Man. Is that press release bumph or a hint at a fun souvenir photo design? Not long to find out.

Video featuring Andrew Garfield and Emma Stone at Walt Disney Studios Park follows… Read More…

Monday, 24th February 2014

Spider-Man photo location rumoured for Backlot in Walt Disney Studios Park

Marvel Ultimate Spider-Man

We really hope you like your Disney character rumours, because here’s another. Fellow fansite DlrpExpress.fr reports today that a Spider-Man photo location could be on its way to Backlot in Walt Disney Studios Park, occupying empty space next to Disney Blockbuster Café.

According to the rumour, the Marvel-themed “photo location” would take up space at one side of the counter service restaurant, in the corner of Backlot opposite Rock ‘n’ Roller Coaster.

Disney Blockbuster Café

This room was originally an outdoor terrace in 2002, before being enclosed soon after opening in order to add more capacity to the dining venue.

Despite this, it has rarely been regularly used and was most recently turned into a short-lived second Bureau Passport Annuel, Annual Passport sales office. Currently, it sits empty with just a few display cases and lonely High School Musical 3 posters.

Marvel Spider-Man Disney Blockbuster Cafe

Not just a welcome use for this wasted space, a Spider-Man location here in Backlot would be the first step in the long-awaited addition of Marvel characters to Walt Disney Studios Park.

Rumours have grown since Disney’s 2009 acquisition of the comic book company that this corner of the park could see a full superhero makeover. At one point, there was even speculation that Armageddon: Les Effets Speciaux  in particular could be rethemed to Spider-Man.

Yet to date, the most the park has seen is the former “High School Musical room” of Disney Blockbuster Café replaced by an “Iron Man room” — a generous way to describe putting a few new posters up, detailed in Photos Magiques’ recent report.

Iron Man room at Disney Blockbuster Cafe

Around the world, only Hong Kong Disneyland has officially announced the first Marvel-themed attraction, a 3D motion simulator dubbed Iron Man Experience. Meanwhile California, as usual, has been at the forefront with the first Marvel characters taking up residence with special exhibits and meet ‘n’ greets for Iron Man, Thor and (soon) Captain America at Innoventions.

Rumour states Disneyland Paris could welcome Spider-Man as soon as mid-March, making it the first Disney park to feature the character in any form. So far, the live “Disney” character version has only appeared very briefly, at last year’s D23 Expo (see video below).

Disneyland Paris has now, for some time, sold a large range of Spider-Man comic book and cartoon merchandise, above other Marvel characters.

While Disney would base its theme park characterisation on Disney XD‘s successful Ultimate Spider-Man animated TV series (pictured top), it’s surely no coincidence that this year also sees Sony Pictures release its second “rebooted” film, The Amazing Spider-Man 2, under its ownership of the movie rights, boosting the attractiveness of such a tie-in.

For Walt Disney Studios Park, having such a name on its books would be an incredible coup, massively elevating the park’s credentials. Certainly more so than its previous movie tie-in catalogue of Armageddon, Reign of Fire and Dinotopia, don’t you agree?

Video of Spider-Man’s D23 Disney character appearance follows… Read More…

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