Parks Magic

Parks Magic: Orlando Theme Park News & Guides

Breaking news, reviews, and insider guides for Walt Disney World, Universal Orlando, SeaWorld Orlando, and Legoland Florida.

News

May the 4th: Disney's Hollywood Studios Drops a $30 Light-Up Jabba's Sail Barge Popcorn Bucket with a Hidden Crew Inside Disney World

May the 4th: Disney's Hollywood Studios Drops a $30 Light-Up Jabba's Sail Barge Popcorn Bucket with a Hidden Crew Inside

Hollywood Studios celebrates Star Wars Day with a $30 Jabba's Sail Barge popcorn bucket modeled after the Khetanna, complete with a hidden lit interior featuring Jabba, Salacious B. Crumb, C-3PO, and R2-D2. Mobile order via My Disney Experience today and Tuesday, then it lands at Kat Saka's Kettle on Wednesday. Limit two per person, per transaction.

May 4, 2026 News
Free SeaWorld Day for Veterans, with a Hard May 10 Deadline: How U.S. Veterans Get In Free for Military Appreciation Month (Plus Active-Duty Year-Round Benefit) SeaWorld Orlando

Free SeaWorld Day for Veterans, with a Hard May 10 Deadline: How U.S. Veterans Get In Free for Military Appreciation Month (Plus Active-Duty Year-Round Benefit)

SeaWorld Orlando is offering U.S. military veterans a free single-day ticket plus up to three free guest tickets for Military Appreciation Month, with up to six additional tickets at 50 percent off. Registration through Waves of Honor closes Sunday, May 10, with park visits required by June 30. Active-duty service members, activated reservists, and National Guard members continue to receive their separate year-round complimentary admission benefit.

May 3, 2026 News
Volcano Bay Nights Opens: 14 After-Hours Pool Parties Through August 21, $99 a Head with Parking and a Moonlit Krakatau Universal Orlando

Volcano Bay Nights Opens: 14 After-Hours Pool Parties Through August 21, $99 a Head with Parking and a Moonlit Krakatau

Universal Orlando lights up Volcano Bay after dark tonight for the 2026 run of Volcano Bay Nights, the resort's after-hours water park party. Tickets are $99 plus tax per person (parking included), the event opens at 7 p.m. with 4 p.m. early water-park entry, and the schedule covers 14 nights through August 21 with passholder discounts and DreamWorks character meet-and-greets.

May 3, 2026 News
Big Thunder Mountain Railroad Is Back at Magic Kingdom: 2,000 Bats, a 38-Inch Height Bar, and Lightning Lane Sold Out by 9:11 a.m. Disney World

Big Thunder Mountain Railroad Is Back at Magic Kingdom: 2,000 Bats, a 38-Inch Height Bar, and Lightning Lane Sold Out by 9:11 a.m.

After roughly 16 months down, Big Thunder Mountain Railroad reopened to Magic Kingdom guests Sunday, May 3, with a brand-new track, a redesigned Rainbow Caverns scene packed with more than 2,000 bats, a freshly revealed mother lode of gold, and a 38-inch height requirement that finally lets a new generation of small riders aboard the wildest ride in the wilderness.

May 3, 2026 News
The Muppets Take Hollywood Studios: The L.I.M.O. Launches May 26 with a 5-Track Setlist, Scooter's First-Ever Audio-Animatronic, Plus Cast, AP, and DVC Previews Confirmed Before Opening Disney World

The Muppets Take Hollywood Studios: The L.I.M.O. Launches May 26 with a 5-Track Setlist, Scooter's First-Ever Audio-Animatronic, Plus Cast, AP, and DVC Previews Confirmed Before Opening

Rock 'n' Roller Coaster Starring The Muppets opens at Disney's Hollywood Studios on Tuesday May 26, with a five-track Electric Mayhem setlist (Jennifer Hudson, Questlove, Def Leppard, Kelly Clarkson all guest), the first-ever Audio-Animatronics Scooter, with Cast Member, Annual Passholder, and Disney Vacation Club previews confirmed before opening.

May 2, 2026 News
Walt Disney World Weekly News: Big Thunder Returns Sunday, A Fourth Ferryboat for Magic Kingdom, and Food and Wine 2026 Dates Locked (Week of April 27, 2026) Disney World

Walt Disney World Weekly News: Big Thunder Returns Sunday, A Fourth Ferryboat for Magic Kingdom, and Food and Wine 2026 Dates Locked (Week of April 27, 2026)

A loaded week at Walt Disney World: Big Thunder Mountain Railroad reopens Sunday, Magic Kingdom adds its first new ferryboat in 50 years (named for Meg Crofton), the EPCOT Food and Wine 2026 calendar is locked, MNSSHP returns August 7, and Tropical Americas takes shape with a new town name and an Encanto ride twist.

May 1, 2026 News
EPCOT International Food and Wine Festival 2026: Dates Locked at Aug 27 to Nov 21, with Bushberry Shrimp, Galactic Dumplings, and a Boozy Cherry Torte on the Debut List Disney World

EPCOT International Food and Wine Festival 2026: Dates Locked at Aug 27 to Nov 21, with Bushberry Shrimp, Galactic Dumplings, and a Boozy Cherry Torte on the Debut List

Disney officially set EPCOT Food and Wine 2026 for August 27 to November 21 (87 days), included with park admission. Three debut dishes confirmed: Street Corn-style Chicken Dumplings at Gyozas of the Galaxy, Grilled Bushberry-spiced Shrimp at Australia, and Kirschwasser Torte at The Alps. Eat to the Beat, Emile's Fromage Montage, and Remy's Hide and Squeak all return.

April 29, 2026 News
Brick It Like Beckham: Legoland Florida Kicks Off a FIFA World Cup 2026 Experience June 11 with Messi, Ronaldo, Mbappe, and a Liftable LEGO Trophy Legoland Florida

Brick It Like Beckham: Legoland Florida Kicks Off a FIFA World Cup 2026 Experience June 11 with Messi, Ronaldo, Mbappe, and a Liftable LEGO Trophy

Legoland Florida announced a FIFA World Cup 2026 Experience running June 11 to July 19, 2026, mirroring the actual World Cup window. Included with park admission. Activities include Spot Shot, Super Squad, Design A Jersey, and a Lift the LEGO Trophy photo op. Brick-built meet-and-greets with Cristiano Ronaldo, Kylian Mbappe, Lionel Messi, and Vini Jr. Two new LEGO sets (43019 Soccer Ball, 43020 World Cup Trophy) hit park retail.

April 29, 2026 News
Hogwarts Castle Reveals Itself Again: Scrim Drops on the Main Tower at Universal Orlando Universal Orlando

Hogwarts Castle Reveals Itself Again: Scrim Drops on the Main Tower at Universal Orlando

After roughly five weeks behind scrim, Hogwarts Castle's main tower is mostly visible again at Islands of Adventure. Crews pulled scrim off Saturday April 26, exposing the freshly repainted clock face and stonework. Trade outlets are citing a May 21 completion target, though Universal has not officially confirmed a timeline. Forbidden Journey has remained open throughout.

April 28, 2026 News
The Legacy Store Is Back at CityWalk, and Yes, the DeLorean and the Shark Came With It Universal Orlando

The Legacy Store Is Back at CityWalk, and Yes, the DeLorean and the Shark Came With It

Universal quietly reopened the Universal Legacy Store at CityWalk Orlando on Friday April 24, taking over the space the Epic Universe Preview Center vacated 11 days earlier. The new version leans even harder on the catalog: four life-size Tom Whalen photo ops (Jaws, Back to the Future, E.T., Universal Monsters), a Whalen Jaws art collab, plus the new UNIVRS collection. Here's the full tour.

April 27, 2026 News
4 Year Ago, It Boiled Over: Disney, DeSantis, and the End of Reedy Creek Disney World

4 Year Ago, It Boiled Over: Disney, DeSantis, and the End of Reedy Creek

A factual, neutral retrospective on the four-year dispute between Florida Governor Ron DeSantis and The Walt Disney Company over the Reedy Creek Improvement District, from its 2022 origin in Florida's Parental Rights in Education Act through the March 2024 settlement, the $17 billion development agreement, and the January 2026 departure of the final state appointees from the special-district board.

April 25, 2026 News