Space Mountain and Discoveryland News

December 2005

Down they go

Another scaffolding has come down around the roof of the former Constellations Boutique and of the old Visionarium building. The new roof features brighter colors than before but still is a far cry from the cartoonish colors from the Toy Story series on which the Buzz Lightyear attraction is based, that will open inside the building next April. The construction walls around the ground floor of the building remain in place though, but the entrance to Discoveryland has already been widened again in the recent weeks as the repaving project here has been mostly finished. Also in the recent weeks the interior of the new Buzz Lightyear shop has been further decorated with details around the display areas and the registers - an ongoing project.

Reported by J°o°el & DLP.info-Team at DLP Guidebook, 14.12.2005

November 2005

Hands UP... again

In Discoveryland the welcome sign has been put back in place. Guests are greeted with the message "Tout ce qui est dans la limite du possible doit être et sera accomplié by Jules Verne, keeping the "old" Discoveryland theme in the park.

While on the other side of Disneyland, in Frontierland, Indians have been spotted shooting their arrows. One of them found its place in a wooden sign informing the guests where to take the best possible picture.

Reported by J°o°el, SNN & DLP.info-Team at DLP Guidebook, 24.11.2005

Powerful blast off

It is the detail that makes our kingdom so magical. Just look at "the living portrait" in Toad Hall at Fantasyland or "the Heart Beating Grave" in boot hill at Frontierland, to only name a few.

Another, more noticeable, detail is the smoke coming out of the cannon from Space Mountain during blast off. Since its opening, and change to Mission 2 guest have seen either some or no smoke at all appearing from the cannon./p>

At this time however, the smoke is back and more than ever. The amount of smoke blasted into the sky seems to be a much bigger amount as it used to be.

Reported by DLP.info-Team at DLP Guidebook, 24.11.2005

Update from Star Command

Urgent public message from Star Command: we are looking for future recruits to help fend off the latest attack of Zurg who tries to steal the battery supply of the toy universe. Interested recruits may report to the Buzz Lightyear Laser Blast at the Disneyland Parks, Disneyland Resort Paris, Europe, Earth, as of April 8, 2006. Please bring your on batteries. Universe-wide transportation is available via Star Tours and the Baltimore Gun Club.

Background information: the work on the upcoming Buzz Lightyear Laser Blast attraction going into the former Visionarium in Discoveryland is making progress. To announce the opening date (April 8, 2006) signs have been added to the so far bar blue construction walls, featuring Zurg, Buzz and the little green aliens. While the upper part of the facade is nearly finished, the new walls that close off the former covered overflow-queue-area in the front of the building are still unthemed. Also the work on a related new mosaic on the walkway at the entrance of Discoveryland continues, resulting in a bottleneck. To ease traffic a rope is temporary set up to create separate lanes for in- and outbound guest flow.

The former Constellations shop has reopened in the meantime after finishing the first phase of its transformation into a Buzz Lightyear / Toy Story themed shop. Mickey's flying machine inspired by Leonardo da Vinci did not return for obvious reasons and the drawings of the zodiac signs above the central area have been covered. Also a new carpet featuring the colors and graphics from the Toy Story universum have been added as well as new Toy Story themed cashier signs. Some additional themeing elements may be added in time for the opening of the new attraction.

Reported by DLP.info-Team at DLP Guidebook, 3.11.2005

October 2005

Work around the lands

[..] Moving on to discover the next changes we find ourselves back in Discoveryland where the preparations for the newest attraction are taking place. Buzz Lightyear's AstroBlaster will open in 2006 and has seen many updates mentioned in previous news. Now guests and fans have to say goodbye to the timekeeper for good as the big billboard outside the Buzz Lightyear's AstroBlaster building has been removed. Buzz is ready for his next adventure and hopes you will be too once the doors open.

Reported by J°o°el & DLP.info-Team at DLP Guidebook, 12.10.2005

September 2005

Construction Fences

Blue construction fences are now closing off most of the entrance way to Discoveryland from Central Plaza and are also blocking of an extended area between Videopolis, Orbitron and the future Buzz Lightyear ride. Behind the construction fence the ground is undergoing some major work. According to the latest reports on the DLP.info-Forum a new ground mosaic is added... To help the guest flow and make sure guests realize Discoveryland is NOT closed signs have been added to the fences indicating access to the attractions of Discoveryland.

Reported by J°o°el & DLP.info-Team at DLP Guidebook, 8.9.2005

Special Disney Celebration Evening

Coming Saturday at 8.45 pm the doors of the Videopolis will open for the second official fan event organized by the Disneyland Resort Paris. So where is the news you may ask - afterall we already told you about the price (28,- Euro including dinner, minus up to 50% discount for AP holders or 10% for Shareholders' Club members), the raffle (win a free stay in a Disney Hotel), and the reason for the event (50 years of Disney Magic at Disneyland Anaheim, the grand opening of Hong Kong Disney).

Well - here it is: according to the organizers at the Resort the Imagineers will give presentations in English, since many fans at the Space Mountain Last Chance event complained about language problems. Also the videos shown during the evening will feature only a very limited, minimal amount of dialogue much of which will be in English as well. So no need to miss out on the unique event, only because you don't speak any French, there is still enough time to organize a visit. But: seats are limited, so don't wait too long, right now there are still tickets left, but who know how long? Here again the reservation hotlines: + 33 1 60 30 60 53 for all international guests, 0 825 30 60 30(2) for guests from France.

Reported by Disneyland Resort Paris & DLP.info-Team at DLP Guidebook, 6.9.2005

Discoveryland Refurbishment

At the beginning of Discoveryland some of the green lava blocks are missing. Some plants are trying to cover up the wooden boards lying over the gabs of the removed block.

Walking into Discoveryland guest will not miss out on the works going on at the old Le Visionarium building. It won't be long before we can blast our way past Zurg, but until then we can enjoy another piece of the building revealed into similar colors as the Constellations shop.

Reported by J°o°el & DLP.info-Team at DLP Guidebook, 3.9.2005

August 2005

Summer Time Jobs!

Even during high season Mickey's little helpers are not sitting still. All over the resort some small, and some bigger, paint and repair jobs are being taken care of. Starting our tour around the resort we find some new and refreshing colors priding on Constellations' building. Bright and funky purple catch the eye, mixed with grey, brown and a catchy mean green that would make a certain famous Space Ranger called Buzz Lightyear very happy.

Reported by J°o°el & DLP.info-Team at DLP Guidebook, 3.8.2005

July 2005

Done - or nearly ...

The final mad dash is underway to get at as many of the rehab projects inside the Disneyland Park finished as possible before the summer crowds descend on the park as of Saturday - and it looks quite good.

On the Main Street, U.S.A. all current projects seem to have been finished in time - the balcony over the entrance of Disney & Co has returned, and the last scaffoldings in front of parts of the facade of Casey's Corner has disappeared too to reveal a building looking as good as new. Unfortunately there is one news also which must be labeled bad: the Arcade Market in the Liberty Arcade is back. Once again the Emporium is congesting the lower half of the arcade with its merchandise. As the Emporium is completely operational it must be assumed that the management of the shop is ignoring the guest flow nightmares and the increased shop lifting numbers from earlier this year and solely for profit reasons revived the market.

In Frontierland in the meantime several smaller rehabs have been realized, sprucing up parts here and there, e.g. the wooden floor of the mercantile building's porch. More good news come from Fantasyland, where Alice's Curious Labyrinth has reopened with freshened plantings, beaming colors and once again working effects. Unfortunately the small doors in the first segment of the labyrinth are still blocked. Guests (especially children) could try to squeeze themselves through these just like Alice, but already during the rehab in 2004 the handles were taken off and the doors bolted now being non-functioning props only. Rumors say that guests frequently opened the doors surprisingly fast thus ramming them into guests on the other side not expecting this to happen - an unpleasant surprise.

A pleasant surprise on the other hand is in store for fans in Discoveryland: the tent roof over the elevated platform at the Disneyland Railroad Station has finally returned after some meticulous cleaning. Originally it was supposed to be added already in late March / early April. Internal sources claim that management decided to postpone the process for fear that fall out from the fireworks at the re-opening of Space Mountain (shot right from the tracks of the railroad) might damage the tent-roof.

The only prominently visible rehab projects still underway are now left in Adventureland, where parts of the Adventureland Bazare buildings are still covered behind scaffolding as they get repainted and the roofs receive a fresh, themed cover. Also work is underway once again on the wooden bridge between the Bazar and the Restaurant Hakuna Matata ... will the resort manage to finish this before Saturday and the official summer season kick-off? Look-Out for updates soon!

Reported by J°o°el & DLP.info-Team at DLP Guidebook, 14.7.2005

June 2005

One unofficial Rehab

Since the FastPass at the Big Thunder Mountain has been installed fans have been showing each other the funny mistake on the warning signs at the FastPass-machines, which told future riders before getting their FastPass: Prior to riding Space Mountain you must secure all loose articles or leave them with a non-rider. Speculation was, that someone at Imagineering in the first place created the according warning sign for the FastPass distribution area at Space Mountain in 2000 and then just copied the text missing, forgetting to proof-read it in the course when FastPass was added to Big Thunder Mountain. Well, in the meantime one guest must have lost his patience with the park to replace the sign - afterall it went up in 2001 already. He has taken things in his own hands and just crossed out the words Space Mountain with a black marker. Let's wait and see whether the sign gets replaced now ...

Reported by J°o°el & DLP.info-Team at DLP Guidebook, 29.6.2005

Stroll through Disneyland

... Discoveryland: The plaque dedicating the land to the grand visionaries has been removed from its column - but only for a rehab as has been confirmed. And now on to the major project: the former Visionarium. In preparation for the future Buzz Lightyear attraction now the whole facade of the building has been hidden behind scaffolding reaching up all the way to the extended decorative elements from which the circular lighting elements had been removed recently. In fact the scaffolding also covers the facade of the shop Constellations next to the Visionarium - presumbly as its facade will be adapted to the new look too. As the shop continues to be open to the public a temporary sign has been placed on the scaffolding. This concludes today's stroll through Disneyland which sports a surprisingly large number of very obvious rehabs and construction work not even a month before the summer season starts.

Reported by J°o°el & DLP.info-Team at DLP Guidebook, 22.6.2005

Time for an ENCORE

While the dark blue construction fence blocks the view of what is going on right in front of the Visionarium, it is now obvious that work on the facade moves ahead, as the circular-neon-lamps have been taken down. Fans are also in for a surprise in the back of the land at the entrance to the Pizza Planet Restaurant. A new sign has shown up in front of the restaurant on those days it is closed to guide the guests to the Cafe Hyperion or the Pizzeria Bella Notte as alternatives. The surprise? The sign reuses the old name of the restaurant 'Buzz Lightyear's Pizza Planet' which had been taken down!

Reported by J°o°el & DLP.info-Team at DLP Guidebook, 15.6.2005

What's going on?

Just a short mentioning: the lagoon of the Nautilus in Disocoveryland has been refilled.

Reported by Anonymous & MinnieM & DLP.info-Team at DLP Guidebook, 5.6.2005

May 2005

Buzz about Buzz continues

DLP.info-Community-member TomTom aka Tom2 reports that during his last visit to the Disneyland Park he met two Imagineers in front of the former Visionarium that will become the new home of Buzz Lightyears by next year, who were handling some sketches for the make-over of the exterior facade.

Based on the technical drawings and a color sketch they were handling the substantial elements of the facade will stay unchanged. Even the color scheme seems to be adjusted only very carefully, retaining the overall look and feel of the original Discoveryland while adding some accents to hint toward the Disney Pixar hit movie.

Behind the construction fence in the meantime not much is happening. At the grand opening of Space Mountain: Mission 2 Imagineers confirmed that the interior of the building was ready for the installation of the Omnimover-ridesystem. Only once that is in place the sets would be installed, but so far no reports have arrived indicating that the system has been installed. The elements seen in front of the building as e.g. the air-vents do no hint toward an immenint installation of the ridesystem either.

Reported by TomTom & Anonymous & DLP.info-Team at DLP Guidebook, 29.5.2005

Dry Lagoon

Even so the exterior of the Nautilus and the water bassin underwent an extensive rehab together with the exterior rehab of Space Mountain last year, the Nautilus once again sits in a dry lagoon. As no construction walls have been errected hopefully this will be the case only for a very short period of time.

Reported by J°o°el & DLP.info-Team at DLP Guidebook, 19.5.2005

Update with Care

In time for the opening of Space Mountain: Mission 2 a new attraction poster was created which promptly became the topic for lengthy discussions among fans as it deviated from the victorian style of the original artwork. This became even more apparent, when the poster recently also replace the original poster in the walkway leading from the Entrance Plaza of the Disneyland Park, under the Main Street Station, to the Town Square.

With its new, more modern "airbrush-like"-style it stands out from the more classic style of the surrounding attraction posters - but then it does fit the new overall style of the attraction, and the poster for Star Tours already since 1992 deviated from the classic graphic style. Fans inspecting the prints up close will also notice that Imagineering currently replaced / replaces all the prints in this area. The new prints, while still using the same artwork, have been stripped of the logos of opening day sponsors no longer represented in the park. In addition the name and logo of the park was updated from EuroDisneyland to "Disneyland Park".

Reported by J°o°el & DLP.info-Team at DLP Guidebook, 12.5.2005

April 2005

The Return of the Queue

By now the photos of the Stitch photo location at Space Mountain between the FastPass Distribution Center and the FastPass Entrance of the attraction have gone round the web - and against earlier rumors and the hope of fans Stitch is not boarding his Space Mountain: Mission 2 train car in a space suit outfit but in his regular "Hawaiian cutie" look. Still the first time Stitch officiall shows up on a regular basis in the Disneyland Park creates long lines blocking another part of the walkway between the Videopolis and Space Mountain, which already was a rather crowded area regularly forming a bottle neck. Now the queue line for Stitch meets with guests exiting the FastPass Distribution Center, guests returning with their FastPass to Space Mountain, guests taking a closer look at the merchandise at the cart opposite the Videopolis entrance, guests just trying to make their way to the back area of Discoveryland with popular attractions as Star Tours and Honey, I Shrunk the Audience, twice daily the long line of guests trying to get hold of a ticket for The Legend of the Lion King and five times daily with guests returning with their tickets to catch the show. Sounds like a small nightmare?

Well, that is why guest flow was not all too happy about the placement of the photo location in the first place and instead some sources say championed to move it into the former Star Tours overflow queue area, all the way up next to the walkway leading into Fantasyland. As they did not suceed with this proposal (as many guests would have missed the photo opportunity there) another concept originally proposed already in the summer 2004 is gaining momentum again according to our sources. The idea championed by guest flow is to move the queue line for the ticket distribution (and the actual distrubution process) for The Legend of the Lion King away from the main entrance of the Videopolis into the former overflow queue of Star Tours. Not being used since the early years of the park the area sits empty these days but already has everything repared to set up a queue line with minimal work as many dividers are already in place. Also a long line formed there would not block the traffic as in the current set up and would need fewers CMs to attend to, as there would be no ways to sneak into the line. Also the set up there would be more orderly. Guests could easily guided to the new ticket distrubution with a few signs, too.

Reported by DisneylandManiac & Mr. SpaceMountain & DLP.info-Team at DLP Guidebook, 20.4.2005

Space Mountain: Mission 2 officially open

As soon as the gates of the Disneyland Park opened guests rushed to Space Mountain to be among the first to ride it on its first day of official operation. But they were held back in front for a short ceremony till 9.15.

DLRP's ambassador welcomed the guests in French and English before handing over to the president of attractions, who later on declared the ride open - but certainly not before Mickey and Minnie in silver, futuristic suits had welcomed the family of honor. The Baxter family from Cambridge, UK, (with two young girls) were the first to blast to outer space and as a gift received a VIP pass for direct access to all rides valid all day long. To the music of the ride and music from the movie Armageddon, guests rushed into the right ... or tried to as the turnstile at the top of the bridge leading to the mountain caused a backlog ending in a huge crowd outside the queuing area. Once through the turnstile guests could briskly walk right up to the actual mountain and then had to queue through the mountain to the FastPass merge point. Behind its turnstile guests could walk briskly again to the entrance of the final room before the station.

Just twenty minutes later though FastPass were only available for time windows as of 1.00 pm. But the backlog in front of the first turnstile was gone - instead half of the revamped queue line outside the mountain was in use reflecting the huge interest to become Exploronaut. First positive remarks by guests were already to be overheared in this outdoor queue for the impressive recoil effect and the huge burst of smoke when a train was shot out of the cannon. Guest reaction after the ride were extremly positive to enthusiastic.

Reported by DLP.info-Team at DLP Guidebook, 9.4.2005

Space Mountain: Mission 2 Press Event

Press, VIPs and expedients from travel agencies all over Europe were invited to celebrate the 10th anniversary of the roller coaster that changed the impression of millions what a coaster can be and that opened new frontiers for Disney and especially the Disneyland Paris – with the premier of the new version of the ride. While the building and the track stayed unchanged the show has been redone completely under the motto "Attraction Reloaded" (which also adores the jacket available in the merchandise line also including a t-shirt, a long-sleeve-shirt, a fleece-jacket, a baseball cap and a photo frame) … new soundtrack, new effects, new decorations, new story - short: a new experience.

Reported by DLP.info-Team at DLP Guidebook, 7.4.2005

Space Mountain: Mission 2 by 2

"Space Mountain: Mission 2" started its preview operation on Friday and will continue it till coming Friday for invited guests as e.g. AP Dream holders, press etc. - so the first reports are in as you can see on the DLP.info-Forum. What can you expect? One current DLP.info-Team-Member, Andy, and one former DLP.info-Team-Member, Torsten, have tested the ride for you ... and here in short sentences their reports they phoned into our headquarters:

Both agree that the ride still is a blast for guests who do it the first time and thrill seekers, but also agree that for fans who know the original ride and love it, the new version turns out lacking in several areas. The decision to enclose the walkways was welcomed by both of our preview-reviewers as it means guests can not peek into the mountain, but it seems the idea of putting up photos of stars is not really the best possible solution. The last rooms before the station have been carefully redesigned trying to bridge the gap between the theme of Jules Verne and the more modern Super Nova idea. The station seems nearly unchanged in the first moment, even it recieved a new paint-job and automatic gates have been added to make boarding even safer - the space-station that was supposed to be suspended from the roof unfortunately was not realized. But then on to the ride. Both reviewers again agree that the catapult start is more exciting thanks to the acceleration starting further down in the cannon (even so the overall topspeed is unchanged). But at this point already first not only positive comments are placed: instead of the epic music building up an French(!) countdown is piped in which our reviewers thought was less exciting. During the ride the music does work - while not as epic and as impressive as the original score it functions to underscore the action, but is less memorable. According to Torsten the more modern style complete with beats makes the ride seem faster and wilder, an effect that is similar realized in the Rock'n'Rollercoaster in the Walt Disney Studios. But what about the ride inside the mountain?

Both reviewers again pointed out that the ride did not get any smoother compared to prior to the rehab / retheming. While it seems most first time guests on the ride together with our reviewers were not bothered with this, both reviewers saw this as a big disappointment. The effects? Some were hits with our reviewers, some were flops. Torsten pointed out that the starfield effect right at the start of the ride worked great helping to disorient guests and both reviewers agreed that the comet flying toward the train was great. Most effects are realized by projections on screens positioned next to the track which are turned on only when a train approaches. It seems that Imagineering is still working to synchronize these projections, as our reviewers said that this was not yet working at all times. Unfortunately this seems also to apply to the big Super Nova projection, which both said was not living up to projections. But then the effect does not work fully yet. Today on repeated rides sometimes either the projection did not work properly or the sound of the explosion was missing - while both worked on separate tries, so far our reviewers did not encounter both of them together. Also no heat or wind effects were up and running but at the moment we are unable to confirm whether these plans got canceled or technical problems prevail. Overall the effects are not yet up too full operation and even caused the temporary closure of the ride this afternoon. While the transition through the meteors is mostly unchanged, Torsten pointed out that it was a nice ffect to dip through smoke during the crossing of the minor of the two meteors. Both reviewers also agree that the segment before the re-entry and the de-velocirator was one of the rides highlight. During this high-speed part of the ride guests now race through a tunnel formed by red glowing lines twisting to form the tunnel.

Overall our reviewers thought that the ride is great fun for thrill seekers and first time guests but less atmospheric than the original ride. But then this are PREVIEW reviews so we can expect the effects to be tweaked further before the official opening coming weekend.

Reported by Torsten & Andy & DLP.info-Team at DLP Guidebook, 3.4.2005

March 2005

It's a Sign! It's a Video!

No, not signs in the cornfields, but signs at the entrance of "Space Mountain: Mission 2". At "Space Mountain: Mission 2" in the meantime the sign above the main entrance has been finalized and the huge attraction poster put up on the mountain itself. Unfortunately Imagineering did not come up with any replacement for the moon which was circled by the small train atop the main entrance sign, which used to be one of the small visual gems that show the love for detail in the Disney parks. The main poster of the ride is no longer in the victorian style of its predecessor but depicts a coaster train flying through outerspace in a airbrush-like drawing.

Speaking of "Space Mountain: Mission 2" - DLP.info-Community-member Tarzan found some interesting material out there on the web, which he posted on the Forum: a first very short report from an early preview ride (with not all effects working) and a link to the new safety video played in the waiting area of the attraction. The later seems to manage quite well to avoid a clash with the victorian style themeing, in fact better than the original safety video. Interestingly the video now also includes instructions on how to sit (with the head against the headrest), how to store any bags and loose articles during the ride and how to close the over-head-restraints. For change also the written subtitles are missing.

Reported by Joel & Tarzan & DLP.info-Team at DLP Guidebook, 29.3.2005

DJ Tiesto vs. Aerosmith

The Disneyland Resort Paris is upon request now providing more specific information about the concert / party of DJ Tiesto in the Walt Disney Studios Park on April 16 to celebrate the opening of Space Mountain: Mission 2 (which takes place a week earlier in the Disneyland Park). While the location of the stage is still not revealed (if it is actually decided upon already), we now know that once the park opens at 8.00 pm the attractions Armageddon, Backlot Studio Tram Tour and the Rock'n'Rollercoaster starring Aerosmith (the later for everybody who wants to mix his techno with a bit of rock) will open too. While the park does not close till 2.00 am the attractions will already close at 10.00 pm, which is one hour into the two our set of DJ Bob Sinclar who warms up the crowds for DJ Tiesto who will spin the tables from 11.00 pm till 2.00 am. During the whole time the restaurant En Coulisse (in Studio 1) and food carts will carter to the guests' needs. Information about tickets are available from the official reservation hotline of the resort or the event's official website (http://www.tiestoatdisney.com/).

Reported by Disneyland Resort Paris & DLP.info-Team at DLP Guidebook, 25.3.2005

Hong Kong, Paris, Orlando & Confusion

The Disney Village at Walt Disney World in Orlando, Florida, differs in many ways from the Disney Village at the Disneyland Resort Paris (and we do not even want to start to talk about the weather). Certainly the assortment of shops is one of the major differences. One of the major non-Disney shops for several years already is the LEGO-store which underwent a complete rehab in the past months. When it reopened only days ago it also featured several new scenes presented in shop windows. Two of them might be of special interest to Disney fans. The first scene depicts Paris, the second one Hong Kong (as the highest and most unique skyscraper in the model clearly indicates).

While the traditional landmarks of both cities are the centerpiece of these Lego works of art, both scenes also feature references to the local Disney Resorts. In the case of the Paris scene the distinctive Sleeping Beauty Castle of the Disneyland Resort Paris is featured prominently at the left side (but no hint of the Walt Disney Studios. The not yet open Hong Kong Disneyland is even represented with three landmarks: Big Thunder Mountain, the Castle and Space Mountain set a bit to the back of the skyline of the city. But fans will notice that this is a rather strange choice as Hong Kong Disneyland does not include a Frontierland on opening day and therefore also no Big Thunder Mountain. Also the Space Mountain of Hong Kong Disneyland is modeled after the original white Space Mountains in Anaheim and Orlando, but the model clearly shows a cannon going up all the way to the top of the mountain - which is a unique feature of Space Mountain at the Disneyland Resort Paris, which also seems to have provided the color scheme of the mountain. So the question must be: did the model makers of Lego mix up Hong Kong Disneyland with Tokyo Disneyland regarding Big Thunder Mountain and HongKong's Space Mountain with the Paris' version? Or ...

Special thanks to ISTCrew20 who provided the two close up photos and Brian Kendig who provided the two other photos!

Reported by ISTCrew20 & Brian Kendig & DLP.info-Team at DLP Guidebook, 23.3.2005

Smoke Test and New Poster

In the Disneyland Park in the mean time Space Mountain is making large steps forward too. While the number of trains shot through the cannon has decreased drastically in the last days, the smoke effect is still tested repeatedly. But currently a hotter topic among fans is the new giant poster that went up on the mountain. Showcasing what looks like an airbrushed scene of a coaster train racing past planets in outerspace it has a destinctively more modern and less Jules-Verne-style feeling over it than the original artwork.

Reported by emmanuel 10583 & DLP.info-Team at DLP Guidebook, 21.3.2005

Sign Up

Oh, sorry - while you certainly are asked to sign up soon to be an exploronaut and travel on "Space Mountain: Mission 2" into the depths of outerspace (or can already sing up if you are a member of the Shareholders' Club - as reported earlier), the title of this news was supposed to read "Sign's Up" to indicate the latest developments visible at the outside of Space Mountain. The new sign above the Space Mountain FastPass distribution area has gone up already and work is progressing on the more impressive sign above the main entrance too. Currently the lighting of the letters of "Space Mountain" is installed. So far now new effect similar to the rocket train circeling the moon above the old sign is visible, but the golden cannons on both sides of the sign have returned. Overall the design fits rather well into the style of the area. The other major progress is visible a few meter down the walkway leading from the sign to the actual mountain: the frame for the new oversized attraction poster has been installed - so hopefully the poster will follow soon, too.

Reported by by J°o°el & DLP.info-Team at DLP Guidebook, 14.3.2005

Sign up 4 Mission 2

The Shareholders' Club today contacted its members via e-mail regarding the "Space Mountain: Mission 2" preview announced by DLP.info earlier this week. As reported it will take place on Sunday, April 3rd, from 3.00 pm till 8.00 pm. Every member of the Shareholders' Club who signs up online for the event till March 15 will receive two free one day passports to the Disneyland Park and up to four boarding pass for Space Mountain. With each boarding pass one exploronaute (aka guest) can enjoy the journey into space on Space Mountain: Mission 2 as often as he wants during the day's soft opening operation. Members who registered sucessfuly for the event will be able to pick up their two free Disneyland passports and up to four boarding passes at the desks / gates 8 and 9 of the Disneyland Park (to the left side of the entrances).

To accomodate members from further away a special 25% discount on the room only rates for standard rooms at the Disneyland Hotel, Disney's Newport Bay Club, Disney's Hotel Cheyenne and Disney's Davy Crockett Ranch is offered members upon reservation via +33 (0) 1 60 30 60 72, for up to two rooms per night from April 1st till 9th (booking possible as of March 5th).

Already on Saturday April 2nd the Club Val d'Europe invites all members of the Shareholders' Club to a free two hour guided bus tour through Val d'Europe to explain and showcase the urban development programs managed by the Euro Disney group. Each member may bring up to three guests along to this tour upon online registration not later than March 15. The tour will start at 3.00 pm at the Val d'Europe Information Center ("Le Cercle", 14 cours du Danube, Serris). Note: as the number of boarding passes and seats for the guided tour are limited don't wait too long with registering for these events"!

Reported by Disneyland Resort Paris & DLP.info-Team at DLP Guidebook, 4.3.2005

Grab a Ticket - Space Mountain x3

Shareholders and Annual Passport Holders to the front please ... there are extra tickets to be handed out momentarily!

While not officially confirmed so far several sources have contacted us independently about preview events of "Space Mountain: Mission 2" for members of the Shareholders' Club. According to this information members of the club are invited to ride the "new" Space Mountain Sunday April 3rd from 3.00 pm to 8.00 pm together with a guest of their choice. Expect an according information via e-mail from the club shortly. To participate in the event members will have to sign up.

Not to be outdone the Annual Passport Office according to several other sources has prepared a special offer for holders of valid Annual Passports Dream. Instead of a single event they are invited to preview the attraction themselves on any of the following days during the Soft Opening phase: April 3, 4, 5, 7 and 8! While on Sunday April 3rd the previews take place from 3.00 pm till 8.00 pm on all other dates previews actually take place from 2.00 pm till 8.00 pm. To board the ride during these previews AP-Dream holders have to present a special boarding card, which is available at the counters 7 and 8 in front of the Disneyland Park entrance upon presentation of the valid AP-Dream. A boarding card can be used repeatedly during a preview-day. Per AP-Dream up to three free boarding cards are handed out on the day (valid passports for the Disneyland Park are necessary for the two guests accompanying the AP-Dream-holder). To allow as many AP-Dream-holders as possible to take part in the event, a special 25% discount is offered on room-only bookings for AP-Dream-holders for up to two rooms per night and up to two consecutive nights from April 1st till April 9th at the Disneyland Hotel, Disney's Newport Bay Club, Disney's Hotel Cheyenne and Disney's Davy Crockett Ranch. Expect invitations to be mailed out shortly.

AP-Dream-holders who can't visit the resort during the soft opening may want to schedule a visit for April 16th for the concert / party starring DJ Tjesto in front of the castle (we reported). As managers of the Annual Passport Office informed a guest upon request, they plan on mailing out a special offer to all(!) AP-holders offering event tickets for the party at a discounted price. So far only packages including the event ticket and combinations of theme park passports and the event ticket had been available.

Reported by Fabian & Baloo 2 & DisneyDream 1 & Anonymous & DLP.info-Team at DLP Guidebook, 2.3.2005

Space Mountain ... continued

It is getting exciting - one month before the soft opening phase yesterday fans witnessed the first ride run throughs of "Space Mountain: Mission 2"! As a photo from Miss Disney on the Forum proves, trains were cycled through the ride without guests yesterday.

Extensive testing is necessary to make sure all effects are triggered and the timing works. Expect some last minute tweaking during the soft opening anyway - especially in the effect area, as inside sources tell us, that Imagineering is trying to set up effects which are not only triggered once when the first car of the train approaches, but are retriggered by different sections of the train, so that the riders in the last segment of the train get a similar experience effect-wise as in the first segment!

Reported by Miss Disney & Anonymous & DLP.info-Team at DLP Guidebook, 1.3.2005

February 2005

How to ride Space Mountain: Mission 2 before April 9

So the public opening for "Space Mountain: Mission 2" is back to where it originally was April 9 - but what to do if you are in the resort in the days prior to this all important date? Well, according to the information communicated to the relevant departments internally Space Mountain will start soft opening operations Friday April 1st - no April-joke! Unfortunately we are not talking about all out public soft openings. Instead as of this date the ride is available for special utilization e.g. Cast Member previews, a preview for travel agents, invited guests, the press & VIP event - or a preview for shareholders and/or annual passport holders that has been rumored on the DLP.info-Forum but is not confirmed. Special "events" for selected groups will take place most propably daily till April 8. BUT according to usually well informed sources Imagineering and the management responsible for operations of the ride plan to ask normal park guests to take a ride too at least during the first weekend of the soft opening. As of now normal guests will not be allowed on the ride unrestricted. Instead expect castmembers in the area around the attraction to approach a few guests and ask them whether they want to ride SM:M2. Remember: this information is not confirmed and plans may be changed on short notice, but if you happen to be in the resort during the soft opening phase, it might be a good idea to hang out around the attraction a bit ;-)

Reported by Anonymous & DLP.info-Team at DLP Guidebook, 24.2.2005

Space Mountain: Mission 2 - Opening April 9

It is a never ending story - but the opening date of Space Mountain: Mission 2 has been changed all over again. The first day of operation for all park guests is now, once again, Saturday April 9 - as originally planned. This saves the resort the work and cost to change all the promotional material. The poster on the construction fence on-site which had been changed to April 6 even prior to the official decision last week to move the date forward had been changed back by last weekend already. The decision has been officially confirmed by the German Press Department ... and seems to be set to stay now. The much gossiped about press event originally scheduled for Friday April 8 has been moved forward though to the infamous Wednesday April 6 date due to the collission with the second wedding of Prince Charles. As the main part of the event will take place after the park closure this will not affect guests.

Reported by Disneyland Resort Paris & DLP.info-Team at DLP Guidebook, 23.2.2005

A Blast to Construction Planet

Even so there are still some minor construction jobs left on the exterior, currently the main work on "Space Mountain: Mission 2" is taking place indoors, out of camera reach. But as the opening date draws nearer now weekends are normal workdays here too - last weekend guests were able to clearly hear the workers inside the mountain on Saturday. Speaking of opening date: the posters on the construction fence are still announcing April 9 as opening date. For photos of the exterior work check out the ###Discoveryland Construction Photo Diary 2005 (expect photos from earlier this year to be uploaded in the next days - maybe even some from You, if you mail them in).

Over at the other big construction site in Discoveryland there is some progress to report too: now the whole area in front of the former Visionarium has been cleared of all obstacles, meaning the Visionarium sign still there earlier last week is gone now too. Also note that a new silver colored wall is closing off the interior of the main building with the entrance (or exit?) gate now in the dead center.

Reported by DLP.info-Team at DLP Guidebook, 22.2.2005

Discoveryland Music

As reported earlier this week already there is a new background music playing around the fountains at the entrance of Discoveryland, which have fully returned from their rehab now - including new lighting effects at night and new/rehabed speakers. Against originally impressions the new, more "synth" and "ethereal" music might be a replacement loop for David Tolley's work a longer listening has revealed that the new music loop is only played in the closest surrounding of the fountains to supplement the still used loop by David Tolley, such setting the fountain area apart from the remainder of the land. In fact the music might not be so much of a new feature but maybe even an old feature from the opening days that finally got reinstated.

Reported by J°o°el & David Ravenswood & DLP.info-Team at DLP Guidebook, 18.2.2005

Space Mountain: Mission 2 - Opening April 6 confirmed

DLRPmagazine.com reported earlier this week that it had received word that the Resort was planning to reschedule the press and VIP event for the opening of "Space Mountain: Mission 2" as it was scheduled for the 8th of April. The reason according to the rumors: the Resort was afraid that it would not receive the necessary press coverage on these days due to the wedding of Prince Charles and Camilla Parker Bowles in Windsor Castle on April 8th. Soon the rumor changed to actually saying that the opening for the general public would be moved forward from Saturday April 9th to Wednesday April 6th.

Then two days ago Joel found the poster announcing the new ride on the construction wall closing off the "bridge" leading to the ride's entrance had been changed: with a small sticker the date had been changed to April 6. Now the word was out ... or not. The Resort officially around noon today still confirmed through its press department upon request of DLP.info that there were no changes so far. In other words the opening for the public was still scheduled for Saturday April 9 and the press and VIP event was still scheduled for April 8 - even so our internal sources did point out, that there were at least parts of the management who entertained the idea to change the dates. The resort did not comment whether the change of the poster was an error or maybe a prank.

But then it happened: at 3.00 pm the Resort's press department in Paris officially informed their international bureaus that the change on the poster was correct and only done a bit too early. Since this afternoon DLRP is officially communicating that the confirmed opening of "Space Mountain: Mission 2" to the public will be on Wednesday April 6. Websites and promotion material is to be changed in the coming days. The press and VIP event has not yet been confirmed but is according to internal sources most propably going to take place on Tuesday April 5 with the main part taking place after park closure in the evening.

Reported by Disneyland Resort Paris & J°o°el & DLP.info-Team at DLP Guidebook, 17.2.2005

Discoveryland Changes

The refurbishment and retheming of the Space Mountain is making progress and work on Buzz Lightyear's AstroBlaster behind the construction walls is also going on as the noise clearly proves. But there are some more subtle changes too. David Ravenswood recognized new music used in the entrance area of the land, replacing David Tolley's score that had been in place since 1992 and was composed especially for Disneyland Paris. David Ravenswood describes the new music as more "ethereal" and featuring more "modern synths" than the previous loop. Was this just a temporary change or is this going to last? Only time will tell ...

Reported by David Ravenswood & DLP.info-Team at DLP Guidebook, 14.2.2005

Time for the Machines

A lot of work is going on around the resort. Building sites can be spotted in many parts of Disneyland Resort Paris. Tower of Terror's location "La Terrasse" is boxed in, Buzz location at Discoveryland has walls around it ... It was only a matter of time before the heavy equipment was going to be called in. Two big and heavy tools have been spotted doing there work. The first one cannot be overlooked at Space Mountain. With the opening date closing in on the 9th April a big red crane has posted itself in front of the Mission II building, next to the launch area of the rollercoaster, to start the heavy works.

Reported by J°o°el & DLP.info-Team at DLP Guidebook, 1.2.2005

January 2005

Mission 2 - Official Concept Artwork

Thanks to the DLP.info-community member robbie guests of the DLP.info-Forum were among the first to see the photos that Berty05 took of the official artwork of the upcoming "Space Mountain: Mission 2". The boards with the Imagineering concepts show not only the new entrance marquee - which is a careful reworking of the original structure only missing elements like the moon - but also the redone indoor queue and the major scenes from the new ride as e.g. the projection of the supernova. Also included is a color-reference-sheet for the new train design that proofs that the photo recently published on the Forum did actually show the redone trains. Especially interesting for fans is the last picture: a basic layout of the whole ride with the location of major effects and set-pieces included!

Reported by Berty05 & robbie & DLP.info-Team at DLP Guidebook, 31.1.2005

No more Star Course

Sometimes old rumors come true - the Star Tours post-show-area "Astroport Services Interstellaires" was supposed to be closed for a rehab several times, in fact was even listed on the official overview but then everything was canceled again. Now, with the area officially still operating according to park maps and the website of the resort it has been closed down. As photos taken by arn0 last weekend and only last night published on the DLP.info Forum show the whole area has been cleared out with only the "wall frame" of the Star Course game and some elements also visible from the now boarded up walkway leading guests right out of the building (as prior to the opening of the post-show). It is not clear whether the area will stay closed or a new post-show experience will be set up. Current rumors mention the possibility of the old arcade games from the Arcade Omega being moved into the area, as that arcade had to close down to make room for the Visionarium. Since IBM ended its sponsorship of the ride last year without a sucessor chances for a new post-show-area are not too good.

The construction inside the Visionarium building has made some progress too. As other photos from arn0 posted on the DLP.info Forum show a wall has been constructed splitting the former main show room up. Also the concrete walls of two planters in front of the building behind the construction fence have been dismantled - which hints that the guest flow will be changed. On a rather strange note photos from Joel show that the fountains at the entrance of Discoveryland have fallen dry. They had been refurbished only earlier this winter and had been fully operational with the exception of the old fire effect during the busy Christmas days.

Reported by arn0 & J°o°el & DLP.info-Team at DLP Guidebook, 25.1.2005

Bringing it down ...

Since last Monday the entrances to Space Mountain have been boarded up with new construction walls - interestingly in the same dark blue that was first used for the "Buzz Lightyear's AstroBlaster" construction site in the former Visionarium building. It seems to be the new Discoveryland-specific construction wall color.

As most work is taking place inside the attraction there is not much to report ... except that the gigantic poster complete with its frame on the facade of the building has been taken down. According to the Imagineers at the Space Mountain Farewell Fan Event a new poster will be installed depicting the adventurous awaiting the guests on their new mission. The entrance marquee has been taken down, too, as the construction fence also closses down the walkway leading up to the mountain itself which was the "stand-bye-queue" most recently. The new entrance arch is supposed to feature the new Mission 2 style.

No news from inside even so some sources were able to get a photograph of what is claimed to be a repainted train for the Space Mountain - for details on this see the DLP.info-Forum.

Reported by J°o°el & DLP.info-Team at DLP Guidebook, 25.1.2005

Discovering News in Discoveryland

Work behind the construction wall around the former Visionarium for the new "Buzz Lightyear's AstroBlaster" ride opening 2006 is moving ahead - so far no new construction can be made out, but plenty of demolition of walls and ceiling-cover-elements.

Reported by DLP.info-Team at DLP Guidebook, 17.1.2005

Launching from the Depths

The Imagineers confirmed at the Goodbye Space Mountain Fan Event, that the trains will be launched from the actual bottom of the Columbiad Cannon when the ride opens as "Space Mountain: Mission 2". This promises an even more intense feeling during the launch.

Reported by DLP.info-Team at DLP Guidebook, 16.1.2005

A Moon is Standing High

It is still more than two months time till the opening of "Space Mountain: Mission 2" but the last travellers to the moon already could witness some of the changes applied inside the building. Some of them are rather subtle and hard to detect. In this category fall the minor changes in lighting and lighting level of the meteors or the constant smell of fresh paint in the early operating hours. Hard to miss on the other hand is the now clear, sharp projection of the moon atop the lift hill inside the mountain. It's fuzzy optic was often accredited to the fact, that the turning moon was projected directly onto the interior of the dome surface. The new, sharp look therefore should at least be partially due to the fact that the projection is now done onto a huge projection screen/surface that covers a giant shunk of the interior surface of the dome which the guests face on their ride up the lift hill.

Reported by DLP.info-Team at DLP Guidebook, 15.1.2005

Construction Workers instead of Lions and Hyenas

Till January 21st (inclusive) the Videopolis is undergoing a rehab resulting in cancellation of all performances of "The Legend of the Lion King". Unfortunately there is no sight of the capacity increase that the spokesperson of the resort had promised to the French daily Le Parisien last summer. Instead the floor of the front part of the stage and those elements integrated into it (lights, the water basin on the right, special effects) is getting some attention. Also the special effects in other parts of the stage are supposed to be rehabbed. As all of this takes places behind a huge green curtain blocking the view onto the stage or the lower seating area, the most obvious change so far is the replacement of the large sets of screens suspended from the theatres roofs, serving guests in the rear seating area of the Hyperion. In their place new screens have been installed, but not (as rumoured) Plasma-screens but instead screens for back-projections. The according projectors are in place already, too.

Reported by DLP.info-Team at DLP Guidebook, 15.1.2005

Space Mountain: Mission 2 has arrived

"Space Mountain - From the Earth to the Moon" has not yet even finished its final days of operation but its follow up "Space Mountain: Mission 2" is already invading the Disneyland Park: the first souvenir has surfaced - a souvenir photo!

Town Square Photography allows guests to get their picture taken in front of a green screen which is later replaced by a background of the guest's, e.g. the castle, the Disney Princesses or other characters in unique settings. Early last week one guest suddenly noticed a new background when the Cast Member cycled on-screen through the different offerings: a "Space Mountain: Mission 2" background! The Cast Member was just as surprised as the guest but eventually agreed to use the background. Nearly we would have been unable to show you the photo as the Cast Member at the cash register needed some serious but friendly convincing to sell it as the background - according to him - was not yet supposed to be available.

Reported by Photosmagiques & DLP.info-Team at DLP Guidebook, 8.1.2005

Buzzing about Buzz

Even so not officially confirmed by the Resort so far it is a more than solid rumor that Buzz Lightyear's AstroBlaster (in its original version in Walt Disney World known as Buzz Lightyear's SpaceRanger Spin) will replace the now closed Visionarium. The unusual dark blue construction fence is currently not only closing of the actual building but also a major part of the walkway in front of it. Behind it heavy demolition work goes on as guests can clearly hear Monday through Friday. As a photo by Bastiaan taken New Year's Eve and posted in the DLP.info-Forum shows many of the walls of the circular main theater of Visionarium on ground level have been taken out leaving wide openings. Not only toward Discoveryland (where the exit doors where located originally) but also at the opposite side of the room. This is due to the fact that the ride will not only take over the former main theater and pre-show room but also the area most recently used as Arcade Omega and some parts of the backstage area behind it. The backstage area is surprisingly extensive as the combined area of the Arcade Omega and the Annual Passport Bureau originally formed the fast food restaurant Cafe des Visionnaires. The large windows of the Arcade have been covered so no sneak peeks anymore but here one of the so far last photos showing the work going on inside the former Arcade.

No word yet wether DLRP's version of the ride will also feature the cool interactive online-feature Jay Rasulo promised for its counterpart in Anaheim last year, when he explained guests at home would be able to help, to assist guests on the ride shooting targets through the internet! According to current informations DLRP is planning to open its Buzz Lightyear attraction in early 2006 with a soft opening maybe as early as January/February.

Reported by Anonymous & DLP.info-Team at DLP Guidebook, 6.1.2005

Exclusive Fan Party for the Goodbye of Space Mountain

Disneyland Resort Paris is pleased to invite all fans to say goodbye to "Space Mountain - From the Earth to the Moon" in style. Want to join the fun? It's easy and it is free! Just visit the official website at http://www.lamagiecontinue.com/lastchance/ and register for the event. When will it take place and what will happen? Here are the details:

The event takes place on Saturday January 15th, the second to last day of operation before the ride's refurbishment. Guests who registered need to have a valid passport to enter the Disneyland Park (not included with the free registration!), once inside they can exchange their ticket for a "limited edition event patch" at City Hall while supplies last (if the patches are gone, they are gone - all registered guests arriving after this point can use their ticket to access the special event). With this patch (that will soon be a hard looked for collector's item) guests can journey from the Earth to the Moon on Space Mountain from 11:15 am till 6.00 pm as often as they want by using the FastPass-entrance of the ride. It also grants access to the after hour portion of the event, taking place from 8.30 pm till 10.00 pm in Discoveryland where in the Honey I Shrunk the Audience theater not only rare videos of the original DLP-"Space Mountain" will be shown but also an Imagineer involved in the project will reveal secrets and details about the ride and answer questions. The Imagineer will speak French or English depending on guest attendance and languages used by guests asking questions; the videos will be partly in English partly in French; translation is NOT provided.

So how do you get the ticket for this event? As already said: it is easy and free ... just go to http://www.lamagiecontinue.com/lastchance/ register, print out the ticket displayed on the screen and come to the park on January 15th, enter with a valid passport for the Disneyland Park and let the fun begin, access to Discoveryland is given as of 8.15 pm for the event, guests must enter the theme park before the end of its official operational day at 8.00 pm. Places for the event are very limited so move fast (but only register if you are sure you can attend). Hope to see you at this space-ial event!

Reported by Disneyland Resort Paris & DLP.info-Team at DLP Guidebook, 4.1.2005

Happy New Year!

Happy New Year and all the best for 2005! Be prepared for interesting Space Mountain News and site updates. Prepare for blast-off ...

Reported by FeLIX, 1. Jan 2005

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