Photos by Marcus D’Amelio
Video by Jimmy Strater
The Magic Kingdom Philharmonic Band came marching down Main Street, U.S.A., this morning behind New Orleans Saints quarterback Drew Brees. He was riding in a pewter convertible with Mickey Mouse, waving to cheering fans. But he’d earned the ride – and the adulation – Sunday night by marching the [...]

The official Web site for The Wizarding World of Harry Potter at Universal’s Islands of Adventure was updated today with some new features and details on the rides and experiences.
One new feature on the Web site is a low fly-through tour of the Hogsmeade Village and around the castle. New details found on various [...]

By Andy Guinigundo
As I was scouring the Internet for stories for the recently released Winter issue of Orlando Attractions Magazine, I came across a press release announcing the closing of a fan favorite at Bush Gardens in Williamsburg, Va., the Big Bad Wolf. The press release was a few months old, July 24, 2009, but [...]

What better way to get pumped up for the day than a roller coaster ride through the city to work. And after a hard day at work, wouldn’t it be great to water slide all the way home? That the premise behind these two ads for Barclaycard in the U.K.
You may have seen the [...]

Harry Potter fans will want to buy the “USA Today” newspaper next Thursday, Jan. 28. An ad in the newspaper will seemingly come to life on your computer screen when you hold it up to a webcam.
The first-ever augmented reality map of The Wizarding World of Harry Potter will allow you to rotate the [...]

Today Merlin Entertainments announced a multi-million dollar investment for its biggest family tourist center in the world with the planned opening of Legoland Florida.
Merlin purchased the historical Cypress Gardens in Winter Haven, Fla. from property investment company Land South Group and will open Legoland Florida on the site at the end of 2011. The deal [...]

It seems the cat may have gotten out of the bag. The Lakeland Ledger has obtained an e-mail sent to Polk County Commissioner Randy Wilkinson that says Legoland is coming to Cypress Gardens. All e-mails sent to public official’s business e-mail accounts are public record.
But the e-mail wasn’t sent from Merlin Entertainments Group officials [...]

The Orlando Sentinel is reporting that Merlin Entertainments Group has purchased Cypress Gardens.
From blogs.orlandosentinel.com:
A spokeswoman for Merlin said the purchase includes the current Cypress Gardens theme park, the Splash Island water park and the adjacent botanical gardens. The company did not disclose the sales price.
Merlin is the second busiest amusement operator in the world. Its [...]

There’s a lot going on for New Year’s Eve, but not all of the parks will be having special events or fireworks at midnight. Here’s a list of the special New Year’s Eve events. But be warned that it’s the busiest day of the year and many of the parks may close when they reach [...]

Former Walt Disney Imagineer Mark Eades (pictured here) was the media producer for the original Star Tours attraction, which first officially opened at Disneyland in California in 1987 and later at Disney’s Hollywood Studios (then Disney-MGM Studios) in Florida in 1989.
With Disney’s announcement that they will be revamping the attraction into Star Tours II, we [...]