Ballast Point Brewery and More Changes Coming to Downtown Disney District in Disneyland

Here's an update for our West Coast friends as San Diego-based Ballast Point Brewery will be coming to the Downtown Disney District in Disneyland among other changes coming to the district in 2018. 

Ballast Point pairs its high-quality, award-winning beers with an extensive menu of Southern California cuisine—salads, small plates, flatbreads and entrees featuring local, sustainable and seasonal ingredients. The space will house the first-ever on-site brewery, tasting room, kitchen and outdoor beer garden at Downtown Disney District. Construction is scheduled to begin soon, across from Catal Restaurant and Uva Bar.

This is on top of the already announced changes to coming to World of Disney in 2018 which you can read about here. Here are more exciting experiences coming to the Downtown Disney District in 2018:

• Splitsville Luxury Lanes will offer a unique combination of dining, drinks, bowling and entertainment. Opening on January 29.
• Disney Home will offer fans a variety of Disney-themed home goods. Opening in February 2018.
• Naples Ristorante e Pizzeria will undergo renovations to expand its outside patio with a new outside bar. Inside, three wood burning ovens will be installed to better meet guests’ demands for authentic Napoletana-style pizza pies. The restaurant will remain open throughout construction, which is slated to be completed in fall 2018.
• Black Tap Craft Burgers & Beer will serve its award-winning burgers and signature CrazyShake™ milkshakes in a casual atmosphere. Opening later this year.

There are even more exciting updates coming in 2018 yet to be announced so stay tuned right here on It All Started With a Mouse for future updates. 

Source: Disney Parks Blog

Reimagined World of Disney Stores Coming to Both Coasts in 2018

As part of continued enhancements to guests’ shopping experiences at Disney Parks, the World of Disney store locations in Disney Springs at Walt Disney World Resort and in Downtown Disney District at Disneyland Resort will be reimagined beginning in mid-February 2018.

When the interior redesign work is completed, guests will discover the products they love from Disney Parks in a dynamic and distinctly Disney retail environment. Work will be completed in phases throughout 2018, so guests can continue shopping in the World of Disney stores during construction.

At the shops in Town Center at Disney Springs, such as Ever After Jewelry Co. or The Disney Corner (opening in mid-February), will carry select merchandise while World of Disney undergoes renovations.

At the Downtown Disney District in California, World of Disney will remain open during the renovation. Additionally, Guests can find great shopping in the recently opened Dream Boutique, as well as the Disney Home store opening February 2018 in the former D-Street location.

Stay tuned for future updates on the reimagination of World of Disney at both Downtown Disney in Disneyland and Disney Springs in Walt Disney World in the coming months.

Source: Disney Parks Blog

New Hotel Plus Parking & Transportation Improvements Coming to Disneyland in 2021

News just broke a little while ago of a new Four Diamond Hotel being built in Disneyland by 2021. The hotel will transform the West End of the Downtown Disney District and anchor a new gateway into Disneyland.

The new 700-room hotel will feature a sophisticated design and be a game-changer for Anaheim, creating a dynamic dining, entertainment and hotel experience for resort visitors and local residents. Extensive landscaping and water elements will create a resort oasis, showcasing nature on every level of the hotel. The hotel’s location embraces the iconic Disneyland Monorail with a dedicated platform inside the hotel for direct transport into Disneyland park.

Guest rooms, public spaces and gardens will provide views of the Downtown Disney District. An upper-level restaurant and lounge will give guests a view of the popular Disneyland park fireworks.

The ground level of the hotel will include shops and restaurants opening onto an expansive landscaped plaza complete with playful water features, creating a gathering place for guests and visitors. The new hotel will also connect all four Hotels of the Disneyland Resort through lush gardens and beautifully landscaped walkways, transforming the gateway on the west side and creating a welcoming entry for our Disneyland Resort guests.

The new grand hotel will benefit the community as well, generating approximately $25 million n new taxes in its first five years of operation that go directly to Anaheim’s general fund. It will also create thousands of additional construction and permanent jobs and attract new guests to the resort area. Construction is scheduled to begin Summer 2018 and be completed by 2021. 

With the new hotel being built it will also see many current places in the Downtown Disney District be demolished. This will include popular places like ESPN Zone, AMC Theatre, Earl of Sandwich, Starbucks, and Rainforest Cafe as the new hotel takes up 17 acres of the Downtown Disney District West Side. Officials have reportedly begun telling the tenants of their plans and some may even begin operating inside the hotel. 

Not only is a brand new Four Diamond Hotel being built but a brand new 6,500 parking structure will also be built. The new structure will be built on the current Pinocchio surface parking lot next Mickey & Friends.

This new 6,500-space structure is designed to dramatically improve parking and traffic flow throughout the resort. It is expected to significantly speed up guest arrival by providing a 60 percent increase in the number of access lanes and adding additional parking capacity on the west side of the resort.

The additional parking capacity and access lanes will streamline vehicle arrivals on the west side of the resort and eliminate backups onto city streets. In addition, the tram boarding area will be reconfigured to enhance the transportation experience for guests parking at both the new structure and Mickey & Friends. 

Construction on the new parking structure will begin sometime in 2018 and be completed by the following year.

Sources: Disney Parks Blog
               Orange County Register
               Disney Parks Blog

Splitsville Coming to Downtown Disney in Disneyland

Splitsville, the luxury bowling lane that is popular at Disney Springs, is coming to the Downtown Disney District in Disneyland. Splitsville will be completed by late 2017. Here are the details from the Disney Parks Blog:

"The first Splitsville in California will offer a unique combination of dining, bowling and live entertainment with 625 restaurant seats, a large outdoor patio overlooking the Downtown Disney District, two full-service bars and 20 luxury bowling lanes. You’ll want to visit, even if you don’t plan to bowl!
Set to begin construction soon adjacent to Tortilla Jo’s, Splitsville will have a dramatic, mid-century-inspired design. The menu will include fresh-rolled sushi, gourmet appetizers, hand-cut steaks, and if you can spare it, alley classics like burgers, crinkle-cut fries and hand-tossed pizzas."

West Coast, are you excited for the first Splitsville Luxury Bowling Lanes coming to the Downtown Disney District?

Is Disney Making a Bid for Twitter?; Sprinkles Coming to Downtown Disney District

Is Disney Making a Bid for Twitter?:

Disney Twitter could become a reality very soon. News broke this afternoon that Disney could be making a bid to buy Twitter according to Bloomberg. Disney is currently working with an adviser to make the bid. Disney or Twitter hasn't made comment to the news. 

After Twitter recently received interest in discussing a deal, they have begun the process of evaluating a potential sale of the company. Sale of the company has been gathering steam in recent months. Salesforce.com is the other company rumored to be putting a bid for the social media company.

Disney seems to have the inroads to purchasing Twitter because Jack Dorsey, the CEO of Twitter, is already on Disney's Board of Directors. Disney might see this purchase as an in-ways of a new online outlet to help already owned ESPN and ABC for news, sports, and entertainment. Stay tuned as this story develops.

Sprinkles Coming to Downtown Disney District in Disneyland:

Sprinkles already has a popular location in Disney Springs at Disney World. Opening in November at Disneyland's Downtown Disney District, touted as the world's first cupcake bakery by Food Network, Sprinkles will be opening its newest location on the West Coast. 

Sprinkles has been credited with inspiring the craze for gourmet cupcakes. The shop in Downtown Disney District will offer handcrafted cupcakes in flavors like banana, carrot, salty caramel, strawberry and a Sprinkles bestseller: red velvet. Signature cookies, including snickerdoodle, salted oatmeal cornflake and peanut butter pretzel chip are also on the Sprinkles bill of fare. - Disney Parks Blog

Have no fear, Sprinkles also considers customers' special dietary needs by offering vegan, gluten-free, and sugar free cupcake, cookie, and sorbet options. What flavor cupcake do you want to try first when Sprinkles opens this November.