What's Next for Country Bears and Disney Imagineering Loses its Way

1923 Main Street: Disney Travel Style Podcast

Disney's Country Bear Jamboree has a much longer history than many people realize. What's next for the country bears in 2024, plus Disney Imagineering is slowly slipping further away from Walt Disney's approach to park theming.

The Next Chapter in the Long History of Country Bear Jamboree

Country Bear Jamboree will be closing for a complete overhaul on January 27 and will re-open in the summer (no specific month yet) as the all-new Country Bear Musical Jamboree.

As first announced at Destination D23 last summer, the Country Bears will return with a new show that pays tribute to the Opry style shows of Nashville. Disney promises quite a few Easter eggs throughout the show (including a familiar tune), as the bears sing new and reinterpreted Disney songs in different country music genres.

Country Bear Jamboree has a long and interesting history. Walt Disney originally conceived the Country Bears concept in the 1960s to be part of the grandiose Mineral King Ski Resort project in California. This, of course, was never actually built. But the Country Bears idea was revived for Walt Disney World where it became one of the most popular marquee attractions when the Magic Kingdom opened in 1971.

Editorial Rant: Current Disney Imagineers Continue to Stray Further from Walt Disney and Closer to Universal

Of interesting note in the Disney news story is that Disney continues to refer to this area -- including Tiana's Bayou Adventure -- as Frontierland. So, unfortunately, Disney Imagineers are ignoring trademark Disney Parks theming and slipping further towards a Universal type of fragmented-not-too-concerned-with-lands approach to design. I have often said that the current group of Imagineers is among the worst in Walt Disney World history, so hopefully at some point the sloppy Imagineering can be cleaned up and returned to earlier Disney standards.

A lazy Imagineer is not a good Imagineer. So Bob Iger, please take a look at the lack of basic creative spark and ingenuity in your current Disney Imagineering Department.

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Disneyland Lunar New Year Foodie Guide

Top Food Picks from the 2024 Lunar New Year Event at Disney California Adventure

From January 23 to February 18, the Lunar New Year Festival will turn Disney California Adventure Park into a vibrant destination with characters, entertainment, festive décor, merchandise and food.

Whereas Walt Disney World and EPCOT basically phoned it in with a very uninspired food offering for the EPCOT Festival of the Arts, Disneyland and Disney California Adventure have knocked it out of the park with one of the best foodie guides we've seen in awhile.

Lunar New Year Festival Marketplaces

Bamboo Blessings (Available Jan. 23 through Feb. 18)

• Strawberry Milk Tea Macaron: Strawberry buttercream with milk tea center (New)
• Mickey-shaped Hot Dog Bun: Brioche-style Mickey-shaped bun stuffed with hot dog and finished with sesame seeds and scallions
• Taro Vietnamese-style Iced Coffee: Joffrey's Coffee & Tea Co. Vietnamese-style Coffee, cocoa powder, and condensed milk garnished with a taro chocolate sweet cream (Non-alcoholic beverage) (New)
• Lunar New Year Punch: Mango nectar, tangerine and grapefruit juices, and banana and coconut syrups garnished with mango jellies (Non-alcoholic beverage) (New)
• Lunar Punch Cocktail: Coconut rum, mango nectar, tangerine and grapefruit juices, and banana and coconut syrups garnished with a purple orchid (New)
• Mickey-shaped Macaron Straw Clip (New) (Limit two per person, per transaction; no discounts apply)
• Lotus Flower Glow Cube (Limit 10 per person, per transaction; no discounts apply)

Longevity Noodle Co. (Available Jan. 23 through Feb. 18)

• Shrimp Lo Mein Noodles: Pan-fried noodles, sautéed shrimp garnished with green onions (New)
• Garlic Noodles: Long noodles tossed in zesty garlic butter with parmesan
• Dragon Cocktail: Dragonberry rum, white rum, lychee nectar, dragon fruit and Chinese five-spice syrups, lime juice, and house-made coriander tea garnished with a dried dragon fruit wheel
• Mickey-shaped Macaron Straw Clip (New) (Limit two per person, per transaction; no discounts)
• Lotus Flower Glow Cube (Limit 10 per person, per transaction; no discounts apply)

Lucky 8 Lantern (Available Jan. 23 through Feb. 18)

• Quesabirria Eggroll with guajillo pepper consomé
• Mandarin Orange Mousse Cake: Layers of mandarin mousse with vanilla cake and clementine compote finished with white chocolate crunch balls and a tangerine glaze
• Hibiscus Apple Soju-rita: Blanco tequila, grapefruit liqueur, soju, green apple and hibiscus syrups, house-made hibiscus tea, and lemon juice garnished with a dried apple chip (New)
• Mango Melon Cocktail: Overproof rum, baijiu, allspice liqueur, mango nectar, rock melon syrup, and lime juice topped with grapefruit soda and garnished with a lime wheel (New)
• Mickey-shaped Macaron Straw Clip (New) (Limit two per person, per transaction; no discounts)
• Lotus Flower Glow Cube (Limit 10 per person, per transaction; no discounts apply)

Prosperity Bao & Buns (Available Jan. 23 through Feb. 18)

• Kung Pao Bao with chicken, toasted peanuts, and scallions (New)
• BBQ Pork Bun with kimchi mayo and garlic chile crunch (New)
• Brewery X Grapefruit Panda Pool Party Bamboo Rice Lager (New) > Mike's Pick
• Harland Brewing Co. Tangerine Dragon Fruit Hefeweizen (New)
• Stereo Brewing Co. Jasmine Tea Lager (New)
• Eagle Rock Brewery Lychee IPA (New)
• Dragon Beer Flight (New)
• Tsingtao with Frozen Mango Beer Foam
• Mickey-shaped Macaron Straw Clip (New) (Limit two per person, per transaction; no discounts)
• Lotus Flower Glow Cube (Limit 10 per person, per transaction; no discounts)

Red Dragon Spice Traders (Available Jan. 23 through Feb. 18)

• Spicy Fried Rice with tofu and crispy peas (New)
• Red Spice Fried Chicken Bites: Fried chicken chicharrones in spicy red chile sauce
• Peach Basil Collins: Gin, ginger liqueur, white peach purée, lemon juice, and house-made Thai basil syrup topped with Topo Chico and garnished with a purple pansy (New)
• Guava Whiskey Cocktail: Whiskey, ginger liqueur, guava nectar, coconut cream, and lime juice garnished with a lime wheel
• Mickey-shaped Macaron Straw Clip (New) (Limit two per person, per transaction; no discounts)
• Lotus Flower Glow Cube (Limit 10 per person, per transaction; no discounts apply)

Wrapped with Love (Available Jan. 23 through Feb. 18)

• Fried Lemongrass Chic...