BEYOND THE THEME PARKS

Downtown
Disney
News and Basic Info
Basic Services
Recreation
Restaurants at a
   Glance
Tips & Notes

Marketplace
--Bibbidi Bobbidi
   Boutique
-- Characters in Flight
--Disney Tails
--Goofy's Candy Co.
--Lego Imagination
    Center
--Mickey's Mart
    (under $10)

Pleasure Island
--Raglan Road

West Side
-- Cirque du Soleil
-- DisneyQuest

Annual Events
-- Festival of the
       Masters
-- Halloween
-- Mardi Gras

Water Parks
Blizzard Beach FAQ
Typhoon Lagoon FAQ

Disney's Boardwalk and the Epcot Resort Area
Introduction
Dining
Entertainment
Shopping

Tours
Descriptions and
  Reviews

Sports-Related Activities
Fishing Excursions
Miniature Golf
--Fantasia Gardens
--Winter Summerland
Parasailing
Richard Petty Driving
   Experience
Running/Jogging Trails
Surfing Class at
   Typhoon Lagoon
Wide World of Sports
   (WWoS)

MouseFest

Disney Vacation Club

Disney Cruise Line

Other Fun Things
Audience
   Participation
Birthday Ideas: Adults
Birthday Ideas: Kids
Carriage Rides
Collecting Character
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Grand Floridian
   Adventures for
   Kids
Hidden Mickeys
Overlooked
   Attractions
Photography
--Film Tips
--Digital Tips
--Videotaping Tips
Pin Trading Guide
Pixies at WDW!
Pressed Penny &
   Quarter Guide
Scrapbook Ideas
Specialty Cruises
--IllumiNations
     Breathless/Pontoon
--Resort Park Cruises

Writers' Corner
Behind the Ears
Meet the Authors

AllEars.Net
   Feature Writers
-- Anita Answer
-- Debra Martin Koma
-- Brian Martsolf
-- Josh Olive
-- Michelle Scribner-MacLean
-- Mike Scopa
-- Jack Spence
-- Amy Warren Stoll

Orlando Area Information
Character Warehouse
   Outlet
Directions from
   Airport
Grocery Stores
Ground  Transportation
Orlando Area Outlets
Radio/TV Stations
Religious Services
Telephone Numbers

Archives
Adventurers Club
JazzFest
Latin Rhythm Nights
VIBE Live!

2/26/09: For an updated look at what's new and what's coming next at Downtown Disney and specifically Pleasure Island, read Senior Editor Deb Koma's interview with Disney's Kristi Koester on the AllEars® Team Blog HERE.

The name of the new E-Brands restaurant on Pleasure Island has been released: Paradiso 37.

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JUNE 27, 2008: Walt Disney World Resort will be completely "re-imagining" Downtown Disney, with new shopping, dining and other experiences including a completely re-imagined Pleasure Island. Also planned are numerous enhancements to popular Downtown Disney locations, as well as additional theming and storytelling brought to life by Walt Disney Imagineers. Over the next year, the 120-acre entertainment-shopping-dining complex will add a number of one-of-a-kind, immersive experiences for guests. Downtown Disney will even get its own iconic attraction, in the form of a giant, tethered balloon that will take guests 300 feet into the air to view the amazing vistas of Walt Disney World Resort. Other new experiences include:

-- In fall 2008, guests will enter a world of prehistoric creatures at T-Rex: A Prehistoric Family Adventure. The dinosaur-themed family eatery will serve up pizzas, pastas, seafood and more, and will feature life-size animated dinosaurs that dwell among bubbling geysers, waterfalls and a fossil dig site.

-- Also this fall, a design-your-own t-shirt store from Hanes will add to the growing collection of merchandise guests can personalize at Downtown Disney.

-- E-brands Restaurants, an Orlando-based, multi-concept restaurant group, will premier its newest concept at Downtown Disney in spring 2009. The high-energy, casual eatery will feature authentic Central and South American cuisine, specialty drinks and live music along the waterfront.

To make way for the new offerings, all of the clubs currently on Pleasure Island will close on September 27, 2008. Other locations on Pleasure Island, including Raglan Road, Fuego by Sosa Cigars, Curl by Sammy Duval, Orlando Harley-Davidson and outdoor food and beverage locations, will remain open during the transition.

To complement these new experiences, many popular Downtown Disney locations will undergo enhancements.

-- Beginning this summer, Portobello Yacht Club will be transformed into a Tuscan Country Trattoria. The refreshed menu features authentic Italian dishes and signature favorites and a re-designed interior along with an outdoor dining space.

-- This fall, Goofy's Candy Company will add a special new room that will enable families to host one-of-a-kind birthday parties at Downtown Disney.

-- The Marketplace Stage will be completely replaced with a larger, covered stage this fall to welcome even more entertainment to Downtown Disney and serve as a new premier venue for Disney Magic Music Days.

-- Fulton's Crab House will update its interior fixtures and furnishing and exterior in Spring 2009. The enhancements include a refreshed third floor deck dining area to offer additional Disney guests and larger private parties the traditional Fulton's experience.

-- Next year, Wolfgang Puck Cafe will update its interior fixtures and furnishings and will feature an enclosed glass patio offering guests a year-round outdoor dining experience.

What are the HOURS at Pleasure Island?

Shops open 10:30 a.m. to 11 p.m. Sunday - Thursday
Shops open 10:30 a.m. to midnight Friday - Saturday

Is there any place to eat on Pleasure Island?

The Missing Link Sausage Company Closed March 19, 2006.

On the Marketplace side of the island are Portobello and Fulton's Crab House. On the West Side end is Planet Hollywood.

T- Rex: A Prehistoric Family Adventure, A Place to Eat, Shop, Explore and Discover opened October 14, 2008. It sits on the border between Downtown Disney's Marketplace and Pleasure Island. Developed by Schussler Creative, Inc. and operated by Landry's Restaurants, the 600-seat restaurant features dinosaurs, waterfalls, bubbling geysers and a fossil dig site. The family eatery, which combines table-service dining and retail in an interactive prehistoric environment built around water, fire and ice, serves up pizzas, pastas, sea bass and more.

You can read our readers' reviews of T-Rex HERE. Menus are HERE.

Raglan Road Irish Pub and Restaurant opened in October 2005. (Click HERE for more photos!) The new venue, located on the site of the former Pleasure Island Jazz Company, will offer traditional Irish fare prepared with a "modern flair." Menu items will include: rack of lamb on Irish stew consommé, Sea Leek (oven-baked fillet of sea bass served on a fondue of leeks), and Kevin's Kudos (oven-roasted loin of bacon served with braised cabbage and creamed potato). The restaurant, which holds 600, is decorated with custom furnishings designed and built in Ireland by Irish craftspeople, as well as with Irish antiques and "bric-a-brac."

There is also an outside window, Cooke's of Dublin, that serves carry-out fish and chips.

What shops are located on Pleasure Island?

Harley-Davidson merchandise shop opened in late March 2005 -- now located adjacent to Raglan Road.

Fuego by Sosa Cigars -- opend June 2007: Cigar connoisseurs can now savor a smoke and enjoy other tobacco products in an intimate lounge setting. Premium wine, beer and spirits, plus specialty coffees and other non-alcoholic beverages are served daily from 11 a.m. to 2 a.m. The new lounge is a tribute to four generations of the Sosa family with pictures of family members decorating the walls. The gathering place blends contemporary furnishings and high-tech with old-world charm. Pendant-style light fixtures adorn the room while a hand-crafted glass bar top resembles a floating block of ice. The back bar is illuminated with silhouettes of tobacco leaves and is backlit with images of fire. Custom-designed, hand-crafted wooden humidors hold more than 100 facings of hand-rolled premium cigars -- from the legendary Fuente Fuente Opus X to the highly rated house-branded Sosa cigars. An expanded terrace offers guests outdoor seating as well.

Curl by Sammy Duval – High-end Surf Shop featuring trendy Surf Wear clothing and accessories, skate boards, surf boards, and other water sport related gear. Open 11am to midnight daily.

Disney World Bus: From any Disney resort, take the bus marked Downtown Disney. From Fort Wilderness, the Downtown Disney bus operates from the Outpost Depot. There is no direct bus transportation serving Downtown Disney from any theme park or from the Transportation and Ticket Center. Check at your resort to see what time the bus for Downtown Disney operates. In general, the buses stop running one hour after closing time at Downtown Disney.

By Boat: If you're at Old Key West or Port Orleans, you have the option of taking the boat route to the Pleasure Island/Marketplace area.  (Be sure to check times of the last boat back to your hotel, sometimes these end early.)

On Foot: Only the resorts in the Downtown Disney area and Saratoga Springs are close enough for a reasonable walk.

By Car: Pleasure Island is located on Buena Vista Drive, not far from I-4. From the Magic Kingdom Resorts: Follow World Drive south to Epcot Center Dr. Heading east on Epcot Center drive, follow it to Buena Vista Drive and head east. You'll pass Typhoon Lagoon and Pleasure Island will be on the left. From the Epcot Resorts: Exit your resort onto Buena Vista Drive and head east.  

What about Parking?

Pleasure Island has a large parking lot adjacent to the grounds. Parking is free. (There is no longer valet parking service.) You could also park in the Downtown Disney Marketplace lot and walk over to Pleasure Island. Parking can be very difficult in the evenings.

Is Pleasure Island Wheelchair Accessible?

All areas are wheelchair accessible and all clubs have elevators. Wheelchairs can be rented at Guest Services at the Downtown Disney Marketplace or West Side. See our Wheelchair/ECV FAQ for rates and details.