For anyone that isn’t aware I created and maintain maps for the different central Florida Theme Parks including Disney and all the resorts. This was something I always wished was available years ago when I used to visit the parks every few years to help expedite my collecting. I’ve received many comments of gratitude for having these available and you can find them here for your own travels. But to ensure these are as up to date as possible I do make frequent trips to all the parks and resorts. This was the case on a recent trip over to Disney’s Art of Animation resort.

A couple weeks ago I visited the machine in the Landscape of Flavor food court that was home to one of the 2021 dated designs.

During this visit a few weeks ago I noticed the machine was missing (image above right). My assumption was that this machine had been removed temporarily so it could receive the new updated payment system we have seen many times in the past. The cost would be $1, and the machine would now supply the penny. I had no reason to think this machine wasn’t coming back especially since it has one of the 2021 dated designs and as of the printing of this article it’s only August so lots more time before the end of the year.

That is why on this quick visit I was completely shocked to see something different in this space. It was a nice surprise but also a bit confusing at the same time.

The new machine is one of the newer 8-design versions that has quickly become very popular at the Disney parks and resorts. It’s hard to tell in the above picture but this machine is quite a bit shorter than the other standard models. I assume this is just due to the recessed area it was being installed in. The machine has all the new payment system upgrades, and also some new designs.

A couple of the designs are the same as before, and also include a few from the second machine located not to far away in this very same food court. Due to this I’m assuming that second machine will be removed very soon. On this most recent visit it was still there and unchanged. But having duplicate designs seems odd and I will be surprised if that machine doesn’t disappear in the near future. Hopefully it will come back with other new designs, but now that they have this 8-design model here they may opt to just have the one machine. I’ll be checking back to see what happens here.

I always enjoy a nice surprise new penny machine, but this was definitely not on my radar of possibilities. With that 2021 dated design now missing I’m thinking we will see it back soon in a different machine. Possibly that second machine still here in the food court, or like they did with the Spaceship Earth 2021 design in Epcot it may get moved to a completely new location. This is what’s fun and at times a bit frustrating for collectors when designs are moved around out of the blue. I’ll make it my mission to continue following up on these changes and if I find out where that 2021 design goes you will be the first to know. Be sure to check out our maps for your future Disney, Universal, Sea World or Busch Gardens visits, I’m a bit biased but I think they will definitely help on your squishin’ missions.

Have a wonderful week and always remember to Keep on Pressing!

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