Learned something new....

I learned something new last week...let me give you the background information.

Over the last few months, we had made plans to travel to Florida for the final Shuttle Launch...and what an amazing experience it was!!! But that's a story for another time...

We were not planning to pay a visit to Mickey Mouse while we were in Central Florida, and were planning to enjoy the beach and the Space Center. We are really NOT "beach for 5 days" type people, and now we know that. :) So, on Sunday evening, after our 3rd day at the beach and our 3rd day of Space Center activities, we decided to head to Walt Disney World for the last two days of our trip. Now, I have always said - there is no way I'll go to Disney World in July!! It's too hot and it's too crowded...how miserable.

But, we were able to book a Studio room at the Wilderness Lodge (last minute) and we had already purchases our annual passes in anticipation of our October trip. We just needed to activate our passes and pay for food, so off we went! I was prepared for the heat (heck it's 107 degrees in North Texas right now), but I was dreading crowds. I thought, we will do what we are able to do, and whatever we can't do/see/ride, we know that we will be back in October.

I was so pleasantly surprised with this visit!! After getting checked in at the hotel and dropping the car in the parking lot, we hopped on the bus to MK at about 9:30 am. The park had opened at 9:00, so I thought for sure there would already be lines. We wanted about 15 minutes for Dumbo...and then started our normal Fast Pass routine (get one for one ride, go ride another, come back and use the FP, then get another FP and go ride something else). I am very surprised to say that in the heat of July, one of the most crowded times of the year, according to the travel experts, we never waited in a line longer than 20 minutes, and we rode almost every ride at Magic Kingdom - a few of the big ones twice!

We used our Fast Passes very strategically, and frankly I think we got lucky with the timing. Since 4th of July had been just a week earlier, and many people may have wanted to be there for the Shuttle Launch the week before, it was really not as crowded as I thought it would be.

Would I plan another trip in the heat of July? No, it would not be my first choice -- it's still stiflingly hot and miserable! But, given the option for a few free days at the World - I wouldn't dread it! :)

6 months??

Do you know where you are having dinner on November 26th? How about breakfast on November 28th? You mean you haven't even thought about it?

It may seem crazy to decide where to have breakfast, lunch or dinner 6 months in advance, but when planning a trip to Walt Disney World resort, this is a key piece of the planning puzzle. If you have specific restaurants that you want to visit, particularly those with characters, or specialty dining experiences, you likely need to call exactly 180 days in advance to make those reservations.

Cinderella's Royal Table is one of the hardest reservations to get on all of Disney property. Another one that can be difficult is Le Cellier (a personal favorite of mine) in the Canada Pavillion at Epcot. If you have your heart set on a certain dining experience, date or time...set your alarm clock and make those reservations at exactly 180 days prior to your arrival date (for WDW resort guests) or 180 days prior to your dining date for those staying off property.

The two ways to make Disney Dining Reservation are:
Call 407-WDW-DINE or visit http://disneyworld.disney.go.com/reservations/dining/

Meeting Mickey Mouse

It's the one thing that everyone wants to do when they visit Walt Disney World...meet the main Mouse.

Here are some tips for meeting Mickey Mouse during your visit to the Walt Disney World resort.

Tip #1 - Know that he is everywhere! You can meet Mickey Mouse at all the parks, and even at a few restaurants. The only difference between meeting Mickey Mouse at The Character Connection at Epcot and Camp Mickey Minnie at Animal Kingdom will be his clothes and the backdrop.

Tip #2 - Make a Character Dining reservation for a meal that includes Mickey Mouse. You can pick from: Chef Mickey's (all day) at the Contemporary resort, Tusker House's Breakfast-o-Saurus at Animal Kingdom, 'Ohana Character Breakfast at the Polynesian resort and Garden Grill Dinner at Epcot. This allows you to get that perfect photo op, while eating a meal...all without waiting in line!

Tip #3 - If a meal is not in your budget or time schedule, in my experience, the line to meet Mickey Mouse is shorter at Camp Mickey Minnie in Animal Kingdom park and at

Tip #4 - Unless it has some special meaning to you, do not try to meet Mickey Mouse at Magic Kingdom park. Sure, you can do it, and it will be just as magical as anyplace else, but you will wait forever! There is a reason that this particular location is the first Fastpass system for a Character Meet & Greet at the Walt Disney World resort. He's the one that everyone wants to see, and Magic Kingdom is the epitome of all things Disney. As a seasoned veteran, my advice is to find another location to meet the mouse. The wait in line will diminsh a lot of the magic, and frankly could make you and your family a little bit grouchy! Is that the perfect photo memory that you want with Mickey Mouse? Probably not.

Tip #5 - This is the super secret tip...shhhh! :-) If you have a Chase Disney Rewards Visa card, you can do a private Meet & Greet with Mickey Mouse. The location is inside Innoventions (near the Segway test area), behind a big curtain area. There is a small sign indicating the Disney Rewards Meet & Greet, that is so easy to miss that we walked past it three times before we knew it was there the first time. In the past, the line has been very short to non-existant...in recent years more people have heard about this benefit and the line has gotten longer. Why is this line better than any of the other lines to meet Mickey Mouse you ask? This one is a private Meet & Greet with 2 characters. When we were there last time, it was Mickey Mouse and Pluto. And they spent at least 10 minutes playing with my son and taking pictures. It was an amazing experience for him and for us as parents...and especially me as a camera-toting proud mom. :-)

"...it was all started with a Mouse" - Walt Disney

Have a Magical Day!

Naptime at Walt Disney World

So, you are planning to take your young child, or two, or three to Walt Disney World, and you are trying to plan your day around naptime. Here are a few tips to get in naptime without having it completely consume your day.

Getting around Walt Disney World, while altogether pretty convenient, is not quick by any stretch of the imagination. You have to plan ahead to get somewhere, and frankly going back to the hotel mid-day is a hassle.

Our son was only 8 months old when he took his first trip to Walt Disney World. At that age, it was really easy to wear him around in a carrier, and let him sleep just about anywhere. Since your child is essentially strapped to you, there are a few rides that you need to skip during that time, but you can always use Rider Swap later in the day for those bigger/scarier rides. A baby carrier is really a personal choice, but two of my absolute favorites are the Beco carrier and a soft sided Mei Tai carrier. I purchased my Beco Carrier a few days before my son's first trip to WDW, and carried him around all week in it. i

For a slightly older child, a stroller is a "must have" item. It was so much easier to find a quiet corner and let him doze off in the stroller and then we could keep going, than it was to make a trip back to the resort mid-day for a nap. We would let him fall asleep, and then take advantage of that time to use Rider Swap and go ride the bigger attractions that he wasn't yet able to ride anyways (think Big Thunder Mountin, Soarin', Expedition Everest, etc).

Over the many, many trips that we have taken our now 4 year old son to the Walt Disney World resort, I can probably count on one hand the number of times that we actually headed back to the resort for naptime. Unless the adults could use a nap...because even adults get cranky without a nap sometimes :)...let the little one fall asleep and then keep on going. This will save you all the travel time to and from the resort, while also allowing your little one to be ready to experience all the magic of an evening at the parks.

Have a magical day!

Baby Swap

As I started to write my next blog post (Naptime at Walt Disney World), I realized that I might need to stop and explain "Baby Swap" before referencing this benefit in another post. The technical term for this benefit is: Rider Swap, but most parents refer to it as "Baby Swap" or "Child Swap"

What is Rider Swap?

This is a great benefit for parents of young children who do not meet the height restriction for certain attractions. It allows families to have one parent/adult get a "Rider Swap" ticket and wait outside the attraction with the younger child, while the rest of the party stands in the regular line for an attraction. When the party finishes the attraction, they take the "Rider Swap" ticket and go with the 'waiting' parent/adult through the Fastpass return line to ride the attraction a second time.

Which Attractions have Rider Swap?

I have never been turned away when I've approached a Cast Member to inquire about Rider Swap at the larger/scarier/height restriction type attractions. The only attractions where I think it will not work are the non-Fastpass attractions, where there is no other line to go through. We have used it for:

Space Mountain
Big Thunder Mountain Railroad
Splash Mountain
Soarin'
Mission: Space
Test Track
Rock 'n' Roller Coaster starring Aerosmith
Twilight Zone Tower of Terror
Star Tours
Expedition Everest
Dinosaur

You have to have the younger/sleeping child with you when you approach the Cast Member at the entrance to the attraction. They are happy to explain this benefit to you, if you have any questions. So, don't fear taking a younger child to Walt Disney World! While there are plenty of attractions that they are able to ride, you won't have to skip the bigger attractions either!

Have a magical day!

Mickey has a new home!

The closing of Mickey's Toon Town Fair, Mickey's House and the Judge's Tent in February 2011 left a lot of people wondering where were the Disney Imagineers planning to move Mickey Mouse. Today at Magic Kingdom Park, Mickey Mouse has a new permanent home to Meet and Greet guests. Town Square Exposition Hall has been re-imagineered into Town Square Theater where Mickey Mouse is the star of his own magic show!

As soon as you enter Magic Kingdom Park, and cross under the Walt Disney World Railroad tunnel, head off to the right where you can stop by to meet the main mouse, or for the first time ever, you can get a Fastpass to return later in the day to meet Mickey Mouse.

Town Square Theater is the location of Mickey's new magic show, but you can go back stage to meet the star of the show!

Bonus: Until their own new home is completed, with the Fantasyland expansion, the Disney Princesses can be found at Town Square Theater as well.

I can't wait to see it first hand and get some photos of Mickey's new "home"!

Disney's Fastpass

I hate standing in line....and I do mean HATE! lol And there is no place that I stand in line more than Walt Disney World.

Now, let's be honest, Disney has done an amazing job of making a wait in line as painless as possible. They have things to play with, television monitors to keep your attention, and they even make the wait part of the story for the attraction in some lines. But even with all that extra "help", I still hate to wait in line.

Solution: Disney's Fastpass

Disney's Fastpass is a great way to see more attractions in less time, and spend less time waiting in line...bonus for all involved!

How does it work?

Once inside a park, when you come to a Fastpass ride, you insert each of your party's park ticket or Key to the World card into the Fastpass machine. The machine will return your park ticket/Key and it will provide you with an additional "ticket" per person that shows you the return time for that ride. Depending upon the popularity of the attraction, and the crowd level that day, this can be anything from 15 minutes to a few+ hours from that time. Note your return time, go visit other attractions at the park, and return to the Fastpass attraction at your noted time.

When you return, you will go to the Special "Fastpass Return" line, show them your Fastpass ticket and wait in a considerably shorter line for the attraction.

One important thing to remember: For the most part, you can only have one Fastpass at a time. The exception to this will be when your Fastpass return time is considerably later in the day. Then you will want to note the time that your next Fastpass is available (this will be printed on the bottom of your Fastpass ticket).

How to use it to see more attractions?

When you are planning out your day in each park, pay attention to which attractions are equipped with Disney's Fastpass system. The system can be used one of two ways: 1) get a Fastpass for one attraction, stand in line for another and then return to the 1st attraction with your Fastpass and bypass the regular line; or 2) get a Fastpass for a favorite attraction, go stand in line to ride that same attraction, then go ride it again using your Fastpass -- riding a favorite two times for one line! We only use this 2nd method in very specific cases...like Toy Story Midway Mania at Disney's Hollywood Studios. We want to ride it more than once, but are definitely not willing to stand in the line twice.

My preferred method is to get a Fastpass for one attraction, go stand in line at the next closest attraction (geographically) and then go back to ride the Fastpass attraction. Then, repeat the same procedure at the next available Fastpass attraction...taking time to ride any other non-Fastpass attractions along the way. In some cases, the return time for your Fastpass will be late enough that you can get in a few other (non-Fastpass) attractions, shows or even grab a meal and come back to ride the Fastpass attraction afterwards. This will especially be true on the most popular attraction, and those for which you pick up a Fastpass later in the day.

Which attractions have Fastpass?

Magic Kingdom - Space Mountain, Buzz Lightyear's Space Ranger Spin, Stitch's Great Escape, The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh, Peter Pan's Flight, Big Thunder Mountain Railroad, Splash Mountain, Jungle Cruise, and rumor has it that Mickey's new Character Greeting spot in Town Square will be a Fastpass attraction when it opens up.

Epcot - Soarin', Test Track, Mission: Space, Maelstrom, Living with the Land

Disney's Hollywood Studios - Toy Story Midway Mania, Rock 'n' Roller Coaster starring Aerosmith, Twilight Zone Tower of Terror, The Voyage of the Little Mermaid, Indiana Jones Epic Stunt Spectacular, Star Tours

Animal Kingdom - Dinosaur, Expedition Everest, It's Tough to be a Bug, Kali River Rapids, Kilamanjaro Safaris, Primevil Whirl

You can see the geographic placement of these attractions by looking at a Park map, and you can plan out your day accordingly.

There are a limited number of Fastpass tickets handed out for each attraciton. There are a few attractions on that list that I would recommend heading to immediately upon entering the park, if you want to have any chance of getting a Fastpass for that attraction: Toy Story Midway Mania and Soarin' are the main ones, with Rock n Roller Coaster, Expedition Everest and Space Mountain being pretty high on the list of "popular" attractions for which the Fastpasses will disappear earlier rather than later.

Hopefully this will make your time at Walt Disney World include more attractions and less waiting in line!

Have a magical day!

Disney "Stash"

There are certain things that we use every single time we visit Walt Disney World…and we rarely use them at any other time, or we have plenty of extras. I noticed this after a few trips, and even more so once my son was born and we started taking stuff for him. 

So, I created what I like to refer to as my “Disney Stash”. It’s a collection of things that we always take with us, that can stay all together in between trips so as to eliminate the searching for items around our house when packing for our next trip. At our house, the “stash” lives in the hall closet, where we store the suitcases, in two cube style bins. Over the years, some items have been added and removed (mostly baby related items), but some items are constant and I thought it would be useful to share those with you.

Disney Stash:

• Baby Wipes (travel size container) – even out of diapers, these come in handy!
• Hand Sanitizer
• Disposable Rain ponchos (we prefer the cheap ones in the camping section of Target)
• Quart and Gallon sized Ziploc bags
• Crystal Light (or other) water flavor pack
• Coffee accompaniments (sugar, creamer, stir stick packs that I collect on business trips)
• First Aid – bandaids, neosporin,
• Night Lights
• Travel sized:
• Laundry detergent /Woolite packets
• Bar Soap (unopened)
• Tide Pen
• Toothpaste (unopened)
• Tylenol
• Kleenex
• Q-tips 

• Disney toys and souvenirs:
• Mickey Ears
• Disney stickers (also bought these at Target or Walmart)
• Light Up Toys (bought these at Target, by the way – not at WDW)
• Glow necklaces (not “Disney” but they are great for nighttime)
• Small stuffed Mickey
• Extra “blankie” 

There are also a few items that have been added to/removed from our "Stash" over time:

• Baby Monitor
• Childproofing Items (plug covers, cabinet door locks, coffee table corner cushions)
• Swim diapers - it was easier than remembering to buy them before a trip

Hopefully this list will make it easier for you to pack for your own Walt Disney World vacation...or maybe you need to create your own "stash" :)

A few of my....

favorite things!

I admit it...I love all things Disney! But, there are definitely a few things that I count among my absolute favorite things at Walt Disney World.

1) Wishes - In all my years of visiting the Walt Disney World resort, Wishes (the current Magic Kingdom fireworks show) is my favorite of all of the nighttime fireworks shows they have ever presented. I have experienced many years of changes to Illuminations, Magic Kingdom fireworks (they change the name when they change the show), and even Halloween and Christmas fireworks, and the current Wishes fireworks show at Magic Kingdom gives me goosebumps each and every time that I experience it. I love to stand at the back of the the Main Street circle (right outside of Casey's), in the middle of Main Street, and feel like I am literally surrounded by the magic.

2) Hoop De Doo Musical Revue -  For me, this one is a recent discovery. I don't know how I missed it all those years! Two years ago, we scheduled a dinner at Hoop De Doo for our family. Our son was only 2 yrs old at the time, and even he loved it! The music, the comedy, the food....it's all terrific!

3) Aerosmith's Rock n Roller Coaster - I'm an adrenaline junkie and I love roller coasters of all kinds! Aerosmith's Rock n Roller Coaster is a dream! It is exciting, fast, thrilling, and a little bit surprising at times. The ride begins, as most at the Walt Disney World resort do, with a story. You start in a Studio, as Aerosmith finishes up a recording set prior to a concert. As they rush off to the concert across town, you get to go along for the ride. This exciting ride features the music of Aerosmith blaring through over 120 speakers in each limo-themed ride vehicle as you twist and turn through downtown LA on the way to the concert. It's awesome!

There are many, many more, but these are among my favorites!

Best Time to Go

When my friends start talking about taking their families to Walt Disney World, the conversation typically begins with one question:

"When is the best time of year to go?"

While this is really a personal choice (cooler vs. warmer; school break vs. not; holiday time vs. non-holiday; are you celebrating anything special; etc), there are definitely some times of year that are more crowded than others.

Busiest Weeks of the Year:

Thanksgiving Weekend
The week between Christmas and New Year's
June, July and the beginning of August (particularly 4th of July)
Easter Week
Spring Break
President's Day

A few of the more pleasant (i.e. less crowded) times of the year include:
September and October
January
1st two weeks of February
1st two weeks of December
The week after Easter until early June

There are a few holiday aspects to note:

Want to see the Christmas decor without crowds?
- Go the first two weeks of December, or arrive on New Years Day

Want to celebrate Halloween Disney-style?
- Mickey's Not So Scary Halloween Party starts in early September, and the early parties are much less crowded than ones closer to Halloween

Want to travel the week of Thanksgiving?
- Arrive on the Saturday before Thanksgiving and enjoy lighter crowds the first half of Thanksgiving week (Bonus: you'll see the Christmas Decor this week too!)

Have kids in school?
- Travel during a 3-4 day weekend in October to avoid the normal "school's out" crowds during other times of the year

While it's difficult to decide when is truly the "best" time to go, everyone enjoys something different, so talk to your travel companions and decide what works best for you. Disney will be there to celebrate with you no matter when you decide to go!

Where to begin...

One of the hardest things about planning a trip to the Most Magical Place on Earth, is knowing where to begin! Here are a few of my favorite resources for planning the perfect Disney Vacation:

www.allearsnet.com - my go-to source for general park information, rides, restaurants/menus, pricing, etc
www.disboards.com - want to ask a specific question, and get advice from those who know Disney...join and ask away!
www.mousesavers.com - great resource for ways to save money on your trip - car rentals, tickets, etc.

Of course, there's always the official Disney website: www.disneyparks.com that is a great source for hours, tickets, and making reservations.

I love to share my knowledge and love of Disney, and look forward to sharing tips and tricks to make your vacation as magical as possible!

I'm a Disney addict

My name is Teresa, and I love Disney.

I'm convinced that it's truly an addiction. I love Disney movies, Disney shows, Disney parks, Disney resorts/restaurants/shopping/rides and just walking down Main Street soaking up the magic.

I am a busy, working mom to an adorable 4 year old, who was lucky enough to marry a man who indulges my love of all things Disney. I used to work at Walt Disney World, on the College Program, and now we enjoy using our Disney Vacation Club membership to go back 2-3 times per year. I'm looking forward to sharing my tips and tricks for a magical Disney trip for you and your family.

Welcome!