2011 Disney Chart

Hello everyone!

I came across a wonderful chart that has each week in 2011 itemized for the best and worst times to visit. This takes the guesswork out of when to plan your vacation to Disney World!

CLICK HERE to see the chart! (Found via this website.)

New Disney Deals

Disney has released their 2011 deals and packages! My friend Heather is a travel agent for Disney, and all of her services are FREE!!!!! It costs you nothing to have her help! Head on over to her blog if you're booking a trip in 2011 and see what kind of deals you can get! :)

Touring the Parks with a Plan!

The one area where most families are not prepared when it comes to their vacation is park-touring. Most newcomers (and even people who make return trips) really do think that they can wing it and be just fine. And honestly, if you choose this approach, you WILL ride a few rides. However, most of your time will be spent 1) Wandering and 2) Waiting. You didn't pay big bucks to wander and wait! Make a plan!

Sit down at your computer and go to Disney's website. Click on "Parks." For another option, WDW Info has a great listing as well.

Go through each Theme Park and make a list of the attractions and rides that sound enjoyable to your family. List any that sound remotely interesting. Now, go through and highlight or circle ones that you think are absolute must-sees. These will be your priority rides, and you'll do these first in your day. The rest of the rides/attractions you listed will be after you've completed your priorities.

Now CLICK HERE to view detailed park maps (thanks to the Orlando Welcome Center's website), and zoom in to where you can see exactly what the layout of each park is. Your best best is to get to the parks before they open, and when the rope drops, make a beeline for your #1 Priority Ride. If a line has already formed, someone from your party can go to another priority ride (close by) and get Fastpasses. [Sidenote: Always make sure you have some sort of Fastpass in your hand that is ready to be used. It's a great system, and it's a shame to not utilize it!]

Looking at your map, plan out your priority rides in the order in which you plan to go. Trust me on this. It's so nice to get off of a ride and immediately know where you're headed next. It takes a load off your shoulders and everyone is on the same page.

Of course, I always recommend using The Unofficial Guide to Walt Disney World. Their whole book is divine, but the touring plans alone make it worth the purchase. I use a blend of their plan and my priority list.

After you've mapped everything out, I recommend typing out your (flexible) schedule, and include your Advanced Dining Reservations (which I highly recommend having for sit-down meals). That way, your entire day is on paper, and you're not searching for miscellaneous papers and notes. Doing your homework ahead of time will save you so much stress during your time in the parks!

Here are my Priority Rides and Attractions for each park. Keep in mind that these are with MY specific tastes in mind. Your list could be completely different!

Magic Kingdom

• The Haunted Mansion
• It's a Small World
• Mickey's Philarmagic
• Peter Pan's Flight
• Pirates of the Caribbean
  
• Space Mountain

Epcot

• SOARIN'
• Spaceship Earth
• The Seas with Nemo and Friends

Hollywood Studios

• Beauty and the Beast Stage Show
• The Great Movie Ride
• Toy Story Midway Mania
• Voyage of the Little Mermaid

Animal Kingdom

• Festival of the Lion King
• Finding Nemo : The Musical
• Expedition Everest
• Kali River Rapids

Break down your planning into small steps, and it won't seem as overwhelming. This is an overview of plan-making, so if you have any questions, please let me know!

Disney Dining Plan Details

Hello there!
I've had a request for a list of the Disney Dining Plan restaurants for 2010. Here's a list of the participating restaurants and the category they qualify under.

CLICK HERE to see Disney's official "brochure" about the Dining Plan. The icons can be a little confusing, though.

CLICK HERE to see an easy-to-read chart listing all of the 2010 participating restaurants.

Here are a few of my favorites for each park:

Animal Kingdom: I haven't eaten in this park for ages, but I've heard Tusker House and Boma are excellent.

Disney Hollywood Studios:
-50's Prime Time (Comfort food and great atmosphere)
-Sci-Fi Drive-In (Kind of basic food but great environment)
-The Brown Derby (Upscale but great food and atmosphere)
-ABC Commissary is good for quick service.

Epcot:
-DO NOT MISS San Angel Inn in the Mexico Pavilion! They serve the BEST Mexican food!
-Le Cellier is supposed to be excellent but getting a reservation seems to be nearly impossible.
-Chefs de France is good, but a bit pricey.
-Really any of the quick-service options are good and serve authentic (but still edible for Americans) food.

Magic Kingdom:
-If possible, do NOT miss Cinderella's Royal Table! The atmosphere is just beautiful, and it really completes the Disney experience (in my opinion).
-Pinnochio Village Haus is a great quick-service restaurant. Get there early for lunch and sit next to the big picture window overlooking It's A Small World. So much fun!
-Tony's Town Square has good Italian food and a cozy atmosphere.
-I've heard that Columbia House and Pecos Bill Cafe are good quick-service options as well.

*Plan out how you plan to allot your given Dining Credits, then make your Advanced Dining Reservations. Again, having a plan is the key to a less stressful vacation. You don't want to be hashing out where you spend which credits in the middle of Main Street U.S.A. Trust me on this.

*Be aware that the Signature Restaurants use more than one credit, so plan accordingly. It might help to list out each family member, their credits, and how you're using them. It sounds stressful, but you are PREVENTING stress while in the parks! Of course you can always modify your plan, but at least begin with one.

*From what I've heard, you get the most out of the Dining Plan if you plan to eat a LOT of food. Otherwise, it's cheaper to go "a la carte" with your meals.

I hope you have wonderful meal times together at the World!

Disney Dining!

One of the most important decisions in your research while planning for Disney World will be about dining. You need to have a gameplan for how you'll handle meals, snacks, etc. while visiting.

-First, decide on whether or not you'll use the Disney Dining plan. This is an all-inclusive, pre-paid plan that allots a number of meals per person, per day. CLICK HERE for the official Disney Dining website, where you'll find thorough information. From what I've heard (I've never used the Dining Plan), it usually ends up being a lot of food per person, and you'd probably save more money going a la carte. I would probably always feel like I was wasting my money if I didn't max out every bite of food allowed in the plan. But some people love the pre-paid ease of the plan. Decide what suits your personality best.

-CLICK HERE for Disney World restaurant menus.

-Go to Disney's Dining website and look through all of the restaurant options. Decide what's practical for your family. Personally, I prefer one Quick Service meal a day, and one Table Service meal a day. Part of the Disney experience (to me) are the restaurants. You just can't beat the themes and how you're immersed in the details. However, if you're on a budget, you could do breakfast at your hotel in the morning (or have "lunch" at 10:30-11:00 am), and do Quick Service meals the whole time except for one or two nice Table Service meals.

-If you want to eat some table-service meals (as opposed to Quick Service/Counter-style meals), you'll need to make reservations. Reservations are available 180 days out and 180 + 10 days for Disney Resort guests. SOME RESTAURANTS VARY. Check the official Disney Dining website for details on each restaurant. CLICK HERE for a Reservation Calculator to determine when you can call and make your reservations.

-Prepare BEFORE you call! This is when you need to be organized. I usually draw out a "calendar" for each day that we'll be in the parks and write out my preferred restaurants. I think through the times that would be good to ask for (I usually try for "off" times, like a 10:00 am or a 3:00 pm lunch, or an 8:00 pm dinner, for example). I have all my days written out in front of me, so if I need to switch around while talking to the operator, I can see what I'm doing and think clearly. I write everything in pencil. I also have a list of "Plan B" restaurants, just in case something is completely unavailable (more on that later).

-Disney is now offering the option of making reservations online (it's available on the actual restaurant's webpage). I've never used this method, but I think it's worth a try. I'm usually the type that likes to talk to an actual person, to confirm that our names are in the system and there wasn't a glitch. Call 1-407-WDW-DINE. Have everything in front of you, with a pencil ready. I've always had wonderful experiences with the Disney Cast Members who work in Dining. They are so helpful and they understand this can be overwhelming. They've also answered questions I've had about timing, etc.

-Be flexible while talking to the operator. If a certain day or time isn't available for a restaurant, ask them to search for any day of your vacation. For instance, Cinderella's Royal Table is a MUST for my family. So any day it's available, I flip-flop our park schedule to accommodate that reservation. That's why it's nice to have your hand-made calendar right in front of you. You can easily erase "Magic Kingdom" above Tuesday and switch it to Thursday if that's when you can get into the Royal Table.

-If you have kids, I would try to do at least one character meal. It's a guaranteed way to meet and get pictures with characters in a less stressful environment. Sometimes these can fill up fast, so pay attention to how many days out you can make your reservation.

-If you have older kids/teenagers/adults in your party, you'll probably get more out of Table Service restaurants, because you can appreciate the food, themes, and details. Here's my rule of thumb: The younger the child(ren), the less Table Service restaurants you'll want to reserve. Here's why: Kids don't usually appreciate eating at a replica of the Brown Derby, for instance. Also, it can be hard to plan what your child's mood will be like at the time of a reservation. It's just a gamble. That's why, with younger kids, I advise using mainly snacks and Quick Service meals when the little ones need it, and reserve maybe one or two special Table Service meals. You won't feel like you've wasted money on meals that weren't appreciated, and it gives you more flexibility.

-I'll be highlighting some of my favorite restaurants here and there on this blog. I love Disney Dining!

-As always, feel free to email me or leave a comment with questions, etc.

-Don't be intimidated by this process! It really does help you plan out your day once you have a plan in place for eating your meals. Next up, I'll discuss starting to make a touring plan for the parks.

Exciting News!

After featuring my favorite resource for planning a trip to Disney World, I received an email from Henry, who works for the Touring Plans website (which is the Unofficial Guide website). He kindly thanked me for mentioning the book. After several emails back and forth.......

I am thrilled to announce that Len Testa, one of the authors of The Unofficial Guide to Walt Disney World, will be answering some interview questions from me! This will be posted soon, and I am so excited to share it with you.

Thank you to Henry for making this happen, and thank you in advance for your expertise, Len!

My Favorite Resource

Maybe it's because I'm the first-born child in my family, or I'm severely Type-A, or I like organization.....

But I love a good plan.

And my number one tip for Disney World, hands down, is to have one. A plan.

There are several schools of thought on this. Some people think that if you over-analyze, it ruins the magic. To some degree, that's true. Then again, some people think that you can casually stroll through Disney World, aimlessly, and decide spur-of-the-moment, "Oh! Let's go on this cute little ride!" then discover that there's an hour wait.

If you want a great Disney trip, you have to be balanced.

The best book resource, in my opinion, is the Unofficial Guide (and no, I'm not being compensated to say that). The layout of the book, thoroughness, and content are all great. They include honest reviews and an easy to understand star system for each ride, attraction, hotel, and restaurant. If you're new to Disney World, it takes you step-by-step. If you're a veteran, the humor and reviews from other readers keep it interesting. It's easy to read, funny, and honest. And my favorite part? They give you a PLAN!

In the back of the book, there are several options for touring plans. You follow the steps. Kurt and I used a touring plan when we went to DW last October. We tailored it to what we wanted to do, but I had an agenda printed out, which included the times and confirmation numbers of our dining reservations. This made everything SO EASY. There was a point when we wanted to change our dining situation, and so I just pulled out the printed agenda, which included all of the restaurant info (including the phone number), and I sat down in Hall of Presidents and made the change. No stress.

Especially with children, you must steer your group in the order and direction you want to go. In other words, organize the magic. Because you, as the adult, have done your research and you know that PhilarMagic is an attraction that you can save for some downtime (because it holds large crowds and is air-conditioned), but if you want to ride Toy Story Midway Mania, you need to run, not walk, to get a chance to ride that thing.

See what I mean?

Here is the Unofficial Guide's website. But it's worth every penny to buy the book. I read it like a novel. But I'm weird. You might not (probably won't) be interested in getting THAT much information, but it's so important to map out your strategy weeks in advance, rather than praying you picked the right time to go on Space Mountain.

Now, I'm going to state the obvious: a plan is not a guarantee. It's a goal. Things WILL change. There will be a diaper explosion or a hungry-baby emergency. (Random tidbit while I'm thinking about it: the Hall of Presidents lobby is wonderful for regrouping, and diaper changes that don't require a massive overhaul. It's also air-conditioned with good seating. Oh, and it's a good spot for parade-watching.) Anyway, be prepared, but flexible.

Don't bother with the other books; this is the one you want to buy!

Coming soon: I'll give my own answers to my "Disney Series" questions!

Planning: First Steps

In this post I was going to write about your options in deciding where to stay when you visit Walt Disney World, but the first order of business is always deciding when to go, how to get there, and how long to stay!

When to go:

Generally speaking, when kids are involved, there are two philosophies out there:

1. Take the kids out of school and travel in off season to avoid crowds, hot weather, lines, and get better rates.

2. School is too important to miss. Suck it up and go in the summer.

I don't want to offend any teachers out there, because school IS important! However, this is my advice: when Disney is concerned, take some days off of school and go during off-season. Here is my rationale: Sure, there's more legwork in the sense that schoolwork has to be made up (depending on the ages), and you might be criticized for taking your kids out of school for a pleasure vacation. But the time and money you save, as well as the quality of the vacation, just can't be beat.

Season dates change annually. Here are the dates for 2009:

Value Season
January 1 - January 15
January 19 - February 12
August 9 - October 1
November 29 - December 17
Martin Luther King Weekend Jan. 16-18
Presidents Day Weekend Feb. 13-15
Regular Season
March 30 - May 21
October 2 - November 24
Thanksgiving Nov. 25-28
Summer Season
May 22 - July 2
Independence Day Weekend July 3-5 (July 4)
Peak Season
February 16 - April 3
Easter Week April 4-18
Holiday Season
December 18 - 31

Most people agree that fall is the best time to visit WDW. My husband and I visited last fall in late October (right before the time change), and it was absolutely perfect. The weather was fantastic, the crowds were low, and it was just an incredible visit. {I'll post pictures from that trip soon!} We used a touring plan {future post}, but hardly needed it. Wait times were low and when we did wait, the max was 20-30 minutes {that was for Toy Story Midway Mania in DHS--the ride was brand new and POPULAR!}.

However, there are plusses to going anytime. I have personally visited Disney in every season, and although summer is my least favorite, you still make memories. It's Disney!

Understandably, not everyone can take off work and/or school and go during the off season. So in future posts I'll talk about planning, touring the parks, and making the most of when you DO visit.

How to get there?

You have two options: fly or drive.

For some, driving isn't an option; it's just too far. You will have your share of challenges, but if you stay in a Disney Resort {more about that in another post} you will have the amenity of the Magical Express, a shuttle system from the airport. The plus-side is that you don't have to allow as much time for travel (in theory). However, with the way airlines and air travel has been latley, sometimes it takes just as long if not longer than driving.

If you drive, you have the freedom to make stops, pack what you want, and you have a way to get around the parks without having to rely on Disney transportation. My family has always done this. Driving just suits us better, is more cost-efficient, and gives us more freedom.

Just weigh your options and think about what's best for your family!

How long to stay? {Including Ticket Info}

I have been on Disney trips that have ranged from 2 days to 6. With children, you have to find that happy compromise between being able to take your time in the parks and not rush, and staying too long and having vacation meltdown.

My family has always done it this way:

We prefer the Magic Kingdom, Epcot, and Hollywood Studios parks. Animal Kingdom just isn't our thing, but that's just our opinion. Our schedule is based on that, and yours will be difference based on your preferences.

We allow 1-2 days for driving, one day for each park (3 days), and then one extra day for recapping our favorite things. We always have the Park Hopper option on our tickets {future post} so we can skip around to the different parks and places we want to see. Then there's travel time to get home. So generally, our vacation lasts about 6 days, with usually 2 days going to travel and 4 days in the parks.

If you are going to Disney for the first time, plan to devote one day to each park. Give every park a chance, but be prepared for you or your kids to have preferences to one park or another. That's why the Park Hopping option on your ticket is great. I'll explain this more later in a more detailed post, but basically it's an option that you add on to your base Magic Your Way ticket so that you can go to more than one park in the course of a day. It's great, because you're not as limited.

So, if you're a first-timer, you'll need at least 4 days for parks. If you really want the best experience, I would plan 5-6 days in the parks. Sometimes, if you buy your tickets from the right place, you'll get an extra day or two free.

Here's my best ticket source: Undercover Tourist. This isn't a sketchy black market of tickets. Disney acknowledges this site and it's also recommended by Mousesavers (another great resource).

If you need questions answered about tickets, email me or leave a comment and I'll address it in a post. However, it's pretty self-explanatory.

Whether you're traveling with children or just as adults, you'll want to take your time and not kill yourself trying to race to the next ride, attraction, or parade. It will kill the magic---trust me. In a nutshell, you want to enjoy the details while following a plan.

Ask me any questions you have!

Know the Lingo

Once I start writing out my advice, tips, etc., it will be helpful for you to know some of the most common abbreviations:

MK: Magic Kingdom Park
ECT: Epcot Park
DHS: Disney Hollywood Studios (formerly MGM Studios) Park
AK: Animal Kingdom Park

ADR: Advanced Dining Reservation

QS: Quick Service Restaurant
TS: Table Service Restaurant
DDP: Disney Dining Plan

FP: FastPass (A quick way to get on Rides and Attractions)

MYW: Magic Your Way tickets/packages

More tips and fun things to come!

Have a magical day!