Now More than Ever!

The most common question I receive from people considering a Disney World trip is “when is the best time to go to have the best experience?” 

Although I have written in the past about the best/worst times (take a look here), we’re getting to the point where crowd levels are going to be high no matter the time.  With Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge opening, crowds will be flocking to the parks in droves. 

Disney is currently running a marketing campaign called “Now More than Ever!”  and I couldn’t agree more.  I wouldn’t normally recommend visiting in the middle of the summer due to the crowds and heat.  But it will be a while until the crowds slow down after Star Wars opens.

So you’ve got until the end of August to get there and enjoy what is turning out to be a slower summer for the parks.  A lot of people are putting off trips until Star Wars opens and that leaves rooms open this summer.  Disney has even put out a rare summer offer to lower the costs of some rooms.  In fact, in looking at a quote for a family of 4 with 2 adults and 2 kids, for 5 nights with a 4 day park hopper ticket in June, you’re looking at less than $3000.  That’s typically one of the higher priced times to travel to Disney so a great deal at the moment. Costs will most likely just keep going up from here with all of the new attractions/resorts/entertainment options heading to the World.

Need more reasons to travel to Walt Disney World Now More than Ever?   Here you go!

Join Mickey & Minnie’s Surprise Celebration at Magic Kingdom Park!

Join Mickey & Minnie’s Surprise Celebration at Magic Kingdom Park!

Party with Pixar Pals to Celebrate 30 Years of Disney’s  Hollywood Studios

Party with Pixar Pals to Celebrate 30 Years of Disney’s 
Hollywood Studios

Celebrate the Circle of Life at Disney’s Animal Kingdom Park

Celebrate the Circle of Life at Disney’s Animal Kingdom Park

Satisfy Your Cravings for Food, Entertainment and Fun at Epcot

Satisfy Your Cravings for Food, Entertainment and Fun at Epcot

Other Can’t-Miss Experiences at Walt Disney World Resort

Other Can’t-Miss Experiences at Walt Disney World Resort

A Few BIG Disney Announcements You May Have Missed

With the excitement of the announcement of the opening of Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge, a few other BIG announcements from Disney have been missed by a lot of us!

Two New Nighttime Shows

Beginning May 1, the date of the 30th anniversary of Disney’s Hollywood Studios, the Wonderful World of Animation will make its grand premiere. This excitement-packed projection show will take you on an incredible journey through more than 90 years of Disney and Pixar animation.

Watch in wonder as the façade of the Chinese Theatre is magically transformed—displaying this stirring tribute to animation. Behold spectacular sequences celebrating themes like magic, family, adventure, romance and friendship. Each theme is brought to life through unforgettable moments from beloved films—like Sleeping Beauty, The Incredibles, Coco and many more.

world of animation nighttime show.jpeg

Of course, since we can never lose sight of the fact that it was all started with a mouse, the show fittingly begins and ends with the one-and-only Mickey.

Over at Epcot, a new nighttime spectacular, called “A Celebration of Disney Music,” will show how Disney music inspires people around the globe, and will feature large floating set pieces, custom-built LED panels, kites with special effects, choreographed moving fountains, lights, pyrotechnics, and lasers. The current Illuminations show will end this summer. Until the new show starts in 2020, there will be a limited-time experience, called “Epcot Forever,” which will debut in fall 2019 and will feature classic Epcot tunes.

Two New (Non-Star Wars) Experiences to Open at Hollywood Studios

 
mcqueen-550x310.jpg

The first new experience is Lightning McQueen’s Racing Academy and it officially opened yesterday! In this interactive show, Lightning demonstrates what he’s learned over the years by using his brand-new, state-of-the-art racing simulator and its wraparound screen. Of course, as this seasoned racer has discovered throughout his career, things don’t always go according to plan, and he has to think fast to get back on course.

With Tow Mater, Cruz Ramirez and the gang from Radiator Springs rooting him on, Lightning gears up for the challenge. Will he emerge victorious? Speed on over to find out.

Also opening soon at Hollywood Studios is Mickey and Minnie’s Runaway Railway - the attraction replacing The Great Movie Ride inside of the replica of the Chinese Theater. No official opening date has been released yet by Disney, but according to insiders, it’s expected to be some time this summer.

Beauty and the Beast Sing-along to Debut at Epcot’s France Pavilion

A new guest offering will soon debut at the France pavilion at World Showcase (in addition to “Impressions de France”) – a brand new “Beauty and the Beast” sing-along created by Don Hahn, producer of the animated and live-action “Beauty and the Beast” films.

Space-Themed Restaurant at Epcot

A one-of-a-kind, space-themed restaurant is currently planned for Epcot that’ll offer guests amazing meals and a spectacular view – from high above Earth. This restaurant will be built in a newly developed area located between the park’s Mission: SPACE and Test Track attractions.

Epcot-Space-Resturant.jpg

Once completed, the restaurant will invite guests to travel to space for an amazing dining experience in the stars. The new restaurant will be operated by the Patina Restaurant Group, led by Nick Valenti, which operates several other restaurants around Walt Disney World Resort, including Tutto Italia and Via Napoli at Epcot and Morimoto Asia and Maria & Enzo’s Ristorante at Disney Springs.

Disney Skyliner

The new Disney Skyliner gondola system will begin transporting guests in Fall 2019, connecting Disney’s Hollywood Studios and Epcot to four resort hotels: Disney’s Art of Animation Resort, Disney’s Pop Century Resort, Disney’s Caribbean Beach Resort, and Disney’s Riviera Resort, the proposed 15th Disney Vacation Club property. Select gondolas will have Disney characters incorporated into their exterior design. After much speculation, it was confirmed earlier this year that the gondolas won’t have air conditioning.

Disney loves to keep things new and exciting so that guests always have a reason to return!! Keep your eyes on the blog here at Trips by Mouse to keep up with all of the fun! And, of course, if you’re thinking of traveling to the Mouse’s House, give me a call! It’s always free to book with me!








10 Things I Hate About Disney World

You know I love Disney so this is a hard one for me.  But I've compiled a list of 10 things I hate - some are avoidable and some aren't.  Enjoy... 

My Project 3-001.jpg

1 - Crowds!!  There are some better times of the year than others but frankly with all that Disney has to offer, crowds are going to be big.  I think the days of finding the Magic Kingdom empty are in the past.  But I can certainly help you avoid the most crowded of days and with prior planning, you can do a lot to alleviate the problems crowds cause.

2 - Long Lines.  The main problem with the crowds is that they tend to all want to do what you want to do so your lines are long.  Again, prior planning helps.  When you book with me 6 months in advance, I can get you almost any dining reservation, so no waiting for your eats!  Also, with Mobile Ordering, you can skip the lines for Quick Service food!!  For attraction FastPasses - if I get them for you 60 days in advance, that gives you at least 3 lines a day you can skip (and more if you're smart and get a new FastPass when yours are used).  In the case where you do have a long line, Disney is wonderful with most lines being in the shade or air conditioning and a lot of them have interactive queues which are so fun!!

3 - Weather Issues (Heat/Humidity/Rain).  Here's one you can't control.  You can be prepared however!  Know that if it's summer, it will be hot and humid and don't let yourself become dehydrated.  Plan for afternoon thunderstorms by carrying cheap ponchos in your bag.  And don't be that amazing Mom that assumes it's Florida so even in January it will be warm and doesn't pack any warm clothes for your kid to run his first half-marathon!  Oops, that might have been me.  Point is - check the weather first and try to be prepared for anything!

4 - Extra Calories.  Even though you can control this, it's too fun to enjoy the amazing food and snacks.  You'll be walking a ton which helps a bit but I always come back with a souvenir of a few extra pounds.  If you know it's probable, you can get your workout program set up before you leave so you don't carry that extra weight for too long!

5 - Being Tired.  This one is like the extra calories and is totally avoidable if you make better choices than I do.  But I want to squeeze every single moment out of my Disney vacation and sleep just doesn't fit my plans.  I wouldn't suggest planning on going to work/school the very next day when you return.  Add a day or two at the end of your trip to get some actual rest!!

flynn mickey ears.jpg

6 - Missing my pets.  I know I have some sort of issue, but I really miss my pets when I'm on vacation.  I recently found an amazing house sitter that will come and keep an eye on the kitties while we're gone, so hopefully you have something good like that!  But if not, guess what?  You can bring your dog with you to Disney!  There are a few resorts on property that will allow you to bring your dog for a small fee.  They can't go into the parks but they are welcome in your hotel room.  The housekeeping staff is notified and they won't go in and accidentally let your furbaby out.  Let me know if this is one you can relate to and I'll get you more info!

7 - Buses/Public Transportation.  Ok, so I don't necessarily hate this.  I LOVE the monorail and the boats.  And you all know my love for the Magical Express (when I'm on my way to Disney - not so much on my way out).  I threw this one in here for Don since he has a sincere hate for Disney buses.  They can be crowded and uncomfortable for sure.  But the convenience of someone taking me where I want to go for FREE without the possibility of me getting lost or having to park a mile away really outweighs the negative in my opinion.

8 - Spending Money.  This one is a touchy subject because I won't lie and say Disney is an inexpensive vacation.  But there are tiers of spending and even Disney on a budget is better than a lot of vacations I've been on.  I will work with any budget - just let me know your needs up front.  

9 - Sad Families.  I hear this one a lot and it is one I really do hate.  The families that people mention seeing that are obviously not feeling like they're in the happiest place on Earth most likely didn't plan ahead.  They thought their kids could walk 10 miles and didn't get a stroller.  They didn't get dining reservations and their favorite restaurant is booked.  They didn't take a poncho and are soaking wet.  So many reasons but most could be avoided.  Read through other posts on my blog for lots of tips to help avoid the Sad Family Syndrome!

10 - LEAVING!  The hands-down absolute worst part of Disney World for me is that I can't just live there.  I swear I can tear up just thinking about walking out of Magic Kingdom on the last night of my trips.  The best cure for this - start planning another trip!  Until I can go again, let me help you.  It eases my pain just a little...  :)

Disney World... The SCARIEST Place on Earth??

Although in my mind, Disney World is most certainly NOT a scary place, there are some scary elements to be aware of if you're heading there with small children.  

There are some obvious scary things that parents are prepared for like thrill rides intended for adults.  A few off the top of my head are the Tower of Terror, Mission: SPACE, Rock 'n' Roller Coaster...  

But there are a few rides that you think of as family friendly that just might make smaller ones a bit nervous.  I love the Haunted Mansion, but as a kid that one can be a little spooky.  Check out one of my favorite videos of Luke's reaction when he was 3.

,rel=0

And it's not just my goofy little kids that have been known to be nervous on this ride.  I love this picture while on Haunted Mansion - Ryan looks a little nervous.  But check out the kid in the Doom Buggy next to us.  His Dad just decided it was too much and covered the kid's face.  Hilarious! (Maybe not to the kid).  I would still recommend this ride to families, but just know it's dark and spooky and think about if your child could handle that.

013_13.JPG

Another potentially scary part of the parks is the noise of the fireworks shows and parades.  Andrew hid from us once (causing ME to be terrified) during a parade because he didn't like the noise.  And he likes looking at fireworks but the noise bothers him.  Wish I'd have thought back then to take ear plugs along to help him enjoy these parts more.  If you have one that is nervous with loud noises, plan ahead and take those ear plugs.

Vacation_20080522 081.jpg

Dark areas, even those that have no scary elements, can bother a lot of kids.  We let the boys take tiny flashlights with them the first time they went and if they got nervous in a dark part of the park, they could turn them on for a minute to calm their nerves.  I would also recommend taking a nightlight for your hotel room as those are either pitch dark at night or you have to leave the bathroom light on which seems super bright!

Security can also be an issue for some children.  Something about the officers in uniform and everyone crowding around can cause anxiety.  Mention it to your child ahead of time so that they are prepared for it.  And once in a while, there will be a security dog on duty.  If your child is afraid of dogs, letting them know that one may be nearby may help.

Disney-Security-Guard-with-Dog.jpg

Of course, I've seen tons of kids that have a complete meltdown when approached by Characters.  The good news is that most characters now have Meet-and-Greets and are rarely just out wondering in the parks.  But once again, just prepare the child in advance.  The characters are awesome though about realizing that the child doesn't want to be approached and you'll probably not have any problems in this area!

Please give me a call if you're thinking about a Disney trip.  I have a list of rides and how my kids handle them that can certainly help when you're planning.  And remember my services are always FREE to plan and book your trip!!

Want to Know Where to Get the Best Pics at Disney World?

If you're anything like me, you have what you think of as an excellent memory.  But then you see a picture of something and realize you had forgotten all about that moment.

So to make sure you have a lasting memory of the fun you had on vacation, you'll want to have a lot of pics from your trip.  In this post, I'll let you know about some fun and new Photopass experiences and some pics you don't want to miss.

First, the pics you have to have...

In my book, if you don't get a family photo in front of the Castle and a family photo with Mickey, you've completely failed and will need to redo the whole trip!  It was almost a disaster this time as we weren't able to get the Mickey pic until OUR LAST DAY.  Trust me I was stressed about it.  The problem is that our usual plan of meeting Mickey first thing in the morning never panned out.  Both days that we started at Magic Kingdom didn't work - one was race day so we weren't there at rope drop and the other was the day that it was just Luke and I while the others played golf.  Now that Mickey has some cool technology that allows him to interact with the guests, the line gets crazy long.  So while I normally don't recommend a FastPass for a character meeting, if you're not going first thing, you might think about doing that.  I've heard rumors that they may discontinue the technology and just have standard photo ops which would speed up the line but that's not been verified yet.

Other pics that I love are those that you can only get if you purchase them through PhotoPass.  If you do Memory Maker (read more about that here), you can get all of these pics for one price.  If you don't think you'll want them all, you can purchase them individually from the website.  I love the Magic Shots and the in-ride photos.  Here are some of the new ones they offer since we were last there:

I love that each time we go, there is something new we haven't done or seen.  The Hitchhiking Ghost is one of my favorite pics from this trip!  And the addition of the in-ride photo at Pirates of the Caribbean is fun.  I'll admit that the Lantern pic is one of my most and least favorite pics.  The lighting makes me look 1,000 years old - yes, let's just say it's the lighting.  But you know how I love Tangled so the boys went and rode a couple rides while I waited in line for this.  Beware, the line is long since they only do this shot after dark and it seems to take people FOREVER to get together and smile, but I love it.  To get this pic, just head to the restrooms in Rapunzel's area (I still can't believe all she has are restrooms!!) sometime after dusk.  

Sadly one pic that I had heard rumors of before we went was a Magic Shot one with a Giant Dole Whip!  They are supposedly near Aloha Isle but I was never able to find a photographer there.  If you go, check for yourself and send me your pic if you get one!!

And lastly, don't forget to take lots of pics with your phone or personal camera.  As much as I love the PhotoPass pics, you can get a lot of really memorable ones yourself and they're free!  Also, don't underestimate your kids' photography skills.  Luke and Andrew took a lot of pics for me when I was on a ride or just not with them.  The first one in this group is one that will always remind me that Andrew had a broken finger and his cast REEKED of the nastiest odor ever! 

The next one is a really fun picture that you can ask the balloon vendor to help you with - they won't let go of the balloons, but they will move out of the shot so it looks like you've got the whole bunch.  

The next one is a benefit of early morning dining reservations.  A picture in front of the castle alone!  It's rare to get a pic without a throng of people in your shot.  And the last one is special to me since it's a pic of my race medal.  I love the castle in the background.  You can do this with anything you'd like - a new souvenir, a child's favorite stuffed animal...  I wish I'd had somebody's Flat Stanley with me on this trip!  

As much as I love being at Disney World, I know that memories fade.  These pictures won't and they'll bring me joy forever.  Let me help you plan a memorable trip so that you can get your own awesome pics!!

 

 

 

 

 

 

Disney's Contemporary Resort - Is It Right for Your Vacation?

DSC_1763.jpg
DSC_1752.jpg

On our recent trip to Disney, we stayed at Disney's Contemporary Resort.  In today's post, I'll talk about the pros and cons of staying at this Deluxe category resort.

First, the good, or really, the GREAT things about this resort:

The proximity to the Magic Kingdom!  It's NEXT DOOR!  The main reason we chose this resort is that the Magic Kingdom is our favorite park and we end up there almost every day.  You have a couple of options to get to Magic Kingdom - the monorail which comes through the lobby of the hotel and a walking path which is about a 10 minute walk.  I think I did it in 5 minutes because I was a bit excited to get over there!  

I took this looking over the railing just outside our room inside the resort.

I took this looking over the railing just outside our room inside the resort.

The walkway starts just past the bus stop.      

The walkway starts just past the bus stop.      

I was always torn on whether to take the monorail or walk.  The truth is you'll walk A LOT at Magic Kingdom and adding more steps to your day may not work for you.  But the benefit is that you don't have to wait in any lines for transportation, security is at a checkpoint along the way for bag checks and we were always the ONLY PEOPLE in line there so never a wait.  

But if you do think you should save your steps, the monorail is a fun way to get to the Magic Kingdom.  Just be aware that the ride to the Magic Kingdom is longest on the way there - it stops at the Polynesian and the Grand Floridian before getting to Magic Kingdom.  On the way back to the Contemporary, though, you're the first stop.  If you're leaving at a non-busy time (not park closing, after fireworks...), I'd probably take the monorail back.  But if you want to stay until the park closes, you'll be in a long line of others getting on the monorail so I'd suggest walking if you can handle it.

Another great thing about this resort is the view you'll have (if you get a Theme Park View).  Normally a theme park view is an added cost but we were pleasantly surprised (OK, I freaked out!) to have one this time even though we didn't book that room.  I didn't want to spend the extra money considering I want to be in the parks the entire time and wouldn't enjoy the view much.

Well, after staying in this room, I was totally spoiled.  Look at our view!!

I never expected to be in the room to see Magic Kingdom's fireworks but as it turned out we saw it on 3 different nights.  We were too tired to stay in the park til fireworks on the day we ran the half marathon.  And then a couple of other times we just happened to get back to our room in time to see them.  And although I would prefer to be in the parks for them just because of how awesome they are, they're pretty darn good from a distance.  You can even hear the music coming from the park!

The resort is close to EPCOT also and again, you can take the monorail there which is convenient.  My only complaint is that you have to go through security twice to get to EPCOT.  Since you have to transfer monorail lines at the Ticket and Transportation Center, they have no way of knowing that you went through security at the Contemporary.  The lines went pretty quick but a bit frustrating to do it twice.

The only other complaint I have about the resort is that it's loud.  Chef Mickey's is in the lobby area and they open pretty early for breakfast and are open late for dinner.  So when kids see Mickey and squeal, it's pretty easy to hear.  I tend to be up early and late so not a big deal but if you have little kids that are trying to sleep it might be an issue.  We were on the 10th floor and Chef Mickey's is on the 4th.  But with the open lobby, the sound travels up.  

All in all, I LOVED it and would definitely stay there again.  I have my sights set on the Polynesian for my next trip (have you heard they have Dole Whip on site?), but once I check out a few more resorts, I'd love to stay at the Contemporary many more times!

I'd love to chat with you about which resort would be best for your family.  Every situation is different!! 

Here are a few more pics from our room/the resort: