Free Dining is back!

Get a FREE Dining Plan

When you stay at a select Disney Moderate Resort, Disney Deluxe Resort or Disney Deluxe Villa Resort, you get the Disney Dining Plan with a variety of delicious dining options! When you stay at a select Disney Value Resort, you get the Quick-Service Dining Plan that allows you to grab yummy treats on the go!

When you purchase a non-discounted 6-night/7-day Walt Disney Travel Company package that includes a room at select Walt Disney World Resort hotels and tickets with Park Hopper® or Water Park Fun & More Option. 

 For arrivals most nights August 28-October 2, 2015; October 25-October 31, 2015; November 8-November 19, 2015 and December 15-December 21, 2015.
Book between April 27 and July 10, 2015

Exclusions:

The Villas at Disney’s Grand Floridian Resort & Spa, Disney’s Polynesian Villas and Bungalows, Bay Lake Tower at Disney’s Contemporary Resort, Disney’s Art of Animation Resort – The Little Mermaid Standard View Rooms, campsites and 3-bedroom villas

September Exclusions: Disney’s All-Star Movies Resort, Disney’s Port Orleans Resort – French Quarter

Graduation Celebration - Transportation

A hot topic around here is always transportation! Today I want to talk about transportation in regards to your Disney Cruise. This will be focused mainly on Port Canaveral but I will touch on Miami as well as Vancouver.

Let's start with Port Canaveral as that is the most popular cruise destination! There are a few options!

Introducing Your Baby To Disney

For us, our baby was introduced to Disney while I was still carrying her in my belly.  Our maternity photo’s included her very first set of Mickey…or rather Minnie Ears. Her nursery was decorated with the iconic Cinderella Castle, with just a bit of Pixie Dust thrown in.  Many of her infant clothes were adorned were some our favorite characters (and hopefully hers someday too).  Her very first trip to Walt Disney World was on our Babymoon; and then again 10 months later we got see her squeal with delight over the Christmas parade. My husband and I have never questioned that Disney would be a part of her life.

For me it’s more than trips to the park or some licensed character apparel.  For me I want her to believe, as long as possibly, that Fairytales do come true. I want her to believe in this magical place where you can leave everything behind and fly with Dumbo, Soar over California, watch kitchen appliances sing and dance.  I want her to have the magic in her.  As she gets older, I also want her to understand why it is we love Disney (when so many people don’t understand). I want to share with her Walt’s dreams and explore the wonder and delight of his movies. I want her to be a part of the magic that her Dad and I love so much.  I can’t wait for her to have memories that she will never ever forget…and a place that she will always feel an unbelievable joy and that no matter how old she gets, a place that is magical.

Many people say that she won’t remember any of this, and they are right.  Right now we are enjoying every second of our daughter experiencing something we love so much.  Will she remember the look on her face when the Toy Soldiers marched through Frontierland? Will she remember dozing off to “Can You Feel The Love Tonight” right in the middle of Festival of the Lion King? Will she remember gazing up at Pooh with those bright blue eyes and reaching out to grab his nose? Will she remember her Daddy holding her in front of Cinderella castle?  No, she won’t remember a second of it…but we will.   We will continue to share with our little girl something that we are passionate about and hope that someday she shares in that and finds something that she is just as passionate about.

Halloween and Christmas Party Tickets are now on sale!

It's official!   Tickets for the 20 15 Halloween and Christmas parties are on sale now!!

Mickey’s Not So Scary Halloween Party
September 15, 18, 20, 22, 25, & 27
October 1, 2, 4, 6, 8, 9, 12, 13, 15, 16, 18, 20, 22, 23, 25, 27, 29, 31
November 1

Pricing for Mickey’s Not So Scary Halloween Party
Advance sale for September dates and October 1st: $68 plus tax for ages 10 and up, $63 plus tax for children ages 3-9

Advance sale for October dates and November 1st: $74 plus tax for ages 10 and up, $69 plus tax for children ages 3-9

10/31: $87 plus tax for ages 10 and up, $82 plus tax for children ages 3-9


Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Party
November 8, 10, 12, 13, 15, 17, 19, 20, 29
December 1, 3, 4, 6, 8, 10, 11, 13, 15, 17, 18

Pricing for the Christmas party
Advanced Sales: Ages 10 and up are $74.00 plus tax. Children ages 3-9 are $69.00 plus tax.
Same day sales: ages 10 and up are $79.00 and children ages 3-9 are $74.00.
Premium Night (December 18): ages 10 and up $82.00. Children ages 3-9 are $77.00.

Annual Passholder and Military pricing may be available as well!


ALL TICKETS ARE NON-REFUNDABLE ONCE PURCHASED!!

Park Hopping

I've written a few articles on this before, but it's something that constantly comes up so I figured I'd address this again.  I'll preface this with saying each family is different and no one rule applies when planning your Disney vacation. The information below is based on the trips I've helped plan for my many wonderful clients.

I'll say it...I don't like the park hopper option in 9 out of 10 cases.  95% of my clients do NOT purchase the park hopping option. It's not to say that there aren't times when it can work, or that I have never used it before. Here are the top 3 reasons why I recommend to MOST of my clients that they skip park hopping!

1. Cost
This varies depending on the number of days on your ticket but for most folks, they'll have at least a 4 day ticket. This means the cost of park hopping would be $68.16 per person...that can add up VERY quickly for families! I can think of a lot better things to do with that money. With the right scheduling and planning, there is no good reason to be at a different park at the end of the day then you started out. Some families will argue that Animal Kingdom and Hollywood Studios aren't full day parks but that's where I'll disagree! Even if you aren't at Animal Kingdom at night, that's a perfect night to explore your resort or Disney Springs. By incorporating mid-day breaks and staying for evening shows like Fantasmic, you can easily make a full day of both these great parks!

2. Schedule
Nowadays you MUST have a schedule when visiting the parks. I don't believe in minute by minute itineraries, but you must have your table service and Fastpass+ scheduled in advance. Because of this, it makes park hopping even less convenient. Fastpass+ initially can only be schedule in one park.

3. Knowledge
If you an annual passholder or Florida resident, this doesn't apply to you. A lot of my clients are either first time visitors or families that only visit every few years. The trick to park hopping is you have to know WHICH Park to hop to.  When I put together itineraries I help clients pick the least crowded park each day. To suddenly decide to hop to another park without having the knowledge of WHICH park would be best, well you could find that you are wasting a lot of time not only traveling, but ending up at a park that is really crowded with long waits!

Again please remember that this is just MY opinion and it's for the benefit of those visit Walt Disney World for the first time. Whenever I work with guests  I want to make sure they aren't spending their money in places they don't need to. Since park hoppers can't be added for a single day, I find most people won't make use of it over all.

There are many times it comes in handy. For instance on our work trips we often use them because we are hopping around to get photographs or partake in special experiences to come back and share with you. Often guests who visit often and are confident in their touring schedules will use hoppers or guests who don't book dining that like to hop around...there are always exceptions to the rule but if you are visiting for the first time I suggest that a) You enlist some professional help and/or advice before you begin planning and b) really take a look at the hoppers and see if it's something you NEED to invest in.