Time for a snack!

Now that our annual trip is almost here, I have really started focusing on where I want to eat while we are in Disney World. Usually that means I am researching sit down restaurants and reviewing menus six months out. Well, this year we have decided to just stick with the quick service plan since it is free during our stay, and also because we are going back again in a few months. In the past, we always had the regular dining plan so our big focus each day was on our sit down dinners. We would pretty much just eat wherever for lunch and didn't look into menus too much. That is all changing this trip though. Since we will be there for 10 days, we will get really tired of hamburgers if we have to eat them twice a day! There are many options though outside of hamburgers and pizzas for counter service. So, it is my mission this week to find those options and make a plan! However, as I have started this planning, I find myself focusing more on what two snacks I will have each day. How sad is it that I am more excited about the snacks than the meals! :) So, I thought I would share with you my plans for using the snack credits today.

Let's start at Magic Kingdom. There are so many options there, but we definitely have our favorites. My hubby loves the Dole Whip floats at Aloha Isle. If you have ever been to Disney, or read any blogs or websites, you have probably heard of Dole Whips. I usually prefer just the pineapple ice cream by itself, but my hubby likes the float. He gets either vanilla or orange ice cream in pineapple juice and it definitely is pretty tasty. Another favorite snack spot in Magic Kingdom is at Sleepy Hollow in Liberty Square. They have our favorite snack, especially during the light parade or fireworks. We love to get funnel cakes here. They are super yummy and big enough to share. They also have a super yummy frozen drink that I love called the Liberty Swirl Slush. It is a frozen drink that is a mix of blue raspberry and Fanta strawberry that is super tasty!!! This year there is a new treat in I believe Frontierland that I am super excited about as well. The Mickey shaped soft pretzels!!! I love pretzels, and eating them in the shape of Mickey is extra fun and exciting. We had these at Disneyland in March and they were fun to eat! If none of these options appeal to you, then stop by the Main Street Bakery and I am sure you can find something you will love that has been freshly baked....a gigantic and gooey cinnamon roll, a homemade sugar cookie as big as a mini pizza, or a slice of cake...there is something for everyone for sure.

On to Hollywood Studios. There aren't a lot of must haves for me here. I usually get a plain pretzel here, or one of those super popular Mickey ice cream bars since there aren't any park unique snacks that I just have to have while here. There is a fun place to stop here though. I like to walk into the Starring Rolls Cafe and browse all of the yummy pasteries and snacks here. There are muffins, bagels, etc here if you want something somewhat filling, or they also have the fun items as well...the Mickey Mouse rice krispy treats, chocolate covered marshmallows, cookies, etc. Every once in a while you also get lucky and get to watch them making some new snack. Lots of fun!

The number of snacks are almost endless at Epcot. I don't even think I could begin to mention them all. Each country has their own special treats that allow you to get a taste of their culture. I haven't even begun to try them all yet! There are two especially fun places to stop here if you want to try a lot of different things. Norway and France both have bakeries with a number of different tasty treats. Since we usually visit during the Food and Wine Festival, we get to use our snack credits at all of the festival booths and try even more tasty treats. My favorite is the pretzel dog in Germany!!! OOOHHH I so can't wait. I hope it's there this year as well. If you aren't very adventurous and don't want to use your snack credits on food from other countries, but are hungry in World showcase, never fear....America is in the middle of the countries! When you get there you can get a funnel cake, a pretzel, or popcorn to help you make it the rest of the way!

Finally is Animal Kingdom. This is another park that isn't bursting with my favorite snacks. I tend to stick to old faithful here as well. I get the Oreo ice cream sandwich or Mickey bar to get me through. Though truthfully, we aren't usually here long enough to need a lot of snacks. My daughter loves to snack here though as they always have her favorite frozen Minute Maid lemonades. She loves those things and always looks forward to them. As far as my daughter is concerned, as long as Disney keeps the Mickey bars and frozen lemonades, she will be just fine and will never go hungry! Hopefully we find some new favorites on this trip for all of us since we will each have two snacks a day. If we don't though, we all have enough favorites already so that we won't go hungry in the future!

Taking a Break Without Leaving the Parks

Ok, so it's the middle of the afternoon on a hot Florida day. You were up at the crack of dawn to get to the park at opening, you've walked at least five miles already, there have been tears, there has been arguing, there have been meltdowns, and that's just the adults. The kids are on the verge of breaking down too. So what do you do? Do you walk to the front of the park, walk to your car (or wait for a bus), load everyone up and head back to your hotel, and take several hours out of your afternoon? In my family, that answer is a definite no. This of course is a decision that varies from family to family. For some (especially in the summer when park hours are long), it truly works best for their family to leave the park and go recharge at the hotel. Our family would rather find a place to take a break inside the park and recharge in other ways. Please keep in mind when that our family goes in October when park hours are shorter and my child has never been a napper. Even as a toddler (her first trip was at 20 months) she would take a power nap and be ready to go for the rest of the day. So, she did just fine taking naps in the stroller without having to go to the resort. I know that this is definitely not the case for everyone.

So, where can you go to recharge inside of the parks? Below I will list my favorite spots in each park. Sometimes all it takes for us to feel better is a cool ice cream treat (Dole Whip float is number one on our list) or a cold coke in the shade and we are better. However, sometimes we have to find a show to escape to and get off our feet in the cool to find the energy to go on. That is what I will focus on below.

In Magic Kingdom, there are a few possibilities. One of the most obvious is the Hall of Presidents. This is a 23 minute show with pretty comfortable seats in a nice and cool theater. A bonus is that the kids get a history lesson while the adults rest their feet :) Another option is a round (or two or three) on the TTA Peoplemover. This is a pretty cool(ish) ride even on hot days and it allows a great view of Tomorrowland. Finally, if the kids are getting tired of being penned in the strollers, ride the boats over to Tom Sawyer Island and let them run while you sit on a bench in the shade and watch. On a side note, if you visit Tom Sawyer Island in the morning and find one of the paintbrushes hidden there, you get a prize when you return it to the workers at the boat dock. We did this last year and got fastpasses for our whole party to use anytime that day for Splash Mountain and Big Thunder Mountain.

In Hollywood Studios, there are several ways to find a break. There are several pretty long shows here that allow you to get off your feet for a while. Even though the Indiana Jones Stunt show and Lights, Motor, Action shows are outside, they last a while so they allow you to rest your feet. If you want a long break, visit the Magic of Animation building and watch the short show of how they bring animation to life. Then walk around the building and enjoy a quiet visit with some of your favorite characters. Afterwards, do the drawing class. Our family loves this class. You get to sit at a drafting table and learn how to draw a cartoon character. The instructor walks you through drawing each feature, and at the end you have a special souvenir to take home. Priceless!

In Epcot there are obviously many ways to get off your feet. This park is filled with shows (which is a good thing because this is the park that wears me out the fastest)! If you are in Future World, go see Ellen's Energy Adventure. This is a really long show/ride, though sadly very boring to me. It has actually put me to sleep before...so I guess that is a bonus! However, if you really really need a break, this is the perfect place so that you don't have to leave the park. If you are in World Showcase, there are several shows that you can watch to rest your feet. Just to name a few, you can see one in America and China that allow you to sit for a few minutes and learn a few things in the process. Another good show is in Canada, but you have to stand for it so that fact alone keeps me from seeing it too often. It is pretty cool though because it is a 360 degree film so you see it all around you (which I guess is the reason for standing). The boat rides in Mexico and Norway are also pretty cool and last for a few minutes so they can be a quick break as well. Another plus is that there are many snack options in World Showcase so there are many options for short breaks with those.

Finally is Animal Kingdom. We haven't really had to come up with a way to take a break here since (as I have posted before) we don't spend a lot of time here. We are usually done with this park around 2:00 anyway, so leaving that one and heading somewhere else is our break :) However, I can think of a few ways that I would take a break if we stayed here longer. They have two wonderful shows at Animal Kingdom. The Legend of the Lion King and Finding Nemo are amazing (and long) shows, and they are both in dark cool theaters. So I would head there for a nice break for sure. Also, the Kilamanjaro Safaris ride is long as well so it could easily be a nice break, with a great bonus of seeing lots of cool animals along the way.

So, here are a few of my favorite ways to unwind and refresh without leaving the parks. There are probably a ton more, but this will get you started if you don't want to leave the park for a break. Happy touring!

Travel Tip Tuesday

If you have a certain building you would like to stay in, or if you have specific requests for your room, I urge you to make those requests when you book your room. This is the time to request a pack and play (Disney calls them cribs), or reserve a refrigerator, ask for a king room (often the handicap rooms), request a ground floor, or ask for a room close to the main buildings or amenities. If you request them at booking, they will be noted on your reservation. You can also call your specific hotel a few days before your check in and verify that these requests are still on your reservation. The rooms are often assigned 5 to 10 days before you check in so it is a good idea to verify these things if they are really important to you.

Also, don't be afraid to ask at check in if there are any pool view or preferred rooms available without the upgrade cost (if you reserved a standard room view). We have gotten lucky almost every time and been "upgraded" to a preferred room since the resorts weren't fully booked. It obviously won't work every time, but it doesn't hurt to ask!

Travel Tip Tuesday

While you are on Disney property, you are going to see a lot of things that you really really want to have. If you have kids, that number of things is going to double. How do you keep from spending all of you souvenir money that first day? Just say no. I know, that sounds like a "duh" moment, but when you are there it is really easy to get caught up in the moment. What we do is look in all of the fun gift shops every day, but we wait until closer to the end of our trip and do the majority of our shopping at Downtown Disney. This allows us to really think about the items that we really and truly want and since we have a Disney VISA, we buy them all at the World of Disney store and save 10%.

This trick is especially helpful with a little one. My daughter wants EVERYTHING she sees so by telling her to wait until we go to Downtown Disney, it helps us to see what she really and truly wants. Half the time she has already changed her mind, or simply forgotten about half the items she thought she had to have earlier in the week. Since we make her use her own money for the bulk of her souvenirs, it also helps her to budget her money and see how much those little things really add up to in the end.

One word of advice though...not everything is available at Downtown Disney. If it is a Disney World t-shirt, or a stuffed Mickey Mouse that you see in multiple gift shops, it is probably going to be there. However, most of the park specific merchandise is not sold there. For example, that Magic Kingdom T-shirt, or the African drum sold specifically in Animal Kingdom, are not going to be available. So, if you are in a park and see something that is probably park specific, go ahead and buy it if you know it is something you really want. However, don't carry it around all day long. If you are staying on property, have it sent back to your hotel. It will be available for pick up in the resort gift shop the next night. If you are not staying on property, or it is your last day, have it sent to the package pickup area at the front of the park and pick it up on your way out. The cashiers at the shops can help you with the details on these processes.

Travel Tip Tuesday

I was reading one of my favorite Disney guide books the other day and for the first time I can ever remember, I disagreed with something that I read. They were talking about the best shoes to wear for touring the parks. They actually alluded to the fact that the only good option was tennis shoes. I so disagree. The best option is whatever you are used to and the ones that feel good on your feet.

So, if you wear tennis shoes all the time, yes, they are the best option. They give good support, they are designed to handle shock, and they last for many many miles. Also, they protect your feet from the many times in which you will be run over by a stroller (not your own) throughout the day.

HOWEVER, if you are not used to wearing tennis shoes and you try to wear them for a week of walking miles upon miles every day, you WILL regret it. I fall into this camp. I am definitely a flip flop girl. Living in the south, I wear them daily from March until November. I will wear them until my toes get frosty :) That being said, since we go to Disney in October, I am still in flip flop mode in my life. So if I go to Disney and try to wear tennis shoes, my feet hurt. BAD. My toes are screaming by the end of the day. So, what I do is try wearing tennis shoes a little bit before our trip just to get my toes used to it. Then I take my tennis shoes with us on the trip and wear them a few days of the trip. However, most every other day I wear my flip flops around the parks.

Now, to clarify, I am not talking the cheap flops you get for $4 at Old Navy. I couldn't handle that. I wear Nike flip flops every day. They have really cushioned bottoms and the thong part is very comfy and doesn't cause blisters. My whole family actually wears these flops. My husband doesn't even take breaks during the trip to wear tennis shoes. He wears his flip flops every day. So far, none of us have regretted our choices. You have to wear what is comfortable on your feet every day at home in order to be comfortable at Disney. Most of all, remember that Disney is not the place to break in new shoes. Take old comfy shoes, and go ahead and pack some blister band aids and moleskin just in case. That heat and humidity can still cause blisters with all of that walking with even the most broken in pair of shoes.

Travel Tip Tuesday

I have mentioned before that you can actually save money on a Disney vacation, and have mentioned bringing your own food for breakfast. This post is to give you a few very specific examples of how this can work for you even if your room does not have a kitchenette.

As I have mentioned, we always stay at Value resorts, mainly at Pop Century. Those rooms do not have anything that helps you prepare foods. There are no in room coffee makers, no microwaves, and no mini fridges (unless you pay the $10 a day rental fee). However, it is still very possible to make breakfast every day. The food courts have almost anything you need to make a quick cheap breakfast.

Most food courts have toasters and/or toaster ovens. These allow for toasting of bagels, toast, english muffins, or pop tarts. We often take a package or two of bagels, a couple of bananas or apples, and a bag of donuts or muffins, and that is what we eat every day. I have also taken my own throw away bowls and spoons before with mini boxes of cereal. You can purchase small containers of milk in the food court and save quite a bit over the cost of buying a whole meal in the parks.

As for drinks, there are several options as well. I try to take a couple of Juicy Juice drink boxes and drink one each morning. They are warm, but at least I start the day with a little juice. Another choice is to purchase a refillable mug at the beginning of the trip. You can fill it up as many times as you want during your stay and the options with it seem endless....there are soda machines, coffee, tea machines, hot chocolate, or of course water. Juice is not an option however, unless you buy a bottle from the food court. If you want cold juice, bring your own boxes like I do, get ice from the machine in your refillable mug, and poor your juice box over the ice. One final option for drinks is to bring your own hot chocolate packets or Starbucks via packets and get hot water out of the coffee machine (you will need your own cup for this though).

While we are on the subject of beverages, if you are big coffee drinker, know that the coffee isn't the best in the world. There aren't a lot of options either. There is only one kind to choose from, and the creamers are just basic. If you are like me and enjoy flavored coffee, bring your own coffee creamer from home as well. If you are enjoy tea, they do have a tea machine that has a few different options. I remember something about Green Tea and something with lemon I believe (not a tea drinker myself, but I am sure most of you who are know the square tea machine I am talking about as I have seen it in a few restaurants in the area).

So, here are a few ways to save a few bucks on breakfast at Disney. I myself can't bring myself to spend a lot of money on breakfast since we don't like to eat big meals in the morning. We would rather have something basic, then be ready to eat a yummy lunch earlier in the day. Therefore, we bring our breakfast from home and save the money for bigger and better meals :)

Travel Tip Tuesday

To make the time go faster, find a fun way to help the kids countdown the days to the trip. We have used a few different methods before (as I have mentioned in a previous post), but our favorite way is the countdown chain. Each year around three months out, we pull out the construction paper and stapler and make a chain. The chain creates a visual for kids (and me) that helps show how we are slowly, but steadily, growing closer to our trip. I am always looking for a new way to make the time pass, so if anyone has a fun thing you do in your house, please share it!