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Friday Favorites - Best Disney World Websites

For today's Friday Favorites, I wanted to share with you some of my all time favorite Disney websites. I enjoy visiting these sites daily and they were my inspiration to create my own blog about my passion...Walt Disney World!

• www.touringplans.com I absolutely love this website! I have used it for years when planning my own Disney World vacations. This site has comprehensive information about all of the parks, hotels and restaurants. It also includes a crowd calendar, blog and a great tool to create your own daily touring plans.
• www.disneytouristblog.com Another one of my all time favorite websites! The author of this site is an amazing photographer and posts tons of beautiful photos. This site also has lots of great information written with a terrific sense of humor and a section of Trip Reports that will make you feel like you are right there along with him.
• www.disneyfoodblog.com For all of you foodies out there, this website is for you! This site features everything you ever wanted to know about eating in Disney World including menus, reviews and amazing photos!
• www.mousesavers.com Do you want to save some money? If so, check out this website! This site has ideas, information and codes for getting discounts during your Disney World vacation.
• www.allears.net This is another great website! This site includes lots of information, reviews and photos about everything in Disney World. They also have a great weekly newsletter that you can subscribe to. I am always so excited when it comes to my email each week!
• www.wdwinfo.com Another amazing website to get all of your Disney questions answered! This site covers everything Disney and has an amazing Forums section. If you have a question, it has probably been asked and answered there.

I hope you will enjoy all of these websites as much as I do and find them useful in planning your magical Walt Disney World vacation!

What about you? Do you have any favorite Disney websites? Please leave a comment below!

Disney World Tips & Tricks: Have A Plan

There are a lot of tips and tricks that will help you make the most out of your Disney World vacation, but I believe the most valuable tip is to have a plan. That, of course, is just my opinion and I am a planner by nature, but I can't imagine visiting Disney World with no plan whatsoever. Let's say for example you were to visit New York City for your family vacation. Would you arrive with no idea what sights to see, no dining reservations, no show tickets? Of course not! Well, Disney World is twice the size of Manhattan! Now if you are one of those people who prefers to wing it then I admire you, but I get shaky just thinking about it! Just how detailed you want to be with your plan is up to you. I create a spreadsheet that is an outline of where I'm going to go, where I'm going to eat and what I'm going to see. Compulsive, right? I know, but here's how I put it together!

• First, I make a column for each day I'm going to be on vacation and label them.
• Next, in each column I enter the park hours for the four theme parks (Magic Kingdom, Epcot, Hollywood Studios and Animal Kingdom) for that day. I also note the days I can take advantage of Extra Magic Hours with an asterisk (*). Click this park hours link to find the times that the parks will be open during your vacation.
• Then I create a row for each unit of time that I would naturally divide my day into. For my family, we have breakfast, morning, lunch, afternoon, dinner and evening. Your family might divide your days differently. For example, you may need a unit for nap time if you have young children.
• Now the real fun begins! I start filling in the units of time with where I will be visiting each day, what restaurants I will be eating at, and any other miscellaneous activities that I have planned.
• Under each column I have created, I make a list of the attractions that my family and I would like to see that day.

Here's a sample of a few days out of my trip from last summer.

	Saturday	Sunday	Monday
MK Hours	9am-11pm	9am-1am*	9am-11pm
EP Hours	9am-9pm	9am-9pm	9am-9pm
HS Hours	8am-10pm	8am-10pm	9am-12am*
AK Hours	8am*-7pm	9am-7pm	8am*-8pm
Breakfast	Boma	Starring Rolls	Kiosk
Morning	MK - Frontier/Adventure	Hollywood Studios	Epcot - Future World
Lunch	Pecos Bills	Sci-Fi Dine In	Sunshine Seasons
Afternoon	Break	Break	Break
Dinner	Beaches N Cream	Earl of Sandwich	The Plaza
Evening	Epcot - World Showcase	Downtown Disney	MK - Tomorrowland
	Magic Carpets	Toy Story	Test Track
	Jungle Cruise	Star Tours	Nemo
	Pirates	Rockin Roller Coast	Imagination
	Big Thunder	Great Movie Ride	Living with the Land
	Splash Mountain	Tower of Terror	Soarin
	Country Bear Jamboree		Universe of Energy
	Enchanted Tiki Birds		Spaceship Earth
	Mexico Ride		Buzz Lightyear
	Norway Ride		Tomorrowland Speedway
			Space Mountain
			Carousel of Progress
			Monsters Inc
			Peoplemover

This is just my general outline that I use during my first stages of planning. I'm currently working on the one that I will use for my trip this summer. Each day I spend a little time making dining reservations, checking with my family to find out about their top priorities and organizing my spreadsheet. When I get to about 90 days out from my trip, I begin creating a detailed daily plan that I will carry to the parks with me. My daily plan will include dining confirmation numbers, the best order to see the rides to minimize wait times and fastpasses.

So this is the way I plan my Disney World vacations. Now it is up to you how you want to create your plan. You might want to be as detailed as me or just choose a park for each day and a few attractions you want to see there. My best tip would be to have some sort of plan..elaborate or simple. Walt Disney World is a huge place and you definitely want to make the most of your time there!

What about you? Do you have a plan when you visit Disney World? How do you go about creating it? Please leave a comment below!

Disney World Planning Basics: Where To Stay - Walt Disney World Resort Hotels

Walt Disney World has a wide variety of resort hotels to fit any budget or taste. They are divided into several categories based on cost and amenities.

1. Value Resorts There are five resorts that fall into the value category. They are Disney's All-Star Movies Resort, Disney's All-Star Music Resort, Disney's All-Star Sports Resort, Disney's Pop Century Resort and Disney's Art of Animation Resort. These resorts are the least expensive in the Disney family starting at around $85 per night. They offer food courts, gift shops, swimming pools and arcades. The rooms in this category are small, but clean and nicely themed. The atmosphere of these resorts is loud and energetic. You will generally find a lot of young families staying here.
2. Moderate Resorts The resorts that are considered in the moderate category are Disney's Caribbean Beach Resort, Disney's Coronado Springs Resort, Disney's Fort Wilderness Resort Cabins, Disney's Port Orleans - French Quarter and Disney's Port Orleans - Riverside. These resorts are next up in the line of pricing starting at around $162 per night. They offer counter service as well as table service dining, gift shops, swimming pools with slides, arcades and lounges. The rooms in this category are a little larger than the value rooms and nicely themed. The atmosphere of these resorts is slightly more relaxed than the value resorts, but is still very appropriate for families, couples and individuals.
3. Deluxe Resort Hotels Next up are the deluxe resort hotels which include Disney's Animal Kingdom Lodge, Disney's Beach Club Resort, Disney's Boardwalk Inn, Disney's Contemporary Resort, Disney's Grand Floridian Resort & Spa, Disney's Polynesian Resort, Disney's Wilderness Lodge and Disney's Yacht Club Resort. These resorts start at around $284 per night. These amazing resorts offer incredible amenities including counter service as well as table service dining, bars and lounges, room service, gift shops, swimming pools with slides and hot tubs, arcades and other on-site recreation such as boat rentals and beach access. The rooms in this category are even larger than the moderate rooms and are sophisticatedly decorated. The atmosphere of these resorts is more elegant and relaxed, but still very family friendly.
4. Deluxe Villas The resorts in the deluxe villa category are Bay Lake Tower at Disney's Contemporary Resort, Disney's Animal Kingdom Villas - Jambo House, Disney's Animal Kingdom Villas - Kidani Village, Disney's Beach Club Villas, Disney's Boardwalk Villas, Disney's Old Key West Resort, Disney's Saratoga Springs Resort & Spa, The Villas at Disney's Grand Floridian Resort & Spa and The Villas at Disney's Wilderness Lodge. These resorts start at around $318 per night. These top-of-the-line resorts offer exceptional amenities including counter service as well as fine dining, bars and lounges, room service, shopping, swimming pools with slides and hot tubs, arcades and other on-site recreation and features. The rooms in this category are by far the largest and feel like a home away from home. They offer kitchens, living spaces, bedrooms and multiple bathrooms. The atmosphere of these resorts is warm, inviting and comfortable...a wonderful place for large families.
5. Other On Property Options There are two other deluxe resort category hotels located on Disney property near EPCOT that are not operated by Disney. They are the Walt Disney World Dolphin Hotel and the Walt Disney World Swan Hotel. Disney also offers campsites at Disney's Fort Wilderness Resort.

My Thoughts: As a former sales and catering employee of Marriott Hotels & Resorts, I can be picky about the hotels where I stay. What I really enjoy about Walt Disney World is that no matter your budget, there is a Disney resort hotel for you. Over the years I have stayed in every category of hotel (and the campground) and I have enjoyed them all. Each resort hotel is unique and special in its own way. From the value resorts through the deluxe villas, the theming and attention to detail is amazing. The real difference in cost is based on the size of room, hotel amenities and location.

No matter what category of Walt Disney World resort hotel you choose, you can't wrong. You are in Disney World after all!

More Information: For more details about each resort, please click this. For booking information and pricing, please click here.

What about you? Where do you like to stay when visiting Walt Disney World? How do you decide?

Please leave a comment below!

Tuesday Trivia - Pluto's Original Name

Before appearing as Pluto, Mickey's Pet in The Moose Hunt (1931), this pup appeared as Minnie's dog going by what name?

Please check the comments section for the answer!

Disney World Planning Basics: Where To Stay - On or Off Property

Now that you have decided to visit Disney World, another decision to make is whether to stay at a Walt Disney World resort hotel or another hotel off property. Here are some things to keep in mind when considering your options.

1. Budget Disney World has hotels for every budget now ranging from about $100 per night to over $1000 per night. The size of your room and the amenities that the hotel offers greatly influences the price. Rooms that run about $100 per night are small, averaging under 300 square feet. The most expensive rooms can actually have three bedrooms, multiple bathrooms and sleep up to twelve people. Hotels off property are generally less expensive for the amount of space that you get.
2. Transportation If you stay at a Disney World resort hotel, you have will access to free transportation throughout the property. Is that important to you or do you already have your own car?
3. Your Plans Do you plan to visit other locations beyond Disney World during your vacation? Will you be going to Universal Studios, Sea World, Kennedy Space Center or the beach?
4. Convenience Do you plan to get the parks when they first open and stay until closing? Do you need to return to your room during the day for your kids (or you) to take a nap? If so, you may find staying on property much more convenient.
5. Frequency of Visits Is this a once-in-a-lifetime trip or do you visit Disney World frequently? If you might not return, you may want to splurge and spend a little extra to stay at a Disney World resort hotel.
6. First Time Visitor or from outside the United States If you have never visited Disney World before or are visiting from outside of the United States, you may find that you feel a lot more comfortable staying at a Disney World resort hotel. That way you are not having to deal with transportation and other potential issues in an unfamiliar place.

My Thoughts: As a huge Disney fan, I love to stay on property at an official Disney World resort hotel. Not only do I love the convenience of the transportation and the close proximity to the parks, you just can't beat the Disney theming! When I visit Walt Disney World, I really want to feel like I am in another world...a true destination vacation.

What about you? Do you prefer to stay on or off property?

How do you decide? Please leave a comment below!

Disney World Planning Basics: How To Get There

Now that you have decided to go to Disney World, when to go and how long to stay, next up is how to get there. Sometimes it is obvious to drive if you only live a few hours away or to fly if you are visiting from the United Kingdom, but what about everyone else that could do either? Here are some things to consider when making your decision.

1. Cost For most of us, cost is a major factor in whether we drive or fly to Disney World. When thinking about the cost of driving, be sure to include not only the cost of gasoline, but also dining and a possible hotel stay along the way. When reviewing the cost of flying, don't forget to include airport parking, checked bag fees and possible rental car costs.
2. Time Another thing to consider is the time it will require to fly or drive. Once you include the time it takes to get to the airport, the two hours they want you there prior to your flight, the flight itself and the commute to Disney World, it could easily take seven plus hours to fly. Would the drive require less time?
3. Flexibility With driving, you are on your own schedule rather than at the mercy of the airlines. Is that important to you?
4. Kids Do you have small children that would go absolutely crazy having to ride in the car for a day or more? Or would they go nuts on the confined space of the plane?
5. Luggage Do you require a lot of luggage or equipment when you travel? Would it be difficult or expensive to take all of it on the plane? I remember taking trips to Disney World when my boys were young. We had tons of luggage along with two full size car seats, a portable crib and a double stroller. There was a lot juggling we had to do on the plane and through the airport!

My thoughts: Living in Colorado, it would take us three full days of driving just to get to Disney World, so for us it is an easy decision to fly. However, we do often take road trips with our kids. We use this rule of thumb for whether we drive or fly. If we can make the drive in about 10 hours or less, we drive otherwise we fly. We find that much more than 10 hours in the car is too long for our family. My husband prefers to drive if possible, because he likes the time flexibility and the freedom to take whatever luggage and gear he wants.

No matter whether you choose to drive or fly, you'll soon be arriving at the happiest place on earth...Disney World!!

What about you? Have you been to Disney World before? Do you normally drive or fly? How do you make the decision? Please leave a comment below! 

Disney World Planning Basics: How Long To Stay

Now that you have decided when to go, the next big question is how long to stay. If I could, I would live in Disney World, but until I win the lottery and convince my husband that snow is over rated, I have to settle for just visiting a couple times a year. When deciding how long you would like to stay, there are several things to consider.

1. Budget Obviously the longer you stay the more money it is going to cost, so you'll want to think about how much you have to spend.
2. What Do You Want To Do You'll also need to consider what you want to do on your trip. Disney World consists of four theme parks, two water parks, a shopping area, several resort hotels, golf courses, spas and many other things to see and do. You could easily stay for a month and not see and do everything. Think about your top priorities. The more you want to see, the longer you'll want to stay.
3. Your Pace What kind of pace do you want to keep on your vacation? Do you want to relax and take your time or do you want a fast-paced trip? The more relaxed you want to be, the more days you'll need to stay.
4. Your Stamina You can easily walk several miles per day touring Disney World. How many days in a row can you be active and on-the-go before burning out?
5. Will You Visit Other Places Outside Disney As much as I love Disney World, there are other things to see in and around the Orlando area. If you think that you want to visit Universal Studios, Sea World, Kennedy Space Center or the beach, be sure to add extra time.
6. When Will You Be Back If this is a once-in-a-lifetime trip, you will probably want it to be longer. If you plan on returning soon, you may not feel the need for as many days.

My Thoughts: After considering all of these things, most people find that a trip of about a week to ten days works well. That is the amount of time my family usually spends in Disney World during each of our trips. This amount of time will give you a good chance to see a lot of what Disney World has to offer, plus allow for some time for relaxation along the way.

No matter what length of trip you are able to take, any amount of time in Disney World is wonderful!

What about you? Have you been to Disney World before?

How long do you like to stay? Please leave a comment below!

Disney World Planning Basics: When To Visit

So you've made the exciting decision to go to Disney World! Now the next question is when to go. There are a lot of things to consider when deciding what is the right time of year for your family to visit.

1. Prior Commitments These could be work events like a conference or business trip and family events like weddings, birthdays, kid's sport seasons or the school year.
2. Weather Does the temperature or rain in Florida make a difference to your family? Historically, June, July, August and September are the hottest and wettest months of the year. The average high temperatures can reach well into the 90's and it is normal for Disney World to receive seven plus inches of rain each of these months. On the flip side, it can get very cold in Orlando during the winter months. I have been there in January when the high was only 40 degrees and our entire family had to buy coats! 
3. Disney World Events During the year, Disney World has several seasonal events that take place. In January, there is the Walt Disney World Marathon. During the spring months, Epcot hosts the International Flower & Garden Festival. In June, Hollywood Studios has Star Wars weekends. Then during the fall months, Epcot has the International Food & Wine Festival. There are also special parties during certain times of the year at the Magic Kingdom. During September and October, you can attend the Mickey's Not-So-Scary Halloween Party and in November and December, there is the Mickey's Very Merry Christmas Party. These are just a few of the many celebrations that Disney World has throughout the year. You may want to keep these dates in mind in order to attend or to avoid the extra crowds. For a complete list, check out Disney World's events.
4. Crowd Levels Although, Disney World is busy every day of the year, there are certain times that are more crowded than others. As you would expect, major holidays and any time kids are out of school will be the busiest. However, it can also be very busy during minor holidays like President's Day weekend and during the special seasonal events listed above. Typically it is least crowded when kids are just returning to school after their summer, winter and spring breaks. Great times to go when the crowds are the lowest are mid-January to the beginning of February (exceptions are Martin Luther King Jr. Day weekend and the Disney Marathon weekend), just after Labor Day until the beginning of October and the week after Thanksgiving until the week before Christmas.
5. Disney Hotel Pricing Another thing to consider if you are going to be staying at a Disney World resort is their pricing structure. As you can imagine, the hotel rooms are more expensive when the parks are busier. The pricing has several different levels. In order from most expensive to least they are: Holiday (all of them even minor ones), Peak (spring break and just before winter break), Summer, Regular, Fall and Value (least busy times of the year). You will also find that weekend nights are generally more expensive than week nights.

My Thoughts: For my family, the best times to travel to Disney World are during June and October. My kids are old enough that missing school is now difficult for them to make up, so we reserve our trips to when they are on break. We find that June is nice, because even though the crowds are starting to pick up, it isn't quite as hot as July or August. We are also very fortunate to live in a school district that has a fall break during the month of October. This is by far our favorite time of year to visit Disney World! The weather is still warm, the crowds are lighter and we can enjoy Epcot's International Food & Wine Festival plus the Mickey's Not-So-Scary Halloween Party in the Magic Kingdom!

There may seem like a lot of things to think about when deciding when to go to Disney World, but the most important thing to remember is that any time you go to Disney World will be a great time!

What about you? Have you been to Disney World before?

When is your favorite time of year to visit? Please leave a comment below!

Welcome to Disney World Enthusiast!

This blog will give you hints, tips and tricks to help plan a magical vacation to Walt Disney World! I have been traveling to Disney World for as long as I can remember and I hope to share with you lots of helpful information that I have learned over the years. This year I will be taking two trips to Disney World and a Disney cruise to Alaska. Along the way, I will share with you all the planning that goes into my vacations as well as trip reports once I return.
I hope you enjoy it!

If you have any questions that you would like me to answer,
please feel free to leave a comment below or send an email to thedisneyworldenthusiast@gmail.com. I would love to hear from you!