After leaving EPCOT, Justin and I had one more park to visit, Hollywood Studios, and I must admit it was not a park I was looking forward to visiting. We had saved it for the end of our second night at Walt Disney World (parks), because they were offering long hours to resort guests. We also wanted to make sure we saw the Osborne Spectacle of Dancing Lights at night, the main reason we were visiting the park to begin with.
So, of course, as you do, we made a beeline for the main attraction.
It was as amazing and beautiful as you would expect it to be. Plus, it was so much fun seeing Disney staff getting into the Christmas spirit with a dance number to go with the twinkling lights. Even now, I can't watch this video without laughing!
Because I was so tired from being up and running from park to park all day, I took a minute to just sit and be, consumed with all that was going on around me. Justin went off to get a beer and I took (all of the) pictures. Or at least I took so many pictures that I filled up my SD card. Oops. (Who knew that was a possibility at Disney World!?!)
Finally, we decided to move on to the Tower of Terror.
I remember first riding the Tower of Terror when I was ten with my grandparents. (My brother was too young, and my parents were too scared. ha!) I hated it. Not like crying/upset hated it, just as in one time was more than enough for me. BUT Justin had never ridden it, so I conceded and gave the ride a second chance. Maybe, now that I was older, I would enjoy it more?
Except no. It's a very well-designed, well-thought out ride, but still no. I'd ride it again, but it will never be my first choice.
Then, I decided to give the Rock 'n' Roller Coaster a whirl. 😀 I was deathly afraid. Upside down? In the dark? But I had given Expedition Everest (in Animal Kingdom) and Space Mountain (in Magic Kingdom) a try, so why not give this one a shot? The teen girl and her sister in front of us noticed that I was afraid and gave me a tip: keep your head back the entire time and you'll be fine. I did that, and between the amazingness that is Aerosmith and her tip, not only did I survive but I loved it! I may strongly dislike Hollywood Studios as a park, but that one ride will always have me coming back for more! (And I thought I hated roller coasters!)
Before we left the park, we took in the The Great Movie Ride, which is a great "summary" ride for Hollywood Studios. It's a ride/show combination. As a tour guide shows you around and takes you on a tour of old Hollywood Studio sets, a surprise visitor interrupts the ride and makes your tour all the more exciting. It was fun, different, and one of the last rides open for the night.
Ultimately, if you are going to Hollywood Studios, I recommend arriving early to see all of the actual shows (which Hollywood Studios is known for) that they offer including the Indiana Jones Spectacular and the Muppet Show. Unfortunately, some of my favorite aspects of the park (Animation Studios, Osborne Dancing Lights) are no longer available, but luckily, they have brought in a whole new Star Wars area as a replacement that should, hopefully, make the park altogether more appealing. (It needed something.)
Hollywood Studios is where you go if you are a movie or Hollywood aficionado … and, now, if you have a love for all things Star Wars.
Now that you've read about all four parks and Walt Disney Springs during my #4Parks2Days series, where would you go if you went to Orlando for a visit? Would you make a point to visit during a festival or holiday season?
Experiencing the International Food and Wine Festival at EPCOT was a dream come true. It combined my favorite park with the amazing world-sourced decadent foods that the Disney parks are known to serve. (Though getting the above picture proved to be a challenge with all of the visitors.)
First, upon our return to EPCOT, Justin and I took advantage of the rides we had as of yet gotten to do: Test Track, Ellen's Energy Adventure (super dated!), Journey into Imagination with Figment (a regret), Living With the Land, and The Sea with Nemo and Friends (another regret). Clearly, it was time for us to move on beyond the rides…
Before venturing any further, we took some time to walk through the Innovations Pavilions where a Ghiradelli exhibit awaited us called From Bean to Bar.
The exhibit itself was a bit boring, but we did love seeing the amazing chocolate sculptures on display.
Isn't that detail amazing?
We ultimately decided against purchasing any Ghirardelli treats to take on the run, but we did enjoy some chocolate bars they were giving out for free!
… Then it was on to lunch. We decided to hit up all of the pavilions/countries we had missed during our last visit to EPCOT.
Just to give you an idea of what we sampled during the 2016 food and wine fest–
Italy: + Pennette alla Parmigiana: Baked Ziti and Chicken Parmigiana, Tomato Sauce, Mozzarella and Parmesan Cheese
Morocco: + Kefta Pocket: Seasoned Ground Beef in a Pita Pocket
It was so much fun exploring and tasting the different countries! Plus, EPCOT offers "extra" specialty foods and countries during the International Food and Wine Fest that they don't showcase during the rest of the year (like the Chocolate Studio). Of course the EPCOT Food and Wine Festival is more than just pavilions though!
They also offer classes taught by world-renowned chefs that include culinary demonstrations (how to make certain foods), beverage seminars and tastings, history of food classes, and much more! Then, if you still haven't reached your fill, consider participating in a specialty dining event like a Parisian breakfast or a multi-course meal. During the EPCOT International Food and Wine Festival, it is far easier to run out of money than it is to run out of things to do. Prepare and save if you intend on going.
A few more tips:
+ Arrive HUNGRY.
+ Not just kind-of sort-of hungry, but STARVING. 😉
+ Use gift cards to control your spending and make the purchase of foods/drinks quick and easy!
+ Pick up an EPCOT passport to mark the foods you try at each location.
+ Get your hands on a list of foods available during the Food and Wine Fest, so that you can mark what you want to try and have room in your stomach to try them! 😀
What types of foods would you expect or hope to find at an international festival like this? Are there certain classes you would anticipate seeing? Or specific celebrity or chef appearances that would make the EPCOT Food and Wine Festival a must-do for you? … What do you think of those very intricately designed chocolate sculptures by Ghirardelli?
Before we could begin our day, Justin and I had plans to meet up with his sister and her new husband for breakfast just outside of the Orlando area at a place called Keke's. Then, we dropped off our rental car and had the shuttle driver take us to the Contemporary Resort where we boarded the monorail for Magic Kingdom. It was my first time in the Contemporary Resort and my first time on the monorail, so the experience was a bit of a treat. :)
We finally arrived to the Magic Kingdom around 10am. The park was already crowded since it had opened as early as 8am! Our first stop – the Seven Dwarfs Mine Train, which put us right in the middle of FantasyLand. As we waited the hour+ to board our ride, Justin had me mark all of the rides I wanted to go on. This ended up working out to our advantage, because there was never a question of where we were going next or what we were doing. With a combination of the map as our guide and using the estimated line times that are listed in the Disney app, we were able to form a plan and work around that. We scheduled fast passes for the Haunted Mansion and Tomorrowland Speedway, neither of which were needed … and somehow managed to get in the fastpass line for It's A Small World without realizing it? Either way, it cut down on our wait time and we were on our boat within minutes.
Here are the rides I recommended to Justin:
AdventureLand –
+ Pirates of the Caribbean
FrontierLand –
+ Splash Mountain (which we ended up not doing)
+ Big Thunder Mountain Railroad
Liberty Square –
+ Haunted Mansion
FantasyLand –
+ It's A Small World
+ Seven Dwarfs Mine Train
TomorrowLand –
+ Tomorrowland Speedway
+ Space Mountain
+ Tomorrowland Transit Authority PeopleMover
+ Carousel of Progress
+ Buzz Lightyear Space Ranger Spin (we ended up skipping)
Before we left the park, we ate a quick lunch at Cosmic Ray's Starlight Café (in TomorrowLand), stopped by the Swiss Family Treehouse (in AdventureLand to get an overhead view of the Magic Kingdom), and checked out the end of the daily Christmas parade as we followed Mr. and Mrs. Mouse to the park exit.
There were definitely a few things we didn't get to do that I would recommend to future park visitors, especially families with children.
+ Be sure to check out the night time parade. The lights and fireworks at the Magic Kingdom are amazing! And I hear they recently added snow to make "Cinderella's castle" into "Elsa's ice castle". When we were there, the park was hosting Mickey's Very Merry Christmas Party, and we didn't want to pay the extra cost to see the fireworks that night. (Though staying late in the park with less crowds is always a perk!)
+ Be Our Guest in FantasyLand is a very well known and popular restaurant. If you plan to dine there, book asap before your trip to Disney World!
+ Mad Tea Party in FantasyLand is also a well-known ride. I've never been on for fear of getting sick.
+ If you can't get reservations for Be Our Guest, you might could try for Cinderella's Royal Table or the Crystal Palace. Cinderella's Royal Table (FantasyLand) offers a similar dining experience to Be Our Guest and provides the opportunity to meet Cinderella! The Crystal Palace (Main Street, USA) is another character dining experience within the park. Great fun for little ones!
+ Grab a Frozen Dole Whip (like the ones they sell in Hawaii!) from Aloha Isle in AdventureLand!
+ I hear the Princess Fairytale Hall is quite popular with young girls. If a meet and greet with Elsa is necessary, this is the place you should go.
+ For other characters, keep your eyes peeled! You never know when you might spot one out making the rounds! :)
+ There are also plenty of shows in the park that will appeal to children, none of which I can recommend since it's been so many years since I last saw one.
While it took my husband and I a good five hours to explore the park, it could easily take a family a few days to cover the same amount of territory. Do not be surprised to find rows and rows of stroller parking. And, of course, where there are strollers, there are angry, pushy parents who bite at your heels with their child's stroller pushing you along through the park, encouraging you to get out of their way. (Totally your choice. Many parents and children at Walt Disney World feel entitled, so you may have to fight for your space in line/right to walk/whatever. And the parent's will all use the excuse "But so-and-so is just a child…" Yeah, well why aren't you being a parent? Argh!)
Pro-Tip: Don't let pushy parents and kids spoil your time at Disney World. Choose your battles. And don't expect Disney Park employees to do anything.
Overall Justin and I had a great time exploring what I had deemed to be a "kid's park". The details that went in the design of the Magic Kingdom never ceases to amaze. Of course, neither do the crowds. ;)
A few more tips before you go:
+ If you want to see the Christmas parade (the one that airs "live" on tv on Christmas Day), be warned that it does not actually happen on Christmas Day. It occurs sometime in November. (I'm not sure how you would find out exactly when it will happen aside from being friendly with park staff.)
+ In the months from October to December, Magic Kingdom hosts a variety of parties, including Mickey's Not-So-Scary Halloween Party and Mickey's Very Merry Christmas Party. Both events, when they occur, cost extra and mean that the park will close early to non-party-guests. (My guess is that they will scan your wristband after the park closes to the public before you are allowed to ride on rides to make sure you are one of the "allowed" people.) Check the web to see when these parties occur to make sure you aren't paying too much for a shortened day at Magic Kingdom. OR buy hopper passes so that you can visit another park when Magic Kingdom closes for the night.
+ The daytime parades and nighttime firework shows attract a lot of Disney visitors. If you want to see either, find a spot for watching at least an hour before start time. (The earlier the better!) If you aren't interested in seeing the parade/fireworks, make a beeline for the busiest rides, where you'll find shorter lines. This is how you can turn a two hour wait time for Pirates of the Caribbean into a 15 minute wait time!
If you've been to the Magic Kingdom, are there any tips I'm forgetting? If you haven't been, would you consider making your first visit during the holiday season?
In August of 2015, I had just returned from a family reunion in Boston and my car was giving me trouble – making me unreliable for work. I had pushed my Sebring as far as it would go (for me) and we ended up buying me a Mazda after I was late to work for the third time in a month. Needless to say, my original plans for spending a long weekend in Florida for the wedding of a friend weren't looking too appealing. Going to Disney World is always appealing, but asking for the time off? That's another story… So I decided to change things up. I decided to fly down Thursday night and then stay in Florida through Monday morning that way I would only miss one day of work. This would work with the Port Orleans hotel stay I had booked in January and keep me looking reliable for the family I was babysitting for. I considered just adding a day on at the Port Orleans, but my hesitant side kept waiting to book thinking maybe I could find a better price and cancel the Port Orleans reservation… But no, that never happened. I was worried something in the system would get screwed up and then I would end up having to pay for the nights at Port Orleans plus whatever other hotel I booked at. I guess that's the downside of going through a third party site (Expedia) rather than booking with the hotel directly? Anyway, Port Orleans was full for Sunday night by the time that I went to book it, so I had to find another hotel… Coronado Springs.
Honestly, I was so busy trying to plan a European vacation and get over my fears that I can't remember researching Coronado Springs. All I remember is that I didn't want to stay at anything too "kiddie". All-Star Resort was out and so was Art of Animation. A number of Disney hotel rooms were upwards of $300 a night, a number I wasn't exactly thrilled to be paying. Then I found Coronado Springs. At around $200 a night, I agreed to get the Disney Visa to save an additional $100 on the hotel stay after spending $500 on the card. Easy peasy when the cost of the room is almost half of the total spend needed! (Of course they fail to mention the card costs $50, so really you are only $50 toward the hotel cost, but still… Fifty is fifty that I will happily take. Plus, I got a credit card with the Disney castle on it!)
After booking Coronado Springs, I was basically in constant contact with Disney all the way up until our trip. I had to make sure we had rides to and from the airport with both hotels and figure out how to connect both hotels to my account, etc… It was kind of crazy. Basically, if you book a Disney hotel through a third party website, as soon as you get an account set up on the Disney site (which you should do!), call Disney to get your hotel reservation added to your account. They should be able to look you up with your name and reservation number. (The reservation number for Disney may be different than what you are seeing. Be sure to write down the number while you have them on the phone so that if you run into trouble adding the stay to your account, you have easy access to it without calling them again.)
Anyway, my talks with Disney representatives indicated that if we left our luggage packed and ready to go in our hotel room at Port Orleans Riverside, it would be moved, while we were enjoying our time at Disney World, to our hotel room at Coronado Springs.
Because Justin and I had rented a car and decided to visit with Justin's sister (who was living near Orlando at the time), Justin and I opted to move our luggage ourselves to Coronado Springs. We packed up and checked out from Port Orleans Riverside shortly before 7AM, ate breakfast with my delightful sister-in-law, then took our luggage to Coronado Springs for check-in at around 9AM. Of course, our room wasn't ready, so they held our luggage while we went to party it up at Disney World. Unfortunately, though, everything at Coronado Springs took forever – checking in and then the line to have our luggage held. Since I had wanted to arrive at Magic Kingdom at 9AM, every time we had to wait in line (and even when breakfast took longer than expected!) was killing me. I was feeling very antsy and ready to get going since I knew we had very little time to get 2 parks in for the day!
Finally, everything was handled at Coronado Springs. Justin and I hopped into our rental car and made our way to the parks. I assumed this was going to be a short day… (It wasn't.)
The Lobby, Checking In (a second time), and Maintenance
When we checked in earlier in the day, we were told that our luggage would be taken from storage to our room while we played at the parks all day. We would get a notification on our phone as to which room to go to and we'd be able to use our magic band to enter and go straight to bed! Nice, right? Only that didn't happen…
As the day went by, Justin and I hopped from park to park spending time at Magic Kingdom, EPCOT, and Hollywood Studios. Hollywood Studios was staying open late that night which meant I got to ride, for my first time ever(!!!) on the Aerosmith Roller Coaster (Best ride ever!) and Justin got to do Tower of Terror (worst ride ever imho). It was fun despite the impending rain … until we returned to our hotel at midnight.
Let me first begin by saying that the lobby for this hotel is lovely. Ever seen the 1944 cartoon The Three Caballeros?
Think that.
Spanish but in a very cartoon beyond reality kind of way. Y'know … typical Disney style. (Do you know? Take my word for it, if you don't. Disney is very extravagant and takes things pretty far in an attempt to get you to believe in the impossible.) There is a fountain in the front entrance, everyone is dressed in old style Spanish costumes, and the set up is just … fun (but easy to clean). It's not at all like a comforting Hilton with plush couches and beautiful chandeliers.
So, Justin and I were seeing the tile and bright colors in the lobby when we went to the front desk to figure out what room we were in and why we hadn't been notified. After being on your feet all day, at midnight with a 9AM flight, all you really want to do is go to sleep. The staff at the front desk apologized for not having sent us a message, then gave us a room. She said we could grab our luggage from the storage facility and take it ourselves or we could have it delivered. I opted to have it delivered.
That's when we left the lobby and walked toward our room, five buildings away. It was only about a ten-minute walk, but it felt like a few miles considering how tired we were. Justin lifted his MagicBand to the door and … nothing. The door wouldn't unlock. Our phone batteries were close to death, but even when I attempted to call the front desk, I was informed that "office hours were closed". We had to walk the 10 minutes back. The front desk then confirmed our MagicBands were working and didn't believe Justin when he said we weren't receiving any feedback at all from the door scanner. I can't remember if we walked back and forth a second time, but I do remember that we finally ended up waiting on the luggage guy to go with us. He drove us to our room on his golf cart and tried to use our MagicBands to get in. Nothing happened. (Again.) Then he tried his key. Nothing. He called maintenance. At this point, we were nearing 1AM. The manager came and tried her key. (If the scanner doesn't work for one key, what makes you think it will work with another?) Then she used her real key. (FINALLY!) We got into the room. We thanked her, told her we didn't need the door fixed tonight, and wished her a good night. It was time for bed…
But… just as Justin got in the shower I heard a knock on the door. Maintenance wanted to fix the door. Arg. It was like … "you really want to fix the door while someone is in the shower? Seriously?" But I let him in; he fixed it quickly and was gone. Then it was seriously time for bed. No ifs, ands, or buts.
Interior decorations were very simple at the Coronado Springs (very similar to Port Orleans Riverside). The one nice bit was that, rather than a curtain like at Port Orleans Riverside, Coronado Springs had a sliding wood wall between the beds and sink area, once again making it ideal for families with small children to get ready without waking them. Of course, you also have the Mickey-headed shampoo and soaps available to use.
I must say the view we received wasn't that great. There are definitely rooms with beautiful views on the property though. The hotel buildings go around a manmade lake and if you get just the right hotel room it's possible to see the sun rise over the lake in the morning (and worth the view if you can get yourself up in time to see it!). All we really saw from our room was a very minimal garden and other hotel buildings. It didn't matter for us though since we were going to bed late and getting up before the sun rose.
Justin and I didn't get to take advantage of the big restaurant on the resort (A delicious Spanish breakfast for the win? Except not. Maybe next time?), but we did get to enjoy some fantastic food from a small bakery in the lobby. Two croissants, some yogurt, a cup of coffee, and a lot of bad news on the television made our breakfast! (Florida was reporting a lot of shootings that morning. It was seriously the most depressing news I have ever seen. Does anything good ever happen in Florida?) The food was yummy though and for a decent price.
We had to be ready to go three hours before our flight since it takes the Disney bus system an hour to get to the airport. So … at early o'clock in the morning after viewing the sunrise over the lake and getting a delicious breakfast in the lobby, we checked out and boarded our bus. And waited and waited and waited… Transportation on Disney property is seriously slow. Eventually, we got to the airport though… And just like that, my first Disney trip in over 15 years was over! It was sad. :)
If you are going to Disney World, Coronado Springs is not a bad place to stay. Yes, it could be better and my experience there was pretty awful. There were no bugs though and we eventually got into our room to sleep. I didn't see any dirt on anything and while we did have to walk a ways to get to our room, that's going to be true of any Disney resort you stay at (especially during the summer!). The food at this resort was cheaper and better tasting than the food at Port Orleans Riverside. The view was about the same. (There you had a view of the romantic river; here you have a view of a lake.) The only complaint I really have (which knocked my review down to 2 stars) is that the staff did absolutely nothing despite everything that went wrong during this stay for us. An apology is fine, but don't you think they should have come with us when the key wasn't working the first time just to make sure we could get in? Or given us a special number to call in case we continued having problems? What about a discount or a free coffee? Anything really! $5 value or $100 value, I don't care. It would just have been nice if, rather than blaming us for their problem, they had recognized that there was a problem and tried to be more helpful than they were.
Will I go to Coronado Springs again? … That's a hard question. I'd love to review them again and try their food for real. I'd love to get a room with a view of the lake. But the problems we experienced and the way they dealt with those problems? That doesn't have me too excited about returning… Maybe I'll try the Animal Kingdom Lodge first; I hear you can get some awesome views of animals there! Or, like I said in my review of Port Orleans, I could try The Grand Floridian or Disney's Contemporary Resort.
Animal Kingdom Tree of Life
Your Turn
Given what I have shared in my review, would you be willing to try the Coronado Springs resort? Should I hold the problems I experienced against the hotel or give them another chance sometime in the future? What do you think?
While Justin and I definitely took advantage of some of these ideas when planning our trip to Disney World, I thought I would share a few tips I've read about in the time since we've gone to hopefully help you save more money than we did. Disney vacations are expensive and each little piece adds up quickly. It helps to know what you want and book as far in advance as possible. Maybe some of these tips will help you to have a free or very cheap visit to Disney in the future!
1. Get the Disney credit card.
After spending $500 on the card in the first 3 months, Justin and I received a $200 credit or the equivalent of one night in a hotel on Disney property. Because we were spending the $500 anyway, it was nice to see a return of 40%.
Make sure to look at what the card is offering before signing up though. Sometimes they offer Disney gift cards or less money for spending the same amount. I've heard reports of receiving a $50 Disney gift card in exchange for spending $500; is that worth it? I guess $50 in a Disney gift card is better than nothing, but there may be other credit cards that offer more. Be sure to check them out. Also, if you struggle to pay your credit card on time, I recommend skipping this option. Neither $200 cash or $50 in a gift card is worth going even more into debt!
2. Other credit cards might offer a better return on investment.
See the Sapphire. They are currently offering 3x the points for travel (through the end of this month), 2x the points on restaurants (and travel after December), and 50,000pts. when you sign up. On the website, they claim that the 50,000pts. is good for up to $675 in cash, but with the 1:1 transfer to hotel chains, you can easily get a lot more for your points than that! I recently found a 50% discount on a hotel if I book through Sapphire! How awesome is that?
The Venture is another great credit card. You receive 2x the points for any purchase and can redeem those points towards travel you've already done … or towards Amazon gift cards (for Christmas, yes?). You receive 40,000pts. for signing up which is equivalent to about $400 towards travel or Amazon, $200 towards other rewards (or straight cash back). This could easily cover 2 nights at a Disney hotel.
Two other cards that may be worth considering are the Chase Freedom and Discover It. Both offer 5% on varying categories throughout the year. Discover It provides options for rental car discounts with the cashback you earn ($20 for a $40 rental car coupon), and the Chase Freedom points can be transferred to a Sapphire account and be used in conjunction with those points. Currently both cards are offering a percentage back on Amazon purchases, but in the past they have provided a discount on retail stores, home improvement stores, grocery stores, and gas.
3. If, for example, you have a credit card that offers a percentage back at a specific store (like the grocery store Kroger), you can buy Disney gift cards at the store prior to your trip to Disney World for use on Disney property. There may be a difference between Disney store gift cards and Disney property gift cards, so make sure you do a bit of research and make an informed decision when purchasing.
Purchasing gift cards through Kroger when they run their 4x the fuel points promotion is a great way to save on gas.
4. Use Disney gift cards in the park.
In the moment it can be easy to just spend, spend, spend. If you have a gift card, you will always know exactly how much you've spent in the park. I don't recommend putting more on a gift card than you expect to spend though.
5. Get everything you need (including souvenirs) outside of the parks.
I promise, it feels like there is a "Disney tax" when you are in the parks. Everything practically doubles in price. You'll save yourself from a financial breakdown if you buy all of your needs outside of Disney property.
6. Speaking of which, eat outside of Disney property.
Yes, I understand that food inside the parks just tastes better. There's nothing quite like buying a beer from a guy with a German accent or learning about French wine from someone who actually speaks French inside EPCOT, but refrain. Unless, that's why you are going to Disney World in the first place. A drink that should only cost a $1 or so will easily run $3 in the park. And don't get me started on food…
7. If you are up for it, sleep outside of the parks as well.
Basically, if you learn anything from this post, it's that Disney makes everything more expensive. You can get great deals by going through companies like Costco. Many hotels, not on Disney property, will offer you a shuttle ride to Disney. Plus, if you stay at a chain, you can use points to stay there for free! Some chains come with perks like free breakfast, so you might be able to make up for lost time with the free food.
8. If you want to stay in the parks, consider booking with third party sites like Expedia, Orbitz, or TripAdvisor well in advance of your trip.
First of all, Disney hotels fill up fast. Second of all, prices go up for hotels as they fill and as events are scheduled. If you know, like I did, that you are attending an event on a specific date in the next year or so, go ahead and start looking for a hotel deal. Take advantage of coupons. (I used a $75 off $300 coupon with expedia to book a room at Disney last year at this time.) And before you book, compare with sites like Kayak or TripAdvisor. If you go through a portal, you may be able to get even more money back on your purchase. An additional 20% off after using a $75 off coupon? Heck yes! I'll take back all of the money they want to give me! (And even some they don't!)
Recently Amex offered money back for the purchase. Either way, you will save money by purchasing your tickets from there. BUT be careful. Don't purchase tickets from ebay or people on the street. You might be able to get some for free from hotel chains for sitting and listening to them attempt to sell you property. The hotel ones are cool (if you are willing to sit through a boring one hour presentation), but don't buy used tickets (or tickets that could have been used without you knowing it!). Disney tickets are non-transferable which means if your fingerprint (or theirs) has been scanned along with that ticket, your fingerprint won't work. You will have wasted money and will need a new ticket. Don't fall into that trap! Undercover tourist is licensed to carry Disney tickets and they provide discounts; use them!
So, are any of these tips helpful to you? Will you be planning a cheap trip to Disney in the future? Do you know of any other tips that I might should have included?
I hope you have enjoyed my series on Disney travel. Perhaps some of the information I have shared will be of use to you as you plan your magical Disney vacation. Stay tuned for my Disney hotel reviews of Port Orleans Riverside and Coronado Springs in the new year!
* I'm participating in Susannah Conway's December Reflections. Are you? Today's post was a response to #21 on the list "Numbers". :)
Just as your Disney planning and preparation is coming to an end, you will receive your Disney MagicBands. As we've talked about, these are no ordinary bracelets. Instead, these bracelets offer magical services like letting you into your Disney hotel, getting you on ridesfaster, acting as a ticket to get into your favorite parks, and allowing you to ride from your hotel to the airport (or vice versa) for free. In other words, MagicBands help you do everything!
Now, something worth noting: MagicBands are ugly.
Why would Disney offer something so ugly to it's park-goers who are spending hundreds of dollars to attend their parks?
I have a feeling you and I both know the answer to that one. It is the Disney corporation we're talking about here…
Disney sells MagicBands that are decorated for a premium at their store (and online)…
Or you can buy charms to upgrade your bands…
Reports suggest that they are highly likely to fall off even if you only wear them for one day, but what's $20 when you are at Disney World? Why not buy the same charms over and over again? $20 … $40 … $60 … $80. Being happy is what's important, right? Who cares if you don't have the money to pay the electric bill next month?
Well, for those of you who do care (or maybe just want to increase your child's anticipation for their trip), don't fret! Decorating those ugly magicbands doesn't have to cost you an arm and a leg! … Or next month's paycheck. There are, of course, companies that sell decals and stickers for your MagicBand that you can buy online, or you can make your own.
You heard me.
Make. your. own.
When Justin and I went, I kept it incredibly simply using duct tape. (It's the way we do things here in the south. Everything is fixed with duct tape!) And, if you online or at your local hobby or arts store, there are so many varieties now-a-days! I bought glittery blue and pink with polka dots, but you could buy literally anything!
Want zebra print? They've got it. Camo? It's there too. All you have to do is cut the tape to bracelet size and stick it on. I do recommend putting a sticker or something over the mickey head on the bracelet just so you know where to touch your band to get into the parks though…
Suppose you have more time than I did…
That really opens up your options.
You can take fingernail polish or paint to your band and decorate it in your favorite scene. Go crazy! These bands have a shelf life of 2 years, and if you go back to Disney and stay at a hotel, you'll get another. Might as well live it up and try whatever you want! If slow and steady handiwork isn't your thing, maybe consider going the sticker route and mod podging them down so they don't come off during your crazy park adventures! Or, if you have a silhouette cameo or other similar printer, you could put together a design and print it in the shape of the MagicBand. Or even just print on regular paper, cut it to size, and mod podge it on!
There are just so many options for decorating your MagicBand! You shouldn't have to go to Disney World looking like everyone else just because you can't afford the "Disney upgrade"…
I didn't. :)
Would you consider decorating your MagicBand before a Disney trip? ** * I'm participating in Susannah Conway's December Reflections. Are you? Today's post was a response to #8 on the list "Circles". :)
