One Must Do at Walt Disney World

A guest visiting Disney World recently asked me, "What is the one thing we need to do during our Disney World vacation?" This question caught me off guard. I am so used to rattling off all of the things to do at Disney World. Picking just one thing at Disney World, did cause me to pause for a moment to think. The one thing that I decided was a must do at Disney World is a Character Dining Experience.

The Character Dining is an opportunity to enjoy breakfast, lunch or dinner with your favorite Disney Characters. The Characters vary from restaurant to restaurant, but can include the Winnie the Pooh Characters, Mickey Mouse, Chip and Dale, Pluto, Minnie Mouse, Lilo, Stitch, Mary Poppins, Goofy, Alice in Wonderland, or the Disney Princesses. A Character Dining experience is a chance to relax for an hour with your family to reconnect. It gives you the opportunity to meet your favorite Disney Characters without the crowds of the parks. You can even get pictures and autographs.

These Character meet and greets are usually some of the best memories you will enjoy over and over again from your vacation. In talking with our guests over the years, the only Disney World experience that is a favorite is the Character Dining. If you have any questions on Character Dining at Walt Disney World, contact our Disney Specialists with Destinations in Florida Travel.

Free Admission at Disney World - Birthday Review

We all celebrate special milestones in our lives! Are you visiting Disney for a graduation, a reunion, a honeymoon, an anniversary, or your birthday? This is the year to celebrate your special event at Disney World and Disneyland Parks with the What Will you Celebrate promotion. For this year, you get a special birthday present if you visit the Disney World or Disneyland Parks, on your birthday. You get into a Disney Park for free.

If you already have your tickets, you can still enjoy another special birthday present. You can choose a Disney Birthday Fun Card to go shopping at the parks or Downtown Disney or a special FastPass to use during your birthday. It is the ultimate birthday present, Disney style. One of our agents just celebrated her birthday at Magic Kingdom at Disney World, click here to watch her review of the free ticket promotion.

Disney's Coronado Springs Resort Room Rehab

Disney's newest Disney Moderate Resort recently went through a resort wide rehab. All of the curtains, wallpaper, beds, bedding, bathrooms, and furniture were completely updated in all of the rooms at Disney's Coronado Springs Resort. The rehab is completely finished and all of the rooms have been updated.

Disney's Coronado Springs Resort is themed after Southwest Americas and Mexico with colorful plazas, picturesque vistas, and even a Mayan pyramid. If you are looking for a fresh new room at Disney World and a spanish inspired resort, check out Disney's Coronado Springs Resort near Disney's Animal Kingdom Theme Park. For additional questions, contact our Disney Specialists at Destinations in Florida Travel.

Take a Ride on the Disney World Monorail

It is surprising to hear that most guests do not ride the monorail during a Disney World vacation. This is one of the "non-park attractions" that is a must do during a Disney World vacation. As my 5 year old says, "it's just cool!"

The Disney Monorail has two loops. One loop goes around the Magic Kingdom Resorts to Magic Kingdom Park and to the Ticket & Transportation Center. The other loop goes from the Ticket & Transportation Center to Epcot and back to Epcot. You can ride the monorail from Magic Kingdom around the Disney Resorts back to Magic Kingdom, but our favorite ride is from Epcot to the Ticket & Transportation Center back to Epcot. The ride from Epcot to the Ticket & Transportaton Center is a beautiful view of the Walt Disney World Resort. The exciting part of this monorail ride is back to Epcot from the Ticket & Transportation Center. The monorail will drive through Epcot, so you get a different look at Epcot from the sky. The narrator even talks a little bit about the Epcot attractions to give you some insider information on your ride.

You can catch the monorail right outside the gates of Epcot near the tram pickup. For the other monorail loop, you can catch the monorail outside Magic Kingdom to the right of the security check in. There is no charge for the ride. Take the kids and make it an adventure - ride the monorail!

For more information about riding the monorial or Disney Transportation, contact a Disney Specialist at Destinations in Florida Travel.

Most Romantic Restaurants at Disney World

Many of our couple guests are visiting Walt Disney World this weekend for the Valentine's Day Holiday. In the past week, we have had lots of questions about the best couple restaurants at Disney World. In this blogpost, we thought we would focus on some of the most romantic restaurants at the Walt Disney Resort.

Narcoossee's at Disney's Grand Floridian Resort & Spa - A quick monorail ride from Magic Kingdom Park is Narcoossee's Restaurant. This restaurant is a favorite for the atmosphere, food, and wine. The restaurant sits on the Seven Seas Lagoon with an incredible view of Cinderella's Castle and Magic Kingdom. You can even see the Wishes Fireworks over Magic Kingdom from this restaurant (for an extra special treat). Narcoossee's features some of the best menu items at Disney including steak and seafood. They also have a wide variety of wines to accompany your entree. This is a Signature Table Service Restaurant, so it is a little more expensive entree items. This is the perfect restaurant for a romantic dinner.

Chefs de France at Epcot - What is more romantic than a dinner in France? Well, dinner in France at Epcot. Some of the seating at this restaurant is under a glass patio, which is very romantic in the evening. Plus, with all of the servers speaking French you feel like you are right in the heart of Paris. The food is incredible featuring scallops, shrimp, lamb, pasta and more. After a delicious dinner, you can enjoy desserts, desserts, and more desserts. This restaurant features some of the best desserts at Disney World. You can enjoy a cordial or champagne with your dessert for a relaxing way to enjoy your romantic dinner. Chefs de France is located inside Epcot, so admission into this park is required for this meal.

San Angel Inn at Epcot - Another restaurant in Epcot makes our list of the most romantic restaurants at Disney called San Angel Inn. This restaurant is located inside the pyramid at Epcot. As soon as you walk into this restaurant, you will be transported to a little cafe in Mexico. The restaurant is dark with candles for lighting. San Angel Inn sits on the water where the ride floats by to add to the romantic setting. As you enjoy your dinner, you will hear strolling musicians in the marketplace. The menu includes roasted duck, beef tenderloin with beans, grilled chicken, and grilled mahi-mahi. This Mexican restaurant is a romantic way to enjoy your special evening.

Artist Point at Disney's Wilderness Lodge Resort - Another Disney Signature Table Service Restaurant makes our list of the most romantic restaurants at Disney World. Artist Point is located upstairs at Disney's Wilderness Lodge Resort. This restaurant has a romantic view of the waterfall, pool, and Bay Lake. You can even see the geiser go off during your dinner. The geiser goes off every hour. Artist Point is very romantic, but with a creative Northwest menu. You can try some unique menu items including king salmon, quail, and buffalo. This restaurant also has some incredible desserts including the popular Double Chocolate Cheesecake.

O'Hanas at Disney's Polynesian Resort - O'Hanas is one of our favorite favorite restaurants at Walt Disney World for dinner. This is a popular restaurant for couples and families. For this restaurant, we suggest a later dinner (7:30 PM or later) for couples. After this time, this restaurant does settle down and can be a romantic setting for a couples dinner. The restaurant sits on the top floor of the Ceremonial House at Disney's Polynesian Resort with an incredible view of the resort, the Seven Seas Lagoon, and Cinderella's Castle. If you plan a later dinner, you may even get to see the Wishes Fireworks over Cinderella's Castle from this resort. The view is incredible! O'Hanas is also known for the amazing dinner including fire grilled pork, shrimp, steak, and turkey. These entrees are brought to you on skewers from the servers. At your table you will also enjoy veggies, wings, bread, and dumplings served family style. This restaurant is always a top restaurant for couples visiting Disney World.

These restaurants are some of our favorite romantic restaurants at Walt Disney World. Be sure to book your reservations early. Most of the popular restaurants at Disney World do book up prior to your arrival. You can contact your Disney Specialist with Destinations in Florida Travel for assistance in booking your restaurants. If you booked your vacation on your own, contact MouseDine for dining assistance.

If you liked this review, check out the Celebrations Magazine. One of our Disney Specialist, writes a column on Disney World Restaurant Reviews. The next issue will feature an article about Chefs de France.

5 Orlando Theme Parks - One Great Price

This past Saturday and Sunday were huge days in Orlando for special events. Sea World kicked off the Bud & BBQ and Universal Studios started the Mardi Gras event at Universal Orlando. With all of the fun events and parks in Orlando, I started thinking about the incredible benefits of the Orlando FlexTicket. The Orlando FlexTicket is one ticket that allows you admission into 5 of the best theme parks in Orlando for one great price. The Orlando FlexTicket allows you unlimited admission for 14 consecutive days to Universal Studios, Islands of Adventure, Sea World Orlando, Wet n Wild, and Aquatica. Most guests do not spend 2 weeks in Orlando, but even for a week this ticket more than pays for itself! Here are some of my favorites about this ticket:

1. You don't have to worry about packing and carrying around different tickets - just one ticket for your whole vacation

2. With this ticket you only pay for parking once a day. If you decide to hit Sea World in the morning and then stop by Universal Studios for the evening hours, you only pay for parking at Sea World. The parking at Universal Studios is free.

3. You get admission into the newest and best waterpark, Aquatica!

4. You can add an extra visit to Busch Gardens Tampa and shuttle to this park is included for free

5. Get the best out of Orlando Parks at one great price!

The Orlando FlexTicket is a great ticket at a wonderful price for an Orlando vacation. Be sure to pre-order your tickets. You can save a little extra money on the Orlando FlexTicket, when you purchase it before your vacation to Orlando. Click here for prices (Adult and Child) on the Orlando FlexTicket.

Get a Free Personal Disney World Assistant

Just this weekend, I purchase a $15 personal organizer from Magic Kingdom called Mickey's Personal Disney Assistant. This fun little gadget helps with FastPasses, Character Autograph locations, scavenger hunt, and more. As I was looking over this item, I realized that is exactly what our agents do at Destinations in Florida Travel. We are personal Disney World Assistants! Instead of $15, we are FREE!

Unlike typical travel agencies, we help you book your trip and then that is where our services start. We watch for future discounts (that may pop up after you have booked), help with restaurant suggestions, book dining reservations, schedule spa treatments, make fun suggestions for your days at the Parks, and so much more. Just the other day, one my guests visited Disney World. It was a last minute trip for her family and they really wanted a dinner at Chef Mickey's at Disney's Contemporary Resort. Unfortunately, at the time of booking her package, this restaurant was booked up. I told her that I would watch for any cancellations while they were at Disney World. The 2nd night of her vacation a cancellation came available for Chef Mickeys. I booked it and sent her a text with the confirmation details. Her family was thrilled that they got to eat at this special restaurant with Mickey Mouse.

These are the little extra services we provide to all of our guests. It can be something as small as texting a dining reservation to a guest at Disney World to helping a guest coordinate the perfect location to propose. Our agents get excited to help with all of the extra details for a Disney World vacation. When you really think about all of the help you get to save you money and time on your trip to Disney, it is amazing that the services all of our agents provide are actually FREE. Get your free personal Disney World Assistant TODAY!

Disney Cruise in 3-D

Disney Cruise Line® is revolutionizing movie entertainment at sea with the debut of Disney Digital 3-D, a one-of-a-kind cinematic experience premiering exclusively onboard the Disney Magic® and the Disney Wonder®. Be delighted as the first-run Disney films leap off the silver screen and take on a whole new dimension thanks to Disney Digital 3-D technology being added to both the Walt Disney Theatre and Buena Vista Theatre.

Disney Cruise Line is the first cruise line to introduce 3-D entertainment onboard its ships. Leveraging this new technology, Disney Cruise Line will take 3-D into uncharted waters in early 2009 with the debut of an exciting new cinematic experience that combines Disney Digital 3-D films with in-theatre effects.

Tridimensional images will combine with lasers, fog, streamers and special lighting effects to create an immersive movie-going experience like no other at sea. During these once-a-cruise special engagements, you will feel the rush of being part of the hottest show in town as in-theatre effects enhance 3-D films featuring popular Disney popstars in concert. “With Disney Digital 3-D we can provide extraordinary cinematic experiences for our guests that no other cruise line can offer,” said Tom McAlpin, President of Disney Cruise Line. “Innovation and high-quality family entertainment are Disney Cruise Line hallmarks, and the addition of Disney Digital 3-D perfectly complements our industry-leading collection of entertainment options already onboard our ships.”

Disney Digital 3-D is the latest enhancement to join the robust menu of premium guest experiences and amenities included with a Disney Cruise vacation. Dazzling Broadway-style musical spectaculars, over-the-top deck parties, first-run movie releases and fantastic kids programming are just some of the advantages of cruising with Disney.