We've Got The Disney Reservation Blues

Allison and I have noticed that Disney is a bit hypocritical.  Over the last few years Disney has done everything to make Disney World more technologically advanced.  They've made it so you can book restaurants, tours, special events, and even fast passes (basically rides) long before you even step foot in the park.  Don't get me wrong, I don't really have a problem with setting up things in advance.  After all you can still eat at the parks, and you can still go on rides, even if you don't have reservations in advance.  We on the other hand decided to embrace this system and have as much fun as possible with it.  Next week you'll learn about the fun we had making dinner reservations.

The problem we're having right now is fatigue.  On paper Disney gives you two dates that you have to worry about, 180 and 60 days till the start of your trip.  180 days before you're eligible to make dinning reservation (and popular ones disappear quickly) and tour reservations (sort of), and 60 days you can book your fast passes.  I like this idea because it gives you milestones before your trip to get you excited.  The problem is that these two dates aren't are only days we have to worry about. In fact a number of dates that we have to worry about have yet to be announced, and so we're checking daily because they could be at any moment.

The two big announcements that Disney seems to be dragging their heels is the times that Animal Kingdom will be open, and the day tickets go on sale for Mickey's Not So Scary Halloween. There are times that Animal Kingdom is scheduled to be open available on the website, however they've been teasing later hours for some special night time events.  The Not So Scary Halloween party is an important part of our plan, and although the dates are out, tickets are still not on sale.

We're also interested in taking a fireworks cruise one night, and the dates that it's available are only slowly creeping up.  There doesn't appear to be any rhyme or reason to when the dates open up either.  Sometimes I week opens up, then a whole month will open up.  We're stuck checking regularly.

I've also noticed that Disney has been in the habit of announcing the opening of attractions well within 60 days of the ride opening date.  This means if you book fast passes, and a ride you're interested in opens all of a sudden, you have to re-arrange everything to fit it in.

My problem here is simple, Disney has asked us to stick to a schedule that they're not willing to keep.  Book some things 180 days before the trip, and others 60, but other things will just be random. I understand there's logistics to these things, but Disney, you're starting to wear us out.  We're getting sick of visiting the site every day checking for tickets and open reservations for certain things.  We booked 2 tours and a boat rental already, why can't you get your act together and let us buy tickets for events at your park at the same time.  Why aren't the Halloween party and the cruise also available 180 days before, like all your other tours and dinner reservations?

Our hotel is booked.

The first thing you need to do when you visit Walt Disney World is book a hotel.  You have many categories to choose from and they can range in quality, and in proximity to the parks.  The first choice you have to make is if you want to stay on property or off of property.  The biggest difference you'll find between staying on or off property is the price.  Staying on property is always more expensive, and not just by a little bit.  Many of the cheapest hotels on property are more expensive than the pricier off property options, and keep in mind that there's a Ritz off property.  Almost all of the hotels on property are owned and operated by Disney, with a few exceptions, and all of the Disney hotels offer some extra perks such as transportation to and from the parks, Extra Magic Hours (extra time at the parks), and a general feeling that you haven't left the parks at all.

We decided that since this was to be an Epic "Disney" Vacation, staying on property was a must, so our next choice was what kind of hotel did we want to stay at.  Disney offers several different qualities of hotels on property, Value, Moderate, Deluxe, Deluxe Villas, and Camping.  We considered all of these options, however we cut out Value first.  We figured that Value resorts would be full of kids and families, and while Disney parks will be full of kids all the time, we thought living with them might be kind of crappy.  Both of us have stayed at Port Orleans before, a Moderate resort, and really enjoyed it.  So we played around with the idea of going back.  Deluxe was a thought, because as mentioned in the name of this blog, this trip is going to be "Epic".  We event thought about getting a cabin in the campground.  Then we came across the Deluxe Villas, or more to the point we discovered DVC.

DVC, or Disney Vacation Club is a timeshare thing.  I'm not too sure exactly how it works, but we learned that in some cases people who own "points" in the DVC sometimes have extra points.  You can buy these points on the open market and stay at a Deluxe Villa for about the same price as a Deluxe room.  Best of all for about the same price as this Deluxe room your villa will have one bedroom, and a kitchen.  This pretty much sold us as Allison is a breakfast monster (she loves breakfast) and we've read that breakfasts at the Magic Kingdom are regularly disappointing.

So when the time came, and we knew for sure that we were going on this trip (no more cancellations), we contacted a travel agent that could organize the purchase of points and allow us to stay at a DVC one bedroom villa.  We had several choices for places we wanted to stay.  Our first was the Yacht and Beach Club, however they had no availability for the time we were going.  Our second choice was right across the lake at the Boardwalk Inn, and it was good.  So we booked our room, bought our points, and we were set.

Once you get your room booked, this is when things start to happen.  Your Disney Experiences account can now be linked to something.  For those unfamiliar My Disney Experiences is basically an account you have on the Disney website that lets you build an itinerary, book restaurant (more on that later), book Fast Passes (more on that later too), and basically see what you may want to do on your trip.  With the hotel booked things started to get rolling.  We immediately got our accounts in order, made sure they were linked to our hotel reservation, and we even started getting mail to prep us for future planning options for our trip.

We're really happy with the Boardwalk Inn as it's in a prime location (walking distance to Epcot and Hollywood Studios), and it has stuff to do around it.  There's even a bakery just in front.  We looked online and thought that the rooms looked pretty spiffy as well.

This was the first step in officially planning our Epic Disney Vacation... Oh did we mention, we've decided to stay for 12 days... Epic.

It's Been A Little While, And A Lot Has Happened

As you may have remembered (or you can just look back on this blog) a few years ago our trip was postponed due to a moving situation.  Well, it's official, we're going to Disney World, and we're going in less than 180 days.  To the average person that doesn't mean very much, but to the Disney Parks nerd that means a lot.

We've been pretty busy the last few weeks and over the next few weeks I'm going to recap what we've been up to.  The thing about Disney is there's a lot to plan way in advance, particularly if you want to eat at certain restaurants, and take certain tours.  There's also been a few announcements and closures over the last few weeks that is going to affect us.  Most interestingly, we've discovered that we're going to be in the parks during two special events, and it looks like we'll be trying them on for size.

So here's what we have to cover:

Our hotel is booked.

Dinning reservations, how we managed to get two Be Our Guest Dinner reservations.

Special tours we've booked, some are simple, one is pretty epic.

What's closed down since we last posted a blog, and what might be open.

Epcot Food and Wine, yup, we're going.

Mickey's Not So Scary Halloween, we're likely going.

So the blog is back, and I'll be recapping you on some of the fun we've been up to.

Planning With Friends

While writing this blog I've realized that my information has really only been coming from one source, the Internet.  Any scholar would tell you that sourcing only one source is a bad idea; if that source is the Internet it's an even worse idea.  While there are a few "peer reviewed" historical and technical accounts of Disney World, frankly many of those are a little dry for my liking.  So our only option for a secondary source is to find an expert(s), and talk to them ourselves.

There are a couple of problems when it comes to finding experts.  First of all we're on the other side of the world right now, I could safely say that most of the people around us have never even been to the parks once, let alone have any hands on knowledge.  Secondly, we don't want to find someone at random because they don't know us, and frankly this blog is about our adventures in Disney World.  Then one day, during an improv meet up (I'm full of surprises), we discovered that two of our improv buddies used to live in Florida.  Better still they go back regularly, and they love Disney World.

So a plan was made, brunch with Allison's famous pancakes, and discussions about Disney World.  In this afternoon we went over lots of information.  Allison, who's been making a matrix of our timing in the parks based on reservations and extra magic hours, gave out copies of this matrix to our guests.  They were very impressed.  We went through some of our expectations and ideas for the trip.  For the most part we seem to have a pretty solid plan, however our friends had some tweaks that seem to improve our plans a fair bit.  Here are a few things that they've suggested that we're going to work into our plan:

Allison and I love miniature golf (we hate regular sized golf), and we want to try out the options at Disney World.  We had decided to do the Winter Summer Land course when we visit Blizzard Beach, and that was considered to be a good plan.  We also wanted to try our Fantasia Gardens at some point as well, but for this we were warned to avoid it on hot days, as there's no shade at all.

Throughout this planning, we've been trying to figure out if we wanted to do the Hoop-Dee-Doo Musical Revue or the Spirit of Aloha show at the Polynesian.  Our friends suggested that the Hoop-Dee-Doo show is not to be missed.  While they admitted that they haven't been to the Spirit of Aloha show in a while, so they don't really remember if it was good or not.  They were very enthusiastic about the Hoop-Dee-Doo show.

Our plan at this point has us possibly ending up at Disney World during part of the Food and Wine show at Epcot.  I've heard great things about this event, but I've also heard that it can be insanely busy.  We've been wondering whether or not we should avoid Food and Wine, to keep away from the crowds, or indulge in Food and Wine because it's that awesome.  Apparently it's that awesome.

Finally, the one piece of advice that really inspired me was that we shouldn't avoid leaving the Disney bubble.  We were encouraged to explore a few things outside of Disney World while we're in the area.  We're still not sure about that yet, however we'll have a car, so we may just venture out a little.

What's New At Disney

This is not going to be a list of what's new for 2015, what we're expecting for 2016, or what's been built since we last visited the parks.  This is going to be a list of the things at Disney World that wouldn't have been there had we visited 2 years earlier as we had originally planned. It's very well known that Walt Disney always wanted his parks, and all of his projects to be in a constant state of change. He wasn't building a museum after all. So this is a list of attractions and updates that had we visited the parks when we originally planned would not have been opened yet.

Disney Springs - The Downtown Disney area has been around for a long time. When I last visit Disney World this area was a great place to visit, particularly for any adult on a Disney trip. After a few years, interest in this adult theme park started to decline. It could have been lack of interest from the visitors or Disney itself, but the entertainment area started to fall apart. Restaurants and stores closed down, the area was a shell of what it once was.

In the last few years Disney suddenly took interest again in this area. I imagine that the new modern foodie trend is a big part of this. People look at Disney World as not just a theme park, but today they also look at Disney as a food destination, in great part because of the food and wine festival. So Disney has upgraded Downtown Disney, a party and club district, to Disney Springs, a food and shopping district. It makes sense and completely appeals to me.

The construction of this massive enhancement will likely still be going on when we visit, however it's already been rechristened Disney Springs, and I think most of the new sections should be ready to go when we get there.

Star Wars Minor Additions - The last year at Disney has been filled with announcements about Star Wars. Most notably is the new Star Wars land they're planning to open in a few years. It's certain that the new Star Wars Land won't be open when we get there, but Disney isn't leaving fans high dry right now. Presently Disney has several temporary exhibits and attractions to keep the Star Wars fan interested in both the upcoming parks and the new movies.

The simplest addition comes from the Star Wars ride in Hollywood Studios, Star Tours (an older ride already at the park). What's been added is an addition that lets you fly through one of the scenes from Force Awakens.  The problem with seeing this is that the ride is random, so we won't necessarily see that particular scene, but really that doesn't matter because I haven't seen many of the other scenes either.

Presently there are also several Star Wars themed restaurant overlays, and a few temporary exhibits where you can see props from the movies and meet characters from Star Wars.  Most of these temporary exhibits are scheduled to be taken down before we go, but I'm sure there's a chance that they'll be extended if they remain popular.  Either way I'll be happy as long as I get to meet Chewbacca.

Jungle Cruise Skipper's Canteen - This is a new restaurant that really interests me.  The food looks interesting, with lots of Asian food. But the thing that really piques my interest is the theming.  The theme is that a canteen has opened next to the Jungle Cruise for people to grab a bite before or after their jugle adventure. I'm a sucker for pseudo jungle/adventurers theming, and this restaurant seems like it's full of it.

It reminds me a little of the now defunct adventurers club in the old Pleasure Island, and that was one of my favorite places in the parks the last time I visited.  This looks like a real winner, and I'm sure we'll stop in.

Polynesian Resort Updates - I'm not sure how much resort hopping we're going to do, but I'm pretty sure if we do, a stop at the Polynesian will be on the cards.  They've just updated a bunch of this resort, and it looks fantastic.  Apparently this resort is also a great place to watch fireworks, so that might be just reason to go visit.  The main expansion that appeals to me is their new bar, Trader Sam's Grogs Grotto. This place looks fantastic, and even if I don't buy a drink, I think I'll stop by to check it out anyways.

Harambe Expansion - Animal Kingdom is a bit of a mystery for me as to what to expect.  The big expansion, Avatar Land, will likely not be open at all while we're there, however there are a few things that might.  There's a new night show that's supposed to open up that looks pretty good, and they're also planning on lighting up the giant tree (the Tree of Life) at the center of the park.  All of this is still vague to me as to when it'll open, but there's a chance we'll be able to see it.  The part that is already open is the Harambe expansion in the Africa section of the park.

I'm looking forward to this for several reasons.  First of all, Disney fans are saying nothing but great things about it.  Secondly, I don't really know what to expect from Animal Kingdom, so the surprise is pretty interesting.  Finally, I just visited Africa, and I'm looking forward to seeing how detailed they got the theming.

There's a lot of new additions to the park, as well as a few closures (which I might write about later).  I think since we're not regulars these details won't really affect our happiness on this trip, but I can say that reading about them is really getting me excited.

Uniquely Paris Disney

Last week I wrote about some of the attractions that we were looking forward to seeing at Disney World in Florida, and then compared them to some of the attractions found in Disney Paris. Today I'm going to look at some of the attractions that are uniquely Disney Paris, and tell you why I'm really looking forward to them.

Ratatouille The Adventure - This is probably the most "popular" of all the new attractions in Disney Paris amongst the online community.  Some consider it an attempt to improve the faltering and very unpopular Disney Studios portion of the resort.  While I've only seen a few sneak peaks of the ride, I really don't know much about it.  I would say that the only reason Ratatouille is on this list is because of the hype.  It's not that I don't think I'm going to enjoy it, I just don't know that much about it, so I can't fairly say that I'm really looking forward to it.

Alice's Curious Labyrinth - Give me a hedge maze over a roller coaster any day of the week.  It's not just because roller coasters make me ill, it's also because I really love hedge mazes. I have many childhood memories of running around a hedge maze on the Toronto Islands when I was a kid. Alice’s Curious Labyrinth sounds like it may not be too challenging puzzle wise, but it also sounds like it will be aesthetically beautiful.

The Castle Dungeon - This is probably the attraction I wish I knew nothing about before going to the park.  It's considered by many Disney aficionados and the general online community as one of the best attractions to see at Disneyland Paris.  The reason I would have rather learned nothing about this attraction is that it would have been fantastic to just go down the stairs into the dungeon and be surprised by what looks like one of the best animatronic creatures ever built.  I hope Allison is surprised, she doesn't know what to expect.

Adventure Island - This is one of the attractions that not one person has adequately managed to describe on any website I've read so far.  I think that's part of the reason I'm really excited to check it out.  Allison is also related to a real pirate, so I think she'll have a fun time here as well.

Crushes Coaster - This also falls under an attraction that no one seems to have been able to describe very well. It often receives lackluster reviews, and because of that no one really explains it well. I'm not sure what's going to happen on this ride, but it looks like fun, and I like the movie Finding Nemo.

As the time ticks down to our trip, I'm starting to try and stuff all of this Disney knowledge into my head that I can.  I'm finding that instead of collecting this information, it's just jumbling up in my head.  I get the feeling that although I'm writing these lists of things I'm excited to see, and things I'm curious about, by the time I get there it'll just be a wave of euphoria coming over me, and I'll just run and play.

Why Americans Hate Paris Disney

While researching our Disney Paris trip I've noticed one thing that keeps coming up, Americans really don't seem to like this theme park.  I've read many blogs, watched many videos, and gone through many tourist sites, and I've found that Americans really don't like this park at all.  The most obvious thing I've noticed is that there are very few Disney fan websites that have any mention of this place.  A few might put it on their list of places to go, but mostly only if they want to visit every single Disney park.  Most sites list Tokyo as the park they'd rather visit first.  Disney Paris seems to really have a cloud hanging over it, and it really seems to be scaring off the foreign tourists.

If we look at the people who have traveled to Disney Paris, many of them said that they consider Disneyland Paris (the Magic Kingdom part of the park) to be one of the most beautiful of the Disney park.  However, many of them seem to point out a few flaws that really turn them off.  The biggest complaint I hear is that the food is really bad.  I've often read comparisons to the food they could have eaten in Paris, and how disappointed they are about the fact that Disney Paris has nothing to offer for French foods. I also hear a lot of complaining about smoking, and general crowd politeness.  I've been told that people smoke everywhere, even though there are designated smoking areas.  I've also heard a lot about line cutting for attractions.

While I haven't been to the park yet, I did live in Europe for 4 years and I've traveled around a lot, and I have a theory.  Disney Paris is not for you (Americans).  Do you really think that Disney built a park halfway around the world so you can travel there?  If you think that this park is having financial troubles now, if they actually designed the park for American tourists only, they would have been out of business years ago.  France is one of the biggest tourist destinations for Europeans; this is why this park was built.  This is a park for Europeans to get a taste of the American park without having to fly overseas. And much like the France pavilion at Epcot, this American style theme park is designed to give Europeans a taste of the USA, changed to suit their pallet.

Why would a French person take the train from Paris for up to an hour, only to eat French food?  They want to come out to the park to experience American food.  Why are the guests "different" than the guests at Disney World?  Because they're European people, with different cultures and different lifestyles.  I guarantee that Europeans that travel to Disney World or Disneyland are equally shocked by some of the strange things you do.  Smoking in Europe is looked at very differently than it is in the USA (and Canada), crowd control is also very different.

I'm not saying that Americans should not visit Paris Disney, in fact I think it's a great addition to any European vacation. Just don't expect it to be an extended version of the France pavilion at Epcot mixed with all the American values and rules you have and Disneyland and Disney World.  Disney has built this park to bring in European travelers, to give them a taste of Disney suited to their pallet. This is a park that represents the American dream, but in a way that Europeans see it.

Is Star Wars Land A Reality?

One of the question marks I have about new attractions to Disney World is the possibility of Star Wars Land.  Since George Lucas sold the franchise to Disney, rumours have been flying around about the possibility of Star Wars Land.  Presently there are two Star Wars themed parts to the park, one is an attraction and one an event.

The attraction is fairly old-fashioned in concept in comparison with most modern theme park rides.  It is a motion simulator, called Star Tours, which takes you on an adventure through the Star Wars universe.  One interesting thing about this ride is that it was one of the first simulator rides of its kind, but there's a new feature to this ride.  Recently they've updated the ride to allow each experience on the ride to be different.  So each time you ride the Star Tours experience, you travel to different parts of the Star Wars universe.

The event, which takes place annually at Disney Hollywood studios, is the Star Wars Weekend.  Once a year Star Wars fans, as well as Star Wars celebrities, meet for a weekend dedicated to all things Star Wars.  There are special shows, exhibits, and meet and greets throughout the park.  It has become one of the staple events at Disney World and attracts many fans from all over the world.

At this point I've heard two different stories about what kind of expansion might be coming that involve Star Wars.  Some say that they're going to take out several attractions at Disney Hollywood Studios, and build a land from scratch dedicated to Star Wars.  Others have said that they may refurbish Tomorrow Land at the Magic Kingdom.  At this point I'm sure designs are in the works, and I can only hope that it'll be up and running by the time we go.  Allison has already made up an expression for what might happen if so, she calls herself a “Star Wars widow".

Disney Blogs I'm Reading

Over the last few months I've started to regularly read a few Disney blogs.  These blogs are informative, detailed, and give some great tips on how to enjoy your Disney trip a little better.  Keep in mind that many of these blogs do offer spoilers, but for the most part they're just very helpful.

Disney Tourist Blog

The Disney tourist blog is your opportunity to follow Tom and Sarah, two Disney fanatics from Indiana. They've visited all of the parks all over the world, with Disney World being their favourite. This is a fairly unbiased blog, particularly in the early entries. The great thing about these two is they truly seem to have fun when they explore the parks. Tom will very often get into his photography on this blog, which can be good or bad depending on your interest on the subject. Frankly I find this blog to be one of the most entertaining blogs on the subject of Disney world, and Tom and Sarah are the two bloggers I'd most like to meet in person.

The World According To Jack

Jack is a details man. He examines every nook and cranny of Disney World with the greatest detail possible. Jack has written pages and pages about the various types of cement used in Disney World. Needless to say if you want to know everything about certain details of the parks, this is the blog for you. While Jack has every detail covered, he is a little dry to read. While he attempts to interject a little humour into his blogs, the amount of detail just makes it fairly dry anyways. Not that it's a bad blog; it's just very detailed and can often give you more information than you might need.

Disney Food Blog

As you might imagine the focus of this site is fairly specific. The thing is, on our trip we will have to eat, often I imagine, so this information can be useful. This blog covers food from all of the parks, and it covers them as if the food is as important as the attractions. The only fault I find in this blog is the inconsistency in the writing. Sometimes you read a post that is clear and full of detail, and then you'll read a post that just doesn't tell you anything. After following this blog for a little while I've started to edit what I read based on the subject and the authors.

Disney Parks Blog

Much like its accompanying YouTube channel, the Disney Parks Blog is a great source of accuracy, but doesn't give that much information. First of all you won't be reading anything speculative here at all, since anything released on this blog becomes official. You also don't tend to get any negative feedback from anything at the parks either. The blogs however are generally well written and any photos are high quality.

Disney Shawn

Shawn is a former Disney employee that worked as an Imagineer writing concepts for attractions. In many cases he has the inside scoop on the concepts proposed for attractions, and explains them in detail. He doesn't really focus on “news" as much as the stories depicted on the attractions. His writing is easy to read, and often doesn't give away secrets as much as enhances the story. The only fault I can really complain about this blog is that there isn't more.

Disney movies we plan to watch

The concepts that make up Disney world aren't pulled out of thin air. In fact almost every detail of the parks are inspired from Disney products, culture, or in some cases history. Disney world attaches a story to every aspect of the theme park, all inspired by various areas. To get the most of these references I thought it would be a good idea to catch up on some of our Disney content. To fully appreciate every single detail you probably have to watch every single thing Disney has ever produced, but that's just not realistic at all. Instead Allison and I decided to go through the list of Disney movies and cartoons and pick out which ones might be most relevant.

We're also going to ad a few episodes of the twilight zone to this list to better understand the tower of terror. Fortunately many of the websites I've been reading explain where many of the details of the park originated, so picking what to watch seems simple enough. We're also going to have to start keeping up with current Disney movies as well, since they often ad attractions based on current media.

Here's our list so far, many of these movies and shows we're fairly familiar with, but it doesn't hurt to update our memories. Some of this stuff is brand new to us and should be interesting to see.

Swiss Family Robinson
Lady and the Tramp
Cinderella
Snow White
Brave
Pinochio
Reluctant Dragon
Dumbo
The Three Caballeros
Song of the South
The Adventures of Ichabod and Mr. Toad
Treasure Island
Alice in Wonderland
Peter Pan
20,000 Leagues Under the Sea
Davy Crockett, King of the Wild Frontier
Sleeping Beauty
One Hundred and One Dalmatians
The Absent-Minded Professor
The Sword in the Stone
The Jungle Book
The Aristocats
Bedknobs and Broomsticks
Robin Hood
The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh
The Rescuers
Pete's Dragon
The Fox and the Hound
The Black Cauldron
The Great Mouse Detective
Oliver & Company
Honey, I Shrunk the Kids
The Little Mermaid
DuckTales the Movie: Treasure of the Lost Lamp
Beauty and the Beast
The Mighty Ducks
Aladdin
The Adventures of Huck Finn
The Lion King
A Goofy Movie
Pocahontas
Tom and Huck
James and the Giant Peach
The Hunchback of Notre Dame
Hercules
Mulan
A Bug's Life
Tarzan
Monsters, Inc.
The Country Bears
Finding Nemo
Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl
The Haunted Mansion
Home on the Range
The Incredibles
Chicken Little
The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe
Meet the Robinsons
Ratatouille
Bolt
The Princess and the Frog
Toy Story 3
Tangled
Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides
Cars 2
Wreck-It Ralph
Monsters University
The Lone Ranger
Planes

Youtube Channels of Note - Part 4 - Disney Vacation Planning DVD

The Disney DVD's online - I've been trying to order the official Disney travel DVD's for about a year now.  I love watching high quality production DVDs all about planning my trip.  Unfortunately it appears that Disney can't send these DVDs to my address (my mailing address is very complicated), so I decided to see if anybody had posted them on YouTube.

Fortunately for me, someone has, and best of all there are many to choose from.  You don't just have to watch the latest incarnation of the travel DVD's, I've found some as old as 1996.  You may be wondering why you'd want to watch old Disney DVDs, and it's simple, the new DVDs focus on the new attractions.  The old DVDs will cover in more detail attractions that were new at that particular time.  I’m very interested in learning about the updated Star Tours ride, but since it's old news, the latest DVD glosses over it.  However the older DVDs cover it in much better detail.

The problem I've found with looking for Disney travel DVDs on YouTube is the quality can vary greatly.  Often it's random clips that people have filmed with a video camera off of their TV.  I'm also fairly certain that Disney has not given anybody permission to post these DVDs, so they may get pulled off now and again.  It's a shame, I wish Disney would just post these in an organized fashion for all to enjoy.  After all it's promotion for their parks, and it's something they're giving away anyways.

Youtube Channels of Note - Part 2 - Disney Parks

Disney Parks - Disney's official theme park YouTube channel is obviously the least neutral channel, but it's still very informative.  Often this is the place where you learn true information about what's going on at the parks.  There is 0 speculation going on here, because everything you see is official.  You also have to do a bit of sorting since the channel covers all of their parks and not just Disney World.

If you follow other blogs and YouTube channels you'll get more information, however this is the channel to confirm all speculation. This channel is also very well produced, and many of the videos are fairly entertaining.

The only true downfall of this channel is the complete lack of neutrality.  Everything on this channel is about getting you to a Disney park to spend your money.

I Want a Vinylmation

Both Allison and myself aren't really big souvenir people.  When we travel we take home memories, and a million photographs.  I also like to keep little stubs of paper and fliers that we get (for free) and put them into a scrapbook.  Yes I'm admitting it, I like to scrapbook.  My only defense against this is the fact that I don't really decorate my scrapbook, as much as I just stick the various pieces of paper to it rather randomly.

Back to the souvenirs.  When we travel we tend to only buy one or two things to commemorate any given trip. If the trip is only a day or two we've been known to come home with nothing (other than the photos and random bits of paper).  We also often buy souvenirs that are useful as well.  We would buy a spaghetti strainer with the London skyline on it way before we'd buy a miniature Big Ben.  We figure that this allows us to not only collect a few things, but we don't have to worry about it taking up space, since it's useful.

For this Disney trip, Allison has her heart set on a new pair of Disney pajamas.  She had a pair a while back, they lasted forever, and she thinks another pair would be great.  Me, I'm thinking of breaking our regular routine and buying something that doesn't really serve any function, I want a Disney Vinylmation.  For those of you unfamiliar with Vinylmations, they're little Mickey Mouse shaped toys that are painted in various ways.  The basic shape is always the same, but the painting is always a little different.  The concept comes from a series of Japanese toys that have been coming out for the last 10 years or so.

To be allowed to have this new toy, Allison has set one stipulation.  I must first get rid of one of the toys I already have.  Fortunately, one of my current toys seems to have gone bad.  It's looking pretty rough, and I think it's time that it goes.  I'm not going to say which toy it was, since it was a gift, but I'm not worried about opening up a new spot for my Vinylmation.

Do You Love A Parade?

I'm of mixed opinions when it comes to Disney parades.  I want to participate in the fun times, dance with characters, listen to music, and see cool floats.  However I know that the parades are also the best time to visit popular rides because so many people watch the parades.  When I've visited Disney in the past I've always gone for the idea of not seeing the parades and going on the rides when the crowds are thinned out, but maybe this trip I might want to try something a little different.

I want this visit to be more than just a re-hash of my past visits, and I think watching a parade and getting into the parade spirit might be a great way to mix it up a bit.  I do find the idea of lining up for the parade up to an hour before it starts a little daunting.  But we're planning 8 days at the park, and I think it might be worth the wait to see at least one parade.  The next question is which parades are worth seeing and which ones are worth a miss.

I'm thinking that the Magic Kingdom probably has the best line-up of parades.  Most of all I want to see the Spectral Magic parade at night if it's still running.  I might also be up for something filled with characters and street dancing during the day.  Animal Kingdom is probably the place I'm least likely to want to see the parade.  It's a jungle themed parade with the main Disney characters, and it just doesn't float my boat.

Visiting Every Attraction

When you first start planning an "epic" Disney vacation, the thought that goes through your mind is how to arrange visiting every single attraction in all of the parks.  Then you start to go through the list of attractions and find some that just aren't your cup of tea. In my case the Teacups because they make me barf.  At this point, with about 80% of the rides on your mind, you start to think about strategies, what routes to take, what fast passes to pick up when, and how busy it might be.  Then doubt starts to sink in, like what to do if it rains one day, or what happens if a particular ride is closed for repairs while you're there.  This spirals into panic, and all of a sudden your fun Disney World vacation is just nerve wracking.

I've consulted a few websites and guidebooks on this subject, and you really start to get mixed messages.  Most sites and guidebooks recommend highly against trying to do everything in every park.  They all recommend taking it easy, and taking breaks at some point every day.  They call running non-stop "going commando", a poor term considering its other meaning.  Then, these same books and websites will give you a list of attractions you "can't miss".  This list is long, and often the rides listed are the most popular.  So what I get from these guidebooks and websites is, take it easy, it's your vacation, but you'd be a fool to miss (insert the name of just about half of the attractions in all of the parks).

Allison and I are then left with a decision, do we go breakneck or go slow.  The leaning is to slow down, since it's our vacation, but use the time wisely.  In other words, check out as many cool attractions as possible, but know that we won't do everything.  Plan enough to know where everything can be found, but don't plan a route till the day comes.  Know that we're going to visit each and every park, but don't choose which days we're going until we get there.  Enjoy more than just the attractions; enjoy the environment, the people around us, and the whole Disney vibe.

Hollywood Studios - Allison's View

Hollywood Studios is one of the two parks that I have barely an inkling about.  I've been to EPCOT before, and Tokyo Disneyland, which I imagine at least to be similar to the Magic Kingdom.  Also, of course, Tokyo Disney Sea.  I have no idea what to expect at Hollywood Studios - I hope it's kitschy-fun movie-star-themed almost ridiculousness!  I imagine cast members strutting about with feather boas and cigarette holders, with a lot of shiny things around.

I have to say I am very excited about the Rock'n'Roller Coaster!  I love thrill rides - the faster and twistier the better!  (My all-time favourite roller coaster is the head-first, flat-on-your-stomach Tomb Raider at Canada's Wonderland - am I allowed to say that here?)  My only fear on this roller coaster is that Chris might barf on me.  Do you think he'd be mad if I wanted to ride in separate cars?

I'm also really looking forward to the Tower of Terror.  We rode it at Tokyo Disney Sea in 2009 and it was terrifically terrifying.  I heard the one at Walt Disney World has even more tricks up its sleeve!  We rode it twice at Disney Sea, and if Hollywood Studios is indeed one of the least popular/smallest parks, perhaps we'll have a chance to do it twice, or even three times, here!

The Magic Kingdom - Allison's View

Unlike Chris, the Magic Kingdom will not be an adventure in nostalgia for me... I've seen it, I've been close to it, but I've never actually been inside.  The closest I ever came was Tokyo Disneyland - with my friends Yuriko, Mikiko, Tsuyako, and Mami-chan.  What an amazing day of fun that was!  Perhaps the Magic Kingdom will stir up some fond memories of that day.

Without the nostalgia factor, I'm a total Magic Kingdom blank slate!  There are so many elements of it I'm familiar with, but it's still this exciting unknown to me.  I've been on Space Mountain, Thunder Mountain and even Splash Mountain in Tokyo, but the idea of experiencing these at Walt Disney World is so cool!

 I want to try all of the rides (except the teacups - without Chris, what's the fun in riding a ride that's meant for spinning your friends around?) - everything from Space Mountain to the Carousel of Progress.  The best part, though, I think will just be the experience of it all - the parades, the atmosphere, Cinderella's castle, the other people there to have fun, and a whole bunch of Cast Members who are there to help us have fun.  And they speak English!  That is going to be a real treat!

Speaking of treats, that turkey leg sounds unbelievable.  In my imagination, it has become gigantic.  I can't wait to finally try one!

The Magic Kingdom

The magic kingdom is really the flagship park in the Disney World complex. It was the first park to open, and it contains the most pure Disney character based attractions. If you can only visit one park in all of Disney World, this is the one. But you wouldn't be alone, because according to many statistics I’ve read, the Magic Kingdom is the busiest theme park in the world.

The attractions at the magic kingdom are the classic Disney rides you know and love. When I visit the Magic Kingdom I'm interested in nostalgic rides more than thrills. I'm also interested in some of the updates that have happened since I last visited. Since I've been there the Haunted Mansion and Fantasyland have both had some major upgrades (the Fantasyland upgrades aren't even finished yet). I'm also looking forward to some of the classic rides, like the three Disney mountains (Big Thunder, Space, and Splash), and my childhood favourite it's a small world.

Much like the rides at the magic kingdom, the food options I'm most looking forward to are the ones that give me a sense of nostalgia. I'm certainly not looking for fine dining at the Magic Kingdom; instead I'm more focused on a Mickey Mouse ice cream treat. Allison's focus at the magic kingdom food wise is their famous turkey drumsticks, something I'm probably going to sample (from hers) but I don't think I can handle one on my own.

As far as shows go at the Magic Kingdom, I'm not really too excited about anything in particular. The only exception is probably the classic Electro Land  light Parade, mostly because it is a classic piece of nostalgia. I'm also looking forward to the light and fireworks shows in the evenings, only because the innovation they put into these shows is always legendary.

The magic kingdom holds a certain place in my heart because it was the first Disney park I'd ever visited. I was about 8 years old, and it followed my first ever plane ride. I have only a few memories of this visit, some good, like meeting characters, others not so good, like riding the tea cups. I've been back a few times since, and each time I've come home with a smile on my face.

Getting My Haircut

Did you know that you can get a haircut at Disney world?  Strangest of all, the barbershop isn't located in one of the resorts, but instead it's in the Magic Kingdom itself.  There are two salon type places in the Magic Kingdom, the Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique and the Harmony Barber Shop.

The Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique is centred on the idea of little girls getting all dolled up to look like little princesses.  I'm not sure if there's an age limit, and if there isn't, I would love to see Allison give it a try.

The Harmony Barber Shop is an old time barbershop in the heart of Main Street USA.  I was worried that this was also just a kid thing as well when I noticed that the bulk of their advertising was devoted to baby’s first haircut.  But I checked out their pricing and they offer shaves, so I'm assuming adults are welcome.  I plan on skipping any haircuts leading up to our trip so I can get a trim at the Harmony Barber Shop.  I've even considered seeing if they can shave mouse ears into my head as well.

They say that the haircuts also include a pixie dusting at the end as well.  I hope that it isn't just for kids, and I hope I can share the dusting with Allison if she can't get into the Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique.

Seeing Too Much

One problem that comes up with all of this planning is the possibility of ruining any surprises that might come along.  The internet is full of tips and information, but some of this information could be considered spoilers as well.  Allison feels much stronger about not seeing anything from behind the scenes, while I'm a little more interested in seeing how some of the magic is made.

Allison refers to the entire behind the scenes engineering and design as magic, and is built off of smatterings of pixy dust.  While I do enjoy learning about the behind the scenes magic, I worry that over the next two years I may learn too much.  My worry is fairly minimal however because the folks at Disney are experts in making new surprises all the time.  I also try to avoid watching or reading too many unofficial behind the scenes materials since they don’t censor themselves when it comes to giving away too much.

The other reason I'm not too worried about learning too much, is Allison's lack of wanting to learn anything.  Even if I figure out how something works, I'll get to watch everything through Allison's eyes as well.