Monthly Archives: March 2017

Disney World Vacation Photo Must-Haves

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This is just me talking.  Part of my overbearing big personality is that I never experience a shortage of opinions and as usual, I’ve decided to offer you some of them.  I’ve always been a picture-taker and am particularly photo-snappy on a Disney vacation.  After 25+ years of said Disney trips, I’ve noticed certain patterns in my photography and decided to share.  Hopefully, this will cause you to examine your own Disney picture-taking style and share your favorite types of pictures with me.  Sharing is good, dontcha think?

It’s like a Friday Five times two!  I’ve compiled a list of TEN…

Disney World Vacation Photo Must-Haves

The Classic Shots – You know the ones.  The iconic must-haves in front of Cinderella Castle and the other park weenies (Yes, that’s the correct term for a Disney park’s centerpiece.  Really.  Look it up if you don’t believe me.).  I particularly like the Tree of Life and have pictures from every possible angle and time of day.

The Character Meet & Greets – In-park Characters, Character Dining Experiences, the random encounter – all are exceptionally tempting as memory capturing moments, no?  It might make me a little nostalgic to look back at the ones from when Megan and Joseph were little, but the ones from our last trip make me just as happy.

Foodies’ Favorites – Not quite as good as the real thing, commemorating an excellent snack or meal with a photograph allows me to remember my favorite flavors of Disney and better plan my dining and snacking strategies for future trips.

Attraction Action – Pictures or it didn’t happen, right?  You never know exactly how ride photos will turn out, but they are absolutely some of my favorite pictures!  Yes, I love the ones from Memory Maker, but I also like the ones I took myself.

Tropical Paradise – I can’t help myself.  I have to capture at least a few pictures of the lush Florida landscapes and the amazing sunrises and sunsets.  When I’m at home, I’m usually getting ready for work as the sun comes up and in the evening I’m likewise occupied with cooking dinner or some such activity.  On vacation, though, I stop to soak up those spectacular moments and you should too. 

Five Down, Five to Go…

Hidden Mickeys – If you’re constantly on the lookout for those little, sometimes elusive Mickeys, you probably snap a pic or two of your favorites like I do!

The Group Selfie – What ever did we do before the wonders of technology allowed us to take pictures of ourselves so easily?!?  I’m a huge fan of the group selfie.  Unless maybe it’s a really hot day and we’ve been hitting the parks pretty hard.  Looking back, we seem less likely to clump up for those close-together shots as the day wears on.  Huh…just now noticed that.

Boredom Busters a.k.a. queue pics! – Even if you plan everything just right and book FastPasses for all the most popular attractions, you’re bound to wait in a line or two from time to time.  Don’t waste the opportunity to create some awesome family memories!  We have even developed photo traditions for some particularly taxing waits…like the one for Fantasmic.

EarHat Fashion – How could anyone not love a good EarHat photo?  Not into amazingly fun headwear?  Certainly someone in your family is, right?  There’s nothing like capturing the happiness of a loved one sporting their favorite Disney chapeau in a Disney park.  Look at those happy faces!

Cast Member Memories – Sometimes you just get extra attached to a particular Cast Member and want them to be part of your photo album.  They don’t mind if you take their picture – the best ones are used to it!  If you’re on Twitter and you’ve had an awesome Cast Member experience, you can tweet to @WDWToday with the #CastCompliment hashtag and say a few words about how the Cast Member made your vacation extra special.  Disney will then track down that Cast Member and present them with a certificate.  They will photograph the moment and tweet it back to you.  It’s an excellent way to ensure your favorite Cast Members get the recognition they deserve.  We did this for Kile from Tiffins because he’s wonderful!

BONUS – This one has almost reached the ridiculous.  I’ve been on Kilimanjaro Safaris at least a dozen times.  Each and every one of my tours of Africa involves me madly taking pictures and videos as if I’ve never seen any of these animals before in my life.  Please tell me I’m not the only one who does this!  Drives my family crazy, I’m sure, but they love me enough to let me sit on the outside and stay out of my way.Rhino on Kilimanjaro Safari Kilimanjaro Safari / Animal Kingdom One last thing about taking pictures on a Disney vacation…

Even though I love Memory Maker, you should not feel like you have to spend the money if it’s not in your budget.  Cast Members are always happy to take pictures for you with your own camera or smart phone.  You’ll still have amazing memories to look back on!!!

Okay, now it’s your turn!  Share with me!!!  What are your favorite types of Disney vacation pictures to take?

 

Considering Disney’s Quick Service Dining Plan

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With all the details nailed down for April’s Disney World visit, Megan and I have moved on to planning June’s “Epic Mother / Daughter Disney Summer Road Trip”.  This vacation will be different in a lot of ways…Not the least of which is it’s GIRLS ONLY and we couldn’t be more excited to have some time away together.

We’re planning to thoroughly explore Pandora and take advantage of Animal Kingdom’s nighttime Extra Magic Hours at least once.  We’re also planning an afternoon and evening in Magic Kingdom so we can do all our favorite attractions and see the new Happily Ever After show (replacing Wishes).  For sure we want to grab a few hours in Epcot’s World Showcase and based on all of that, we decided maximum flexibility will be key to our Disney happiness.

Normally we enjoy at least one, if not more, table service meals on every day of a Disney World visit.  We have our favorite places and also a list of to-try restaurants waiting.  When Megan and I talked about where we might like to eat and when we wanted to book ADRs, we realized how much time those meals might cut into the free-style park touring plans we were really looking forward to.  That’s when I remembered the Quick Service Dining Plan.

Considering Disney’s Quick Service Dining Plan

With two meals and two snacks per night of stay, we’ll be good to go and our food will be mostly pre-paid.  Since we’re driving, we can bring breakfast foods and use our meal credits for lunch and dinner.  Booked through the Disney Vacation Club site, we’d pay $46.24 per person, per day ($279.04 total).

I must confess…I did book one ADR for the last night of our stay, but this would actually work out perfectly.  We’d have one Quick Service credit left over to use for lunch on the day we leave AND we’ll get to try Paddlefish in Disney Springs for the first time.

No doubt about it, we will certainly miss the guys on this trip, but by making plans that are different from our usual Disney vacation style, we think we’ll have a great time!

Have you tried Disney’s Quick Service Dining Plan?  What restaurants did you choose?

Disney’s Animal Kingdom – Quietest Little Corner

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If you’ve been to Disney’s Animal Kingdom, you’re probably very familiar with Gorilla Falls Exploration Trail and the Maharajah Jungle Trek.  Were you aware there’s a third and often ignored trail?  There IS!  And I’m here to tell you, when the crowds get crazy, it’s a great place to escape!

Disney’s Animal Kingdom – Quietest Little CornerDisney's Animal Kingdom - Quietest Little Corner

We’d been to Animal Kingdom dozens of times and still did not notice the Cretaceous Trail in DinoLand U.S.A. until last December during Christmas week when the park was so crowded we could barely move.  Raymond, Joseph and I were working on our Wilderness Explorer badges when two of us became distracted by unusual flora.  As I’m rarely distracted by any type of plant life unless it’s edible,  I wasn’t even a tiny bit curious.  Not wanting to get left behind however, I followed the guys into the trees and found myself on the Cretaceous Trail.  And we were alone.  Thousands of people in every other section of the park and we’d discovered peace and quiet!  And some other stuff, too.

The Cretaceous Trail is short and has no live animal exhibits.  It exists to teach guests about the plants and animals alive today that survived (or can be traced back to) the Cretaceous period.  It’s short and seemingly unpopular.  The beauty of this area is the soaring, unique landscaping.  Once brought to my attention, I had to admit, the trees and shrubs and whatnot were pretty cool.  There are also some dinosaur figures here and there and benches available for folks looking for a place to rest.Disney's Animal Kingdom - Quietest Little Corner

Why visit the Cretaceous Trail?  I’ll give you five great reasons…

  1. Your baby is asleep and you’d like to keep it that way OR you want to let a little one stretch their legs in a crowd-free area.
  2. You love unusual plants.
  3. You need a break from people.
  4. You’re an aspiring paleontologist.
  5. You’re dragged there by family members while you’re trying to earn Wilderness Explorer Badges.

Have you been to the Cretaceous Trail?  If not, it’s close to the pillars for Dinosaur, so next time you’re over in DinoLand, you should take a minute (literally) to check it out!

Thoughts on Beauty and the Beast

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I wouldn’t consider this a review. My comments are far from impartial and I feel certain I cannot be as fair and balanced as I usually strive to be.  Belle has always been my favorite princess and the animated Beauty and the Beast has been my favorite Disney animated movie since I first saw it in the theater in 1991.  Everything good thing I heard and saw about the live action remake seemed exactly right, so The Fam and I planned way in advance to catch the film during opening weekend.

I bought the tickets in advance and made sure we’d arrive at the theater with plenty of time to get excellent seats and grab some snacks. Megan had seen the movie on opening day and sat next to me promising not to give anything away.  This proved to be an excellent arrangement!  She was there to hold my hand during all the (slightly) scary and emotional parts (there were several) and didn’t make fun of me for crying (which Joseph certainly would have done).

Thoughts on Beauty and the Beast

To say the movie surpassed everything I’d hoped for is probably the best praise I can give it.  Stunningly beautiful in every detail, each scene brought me completely into the story.  I can’t recall a 2+ hour movie going by so quickly before. The original storyline was front and center with exactly the right amount of “more” added to hold my undivided attention.

For me, the best part of the movie was this:  Every character was richly developed in sometimes surprising ways that added more depth and meaning to an already excellent story.  Maurice was not a simple absent-minded inventor and Belle was not just a selfless bookworm waiting for her life to begin.  We learned many of the characters’ backstories and the knowledge made the movie ever more enjoyable with each new insight.  If you thought Belle was wonderful (and an awesome role model) in the animated version, you’ll absolutely adore her in this adaptation.

Finally, if you’ve heard controversial statements about this film’s suitability for the entire family, all I can say is that our family found it to be a clever, endearing, immensely entertaining movie.  Had our children been little, I’m certain the “controversial” parts would have completely gone unnoticed.  If I hadn’t heard about them, I honestly wouldn’t have noticed them myself.

By far Beauty and the Beast is Disney’s best live action remake to date and sets the bar high for future films.  Have you seen it yet?  What did you think?