Take the time, when visiting any of the parks at Walt Disney World, to see the beauty all around. This image from Disney’s Animal Kingdom, showing both the iconic Tree of Life and Expedition Everest in the distance, provides a peaceful and lovely view of a fascinating park.
Author: Nancy
Disney Fun From Around the World: Week of May 24, 2010
One of my favorite posts to do each week is this one, where I have the chance to share some of the fantastic blog posts that I come 
across each week in the Disney “world”. In no particular order, here are a few that caught my eye this past week:
Once again, we were thrilled to be a part of the Disney Blog Carnival #4. Be sure to check it out to see lots of great Disney blogs!
The Disney Food Blog provided a couple of interesting posts this week. In 5 Best Quick-Service Dining Plan Values AJ discusses some favorite Quick Service places to eat. And she also lets us know about all of the Changes to Disney World’s Online Dining Reservation System
Over at Chip and Co. Chris had a very helpful post: Ask a Disney Question: Resort Options and Park Hoppers for Children with Autism? and also provided some great advice for saving quite a bit of money on accommodations in Ask a Disney Question: How do I get a pin code?
Our friends at The Disney Driven Life provided some interesting DISNEY COASTER NEWS
Since Memorial Day is the unofficial start of summer, I especially loved this post from the The Disney Blog about an important summer food: Top Five Places to Enjoy Ice Cream at Walt Disney World
As a family without young children, I could relate to this post from the Disney College Blog where she discusses Character Meet and Greets: Can You Be Too Old? (For the record, no I don’t think you can! 🙂 )
Finally, my weekly shameless plug of my posts at Chip and Co.this week: Is Renting a Vacation Home at Disney the Right Choice for You? and Discovering the Walt Disney Swan and Dolphin: Two Cool Buildings with Some Heavenly Benefits
OK, that’s it for this week! Have a magical….and safe….Memorial Day weekend!
Friday Disney Savings Round-Up for 5/28/2010
This week’s Disney Savings Round-Up:
Disney continues some great promotions: in case you need to see them again, the details are below. In addition, there are a few new sales at DisneyStore.com and both Hotels.com and Travelocity are running some pretty decent sales on Orlando hotels.
DisneyStore.com Savings and Promotions
Are you looking for some special Disney items that you can buy BEFORE your Disney trip to save money? Here are a few special promotions that you may want to take advantage of:
Ship your entire order for FREE when you spend $89 or more with Promo Code: SHIP89.
Take 25% off of purchases of $100+ or 15% off purchases of $50+ with Promo Code: MEMDAY
Please note that both of the above offers expire Monday, May 31.
Save $25 when you become a Disney Rewards Visa Cardmember at DisneyStore.com (** See special Disney promotion below for Disney Visa cardmembers!)
Lastly, don’t forget that you can always find super discounts on all kinds of Disney items at the official Disney Outlet online. These could be great Disney World “souvenirs” that you bring from home to surprise your children with. 
Travelocity Special Promotions
Travelocity is still running their special promotion in the Orlando area. You might want to take a look to see if this is a savings for you! Top Hotel Deals in Orlando
Hotels.com Special Promotions
Hotels.com is also having a special deal on Orlando hotels. Note that this special runs until June 8, 2010.
Orlando on Sale: Save up to 40% on hotels!
Walt Disney World Savings and Promotions
- Book a Disney Vacation Package and Get FREE Dining! Now available for everyone!: Travel between August 15 and Oct. 2. Stay at a Value Resort and receive Free Quick Service Dining Plan. Receive Free Basic Dining when you stay at a Moderate or Deluxe Resort. Minimum 3 night stay, with 2 day ticket. You must book by August 14. For more information, visit www.disneyworld.com and click on “Special Offers”.
- Stay through August 14, 2010 Get a 15%-30% discount off regular room rates. You should know that some blackout dates do apply and that not all rates are available at all resorts. You must book by 8/14. For more information, visit www.disneyworld.com and click on “Special Offers”.
- Stay August 15, 2010 through Oct. 2, 2010 Get a 30%-40% discount off regular room rates. You should know that some blackout dates do apply and that not all rates are available at all resorts. You must book by 10/2. For more information, visit www.disneyworld.com and click on “Special Offers”.
- “Kids Stay and Play for Free“: This special offer has been extended and is now valid for stays most nights May 2 – Oct. 2, 2010. Purchase a 4 night/5 day Magic Your Way vacation package (room and theme park tickets) and a child (age 3-9) stays in the room and gets a 5 day park pass for Free. This is basically providing free tickets for one child of this age…or two if there are two adults in the room…which can be a substantial savings! To receive the package deal, you must book by August 14, 2010. For more information, visit www.disneyworld.com and click on “Special Offers”.
- Disney Visa Card members can book the “Kids Stay, Play, and Dine Free” package. This special offer has been extended and is now valid for most nights through Oct. 2. It includes a 4 night/5 day Magic Your Way vacation package with room, park tickets, and the Quick Service Dining Plan is included for free. You have until June 30 to book this offer. To book, call 407-934-7639 or your travel agent. (**Don’t have a Disney Visa card yet? See the special promotion below through DisneyStore.com.)
- Military Discount of up to 40% on select Disney Resort rooms, for stays most nights through Sept. 30, 2010. You must book through July 31, 2010. In addition, active or retired members of the military can get a 4 day park ticket for $99. For more information visit the Military Special Offer page on disneyworld.com.
We’re Chatting About Disney Vacation Rental Homes at Chip and Co. Today
Have you ever thought of staying in a vacation home at Walt Disney World, in order to accommodate a larger group more comfortably…and to save money as well? If you have not, but are finding it challenging to find a place to stay for your large family or group that is affordable, then you may want to consider it….and you may want to read my post over at Chip and Co. today:
Is Renting a Vacation Home at Disney the Right Choice for You?
I got into an interesting discussion with a friend recently, who is planning a Disney World vacation with extended family. We were talking about the various options for where to stay: official Disney resort, off-property hotel, or vacation home or condo. It was kind of interesting, as they all have pros and cons, and when it comes to deciding the best option, especially if you are trying to have as affordable a Disney vacation as possible….as she was….then the picture isn’t always black and white. As she was leaning towards renting a home, I’m going to focus this post on the pros and cons of vacation home rental at Disney, and then would like to hear from you……
You can read the rest of the post here.
And please leave me your thoughts about whether you would ever consider this, and especially if you have done it. I would love to know if you would rent a vacation home at Disney again!
Have a magical day!
Travel Tuesday Tales: A Disney Vacation Prologue
I am probably my happiest when planning a Disney vacation…or at least that’s what my DH tells me. So as we have st
arted to make plans for our next Disney World trip in December, it’s been kind of a happy time around the Affordable Mouse house! 🙂 We’re just in the beginning stages at the moment, but will be making some firm plans within the next week, so it’s been kind of fun discussing the options. As you know if you have picked up my Affordable Disney Vacation Planning Guide, there is a lot of work to do at the beginning, before you book a thing!
Want to come along for the planning ride and see how I do it and what our experiences are like? Then follow along for my new series Travel Tuesday Tales, where I will periodically update you on the progress of our vacation planning. If you are new to planning a Disney vacation, it will give you the chance to see how I go about it. And if you are a Disney veteran, then you may enjoy living a Disney vacation vicariously through someone else….at least I know I sure do lol! 🙂
OK, so this is where we are at the moment.
Who: Myself, DH, DD and friend.
When: December 30 to January 3. Yup, we’re gonna be there for New Year’s Eve! We have done this a few times, and if you want to get some general thoughts on what we will be expecting, you can read this post, as well as a recent blog post I did over at Chip and Co. While we would love to be able to experience Christmas at Disney during a less busy time of year, with DD’s college schedule it is not possible at the moment. We really missed being at Disney over the Christmas season the past several years, so this year, we’re going back again.
Where: That’s the big one right now. We have been Disney Vacation Club owners for a few years now, so will be taking advantage of our points to stay in a DVC 2 bedroom, to accommodate everyone comfortably. Of course, as with everything else this time of year, points don’t go nearly as far as they do at other times of the year…plus we’ll be there over the weekend which cost more points than the rest of the week as well. So it’s a trade-off: more points per day means fewer days. It’s ok, we don’t mind.
Now, at this moment, we don’t know where we’ll be staying because we can’t book until 7 months prior to when we arrive. And I know that since Christmas week is the single busiest week of the year, I’ll happily book whatever is available. Given a choice though, we are going to request Animal Kingdom Lodge or Boardwalk Villas…but I know from experience, I’ll need to have an open mind, and that’s ok too.
What’s Next: My first opportunity to book our stay is this Sunday. Although we’re visiting DH’s family in western PA this weekend, traveling home through a few pesky mountains on Sunday morning will surely not prevent me from being on the phone with DVC Member Services when they open at 9 a.m.! So, as long as DH can find a place where reception is good, we’ll be fine. 🙂
Once I know where we’ll be staying, we’ll start finalizing those Advanced Dining Reservations, because those will be booked at the end of June!
Stay tuned for the next installment. Have a magical day!