Tuesday Disney Tips

Tuesday Disney Tips: Save Money by Driving

Brenda Affordable Disney Vacations, Disney Vacation Planning, Saving Money at Disney World, Tuesday Disney Tips , , , , , 4 Comments

The exorbitant amount we Americans are paying at the pump will very likely affect the vacation plans for many families this Summer.  People from around the country have said that the high price of gas has caused them to cancel or change their summer vacation plans in the past, so it is very possible this will happen again this year. Some families, although not deciding to do away with vacation this year altogether, also do not want to plan too far ahead; so instead of planning now for a July trip they are waiting to see if prices go down. The problem is the uncertainty over how high fuel prices could get.

Here at The Affordable Mouse, our wish is for everyone to be able to visit Walt Disney World with their families and we are committed to providing as much information as we can to try to make that a reality for every family. My goodness, Nancy has even become a travel agent to be able to further help you attain this goal. Me, I work full-time elsewhere but I still care just the same about trying to help you visit WDW, and this year is no exception. In fact, this year being so difficult has put even more stress on families and that is when we need more togetherness than ever at the most magical place on earth. Which, thankfully, brings me back to my point and that is, driving to Walt Disney World can save families a great deal of money. Read more

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Tuesday Disney Tips: Princesses with a Plan – Planning a Magical Disney Girlfriend Getaway

Brenda Disney Vacation Planning, Princesses With a Plan, Tuesday Disney Tips , , , , 3 Comments

You may have read previously that my husband surprised me by telling me that I can go on the anniversary trip I wanted with a friend, as he is unable to leave town during that time. As you might be able to relate, I don’t just love Walt Disney World I long for it as though I am obsessed. This year especially, I wanted to be at the Magic Kingdom on October 1 and when my hubby said he definitely could not go I just tried to put it out of my head. Enter my soul sister and equally Disney-crazed friend, Susan, and my dream was coming true.

You have to understand that I have a wonderful Disney life with my husband and three kids. Our annual trips to Walt Disney World mean the world to me, and we have traveled twice with Susan and her family as well. But I am a real family girl. The only time I have traveled away from my family was once for work and a few times with my mom and two sisters. This will be the first time in my life I have traveled with a friend – just a girls getaway. So, I want to encourage you Disney lovers out there – if your family can’t or won’t go with you to Walt Disney World, don’t give up your dream; grab a good friend and make a plan!  Studies show that relationships outside the family circle are crucial to keeping balance and perspective. I am very grateful to have a husband that is supportive of me, my friendship with Susan, and my deep desire to be at ‘the World’ at that time. I am also very grateful to have a friend who understands me so well, and who loves Walt Disney World so much herself, that she offered to take the trip with me.

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Tuesday Disney Tips: To Insure or Not to Insure?

Brenda Disney Vacation Planning, Tuesday Disney Tips , , , , 0 Comment

Choosing whether or not to buy trip insurance is one of the things to consider when planning your Walt Disney World vacation. Here at the Affordable Mouse it is paramount to us that we try to give our readers the best possible advice. We really want everyone to have the most magical experience possible when on your Disney vacation. We also try to heed our own advice when traveling ourselves. To me, affordable means the smartest use of, while requiring the least amount of, my Disney vacation money. So, it is not normally my practice to use money on any extras, like insurance, that would keep me from buying a momento for a family member or a gift for a friend while there. This year is a little different.

In all the years my family and I have been traveling to Walt Disney World, we have never purchased the vacation insurance with our reservation. Maybe we were tempting fate, but we all knew that it would have to be something fierce to keep us from making our annual trip to “The World.” We rested on the assurance of faith, combined with good planning and staying healthy. Plus, we have usually traveled at the end of November and we had been lucky in the past so what should change? Still, there is always a feeling in the pit of my stomach as we are driving from Texas to Florida that IF our van breaks down, we could arrive a day or two late, and the thought of that keeps tugging at me until we arrive there safe and sound.

For the first time, I will be purchasing trip insurance for my upcoming trip to WDW this September. For some travelers, this may seem like a waste of money, but I will spend that extra $59 gladly. What I am buying is peace of mind. I consider it to be a wise investment without any doubt for two simple reasons:

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Tuesday Disney Tips: Tools for Getting Around at Walt Disney World

Brenda Disney Vacation Planning, Tuesday Disney Tips , , , 2 Comments

Last week in Tuesday Disney Tips, Brenda shared some great information on the different types of transportation at Disney World, and how to use each. This week, she is back to provide some helpful tools and tips to make the most of your time getting around the Disney parks.

There are two valuable tools I use that have helped me out when planning my transportation at Walt Disney World: a copy of the WDW Resort Area map and a PDF file I created of WDW Travel Times.

The WDW Resort Area map is a great tool to use when planning the best routes to get you where you are going. As you can see, each resort is labeled as being located in a certain area (MK resort, Epcot resort, AK resort, or DHS resort).

Used in combination with the WDW Travel Times, a listing I made of the approximate time it takes to get from each resort to the Magic Kingdom, Epcot, Animal Kingdom Park, Disney’s Hollywood Studios, Downtown Disney, Blizzard Beach and Typhoon Lagoon, you should be able to figure out the approximate time to get from your starting point to your destination. In my times list, I have listed the quickest method to travel, whether bus, monorail or boat. Using the map and the list of travel times, let’s check out some scenarios:

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Tuesday Disney Tips: Voluntouring on Your Next Disney World Vacation

Brenda Tuesday Disney Tips, What to Do at Disney World , , , , 0 Comment

My children have grown up Disney and it has been a wonderful ride. Now that they are grown, I am sometimes slammed with the reality of how my life has changed. As you might guess, there have been many adjustments made when planning our annual trips to Walt Disney World as they have continued to get older. I sometimes get a little melancholy when I think of all the things we used to look forward to that they won’t do again for a while, such as my youngest son’s previous obsession with Tomorrowland Speedway. Somehow when you start driving, the novelty wears off – go figure! There are a lot of things that have changed in the way we visit “The World.”

When I plan our trips now, I look for things to incorporate that we weren’t able to do when they were small. This year I happened upon a gem! One of the things we enjoy doing as a family is volunteering. Volunteering while you are on vacation is called voluntourism. Some people refer to it as “vacationing with a purpose.” Did you know that there are great opportunities for voluntourism while on vacation in Central Florida? Well, there are, and one such opportunity is at Give Kids The World.

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