What to Do at Disney World

Disney’s Epcot Resorts: The Benefits of Location, Location, Location

Nancy Disney Vacation Planning, Saving Money on Accommodations, What to Do at Disney World , , , , , , , , 0 Comment

Having discussed Disney’s Animal Kingdom Lodge last week, I thought that this week, in light of the current Summer Room Discount promotion, that I would share my thoughts about some other Deluxe/Villa resorts: the Epcot resorts of the Boardwalk, Yacht and Beach Club, and Disney’s Swan and Dolphin.

It may seem odd to talk about all 5 of these resorts in one post, but I do so for one reason…and the one that makes any/all of these resorts appealing to my family: location! 🙂

While each of them have their own unique theme, décor, and charm, they all share one really awesome benefit: situated along Crescent Lake near both Hollywood Studios and Epcot, they are within an easy walk or boatride to both of these parks, and as such, offer the very attractive ability to visit these Epcot or Hollywood Studios in a less-stressful, less-crowded…and in some cases much-quicker way.

photo via http://www.flickr.com/photos/pahudson/2217581994/

Let’s take a look at how easy it is to visit these two theme parks from any of the Epcot resorts.

Get to the Parks by Foot…

One of the things that I love about this area is the ability to get up in the morning, grab a cup of coffee and/or muffin (LOVE Boardwalk Bakery!) and stroll….yes STROLL….over to Epcot. Guests from this area can enter Epcot through World Showcase’s International Gateway, and let me tell you that this is such a great way to start your day! Virtually no lines, bag check is quick and you’re in and on your way! And the walk is delightful: it’s peaceful and lovely, and as you get closer to Epcot, you hear the wonderful Disney background music from World Showcase that just gets you in the mood to have a wonderful day!

Paris From International Gateway Epcot Walt Disney World December 2008photo via http://www.flickr.com/photos/kathika/3155518920/

It is also possible to walk to Hollywood Studios from the Boardwalk, and it’s a bit longer of a walk, perhaps 10 minutes or so, but it’s still great to again stroll along the waterway to head over to DHS. Or run: this entire loop in fact is quite popular with folks who like to take their morning jog before heading out to the parks each day.

Get to the Parks by Boat…

Connecting Epcot, Boardwalk, Yacht and Beach Club, the Swan and Dolphin, and Hollywood Studios, the Friendship boats provide a continuous loop of transporting park guests to each of these areas. Convenient, relaxing, and again rarely as crowded as you would experience on the buses or monorails, the Friendship boats are a great way to get around.

The most important thing to make note of when using the boats is to read the signs CAREFULLY before you get on, to make sure you are headed in the direction you want to go…and when in doubt, ask the Captain before you get on. 🙂

Also consider how much time you have…because while traveling by Friendship boat is many things, it is not fast. Of course, it’s not meant to be: it’s supposed to be relaxing…and at the end of a long day, believe me it’s a lot nicer to just hop on the boat and glide down to your resort, than sit (or stand) on the bus. Just be sure to allow yourself enough time, especially if you are using one of the boats to get to an Advanced Dining Reservation.

What Else There is to Love

Each of these resorts is unique and has their own special touches that make folks just love staying there. A few of our favorites:

Stormalong Bayhttp://www.flickr.com/photos/jamesprescott/5259896554/
  • Stormalong Bay at Yacht and Beach Club: Probably every kid’s idea of what the perfect pool and water play area should be, this mini-water park is extremely popular. With a sandy bottom, several hot tubs and an awesome “shipwreck” slide, this pool area is over 3 acres large. It’s awesome fun! 🙂
  • The Boardwalk at the Boardwalk: Think Cape May, think Coney Island, think Jersey Shore (when that was actually a compliment)…in fact think every beach resort town you have ever been to. Yes there is a boardwalk! And Yes, it has food and games, and entertainment. Try renting bikes or one of the surreys and travel around the lake for some great affordable, old-fashioned fun.
  • The Heavenly Beds at the Swan and Dolphin: I don’t know if I have ever found anything that is more appropriately named than these Heavenly Beds. After a long, exhausting day at the parks, sinking into this cushioned bliss is…..heavenly.
  • ESPN Zone: OK, we truly appreciated this during last year’s football playoffs, when we were able to stop in for a few hours to watch our game. We had a blast: we got a seat, ordered some food, made new friends, and had a truly fantastic afternoon. (Yes, our team won, so that helped….but still….)

And you will also find some of the best food on Disney property

Boardwalk, Boardwalk Bakery Sign 1

http://www.flickr.com/photos/kungaloosh/4438280817/
  • Kouzzina
  • Flying Fish
  • Cape May
  • Captain’s Grill
  • Beaches and Cream
  • Todd English’s bluezoo
  • Boardwalk Bakery
  • And lots more!

Making the Epcot Resorts Affordable

So as I mentioned last week when talking about the Animal Kingdom Lodge, while these resorts are not cheap, they *can* be affordable for you, if you want to experience them. Consider:

  • Promotions like the current Summer Savings can provide you a significant discount: you may find that booking a Deluxe with a good discount code ends up being comparable to a Moderate. If you book your trip with a travel agent, the agent will notify you if new discounts come out, even after you book, and can then re-book your trip: if you get a good discount, consider trading up! 🙂
  • Think about splitting your stay so that you can stay just one or two nights. Disney makes it so easy to change resorts, and many folks find this to be a way to experience Deluxe at a more affordable price: start in a Value or Moderate and end in a Deluxe for a special ending to your trip.
  • Think carefully about the time of year: Deluxe resorts have Value seasons that may make the cost work for your budget in a way that the more expensive times of year wouldn’t.
  • Affordable Disney vacations require you to balance wants and needs. Many vacationers plan shorter trips periodically so that they can have a Deluxe experience every so often.
  • The Walt Disney World Swan and Dolphin often offer some excellent promotions for teachers, government employees and just regular seasonal discounts. Although not owned by Disney, they are on Disney property and affiliated with Disney: so these “deluxe” hotels offer a number of Disney benefits, but at a more affordable cost.
  • Spend an evening here. It’s lovely, the food is delicious, and there’s great entertainment. And you can see Illuminations from the bridge…..no crowds necessary. 🙂

In real estate, they say location is everything. If you love Epcot and Disney’s Hollywood Studios…you will love the location of the Epcot resorts!

A Wonderful Disney Day with Grandma

Debbie Disney Vacation Planning, What to Do at Disney World , , , , , 7 Comments

Traveling to Disney with your grandparents can be a nice change of pace for those of us who have visited WDW with younger children.  Traveling with younger children entails very specific rides and areas that are specifically designed with them in mind, such as the recently closed Toon-town, Fantasy Land, and of course all the wonderful character greetings.  A lot of time is spent keeping all the kiddos happy and minimizing melt-downs.  Visiting with Grandma allowed me to slow down and enjoy her company at my favorite place.

We visited WDW with my grandmother when she was 80.   Although she had been active in her younger years, I knew she would need a wheelchair in the parks, to make it easier on her, and so she didn’t feel the need to speed-walk.  Grandma was not a “ride” person, especially with anything that went fast, had too many dips or was too scary – taking all that into account, we decided on Epcot for the day.  Grandma was able to visit the other parks, but this day was a very special day with just her and me.

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Thrifty Thursday: Cast Your Vote at the American Idol Experience

Brenda Thrifty Thursday, What to Do at Disney World , , , , 0 Comment

As avid followers of the ABC talent show, American Idol, my family has really enjoyed participating in The American Idol Experience at Disney’s Hollywood Studios. We have had lots of fun being part of the audience and have been lucky enough to see some very talented contestants as well. We love having the opportunity to vote for that talented someone who could actually end up with a dream ticket to try out at a real American Idol audition.

The show is put together just like a real American Idol taping. While you are waiting in line, they fire up the audience and do some preliminary taping of the crowd. Once the doors open, you enter the auditorium and take your seat in the audience. Since this is an indoor attraction, it is especially appealing during the hottest part of a Summer day or on the coldest Winter day.

During the 25-minute show, three park guests who have auditioned for judges earlier in the day, take to the stage and sing their hearts out. Then, you vote for your favorite and once the audience scores are tallied, they announce the winner for that show.

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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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Disney World Free Fun: Saving the World with Kim Possible

Nancy Affordable Disney Vacations, What to Do at Disney World , , , , 1 Comment
Photo courtesy of www.savekimpossible.com

One of the things we especially enjoyed on our recent Disney World vacation, was the chance to experience food, resorts, and attractions that were new to us. It may seem odd to say, but one of the benefits of visiting Disney during the busy Christmas/New Years week, is that it is the perfect time to discover things that you are usually too busy to see or do.

And that is precisely how we discovered, on New Years Eve afternoon, the Kim Possible Adventure in Epcot’s World Showcase, and learned how we could “save the world”. It’s free fun, and educational too (but don’t tell your kids that). In fact, on an afternoon when the wait for many attractions numbered in the hours, we found that spending the time with Kim Possible was the perfect way to enjoy the day in a way that we had never tried before. Very cool stuff, this saving the world thing….who knew?

So if you too would like to save the world (or at least a small portion of it), here is what you need to know.

Start off by registering with a Kim Possible agent at one of the designated locations in World Showcase. There, they will scan your park ticket and give you a special Fast Pass to report to a specific location at a specific time. When you are there, you will receive your mission….and your “Kimmunicator” which is a GPS cell phone you use to receive your instructions throughout the mission.

It was my daughter, at age 20, who decided to give this a try and we went along with her for “fun”. And fun it was! The area we had to report to was Germany, so we followed the instructions given on the Kimmunicator to start at a certain spot and listen for what to do next. Throughout the mission then, we were given more clues and instructions, about looking for different objects, going to specific locations, and figuring out information that was needed to move forward to the next stop…so that we could thwart those nasty evil-doers from achieving their dastardly plans.

And this is, in my opinion, the true beauty of this experience. You are LEARNING things as you go along! You have to actually read some of the signs, and look for the details that are all over World Showcase that nobody ever stops to see because everyone is so busy trying to get on Soarin’. Here we stopped, we read, we did what Kim Possible told us to do, and we were rewarded with some cool special effects (not giving them away though, you’ll have to find out yourself!), and a lot of fun. And yup, we learned a few things along the way. 🙂

Oh, and did I mention that it’s FREE?? 🙂

Now the thing is, many probably think this is an activity for little kids, but honestly, we were 3 adults and we had a blast. In fact, it is probably most suited to older kids who have the patience to go through all the clues and get to the end. And it would be fun for groups or individuals to do.

Once you finish (it takes about 30-40 minutes), if you liked saving the world once, you can do it again….in fact, 7 different countries in World Showcase offer this activity, and each one is different. Our daughter saved the world 4 times that day. 🙂

Want more information? Check out the Kim Possible Adventure page on Disneyworld.com. And then be sure to see if you can save the world on your next Disney World vacation!