Disney Vacation Planning

Thrifty Thursday: Mistakes with Disney Newbies!

Debbie Disney Vacation Planning, Disney Vacation Tips, Saving Money at Disney World, Thrifty Thursday , , , , , 0 Comment

12314355_10153321453891234_4113761447077216565_oOn our recent trip, my son and his now fiancee were going with us. My son, has been navigating Walt Disney World by himself since age 14, so he fully knew what to expect. However, his fiancee had never been to Walt Disney World, so we tried to prepare her for almost a year prior to us leaving. In looking back, we really didn’t prepare her much at all. Oh, she thought she knew the size of it and how we would be going from early morning to probably late night and she was going to ride all kinds of things from roller coasters to shows. BUT in reality, she really didn’t know the magnitude of being in Walt Disney World. Read more

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Disney with Little Ones: To Tell or Not to Tell?

Candice Disney Vacation Planning, Disney World with Little Ones , , , , , 0 Comment

12240919_10101894709578884_3078307551306772096_oOur next Disney vacation is still pretty far away, so I’ve got an important decision to make. We’ve taken our children on 2 Disney vacations so far and I’m really excited about our next trip. They’ll be 6 and 7 years old by then so it will be a much different experience than the ones when they were 2 & 3 and then 4 & 5. With the last 2 trips, I excitedly shared every detail of our planning with them as I could hardly contain my own excitement. Next time, I’m debating keeping it a secret. Since we haven’t booked our next trip or officially started planning, there’s still time to opt for keeping it a secret. To tell or not to tell?  Read more

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Thrifty Thursday: Start the Day Magically at the Magic Kingdom

Guest Disney Vacation Planning, Saving Money at Disney World, Thrifty Thursday, What to Do at Disney World , , , , 0 Comment

entranceWant a special experience before the Magic Kingdom opens? Arrive early for the Opening Ceremony! It’s the perfect start to a Disney day (and doesn’t cost a penny extra)! If you can plan to get up early and head to the Magic Kingdom before it opens, I promise you will not be sorry. Read more

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Disney with Little Ones: Give in to the Misting Fan

Candice Disney Vacation Planning, Disney Vacation Tips, Disney World with Little Ones , , , , , , , , 0 Comment

11934544_10101792302278934_1313827100536654710_oWay back when I was a cast member, I thought it a little indulgent and over-the-top to see every other child walking around with a ridiculously overpriced battery-operated misting fan. Each kid had to have their own and eventually, some unfortunate parent ended up carrying several of them. If the parent wasn’t carrying the bottles, kids were swinging them around, hitting people or merchandise. Unsuspecting guests inevitably got sprayed when they least expected it. It was one of those “when I’m a parent I’ll never…” things.  Read more

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Disney With Little Ones: Should I Buy the Dining Plan? (Part 1)

Candice Affordable Disney Vacations, Dining at Walt Disney World, Disney Vacation Planning, Disney Vacation Tips, Disney World with Little Ones, Saving Money at Disney World, Saving Money on Food , , , , , , , 0 Comment

11221815_10101706188262114_7032818403538453335_oI started planning our recent Walt Disney World vacation on a mission to spend as little money as possible, convinced I could prove that families on a budget can afford a well-planned trip. I scheduled my time off from work to span two full weekends in order to allow for drive time. My husband declined this option – he was adamant about flying and I couldn’t argue that it’s so much quicker and less exhausting. That added about $1,000 to the budget automatically. We stayed 9 nights at Pop Century Resort, one of Disney’s value resorts, and skipped the park hopper on our 7 day park passes. Everything was carefully considered, including my decision to opt out of the dining plan. Read more

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