Let’s face it a Disney vacation can be anything but relaxing. Take a look at the last three years of my (week long) trips. Between the three trips there were eighteen nights spent on property, and we entered the parks 20 days. This means we entered the parks on the days we arrived and the days we were checking out. Last year we we finally worked a day into our plans that included a “day off,” where we committed to not going into a park…however since my parents were traveling with us one evening they kept the kids so we could have a “Disney Date Night” and the hubs and I ended up going over to watch Illuminations and getting a treat after our dinner. Read more
disney world resorts
Top Ten Tuesdays: Top Ten Reasons to Stay on Disney Property
When our family travels to Disney, the ONLY option is to stay on Disney property. Now, I know that tons of families love to stay off property too, either in a hotel or a rental house, but for us the magic in Disney is partly staying in the resort. Why, you ask? Well, I’ll tell you!! Read more
Disney’s Animal Kingdom Lodge – Kidani Village
Happy 2014! Are you ready to start planning your next Disney vacation? This month I’m going to recap my last visit to Walt Disney World’s resort Animal Kingdom Lodge- Kidani Village. Read more
Under the Sea at Disney’s Newest Resort
For the past couple of months, I’ve talked about staying at the Boardwalk, a Disney Deluxe Resort. This month we are taking a trip to the newest Disney resort, the Art of Animation. Art of Animation (AofA) is a value resort, but trust me this not your typical resort. The resort is located across the bridge from Pop Century. As you pull up to AofA, you are welcomed by a large, colorful sign that helps to promote the playful atmosphere of the resort.
The lobby is decorated by sketches from Disney animated movies on the walls and as the chandelier. We stayed at the resort within the first month of opening last year so the check-in process was a bit hectic to say the least, which gave us plenty of time to look at everything.
The “food court,” Landscape of Flavors, is phenomenal. We could have easily eaten every meal here without repeating a dish. We grabbed our first dinner from the make your own pasta bar the day we arrived, so we could fuel up before hitting Epcot. I loved the cupcakes for dessert; they made a great breakfast for the next morning. 🙂
Art of Animation has some unique decorations to keep you entertained as you walk the campus to get to the main building where the bus stop, food court, gift shop, etc are located. There are 4 areas- Lion King, Little Mermaid, Cars, and Finding Nemo. The Nemo section, fittingly, has the property’s largest pool called The Big Blue Pool. One thing I liked is that you had to use your Key to the World card to access the pool areas.
Many of the rooms are family style suites with the ability to sleep a larger family of 6. There are standard rooms in the Little Mermaid section which sleep 4. My husband enjoyed our stay in the Little Mermaid section.
I’ve noticed that prices seem to be a little higher for AofA than other value resorts, but in my opinion it is totally worth it! Can’t wait to stay here again.
Have a Magical Day!
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Adrienne is originally from the Chicago area but lives outside of Indianapolis with her husband, 2 dogs, and 2 cats. She went to Disneyland when she was 7, which started her love of Disney. She even named one of her dogs after her favorite princess, Aurora. She and her husband celebrated their honeymoon at Walt Disney World in 2007 and have returned for every anniversary. They have stayed at variety of resorts on property and traveled with friends and family. Adrienne and her husband bought into DVC in May 2011 and rewarded themselves with their first fall trip for some of the special events. Adrienne and her husband consider WDW their “second home” and have become the go-to people for any Disney related questions and advice from friends, families, and acquaintances.
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Ask Amy: Free…Did Someone Say Free at Disney?
A trip to Walt Disney World can be expensive…very expensive. Depending on the length of your stay, you can save some cash by spending a day (or more) taking advantage of the activities outside of the parks. In no particular order… Read more