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Mickey’s Not So Scary Halloween Party: Is it Worth it?

Photos courtesy of Disney Parks Blog

Here we are in October….Fall is here and it’s Halloween time. Of course, at Disney, Halloween time is starting earlier and earlier every year. This year, it began in AUGUST. They decorated for fall and Halloween early in the 2nd week of August and the first Mickey’s Not-So-Scary Halloween party was August 17th this year! I’m sorry, I just can’t get in the mood for Halloween when I’m still hoping for beach and pool time, Disney or no Disney!

This is one of my favorite videos: it shows Walt Disney World getting ready for Halloween VERY quickly. This particular transformation is from last year, but they follow pretty much the same process every year. It’s short, but I think it’s kind of amazing how quickly Disney can make magic overnight….Take a look….

The video HELPS with the Halloween mood, but I still just couldn’t get in the mood until the weather here in the Midwest started to cool off and October showed up. I realize that it’s still in the 80’s and 90’s in Florida, and that will continue for a few more weeks (or more)–but for us here in Chicago, October means cooler temperatures, leaves changing color, windy and often rainy days…so I tend to associate those things with Halloween.

So even though a few weeks of Mickey’s Not-So-Scary Halloween parties (MNSSHP) have already taken place, I just couldn’t bring myself to post about this year’s party until now.

And really, many of you are starting to think about next year’s vacation plans, and you may be considering a trip for next fall. September and October can be a wonderful time to visit Walt Disney World–kids have gone back to school, and while there are a couple three day weekends here and there, any family vacations planned during this time will require pulling kids out of school, at least for a day or two, and many families can’t make that work. This CAN translate to lighter crowds than you might see at other times of the year.

If the fall is an option for your family, you could be considering MNSSHP. With ticket prices starting at $85 and climbing as high as $125 for parties at the end of October, you may be asking yourself….$100+????? Is it worth it???

That’s the big question, right? And unfortunately, as ticket prices keep climbing every year, and the number of tickets they sell for the parties appears to keep climbing as well, that question is getting harder and harder to answer.

A few years ago, I would have told you, ABSOLUTELY, YES! I would not have even thought twice. I would have said, “If you have the time and the funds, plan on attending the party.” In those days, the tickets maxed out around $70…and Disney carefully capped the crowds to keep the parties feeling very much like a special “privileged” VIP event. Don’t get me wrong; there were definitely lots of people, especially for “sold out” parties; however, these days, “sold out” is much closer to peak park attendance and borders on unpleasant, at least in my opinion.

What this means is that it’s not the automatic ABSOLUTELY YES that it used to be. Now, it’s more important to really think about whether this is a value for you and your travel group. Does this make sense for you?

Let’s take a look at the basics first.

What are you getting for the price of your ticket?

Access to the Magic Kingdom with your party ticket as early as 4 p.m., until the party ends at Midnight. Note: the party doesn’t actually begin until 7 p.m.–however, if you really want to maximize the value of your party ticket, do NOT use a park pass day to visit any parks on party day. Make it a relaxing day. Enjoy the resort, or plan the party for your travel day. Get to the Magic Kingdom in time to enter the park at 4 p.m., so you can play a little and perhaps eat dinner before the party begins. Bonus: If you’ve managed to have a restful day, you’re much more likely to have energy to enjoy the whole party–right through until the end–Midnight. If you’re likely to be wiped out by 9:30 p.m., most likely you won’t feel like you got a good value for your $100.
Boo to You Parade: The Boo to You Parade is ONLY offered during MNSSHP. It’s offered twice a night, and a lot of people with little kids tend to clear out after the first parade. I usually recommend hitting the second parade…While lots of people are watching the first parade, you will likely find shorter lines for attractions and character greetings. In my opinion, the Boo to You Parade is a really great parade. If the weather is good, you usually get to see the Headless Horseman riding along the parade route shortly before the parade begins…it’s eerie and awesome. The parade is fun, and there are lots of things you don’t normally get to see. Having said that–if you have been to these parties a couple of times, the parade doesn’t change. It doesn’t get updated, it hasn’t changed in several years. I love it, but it alone is not worth the price of the ticket, especially if you’ve seen it before.

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Characters in Costume: One of my favorite things about MNSSHP is that you get to see the characters in their Halloween costumes. I really enjoy seeing Minnie in her Witch outfit or Daisy as a princess and Donald as her knight….Some years there is some variety in the costumes, but reviewing pictures from the last few years, it seems that many character costumes get repeated. Regardless, it’s still a lot of fun.

Picture Courtesy of Disney Parks Blog

Special Character Greetings: MNSSHP is especially fun if you love character greetings, because often, there are characters available for character greetings during the Halloween party that you would never get to see otherwise. For example, this year’s party features Anastasia and Drizella (Cinderella’s stepsisters), Cruella DeVil, Tweedle Dum and Tweedle Dee, the Queen of Hearts, Jack Skellington and Sally, the Gravediggers, Brer Rabit, Brer Fox and Brer Bear, Moana, Jafar, Tarzan, Jane, Terk, Elvis Stitch, Lotso (Toy Story 3), the Seven Dwarfs, Alice and the Mad Hatter, among others. You’ll also find a lot of your regular favorites in their Halloween costumes, like Goofy, Minnie, Daisy, Donald, Pooh, Piglet, Eeyore, and Tigger. And of course you can still find all your favorite princesses at Princess Fairy Tale Hall.
Photo Courtesy of Disney Parks Blog

One caveat to consider: As both parties and character greetings have become more popular, the lines have gotten longer and longer for many of the more popular “unique” characters at these parties. If that picture with the Seven Dwarfs or Jack & Sally is your holy grail, you may need to plan your entire party experience around it, getting in line extra early, and being prepared to WAIT. Last time I went to MNSSHP, we saw lines for some of the most popular characters that exceeded 90 minutes. These parties are only five hours long, and that if you stay until midnight, so you do have to prioritize what you REALLY want to do.

HalloWishes: What would an evening at the Magic Kingdom be without fireworks? MNSSHP is no exception. Usually at 9 or 9:30 p.m. (check the schedule for the night of your party), Disney will present HalloWishes, a spectacular Villains themed fireworks spectacular…and it is really terrific. And again, it is something you can only see if you’re at the party. Or having dinner at Narcoosee’s at the Grand Floridian during a party. Or at the California Grill at the Contemporary Resort. Or on the beach at the Polynesian Resort. Or on your Magic Kingdom facing balcony at Bay Lake Tower. But I digress. Honestly, while all those locations outside the park are great ways to watch Disney fireworks and get a different perspective, there is nothing like BEING in the park during one of the shows to really be WOWED. And HalloWishes is a WOW show. At least for me personally. But I’m a big fan of Disney fireworks shows, especially all the incarnations that have been at Magic Kingdom. This is another show that has remained the same for many years. I still love it, I still think it adds a lot of value to the party, but I know there are those that say that if you’ve seen it a few times, it might not be worth the ticket price anymore. Or that it might be wiser to squeeze in another character greeting or attraction instead of watching HalloWishes.

Halloween at Disney World Halloween Fireworks

Hallowishes fireworks Mickey’s Not So Scary Halloween Party (Photo: Disney Parks)

Pictures Courtesy of Disney Photopass Gallery

Hocus Pocus Villain Spelltacular: This is a very popular stage show that was new for the 2015 MNSSHP, based on the very popular Disney “cult classic” 1993 film staring Bette Midler, Sarah Jessica Parker and Kathy Najimy. While the movie basically bombed when it originally came out, it has become a revered Halloween seasonal favorite for many as the years have gone on, thanks to frequent cable and network airings. The Castle Mainstage productions are always very popular at these parties; the shows are usually 20 – 25 minutes long, and generally fairly crowded. This one has been more positively received that the two Villain themed shows that preceded it…but it has the same idea at it’s heart…bring as many favorite villains on to the stage as possible as Halloween is the time when the villains get to rule the night…It’s a great chance to get pictures of villains you may not see very often.

Picture Courtesy of Disney Parks Blog

Scream-o-Ween Dance Party: These dance parties are fairly hilarious…this one is in Tomorrowland, and includes Mike, Sully and Boo. They try to get everyone dancing and usually, it’s the littlest kids that are the most fun to watch.
Trick or Treating: There are several candy stations set up throughout the park, so you can take you trick or treat bag to each station (wait in line) and get your “free” candy. For me personally, these are kind of a waste of time. The candy is usually not great–it’s whoever donated it that year–there’s almost never any chocolate (probably smart in the Florida heat and humidity…but come on! Halloween without Hershey kisses or mini-candy bars??? It’s a crime!!) Anyways, it’s usually odd flavored hard candy or other strange things–I don’t know, I haven’t been too impressed with this element of the parties. I think if you have little kids that LOVE to trick or treat, they might get a kick out of it, but the lines were so long at the last party we went to, it just was not any fun.
Cadaver Dans Barbershop Quartet: Sure you can see the “Dapper” Dans any old day at the Magic Kingdom, and they are terrific….but you can only find the “Cadaver Dans” at MNSSHP. These guys perform in Frontierland try to kill you with laughter…or something like that. They’re pretty fun if you catch them.

Picture Courtesy Disney Parks Blog

Special Treats: There are special food items and treats that are only for sale during MNSSHP. Note: If any of these items turn out to be REALLY popular, you may see them show up on a regular menu or kiosk in the future…sometimes the parties are a bit of a testing ground for new items. Or a “special” themed cupcake that’s only for the party will end up being sold during the day throughout October. So take the “only for sale during the party” idea with a grain of salt. This year’s “special treats” include: Pumpkin Cheesecake (Main Street Bakery), Hades Nachos (Pecos Bill’s), Worms and Dirt (Pecos Bill’s), Zero Waffle Sundae (Sleepy Hollow), Jack Skellington Cake Push Pop (Sleepy Hollow), Madame Leota Dessert (Liberty Square Market), Hitchhiking Ghost Dessert (Aloha Isle), Oogie Boogie Meringue (Gaston’s Tavern), and the Muenster Smash Burger (Cosmic Ray’s).

Pictures Courtesy Disney Parks Blog

Special Party Only Merchandise: There is special merchandise that is only available during MNSSHP. And they are NOT kidding with this one. The stuff comes out at 7 p.m. (or a little before) and you cannot buy it without a party ticket. AND once it’s gone, apparently, it’s gone. I have been disappointed a few times by having my heart set on a particular pin or shirt, only to find it was sold out by the time I got to a party (or was ready to buy at the end of the night). This year’s special party only merchandise includes a limited edition Magic Band, party themed pins, special passholder only pins, and a villains themed pin set; party themed shirts and an ear ornament, themed to the party. There is also a line of products themed to the Hocus Pocus Villain Spelltacular, including a mug, tote bag, shirt and collectibles. Some items are special for passholders only. There’s also a line of “Hocus Pocus Costume” t-shirts designed to “sub” for a costume–and again, only available at the Party. The “party only” merchandise has always been a big draw for me for these events I’m not gonna lie. I’m a shopper. There’s no getting around it. If the party’s at the beginning of your trip, take advantage of package delivery, and have your purchases delivered to your resort for free. Then you don’t have to lug them around the party all night. A word of warning: Buy it when you see if the first time if you want it….or risk dragging your poor husband through every shop in the park as the park is closing to find that exact special party only item you HAVE to have that you didn’t buy when you saw it earlier in the evening…not that I know anything about that, of course.

Pictures Courtesy of Disney Parks Blog

Shorter lines for popular attractions due to smaller crowds: This one is getting a little more questionable as Disney is selling more tickets for these parties, and the parties are becoming more crowded. Generally, the idea is that because the park is closed to day guests, and the number of party attendees is “much less” than a typical “crowded” park day, the attraction lines are shorter. However, the same thing happens during the party that happens during the day: people gravitate to the most popular attractions, so some queues for less popular rides are walk ons, and there will be long lines at popular attractions. The line might be 60 minutes instead of the 150 minutes you might see during a typical crowded afternoon, but during a short 5 hour party….you have to decide how much time you are willing to wait in line, especially if you know you may be able to ride these same attractions later in your trip. It does get better later in the evening, especially after the first Boo to You parade is over, and even more so after the fireworks. The last two hours are usually pretty good for both character greetings and attractions, unless the party is VERY crowded, with obvious exceptions being VERY popular character greetings (like Jack & Sally) and attractions (like Seven Dwarfs Mine Train).
Exclusive Photopass “Magic Shots”: there are special magic shots that Photopass photographers can only do during MNSSHP. If you’ve been reading my blog for long, you probably already know that I am a NUT for photos, so the special magic shots are a real seller for me, especially because they really weren’t doing these a few years ago…this is one of the areas where the parties have started offering MORE, instead of less. This year, there are a number of special magic shot opportunities, according to the Disney Parks Blog. There are a couple shots on Main Streets where your party will be joined by some mysterious “ghostly” visitors. At the entrance of the Magic Kingdom, you can get a great shot where the headless horseman joins your family. There’s a scary glowing pumpkin shot that mimics the traditional “Tinkerbell” in your palm photo…that one looks pretty cool. Over near the Haunted Mansion, you can hitchhike with some friends, take a ride in a ghost driven hearse, and perhaps meet a very famous HatBox Ghost. The ghostly ones are my favorites, and I’m excited to see so many new ones have popped up.

Halloween at Disney World Magic Ghost Shot

Mickey’s Not So Scary Halloween Party (Photo: Disney Parks)

Pictures Courtesy of Disney Parks Blog

And there’s one more “hidden” benefit, that’s not TECHNICALLY included in your party ticket, but tends to be one of the BEST parts of attending a MNSSHP: seeing all the guests that come to the party in costume! Costume regulations and rules have gotten a lot more strict in the last couple of years due to safety concerns, so this isn’t QUITE as much fun as it used to be, but it is still a heck of a lot of fun. I’ve been surprised at how many guests dress up in costume. Some go VERY elaborate–others go pretty casual and easy with it, but it’s so much fun to see what everyone has thought of! And it’s even more fun to plan a costume for yourself or a group theme for your whole family or travel group….Just keep in mind the warm temperatures. You do NOT want to spend the evening melting in your costume…and be sure to review Disney’s costume guidelines here.

Picture Courtesy of Disney Parks Blog

So we come back to the original question: Is it worth it?

Some things I suggest you consider:

Have you ever been to a Mickey’s Not So Scary Halloween Party before? If not, I think you should probably put a point in the YES column. It’s definitely something everyone should do at least once, if they have the opportunity and means.
Do you like Halloween? Let’s face it, if you are NOT a Halloween person, don’t like it when people dress up, don’t see the point of trick or treating and don’t enjoy scary movies (even funny/scary)…You probably should just give MNSSHP a pass. It’s just not your cup of tea. However, if you LOVE Halloween, love getting dressed up, LOVE all things ghostly and pumpkin related…you may want to put another point in the YES column.

Can you plan the party attendance into your trip so that a) you don’t spend the whole day in another park and get worn out b) you are able to be in costume, ready to start your evening, at Magic Kingdom, at 4 p.m. (or 5 at the latest?) c) feel like you are likely to be able to enjoy the whole party, all the way through until Midnight? and d) deal with the impact that late night will have on the NEXT day–can that day be a rest day? Or a water park day that starts at 10 instead of 7? If all these answers are yes, that’s another point for the Yes column. If all are NO, then you may want to pass on the party. If you come down more mixed up, you probably need to do some careful thinking.
Do things like special merchandise, special food, special photopass magic shots ONLY available tat the party matter to you? If they’re important, put a point in the YES column. If you could care less, that’s a point in the No column.

How do you feel about parades? If you love the idea of a unique, nighttime parade featuring characters you don’t often get to seem, put a point in the YES column. If you really don’t enjoy parades, hate having to find a place to sit or stand to watch the parade, get annoyed with the crowds, etc., that’s a point for the NO column.
How do you feel about fireworks? If you are a fireworks fiend, put a point in the Yes column. If you don’t care about them, or strongly prefer to avoid them, that’s another check in the NO column.

Picture Courtesy of Disney Photopass Gallery

Where do you land on special Character greetings? Are they important to you? If so, that’s another Yes vote. If you can’t be bothered, that’s a big NO.
How many people in your group? What are their ages? There are a couple of reasons to look at this. For two adults, it’s a lot easier to move around the party and avoid crowds, moving quickly and adapting the plan as needed. For two adults and two kids in strollers, it gets more difficult to move through crowds, and the priorities are doing things that will make the kids happy. Skipping the trick or treat stations may not be an option. Staying until midnight may not be something you want to do. You need to plan ahead for parade and show seating, which will eat up some of your time from attractions, character greetings or trick or treating, so you’ll need to consider your priorities. For three adults, a six year old and two teens, there are still more things to consider. Do you want to stay together the whole time? Split up for part of it? Does everyone have the same interests? Do you want to focus on the shows and parade, or rides and character greetings? Think about the group you would bring to the party. Consider whether they would enjoy it, and whether you would enjoy it with them. If the answer is yes, then that’s more points in the YES column. If you’re not sure, you’ve got some more thinking to do.

Can you afford it? This is REALLY the big question. A Disney vacation is an investment. For many of us, it’s something we have budgeted for, and planned for and saved for. You have to consider your budget. Realistically, can you afford the tickets for the party for your group? Will it put a dent in your food budget or your souvenir budget? Or, since you are doing the party one day, could you buy 1 day less on your Magic Your Way tickets, and make up some savings that way? Could that make it work for you? I know not everyone needs to worry about these matters. For some people, budget it not a concern. If money is no object, and you want to go to the party for 2-5 hours, go for it. It’s a fun time, with lots of unique experiences. But for those of us who are more budget conscious, it usually means a trade off. What do I have to give up, if I buy these tickets? So give that some thought, and make sure you are comfortable with your choice.
Consider the value: If you pay $100 for your party ticket (less if you go in August or September, more if you go closer to Halloween), and you attend the party from 7 p.m. – 12 p.m., you’re spending $20 per hour for the party. Think about all the things available at the party, and recognize you will not be able to do all of them. Think about the things that would be most important to you and your travel group, and imagine that with proper planning you’ll be able to do at least most of them. Would you feel like you got $20 per hour worth of value for each person? Would you feel good about your investment? If you enter the park at 4 pm, you’ve added a couple hours to your park time, and now you’re spending $12.50 an hour. Conversely, if you leave at 10 p.m. and arrived at 7 p.m., you’ve spent $33.33 an hour. You are the only one that can determine the right value for you and your family or travel group.

Do I still think the parties are worth it? Mostly. It’s hard, because I struggle a little bit with that “good old days” thing. They used to not be so crowded. They used to be more affordable. They used to have this. They sometimes had that. Blah blah blah. But time marches on, and we live in the here and now.

Picture Courtesy of Disney Photopass Gallery

Today, given what we are hearing about the crowds and the lines, is it still worth it? For me personally, it’s probably still yes. It’s not as strong a yes as it used to be, and I’d try to stay a lot closer to that $80 than the $100. If I really wanted to attend, I would spend some extra time planning and try and choose a night that would hopefully not be sold out or super crowded. I would choose a night earlier in the season when prices are lower, and I would take advantage of whatever discounts I could. I would probably plan my night pretty carefully to make sure I could maximize the things that are important to me and my group. But gosh…when you sit down and think about all that you can see and do in 5 hours, all the options available…it’s hard to imagine NOT finding $20 per hour worth of value in that….for me personally. But that’s me.

I love the parade, I love the fireworks, I love the shows, and the silly dance parties and seeing everyone all dressed up. I love the special merchandise and the silly special food items, and the Haunted Horseman. I love the characters that wander around, talking to guests, that you don’t have to wait in line for, that you might just bump into. I love the different lighting and music that plays during the parties. I love the festive mood of the parties. I love watching little kids’ faces when they see the gravediggers making sparks on the street with their shovels during the parade, or when they see Mickey and Minnie in their Halloween finery.

You have to think about what you love. And what’s important for your vacation. Your group. And your budget. And then of course you have to think about the magic and the memories you want to bring home from your trip. And if it makes sense for you and your group, go for it.

The bottom line: you’ll have lots of amazing moments throughout your trip, whether you go to the party or not. Come on, it’s DISNEY! You KNOW it will be magical!

Picture Courtesy of Disney Photopass Gallery

If you have any questions, I’m here to help!

Happy Dreaming!

Brooke

When to go???

The number one question I get from people about traveling to Disney is WHEN? When is the best time to go?

The short answer? It DEPENDS. There are a ton of factors to consider. The weather, the crowds, pricing, discounts, work schedules, school schedules, special events, new attractions, closing attractions, budget concerns…A Walt Disney World or Disneyland vacation is an expensive trip, and to maximize the value you receive for your family or traveling group, you want to make sure that you are choosing the best time FOR YOUR SPECIFIC FAMILY, depending on what is important to you.

For example, we are right now planning a big extended family trip to Disney for 2019. This trip will include my parents, my husband and myself, and my brothers and their families—which will include two high school age kids, and two elementary school age kids. A couple of factors are playing into our decision of WHEN to go.

First: Budget and time for everyone to SAVE. Originally, we’d talked about planning the trip for the fall of 2018. However, we quickly realized that it would be too difficult for everyone to save enough money to pay for the trip in time (about 1 year out when we started tentative conversations). All those kids are expensive, 😉! We determined that planning a trip two years out gave everyone more time to budget for the trip. Not that it necessarily takes two years of concentrated saving to afford a Disney vacation, but let’s face it…the bigger window you have to figure out how to pay for something, the easier it can be to figure it out! As a family, we’ve already discussed that the Christmas holiday nearest our trip will be a no-gift exchange Christmas—we will all focus most of our holiday budgets towards the trip. If budget or time to save isn’t a concern for your family, this is a consideration you can skip.

Second: School schedules and work schedules. When I plan trips with my husband, I pretty deliberately choose dates when I know kids are in school, because that helps a little bit with crowd volumes. However, when traveling with the extended family, school schedules are a BIG factor. Especially for the older kids—we really don’t want to pull them out of school for more than a day or two…but you also don’t want to go to Disney for a 2 or 3 day trip. If school schedules are your MAIN concern, you would most likely plan your trip for the summer months, or during Christmas break or Spring Break. The challenge with that strategy is that every other parent planning a Disney vacation is looking at those same weeks or months for THEIR trips…Crowds during Christmas and Spring breaks are MAMMOTH. The last two weeks of December and most of April are considered “Peak” periods at Disney, and you’ll see the highest resort room prices and the highest crowd volumes of the entire year during these periods. Summer is not quite as crowded, but you still see fairly high crowd volumes during the summer months. For many, the intense heat and humidity in Orlando during the summer months can be detractor for those months. For others, the heat is not an issue and the summer months are the ideal time to visit—especially if you want to include the water parks in your vacation plans.

Personally, I struggle a LOT with the high temperatures and humidity in the summer months in Orlando, so we tend to avoid going during those months when I plan trips for us. My May trips with my mom for Epcot Flower and Garden Festival tend to be pretty warm (at least for me), but the beautiful May weather is just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to heat in Orlando during the summer. If you’re from the South or just used to warmer temperatures in general, the heat and humidity of the summer season in Orlando may not phase you at all. However, I will point out that the heat is harder on older people so if your group includes some seniors, you may want to factor that in…Also heat and humidity can contribute to irritability and hot tempers…and the heat can negatively effect even the sweetest most well behaved children! So again, it may be something you want to consider.

Another consideration, some companies are very strict regarding WHEN employees can take time off—for example, if you’re an accountant, you most likely can’t plan your vacation any time between November 1 and April 15. Teachers generally can’t take time off during the school year. If you are in landscaping, you probably don’t want to travel during your busiest seasons. You get the idea, I’m sure. Everyone’s situation is unique, and it’s important that you don’t try to shoehorn your family vacation into a mold that doesn’t really work for you. Just because February 15 was the PERFECT week for your neighbors that had such a wonderful trip doesn’t mean it’s the best week for YOUR family.

Once mom and I ruled out Christmas and Spring Break and SUMMER, we started looking at 3-4 day weekends that come up during the school year. Over the years, we’ve identified that we personally like traveling to Florida in the Fall…so we looked primarily at October and November. We don’t know what “teacher institute” days or special school specific days off may be, but we know that Columbus Day and Veteran’s day are always days that the schools are closed, so we focused on those dates, initially. If you can carve out a 3-4 day weekend by using a school holiday, you can fairly easily carve out a 5-7 day vacation—and the kids are only missing 2-3 days of school instead of 3-4. Of course, if it’s super important that the kids miss NO school at all, you will either have to decide to travel during Christmas break, Spring break or the summer break. It’s really all about YOUR priorities and the priorities of your group.

Third: Special Events and Celebrations: Are you wanting your trip to coincide with a particular scheduled event or celebration? For example, is attending the 50th anniversary of Walt Disney World’s Magic Kingdom a priority for your group? If so, coordinating your trip to include the official celebration will probably trump some of the other concerns. If you like to attend the Epcot Food and Wine Festival in the fall, your trip planning window will shrink to the 8-10 weeks that the Festival runs. Or if you are planning your family vacation around another event with a firm date, like a wedding or a birthday, you may place a higher priority on that event or celebration than on crowd levels or discounts.

In the example from above, our 2019 trip with the extended family, we are also planning our trip around the new Star Wars themed land, Galaxy’s Edge. Some members of our group are BIG Star Wars fans, so once we knew Galaxy’s Edge was coming, we knew that we wanted to be sure we could include that in the big family trip. Originally, it looked like Galaxy’s Edge would open mid 2019. Earlier this week, Disney announced that Galaxy’s Edge at Disneyland will open in Summer 2019, but Galaxy’s Edge at Hollywood Studios in Florida is scheduled for “Late Fall” 2019. Mom and I quickly convened for a pow-wow on this issue…we know that late fall could mean November 1…but it could also mean December 20. Or later—especially if Disney falls behind schedule. Since being able to check out Galaxy’s Edge is such a big deal for our family, we immediately ruled out both the October and November 2019 dates we’d been considering, as we are pretty sure the land is unlikely to be opened by then. We are now looking at going the first week of January 2020. The dates we are now considering have an added benefit of still falling during the kids’ winter break from school, but are after the holidays, so most families have completed their holiday travel and are back home—hopefully this will mean lighter crowds for us! We also may be able to add a couple more days to the trip since we are not trying to squeeze it around a three-day weekend with a school holiday. Given our financial strategy to help diffuse the costs of the trip by taking most of the money we all would have spent on Christmas gifts and activities for each other, and putting it towards the trip, mom and I think putting the trip AFTER Christmas all helps with that strategy, especially for the kids…Santa Claus will still come, of course, but Mom and Dad won’t be getting everybody lots of presents—but hey, we are all going to Disney in 2 weeks, yay!

Fourth: Attractions and activities: Something else to think about: if you have a beloved attraction that you MUST visit while at Disney for your trip to feel “complete”, you may want to take a look at the refurbishment schedules. Disney tends to do a lot of minor refurbishments during “slower” periods—not that there’s really ever truly “slow” periods anymore. But for example, there tend to be more refurbishments in January and February. There’s usually a crane near the castle for a couple of weeks when they are putting the holiday lighting in place, and again when they take it down…If having the crane in your pictures with the castle will break your heart…plan your trip AWAY from those weeks. Disney doesn’t always give a ton of notice when they will be doing refurbishments, so a little bit of this will be luck, but they do make some announcements months in advance—especially for major refurbishments, when an attraction will be down for months. Disney tends to do the water park refurbishments on a pretty regular schedule, so if you desperately want to include Blizzard Beach in your trip, check previous years to see when that park has closed for refurbishments, historically.

You may also want to consider what, if any, non-Disney activities you want to include in your vacation. For example, if you have always wanted to see a rocket launch at Cape Canaveral, check THAT schedule when planning your trip. If you’re planning to include a visit to Tampa, or to Daytona Beach, you will want to take a look at special events or challenges that happen in those areas.

Fifth: WEATHER. This is a big one, but may end up not being a high priority for many people, depending on what other things you’re considering. The great thing about Florida is that is has better weather than much of the country for much of the year. However, there are some challenges. As we discussed earlier, it can get very hot and very humid in the Orlando area in the summer. It can also be buggy in the summer. Hurricane season is officially June 1 through November 30. Now, it’s pretty rare for a hurricane to come that far inland, however, it’s NOT unusual for Orlando to be hit with tropical storms during particularly busy hurricane seasons.

Orlando has about 30 days of what most of us would consider “winter” each year. Those thirty days happen sometime between November and March..and tend to show up in little 3-5 day increments…We’ve had years where we visited in early November and had temperatures in the eighties…and we’ve had years where temperatures were in the low forties.

So…you may want to factor in the weather when choosing when you want to go. If you really want to go swimming or visit the water parks while in Florida, you want to be sure to go when temperatures will be warm enough for you to swim. Note: People from Florida may think it’s too cold to swim when it’s 70, but people from Wisconsin visiting in February may think 65 is warm enough…Your mileage may vary, depending on where you are from and your tolerance for temperatures.

You also need to consider your weather where you are traveling FROM. Last year, hundreds of flights were cancelled from the northeast due to snowstorms…it’s important to give the weather in your origin location at least a passing thought. While most of us probably wouldn’t mind being stranded in Florida for a few extra days, it would be very upsetting to be stranded at your home airport, unable to GET to Florida at all.

As you can see, there are a number of different factors that you’ll want to consider when deciding WHEN to go. It’s important to give at least a little thought to these different things as you’re planning…but of course, it’s also important to understand that nothing will ever be exactly perfect–and you don’t want to get so hung up on choosing the “right” time to go that you make yourself (and your family!) miserable.

In the example I’ve been using today, mom and I are pretty firmly decided now on January 1-7 or 8th…we may move the dates by a day or two, based on airfare challenges, but we are pretty committed at this point. Once you decide when you’re going, start planning on making THAT trip on THOSE dates the best trip you can. If you keep changing your mind on your dates, you’ll end up losing time and energy that would be better spent on other planning aspects! Of course, we remain cognizant that a lot can happen over the next two years that could impact our planned dates—we can’t even book our resort for another 18 months! So while I will be paying attention to major announcements, as always, and stay aware of major factors that could impat our trip, we are going to march forward with our planning based on a January 2020 trip.

Are you in the midst of planning a trip? When are you planning to go? What issues are important for you and your family??

Happy Dreaming!

Brooke

Note: If you need help planning your next Disney parks vacation, Disney cruise vacation, or Adventures by Disney vacation, please contact me at brooke@disneycastledreaming.com.

It’s All in the Attitude

One week to go!!

Next week, Mom and I head to Disney for a Mother/Daughter weekend, and I am BEYOND excited. We did these annually for a few years, until wedding planning and then financial strain put those weekend trips out of reach for a while. We’ve both really missed them, so this year, we decided to try again.

My work situation is different this year, which makes the trip a little bit easier. The last couple of trips we were only able to go for basically 2.5 days, which hardly made the trips worth it, financially. They’re ALWAYS worth it for the Mom/Daughter factor and of course, for the Disney factor, but with airfare and ticket prices, it’s hard to justify the expense for a trip that short. This time, we’re going down on a Wednesday morning and heading home on Monday night, so we have a few extra days to really enjoy ourselves.

And…get this…I’ve even planned a non-park/Rest day in the middle!!! Crazy, right? Seriously, I’m so used to planning quick or short trips, I never allow R&R time…as a result, we usually come home EXHAUSTED. Not this time! I still have a lot of fun planned for us, but I did plan some down time…both in afternoon “breaks” and with our rest day. This trip is all about having fun with Mom—but it’s also important to both of us that we NOT wear ourselves out!

A big focus for us this trip is the Epcot Flower and Garden Festival. My mom is an EPIC gardener—her yards have always been the best in the neighborhood! And Epcot is just SO SO SO gorgeous during Flower and Garden. This trip, I’ve planned two visits to Epcot so that we can really take our time and “drink it all in”.

While we are (hopefully) missing the majority of the Spring Break peak crowd madness, I am expecting significant crowds. Let’s face, Disney just doesn’t seem to ever have slow periods any more…and attraction lines just keep getting longer, even when perceived crowd levels are low. When temperatures are higher, it can feel (at least to us Northerners from cooler climates) more crowded, and sometimes, the heat can raise tempers as it raises body temperatures.

Something that has always helped Mom and I on these trips is EXPECTING it to be crowded and adopting a very relaxed attitude about it. We went one year right in the peak period of Spring Break, that was just the way it worked out that year, and we had a WONDERFUL trip—MAINLY because we had the right attitude! We focused on what was REALLY important—spending time together, soaking up the Florida sunshine, enjoying great meals, and having fun. Did we ride every attraction? Nope. Did we cover every park, stem to stern? Nope. Was it super crowded? Heck yeah! But we just did our best to stay relaxed, and we took lots of breaks to sit down, drink some water (or a glass of wine 😉) and people watch.

I think back to a really crowded trip I did about, goodness almost 20 years ago now, at Christmas time, and I’ll be honest…I did not love that trip. I actually did not visit Disney again after that trip for 7 years. And for a long time, I blamed the crowds, the lines, and the attitudes of others before I realized that it was MY expectations that had led to my disappointment. I LOVE Disney, and I had set such high (and honestly, unreasonable) expectations for that trip, and as a result, I did not enjoy it as much as I could have. I focused on silly “little” aggravations instead of focusing on what was really important…the people I was there with, the magic of Disney, having FUN, and making the best of the VERY crowded conditions.

So that’s my message for today: Traveling to Disney during the holidays, or during Spring Break, or during a very busy and HOT summer season CAN still be a terrific time, you just need to manage your expectations and make choices that make sense for you and your family or traveling companions.

Don’t plan to do “EVERYTHING” on everybody’s wish lists…Pick a FEW priorities to focus on each day…if you’re able to do those things, you’ll all feel like you had a great day…and if you squeeze a few more things in…you’ll feel even better.

If you like attractions, accept that you will be waiting in lines. Lots of them! Even the Fast Pass return lines can get really long on crowded days. THINK about the lines before you go. What attractions are you willing to wait one hour plus for? Are there any? What if EVERYTHING has a one hour wait? What will you choose? What can you do in line to entertain yourselves? We tend to play a lot of Heads Up or Trivia games on our phones…together, not independently.

In our recent epic 2.5 hour wait for Flight of Passage at Pandora in Animal Kingdom (TOTALLY WORTH IT—ONCE….I won’t ever wait that long again, but we completely felt it was worth it the first time, since we did not have a Fast Pass for it that morning), we ended up playing with the two families traveling together that were in line with us. We had a great time getting to know them, they were a lot of fun, and it definitely made the time pass faster. If you’ve got little kids, (or adults with low blood sugar concerns) making sure you’ve got snacks or water bottles in your bag can also be really critical in a long line.

The big thing for us when the crowds are high and the lines are long: take in the “non-ride” based attractions….Disney has SO much more to offer than rides! See the shows…check out the live music. For example, have you ever taken the time to watch the Jamminators perform in Epcot? They are TERRIFIC, and lots of fun!

There are several live performances in the streets of Animal Kingdom you can check out if you pay attention. I LOVE the Streetmosphere players at Hollywood Studios, and could happily spend hours watching them do their thing (most of these are 10-25 minutes). My point is, there is a LOT of “free” entertainment at each Disney park that often gets missed in the rush from attraction to attraction. Watch a caricature artist at work (or get one done…they’re very fun!). LOOK for the little things that make Disney so special…I think you’ll find so much more joy when you do this, rather than focusing on moving from one attraction to the next.

Take pictures. Have fun. Be SILLY. Remember: One of the BEST things about a good vacation are the memories that make you smile–sometimes even YEARS later–when you’re back at your desk at work, or watching your 175th soccer game of the year, or thinking about someone that’s no longer with us. Make sure you are capturing those memories–in your heart and with your camera! (Or phone. Or photopass guy. You get the idea!)

On hot days, I try to make sure we spend some quality time every couple hours in either an air conditioned restaurant or an air conditioned shop. Spread out your souvenir shopping…A little here and there will help keep you cool and get you out of the crazy crowds for a little breather. Note: The shops tend to be VERY crowded at the end of the night—You’ll be happier if you do a little shop exploration throughout the day.

Tip: Did you know that you can have your items shipped directly to your resort if you’re staying on property? This is a great benefit—then you don’t have to carry your bags around with you all day—OR worry about losing them! This won’t work if you’re heading home within a day or so…usually the merchandise arrives within 2 days, but if you check out before it arrives, that would be a problem. Alternatively, you can request your merchandise to be taken to the front of the park to be held for pickup at the end of the day. There is no charge for these services!

Don’t be afraid to take breaks! There is nothing wrong with heading back to your hotel after lunch or after the parade for a couple of hours to rest, go swimming, take a nap or just to get out of the crowds for a while. Trust me, if you’re getting aggravated? You NEED a break! Sometimes people get wrapped up in how much they are spending on their tickets for that day, and they feel like they have to spend every minute at the park to justify the expense…but I’ve learned (the hard way, I have to admit!) that you’ll get more VALUE from your experience if you adopt a bit more relaxed and positive attitude. Take a break here or there, whether that means sitting down and drinking some water and having a Mickey bar, or taking the bus back to your resort for a couple hours–just get everyone off their feet and let them cool off and relax a bit. It will make a BIG difference in everybody’s moods, and their ability to enjoy the rest of the day.

Take a break! (Photo: Brooke Hudson)

SONY DSC

Finally: Spend some time at the end of every day talking about the highlights of your day. What were each traveler’s favorite activities of the day? What was the best meal? Did anything really funny happen? I make envelopes for each day and print forms with some basic questions on them to help us to jot down these memories—super helpful later when you are putting together photo albums, or even just trying to remember and talk about your wonderful trip.

And there’s a bonus–when you take a few minutes to really think about the best moments of the days, those great moments take up more space in your memory, and the little irritations or aggravations fade to the background. Focus on what matters, LOOK for the happy and trust me, you will find it! They don’t call Disney the Happiest Place on Earth for no reason….it really IS…but we each bring our attitudes with us into the parks, and it’s up to US to make sure we are READY to be Happy. Know what I mean?

Mom and I are SUPER excited for our trip next week and we are DEFINITELY Ready to be Happy!

Happy Dreaming!

Brooke

Fast Pass Plus Planning Spring 2018

Today (March 3) marks 60 days until my spring trip to Disney World with my mom for the Epcot Flower and Garden Festival. I can’t believe it’s coming up so fast!! As you all might recall, I made Advance Dining Reservations for this trip back in December, at 180 days out. (You can read about that here). The next big activity in our trip planning is making our Fast Pass Plus reservations, and today was the day!!

A couple things to keep in mind: In order to book your Fast Pass Plus (FP+) reservations at 60 days out, you must have both a Disney resort reservation AND your ticket media for all guests in your party linked in My Disney Experience online. If you are not staying at a Disney resort, you will not be able to make FP+ reservations until 30 days before your trip. Also, if you do not purchase your park tickets in advance and have them linked in My Disney Experience for EACH guest in your party, you will not be able to book FP+.

I had purchased an annual pass last summer in preparation for my November anniversary trip with my husband. Mom and I had already decided to go to the Flower and Garden Festival this year, so I knew I had at least one more trip within a year—those extra days combined with the food and merchandise discounts available to annual passholders made it an easy decision for me to get an annual pass. Plus, at the time, DVC members were being offered a pretty good deal on annual passes. I did spend a lot of time evaluating the 5 day and 10 day passes first, especially for my husband’s pass…but ultimately decided on an annual pass for both of us. I still have hopes we might be able to do a short visit in the fall before our passes expire, but finances may prevent that this year…time will tell. Regardless, my annual pass was already in my account…but my mom had to get her pass in time so that we could enter the information into My Disney Experience.

As many of you are aware, Disney raised ticket prices in February. Fortunately, my mom purchased her 5-day pass a few days before that increase. She also purchased her pass through Undercover Tourist—which is a great site that does offer a slight discount on Orlando area theme park tickets. Mom purchased her ticket online from Undercover Tourist and received the actual card in the mail a few days later. She immediately took a picture of the back of the card with all the important numbers on it (this is a critical step, just in case you ever lose your ticket!) and sent it to me. I used those numbers and added the ticket to my account and assigned it to her. [To add ticket media to your My Disney Experience, log in and choose My Reservations and Tickets. Then click on the Link Tickets button.

Once you’ve selected “Link Tickets”, you’ll see the screen pictured below:

Disney offers several examples of different ticket media to help you figure out what information you need to enter. Once you’ve entered the ID number and hit enter, you’ll be directed to the list of Family and Friends you’ve tied to your account so you can assign the ticket to a particular person. Note: You MUST have the person whose ticket you are adding set up as a Family member or Friend in your My Disney Experience BEFORE you add their ticket media, or you won’t be able to assign the ticket to them. Also, tickets are non-transferable, so don’t plan to share a tickets between family members–it won’t work.

Once you’ve linked the ticket to your account and assigned it to the family member you are traveling with, you will be ready to book your FastPass Plus reservations. (Make sure that your friend or family member is ALSO linked in your resort reservation as a member of your Travel Party…without that, they won’t have the sixty day access that is for resort guests. If you made dining reservations at 180 days, you’ve most likely already done this!)

I had already linked mom in the hotel reservation we have for May 2-7 at Old Key West, and in all the Advance Dining Reservations (ADRs) I had made for us for that trip; all that was left was to reserve our FP+. Once her ticket media was linked, I knew I would be able to make FP+ reservations for the two of us at 6 am March 3 (the window opens at 7 am eastern time, 60 days before the first night of your resort reservation). An important note to remember: If you are doing a split resort stay, where you are staying at two (or more!) different resorts during your trip, you will have a sixty-day window for each “leg” of your trip. For example, if you are staying at Saratoga Springs for 2 nights and then at the Grand Floridian for 5 nights, your first sixty-day window will open up sixty days before your first Saratoga Springs night…but you will only be able to book FP+ for the two days of that reservation. You’ll have to log back in two days later for the Grand Floridian five days to open up. If you have any questions about this, please reach out. You can email me at brooke@disneycastledreaming.com if you need help.

To prepare for this morning’s FP+ booking session, I spent about 20 minutes yesterday reviewing the plans I’d already made for our trip. I took a look at which parks I’d planned for which days, and what dining reservations I’d made for each day. This trip, we are visiting parks on both our inbound travel day and our outbound travel day, so I took a look at what times I was anticipating we will have available on each of those days. I made a quick list of the days of our trip, which park or parks I have planned for each day, and which restaurants and the times for our ADRs.

It looks like we will be pretty lucky from a crowd perspective for this trip; estimated crowd levels are relatively low for the days we are there, especially the first few days of our trip. Hopefully, this means that standby lines will be shorter, reducing the need for FP+ reservations and/or increasing our ability to be flexible and reschedule FP+ while we are at the parks. Late March through most of April tend to be very busy at the parks due to spring break visitors, so we deliberately planned our trip for early May, and it looks like it will pay off for us, at least from a crowd perspective. I also like the look of Epcot a lot during May. The Flower and Garden Festival at Epcot runs from February 28 through May 28 this year, and while Epcot is stunning throughout the festival, I think it gets more beautiful later in the festival, as more flowers bloom and plants mature.

Because the Flower and Garden Festival is our PRIMARY motivation for this trip, I’ve planned two days at Epcot this time, and am hoping we’ll be able to take in some of the special presentations and tours offered only during Flower and Garden.

When planning your FP+ reservations, be sure to take into consideration the preferences of everyone in your traveling party. For example, my husband LOVES thrill rides, so when I plan our trips, I make sure I plan for those “exciting” attractions, like Rock n Roller Coaster, Tower of Terror or Expedition Everest. My mom does NOT enjoy thrill rides, so I focused more on attractions and shows that she’ll enjoy. If you’re planning for a larger group with diverse interests, you’ll want to either split up a little bit to allow everyone to do the things they want to do, or you’ll want to let each person pick ONE attraction that’s most important to them for FP+ planning and try and balance everyone’s priorities. It can be challenging, but involving the whole group in the planning process can help build excitement and enthusiasm for the trip.

Normally, Saturday is the one day per week that I sleep in a little bit…but NOT today! 😊 That FP+ window is too important! So I set my alarm for 5:45 a.m., and as soon as it went off, I was up and in vacation mode!

I think I’ve mentioned this before, but Disney is serious about this window…your access to Fast Pass Plus reservations for your trip will not open even 30 seconds early…If you try, you will see the dates after 30 days grayed out. I know it’s hard, but try to be patient. Your window opens at 7 am EASTERN time.

It’s important to start with the Fast Pass Plus reservations that will be most difficult to get. There’s an understandable tendency to want to book each day’s FP+ in order as you’ve planned your trip. BUT, keep in mind that there are thousands of other people visiting the parks the same days you are, and for some of them? Their 60-day window opened a couple days ago because they’re arriving before you. If your most desired attraction is Pandora Flight of Passage at Animal Kingdom, but you’re not visiting AK until the last day of your trip, waiting even 10-15 minutes to make that reservation will most likely result in either not being able to get a FP+ at all for that attraction, or one much later in the day than you might have wished. I can’t say it enough…the more planning and prep work you do up front, the more relaxed and laid back you’ll be able to be on your trip. So, when you’re planning your FP+ attack, focus on those hardest to get FP+, no matter which day of your trip that park might fall on. Some “HOT” attractions include:

Pandora Flight of Passage at Animal Kingdom

Pandora Na’vi River Journey at Animal Kingdom (note: Disney only allows you to book a FP+ for ONE of the two Pandora attractions, so you’ll have to choose!)

Expedition Everest at Animal Kingdom

Kilamanjaro Safari at Animal Kingdom

Frozen Ever After at Epcot (in Norway)

Soarin’ Around the World at Epcot

Test Track at Epcot (note: Disney places Frozen, Soarin’ and Test Track in one FP+ tier, so you’ll only be able to choose ONE of these, unless you’re visiting Epcot more than once during your trip)

Toy Story Mania at Hollywood Studios

Rock-n-Roller Coaster at Hollywood Studios (note: Disney groups Toy Story Mania, Fantasmic, Beauty and the Beast and Rock-n-Roller Coaster all in one tier, so you’ll only be able to choose one of those!)

Seven Dwarfs Mine Train at Magic Kingdom

Splash Mountain at Magic Kingdom

Space Mountain at Magic Kingdom

For us, I had three “high priority” FP+ reservations I wanted to make: Pandora Flight of Passage (Mom loves Soarin’, so I’m hopeful she will love Flight of Passage as much as I did), Frozen Ever After (it’s new since the last time we went, and I want Mom to experience it) and Toy Story Mania (it’s just FUN and we both love it!). Everything after that was pretty much gravy for us—I know we won’t be riding the thrill rides, and we are both big fans of getting to the park early in the morning so we can ride the things we want to ride before the lines get long. This works really well everywhere except for Animal Kingdom Pandora (as I learned the hard way!), so I’m relatively confident we’ll be able to do all the things we want to do, especially with the (relatively) lighter crowds projected for the first few days of our trip.

I was victorious with two of my three goals. I booked FP+ for Pandora Flight of Passage for early evening on arrival day; I booked Frozen Ever After for after lunch on our first Epcot day and I also grabbed FP+ for those attractions on our “return” days at those parks. I’d rather have them and decide to cancel then NOT have them and regret it!

Unfortunately, I was NOT successful with Toy Story Mania. All those FP+ were already gone for the afternoon we are planning to visit Hollywood Studios. And because we are doing two parks that day, we won’t be taking advantage of the early morning arrival to head to Toy Story—we’ll be at Magic Kingdom in the morning. So…odds are fairly high we will miss this attraction this trip. But that’s ok. Soon, Toy Story Land will be opening, and with it, more crowd absorbing attractions AND an extra Toy Story Mania track! So, next trip, it should be easier to book FP+ for this attraction.

Once I had my “hot” FP+ attractions booked, I filled in the days with other attractions, shows and character greetings that I think we’ll enjoy. When I visit with Mom, we tend to be pretty relaxed about our touring, so we may not use all the FP+ reservations that I’ve made, or we may end up tweaking these reservations based on what’s going on each day, but it’s good to have them booked in case there are unexpected crowds, or if we REALLY need a break from the heat.

Reminder: Disney only lets your reserve three FP+ reservations per day, and all three must be in the same park. Epcot, Hollywood Studios, and Animal Kingdom all use a “tier” system for their FP+ reservations, grouping the most popular and highly sought-after attractions together, and limiting guests to choosing just one of those, with the other two reservations coming from the rest of the attractions that use FP+. As a result, you may find yourself booking a FP+ reservation for an attraction you aren’t likely to need it for, unless you are visiting during busy times. For example, you will rarely need a FP+ to ride Living with the Land at Epcot or It’s a Small World at the Magic Kingdom…BUT if those rides are super important to you and you want to make sure you don’t miss them, go ahead and book the FP+. You can always cancel later if you get to the park and ride the attraction without a line ahead of your FP+ reservation.

Also: After you’ve used all three of your FP+ reservations for the day, you can book additional FP+ reservations, one at a time. Those can be in any park—but again, only one at a time. So, from a strategy perspective, you may NOT want to use a FP+ to book a reservation for something late in the day, like Fireworks viewing, because you won’t get the opportunity to book any other FP+ until AFTER that last one is used. Usually, I won’t book FP+ for the first couple of hours the park is open as USUALLY the lines are pretty short during that time, and I’d rather save FP+ for when lines are longer. But I also like to have used all our FP+ reservations by 3-4pm, so we can book additional FP+ reservations as needed later in the day. So my “ideal” FP+ window is usual from 11:30ish to around 3pm. The one exception to the early morning short lines scenario is Pandora at Animal Kingdom. That area seems to OPEN with already long lines, haha.

Character greetings: I rarely use FP+ for character greetings because I’m usually concerned about getting all those thrill rides in. BUT if character greetings are important to you, book the FP+ reservations…those lines can be maddening, and with FP+, your wait time will drop to minutes (in most cases). I booked us a couple this trip since we had the available FP+ space left, and I like character greetings…I just HATE waiting in line for them. So we’ll do a couple this trip.

Shows: Unless you are visiting at a busy time of year, you usually won’t need FP+ reservations for any of the shows; however, if you want to make sure you have great seats or you’re super concerned about seeing a particular show at a particular time, you may want to use a FP+ reservation to lock that down. This trip, I did use a couple FP+ for show reservations—mainly because both days we are visiting Animal Kingdom are travel days and we have a compressed window of time to visit the park—I wanted to be sure we’d have time to see Festival of the Lion King and Finding Nemo. In all likelihood, we won’t need them…but why not have them, just in case?

As we get a little closer to our trip, I’ll revisit all our meal and Fast Pass Plus reservations, and make decisions to make changes if necessary. I’m also trying to find out as much as I can about this year’s Flower and Garden Festival, since that’s the big draw for us this trip. Can’t wait to see Epcot in all it’s Spring glory!

Happy Dreaming everyone!

Brooke

Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge

Excitement moved throughout the world of Disney and Star Wars fans yesterday as Disney released a “Flyover” video showing construction progress at the new Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge “land” currently being built at both Disney’s Hollywood Studios in Orlando, Florida and at Disneyland in Anaheim, California.

Check out the video here.

I don’t know about you guys, but I think it looks pretty impressive. I’m especially excited about the descriptions Disney has posted so far about this “land”. It sounds like they are really going for something truly immersive, and I suspect it will be unlike anything we’ve seen from Disney so far. Scheduled to open in 2019, Disney hasn’t released a whole lot of details about this project yet, so this video is VERY exciting to see.

Technology keeps improving so quickly, and Disney certainly takes advantage of those gains as they design and create new attractions and experiences for Disney fans worldwide. I was so impressed by Pandora when we visited Animal Kingdom in November (read about that visit here), and I think what Disney has planned for Star Wars is light years beyond what they did with Pandora.

Even if you’re not a Star Wars fan, I suspect Galaxy’s Edge will still capture your imagination!

Check out this short video that Disney released last year featuring Disney Imagineers talking about the project.

My stepdad took us to see the original Star Wars movie way back a million years ago when it first came out and I can still remember what an impact it had on all of us! We’ve all been fans ever since (well…there were that unfortunate group of THREE movies 1999-2005 that I hated, but otherwise….), and it is so much fun watching the kids of today getting into Star Wars now just as much as we did when we were kids!

I’m really looking forward to seeing Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge when it opens, and I’m even MORE excited to visit with my step-dad and brothers because I know they will be AMAZED and thrilled. I just can’t wait!

Take a look at this concept art that Disney released last year:

Does that look out of this world amazing??

How about you? Are you loving the recent additions to the Star Wars franchise? Are you excited to plan a trip to Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge??

Happy Dreaming,

Brooke

Hollywood Studios During the Holidays!

Happy Holidays Everyone!

I’m so sorry I haven’t been able to update since our trip. I can’t believe how busy it has been since we got back! Between being sick and working LOTS of extra hours trying to earn a little Christmas money, it’s been NUTS!

Getting back on track though. With that said, here’s the first of several posts about our trip.

I have to tell you, I really feel like Disney has upped their game in the Holiday celebration arena in recent years. They’ve always done a good job decorating each resort and they always decorated Main Street at the Magic Kingdom. And they had the Osborne Spectacle of Lights at Hollywood Studios, but unfortunately that closed a couple of years ago. With that gone, other than Christmas Trees at Hollywood Studios, Epcot and Animal Kingdom, they didn’t do a LOT of decorating in the past at the parks.

I feel like that has changed. During our trip, I felt like the holiday spirit was EVERYWHERE. The Holidays were much more in evidence everywhere we went. If you needed help getting in the Holiday Spirit, Disney is definitely the RIGHT place to be, that is for sure! Going relatively early in the season gave us a nice kickoff to our 2017 holiday season.

Hollywood Studios was where I noticed the biggest change: It looks like Hollywood Studios is really trying to attract crowds this year with their Holiday decor and activities, perhaps partially to make up for all the attractions that have closed to make way for the upcoming Star Wars land and the expansion of Pixar Place? Whatever the motivation, it really scored with us!

I have to add that we LOVED the Osborne Spectacle of Lights that used to be on the Streets of America at Hollywood Studios, and were heartbroken when it closed due to all the refurbishments. We were lucky enough to visit it one last time on the last night of our wedding trip, and I’m so glad that we did! The display was festive and magical and very fun…and we DEFINITELY missed it this year!

The Studios is really trying to still be a destination for visitors wanting Holiday Magic, though…They have added a lot of Holiday decor throughout the park, and they’ve added a new Jingle Jam Jingle BAM show in the evenings that is outstanding. While we still missed the Osborne Spectacle of Lights, we really felt that Hollywood Studios held its own as a Holiday destination with the new additions.

Check out the recently refurbished Echo Lake area at Hollywood Studios! Even Gertie the Dinosaur got decked out for the holidays with the addition of some snow and a giant Santa Hat. There are floating Christmas ornaments all over the lake and a gorgeous holiday tree at one end. It was fun and festive and looked really great at night, too.

One of our favorite activities at Hollywood Studios is to watch the Streetmosphere Character Actors. They come out several times a day, mostly on Sunset Boulevard, in various groupings and do crowd-interactive, at least partially improvisational, performances. And they are TERRIFIC. If you don’t take time to check them out when you visit, you are really missing out!

The Streetmosphere players really embraced the Holiday spirit as well. In one scene we watched, they were a group of singers, trying to get on the Bing Crosby Holiday Radio Show. They did a hilarious version of the 12 days of Christmas, with a few members of the audience participating.

Another really funny one we watched was a riff on the Holiday Parade Celebrity Hosting idea. They basically pretended everyone walking by was part of the parade and they threw out jokes and interacted with various “participants” as they went by. Some people really played with them too, it was really funny. It happened to be Dapper Day, so they had a fashion parade at one point, really letting those folks shine!

The Hollywood Studios Streetmosphere players are so talented, and they think so fast on their feet! They really added to our enjoyment of the day, that’s for sure!

Sunset Boulevard has gotten a festive update, and at night…wow. Disney has really embraced their projection technology all over the World and boy is it everywhere at night at Hollywood Studios during the Holidays! The Tower of Terror is the canvas for several themed festive vignettes, set to themed music and coordinated with projections on nearby billboards as well. It’s overwhelming and a little disconcerting to be honest…you see all this festive happy Holiday magic on the Tower…and then people are screaming up at the top of the Tower. You don’t see them, but you hear them, at least a little bit. It was a little odd..but still really really cool. Disney even used the old snow machines that used to over at the Osborne Lights display to make it snow on Sunset Boulevard (I’m assuming they are the same ones…maybe they’re new 😊!). Unfortunately, none of my pictures turned out — the low lighting on the street combined with the quickly moving images on the Tower turned out a big blurry mess on my camera.

Here’s a picture of the Tower from Disney’s website:

And another:

Like I said, it was pretty astonishing. What really blew our minds, though, was the Jingle Jam Jingle BAM show at the parks original landmark, the replica of Mann’s Chinese Theatre.

Much like the shows over at the Magic Kingdom that use the Castle as a giant projection screen, Hollywood Studios uses the Chinese Theatre and surrounding buildings as giant screens for all kinds of holiday magic. Coordinated with music, lights and fireworks, the show is festive and fun.

The crowd around us really seemed to enjoy it, too. Lots of oooo’s and ahhh’s. It was super bright, colorful and to be honest…kinda dazzling!

We really enjoyed seeing Hollywood Studios decked out in her Holiday glory. This park is fairly limited at the moment, as so many areas and attractions have been closed to make way for upcoming attractions…I wasn’t sure we’d be able to make a full day of it. But we had a great day, and it was pretty action packed, too. I’ll give you a full day recap in my upcoming trip report, but I’m happy to say Hollywood Studios during the holidays is a definite MUST-DO if you’re at Disney. There’s still quite a few attractions and activities and the Holiday decor and nighttime entertainment is well worth a visit during your next holiday trip!

Happy Dreaming and Happy Holidays!

Brooke

It was AMAZING!

Hi everyone! I’m back from our wonderful anniversary trip and it was everything I’d hoped for and MORE. I can’t begin to tell you how great it was to FINALLY be back at Walt Disney World!!! We had a wonderful time and I can’t wait to tell you all about it!

We’ve been back for more than a week now, but it’s been crazy. First, back to work and then to Michigan for a family Thanksgiving and I brought home an ugly cold, BLECH. Sorry I haven’t updated you all yet! Still feeling dreadful and have to be at work extra early tomorrow, so my trip report and the restaurant and event reviews I have planned will sadly have to wait a bit longer, I’m sorry to say!

Here are a few quick pictures to tide you over until I can tell you all about it.

Thanks for your patience everybody! I promise to get lots of juicy updates for you in the next few days! In the meantime, if you have any specific questions, let me know!

Happy Dreaming,

Brooke

Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Party: Party Map and Schedule Released

Tonight is the first Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Party of the season! Click here to read my detailed post about MVMCP. Disney has officially released the entertainment schedule and the map for this year’s party, so I thought I would share them here with you guys, in case you are planning a visit this year.

No real surprises this year, but here are the highlights:

Holiday Wishes Fireworks: 10:00 pm

Once Upon a Christmastime Parade: 8:30 pm and 11:00 pm

Mickey’s Most Merriest Celebration: 7:40 pm, 9:25 pm, 10:30 pm, and 11:55 pm

A Totally Tomorrowland Christmas!: 7:45 pm, 8:35 pm, 9:25 pm, 10:45 pm and 11:35 pm

A Frozen Holiday Wish: 8:15 pm

Club Tinsel (Dance Party): 7:00 pm – 12:00 am at Cosmic Ray’s Starlight Cafe

VoicePlay (Rockettower Plaza Stage): 8:10 pm, 9:00 pm, 10:20 pm and 11:10 pm

The map highlights holiday treat locations, character meet and greet locations, attractions open during the party and the Once Upon a Christmastime Parade route.

In related news, Disney Parks hosted a live stream this evening, and broadcast tonight’s 6:15 pm showing of A Frozen Holiday Wish. Did you get a chance to watch it? Here’s a link to the rebroadcast if you’d like to see it: DisneyParksLive: A Frozen Holiday Wish (Replay)

The Disney Parks Blog also released information about the exclusive Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Party merchandise this week. Here’s the post: MVMCP Merchandise.

Looks like some pretty cute stuff this year. Can’t wait to see it in person.

We’re attending the party next Thursday, so I’m planning to post updates and a detailed report about this year’s party after my trip. I am so excited, I can hardly contain myself. I think I’m driving my poor husband crazy! Lucky for him, he’s on the road a lot and can escape the madness, haha.

How about you? Are you planning to visit on of the twenty-one Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Parties held this season?

Happy Dreaming,

Brooke

Planning Ahead: Advance Dining Reservations

In last week’s post, I talked about the advantages and disadvantages of making advance dining reservations (ADRs) for Disney table service restaurants. If you read that post, you know that I am a FIRM believer in ADRs, and ideally, I recommend booking as soon as your window opens, whenever possible.

Currently, I am 8 days away from my November anniversary trip with my husband, and in the midst of planning a spring trip with my mom. This weekend, the 180 day window opened up for the May trip I’m planning with mom, and I promised to let you know how my ADR mission went.

In a nutshell…Very smoothly. I was able to book every reservation that I wanted, and in fact, I booked several extra as I’m not 100% on our vacation schedule and our plans just yet. I’ve set reminders in my calendar to make sure I cancel extra reservations as we get closer to finalizing our plans. It helps that our dates fall in the first week of May—after most of the heavy Spring Break crowds are gone, and before all the kids get out of school for the summer. Generally, this is a slightly less crowded time to visit, and it works perfectly for my mom and I. We’re going the weekend before her birthday and Mother’s Day, and while I’m expecting pretty warm temperatures, the heat and humidity won’t be at the extremes of June and July, making for a more tolerable visit for us northerners.

When mom and I go to Disney, generally the big draw is the Epcot Flower and Garden Festival. My mom is an avid and gifted gardener, and Epcot is never more beautiful than it is during Flower and Garden. In past years, my job made it difficult for me to take time off work, so our trips were usually very short weekend trips, sometimes two full days, sometimes three. This year, my work schedule is a little more accommodating, so we’re planning a full 5-6 days for our trip, which is very exciting. I’m planning two days at Epcot for sure, and we’ll have one day where we don’t visit any parks at all—probably spend a few hours at the pool and visit Disney Springs (formerly Downtown Disney).

We have not made flight arrangements yet and Disney has not released official park hours yet, so I’m not able to completely plan our agenda this early. However, I don’t want to lose the advantage that can be gained by booking ADRs 180 days out, so even though I don’t have an EXACT plan yet for our trip, I made a loose plan, with a couple contingencies, and went ahead and booked the reservations that I wanted. That’s the strategy I recommend for you, whenever possible. Take advantage of that early booking window. You can always make changes later!

Key things to think about:

Who is in your traveling party? Are you traveling with kids? With seniors? With people that love sushi or only eat fried food? It’s important to understand WHO you are traveling with. I’ve learned that my trip is much more enjoyable when I plan the trip keeping everyone else’s preferences and priorities in mind.
Are there any special celebrations during your trip? Are you celebrating anyone’s birthday or an anniversary? If so, make sure that at least some of your plans center on that person or that event.
1. Make sure you note any celebrations on both your resort reservation and any meal reservations you make. While you should never expect special treatment, Disney will sometimes add some extra magic to make your celebrations extra special.
2. Make sure you get celebration buttons at the front desk or at guest services. Again, you don’t want to expect any special treatment, but if the person in your group with a celebration is wearing a button advertising that fact, you’ve increased the odds that SOMETHING COULD happen for them. At minimum, they’re likely to get a lot of happy wishes from total strangers, and that’s always fun, right?
How does your party like to travel? Is everyone a night owl that would sooner starve than be up early for breakfast? Or do you have a group of early risers that will be chomping at the bit to get going by sunrise? It’s important to try to structure your touring (and, by extension, your meal plans) to accommodate your group. This minimizes the stress on everyone, and significantly increases the odds that everyone will be happy with your plans.
How many meals per day will your group eat? Some families always eat breakfast, lunch and dinner, while others skip breakfast completely, but might have a late-night supper a few hours after dinner. It’s important to consider the habits and needs of your unique group.
How many days of your trip will be “Park” days? How many will be “Resort” days? Do you have any water park visits planned? How about Downtown Disney? While I don’t want you to feel that you have to nail down exact activities for each day of your vacation, it is a good idea to map out at least a general outline.
Does anyone in your group (or more than one) have a FAVORITE restaurant or quick service meal location that they MUST visit during your trip or [insert dramatic tone here] their “vacation will be ruined!!!” ? (You’d be surprised how often I hear that a vacation will be RUINED if something is left out, or a particular attraction is closed, or it rains, or is cloudy…you get the idea.) Perspective is important! But, while I don’t think we want to assign vacation destroying potential to any one meal or attraction, if your party has favorites, you may want to try to include at least some of those considerations in your planning.
If you have people in your group with very different tastes or priorities, you may find it helpful to give everyone a day where THEY are the primary focus. For example, if you have one kid that LOVES Sci Fi, and the Rock-n-Roller Coaster is their FAVORITE attraction, perhaps you plan your Hollywood Studios day to include lunch at the Sci Fi Dine-In Theatre and fast pass plus reservations for Rock-n-Roller Coaster and Star Tours. Then plan another day around a different child’s interests at their favorite park. If you have eight kids and a 5-day vacation, you may have to get more creative than that, but hopefully, you get the general idea.
What kind of budget are you working with? I’ve found the farther in advance I plan my trip, the better I’m able to manage my budget to make sure we can do the things we want to do. Shorter notice trips generally mean more economical meal and snack choices—perhaps more meals back at the resort or in the room, or perhaps even off property. Eating at Disney is not a budget friendly proposition, so it’s a good idea to review menus and prices when you are planning to help set expectations and to help set goals for pre-trip savings. In the trip I’m planning for the spring, I have a couple higher end meals planned. If, as we get closer, I’m not able to save as much money for the trip as I currently plan, I may cancel or change those reservations. Right now, I have lots of time, so I’m optimistic, but we all know that things can happen to derail the best laid budget plans.

Over the years and planning MANY trips to Disney, I have learned that my strategy in planning a trip for my husband and myself is very different than when I plan for trips that include my nieces and nephews or the trips that I plan for my mom and myself. Consider your audience. Just because your read about “the perfect Disney itinerary” on a Disney trip planning website, doesn’t mean it’s perfect for YOUR group. YOUR perfect itinerary may be very different, based on what is important to your group. AND that may change year-to-year, as your family or travel group changes. Don’t be afraid to re-assess and re-focus during your planning. People change, priorities change and Disney changes.

I realize I’m advocating a lot of planning ahead, both in this post, and in some of my other trip planning posts. And absolutely, I think advance planning is KEY to a successful and enjoyable Disney vacation. BUT, I have also learned to relax a little bit, and to build some flexibility into my plans. I think it’s just as important to include some blocks of time in each day where anything can happen. I might have a loose idea, for example, we will hit Park A, and we will be there ½ hour before the Park opens. We have lunch reservations at X and dinner reservations at Y. I’ll plan some fast pass plus reservations for late morning or early afternoon, and have a plan for where we will start when the park opens. If there is nighttime entertainment, I’ll be cognizant of what time that’s happening and have a general idea of when and where we want to get positioned to enjoy that. Otherwise, I try to relax and see where the day takes us.

The trips I take with my husband tend to be a little more structured, because we both have a TON of favorite attractions and I want to make sure we both get to do as much of the things we like as possible, so I will have a stricter plan of attack, to make sure we get to everything. Trips with kids tend to be much more loosey goosey, just because there are so many variables and unexpected surprises that pop up with kids…you have to be much more flexible—but it’s also critical that you have a broad idea of the major attractions that are a priority because you will have more distractions making it more challenging to stay on track and get the major stuff on your list accomplished.

My trips with my mom are less structured than when I travel with my husband, but more structured than when I travel with children. When I travel with mom, our schedule tends to be more relaxed, and we spend more time sitting, talking, and people watching with a glass of wine 😊 and not quite as much time going from attraction to attraction. I also don’t usually plan any character meals with mom as she’s not really into the character thing. (Although I do generally drag her in for some character photos here and there, and she’s always a good sport about it!)

Also, neither one of us are much into breakfast, so we’ll probably get some bagels or toast and fruit and just eat light breakfasts in our room at the resort. Saves a few bucks and helps get the morning off to a bit more relaxed start. It’s been a few years since our last trip, and I’m really looking forward to some quality time with mom.

I’m hoping we’ll have some time to stop by the newly remodeled Wedding Pavilion where Frank and I got married…I want mom to see it since they’ve redone it. We also may tour a couple of the resorts that have changed a lot in the last few years. I’d love to see the Polynesian now that it has DVC Villas on Seven Seas Lagoon, and Wilderness Lodge now that it has new additions. We’ll play it by ear, but resort hopping is always fun. Lots of great places to sit and relax, have a glass of wine and enjoy the views!! We haven’t decided how many park days we will do this trip yet, so I built a few different options into my preliminary plans.

We will arrive on a Wednesday—since we don’t know yet what time our flights will be, I don’t know if we’ll end up visiting a park that day or not. Usually on a travel day, we’ll visit Disney Springs or check out the Boardwalk area. I made reservations for dinner at the California Grill. Located at the top of the Contemporary Resort, California Grill offers great views of the Magic Kingdom and the Seven Seas Lagoon, terrific food and a diverse and large wine list. An added benefit is that the restaurant features a couple of catwalks where guests can walk out onto the roof and watch the Magic Kingdom fireworks. During the daytime, the catwalks are a terrific location for pictures. I usually try to plan one really good meal during our trips where we can dress up a little bit and take our time and have a leisurely meal. This trip, this is that meal.

I also have an alternative plan, in case we decide to visit a park that day: I booked a dinner reservation at Tusker House at Animal Kingdom with preferred access to Rivers of Light. I don’t expect we’ll end up doing this, but I have a couple of months to make that decision.

Since the primary focus of the trip is the Epcot Flower and Garden Festival, I’ve planned two days at Epcot: Thursday and Sunday. I made reservations for lunches at Rose and Crown in the UK and Via Napoli in Italy, and our dinners are planned for Chefs de France (in France 😉) and La Hacienda de San Angel in Mexico. These are all places we’ve visited before and enjoyed. Via Napoli was a favorite on the wedding trip, and mom and I both really like Chefs de France, so I wanted to make sure we hit both of those.

Friday is a little up in the air at the moment. We will either do Magic Kingdom or Hollywood Studios that day. Or, if we decide to park hop, we will visit Magic Kingdom in the morning and Hollywood Studios in the afternoon and evening…probably with a break in between. To allow for any configuration of those two parks on that day, I booked one lunch and one dinner reservation at each park. Once I have a better idea of our actual plan, I will cancel the extra reservations. At MK, I booked lunch at the Plaza and dinner at Jungle Skipper’s Canteen. At HS, we have lunch at Sci Fi Dine In Theatre and dinner at the Brown Derby. The Plaza is one of our favorite restaurants at Magic Kingdom and is a great place for a sandwich or a salad. Brown Derby is a higher end dining experience at Hollywood Studios; we’ve eaten here for both lunch and dinner before and had great experiences each time. Jungle Skipper’s Canteen is new, and we haven’t been there before. Frank and I are trying it out next weekend–how THAT goes may affect this reservation!

Saturday, I have planned as a rest day—possibly a water park day or maybe a pool and shopping day. I booked a dinner reservation at the Boathouse in Disney Springs in case we end up over there, and I figured we’d grab lunch at our hotel or by the pool. The Boathouse is one of the new places at Disney Springs, and I thought it sounded like a place we’d both enjoy.

Monday will be our last day and will be a travel day. Depending on how many park days we decide to do, we will either visit Animal Kingdom today, or we will have a casual day, maybe at Disney Springs or hanging around the resort until we go to the airport. In case we go to Animal Kingdom, I made lunch reservations for Yak and Yeti.

As you can tell, I’ve left a lot kind of up in the air. At this point, that’s ok. I’ve made sure we have reservations for most meals, and I have a loose plan for our trip. I may still play around with reservations over the next few weeks, until we firm up our travel plans a little bit. Given specific week we are traveling, most reservations should be attainable for another month or two. If we were going during a busier week, booking early like this would have been CRUCIAL. Now, it’s just more of a security blanket. By about 90 days out, I like to have a pretty solid plan, and at that point I’ll release any extraneous reservations, if I haven’t already, and I’ll start planning our fast pass plus reservations.

Also starting to make lists for a potential big family trip with the nieces and nephews in late 2018 or sometime in 2019. The more people involved, the more lists 😊 I find myself making. Absolutely love seeing the kids at Disney; their perspective is so different and so much fun to watch.

What trips are on your horizon? I’d love to hear what you’re working on!

SONY DSC

Epcot Flower and Garden Festival: Cogswell

SONY DSC

Happy dreaming,

Brooke

Emert’s Vinyl Graphics and Designs: Adding a Little Extra Magic to Our Disney Vacation

It’s official. I’ve become one of THOSE people. THOSE people that wear matching shirts on their family vacations to Disney. I admit, I didn’t used to be one of those people…but I must warn you…it can be fun and it’s addictive!

A couple of years ago, when I was planning our Disney wedding, a friend introduced me to the magical place that is Etsy. Wow! Talk about a rabbit hole!! I found so many amazing treasures that became part of our wedding trip on Etsy…bridesmaid gifts, groomsmen gifts, gifts for my husband and my mom…you name it, I searched for it and probably found it on Etsy. During my rabbit hole exploring, I discovered many adorable options for matching shirts–each one cuter than the last. I was HOOKED. I ended up doing matching shirts for Frank and I for almost every day of our wedding trip and it added an extra element of magic…and made it easier to figure out what to wear each day, haha. It ended up being a lot of fun, and we looked pretty cute in our pictures, too.

In planning our Anniversary trip, I knew I wanted to take at least one or two shirts that matched and celebrated our anniversary. So I started down the Etsy rabbit hole…which these days is supplemented by a dazzling array of Facebook shops.

I think it was kismet, because I made an amazing discovery. A fellow Disney Bride and friend had opened her own Etsy and Facebook shops and she just happened to be making Disney themed shirts and vinyls. So of course, I had to check out her shops: Emert’s Vinyl Graphics and StitchesNBows.

Jennine knew I was in the midst of planning a trip for our anniversary and she wanted to help us celebrate. She offered to make us some iron-on decals so I could make matching shirts for Frank and I. She knew I loved the kissing mice, and had used them in our wedding materials, so she designed a vinyl that used the kissing mice and added a “Mr. & Mrs.” along with the words “Celebrating 3 Magical Years”. Jennine uses a high-quality vinyl and her Silhouette Cameo electronic cutting machine and produces customizable items that can be ironed on shirts, magnetized or even attached to walls or windows.

Jennine designed and produced an absolutely adorable iron-on for us from white vinyl and I received them a few days ago. It took me a few days to decide which shirts I wanted to get to actually iron on the designs…Ultimately, I decided to go with long sleeved shirts, since it looks like the temperatures during the evenings on our trip will be in the fifties. The vinyls were very easy to position and iron-on. Jennine provided clear and simple instructions. Basically, I positioned the vinyl where I wanted it, and placed a piece of parchment paper on top. I ironed over the parchment for about 20 seconds in each area. I then let everything cool for a few seconds and then lifted the parchment and tried peeling off the plastic backing…which came off very easily. I did overheat one corner of the design on my first one…I got distracted and left the iron in one place for too long, but I don’t think it’s noticeable. I’m really pleased with how well the shirts came out, and I can’t wait to show them to my husband!

As an added bonus, Jennine stuck an extra little surprise in my package.

She knows I have a deep affection for the original Cinderella animated film, and a particular fondness for Gus and Jacques, two of Cinderella’s mice friends. Look at what now graces our wall??

How cute is that?? And SO easy to put up, and will not damage the wall at all.

If you get a chance, please check out Jennine’s Facebook store, Emert’s Vinyl Graphics, or the Etsy store she shares with her mom, StitchesNBows.

Jennine does the vinyls and her mom offers custom embroidery. I suspect you’ll find something you’ll like. I already have several things on my wishlist to add a little extra Disney magic to our home!

I have gotten a couple other things from other Etsy shops in preparation for our trip…I’ll be sharing those in my next post. How about you? Have you gone down the Etsy rabbit hole? Have you jumped on the matching shirts train?

Happy dreaming,

Brooke

Category: Trip Planning

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Hollywood Studios During the Holidays!

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It was AMAZING!

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Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Party: Party Map and Schedule Released

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Planning Ahead: Advance Dining Reservations

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Emert’s Vinyl Graphics and Designs: Adding a Little Extra Magic to Our Disney Vacation

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