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Category Archives: Original Articles
Disney Quick Tips – Saving Your Digital Memories
More is better right? Wrong! If you have a 3 or 4 GB media card for your digital camera, or greater, you could be risking the loss of hundreds of Disney memories. Large GB cards can store several hundreds of high resolution images. It’s convenient not to have to swap out cards every two minutes, but not so convenient when your camera decides to have a melt down and erase what you’ve taken!
Or you could do what I did once and erase over 200 pictures yourself. And you could also lose your camera.
My tip is to use only half GB or 1 GB cards and swap them out often. Keep them separate from your main camera bag so they won’t get lost with the camera, should that happen.
Alternatively, upload your pictures to a laptop every night before taking more pictures the next day. This way if something bad should happen, you’ve only lost one days memories!
Happy snapping!
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“Disney Look” Policy Revised for Cast Members: Beards Allowed
It was announced today by Orlando Sentinel’s Jason Garcia via Twitter that the strict “Disney Look” policy that all cast members must abide by has been revised once again. Cast members will now be allowed to don beards while onstage.
Several years ago Disney revised their original “look” by allowing cast members to have mustaches. This expanded the hiring pool for the Disney parks. Now, the pool can expand even further.
It must be noted that there are guidelines to the new beard allowance. Bearded cast members must keep it trimmed down to a quarter-inch length.
What do you think of the new “look” revision? Will allowing cast members to have beards ruin the “Disney look”? Leave me some comments below.
Shhh…Naptime in the Disney World Parks
The best laid plans… We took a family trip to Walt Disney World this spring and brought our then fifteen-month old son. He still naps (thankfully) and he’s not the type of kid who can skip some shut-eye during the day unless we want to deal with some cranky meltdowns. And we don’t.
Before our trip, I tried to prepare him for sleeping in the Pack N Play and although it worked at night, he would have none of it during the day. So, with a hope and a prayer, sleeping in the stroller while we toured became our Plan B. He was so comfortable in our stroller from Kingdom Strollersthat many days it worked – but not all. Sometimes the heat, sunshine (even with a great canopy), and sensory stimulation was a bit too much for him to drift off. I needed to improvise and find some attractions that would lull him to sleep. I could then put him in his stroller and he would continue to nap while we toured. It wasn’t my ideal plan but I needed to find a way to get my son the sleep he needed and help the rest of the family enjoy the theme parks.
Here are some attractions that had the magic combination of coolness, darkness, movement, and attraction length (my baby isn’t going to fall asleep immediately) and may be just the thing to try to get your tired baby to sleep.
Magic Kingdom
1. Walt Disney World Railroad. This train ride makes the rounds of the Magic Kingdom theme park in about twenty minutes. Although the ride is not completely dark, there was enough shade to keep my son cool and drowsy enough to fall asleep.
2. Walt Disney’s Carousel of Progress. If movement is a necessity for your baby to sleep, this twenty-minute, dark, theater-type attraction may be a bit of a gamble; it does not move continuously.
3. Tomorrowland Transit Authority. This ten-minute tour of Tomorrowland loads continuously and your family will be able to stay on for more than one loop. The “People Mover” moves nicely but the light levels will vary, especially as you move from inside the buildings to outside.
Epcot
1. Spaceship Earth. Within five minutes of boarding this dark, slow-moving ride with low noise levels, my son was sound asleep. The fifteen-minute long ride was the most successful in getting our baby to sleep quickly.
2. Living with the Land. The gentle movement of this serene boat ride lulled my little guy to sleep. Light levels do vary throughout the ride.
Hollywood Studios
This park is tough – there aren’t a lot of great options so you’ll have to make do.
1. The Great Movie Ride. In my book, Beyond the Attractions: A Guide to Walt Disney World with Preschoolers, I caution against this ride for preschoolers; it contains some scary elements, not the least is a scene from the movie Alien. However, for babies who aren’t watching the action and have a limited view because they are snuggled up against a caregiver, the lower light levels and slow-moving nature of this approximately 20 minute ride may be enough to put them to sleep. It can be loud so if low noise levels are necessary for your little one to sleep, avoid this one.
Animal Kingdom
Animal Kingdom is the toughest as there aren’t any indoor attractions that would have done the trick for our son. Luckily, it was one of the days he fell asleep in the stroller.
1. Discovery Island Trails and The Oasis. These animal-viewing areas have shaded pathways and little nooks and crannies to view the animals. These areas can feel more secluded than pushing the stroller through the pathways of the theme park.
Would I have preferred our son to nap in our room? Yes. Are these attractions perfect for lulling your kids to dreamland? No, but they worked in a pinch for me and I hope they work for you. Please share any other suggestions you have in the comments section.
Lisa M. Battista is the author of Beyond the Attractions: A Guide to Walt Disney World with Preschoolers When she’s not chasing after her little ones, you can most likely find her at the beach or in the kitchen trying her hand at a new recipe. You call follow her on Twitter @DisneyExplorer and Facebook.
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Disney World Quick Tips – How to get those empty park photos
Have you ever gone to Disney World and you wanted to take a picture of Cinderella Castle, The Tree of Life, Sorcerer Mickey’s Hat, Etc? You stand there and wait for the best moment of where there isn’t a balloon or a child screaming in it. Eventually you lift the frame just above eye level, snap, and go on your marry way.
Well there is a trick to beautiful empty park photos.
Get there early…!
Make AM Advanced Dining Reservations (ADR’s) for one of the many restaurants like Hollywood & Vine, Crystal Palace, Tusker House, and Akershus. When you go online to make the reservation or if you call just pick a time before the park opens and then get there early!
We try to get there atleast 15 minutes before our Reservation.
As your walking to your restaurant to have some yummy breakfast snap all the pictures of you and your family you want without a single soul in them. Many times you will see Fast Pass Photographers there waiting on you. Some of our best photos were taken first thing in the morning!
Extra Morning hours are iffy sometimes you get there right when the park opens and it can be packed. For us it is hit or miss.
Hope it helps.
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Charging to Your ‘Key to the World Card’
If your heading to Disney World and want to ditch your purse or wallet you can! Thank fully Disney thought of everything and allows you to charge things to your room key if you are staying at one of the many Disney Resorts. Here is more…
- If we want to dispute a charge it is easier for Disney to remove the charge from the Key to the World than from a debit or credit card. We had an issue on our last trip where they double charged us for our Annual Passes. We used our debit card so it took a few days for the charges to be resolved. If we had charged them to our room the funds would have been replaced almost immediately.
- I feel safer visiting the parks with just the Key to the World. We carry a little cash with us for snacks and other small expenses and then charge everything else to our room. We leave our cash and cards back in the room in our safe. Just make sure you sign your key in just in case.
- It is a convenient way to keep track of the money we spend at the parks. You can get an itemized print out of your charges at the front desk any time during your stay. All of our expenses are listed together instead of paying cash for some things and charging others.
- Almost anything can be charged to your room. Even the kiosks at the parks have the ability to charge items to your room. All Disney owned businesses will accept your Key to the World, even some that are not will. So if you are shopping at Downtown Disney make sure you have another form of payment with you just in case.
Let us know what your experience has been using your Key to the World card for charges. Do you prefer to charge to your room or would you rather use cash or plastic in the parks?