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Tag Archives: WDW
7 Questions You Should Not Ask Disney Cast Members
Having visited the parks as much as we have and working there twice, many things have been brought to my attention. That includes some of the strange requests, odd choices, and over-the-top questions that spawn from the minds of guests.
Don’t get me wrong, it isn’t expected of everyone to have visited the parks as much as we did so there are always new things to learn. That’s for myself included. But there are certain inquiries out there that just don’t need to be asked anymore because they are just almost brought forth verbatim from guest after guest. Also…a little common sense and 30 seconds of extra thought will probably answer the question for you.
Without further ado, here are seven questions that you should not ask cast members. Included is a little bit of information and responses I would have liked to have given as a cast member but couldn’t. That’s of course for those that aren’t yet sure why these questions need to be avoided.
When is the best time to goto Disneyland?
This question came from Michael:
I found a great post from April about the best time to go to Disney World based on crowds, price, weather and special events. Is there a similar article for Disneyland? I’m not as concerned about the weather given the SoCal climate, but would like to avoid the bigger crowds. Thank you.
The times of year with bigger crowds are going to be similar to Walt Disney World- this summer is especially higher crowds with the new Cars Land opening, highest levels are expected now through about August 20th.
Pixar’s Brave Merida Meet and Greet at Magic Kingdom Park
Merida, the adventurous heroine from Disney•Pixar’s upcoming feature film, “Brave,” has begun making special appearances at Fairytale Garden in Magic Kingdom Park. In this setting, young guests are invited to engage in archery practice and other activities, in addition to meeting Merida and mischievous bear cubs from the film. Take a look.
My little boys can hardly wait to see “Brave,” and they’re definitely going to want to meet Merida. They’re excited to try out the bows and arrows, and they’ve already fallen for the bear cubs, after just glimpsing them in trailers for the movie.
For guests at Disneyland park, Merida’s bringing some of this Scottish fun to you too, in an area across from “it’s a small world,” and everyone will discover more about Merida’s epic story when “Brave” opens in theaters June 22.
Related articles
- Sneak Peak of Merida Meet and Greet at the Magic Kingdom (chipandco.com)
- Merida from Pixar’s Brave Meet and Greet is Coming to Disney Parks (chipandco.com)
What Month Should You Travel To Walt Disney World?
When choosing the time of year your family should travel to Walt Disney World, there are four things to consider: crowds, price, weather and special events.
1. CROWDS… Different times of the year bring different size crowds to WDW. Typically, when school is in session, the crowds are lighter. When your kids are out of school, chances are so are other kids! Holidays are always crowded along with summer break and spring break.
2. PRICE… Price plays a very important part in making the decision of when to travel to Walt Disney World for several families. While ticket prices stay the same, room rates on property will vary depending on the season. The seasons are typically based on crowd levels.
3. WEATHER… Temperature averages and rainfall may also play a part into when to take your trip. But, always plan on any type of weather while in Orlando!
4. SPECIAL EVENTS… Walt Disney World offers special events most months of the year that your family may want to plan your vacation around.
Not everyone has the luxury of choosing their vacation times because of work vacation limits, conferences, special events, school schedules, etc. But, if you do have the chance to choose your month and week to visit WDW, here is the break down by month considering crowds, price, weather and special events. I hope it helps you in planning your next vacation!
January-
Crowds- Low (except New Year’s Day) until just prior to Presidents’ Week in February.
Price- Value Season Rate- Jan 3- President’s Day; Holiday Season Rate- New Year’s Jan 1-2
Weather- high 71, low 49, 2.3 inches rain
Special Events- Marathon Weekend
February-
Crowds- Low the first part of the month; moderate after Presidents’ week through early March; high Presidents’ week
Price- Peak Season Rate- President’s Day through Easter; Holiday Season Rate- President’s Day
Weather- high 73, low 50, 3.0 inches rain
March-
Crowds- Moderate in early March; High mid March through late April (“Spring Break”)
Price- Holiday Season Rate- Easter day; Regular Season Rate- Easter through June 1
Weather- high 78, low 55, 3.2 inches rain
Special Events- Epcot’s Flower and Garden Festival, Princess Half Marathon, Atlanta Braves Major League Baseball Spring Training at the ESPN Wide World of Sports, Easter
April-
Crowds- High through late April; Moderate late April
Price- Regular Season Rate
Weather- high 83, low 59, 1.8 inches rain
Special Events- Epcot’s Flower and Garden Festival, Expedition Everest Challenge
May-
Crowds- Moderate; High Memorial Day weekend
Price- Regular Season Rate
Weather- high 88, low 66, 3.6 inches rain
Special Events- Epcot’s Flower and Garden Festival, Star Wars Weekends
June-
Crowds- Moderate early June; High starting mid June
Price- Summer Season Rate
Weather- high 91, low 72, 7.3 inches rain
Special Events- Star Wars Weekends, Sounds Like Summer Concert Series
July-
Crowds- High
Price- Holiday Season Rate- 4th of July; Summer Season Rate
Weather- high 92, low 73, 7.2 inches rain
Special Events- Sounds Like Summer Concert Series, 4th of July Celebration
August-
Crowds- High
Price- Summer Season Rate through mid August; Value Season Rate- mid August
Weather- high 92, low 73, 6.8 inches rain
September-
Crowds- High through Labor Day; low the week following Labor Day
Price- Value Season Rate
Weather- high 90, low 72, 6.0 inches rain
Special Events- Mickey’s Not So Scary Halloween Party, Epcot’s International Food and Wine Festival, Night of Joy
October-
Crowds- Low; Moderate Columbus Day Weekend
Price- Regular Season Rate
Weather- high 85, low 65, 2.4 inches rain
Special Events- Epcot’s International Food and Wine Festival, Disney’s Tower of Terror 10 miler Race, Mickey’s Not So Scary Halloween Party
November-
Crowds- Low the week following Thanksgiving until mid-December; moderate the first part of Thanksgiving week; high Thanksgiving Day and weekend
Price- Value season- Thanksgiving through mid December; Holiday Season Rates- Thanksgiving day
Weather- high 79, low 58, 2.3 inches rain
Special Events- Disney Wine and Dine Half Marathon Weekend, Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Party, Epcot’s International Food and Wine Festival, Festival of the Masters, Epcot’s Holiday’s around the World, Osborne Family Spectacle of Dancing Lights
December-
Crowds- Low through mid December; high Christmas week through New Year’s Day
Price- Value Season Rates through mid December; Holiday Season Rates- Christmas (mid December-New Year’s)
Weather- high 73, low 51, 2.2 inches rain
Special Events- Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Party, Epcot’s Holiday’s around the World, Osborne Family Spectacle of Dancing Lights, New Year’s Eve Celebration
Related articles
- Citrus Swirl Makes a Comeback at Walt Disney World Resort! (chipandco.com)
- When is the Best Time to Visit Walt Disney World? (chipandco.com)
SAVE money by renting a house at Walt Disney World
In my family we have four people. Two of them are under ten and don’t take up that much room. They’re past the age where they need five-hundred supplies just to survive, so as long as I stick to my PERFECT PACKING LIST our family unit meets the requirements to stay in just about any room at Walt Disney World. However, I always seem to feel crowded in my resort room!!
If I had baby #3 (which is NOT in the plan for me by the way) that means my options would become much more limited. You see, once you hit Five in your party your resort room possibilities are fewer, and usually end in you dropping SIGNIFICANTLY more money to stay “on-property” in places like the new Art of Animation Suites, Deluxe Villa, or a Cabin at Fort Wilderness. As blended families have become more common, this becomes an issue for parents and step-parents who want to bring ALL of the children to Disney at one time inexpensively. And even more commonly we bring grandparents, aunts and uncles, cousins, family friends on our trips. Which requires many more rooms. More rooms = more money.
Have you considered renting a house off property?
What I have learned is that at WDW what you don’t pay for in money, you pay for in time. So the more convenient something is the more it is likely to be expensive (the resorts on the monorail are a prime example). However, as long as you plan ahead being off property is not that bad. If a house is 9 miles away from Animal Kingdom Parking lot (which you can determine by using Google maps) once you add in the tram-ride from the parking lot you’re pretty close to the same amount of time (15-20 minutes) you would spend riding a bus from All Star Music Resort to that park (THAT’S ASSUMING YOU CATCH THE FIRST BUS!).
The second week in March I rented “Disney Villa” from Disney Sunshine Villas. We were bringing two families with us for a grand total of 6 adults and 5 children. So we rented a 6 bedroom, four bath house with a pool and a hot tub. During the time of the year we rented (mid – March) the house cost us $1,1195.00 (including taxes). You can check the price for the house when you might want to go by clicking HERE. So if you divide that by 3 families then each family would only pay $398.00!! You wont find anything on property for that! They do have smaller houses if you’re not needing that much space.
The house sleeps 15 people, and has two master suites (a king-size, and a queen-size), another queen size bedroom (with a bathroom across the hall), and three bedrooms with two twin beds a piece (which share a bathroom). The living room has three leather sofas, a 52″ television, a dining room that will seat eight people. It also has an air-conditioned game room with a pool table, sofa and tv, lets not forget the laundry room which saves on packing!
If we would have stayed at a Moderate resort , like Port Orleans- Riverside, it would run just my family $1,651.00 before we got a single park ticket or eat any food. That’s 1,253.00 MORE than what we actually paid to stay a week and $532.00 more than the whole 6 bedroom house for the week!!!
We loved the house. It really felt like home for us and when we went home for our mid-day break the kids loved swimming in their own heated pool and the adults loved soaking their tired legs at night in the hot tub.
We cooked many meals and even grilled out one night which saved us a A LOT of money on meals. The owner is so nice and really willing to accommodate any need or request you might have. He and his parents, who help tend to the house, both came around to check in on us while we were there. We also had a request and they went out of their way to fix it and fix it quickly. They actually own multiple houses in that same neighborhood so if you needed more people together for a family reunion they could still have you all very close together. They were great and I’m happy to recommend them to you.
If you are interested in potentially renting Disney Villa or another villa from them please contact their owner Lee by going HERE and PLEASE always tell him that Disney Diva from Chip and Co sent you!!! He might just cut you a deal 
