mid-morning to early afternoon (say anywhere from 1-2:00), you’ll be able to have covered an- other one, depending on whether you have eaten lunch in the park or not.
The ability to do all this depends on your getting there when the gates open, keeping a good pace (should be about the speed of a scooter, so using one should not change the schedule that much), exploiting your time saving techniques, such as FastPassing and using another tech- nique you will learn of taking the short-cuts available to you in the park to get from one place to another.
Instead of thinking of your day in three segments - morning, afternoon and evening - think of your day in smaller and more segments:
1. Early Morning - Mid-Morning - roughly 8/9 to 10/11 (when you can enter the park)
2. Mid-Morning - Early Afternoon - roughly 10:30/11 to 12/1
3. Early Afternoon - Mid/Late Afternoon - roughly 12:30/1 - 2:30/3 - nap time potential
4. Mid/Late Afternoon - Dinner Time - roughly 3:30 - 5/6:00 - nap time potential
5. After Dinner - Fireworks and Close - roughly 7 - 9
Thinking of your schedule like this maximizes your day and allows you to use your time more creatively.
Before lunch you will cover two lands and eat lunch in the last one before going back to the hotel for a nap/swim. You can also just go back to the room and eat lunch there in conjunc- tion with your afternoon rest. When you come back at 3:00 or 3:30, you’ll start off in the third land and spend the evening in the fourth land. As we noted before, Liberty Tree Square is easily checked off the list as you’re going or coming from another land.
Disney Vacation Club Members (Disney’s Time Sharing Program) get to take advantage of extra hours either on a morning or in the evening for some day during the week. If you are a DVC member, you should take advantage of this angle as it will give you an advantage over the crowds that will come in later or leave earlier, depending.
Whether or not you are a DVC member it is advised that you don’t use your FastPass for a ride first thing in the morning, because the lines will not be long at this point. Therefore, you want to strategically place your FastPass later in the morning, afternoon and evening throughout the park in each land so that you can cut your wait time down in each land by putting your Fast- Pass on the most coveted ride in that land.
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READY FOR A NAP?
In each land, there are what I call “nap rides”. They allow you to sit down for a while and rest your feet and even sleep in some of them. Although I’m sure that’s not what Disney had in mind, I haven’t seen the “cot” attraction roll out yet, so I have located certain rides in certain lands where I can take a nap, if needed. Some of them are better than others, but here they are. If one round isn’t enough and your party is agreeable, go for another whirl and complete your nap.
TOMORROWLAND
Carousel of Progress - Dark, soft seats, long feature. I even take off my slip on shoes here and close my eyes. This is especially GREAT in the summer heat for recuperating before getting out again.
The People Mover - Nice long ride of sitting down and being driven above Tomorrowland. I can even put my feet up here and allow my swollen legs to rest.
FANTASYLAND
Its A Small World - Nice long air-conditioned ride (short knee space is the only problem).
WDW Railway - Board behind Storybook Circus. The ride is about 20 minutes and goes completely around the outside of the Magic Kingdom.
LIBERTY SQUARE
Mississippi Paddle Boat - Limited seating, but the floor will do for many people and you can put your
back against the guard rail going around the top. If you want a bench, be the first in line.
Hall of Presidents - This is one of those “theater-styled” presentations like Carousel of Progress where you can count on a good nap.
FRONTIERLAND
Country Bear Jamboree - Another “theatre-styled” presentation. Not as long as others, but you can’t
have everything.
WDW Railway - Board behind Splash Mountain. The ride is about 20 minutes.
Tom Sawyer’s Island - This is an island where you get dropped off for a while. There is a back porch with a few rocking chairs as well as railings to lean against on the floor. You might even find a tree in the shade you can perch against for a while, while your kids and spouse enjoy roaming around.
ADVENTURELAND
The Jungle Cruise - You’ll probably have to use your spouse’s shoulder on this one as the benches on the boats don’t have backs high enough to rest your head on. The same is true for Small World, Country Bear, and the Railway, as well.
EVERYWHERE
Indoor, fast-food restaurants are great places to cool off and rest for a while. Get a cold drink and a snack and cool off wherever you happen to be. Find a comfortable booth and close your eyes for a while. No one will mind. If your family wants to leave you there while they take in a shop or a ride, all the better. They’ll know where to find you when they’re done. Don’t forget to put your feet up.
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MORE ON SHORT CUTS
If you’re going to Fantasy land - in the pink - the quickest way there is to take a walkway right next to the castle that is too small to appear on this map. I have indicated that these walkways are di- rectly next to the castle with the red rectangle at around the castle. The walkways are where the sides of the rectangle are. You can also go directly through the castle via an archway to the other side.
2. To get to Tomorrowland during a very crowded time, you can go back through the castle and into Tomorrowland by way of the brown roads to access Tomorrowland by avoiding all the crowds occupying the space in between these lands. Yes, you will be bypassing rides in between, so choose carefully whether you want to use that strategy or not. If, in the example we’ve started with, you want to start in Fantasyland and go to Tomorrowland second, then back to Fantasyland for lunch, you can leave Fantasyland via the castle and take the brown road closest to Main Street to go into Tomorrowland, because you can catch the rides in between the two lands when you go back to Fantasyland for lunch.
3. The yellow half circle shows another way of getting quickly from one land to another nearby without moving behind slow-moving crowds.
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4. The bottom rectangle at the end of Main Street shows you another path into Tomorrow- land, which is via a restaurant. If you take that road to get into Tomorrowland, you will avoid the majority of the crowds who do not realize its there. The same is true on the other side. One of the biggest time/step savers is to avoid lumps of crowds moving slowly through a road and essentially blocking a path. If you see that one of the roads you want to use into a land is full of people moving slowly, one of these short-cut roads may save you a lot of time simply because you can skip the crowds and get there faster. You will also find that crowds moving slowly will tend to make you feel tired and will actually make you tired, so try to avoid them.
5. To go from Tomorrowland to Frontierland or from one side of the park to the other. Don’t walk around the park, walk across it. We know that the shortest distance is between a straight line and that its longer around a circle. I see people walking all the way around to get from one land to another because they aren’t seeing the big picture. Simply go out to the round-about in the middle of the park and cross to the other side via one of the forks into that land as illustrated by the blue line. This will save you an enormous amount of time.
6. To go from Adventureland to Frontierland use the opening in Adventureland where there are restrooms under an arch to get to the other side as illustrated by the yellow line. The same is true coming from Frontierland to Adventureland. The map is too small for me to see if I have the yellow line in the right place, but its in that general area between the Pirates and the Tikki Birds.
7. The pink line illustrates a relatively new “walkway” like a rope bridge that follows the wa- terway going parallel to the sidewalk. This is a great way to get away from the slow-moving crowds so you can go from one land to another. Most people simply don’t notice this walk- way, so make sure to use it.
8. The lime green line illustrates the easiest way to get out of the park at night. If you plan your trip to go from one end of the park to the other, then you’ll end up in either Tomorrow- land or Adventureland at the end of the day. Conveniently, when your legs and feet are killing you, you will find yourself at the beginning of Main Street which is the way in and out of the park. You will also be avoiding the majority of the slow-moving crowd as they tend to group in the middle, not the peripheries.
9. Use the Shops and Sidewalks If Main Street is full of slow-moving crowds, you can travel parts of Main Street much faster by going through the shops. Although they appear like separate stores from the sidewalk, the fact is that most of them are completely connected in- side. You can travel through four stores before you have to go out on the sidewalk and by that time you’ve probably passed the slow-moving glut occupying the roadway. This is especially true if you happen to be coming or going during a parade time. or when its getting over. If, af- ter four stores, you are forced onto the sidewalk and you are still far from the front, go through
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the next series of connected stores until you reach the end. You wanted to see what was in the stores, anyway, so here’s a quick way. If you have children, however, this technique may take longer than shorter, as the children will want to stop at every shiny thing.
10. Around the entire park is the WDW Railway. It boards and lets off passengers at three places in the park: Main Street Train Station right as you enter the park (get on the train above), behind Splash Mountain/Frontierland, and behind Storybook Circus in Fantasyland. Perhaps you’re in Fantasyland at the end of the night or at lunch time. You want to go back to your hotel and you’re exhausted. Get on the train and ride it to the very front of the park where you’ll get off onto of the Train Station. This is also a great place to see the fireworks at the end of the day over the castle and then, when its over, you’re at the front of the crowd and in the front of the line to get on the monorail or buses to go back to your resort.
WRAPPING IT UP
Before leaving home, you should have:
a. Chosen your preferences.
b. Made your plans for each day of your vacation, choosing to leave some blank if you want to for flexibility using the charts in the chapter on “Charting Your Plans”.
c. Gone to the official Disney Website and made a free account that will link all your res- ervations together and hold all your data in the same place.
d. Made your dining reservations for each day you’ll be there.
e. Made your resort or hotel reservations.
f. Bought your tickets, so you can make your FastPass reservations
g. Made your FastPass reservations, beginning no earlier than 11:00 a.m., including those for character meet and greets.
h. Called the Disney Resort of your choice and ordered your groceries to be delivered and put away for you when you get in.
i. Reserved any special dining events or child events, such as character meals, luaus, pi- rate party or princess buffets or make-overs.
j. Reserved your place on the Magical Disney Express from the airport to the Disney re- sort.
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By the time you’re done planning, your chart should look something like this. This is what you’re going to take with you to the Magic Kingdom. You plan to be there for 10 days. You’ve done your homework and you’ve found that the MK has late night hours on Monday, so that’s the day you’ll go there. You’ll roughly get to Fantasyland by 9:20 a.m. You’ll ride Peter Pan and Winnie the Pooh first because they’re hard to get on. You have a FastPass for the Silver Mine Train, but now that you’re off Winnie the Pooh, its only 10:30 and you have an hour win- dow beginning at 11:00 to get on the Train. So, you decide to knock Ariel’s Journey off your list and still have time, so you go back and get Small World taken care of, arriving back at the Silver Mine train by 11:30. You wait there for a short time and take the ride, getting off at about 11:50 and are hungry for lunch.
Or...after riding Peter Pan and Winnie the Pooh you realize that you want to go to lunch at Bell’s. You ride Ariel’s Journey first, then get in line for an early lunch at Bells. You finish in time to get across the “street” to the Silver Train at 11:50. You ride that and before leaving the land, catch a Small World or, decide to move to Tomorrowland and catch Small World later. Its now about 12:40, depending. You have a FastPass for Buzz Lightyear in Tomorrowland, at 1:05, so you make your way over there and find a long line. You have some time, so you catch Carousel of Progress which takes in a lot of people at one time and rest up some. When you get out, you’re in your window for Buzz Lightyear, so you catch that next. Follow first two columns down and then second set the same way.
DAY ONE: 7/20 (M)
Park is Open
9 AM - 11 PM
FANTASYLAND 9:20
**Peter Pan
FRONTIERLAND 3:00 or 3:30
(Take Train to get there)
**Splash Mountain
Small World
4:30 FastPass
**Thunder Mountain
**Winnie the Pooh or Mickey’s Toon Town
ADVENTURELAND
**Pirates of the Caribbean
11:00 FastPass
**Silver Mine Train or
Ariel’s Journey to the Sea
(Depend.. on ages)
(Get the Dole Pineapple Whip Treat)
Swiss Family Tree House
EARLY LUNCH
Bell’s Castle Resv. #
DINNER: LIBERTY SQUARE 6:30
Reservation #
TOMORROWLAND
**Space Mountain or International Spdwy
(Depend. on ages)
(Depending on ages of children - Haunted Mansion can be scary)
Hall of Presidents or **Haunted Mansion or Steam Boat
1:05 FastPass
**Buzz Lightyear
“CLEAN UP”
This is the opportunity
Back to Hotel for a Couple of Hours or
Nap Rides
CONTINUE TO FRONTIERLAND
1:30 - 3:15
Carousel of Progress People Mover
**Haunted Mansion on the way
HEAD TO FRONT OF PARK FOR WISHES FIREWORKS - you can see them fine from there
including the front of the Castle projection.
to take in things you haven’t done or do your favorite things another time
You’ll be first to get on the monorail or bus to go home.
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You don’t care a lot about the Mission to Mars as you’ve heard its just a plane simulator that shakes you around a lot and doesn’t go anywhere (this is true). The speedway looks fun, but has a long line and you feel tired and ready for a nap. You’ve heard that Space Mountain is great and you don’t want to miss it. Before going back to the room for a nap, you decide to take that in even though its a long wait. Once off the ride, you take a shortcut back to Main Street and head for your Resort. Its now slightly after 2:00.
You get to your resort around 2:30 and collapse on the bed for a nap. Your spouse takes the kids swimming in the pool. The family relaxes in the resort until about 4:30. You then go back to the park, looking through Main Street as you go back into the lands. You arrive in Liberty Square just in time for your dinner reservation at 5:30 p.m. Once done eating at 6:30, you decide to start begin your journey toward Frontierland. You don’t care about the Hall of Presidents, because you’ve heard its boring and you don’t like seeing some of the presidents that take the stage. One of your kids cries, so you say that you’ll try to come back to it. What the heck. They don’t know any better.
You have a FastPass for Thunder Mountain at 7:20 p.m., so you have time to take in Country Bear Jamboree. you come out of it at 7:15 and go over to the area of Thunder Mountain. You get right on and get off around 7:30. You decide to skip Thunder Mountain for now and go to Pirates of the Caribbean. You know there’s a parade later that you don’t care about and you’ll catch Splash Moun- tain then, when most people are at the parade. You get on and off Pirates by 8:15 and go next door to catch the Swiss Family Robinson Tree House. Its pretty easy to get on and off since its climbing stairs to the top of the tree and down again. Next door is the Jungle Cruise, but you’re not so crazy about that ride, so you go back to Splash Mountain and wait in a line for a while. You finally get on and ride and now its 9:50. You’ve done just about everything and the park doesn’t close until 11:00 p.m.
At this point in the day, you’ve done all the best rides, except for a few. There are also some less- than-best rides that you might like to catch, like the Speedway in Tomorrowland and some that you’d like to ride again, like Peter Pan. For the last hour and a half, you use this for “clean up” time. Here, you close out the day in one of three ways: you ride the things you don’t want to miss that you haven’t gotten on yet; you go on one of your favorite rides another time; you catch a couple of lesser-than rides that you are willing to go on that you haven’t done yet.
Immediately after, you go to Main Street to catch the ending parade and fireworks that closes out every day at every Disney Park. You don’t care too much about the parade, so you look through the shops as you head toward the train station. As the fireworks start, you watch some of them while your kids have their last ice-cream of the night and as the end, you head for the monorail, buses or the parking lot being ahead of the mob.
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Now, you see how, by the end of the day, you’ve cleaned up in the Magic Kingdom. You’ve really done all the best things that matter to you and you’re only one day one. If you’re stay- ing several days, you will be back at least once and probably twice to this park. Now you know what you liked the best and you can adjust your schedule to suit your preferences, do the things you didn’t get to do before or ride the ride you loved best again and again. Just re- member to work around the FastPasses that you already have reserved before leaving home. If you are coming back on a “blank” day where nothing has been reserved, look for a FastPass kisok immediately upon entering your favorite land (it won’t be on Main Street) and get your FastPasses for the day. Get these early, because they run out mid-morning. If this was the only day that you could go, you’ve seen everything that really matters and “did” the entire park with a few exceptions that frankly, are not that great. Believe it or not, there are rides that you’re better off skipping entirely, because they’re just not that great.
Mi*ey’s Railroad - so %at.
1. Tomorrowland:
BEST RIDES TO SKIP & WHY
- Journey to $e Center of $e Ea,h - #rap in, shake a LOT and go no%ere.
- People Mover - Its fun, but unnecessary. Like Mi*ey’s train. Goes around in $e sky, ra$er $an $e ground and stays in Tomorrowland.
- Jet Flyer next to People Mover - Big deal. Its a regular carnival ride high up in $e sky.
- Speedway - Op(onal. A lot of fun for kids, but not nearly as special and crea(ve as o$er at- trac(ons. Long lines and only a couple per car. Wo,h doing at least once, but if you miss it, no big deal. Of course, $ere are always kids %o love, love, love $is.
2. Fantasyland: Most of Fantasyland is really great, unless you have outgrown it by age or in- terest. Small World is $e only ride not $at great, but $en again, its not $at bad. Don’t forget Haunted Mansion in $e corner of $at land as you’re leaving it. Tea Cups - op(onal.
3. Libe,y Square:
- Hall of Presidents - !o cares. Long, dull, boring. Fake presidents, standing up talking.
- #eam Paddle Boat - Nice, but save it for %en you have extra (me.
4. Fron(erland - Like Fantasyland, $ere’s not mu' you want to skip here. Tom Sawyer’s Is- land is $e only one $at you should skip if you need to and even $en, you’ll want to see it.
5. Adventureland - Aladdin’s Magic Carpet Ride - is like any$ing you can find at any carnival.
- The Jungle Boat Ride - a boat ride wi$ fake animals on $e shore.
- The Tiki Birds - Is op(onal. Its a delightful show of fake singing and talking birds. If you have extra (me, great. If you’re pin'ed for (me, skip it.
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CHAPTER SIX
NAVIGATING EPCOT
EPCOT is a totally different experience and park than Magic Kingdom is. Therefore, the ap- proach is totally different. EPCOT is the second park that was built by Disney. It was actually designed and planned for by Walt Disney to be a living city. The Disney Company worked with the city of Orlando to get the permits and things were moving along, but the entire plan was not able to be realized before Walt Disney died. Therefore, when you go into the first sec- tion of Disney, you should not get off track by wandering into big, empty buildings that look interesting, but are vacant spaces whose purpose never materialized. These buildings are lo- cated in the first circle of the park. These big conference rooms were built to serve the needs of the living city that never got off the ground. At this point, they are filled from time to time (and as much as possible) with corporate conference displays, etc., or whatever else Disney can put them to use for, but are defunct spaces that hold nothing of value for you.
EPCOT IS SNOWMAN SHAPED
Imagine EPCOT as an upside down snowman, with a small circle that you’ll enter in the morn- ing and be excluded to and a larger circle that opens up at 11:00 AM. Because the whole working concept of EPCOT is the idea of the entire
world working together, the first cir- cle covers the resources of planet earth that we have to work with, while the second circle showcases numerous (but, not all) countries of the earth.
The countries of the world that EPCOT is known for will not open until 11:00 AM. So, plan to spend your morning in the small circle that you will be let into first and plan to be arriving on the Mexico side of the
second land at 11:00 when it opens. You’ll be shown how to do all this in the coming pages.
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THE SMALL CIRCLE
who don’t like heights love it.
quickly and easily to a 90 minute level. If you get there first thing in the morning, you should be able to ride this once very easily the first time, and then ride it a second time later in the morning with your FastPass. If you’re really lucky, you’ll ride it twice first thing in the morning without too much trouble and then once again with your FastPass later in the morn- ing. Although you’ll be able to come back later in the day and catch others of these rides without too much of a line (which will be explained later), don’t count on Sorin’ being one of them. This ride is so popular that once the line for 60 or 90 minutes forms, it rarely goes down from there. So get there early and ride it as much as you can before the line forms and then have it FastPassed for later in the morning so you can get on it one last time.
Before leaving the land, go on “Living With the Land” Boat ride. Its great and interesting. Also, check out the great food at the bottom level cafe and make a note that this is where you can get good, healthy food at a reasonable price any time during your day.
This is how the first circle of the park is laid out. You will enter at the bottom and immediately come to what I affec- tionately call the Granite Garden. You’ll know it when you’re in there, be- cause Its just an area of tall granite slabs with a lot of pictures and writing on them. This area was made during the millennium by people who paid to have their pictures taken with some kind of inscription. Even if you’re inter- ested in standing around reading all these captions (or even some of them), don’t do it now. Resist the temptation to do it and move on ahead as your valuable ride time is waiting and the crowds will be coming in behind you. Move right through the green area and past the Golf Ball to the Land which houses the best ride in the small circle, called “Sorin’”. Sorin’ simulates hang- gliding over California and even those
Its mild and delightful and the lines for this will build up
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A Word About Rides At EPCOT
The reality of EPCOT is $at 99% of $e rides are in $e Small Circle pa, of $e park. The big circle pa, has rides only in Mexico and Norway, and Norway’s ride is under refurbishment and not ex- pected to open un(l 2017. The big circle a)rac(ons are just as wonderful, but $ey are not rides, $ey are expos of countries’ f"d, ar'itecture, culture and g"ds and you’ll love it.
You’ll pass $e Golf Ball, really called “Spaceship Ea,h”, ini(ally only because its not as hard to get on as Sorin’ (in $e Land), and Nemo (in $e Seas). Once you get $ese two lands done, $en go ba* to $e Golf Ball, %i' you can have FastPassed if you fear $e lines. The Golf Ball is a ride $rough $e history of planet ea,h and very well done. “Test Tra*” is ge)ing in a fast car $at goes around a race tra* at high speeds. “Energy” is an interesting ride/show $rough $e dinosaur pe- riod showing you how oil has formed in our ea,h and talking about $e o$er forms of energy. “Space” is all about...space. It has a ride called “Mission: Space” $at’s a simulated ride $rough space via a airplane simulator. Kids enjoy it, but its just ok for most adults. Once you kno* off “The Land” and “The Seas”, Spaceship Ea,h ($e golf ball) is $e next best ride for adults, anyway. Kids might like “Energy” wi$ $e dinosaurs be)er. “Imagina(on” is a very cute ride $rough $e pre- tend labs of scien(sts working wi$ $e imagina(on. Its generally very easy to get onto because people tend to forget about it as its tu*ed ba* in $e corner next to $e land. !ile its one of $e best rides, its be)er to leave it ’(l almost last, because you can prac(cally walk onto it just about any (me and get on. Spaceship Ea,h and Imagina(on can bo$ have a long line at one minute and no line $e next. So, if you go to one of $em and find a long line, you can come ba* later and find it completely open or wait, if you wish.
GO TO THE SEAS NEXT
After leaving the Land, go directly next door to the Seas. This is the second most popular area of this circle. Featured herein is a delightful ride called “Finding Nemo”. Its another one you definitely want to go on for which you don’t want to wait. If you can, ride it again before you move on and another one you want to FastPass. Once you get off of the ride, a very interest- ing aquarium awaits you. Here, you’ll see a myriad of sea creatures on two floors and EPCOT employees will have scheduled showings and teachings on various types of sea life, as well. If the park is not too crowded, feel free to spend some time here, especially if you don’t live near an aquarium. If the park is crowded, however, this can be a dangerous time sapper. There is a show that is given on the second level where a regular person applied for the oppor- tunity to put on their scuba gear and feed the dolphins. Unless you know that person, its the same as seeing anyone else feed the fish. If you’re going to Sea World later, I would skip this
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TRAFFIC FLOW OF EPCOT YOUR SECRET WEAPON OF ATTACK
What most people don’t realize is that there is a secret traffic flow pattern of EPCOT that I’ve noticed whenever we’ve gone. One nice thing is that EPCOT is not as crowded generally speaking as Magic Kingdom for the reason that its not as “kid friendly” as the Magic King- dom, so that will help you out quite a bit. But what you really should know is that people make the mistake of coming in and getting into the line for the first ride they see, which is the giant Golf Ball. (Meanwhile, the most coveted rides are in the Land and the Seas, which you are going to go to right away). The natural flow of the traffic is to do the circle in the morning and meander over to the countries in the afternoon, since they don’t open until 11:00 A.M. anyway. As the afternoon wears on, around 3:00 or so, the crowds coming into EPCOT have generally waned a bit and they have wandered over to the countries, which is now becoming more crowded than they were earlier. Around dinner time, you will find the crowds increasing again, because the people with park-hopper passes have gone to one of the other three parks for the daytime and are now coming to EPCOT for dinner and the rest of the evening.
For that reason, my strategy for attacking this land has always been to do the land and sea right away and then go back to the golf ball. Generally, by this point, there is little or no line to wait in. If so, I go over to Energy and then try back at the Golf Ball. This is because the initial crowds that have come into EPCOT have stood in line for the Golf Ball while I’ve gone to the most coveted rides in the Land and Sea before the lines have gotten there. Further, I have FASTPASSED all three of my favorite rides so that I can do them yet again later in the morning. Once the crowds have left the Golf Ball to go where I’ve already been, I go back to the Golf Ball and find little or no line there at that time (about 10 or 10:30 AM. Once I have completed these rides, I’ll take in Energy and Imagination. Energy is pretty easy to get on, be- cause its accommodates a lot of people at one time. It also offers carpeted floor for sitting on while watching a huge-screen movie introducing the subject. Bench seating is very limited along the walls.
entire part. If not, I would spend a few minutes here, but be careful about getting sucked into any of the shows. This is a great time to hit the restrooms, though, as they are inside the aquarium, whereas other restrooms are not as conveniently located as these are. After finishing up at the Seas, you can go back and see about catching Spaceship Earth - the golf ball that you skipped previously. About this time, the line is not too long. If you get there and think it is, move to Energy where the ride handles carloads of people at a time and goes through the land of dinosaurs. Then go back to Spaceship Earth (which you should have FastPassed for about this time, anyway) and take that in. Lastly, Test Track is a fast ride in a circle, if you want it and Imagination is waiting just before you go to the Countries.
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EPCOT
DAY TWO
PARK HOURS 9-9
GO TO THE LAND
Sorin’
Living with the Land
Ride Sorin’ 2nd time (FastPassed)
GO TO THE SEAS
Finding Nemo
GO TO IMAGINATION
NEMO 2nd time, (FastPassed)
GO TO SPACESHIP EARTH (GOLF BALL)
Ride 2nd time if no line.
GO TO ENERGY
GO TO THE TEST TRACK
Re-do anything that you missed or want to do again, but be sure to get to Mexico by 11:00 or just after.
FastPass:
Sorin’
Nemo Spaceship Earth
The above schedule is the best one to follow for EPCOT small circle. It gets you on and off the most popular rides at least two times and possibly three times before you leave this area and proceed to the Countries.
GOING TO THE WORLD SHOWCASE
NO MATTER WHAT: MAKE IT A PRIORITY TO GET TO THE OTHER HALF OF EPCOT WHEN IT OPENS AT 11:00
If you are planning to visit during a high volume time, you may want to FASTPASS your second ride for Sorin’ and your other choices for the afternoon when you have finished going through the countries. Especially if you are going to be there during any of the peak/volume times, you definitely want to be at the head of the crowd when it comes to entering the countries for the lands of Mexico and Norway. The line for Mexico is never too bad, but the line for Norway has, in the past, been one I didn’t want to stand in. Ei- ther way, why take the chance? Just get there at the beginning at 11:00 and finish them off your list. Then, make your way around the countries and when you finish, you’ll be at the opposite end of the circle and then you’ll be able to come back to the small circle to make your second rounds, if you care to.
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GET TO MEXICO THIS WAY
The map above shows you two ways of getting over to Mexico. The red line shows you that you can take the broad road straight ahead when exiting the small circle that leads you to a junction where you must turn left and go under a formal entry to the Showcase. That’s the long way and I recommend against it. The best way is to take a road off to the left that goes by the side of a big empty building that we spoke of earlier. At the point of the green line are restrooms where you can make a pit stop on the way to Mexico. This way is much less traveled, quicker and shorter to take and you can get all the bathroom stops out of the way in route.
EACH COUNTRY’S UNIQUE OFFERINGS AND DINING
Disney has caused each country featured to come to you in every respect. Not every coun- try in the world is featured, but those that are will be depicted in terms of architecture, food, arts/crafts, retail goods from that country hosted by people from that very country. Its really pretty neat. For this reason, you will want to think about using your souvenir money and dining plans according to your tastes. Its fun to have lunch, dinner and all your snacks in between in this part of EPCOT. Once you’ve been through EPCOT you’ll look back and real- ize that Disney has allowed each country featured to operate in a “tourism”
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preview way. While there, you’ll get a good look at what each country would be like to visit for real: what the food is like, the countryside, architecture, the best landmarks will be fea- tured, and many of the country’s best-known goods will be imported for sale. If I never get to Morocco, at least I had their food, saw something of what their architectural style is and had the opportunity to see a belly dancer and buy some of their goods without leaving home.
However: If you need anything to eat in the smaller circle, the best place for that is in the Land. The Land has a wonderful cafeteria style restaurant of good, wholesome foods on the bottom level next on the right hand of Sorin' on the other side of the bathrooms. On the up- per level, there is also a cafe’ that I advise not eating at. Why? Not because the food is bad. I personally think its close to the same thing as is offered below in the cafeteria. But, because you want to save your fun eating for the Showcase. If you need breakfast or a snack while you’re in the small circle, this place in the land is the best place to get it - or if you want to get a healthy sit down dinner later on without paying a lot for it - this is the place to come. Other- wise, save your money for fun in the countries.
MEXICO
Mexico has the only ride in the big circle of EPCOT until sometime in 2016 when Norway’s ride is opened. Mexico has great dining, as well. Sit-down dining is inside and fast-food style is outside across from the pyramid structure in which the ride is housed. If you catch it right, you’ll be able to see a Mariachi band and parrots as well as a meet and greet with Hewey & Lewey dressed up as the Amigos featured in the ride.
NORWAY
Norway has great jewelry, sweaters and a wonderful perfume I get constant compliments on, called Laila. The bakery is great for a mid-afternoon snack. In the sit-down restaurant you’ll find a Princess Dinner featured in the evening. Don’t make the mistake of making reserva- tions there unless you have a little girl who wants to meet all the princesses. This restaurant used to be a cold buffet that my husband loves. So, without knowing it had become the desig- nated place of the Princess Dinner, we made reservations only to show up and wait in line with tiny dressed up princesses and their parents and to have each princess stop by our table on their route around the restaurant.
I don’t know what the new ride will be like, but if its anything like the old one, its a wonderful tale of riding through the fiords and being filled in on the Viking folklore. At the end, we were emptied out in a fake Norwegian village that we simply passed through (not a gift shop) into a small place where we could sit down and watch a movie on Norway. At Christmastime, each country is encouraged to put out a sampling of their traditions and beliefs. Norway has Father Christmas come out and a little talk is given to the kids.
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CHINA
China offers their typical food and architecture that is very pretty. Their main offering is their museum featuring interesting artifacts, including a mini-scale of the Chinese Warriors discov- ered in China as well as a 360 degrees movie theatre which you must stand to watch (strictly enforced). There are nice benches to rest up on before going into the movie, if you’re tired.
China also offers acrobatics of their countrymen/women in the front of their section. It has a sit-down restaurant as well as take-out, but most of us eat plenty of Chinese food throughout the year at home, so consider that when making your dining plans.
THE OUTPOST
The outpost is basically a “no-man’s” land that features things from Africa somewhat like you would see at Animal Kingdom. I think the real reason its there is as filler material since, if you take a close look at the bridge you walk over to get there, you’ll see that it actually lifts up. This is the place where, later in the day, a huge barge with the fireworks for the evenings’ fire- works display will be sailed through into the main lake. Nothing special here, although you can get a drink or treat if you need one.
GERMANY
Like being in Bavaria? Well, that’s where you’ll be on this trip to Germany. Germany features a wonderful sit-down experience for dining that replicates being in a beer-garden. Besides a hot buffet from soup to nuts, you’ll join others in watching a floor show where Germans will blow long wooden pipes, ring cow bells and allow you to dance. This style seats you with fel- low patrons.
Look up before entering the main house in the middle and you’ll see a working cookoo clock just above you that will signal on various places of the hour. Caramel, leaded crystal, wine and other delights are offered here.
ITALY
Walk into Italy and if you’ve ever been to the real Italy, you’ll undoubtedly recognize some of the landmarks re-created here. Initially, the buildings on either side are filled with fine Italian goods, including jewelry, perfume and sports attire. Further back, you’ll find three restaurants - a fancy sit-down, a more casual pizzeria directly to the back and on the left side in between, a Trather new restaurant that DOES NOT TAKE RESERVATIONS. The reason I highlight this fact is that you can plan to enter this Wine Basement for a light meal or dessert with wine or coffee any time you’d like. Each year, we plan this as a stop or two in our meal planning. Its
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especially cozy in the evening as there is a coffee-room set up in front of a fake fireplace that is relaxing and romantic with an opportunity to put your feet up and savor your visit there.
THE AMERICAN ADVENTURE
As you would expect, the American Adventure is the jewel in the crown of this circle of coun- tries. Plan to allow more time for it than other countries, if only because the main offering here is a wonderful theatre show of mechanical robots fashioned as Mark Twain and others who have had a profound impact on our American experience. Just prior to going in, a spe- cial choral group will sing in period costumes. If you have any physical needs, such as diffi- culty standing on sitting on the floor, you can ask your hosts and they will take you upstairs where you can grab a chair and pull it close to the railing and see the show from there. Other- wise,get there early and sit on very limited seating around the small circle where the singers will stand. Although there are other benches around that room, my experience is that you will not be allowed to bring them over.
The gift shop has been improved over the years from offering merely serious replicas of congressional-styled books and coins to more domestic interests. At Christmastime, an out- door mall offers dolls for sale. Take advantage of newly built restrooms on the right side, fac- ing the complex. A casual lunch is served on the right side with a garden/terrace look seating room.
Across from the complex, is an outdoor auditorium where concerts are scheduled year-round. At Christmastime, this area hosts a wonderful candle-light choir telling and singing the Christ- mas story. No reservations are taken, but you will get more than one chance to get in on the opportunity to see this event. In this case and in the case of the Colonial singers, check the sign posting the times of the performances and adjust your schedule accordingly.
WORLD DINING IN EPCOT
To get $e most current menus for any of $e Disney parks, go to: allears.net
To find out about $e newest eats in any of $e Disney Parks go to: $edisneyf"dblog.com
To make dining reserva(ons and to l"k at $e dining pa*ages, go to: disneyworld.disney.go.com
You cannot make your dining reserva(ons s"ner $an six mon$s out (180 days) from your trip.
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JAPAN
Japan is pretty interesting as most of us are quite familiar with Chinese culture, but not so much with Japanese. The main gift shop is huge and houses a large Hello Kitty collection as well as watches, pearls and other fine goods from Japan. Most interesting is the opportunity to select a clam from an open aquarium and have it opened. Inside will be a pearl of some sort that will be weighed and turned into a piece of jewelry of your choosing for a modest price. Even if you don’t want pearl jewelry for yourself, its a fun time just watching this event take place. Each time the Japanese hosts will beat a drum and exclaim what kind of pearl the latest clam served up.
The gift shop goes to the back and bends around in an “L” shape to the left. Everything from dishwater to kimonos are back there as well as stone made trees of jade. Its worth the time to visit.
Just after exiting the gift shop, you’ll have the chance to visit a museum under the arch where the kids craft corner is. This collection changes over time and is always interesting.
There is high-end sit-down dining above the gift shop and on the other side there is a low-end casual restaurant featuring a beautiful Japanese garden with very large gold fish.
KID CRAFT CORNERS
To make EPCOT more kid-friendly, EPCOT has a few special things for kids. One of them is a craft corner in every single land where the hosts of the country have a craft planned for the children. They can sit down and make the craft with the hosts and get a stamp on a passport book that they are given there.
Parents generally stand and watch while waiting for their chil- dren, but there’s no reason one parent can’t watch while the other shops.
From time to time, EPCOT also offers electronic games for the children that you should find out about when you plan to go. These games have changed over the years, but they have in- cluded a game similar to finding an object in each land to fun spy types of games.
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MOROCCO
Moroccan architecture is beautiful as I’m sure you’ll see. There is a lovely cafe on the right side offering wonderful Moroccan food, tea and desserts (in the back). You can get seating just outside, and inside as well.
Behind this area are shops in narrow passage-ways like you’d find there. All the way back, there is a sit-down restaurant featuring belly-dancers. This restaurant is fairly high end and you can get lower prices for lunch than for dinner as is true with most restaurants.
Following around as you exit, is a museum and an open air area inside an enclosed square. Just outside all this on lake-side, is an area recently built featuring more food and goods.
FRANCE
France is everything you’d expect in a visit to Paris: the Ifil Tower, fine perfume shops, an amaz- ing bakery with sandwiches and a patisserie, a gelato shoppe, two fine sit-down restaurants and a wonderful theatre featuring a grand visit to France. Acrobatics can be seen by two men balancing on chairs just outside of the first restaurant. And, as always, France offers wonder- ful wines and beautiful gardens.
The French Waterway
If you’re wondering where others are going when passing over the bridge into the next land, they are going to a string of resorts. You can follow them even if you’re not staying in one and find out what those resorts are like for future reference. If you’ve already eaten at most of the EPCOT restaurants and you’re in the mood for a change, you might also investigate some of the restaurants in that area that you’ve never been to.
The European styled boats you see are catering passengers from the resorts up to the EPCOT gate. Upon emergence, the passengers still have to have their tickets ready to get past the gate. Guests are also welcome to simply take the sidewalks to and from their resorts instead of riding the boat, if they want to.
The gift shop just before going into the resort area features a popular teddy bear figure and other Disney souvenir memorabilia. Just inside the gate to the right are bathrooms and other necessities.
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THE RESORTS & BUS ACCESS
The resorts back there are the Disney Beach Club, the Boardwalk, the Yacht Club, the Swan and Dolphin. Take a walk back there if you have time to spare and ride the boat back, if you’d like. If you want to leave the park at this point, you can also access the Bus system sim- ply by going to any of the resorts other than the Beach Club and riding it to Downtown Dis- ney or to your own resort. This way you can avoid walking all the way back to the front of the park and having to deal with the rest of the exiting crowds.
UNITED KINGDOM
Next, you’ll come to a composite place called the “UK”. Thatched roofs, rose gardens, tea and fish and chips are found in this land. Its lovely to be there, but not a lot to do. Behind the first shop is a nice garden maze and square where bands sometime perform. Alice from Alice and Wonderland holds meet and greets out front of this first building, as well. The shops hold the aforementioned goods from Great Britain. A kiosk selling fish and chips is off to your right and an English Pub and sit down restaurant follows on the same side. Unfortunately, this is the one sit-down restaurant I would advise you to avoid. The service has been very slow and the meal expensive. You can get the same fish and chips at the kiosk for a much cheaper price and what appeared to be more fish on the plate!
CANADA
Now you’re at the last land of the circle. Canada has focused on their “First Nation” genre and their mountains. A fun band plays off to the left in a concert area. Up the steps, one will find a small gift shop and a lovely recreation of the castle-hotel that sits in Quebec. Down the stairs you’ll find yourself cascading alongside a wonderful stony river with a waterfall until you reach a building in which a 360 degree movie is shown. Again, this is great movie, but you’ll be standing the entire time (not as strictly enforced). Before you enter the movie, there are several benches for resting, if you need it.
Outside of the movie theatre, you’ll find a beautiful replication of Victoria Gardens and a sit- down restaurant off to your right which is basically a steak house. Canada does not have a more casual take out restaurant like most of the other countries do.
Following this, you are back to the beginning of the circle on the opposite side of where you started out.
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EPCOT DINING - RECOMMENDATIONS & CAUTIONS
EPCOT is a great place to enjoy your dining dollars. Here are a few reco-enda(ons and cau(ons for dining wi$in EPCOT.
1. Absolutely if you want to dine at a nice sit-down restaurant %ile in EPCOT you must make RESERVATIONS in advance to make sure you will get in. RESERVATIONS can be made 60 days out. You want to be prepared to do $is as early as possible, %i' means $at you need to be l"king, $inking and '"sing so $at you can get your reserva(on s"ner $an later right after $e 60 days open. !y? Because $e reserva(ons fill up way in advance of %en you plan to get $ere. So, wi$ $at being $e case, you can see how unlikely it would be to expect $at you could get in wi$out a reserva(on.
2. You can access $e most current menus at AllEars.net. You can make your reserva- (ons at h)p://disneyworld.disney.go.com.
3. Sit down restaurants are expensive in EPCOT, as you would expect. Many of $em offer lower prices for lun' $an for dinner for $e very same menu wi$ all $e same am- biance. If you’re on a budget, save money by ea(ng at $e restaurant of your 'oice by ea(ng $ere for lun' instead of dinner.
4. Many of $e casual ea(ng venues in $e countries offer $e same f"ds $at are served in $eir expensive sit-down counterpa,. Consider ea(ng in $e venue you want in $e casual pa, of $e land ra$er $an in $e sit-down pa,.
5. Consider ge)ing $e dining pa*age. EPCOT is one place %ere you can really en- joy $e dining pa*age, because $ere is so many g"d 'oices to take advantage of. I would not advise $e dining pa*age for $e MK, because, in my opinion, $e f"d is just not $at great. But, its very g"d in EPCOT, Hollyw"d #udios and Downtown Disney, as well. If you’re going to be spending several days in $e o$er parks o$er $an $e MK, $e dining pa*age will be well wo,h it.
6. If you are staying at one of $e Reso,s connected to EPCOT via $e Fren' Water- way ($e Boardwalk, $e Bea' Club, $e Ya't Club, $e Swan and $e Dolphin), you can go ba* to your r"m for lun' and a nap and $ereby save your money for a nice dinner out. Remember to plan $is and reserve it before you leave home or you won’t get in to most of $e restaurants. A couple of excep(ons to $is are in Italy - $e Wine Cellar, %i' does not take reserva(ons and $e pizza restaurant straight to $e ba* of Italy is ano$er $at you may be able to get into wi$out a reserva(on.
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$en, $e Disney dining pa*age may make very g"d sense for you. You get a couple of sna*s %i' can count for breakfast and mid-aftern"n treats, a casual style lun' and a sit-down dinner in any restaurant. Bo$ lun' and dinner cover any meal no ma)er %at $e cost in any of $e EPCOT restaurants. So, if you want to go to $e most expensive restaurants in EPCOT, you can do $is and get any$ing on $e menu wi$out paying any more $an you would for $e 'eapest plate at $e most inexpen- sive restaurant $ere.
7. If you are going on a budget, skip $e dining pa*age, because its not 'eap. In- stead, plan to have a few sit-down dinners at $e lun' hour %en $e price will be 'eaper and plan to have your dinner dining at one of $e nicer casual venues %ere you most possibly get $e very same type of f"d as you would anyway.
SPECIFIC RESTAURANTS GOOD FOR CASUAL DINING
1. G"d for casual evening or lun' dining - $ese are NOT $e sit down venues:
a. Morocco - plenty of sea(ng, great f"d and nice desse,s/coffee.
b. Mexico - g"d outd"r sea(ng on $e water outside, regular Mexican
f"d.
c. UK - Fish and 'ips kiosk. Be)er $an sit-down restaurant here.
d. Italy - The wine basement is excellent. Small meals and desse,s, g"d
wines. This can add up qui*ly because its su' a lovely experience.
e. Italy - #raight to $e ba* - Pizzeria - large pizza feeds many.
f. .ina - Does have casual dining. Not mu' sea(ng at all. Do you really
want to get .inese f"d wi$ your limited dining dollars on vaca(on?? To ea', his own, but you can get $is any%ere.
g. France - Has a lovely bakery wi$ sandwi'es, desse,s, etc. wi$ plenty of sea(ng. You cannot get $is any%ere. Its very Fren'.
h. Japan - I have never tried Japan’s casual dining, but I have been inside
$e restaurant briefly and its very nice, limited sea(ng $ough (very small).
i. Canada - No casual dining at all.
j. Norway - Some sandwi'es, but generally not great compara(vely.
2. Sit-down dining - All of $e sit-down dining in EPCOT I’ve had has been very g"d wi$ $e excep(on of $e UK. !ile $e environment is very 'arming, it is as small as it l"ks. Al$ough we had a reserva(on, we did not get in for over an hour past our reserva(on. This has never happened to us before at any o$er EPCOT restaurant. We sat in $e in-screened area (in December), but $e large heat blowers were not ade- quate. Try $is restaurant %en park volume is very low and not in winter.
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SPECIFIC SIT-DOWN RESTAURANTS THAT NEED RESERVATIONS
A. Mexico -Housed inside $e Pyramid. Very nice wi$ g"d service.
B. Norway - Princess meet and greet buffet inside building on left in Nor- way.
C. .ina - Sit down restaurant in first building on your left inside $e coun try.
D. Germany - Very festive beer garden fl"r show environment. Hot buffet from soup to nuts wi$ group sea(ng at big tables. Highly reco-ended.
E. Italy - Two sit-down restaurants to '"se from. One is very fancy, one is more casual.
F. The American Adventure - No fine dining available.
G. Japan - Nice sit-down restaurant on top of $e gift shop to your right. Typical meal %ere Japanese 'ef c"ks and does fancy knife work at
your table.
H. Morocco - Nice sit-down restaurant straight ba* at $e ba* of $e com plex. !ite table clo$s and a belly-dancer fl"r show.
I. France - Two sit-down restaurants to eat at. One of $em has very Fren' f"d, but $e o$er is almost American. Highly reco-ended, but 'e* menus carefully before making reserva(ons to make sure you’ll get %at you’re $inking of in terms of Fren' f"d.
J. UK - One sit-down restaurant; not reco-ended.
K. Canada - One sit-down restaurant undernea$ complex next to Victoria Gardens replica.
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GO AROUND AGAIN OR TAKE A NAP?
At this point in time, most of the crowd that has been occupying the first circle has made its way into the second bigger circle. This is the time that you can go back to the small circle and take in anything that you left out the first time. For this reason, you may want to have FASTPASSED one of your rides for this time in the afternoon. Remember that FASTPASSES have a one hour window. If you FASTPASS your ride here for 2:30 P.M. you’ll have a half- hour margin on either side.
About this time, it will be around 3:00 PM and if you’re like me, you’ll want to take a nap. If you are staying at one of the resorts accessed by the French waterway, you can go back to your hotel and rest up until 5:00 or so and then venture out again for dinner and the rest of the night. Think about this when making your dining reservations and plan accordingly.
On the other hand, if you are staying at a resort that is further away, getting back to your hotel and back again to EPCOT may or may not be worth your time and effort as you may feel that you will lose too much time going and coming and in between. What should you do?
My strategy has always been to stay at one of the EPCOT Resorts and go out first thing in the morning until about 1:00 or 1:30 P.M. for lunch and a nap until around 4:00 when we come out for the rest of the night.
If you haven’t been able to stay in one of the resorts right next to EPCOT, then you have to de- cide whether its worth it to you to lose the time going back to your hotel room for a nap. If you are planning to spend more than one or two days in EPCOT and you have small children, it might be worth it to take a few hours off back at the hotel. Now that you’ve covered EPCOT once, you know what you want to do the second time around, so your efforts in the evening won’t be as laborious, however, make sure that you have your dining worked out so that your evening is set one way or the other.
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NAP TIME AT EPCOT
Fortunately for you, EPCOT has some GREAT nap opportunities. BIG CIRCLE:
1. The BEST all-around nap opportunity is to go right back to FRANCE and take in their theatre offering 2-3 times. The chairs are comfy, its dark and relax- ing, it lasts for a pretty good length of time and its air-conditioned. Once you get out of there, you can get a nice dessert/lunch and coffee to see if you can bring yourself around. If not...the movie is about to start again.
2. The second best nap time is back to the AMERICAN ADVENTURE for all the same reasons.
3. Don’t go to Canada or China, because they make you stand up the whole time. Don’t go to Mexico, because their ride is not long enough. There’s nothing at Ger- many or the UK as well. The best napping opportunities lie from the American Adventure down through France.
4. Morocco has a wonderful dessert cafe right next to their cafeteria style buffet and they have plenty of seating. Go there, get an afternoon lift and put your feet up for a while.
If you’re in the SMALL CIRCLE or headed that way, there are a few great nap rides provided that you don’t have to stand in a long line to get on them.
5. The first ride to try is IMAGINATION, which is the first ride you’ll come to from the Canada side just next to the Land. Imagination is often over-looked by the crowds and you can probably get right in. Its a way to sit down and rest for a while and its air-conditioned.
6. The second best ride is the Golf Ball. Its good for 2-3 times, if needed and if you can get right in. Sometimes, late in the day like this, its not hard to do, be- cause the crowds have made their way over to the Countries. This ride is dark, re- laxing (you even go backwards for a while, which is great for your neck and back)
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END OF THE DAY
So, its $e end of $e day and its been a great one. EPCOT, like all Disney parks, ends $e day wi$ a big fireworks display. Its HUGE and it comes out on a barge $rough $e Fren' Waterway canal $at we talked about previously, and goes into $e middle of $e lake around %i' $e countries sit. Many people love $is pa, of $e day and arrange to be at $eir favorite places to wat' $em. The show is quite long, so if you want to see it, be prepared to sit/stand for a %ile. !e$er or not you want to sit $rough $is, here are some of $e best ways to get ahead of $e masses of people %o’ll leave $e park at $e end of $e fireworks.
Resort Dwellers
You can get out easily by going $rough $e EPCOT reso, area using $e Fren' Waterway. Ride $e boat and enjoy yourselves or walk out using $e sidewalk and $en go out $rough any of $e reso,s to cat' $e bus to your reso, if it isn’t among $e ones situated here. Its a lot faster $an going all $e way ba* to $e be ginning of $e park and cat'ing $e bus $ere. The buses come to $e front of any of $ose reso,s every 20 minutes or so, just as $ey stop in front of all reso,s for $ose coming or going. If you are staying at one of $e reso,s connected to EP COT, you can see $e fireworks from SOME, not all, of $e balconies in $e hotels if you have one.
Parking Lot People
If you are parked in $e parking lot and you want to get to $at lot ahead of every one else, but you still want to see $e fireworks display, realize $at you can see $em from $e area between $e small circle and $e large one. On $e Canada side of $at area $ere are restr"ms and a refreshment area $at you can get a coke from so you can sit down/stand and wat' $em. The display features a metal world floa(ng in $e middle of $e lake. If you don’t care about seeing $ese float around, you can actually go out into $e small circle and wat' $em from $ere and $en you’ll be perfectly posi(oned to cat' $e tram to your parking lot area and be ahead of all $e o$er cars as you leave for $e night. Al$ough you may not $ink it will take you a long (me to get out if you don’t get ahead of $e crowds,$ink again. At $e end of a long day, $is can easily add ano$er hour or so to ge)ing home.
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CHAPTER SEVEN
NAVIGATING HOLLYWOOD STUDIOS
Hollywood Studios is one of the smaller parks. Its layout is fairly compact and you may find that this park will not challenge you time-wise the way the Magic Kingdom and EPCOT have to fit everything in in one day. You may want to plan to visit this park initially for one day be- fore counting it in for a second as one day may be adequate for you. The convenience of Dis- ney tickets allows you to buy generic tickets to be used as you like. If you find that you want to visit this park a second day, you can certainly adjust your plans to do so.
Hollywood Studios is Hollywood, California brought to you in all the typical ways you’ve
seen Disney deliver the countries of EPCOT to you - in food, local streets such as Sunset Strip, and the genre of Hollywood movie life. Thanks to Dan Alexander we have a map free to use from copyright restrictions. Visit his blogspot to thank him. Please be aware that this is an out- dated map. However, the layout is the same, although the numbers on the buildings have dif- ferent numbers on the current map.
Heads Up!
You should be aware that Hollywood Studios is on the brink of making major changes to the park. Overall, Hollywood Studios has had less appeal to the public than Disney had hoped. The goal was to create a new movie-making cli- mate in central Florida similar to what is actually in Hollywood in California, with the TV and movie studios being the center of it. At its opening, what we know now as “Hollywood Studios” was originally called “MGM”. As you proba- bly know, MGM is a working production studio and productions were being made (and are currently being made) in Hollywood Studios. However, the Dis- ney dream never did quite develop as Disney had hoped and at this point, Dis- ney has announced major changes coming to this park (as well as to Animal Kingdom). To read up on these developments and to keep abreast of the changes, you can go to www.orlandosentinel.com. You should also check http://www.themeparktourist.com, http://allears.net, and https://www.undercovertourist.com as you make your plans.
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f you look at the park overall from the left upper corner down to the opposite corner, you may be able to make out the look of a dog from his head down to his neck/shoulder looking off to the left. In my opinion, the best rides in Hollywood studios are from the neck down to the shoulder. The most popular rides are Tower of Terror (#18) on the dog’s back, the Rockin’ Roller Coaster (#18) right next to it, the Great Movie Ride (#1) right in the middle behind the hat, and Toy Story just behind the hat to the right. Toy Story is the newest ride and it can be absolutely packed out with a 90 minute wait with no problem throughout the day. This is the first one you will head to which we’ll detail later. The shows in Hollywood Studios are spread throughout the park. But we’ll go section by section beginning again with the pink.
Pink Section - Down Hollywood Boulevard & the“Echo Lake” Section. The pink section is the one that you initially enter the park on a street appropriately named “Hollywood Boule- vard”. As was true in the Magic Kingdom, the shops along this main drag are filled with Dis
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ney memorabilia. Save your looking through these shops to later in the day when you’ve done everything else.
Most of what you see on the left in the Echo Lake area are restaurants and very good ones, too, which we’ll cover later. Straight ahead, you’ll see the Disney hat. This is a live stage show area where concerts will take place as scheduled throughout the day and evening. Be- hind it, is the only ride in this section “The Great Movie Ride”. This is a great ride that I usu- ally go on a few times. It handles large crowds at a time and takes you through a journey of famous movies produced over the years by Hollywood.
Behind Echo Lake to the south are two complexes that house an attraction. The first building (#4) houses a live stunt show replicating some of the scenes in the action movie “Indiana Jones”. Its really quite thrilling and is just like the movie. In building #5 is a Star Tours attrac- tion that features a motion/flight simulator used to train astronauts and pilots that serves as the basis for the ride. The riders buckle in and are taken through the galaxy via a large screen in front of them of which they can choose from over 50 choices of exciting adventures of movie clips. Patrons say that one could ride this several times and have a different adventure each time because of the flexibility in choices. Expect the flight simulator to take you up and down throughout the ride.
Blue Section - Pixar Place Before stopping to go on “The Great Movie Ride”, however, you should go directly past it down the steps and around the corner to your left, into Pixar Place. Walk a few paces down this street and you’ll come to the most popular ride in Hollywood Stu- dios - Toy Story. This is the most delightful ride you’ll ever go on in the Disney parks, in my opinion - and certainly within Hollywood Studios. Fellow patrons agree as shown in the al- most continual 50-90 minute wait throughout the day for this ride. Even if you had to wait that long, it would be worth it, but of course, you want to make sure you won’t have to wait by FASTPASSING this ride FROM HOME before you leave on your trip (as has been directed for all your FASTPASSING). You will see other people FASTPASSING rides at a nearby kiosk, but these tickets are limited and will all be discharged before mid-morning. So, don’t take any chances on this ride. Get to the gate when it opens and head right to Toy Story. Wait in line for whatever you have to this first time around - and then go on it a second time later in the morning with your FASTPASS ticket. You won’t be sorry that you followed this strategy, be- cause everyone wants to go on Toy Story as many times as they can.
What is it? Toy Story takes you into the movie - you’ll be there with Woody and all his friends as you wind your way through the wait line. You’ll also be surrounded by large-scale versions of your favorite toys of yesterday. Once you get up to the ride, you’ll get in a 3 person car and be taken to the fairway where you’ll play games for points as you make your way through.
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Everything about this ride is fun and its a delightful and sentimental journey back into child- hood innocence rarely found today.
There is one other good attraction in Pixar Place - “Voyage of the Little Mermaid”. This attrac- tion is a delightful stage show that simulates the voyage of Ariel from sea to land utilizing pup- pets and actors/actresses. You’ll definitely want to get in on this, but not before advancing to the Purple Section - Sunset Boulevard, as the other most popular and difficult rides to get on are over there.
As you travel through Pixar Place, you’ll pass a museum featuring the accomplishments of Walt Disney called ‘One Man’s Dream”. Its more interesting than you might imagine and well worth stopping in once you’re done with all the other things. Use this for your clean-up time.
Purple Section - Sunset Boulevard Right as you cross into the purple section on the left hand corner, you’ll pass one of my favorite coffee break places “Starring Rolls Cafe”. This is a great place to get a pastry/muffin and a cup of coffee or a light lunch and put your feet up. As you keep on traveling down this road, you’ll pass a great confectionary on your left and a series of shops on your right filled with more Disney merchandise - mostly clothes. On the right side, about half way down, you’ll also see a set of restrooms should you need a pit stop. Back on the left side, as you continue is some of the most healthy eating in Hollywood Studios. Here, you’ll be able to get fresh fruit and healthy salads and sandwiches. One of these restaurants has a very nice BBQ chicken dinner.
Straight ahead into what appears as a dead-end is the Rockin’ Roller Coaster. This is a very fast moving coaster and not for the faint of heart. Directly next on its right is the infamous Tower of Terror. Go into this hotel and be taken up several stories only to be suddenly dropped in a thrilling screaming ride.
Right next to the Tower of Terror is where a live Beauty and the Beast show takes place at vari- ous times throughout the day. This is a live show with actors/actresses and cute props and is well worth seeing. If you or someone in your family doesn’t want to go on the Tower of Terror or the Rockin’ Roller Coaster, which can be a little scary for the faint of heart (your’s truly did not like it), they can sit next door at and see the show.. Directly across from that is an ice cream shop where people also wait for their friends while enjoying a refreshing treat.
Tower of Terror and Rockin’ Roller Coaster are probably the other two rides you want to FAST- PASS while in Hollywood Studios. Those who don’t want to go on these can FASTPASS the Voyage of the Little Mermaid instead. This live show can be very popular, as well.
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Now, back to Pixar Place for the Mermaid and Great Movie Ride
Next, you’ll want to head back to Pixar Place to the place of the Voyage of the Little Mermaid. If you didn’t make note of it before, take a look at the time of the next showing. If its about 15 minutes out, go ahead and get in line for this attraction. If you end up not getting in, don’t continue to wait in line again as the next showing will be a 20 minute wait at least. Instead, go over to the Great Movie Ride and enjoy that attraction. There is not usually much of a wait for this ride, because the ride itself is comprised of huge cars that hold a LOT of people. By playing the Voyage of the Little Mermaid against or in conjunction with the Great Movie Ride, you should be able to take in these two attractions before venturing deeper within the rest of the park, thereby checking off two sections of this park by noon or 1:00, depending on patron volume.
Before you leave, you might want to check in at Disney Jr. Live on Stage, depending on the ages of your children. This is a live puppet stage show for toddlers and preschoolers featuring Disney characters on the Disney channel - such as Jake, Mickey Mouse, Doc McStuffins and Sofia. This is a 22 minute show with floor seating.
“The Legend of Jack Sparrow” is an interactive walk-through tour of the movie. Although it may be interesting, it is recommended that you leave this for your clean-up time unless the park is not very crowded and you have already done the premium things. This particular at- traction is slated to be closed, if it hasn’t been closed already.
Yellow Section - The Streets of AmericaHeading through Pixar Place (blue), you’ll venture into the yellow section called “The Streets of America”. Here you’ll find another delightful stage show in Hollywood Studios called “Muppet Vision” (#6) which is a Muppet 3D presenta- tion with actual muppets and some animation. You’ll get the plastic 3D glasses on the way in and deposit them on the way out. “Honey, I Shrank The Kids” (#7) is an indoor playground for kids of all ages, geared toward elementary children. Venture in there, and you’ll find yourself the same size as the kids were when they were shruken. Giant plant leaves overhead and a fake dirt/gravel pathway underfoot paves the way for a garden adventure. This is something you probably want to save for your clean-up time unless you have children who need to play for a while.
Heading back toward the very back of the park, you’ll come upon two the place where tow high-energy stage shows once were. One was an outdoor stunt show, which may not be run- ning anymore. Last time I was there, it seemed that it had been discontinued. If it is function- ing, you’ll get to watch motorized stunts with motorcycles, fast cars and the originalLove Bug split in half zooming around.
The other “show” that’s back there is the “Backlot Tours”. Last I heard, this ride, too, had been
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CAUTIONS ON FANTASMIC DINING PACKAGE
1. Fills Up Fast - The Fantasmic Dining Package is the best way to en- sure that you get a good seat, but even then you must show up early. If the theatre fills up too quickly, people holding the Fantasmic vouchers for best seating have been known to lose it anyway if the crowd is swel- ling and voucher-holders have not yet arrived. They are not held for you.
2. This Show Gets Canceled - This show is held outside in a big amphi- theater. If it rains making it slippery for actors/actresses or if the equip- ment is acting up (lots of it to go wrong) then the show will get can- celed. OUCH.
3. Vouchers Will NOT be replaced and there will be NO refund if the show gets canceled. Some people have been able to coax a replacement voucher out of Guest Relations, but that will require you to come back for an additional day at your own expense.
4. Vouchers are only good for one of the shows on nights when two shows are offered.
5. This Show is not Offered With Consistency. Therefore, make sure to contact Disney ahead of time to find out whether or not the show will even be offered while you’re planning to be there.
6. This Dinner deal is not part of your regular Disney Dining Package. Rather, you MUST purchase the Fantasmic Dining Package separately and specifically if you want in on it.
7. If you do not get the Fantasmic Dining Package, you should be in line 1 hour before or FASTPASS it. FASTPASSES for this show are usually still available late in the afternoon and are generally not needed for the second show as the attendance tends to be light for that.
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DINING IN HOLLYWOOD STUDIOS
1. Healthy Casual Dining, Low-cost
a. Purple/Sunset Boulevard - Three restaurants along the left side of this
street heading toward Tower of Terror have healthy dining choices, including fresh fruit, salads/sandwiches and BBQ dinners. Ice Cream on the corner for dessert. All outside seating, but plenteous.
b. Blue Section/Pixel Place -The Commissary on the way to Toy Story has healthy entrees, slightly higher than the aforementioned with plenty of in- door seating.
c. Yellow Section/Streets of America The Studio Catering Company offers sal- ads and wraps. and the Pizza Planet Arcade has pizza, meatball subs and beer.
d. Backlot Express Salads, Angus burgers, chicken nuggets.
2. Other Casual Dining - Other casual dining is plenteous around the park,
but consists of hamburgers, chicken nuggets and some salads. That includes Dock Side Diner in front of Echo Lake and the Backlot Express which, at least, does have some healthier choices.
3. Sit-down Restaurants - RESERVATIONS RECOMMENDED
Some of the most delightful and creative dining experiences are in Hollywood Studios.
a. 50’s Prime Time Diner -This restaurant is my all-time favorite in the Dis- ney parks. Its a replica of Mom’s kitchen dining in the 1950’s. You’ll enjoy the menu and the step back into a more innocent and warm domestic time of dining at Mom’s. (Pink Section)
b. Hollywood & Vine - Casual family buffet dining, usually packed, reserve ahead.. Has a 50’s look and is also the place of character dining referred to “Dis- ney Jr. Play n’Dine”.. Serves Breakfast as well. (Pink Section)
c. The Brown Derby - Its just like being in the real Brown Derby in Holly- wood. White table cloths and leather seats. Very swanky. (Pink Section)
d. Sci- Fi Restaurant -This is a lighthearted restaurant featuring the idea of dining in a drive in movie. Burgers, salads, steaks, seafood. (Yellow Section)
e. Mama Melrose’s Italian Restaurant - Pizza, pasta, seafood and steak. (Yellow)
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NAP RIDES IN HOLLYWOOD STUDIOS
1.The best Nap rides in Hollywood Studios are the indoor shows: Voyage of the Little Mermaid and the Muppet’s 3D Theatre. They are air conditioned with comfy chairs and you’re pretty likely to get in.
2. The runner-up is the Great Movie Ride. You’re pretty likely to get in without much of a wait because of the large accommodat- ing cars. Its air-conditioned and a pretty good length of ride. Sometimes the cars don’t fill up and you’ll be able to sit side-ways with your legs up (if they hurt).
3. Starring Rolls Cafe is a place where you can get a coffee/snack and put your legs up with back support.while sitting outside None of restaurant choices along Sunset Avenue offer you this type of seating.
4. For indoor refreshing, you can try the Commissary and a snack. Its air-conditioned and there are soft chairs with back sup- port where you can put your feet up for a while.
5. The Writer’s Stop in the yellow section is a very small latte bar, but there are a couple of very cozy living room styled chairs in a reading arrangement that you can practically sleep in if you get one of them. Although it isn’t marked on the current map, it was there last year when I was and always has been before.
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CHAPTER EIGHT
NAVIGATING ANIMAL KINGDOM
By far, Animal Kingdom is the most unique park in the Florida Disney collection of parks. If you’re a nature lover, this is the place for you. If not, you may join the ranks of those who struggle to make this into a full day affair. Those who do like this park often plan 2-3 days here when visiting. They love the fact that Disney has created trails for them to wander through experiencing what it would be like to be on the natural landscape in Africa or Asia. They love the hidden gems tucked behind the main pathways where they can be peaceful and enjoy the natural surroundings. They wonder why others are rushing by these beckoning path- ways to stand in lines for mechanical thrills.
Those who don’t like this park complain that there isn’t enough for them. They feel that they’ve gone to a big zoo and that there aren’t enough attractions that Disney is known for. They miss the fact that Disney took flat cow pastures and turned them into magical far away places full of waterfalls, rushing rivers, with flora and fauna and animals that are naturally found elsewhere to parts of the world some people may never otherwise go.
If you enter Animal Kingdom with an understanding that it offers you a unique opportunity to visit Asia and Africa, experience the natural landscapes of remote village life filled with ani- mals that have been brought to Florida for you to see, then I think you’ll have the experience Disney was aiming for when creating this unique place.
This is not a park that you’ll need to “make tracks” in. It is less attended than other parks, which makes it refreshingly restful. You may want to schedule it between the busier parks of the Magic Kingdom and EPCOT. Its an opportunity to schedule some more relaxed “down time” into your visit here.
Plan to switch your focus from rides to landscape from busy to restful. There are some rides and there are some shows, but the majority of what you’ll find at Animal Kingdom is animals, lovely landscapes with trails for you to enjoy at your own pace and nature conservation con- cepts set amid African villages and Asian mountains. If you approach it the right way, Animal Kingdom can end up being one of your favorite places.
Animal Kingdom is the most recent park built in the Disney park collection in Florida. The lay- out of Animal Kingdom is closest to the layout of the Magic Kingdom. A map was not avail- able for inclusion here, so another simulated map has been made for you. If you want to look at the actual map of Animal Kingdom, go onto BingImages.com and ask for “map Animal King-
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dom Disney” and many will come up that you can take a look at in conjunction with this chapter.
DESCRIPTION OF SECTIONS
Animal Kingdom has some similarities to Magic Kingdom. The lay-out of the parks is similar, but also is the “theming” of each section. Just as you found that the architecture, food and cos- tumes changed from Frontierland to Tomorrowland, here in Animal Kingdom, you will find
that the flora/fauna and animals change as well as the architecture, food, goods and costumes when you go from Africa to Asia, for instance.
1.Oasis - This is the general opening area of the park. Its essentially a zoo of various animals with exhibit plaques in front of many of them. It is designed for your entrance into this new domain.
2.Camp Minnie - Mickey was an area of Animal Kingdom designed to allow you to experience a time away in the Adirondacks - a group of mountains in upstate New York. It was dense and lush and featured some of the favorite
characters of Disney fishing and hiking in the great outdoors as well as in costume for meet and greets. This area closed on Janu-
ary 6, 2014 so it could be remade into “Avatar Land” which is slated to open sometime in 2017.
BLUE LINES of course, represent the pathways from one land to another.
NOTE: That while the hub connects to all lands, all lands do not connect to each other. Rather, only Dinoland, Asia and Africa allow you to walk between lands. If you are in Dinoland, your shortest way to Asia is to use the pathway between them.
3.
Dinoland - is well-suited to elementary age children and brings one back to the time when Dinosaur “exhibits” could be seen along the roadside when vacationing around the country. Here, the old exhibit is bought to life in a fun carnival of games and rides, a play- ground and a Nemo musical in a large outdoor amphitheater.
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4. Discovery Island - This serves as the central hub to all the sections of the park. In this hub you’ll find a giant tree called “The Tree of Life”. Take some time to examine this tree as it has been painstakingly created with great care and has animal exhibits around it, as well. In the bottom of it is a delightful 8 minute 3D movie showing you in insect terms that “Its Tough to Be A Bug!”.
Also on this Discovery Island is the biggest gift shop and two major restaurants. Here you’ll also find one of the trails described previously called “Discovery Island Trails”.
5. Asia - Once again, you’ll be adventuring into another fictional land/kingdom with two villages. The kingdom of Anandapur has two villages called Anandapur and Serka Zong, which is a simulation of the foothills of the Himalayas. This is probably the most exciting sec- tion in the Animal Kingdom park. You can go on the self-guided Maharajah Jungle trek and encounter the beautiful natural landscape and animals of Asia and encounter the two best rides in the Animal Kingdom, both connected to the trek: The Kali River Rapids (a flume ride) and the Expedition Everest, a roller coaster with a steep decline. Also available for some down-time, you can catch the “Flights of Wonder” bird show where Disney hosts will educate you about various types of birds. Be sure to get to the show 10-15 minutes beforehand, as the area will be closed off to keep the birds in throughout the show.
6. Africa - You’ll find yourself in a simulated East African village called Harambe where you can wander around in the marketplace or take the highly-rated Kilimanjaro Safari where you’ll see amazing African wildlife pointed out by your Tour Guide. These animals are real, not robotic as in the Jungle Cruise. The Pangani Forest Expedition Trail is another way to trek through the wilderness and see rare animals. Finally, you can enjoy the Festival of the Lion King is a live stage show in an outdoor amphitheater.
7. Rafki’s Planet Watch is technically a part of Africa. You’ll board a “narrow guage” Wild- life Express Train for an express trip to two locations. The first is Habitat Habit! where you’ll see primates and learn about their lives. The second is a conversation station where you’ll learn about how the animals at Disney’s Animal Kingdom are cared for behind the scenes, including healthcare needs. Finally, enjoy the Affection Section petting zoo and see other unusual animals.
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SUMMARY OF AREAS & ATTRACTIONS
1. The Oasis is Animal Kingdom’s “Main Street”. This is a beautiful and interesting segway into the rest of the park. Better to spend time in this area at the end, rather than the begin- ning of your visit to this park.
2. Dinoland is the best place to start if you have small children who may run into height and weight restrictions in Asia where Expedition Everest is located. In Dinoland, your chil- dren will have carnival games to play and three rides to enjoy.
a. DINOSAUR is a motion sensor ride similar to Journey to the Center of the Earth in To- morrowland. You’ll get into a chair and strap in for an exciting “ride” through primeval dino- saur scenes. Its turbulent and you might want to think twice if you have heart problems or don’t like being jerked about. No height/weight restrictions apply, but this is apt to frighten small children and is probably best suited to children 8 years old and up.
b. The Primeval Whirl is well-named for a roller coaster who’s cars spin while traversing the track! This style is known as a “spining roller coaster”. Each car seats four people and two tracks operate at the same time to accommodate patrons. You must be 48” tall to go on this ride.
c. The TriceraTop Spin is very much like Dumbo or Aladdin’s Flying Carpet in the Magic King- dom, except that you and your child(ren) will ride in a cute dinosaur instead of an elephant or magic carpet. There’s room for four persons per dinosaur and no height/weight restric- tions.
d. Fossil Fun Games are arcade games next to the aforementioned rides.You might as well catch this while you’re here, but I recommend leaving the Boneyard and Nemo for later in the day when you need a chance to sit down for a while.
e. The Boneyard Playground is a place where small children can imagine while getting rid of some steam. It is similar to “Honey, I Shrank the Kids” playground in Hollywood Studios. Children can pretend to dig for dinosaur bones, go down slides, and shoot water guns at each other.
f. Finding Nemo is an indoor stage show featuring actors/actresses, puppets, acrobatics and underwater styled props. It last for 45 minutes and is shown five times during the day. You really don’t want to miss this. Although you can FASTPASS this, I recommend against it, as its generally just not that hard to get into. This is a good nap ride or one you’ll use to rest your legs and enjoy some air-conditioning later in the day.
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2. Africa and Asia are the two most popular areas for older children and adults. If only older children (tweens and up) and adults are in your party, you should head to Asia first and Africa second and you should have FASTPASSED all three rides, as the ones in Dinoland are too young for your party. Be sure to FASTPASS the rides far enough apart that you can enjoy Asia fully before going on to Africa or visa-versa.
FASTPASSING AT ANIMAL KINGDOM
Here’s what you can FastPass at Animal Kingdom:
Discovery Island
It's Tough to Be a Bug! -(an 8 minute 3D video)
Dinoland
DINOSAUR.(Motion Sensor ride)
Finding Nemo (outdoor musical stage show)
Asia
Expedition Everest.(roller coaster, steep descent) Festival of the Lion King (indoor stage show).
Africa
Kali River Rapids. (river rapid ride, circular boat) Kilimanjaro Safaris.(live animal safari in truck)
Meet & Greet the Disney characters at Adventurers Outpost.
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a. Asia features two of the three most popular rides in Animal Kingdom:
Expedition Everest and the Kali River Rapids ride. Everest is a roller coaster, and the Kali River Rapids ride has you seated in a round “car” that seats several people at a time. Expect to get wet on the river ride as you’ll be traveling down a rushing river. These rides should be FAST- PASSED for later in the morning so that you can be sure to go on them more than once. Be advised that Everest is generally too intense for young children - first grade on down and be advised as well that you WILL get wet on the Kali River Rapids. If its a hot Floridian day, you might not mind it at all.
b. Africa features the third most popular attraction in Animal Kingdom which is also great for small children on up, the Kilimanjaro Safari. Here, you’ll be taken by safari truck by a tour guide/driver through acres of land and see live safari type animals. This is a live safari like you’d get if you went to Africa, but once again, Disney has brought it to you. This attrac- tion goes over well with all ages. There is no time of the day when one is guaranteed to see more animals than at any other time of the day, so it is not important to schedule this at any particular time to see more animals. This is another ride you’ll want to FASTPASS as the lines can be quite long for this.Changing Lands
Asia Before Africa
If you have started out with small children and have finished Dinoland, you may wish to have an early lunch. There are two places en route that will serve you well - either the Restauranto- saurus in Dinoland, featuring standard fare and refillable drinks or the Pizzafari on Discovery Island, featuring pizza and chicken nuggets. If you need some down time after lunch, you can take it on the Discovery Island Trails or in the Boneyard Playground or by napping in the Finding Nemo musical theatre before leaving Dinoland.
In Asia, you will encounter two of the most popular rides in Animal Kingdom. Its best to leave the Kilimanjaro Safari until later in the afternoon, as rumors have it that the animals tend to come out more toward that end of the day. Its also when feet are tired and ready for some sit- ting time. Since you have FASTPASSED this ride, you won’t have to wait in line when you get there and you’ll be ready to enjoy a relaxing trip into the wilds. Before leaving Asia, make sure to enjoy the Marharajah Jungle Trek. Its the self-guided walking trails in Asia where you’ll see animals native to that area of the world.
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THE GAME PLAN
1. Get there when the park opens.
2. Those with small children go to DINOLAND first. Spend 2-3 hours here and finish with
lunch in one of three places before going on to Asia.
a. Discovery Island if you wish to go back there before going to Asia. b. DINOLAND.
c. Asia.
Those with small children should also check the times and places of character meet and greets. My favorite website for this information is http://www.kennythepirate.com/disney-world-character-schedules/disney-world-animal-kingd om-characters-schedule-list/.
3. Go straight to Asia if you are traveling with older children (3rd grade and up). The short- est way to do this is via the Discovery Island hub and across into Asia.
Those who have started off in DINOLAND will find the path connecting DINOLAND and Asia to be the shortest route, since you are already half-way there. Two attractions in Asia - Everest and Kali River Rapids - should have been FASTPASSED so you don’t have to wait in line. Check on the times for the Flights of Wonder bird show and make sure to get there 10- 15 min. early as the employees close the outdoor theatre to keep the birds in during the show. Kill the time while waiting for the bird show by visiting the trails.
FASTPASS the Safari in Asia for a couple of hours out from Africa so you’ll have plenty of time to take in all of Asia before you leave. If you get to Africa too early, kill the time enjoying the marketplace and trails. If you haven’t eaten lunch, Asia and Africa.
4. Go to Africa and get on the Safari which you should have FASTPASSED. Either before or after your Safari, you can explore the markets and/or go on the trails.
5. Go to Rafiki’s Planet Watch. This is one attraction in segments. Some people may want to visit this attraction before bypassing it and going on the Safari. I recommend going on the Safari first, since its more interesting. You will have to come back to the entrance of Rafiki’s Planet Watch anyway in order to go to Discovery Island.
6. Go to Discovery Island and take in “Its Tough to be a Bug”. Small children will be fright- ened by the sensation that bugs are around their ankles. If they sit with their feet on the
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bench, you can avoid this upset. Check out the largest gift shop in the park and visit one of the two restaurants for a snack or a chance to rest and put your feet up, if needed.
7. Cross to DINOLAND if you haven’t done it yet.
As previously mentioned, Animal Kingdom does not get the same reviews as EPCOT or the Magic Kingdom. Many people feel it isn’t a “full day” park. While you can make a full day out of it, many people leave and find dinner elsewhere, either with a park-hopper pass or in Downtown Disney.
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CHAPTER NINE
SUMMARY OF THE PLAN
To summarize, here’s how to go about making your plan.
1. Once you’ve decided you want to go to Disney World, work through the initial chapters of this book to narrow down the best time for you/your family to go. Narrow down your pref- erences and discuss them as a family/group so that everyone knows what the preferences within the group are.
2. Determine which parks you want to go to.
3. Visit the official Disney website to look at the calendar for that period of time and find out which parks are open early or late throughout those days: disneyworld.disney.go.com
4. Map out your visit day by day, planning to go to each park on the day(s) that they are
open late, using the chart provided in the chapter on charts and planning, looking somewhat like this.
5. Follow the game plan for each park presented in the chapter on that park. For instance, for the MK:
a. Choose which land you want to go to first.
b. Choose which land you want to go to second, planning to have lunch in one of these lands. This will determine your direction for the day.
c. Go to the Disney website and purchase your tickets. disneyworld.disney.go.com.
d. Make a free account on that same website so you can link all your plans and reservations together.
e. Pick your first three rides to FastPass remembering to have the first one start around 11:00 and remembering to FastPass only the very best rides according to the chart on the MK chap- ter.
f. Mark your calendar to reserve these attractions 30 days before you go.
g. Mark the three rides you want on your planning chart as indicated.
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h. Make a note of where you plan to have lunch. Mark your calendar to reserve this from the official Disney website 180 days before you leave (6 months) so that all your reservations will link together with your plans. If you plan to go to a new restaurant, such as Bell’s cas- tle, early lunch is recommended to get in without a long wait. Go to the recommended websites to scan menus and make choices.
Day One: MK Hours: 9-11
Day Two: EPCOT 8-9
Day Three: HS 9-9
Day Four: AK 9-5
Peter Pan Winnie the Pooh Silver Mine Train
Lunch: Bell’s Castle (early - 11:30)
Go back to resort 1-3 rest/pool.
These have been laid out for you in each section of the book. Your FASTPASSES should pro- gress according to the route you have planned on to progress through the day. Once your FASTPASSES have been used up, you can get another ONE AT A TIME. That means, you are only allowed to get one additional FASTPASS at a time and you are not allowed to get another FASTPASS until that one is used up.
5. Plan to fill in the time in between the best FastPassed attractions with the lesser ones, so as to be able to cover all the rides.
6. For EPCOT, Hollywood Studios and Animal Kingdom, follow the directions in the chapters covering how to proceed and mark the chart as just presented for the rest of the week.
7. Make copies or print-outs of the schedule for each day so that each adult in your party (or teenager) has a copy. This will keep everyone on track and in the know so things can keep moving smoothly along.
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8.
You can print-out a copy of each day’s agenda from “My Disney Experience” at the disney.go website listed earlier and/or you can fill in the chart as shown on the previous page and make a copy of it for each person in your group to use each day.
A WORD ABOUT THE FASTPASS SYSTEM
Disney has a 3 FASTPASS grouping suggestion that you want to be careful about using. If it follows your plan for progressing through the park, then you can take advantage of this option. You can force it to follow your plan by going with the three suggestions that pop up. If the times of them follow the route your are going, then that works out well. However, that would truly be Disney magic. Instead, initially check off the times that are closest to what you want. Then, exit the FASTPASS system and go to the “My Disney Experience” tab and choose “My Itinerary”. Once you click in there you can go into the times for your FAST- PASSES and change them so that they fall more into line with the plan you have going.
REMEMBER THE RESERVATIONS
Dinner Reservations can be made six months before your arrival at Disney. FastPass Reservations can be made one month before your arrival at Disney.
Disney Resort Reservations will book up quickly around special event days or weekends. To get your reservations during this time, plan to go on and book them at least six months in advance and more, if possible.
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CHAPTER TEN
MAKE YOUR PLAN, PACK AND GO!
This chapter contains useful blank charts as shown all the way through this book that you can use to make your plans. If you purchase this ebook in a PDF format, you should be able to print these charts off and use them for your planning. If you are not able to print these charts off, that’s ok. You can still use them by following the format on a lined piece of paper. These charts should be used after you have already worked the chapters on finding your preferences and you know what they are. Use the charts in the chapter on Knowing Your Preferences to select them. You will also find a packing lists and checklists in this chapter, as well. I hope you find all of them useful.
USE THIS FOR YOUR DAILY PLANNING
DAY _______
PARK:
HOURS:
95
SUMMARIZE EACH DAY ON THIS CHART
DAY ONE
DAY TWO
DAY THREE
DAY FOUR
DAY FIVE
**If you’re staying two weeks, copy this chart off two times and put them together.
NOTE SPECIAL EVENTS TO RESERVE HERE ONCE RESERVED PUT THEM ON THE SUMMARY PAGE
SPECIAL EVENTS:
4
1
5
2
6
3
7
96
BEFORE LEAVING CHECKLIST
Tell Post Office to hold Mail
Purchase Disney tickets
If going around Christmas: buy and wrap gifts before going
Leave written note for house-sitter with following info:
Arrange for pets to be cared for
Turn off electricity
Purchase seasonal items if needed: swimsuit, suntan lotion, etc.
1. Emergency phone number (cell);
2. Airline info. 3. Itinerary
Arrange for house to be watched, plants watered, etc.
Set heat to desired temperature (cold weather climates)
Clean out fridge of perishable foods
4. Resort location
5. Vet & phone #
6. Next of kin phone # for emergency contact
7. Frequency of
Make dining reservations (180 days out)
Leave faucets dripping if necessary (cold weather climates)
Make sure there’s enough pet food and kitty litter, if pets will be at home.
watering plants.
8. Change lights around. 9. Walk dog
10. Clean litter box
Make airline reservations
Leave cabinets open if necessary (cold weather climates)
Take key to house- sitter/put a hidden one somewhere
11. Bring in mail 12.
Make resort/hotel reservations
Call ahead and arrange for groceries
Locate plants to be watered in one place
13
Reserve Disney’s Magical Express from airport or reserve car
Update medications to carry you through
Arrange for ride home from airport
Extra Note:
Notify kids’ extra- curricular teachers of absence for X lessons
Set timer for lights and sprinklers
Print out itinerary for all members of family. Send one to emergency persons.
Extra Note:
97
General/Miscellaneous
Passpo,s (wi$ visas)
Vaccina(on ce,ificate (if applicable)
Airline Ti*ets
Car Rental Reserva(on confirma(on number Maps/GPS
Reserva(on confirma(on number for Disney’s
Magical Express
Hotel/Reso, Reserva(on Info.
Hotel Phone Number for Pi*-up from Airpo, Cell phone 'arger(s)
Laptop
Picture ID
Cash/Travelers’ .e*s
Emergency phone numbers
I(nerary for ea' person in group
Camera wi$ 'arger
Camcorder wi$ 'arger
Film or flashcard
Tapes for camcorder
Ba)eries
Wat'es
Flags for keeping toge$er if group is large Umbrella/rain pon'os
Paper/pen
B"ks/reading material or handwork for plane #amps
Glasses
Sunglasses
Plastic bags for di,y/wet clo$es Suntan lo(on
Bug Spray
Swim Goggles
Travel clo*
Safety pins
Coupons
Address for Grocery #ore
Tourist b"ks (AAA)
Aspirin and over $e counter sleeping
pills
Disney Ti*ets
Disney Wristbands
O$er Florida (*ets
O$er Florida reserva(on numbers Phone numbers and addresses for
all hotels, car rentals, etc. Phone numbers and addresses of
friends & family visi(ng on trip
PACKING LISTS
98
Shi,s - sho, sleeved no sleeves
long sleeves Light fleece or sweatshi,s
Sho,s Capris Pants Swim Suits Underwear Bras
Camis So*s Panty hose Dress
Ski,
Blouse
Sneakers Sandals
Flip flops
Cro*s
Shoe inse,s
Belt ________________ Shamp"
Cream Rinse Blow Dryer
Hair Gel/Cream Comb/Brush Pony tail holders Barre)s
Jewelry
Wat'
FitBit
Glasses
Sunglasses ____________
Body Lo(on
Razor
Shaving Cream Feminine Hygiene Medica(ons
Vitamins
Sweetener
Suntan Lo(on
Contact lens cleanser _____________________ Skin cleanser
Face cream/eye cream Makeup
Nail polish remover Nail polish
Fingernail File
Kleenex _____________________ Pillow
Night mask PJs/Lingerie Ba$robe Loungewear Bea' cover-up
Cologne/perfume Deodorant T"$paste T"$brush T"$brush 'arger
Plug adapter Earplugs
A$le(c wear Hat/Cap/Visor Goggles Electronic Equip.
WOMEN’S & TEEN GIRL’S PACKING LIST
99
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