Planning for Pixie Dust

My Favorite Things!  Anyone who knows me know that a Disney Cruise is one of my favorite ways to take a vacation! The very first time I went on a Disney Cruise I wasn’t sure we would like it and only booked a 3 night trip. Boy! Was I ever wrong! By the 2nd night I knew I had made a mistake and should’ve booked a longer trip! Why? Lots of  reasons. Today I’ll focus on one: dinner!! What’s for dinner?  In a word: everything! Ok, not actually everything, but it feels like it! You can choose from the nightly dinner rotation restaurants, the buffet, the upper deck quick service, and room service . ALL of these options are included in the cost of your trip! With so many choices, there is no good reason to be hungry! Want a special adult only dining experience? They have those too for an additional fee!  Dining Rotation  Unlike many other cruise lines, Disney Cruises offer a dinner rotation. Each night you will enjoy 1/3 dining experiences. When you book your trip, you will select either th

Something Happens  You’re at Walt Disney World , having a great time, the weather’s fantastic, and then it happens! Someone gets sick or maybe they’re hurt! You talk to the closest Cast Member to get their help to deal with your situation. They help you, and you start heading towards medical help. Once the situation is under control you take a deep breath. Then it hits you! You have a dining reservation in a few hours! Will they charge you? How much will they charge you?  The Good News  Most dining reservations can be canceled up to 2 hours in advance. Simply go to your My Disney Experience app, click in your reservation and click cancel. If you want to try to reschedule it you can click modify and see what is available.    So what if you didn’t make the cancellation window? You can still try to modify it, but there is a pretty big chance that won’t happen and it will give you a phone number to call. The Cast Member who answers will help you either cancel or reschedule. There is a

What’s the same? Before we say what is different, let’s talk about what’s the same! They all have attractions, which consist of rides, shows, and character meet and greets. They also have entertainment, comprised of a combination of parades, fireworks, live shows, and street performers. They all have a variety of dining experiences that should have something to please almost anyone. And finally, they all have shops that provide you with ample opportunities to purchase souvenirs. Oh, yeah! They also all have Disney magic that helps provide a special day! Magic Kingdom  Magic Kingdom is the oldest park, that was built with Walt Disney’s original ideas. Things have changed through the years, but what remains the same is the feeling of nostalgia. This is where you’ll find attractions that he created for the World’s Fair and then moved to Disneyland . When it was built, Carousel of Progress was eventually moved to Orlando. Some attractions like It’s a Small World were replicated from w

Resort Breakfast If you’re staying at a Moderate Resort or a Deluxe Resort you have several options for breakfast. If you are staying at a Value Resort you have only one. All of the Disney Resorts have a budget friendly Quick Service option for breakfast! There are some really great dining options at Disney for every meal including breakfast, but let’s focus on the budget friendly option for now! Quick Service Breakfast All Disney Resorts offer Quick Service Dining for breakfast! How quick? Order your breakfast on your My Disney Experience app , walk to the restaurant, and pick it up! There might be a small wait depending on crowd levels, but it is almost always faster to order on the app! Cast members will notify you on your app when your order is ready!  What’s for Breakfast?  There are lots of choices! If you want a hot breakfast, you can choose from The Bounty Platter which has eggs, bacon, sausage, potatoes, and a Mickey shaped waffle! There’s also a Mickey Waffle Platter wi

It all starts with where you stay!  There are sooo many Disney Resort options that it can get very confusing! One thing holds true: if you don’t have a promotion deal or discount code that is saving you money a Disney Value Resort will be the cheapest option for a a family of 4-6.  So, what if you do have a discount ? Then you’ll need to do a little math! (Just a little! It’ll be worth it, I promise!) Sometimes, with a good discount a moderate might come in cheaper or approximately the same price. When that happens, I book the DisneyModerate ! Why? More amenities! When it doesn’t, go ahead and book the whimsical Disney Value ! They’re fun and let’s face it, you’re going to spend most of your time in the parks! Next, let’s talk tickets!  Most of the time Disney Tickets will be rack rate. Why? Because they are their tickets! If anyone says they can give you a much better rate, beware! For them to do that they would be losing money or planning to get money from you for purchasing somet

The Dilemma  If you live in the Southeast United States and travel to Florida either to visit Disney or for any other reason (Wait?! There are other things to do in Florida??), you’ve probably at one time or another at least entertained the thought of whether you will drive or fly. For some people this is a nonissue, but some of us wrestle with it every time! Pros and Cons for Flying  Of course it might seem that flying would be the most desirable way to travel anywhere! But, things aren’t always as they seem. If you live an hour or more from the airport you really need to add up the time it will take to actually get to your resort. When you do, you may discover you’re not actually saving any time.  Additionally, once you get to the Orlando airport you will need to secure travel to the resort which will cost you! And don’t forget, many of these transportation options will take guests who are staying at different resorts at the same time and you might be the last to be dropped off. No

Where is Quick Service Available? Quick Service Dining is available at all Disney Resorts   as well as each of the Disney Parks. Each features lots of choices for adults and children alike. While your typical burgers and fries are available at most of these locations, they also offer some healthy options such as fruit and salads. No two Quick Service locations are exactly the same, but some of them do favor each other. Quick Service at the Resorts Here again, they are not all the same, but they do tend to offer some staples. Most locations at the resorts during lunchtime offer burgers, hot dogs, turkey sandwiches, salads, flatbread pizza as well as whole pizzas, pasta, and more. At dinner, they tend to add turkey dinners with mashed potatoes and green beans or something comparable. Breakfast time is all about the bounty platters and Mickey waffle platters. It is important to note that there are other options that vary by location. Quick Service in the Parks  Using your My Disney Expe

Availability  When we stayed at Disney’s Coronado Springs, we had no trouble getting a table at all. That said, anytime the resort is at peak capacity I’m sure it gets full. Always best to plan ahead, but that won’t stop me from checking at the last minute! Atmosphere  Lots of televisions are everywhere so that if your goal is to watch the big game and have a bite or some libations you should be able to do so comfortably. The lighting is low enough to brighten the screen on the television, but not so low that you can’t read the menu. The music is louder in some areas of the restaurant than others. We found that the tables in the back were a much noisier area. Offerings  They offer bar food: burgers, watchos (nachos made with waffle fries), sandwiches, wings, etc. Note: if you’re not much for spicy, steer away from the wings! I enjoyed a generously proportioned turkey sandwich which came with fries, onion rings, or coleslaw, all were great choices. I thoroughly enjoyed it! One compani

Availability  Chef Mickey’s is both a Character Dining location at Disney’s Contemporary Resort . I did not have any trouble securing a reservation 60 days out. When I looked to see if I could have booked today, there was only one reservation available at 9:15pm which will work for some parties, but not for those with young children. I definitely recommend reserving this location in advance. Atmosphere  With Mickey Mouse, Goofy, Pluto, and Donald walking around, you can imagine it is a delightful atmosphere set to delight children of all ages! It is a buffet, which you can of course return to as many times as you wish. Be advised the easiest way to see and have photo ops with all of the characters is to be at your seat when they are in your dining area. However, if you miss one simply notify your server and they will bring them to you when they are available to circle back around. It is not a fancy or quiet restaurant, but it is a great family atmosphere. Offerings  As I mentioned i

Availability  The availability of this dining location is dependent upon the travel seasons at Disney . On this particular occasion I was able to secure a dining reservation just a few days before, but I have been unable to find an open reservation in the past at times. Lucky for me, this was not peak season! Atmosphere  The Whispering Canyon is a definite play on words! This Table Service restaurant is full of good natured ribbing, tongue in cheek comments, and general mayhem! On this particular occasion, there was a server in what may very well have been a 50 gallon hat roaming around and chatting with his guests as well as everyone he came into contact! We were there for lunch this time, which typically isn’t quite as high energy, but the atmosphere was still delightfully energized. Offerings  Dinner is known for its all you can eat barbecue skillets. Breakfast has skillets as well made of biscuits, waffles, eggs, bacon, sausage, etc. At lunch time you get a combination of the two

Availability  On different occasions we have been turned away from The Maya Grill without a reservation. This evening , however, we were delighted to be seated rather quickly without a reservation! I do still recommend making reservations for all Disney Dining locations. this particular restaurant is one of four Table Service locations at Disney's Coronado Springs . Atmosphere  The restaurant is decorated with a lovey Mayan theme! While dining, you can enjoy live music presented by a single musician playing an acoustic guitar. His playlist included popular Disney tunes as well as some songs likely familiar to mom and dad. All in all, it was lovely and serene. Offerings  We ordered chips and queso for starters. Both appeared to be made at the restaurant and were accompanied by a trio of delicious salsas. I had the chicken quesadillas, which were undoubtedly the most delicious that I’ve ever had! Along with the quesadillas I enjoyed a Mexican Sangria that was light, fruity, and u