Most of us had a much more relaxed start today. By ‘most’ I mean all of us except my son. Now that he is 18 (he was 14 when we were last here) he is now old enough to do the Keys to the Kingdom Tour. This is a 5 hour tour taking you behind the scenes at Magic Kingdom. Our youngest is only 15 and you have be be 16 to do it so she wasn’t able to. So we decided that my son would do it, and the rest of us would wait until my daughter was old enough. He had to be at Magic Kingdom by 7.45 so he got an early bus over there while the rest of us had a bit of a lie in!
We pottered around the resort for the morning. Had a little wander over to The Boardwalk and then got the bus over to Magic Kingdom. The tour was due to finish at 1pm and it was a bit earlier than that when we got there. So we spent some time looking in the shops on Main Street as they were near where he was due to finish. I went into the shop that sells Pandora and bought my park exclusive charm. I buy one every year when we go and this year I chose one that said ‘2022’ (with the ‘0’ being Mickey ears). We also wandered around ‘Crystal Arts’ which we never really bother with as a lot of it is pricey glass ornaments which we would be unlikely to get home in one piece even if we did buy one. At the back of the shop is a glass blower and we stopped to watch. It was fascinating. I’ve seen glass blowers before (not at Disney) but this one was explaining everything she was doing and why.
By this time my son had finished and met up with us. We walked up to Tomorrow Land and did People Mover – he had been on his feet for 5 hours and People Mover is a nice sit down. We then did Dumbo and went over to do 7 Dwarves Mine Train (we’d locked in a DAS when we arrived). After that we headed back to the resort as we were planning on going into Epcot for the evening and watching the new night time show: ‘Harmonious’.
Back at the resort we weren’t feeling particularly hungry so we just had snacky things. I had another anniversary dessert – just not a cheesecake this time.
‘Harmonious’ started at 9pm so we decided to head into the park at about 7.30 to get something to eat and then get a good spot. As we were at Beach Club we walked in through the International Gateway which comes out in the World Showcase between France and the UK. We’d decided to try the Quick Service restaurant in America which had changed to a BBQ place since we were last there, and it was in roughly a right area to get a good spot for the fireworks.
We ended up sat at the edge of the World Showcase Lagoon – the show takes place on the water – in Italy. We sat on the floor for about 30 mins while we we waiting and it was definitely worth it. I have to admit I’m not a fan of ‘Illuminations’ which it replaced. This is somewhat controversial as ‘Illuminations’ was quite well loved. ‘Harmonious uses water to create projection screens (very similar to the now defunct ‘Rivers of Light’ In Animal Kingdom). It has clips from films representing countries across the World Showcase and in some cases the songs are sung in the language of that country. I thought this was really good and was pleased that ‘Touch the Sky’ from Brave had been included. Another plus was that as we had the new Magic Bands – Magic Band + – they lit up and vibrated in sync with the show.
And then – best thing about staying at Epcot – it was just a short 10 min walk back to our room 🙂
We are staying in multiple resorts during our stay and today was our first change. We did a bit of packing last night but still had more to do today. We needed to be out of the room by 11am but wanted to make the most of early hours in the parks so we decided to head to the park first and then come back to move.
Park booking for today was Epcot so we were on the app at 7am to get another boarding group for Guardians. Success! Group 9 🙂
So we got on the bus to get to Epcot for early hours and by the time our boarding group was called just after we arrived. On our way to the ride we stopped at ‘Gateway Gifts’ which is one of the shops just when you enter the park. Today was the launch of the new Magic Bands – Magic Band+. My son wanted to buy one of these and they were being sold at one shop in each park. When Disney releases a new product lines can be huge so we wanted to be there early. We were lucky in that there was actually hardly any queue (my son heard later on that the queues at Magic Kingdom had been insane!). Magic band purchased we headed over to Guardians but little did we know that this was NOT going to be a regular ride!
All went well at first. We walked through the queue as it wasn’t very busy. We got into the first pre-show room and then into the second, all as usual. Even got onto the ride as usual. The way the ride works is that the cars head off around a corner and then there is a short climb up to the start of the ride. We started the clim and then stopped. Okay, most likely no problem. If there were issues unloading at the end of the ride (maybe a wheelchair transfer) then often the ride is held so that there isn’t a backing up of cars. Usually lasts less than a minute. This didn’t. 5 mins later the lights all went on! Now for most Disney parks fans the one thing they dream of is an evac (a ride evacuation), especially on a dark ride where they will have to put the lights on and you see things you don’t normally see – Haunted Mansion is the dream evac for this reason. But with this one we hadn’t really gone anywhere so it would be a pretty boring evac.
There were lots of regular announcements telling us to remain seated and after about another 5 mins the lights went off and we started again. It wasn’t really an issue as the ride proper hadn’t really started so it didn’t interrupt the experience. However, when we got to the end there was a cast member there and as everyone got off he was scanning our bands. Turns out that they were giving us all an free lightning lane to ride it again due to the interruption – result!
We didn’t have time to ride it then but knew we were going to go back this afternoon so that would work out great. So having done the ride we had a ride on Test Track (my son’s favourite ride) and then it was back to the resort to check out.
Then it was a quick drive over to Beach Club. This is our DVC home resort (where we own points) and it is lovely. The theming is great, and it is a 5 min walk to Epcot which is a BIG plus. It also has one of the best pools on property. The only downside is that there is a distinct lack of quick service options. The Market Place (the resort shop) has some things, but what we really miss is an actual restaurant to sit in to eat the meals.
Anyway, our room is lovely. It’s a deluxe studio (the smallest type of DVC room) and has a mini kitchen which we didn’t have in Port Orleans. One good thing about this resort is there is a drop down bed (Murphy bed) under the TV so it technically sleeps 5 (double bed, double sofa bed, and single Murphy bed). This is great for us as the children don’t want to share a bed at their age so the air bed we used at Port Orleans is not needed now!
We got to the resort but the room wasn’t ready (as expected, check in is not technically till 4pm) so we left most of the luggage in the car and took a few things that we didn’t want to leave there in the heat – we did that one year with one of my daughter’s American Girl dolls and its face became very squidgy! – to bell services and then headed back to Epcot.
Earlier on in the day we had booked a lightning lane for Ratatouille and we also had the lightning lane we had been given for Guardians. However, when we checked we saw that the Guardians one was actually an any experience lightning lane. This meant that the first ride we checked into would use that one. Our plan had been to do Ratatouille first as it is right next to the International Gateway entrance which is where you come in when walking from the resort. But we obviously didn’t want to miss out on our extra Guardians ride – which is at the opposite end of the park – so we headed over to do that again.
Remember how I said on Monday that there are six songs for the ride and you get given one at random? Well, this was our third ride and for the third time we got ‘September’ – think I will always associate that with the ride now.
Everyone else then decided to go and do Mission Space. This is one a WON’T do as I felt so ill the first time I did it. So whilst they did that I went off and did Spaceship Earth.
We then checked the app and our room had been allocated at the resort which meant it was ready. So we headed back to unpack
Beach ClubThe LobbyEntrance way – mini kitchen on the leftRoom (sofa is a sofa bed)RoomDrop down bed
We did a bit of unpacking and sorting and had a bit of a rethink over our upcoming plans. See, we really like Guardians. And the only reliable way to get a ride (apart from paying) is to get a boarding group a 7am. Only, to do that you have to have a park reservation at Epcot. We had spread our park reservations out across the different parks. The way the system works is that you reserve a park and then after 2pm you can park hop to a different park. So we decided to change some reservations. We have switched a lot of them to Epcot and then are going to rely on park hopping to go to different parks for the afternoon/evening. Did I mention that Guardians is the best ride ever? 😉
It was now late afternoon so it was time to park hop and we headed to Magic Kingdom for rides and fireworks. We did Pirates of the Caribbean and Seven Dwarves with the DAS and then got a good spot for the fireworks. I struggle a lot with crowds and we were told about a Disabled section that we could enter with our DAS but we were also told that you need to be there really early! So instead we decided to watch it from the end of Main Street. This was partly because it would be less crowded but also we could then keep to one side out of the way of the crowds before we headed back up into the park to do some rides.
The firework show – ‘Enchantment’ – is a new one since we were last here. It has been specially done for the 50th. Like ‘Happily Ever After’ it uses a mixture of projections on the castle and fireworks.
Verdict? It was good. But it was definitely no ‘Happily Ever After’. Nor ‘Wishes’. I don’t know what it was, but something didn’t feel the same. Though they still have Tinker bell flying from the Castle down to Tomorrowland – and yes that bit still made me cry.
We hung back by City Hall as the crowds poured down Main Street. Although the park doesn’t close after the fireworks people with small children tend to leave then. Once it had calmed down we headed back up into the park and rode Big Thunder Mountain in the dark – something I’ve wanted to do for a long time 🙂
Today was our first trip of the holiday to Epcot. Very often people think it as the park to miss if you are short of time but I love it, though it does take it out of you. Some say that it stands for Every Person Comes Out Tired.
The real excitement about today was Disney’s newest ride, The Guardians of the Galaxy. This has replaced the Ellen Ride over near Mission Space – and unlike many, I did like that. Guardians is, at the moment, unique in the parks as you cannot queue for it: there is no standby line. You need to try and get a boarding group using the app at 7am (if you have an Epcot reservation for that day). We read up on some tips on how to be successful and we tried on two phones, with a third phone counting down the seconds until 7am. At exactly 7am you need to refresh the page in the app and then select ‘join virtual queue’. We got lucky and got group 11 which gave us an estimated boarding time of between 9 and 9.30!
So we then faced one of the most tricky decisions when it comes to organising your day at Disney: when is best to eat earlier in the day to work around later dining reservations. We had a reservation at 3.30 so late for lunch but early for dinner. Ideally we therefore wanted a late breakfast so that it could be a lunch reservation. So we decided to skip eating at the resort and get the bus over to Epcot. Whilst we were on the bus (around 8:10 and the park had opened for resort guests at 8) we got a notification to say that our boarding group had been called! So as soon as we got there we quickly locked in a DAS return for Frozen and then headed over to Guardians.
Now. I had my concerns with this one. The over riding reports I’d read had been about motion sickness. They had even started handing out sick bags at the exit. I took some motion sickness tablets before we left the resort and I figured that I would do it to be able to say that I’d done it. If I felt bad then I wouldn’t have to do it again!
As the park was still only open to resort guests there were no long queues once we got inside – though the ride is clearly built for long queues!
Guardians of the GalaxyThe queueing systemThe queueing systemThe queuing systemThe queuing system
This ride was AMAZING. I will not be able to do it justice in a description but it is basically cars on the track that spin around so that you are looking at different things (not free spinning or spinning like the Tea Cups at Magic Kingdom, but controlled spinning by the ride). It is apparently the longest indoor rollercoaster in the world and is Disney’s first backward launch coaster. There are six possible songs that play and it is random which you get – we got ‘September’ by Earth, Wind, and Fire. Apparently the Imagineers reviewed hundreds of songs till they got their list of 6 which suit the movement and motion of the ride. This was a BRILLIANT song to get and was perfect! Did I start to feel sick? A little bit, right towards the end where you corkscrew down around the moon and then the earth. But would I ride it again. 100%. I think we will be trying for a boarding group on each of our Epcot days!
There was now where much to go from here as we had hit a peak so early on. We used our DAS for Frozen and did Test Track. We then headed over to the Land to do the obligatory Figment ride – what is a trip go Epcot without going on Figment??!! We were also able to get a DAS return time for Soarin’ so while we were waiting for this to come round we had a late breakfast in Sunshine Seasons as it is just opposite the ride. A bit disappointed with this if I’m honest. This used to be a lovely place to get breakfast but it now only does grab and go pastries etc, and doesn’t even list itself on the app as serving breakfast.
So, onto Soarin’. Now this USED to be one of my favourite rides but I have to admit I’m not so keen on the new version of it. For those that don’t know, this is a flight around various landmarks from around the world such as the pyramids, the Great Wall of China, and the Taj Mahal. You are suspended in the air on seats that swoop as if you are flying. But it’s still a good ride 🙂
We then spent a bit of time in the worldshow case before heading for our late lunch / early dinner reservation at Space 220. This is Disney’s newest restaurant as is attached to Mission Space. The idea is that you go up in an elevator to a space ship/viewing area far above the theme park and you are gazing out into space while you eat. I have to say that the theming is great, right from the moment you check in and you are given your boarding pass for the ‘flight’.
Boarding passEntranceThe liftThe floor of the lift. You can see the theme park below as you rise up
Inside, it really does feel as if you are not on earth. It is pricy – $55 for a two course set menu. I had calamari and Spaceghetti. The sauce on the spaghetti was amazing.
After lunch we did another ‘must do’ ride at Epcot – Spaceship Earth. My husband finds this boring but I like it as it is traditional. We did however end up with a ride stop on this and we were stationary for about 10 mins – two security guards with torches walked past us at one point. Sadly for us we got stopped within smelling distance of the fires in the Library of Alexandria (if you know, you know)!
Having been in the park since 8.20am I was getting very tired now – as was my daughter. So after a quick time in the main shop to check out the merch, the two of us headed back to the resort.
2019 brings some new events at all four parks at Walt Disney World. So what is coming up?
Magic Kingdom
Starting on 18th January Magic Kingdom will be hosting ‘Mickey and Minnie’s Surprise Celebration’ to honour these staple Disney characters. New merchandise, events, and foods will be available. There will be a new version of popular dance parade called ‘Move it! Shake it! MouskeDance it! Street Party’. The Dapper Dan’s and the Casey’s Corner pianist will also add some new Mickey and Minnie magic to their repertoire from 18th Jan to 30th Sept.
Epcot
The Epcot International Festival of Arts is in its 3rd year now and runs from 18th Jan – 25 Feb. We were lucky enough to visit this during its first year in 2017. Amongst other events the Disney on Broadway concert series returns to the America Garden’s Theatre in the world showcase, this year expanding to 7 days a week.
The theatre will also be in use during the Epcot International Flower and Garden Festival from 6th March to 3rd June. The Gardn Rocks Concert Series will also expand to 7 days a week during this time.
The biggest event for Epcot in 2019 is probably the end of Illuminations: Reflections of Earth. This 20 year old nighttime firework and music display will come to an end in the second half of 2019. Stay tuned for more news of its replacement!
Hollywood Studios
2018 was a big year for this park with the opening of Toy Story Land in June, but it looks like 2019 will be even bigger! Of course the big event is the opening of ‘Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge’ in late autumn, but that is not all.
The park itself has its 30th anniversary on 30th May (having originally opened under the name MGM Studios) and Pixar will be a big theme this year. Pixar Place is now transformed into a Metroville city block from ‘The Incredibles’ films. Here you can meet Edna Mode, look out for clues as to the whereabouts of Jack-Jack, join in with a lively party and catch Mr Incredible, Mrs Incredible, and Frozone at various points during the day.
When Disney started building both Toy Story Land and Galaxy’s Edge, large sections towards the back of the park were closed. One of the casualties of this was the Mike and Sulley meet and greet. The good news is that these popular characters are now back and can be seen inside the Walt Disney Presents Theatre.
The new park expansion also saw the end of the Cars related experiences including a Lightning McQueen meet and greet. Later on in the Spring, Lightning McQueen returns with a new show experience telling the untold story of Lightning McQueen.
Animal Kingdom
This park celebrated its 25th anniversary last year and this year from 18th Jan – 30th September it will mark the 25th anniversary of ‘The Lion King’. A ‘Hakuna Matata Time Dance Party’ will see Timon and Rafiki dance with live musicians celebrating music around the world. Immersive 3D photo opportunities will also be available with more celebrations yet to be announced.
So make 2019 your year to visit Walt Disney World!
The latest DVC resort is due to open later this year and this week Disney released more details about the accommodation it will provide.
The Riviera Resort is located between Hollywood Studios and Epcot and is adjacent to The Caribbean Resort (a moderate level resort). It will have its own station for the Skyliner – the new Disney gondola system – giving easy access to both of these parks. It is officially classed as an Epcot Area Resort and will have 300 rooms. Theming is based around the Riviera in the south of France.
Like all DVC resorts there will be Deluxe Studios (sleeping 5), 1 bedroom villas (sleeping 5), 2 bedroom villas (sleeping 9), and 3 bedroom grand villas (sleeping 12). However they are adding an additional room type, the Tower Studio. This will sleep 2 and offers a slightly cheaper option.
Like all DVC resorts, some rooms will be available for cash sales. Prices in £ have not yet been released, but US prices are as follows:
Tower Studio – from $486 per night
Deluxe Studio – from $662 per night
1 bedroom villa – from $984 per night
2 bedroom villa – from $1519 per night
3 bedroom villa – from $3110 per night
One interesting design feature included in these rooms is a double Murphy bed. A lot of DVC studios already utilise. A small drop down Murphy bed under the TV which is perfect for a child to sleep on (our youngest uses these when we go), but these double ones have not yet been seen at a DVC resort.  Rather than using a sofa bed, all room types excluding the grand villa will have a pull down Queen size bed which will come down over the top of the sofa. I imagine that this will please a lot of people who don’t like sleeping on the sofa beds, but still retains a sofa available for use during the day.
Disney have not yet released a points chart for the Rivera but if we look at the cash prices for rooms, it looks as if they are aiming at a similar level to Boardwalk.
More images and floor plans can be found at WDW News Today.
This is a question that is often asked – when is the best time of year to go. Unfortunately there is no simple answer, but I shall try and give some general advice here. There are a number of things to take into account.
The weather
This is the big one with Florida. It’s hot! Even in winter time it is in the low to mid 20s – what we would call a nice comfortable summer over here. The downside of all of this is that June-August is VERY hot. It is worth bearing in mind that unlike the UK there is air-con everywhere, and most rides have indoor queues, but despite this it can feel very hot walking around. To add to this you have hurricane season. Only once in recent years has Disney actually closed due to weather (Hurricane Matthew in 2016) but for some people this is a concern.
Crowd levels
Okay, so the bad news here is that there is really no quiet time at Disney anymore. Queues are to be expected all year round, but they can vary. The two busiest times are Christmas and Easter (Spring Break in the US). They are so busy that when free dining is released, those dates are the only ones excluded from the offer – no need to give an incentive. Of course Christmas can be a magical time to be at Disney, but when you can hardly move it’s not so magical. You can also sometimes get park closures at these times where they start restricting entrance to the parks due to the volume of guests. 4th July can also see this happen.
School holiday options
Of course, coming from the UK we like to visit for two weeks or more, which can rule out half-terms unless you are prepared to pull your kids out of school. So, looking at crowd levels/weather and school holidays, when are best.
Febuary half term is lovely weather wise, but can clash with President’s weekend (it did in 2017 for example) which leads to a spike in crowd levels. Also quite nice now that the Arts Festival has been introduced at Epcot. Towards the end of February is usually the Princess Half-Marathon which is popular.
Easter is busy, as previously mentioned and you won’t get any free dining offers. However the Flower and Garden Festival is running at Epcot (usually March-June) which is lovely. Spring Break is a much shorter period of time compared to our Easter holidays so it is worth checking the dates for the year you are planning on going.
May half-term is a popular one for people willing to take their kids out of school. The weather is starting to heat up but it hasn’t hit the real highs of summer. Do be aware that it often covers Memorial Day weekend which sees a spike in crowds.
Summer holidays are busy as kids all over the US are off school. If this is the best time for you then try to go the last two weeks of August. Yes it will be hot (and is still in hurricane season) but US schools start to go back mid-August so crowds will die down. If you are lucky you can also catch the early Halloween parties at Magic Kingdom (in 2018 the first one was the 17th August).
October half term is one of our favourite times to go. The weather is lovely and the crowds are not too bad. Halloween is in full swing with parties on selected evenings and Halloween/Autumn decor all over Magic Kingdom. Epcot also has the Food and Wine Festival which is very popular with tourists and locals (some people recommend avoiding Epcot at the weekends during this time).
Christmas is obviously extra magical at Disney but peak crowds kick in around the 20th December. New Year is also peak crowds – everyone seems to want to watch the Magic Kingdom or Epcot fireworks on 31st December.
Wait times on the MDE app
So how do you decide?
It depends what you want. Is it a quieter park? Is it cooler or hotter weather? Is it one of the festivals at Epcot? Or the magic of the festive season? Only you can answer that but there are things that can help you make your decision. Highly recommended is the WDW Prep School Crowd Calendar. This is published for the year in advance from September to August. Another fun way is to check the MDE app (My Disney Experience) a the time of year you are interested in going to see what the wait times are like. The higher the wait time, the busier it is!
And of course, lots of us like checking the app just to imagine we are there 🙂
Ultimately, the best time to go to Disney is whenever you can! It is just best to be prepared for crowds and heat.
When is your favourite time to go? Let us know below.
‘D23 Desitiation D: Celebrating Mickey Mouse’ is currently taking place at WDW. Disney Parks were live blogging the news as it was announced earlier today, and here are the highlights!
With Star Wars: Galaxy Edge opening towards the end of next year, the names of two signature attractions have been announced:Â Milennium Falcon: Smugglers Run and Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance.
More details about the new deluxe resort have been announced. Reflections – A Disney Lakeside Lodge will be a nature inspired resort with both hotel rooms and DVC villas.
One of the most anticipated announcements was probably details about the new nighttime show planned to replace Illuminations at Epcot. Due to launch in 2020 it will celebrate Disney music and feature floating set pieces, fountains, lights, pyrotechnics and lasers, all centred around the World Showcase Lagoon. Of course many will be sad to see Illuminations go, but it has probably run its course.
More details were given about the new ride in the France pavilion at Epcot. Remy’s Ratatouille Adventure is expected to be the same as the existing ride at Walt Disney Studios at Disneyland Paris and will be a welcome addition to the ride options at Epcot.
Finally there are two new experiences debuting in 2019 focused around Mickey Mouse. Firstly, a new nighttime spectacular at Hollywood Studios (most likely replacing the Star Wars Fireworks, rather than Fantasmic). Secondly the long awaited replacement for The Great Movie Ride, Mickey and Minnie’s Runaway Railway will open.
For Disneyland California there was the news that Mickey’s Soundsational Parade is set to return in January 2019
Finally there are two new experiences debuting in 2019 focused around Mickey Mouse. Firstly, a new nighttime spectacular at Hollywood Studios (most likely replacing the Star Wars Fireworks, rather than Fantasmic). Secondly the long awaited replacement for The Great Movie Ride, Mickey and Minnie’s Runaway Railway will open.