The Magic of Disney - A Guide to the World

Disney's talent for storytelling and attention to detail merge to create some of the finest theme parks in the world in Walt Disney World in Orlando, FL.

As soon as you step through the gates of any WDW, you are immediately transported to another world. The Magic Kingdom, Epcot, Disney/MGM Studios, and Disney's Animal Kingdom combine to form one dynamic world.

In the Magic Kingdom, you will find yourself amongst a world of fantasy. In Epcot, you will discover a world of technology, innovations, and cultures. In Disney/MGM Studios, you will be transported into the world of show business, and finally, in Disney's Animal Kingdom, you will go on wild adventures.

Quick Tips:

As it is impossible for me to list all of the tips and suggestions that I have for Walt Disney World, please don't hesitate to send me a message with a question, as I love talking about Disney!

Resorts - WDW has some of the best-themed resorts you will ever see. I highly recommend staying with Disney on the property. There is a resort for every party and budget.

Admission tickets - If possible, get Park Hopper tickets. These allow you to hop from park to park in the same day. This usually makes it easier to plan what activities/parades to do each day.

Dining - Call 407/WDW-DINE as soon as possible to make priority-seating arrangements for any table-service restaurant.

Best Way To Get Around:

If you are staying at a Disney resort, take advantage of Disney's new Magical Express service. For the time being, it is free to resort guests. A bus will pick you up at the airport, and another bus will claim and transport your luggage directly to your room, hassle-free!

When going to a park, Disney resorts offer free bus service to all parks all day. They run very frequently. This eliminates any need for a car altogether.

Monorails run between Magic Kingdom and Epcot. They are also available to/from some resorts (Grand Floridian and Polynesian).

Boats also run between parks and resorts. They run to/from Epcot, Boardwalk Hotel, and Disney/MGM Studios.

The All-Star Music Resort is categorized as a "value" resort. As with all Disney resorts, you will have complimentary transportation to all the parks.

The buildings have larger-than-life icons at their sides. For example, the Calypso building has gigantic maracas. This is fun, especially for kids. Some adults may find them gawdy or tacky.

The rooms at the All-Star Music are a bit tight. A family will fit comfortably, but there is not much extra space. The rooms are boldly decorated consistently with the building in which you are staying (i.e., jazz, Broadway, country, calypso music).

There are two pools--one shaped as a guitar, and another as a piano.

You will find a large food court in the main building. This is extremely convenient for all meals of the day, and everyone will find something that they like to eat.

I always enjoy staying here, as it is a good value and is very convenient.

Disney's All Star Sports Resort is categorized as a value resort. As with all Disney resorts, you will receive complimentary transportation to all the Disney parks.

This is a large resort with numerous buildings. Each building has a different sports theme (cheerleading, baseball, etc.) and is decorated with larger-than-life icons. Kids will love this, but some adults may find it gaudy or tacky.

The rooms are on the small side. A family will fit comfortably, but there is not much ample space. The rooms are boldly decorated, consistent with the theme of its building.

The large food court serves all meals and is extremely convenient. Everyone will find something that they like to eat here.

I enjoy staying at the All Star Sports. It is a great value, and the low-cost food court is very convenient.

Disney's Pop Century Resort is the newest Disney resort to open. It is the latest in Disney's value resorts, averaging $99/night depending on the season.

Pop Century is an over-the-top, but fun, homage to American pop culture throughout the 20th century. In the lobby you will find encased "artifacts" from various decades.

Currently, only Phase I of the resort is complete, the "Classic Years" half. This includes the ‘50s, ‘60s, ‘70s, ‘80s, and ‘90s. The "early years", the ‘00, ‘10s, ‘20s, ‘30s, and ‘40s, are hopefully coming soon. Each building in the classic years is dedicated to a specific decade. With almost 2,900 rooms, these decorations are quite large. I stayed in the ‘50s building, which had a four-story jukebox and stairwells inside of giant bowling pins. You will also hear decade-specific music being pumped into their specific buildings (i.e. "I Think I Love You") in the ‘70s building.

The rooms are not large as most value rooms are not, but they are certainly big enough to be comfortable for a family. Our room actually had a neat view of Spaceship Earth (the big golf ball at Epcot).

There are three pools at the Pop Century. The largest, the Hippy Dippy Pool, is right in the middle of the resort, outside of the main entrance building.

The gift shop and food court are both in an area called Everything Pop in the main building. The food court is open from 6am to midnight, and serves up every meal of the day as reasonable prices.

As with all Disney resorts, transportation to the parks is complimentary. Although you often have to wait a bit for the buses, the Pop Century does not "share" their buses with other resorts (as the All Stars do).

I enjoyed staying at the Pop Century and would certainly do so again. Much of the appeal comes from the fact that it is so new and not yet rundown at all. Also, I found it to be much more colorful, with more attention to detail, than the All Star Resorts.

This is one of the best-themed restaurants in WDW. It is located in Disney/MGM Studios.

Like all great Disney attractions, this restaurant has a story to tell. You are treated like a guest to a big family reunion. Your waiter/waitress is your cousin, and Mom is in the back cooking. You are seated at a kitchen table with a small TV playing clips from old shows. Your waiter/waitress will nag you to clean your plate and possibly make a public spectacle of it. (Note that some people don't enjoy this interaction and find it annoying.)

The menu has home-cooking (i.e. meatloaf, pasta, etc.). The food is not outstanding, but it is decent.

This restaurant is a lot of fun for families. I highly recommend making reservations for this restaurant, as it is very popular. While you're waiting to be seated, you can enjoy a drink at Daddy's Lounge just inside.

Chef Mickey's is located in the Contemporary Resort and is easily accessible by monorail from the Magic Kingdom.

Chef Mickey's offers a character breakfast and dinner, both of which are buffets. The characters are of the classic kind: Goofy, Donald, Pluto, Minnie, and the main mouse himself, Mickey.

I have never eaten the dinner buffet, but I can tell you that the breakfast buffet is fantastic. There are MANY delicious options, and you can fill up on as many as you like! There is absolutely something for everyone here.

For obvious reasons, kids will absolutely LOVE this place. It is one of the best character dining experiences in WDW. Definitely make reservations for this one.

The Hollywood Brown Derby is located in Disney/MGM Studios. It is the priciest of restaurants in this park.

As it is fine dining, the menu is very small. I recall five meal options. The portions were above average, and the food itself was excellent (I had the half rotisserie chicken). The atmosphere leaves a bit to be desired.

I don't recommend this restaurant to families, as kids won't have many menu items to choose from and it is expensive. It is, however, a good place for adults.

Alfredo's is located at the Italian Pavilion in the World Showcase at Epcot.

The atmosphere here is intimate and the menu options are plentiful. I have admittedly eaten much better Italian food than this, but it was still enjoyable.

San Angel Inn is the table-service restaurant in the Mexico Pavilion at Epcot.

This is one of my favorite restaurants in all of WDW. I believe that it has THE best atmosphere of any restaurant. Although it is indoors, you feel as though you are at an outdoor restaurant with the El Rio de Tiempo (The River of Time) flowing nearby. The music and the lighting add to the intimate/romantic/relaxing ambience.

The food here is outstanding. The portions were large and the quality was excellent. I believe that I had a dish of enchiladas. I just remember it being delicious.

As I said, this restaurant is set for relaxation and even romance. That is not to say that it is also not great for families. I very highly recommend this restaurant to everyone.

Biergarten is located in the German Pavilion at Epcot. It is a buffet consisting of various German foods. There were various types of wursts, potatoes, and breads. This is a great place if you enjoy German food. If you are a picky eater, you may not find much that you want to eat, even though it is a buffet. The setting is that of Oktoberfest, and every hour or so, there is live entertainment on the stage.

Dinner at Le Cellier is possibly the greatest dining experience I have ever had. The theme here is Canadian,