Walt Disney World Vacation - 2006

Highlights? You want highlights? This is the Walt Disney World Resort, the entire experience is a highlight! However I do have to say that there are some must see attractions that you shouldn’t miss during your stay and that my family and I make a point to do every year.

Fantasmic!
Do you like lasers and lights? Would you like them more if there were part of a show in an amphitheater where Sorcerer Mickey battles the evil villains with Disney magic and special effects? Completed by an amazing light show on dancing fountains, we always stay for Fantasmic! no matter how many times we have come to Disney World.

The Twilight Zone Tower of Terror
You won't find an elevator like this any where else in the world; it has a mind of its own. One thing to keep in mind when riding this ride; what goes up, must come dawn.

Lights, Motor, Action! Extreme Stunt Show
C'est très passionnant! All the way from Disneyland Paris, this is a show that you just can’t miss. It is a look behind the scenes of just how movie magic makes those action sequences look so exciting.

IllumiNations – Reflection of Earth
We only found this attraction a few years ago, however now we make certain that we add it to our schedule each year. Who else but Disney can bring together people from all seven continents for a laser and fireworks show that is out of this world.

Soarin’
Ever dream of flying? Well now you can on one of the attractions Disney World brought to Florida for the Happiest Celebration On Earth. Soarin’ is a realistic hang gliding experience over the state of California. This attraction is so real that you would swear that you can smell the oranges when you are flying over the groves.

These are just five that I could think of from the top of my head, but there is so much more to see and do while at Disney World. To try and list it all would take more than the 400-words I am limited to in this journal. Don’t just take my word for it, go and visit Disney World for yourself and see.

Quick Tips:

For those readers who have read my other journals, the best suggestion or tip that I can make is to plan your vacation before hand. Although this was our annual Disney World vacation, I began planning this trip about six months before we actually took it.

My most important suggestion would be to make certain that you have planned your vacation thoroughly. The Walt Disney World Resort is a lot bigger than most resort guest realize; it actually encompass’ three cities: Lake Buena Vista, the City of Bay Lake and Celebration. In order to get the most out of your Disney Vacation I would suggest purchasing a Simply Disney: Vacation Planning Made Easy before you book your vacation. A planning, information and savings book like this one will give you the inside information on things like:

The best time to go

With whom or how to book your vacation

Where to find tickets for the best price

Theme Park overviews

And additional money making and saving tips to help you pay for your vacation before you goThis book will have all the information you could ask for when planning the perfect Disney vacation.

Best Way To Get Around:

When staying on Walt Disney World property the most convenient and economic way to get around is Disney transportation. Depending upon which of the twenty-one different resort locations you are staying at, Disney transportation is offered in three modes; motor coach, water taxi or monorail.

Finding transportation between the resorts will prove to be slightly more difficult than from the resorts to the theme parks. When resort guests want to travel from one resort to another, they must first take Disney transportation to a theme park and either walk or find resort transportation to their final destination. Although some may find this process to be a bit tedious, you will find that the length of time between arrivals is usually twenty minutes or less.

Of course for those guests who just don’t have the time or patience for Disney transportation, there is a multitude of rental car locations at the Orlando International Airport. And for those guests taking advantage of Disney’s Magical Express service, Alamo Rental Car is available at the Car Care Center and the Dolphin Hotel. For the best rates available contact a Travel Consultant.

I have to admit that I am stressing about what to write here, as I have mixed feeling about this resort. With as much as I love Disney and still value this resort for its location within the moderate category, I was disappointed with our stay. As you read on, you will see just how disappointed we were by how brief our stay was.

My family was so excited about our 2006 Disney trip; that is, until after we checked into the resort and found our room. Although I had requested Martinique, I was assigned a different section. Assuming that my request was simply not met we walked to the Aruba section where our room was. As we rounded Sea Breeze Drive our excitement turned into disappointment when we saw how weathered the area looked. When you look at the pictures in the brochure or watch the planning DVD, the Caribbean Beach Resort is always portrayed as a clean, bright and colorful resort. However we saw the grounds were covered with dried leaves and palm fronds and the building looked as though it not only needed a power wash but maybe a new coat of paint. The Aruba section just was not as appealing as the Martinique or Trinidad North section was and it was a big disappointment. That disappointment continued once we found our room, as it appeared as though the carpet was not vacuumed and the television did not work.

We were equally surprised to find that Magical Express Service "MISPLACED" my daughter’s luggage, and we had only three out of our four bags. After speaking with a cast member we found the bag was scanned in at the airport but Disney didn't know where the bag was now. If it had not been forty degrees when we left Connecticut, we would have dressed for the ninety degree weather we faced that day, and I am certain that my daughter would have been more comfortable in lighter clothing which was inside her luggage. Sadly, it was between 10pm and 11pm before our luggage was brought to our room. Not only did we find our missing bag, but there was also some other AAA member’s bags in my room as well. We were so disappointed and angry that we left the Caribbean Beach Resort and checked into our timeshare instead. However, we did return to use the pool a couple times and we used our room to change. While there I also checked the TV, it was finally fixed the last night before we left to come home.

As a travel professional and a disappointed guest I can tell you that your money will be better spent in Disney’s Coronado Springs Resort, and if it is in your budget, save yourself the aggravation and experience a deluxe resort.

While on vacation in Orlando, your options of things to do are nearly endless. The Vacation Village at Parkway is central to both the Walt Disney World Resort and Universal Studios; not to mention the many other attractions along International Drive .

You can also take a short drive on I-4 West and go to Bush Gardens Africa in Tampa, or head east to the world famous Cocoa Beach: Home of Ron Jon’s Surf Shop and the Kennedy Space Center .

The Vacation Village at Parkway is conveniently located off Rt. 192 on Arabian Nights Blvd. in Kissimmee, Florida. The village is made up of nine different buildings and we had the pleasure of being assigned to building #8 in the back of the resort.

Check-in was set up in a separate building, which wasn’t hard to find on the right hand side of the street. The check-in process was one of the easiest that we have experienced while exchanging in the central Florida area. The entire process took four, maybe five minutes. There were no lines and plenty of resort representatives to assist guests as they entered the building. I was shocked to find was that this resort did not have a sales staff that had to speak with you after you checked in, and that in itself made the experience even more pleasurable.

From the outside the buildings looked as though they were little seven-story apartment buildings with private balconies. When you first entered the building the hall appeared as it was something you would find in a three-star motel rather than in a gold crown resort. However once you were inside, the split unit condos were not only spacious but very well decorated. The A side of the unit contained a kitchen, dining area, living room, private balcony and the master bedroom; complete with a king sized bed and Jacuzzi. The B side was equally as impressive with a kitchenette, small eating area, living room, private balcony and a bedroom with two double beds. The sofa in the living room opened into a sleeper that would accommodate two extra people. If your kids are anything like mine, they will love the sofa sleeper rather than the double beds.

As I mentioned earlier we originally planned on staying on Disney’s Caribbean Beach Resort , so we unfortunately didn’t utilize the activities and amenities that were offered during our stay. Some of the things the resort had scheduled that we missed out on were:

Chess and Scrabble Tournaments

Casino Night

Texas Hold ‘Em Tournament

Family Bingo

Name That Tune Trivia

Face Painting

Scavenger Hunt

and Free Snow Cones

All in all this is definitely a resort we will visit again.

Disney knows that planning our vacation is enough work in itself, without having to worry about the daily meals. Thus, they offer the Magic Your Way PLUS Dining option. For each night of our 2006 vacation, the Disney Dining Plan gave my family the following meal options:

One table-service meal including appetizer, entree, and dessert, or a full buffet and non-alcoholic beverage.

One counter-service meal including entrée and dessert, or one complete combo meal, and non-alcoholic beverage

One snack - choose from a frozen ice-cream novelty or fruit bar, popcorn scoop (single serving box), single piece of whole fruit, single serving of chips, 20oz. bottle of soda, 24oz. Bottle of water, medium fountain soft drink, or apple juice.

You may choose to exchange two table-service meals for either one Signature Dining Experience at one of Disney’s restaurants, or for one Disney Dinner Show.

This was a great addition to the way we enhanced our vacation package, not to mention that we booked during a AAA promotion that gave us the dining plan for free. However, the 2007 dining plan fees are $38.99 per adult per night, and $10.99 per child ages 3-9 per night of your stay; and that includes the taxes and an 18% gratuity.

If you just eat when and where you want to eat, you could break even. However with the popularity of Disney’s dining plan, advanced dining reservations are more of a necessity than a recommendation. While we were in Disney some of the more popular restaurants had to turn away walk up guests. It is in your best interest when selecting the Dining Plan as part of your package, to do a little research and carefully choose where you and your party would like to dine, and then have your Travel Consultant make some advanced dining reservations, in order to make the most of your money. The best place to research the different restaurants and their menus is All Ears Net® on the web at: www.allearsnet.com. Deb and her crew do a terrific job at providing (for free) the most current menus and pricing for all the restaurants in the Theme Parks and the Disney Resorts.

Now I know that some of you are thinking, $38.99 seems like too much money to spend ahead of time, not knowing what you may select to eat. Here is an example of how I got the most for my money while on the dining plan.

For lunch I used my Counter Service meal and ate at the ABC Commissary in MGM Studios. My cheeseburger and fries, large soda, and chocolate moose totaled $13.07 including the tax, if I had paid out of pocket.

For a mid-afternoon snack, I choose to visit Toluca Turkey Legs and purchased a small bag of potato chips for $2.55.

For dinner, I used my Table Service option and dined at the 50’s Prime Time Café. I choose Shrimp Cocktail as an appetizer at $7.49, Top Sirloin Steak at $19.99, and for dessert, Angel Food Cake with fresh berries and whipped cream for $5.29. My total for dinner was $41.82 including tax and tip.

For the entire day, I would have spent $57.44
including the tax and gratuities, yet, I only paid $38.99 for all this.
All together my family would have spent approximately $1200.00 for the food we ate while on vacation. If the dining plan was not free when we booked it would have only cost us $685.72 when we booked. That is still a savings of 43%.

You can't loose, and you certainly shouldn’t book without the dining option. Not all, but most of the Disney eateries participate with the Disney Dining Plan and advance seating reservations can be made up to 180 days in advance by calling (407) WDW-DINE.

Please review our other Walt Disney World journals:
Disney’s Caribbean Beach Resort
Vacation Village at Parkway
Walt Disney World Vacation - 2006

Being a travel professional I again find myself in a position where I have to decide whether I want to be 100% truthful with my readers or do I want to in good faith promote my most popular product. I am going to try and find a happy medium between the two while telling you all about DISNEY’S MAGICAL EXPRESS SERVICE

Let me begin with the professional side with an explanation. Disney’s Magical Express Service is a complimentary service available for guests staying on property that allows the resort guests the opportunity to begin their vacation the minute their plane touches down. You don’t need to bother with your luggage or transportation to your resort; Disney will take care of all that for you.

When guests book their Disney vacation in one of the Disney owned and operated resorts, they will have the option of receiving Disney’s Magical Express Service. If you select this complimentary option you will receive special Magical Express luggage tags prior to departing for your vacation, which you simply need to attach to your luggage prior to checking in at your departure airport. Then, when you arrive at the Orlando International Airport, you can skip the baggage claim area and head straight for the Magical Express counter, located on the B side of level 1. From there a deluxe Disney Motor Coach will take you to the Walt Disney World Resorts. So begins your Disney vacation. Your bags will be delivered directly to your room within three hours after your check-in, allowing you time to take a swim, shop or even visit the parks. When your vacation comes to an end, the returning flights work the same way. Your luggage can be checked at your resort prior to leaving for the airport in the Disney-provided motor coach (domestic flights only).

Bypassing airport baggage claim and baggage check-in are an added experience to help you have a stress-free and magical Disney vacation. To receive the Magical Express Service, your vacation must be booked a minimum of ten days in advance. This service does not include pet carriers. You can read more about Disney’s Magical Express Service in vacation planning books like Simply Disney: Vacation Planning Made Easy

Now let me tell you what happened to my family during our 2006 Disney Vacation. Everything was "spot on" from the moment we left our house in Connecticut until after we checked into our room at Disney’s Caribbean Beach Resort. Finding the service in the airport was simple; validating the transfer vouchers was just as easy. The wait for the motor coach was fairly short and the ride to the resort was quick and comfortable. We checked into our hotel room at approximately 11am and knowing it could take up to three hours to get your luggage, we began our vacation.

We returned to our room at approximately 2pm and were surprised to find that Magical Express Service "MISPLACED" my daughter’s luggage, and we had only three out of our four bags. My wife spoke with a cast member, Lou, who told her that it was scanned in at the airport but he didn't know where the bag was now. He went on to say that they would find it and we would have it by 5pm. If it had not been forty degrees when we left Connecticut, we would have dressed for the ninety degree weather that we faced that day, and I am certain that my daughter would have been more comfortable in lighter clothing which was inside her luggage. Since we had planned a full schedule for the week, we kept with our plans and continued about our day despite our disappointment. We returned back to the room between 6:30 and 6:45pm because we had dinner reservations at Shutters for 7pm-ish and we wanted to check on the luggage before eating. Surprisingly it was still not there!

This time I went directly to the Customs House and insisted on speaking with a manager. James had a big Disney smile and told us they would work on it and suggested we go and eat and he would see what he could do. I then mentioned we had already heard that story from Lou.

Sadly, it was between 10pm and 11pm before our luggage was brought to our room. Not only did we find our missing bag, but there was also some other AAA member’s bags in my room as well.

In conclusion, although I was disappointed with the service my family and I received from Disney’s Magical Express Service, I still support it and recommend it to every client I book.

Please review our other Walt Disney World journals:
Disney’s Caribbean Beach Resort
Vacation Village at Parkway
Walt Disney World Vacation - 2006
Magic Your Way PLUS Dining Option