Walt Disney World
Trip Planning Guide
for the First-Time Visitor

[NOTE: The following guide was originally written for one of my nephews, who was planning a first-time trip to Walt Disney World in September 2004, and then updated for my brother, who was planning a family vacation trip in July 2005. I edited the document to make it more generic and posted it here so that it would be available to a wider audience. Please let me know whether you found this document to be of use in your own trip planning or if you found any information that was wrong. You can contact me at arnoldvb@islands.vi]

Table of Contents

I. Everything But the Parks

• A. When to Go
• B. Where to Stay
• C. Making Your Reservations
• D. Getting Around
• E. Checking In
• F. Where to Eat
• G. Where to Shop
• H. Non-Theme Park Attractions

• A. Some Preliminaries
• B. Magic Kingdom
• C. Epcot
• D. Disney-MGM Studios
• E. Animal Kingdom

I. Everything But the Theme Parks

A. When to Go

Almost any time of year is a good time to visit Disney World, because the various parks always have special events going on for the different seasons and holidays. Obviously, the summer months in Florida will be the hottest time of the year and also the wettest because of the almost daily afternoon thunderstorms. But if you take normal precautions, like drinking a lot of liquids at the parks, wearing a hat, using sun screen, and taking a break during the hottest part of the afternoon, you can still have a good time. Also, make sure that you wear comfortable shoes that have already been broken in, since you'll be doing a lot of walking and standing in line at the parks. And, of course, make sure to have raincoats or ponchos with you for those rain showers.

Another factor to consider is that the summer months and holiday seasons (Easter, Fourth of July, Labor Day, Thanksgiving, Christmas to New Years) are also the busiest times at the parks. So, just expect to encounter large crowds. This was especially true during 2005, since the whole Disney Company was celebrating the 50th Anniversary of Disneyland in California with many special attractions and package offers to entice people to visit all the Disney parks, including Walt Disney World.

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B. Where to Stay

Disney World has three classes of hotels -- value, moderate, and deluxe. Normal prices range from just under $100/night at the value resorts, to around $150/night at the moderate resorts, to $250/night and up at the deluxe resorts. But, two things that all the Disney World resorts have in common are that they are all heavily themed and guests at the resorts get certain "perks" that outside guests don't. (I'll describe these later.)

1. Value Resorts: There are four value resorts -- All Star Sports, All Star Music, All Star Movies, and Pop Century. These resorts are the most popular for families with younger children because the decorations around the hotels are fun and whimsical. For example, the All Star Sports is decorated with oversized football helmets, baseball bats, tennis rackets, and so forth. These resorts have clusters of 3-story motel-style buildings with the smallest rooms of the Disney resorts. Also, they only have food court eating places -- no full service restaurants. Each of the resorts has two swimming pools and one central bus stop for transportation to the theme parks. We've never stayed at any of these resorts, but I've read Mouseplanet trip reports saying that they were rather noisy because of all of the children running around. But on the other hand, some trip report writers without young children have stayed there and liked them.

2. Moderate Resorts: There are three moderate resorts -- Caribbean Beach, Coronado Springs, and Port Orleans. I'll describe these in more detail, since this is the only class of Disney World resort with which I have personal experience.

• Caribbean Beach, where we have stayed four times (1989 to 2003), is made up of six sections named after islands of the Caribbean -- Jamaica, Trinidad (North and South sections), Martinique, Aruba, and Barbados. The main difference between them is basically the color scheme and how far each section is from the central facilities -- Martinique is the closest and Trinidad South the farthest. Each section has its own swimming pool with a nearby guest laundry room. The buildings have 2-stories but no elevators, just stairs. The main resort lobby is called the Customs House and that is where you would be checking in and where you would catch any airport shuttle or outside tour bus. Centrally located on the property is Old Port Royale, where the food court, Shutters restaurant, game arcade, and gift shop are located. There's also a large swimming pool at Old Port Royale that's themed after a Spanish fort. The food court is set up like a little street on a Caribbean island with each building facade being a food station where you can get different types of food items. You pay at each food station and then there's a large central dining area with self-service drink dispensers. If your stay is long enough, it might be worth it to buy plastic mugs at the food court, which you can then fill up (coffee, tea, soft drinks) at no extra charge for the whole length of your stay. Otherwise, you'll have to pay each time for drinks. In 2003 the refillable mugs were $12 each. There are bus stops at each of the resort sections and at Old Port Royale, so the lines of people waiting for a bus to the parks are usually pretty manageable. I've read that since we were last there in December 2003, Disney has installed small refrigerators in all of the rooms at Caribbean Beach. Rooms are available with either two full size beds that each hold two people (standard room) or one king size bed (extra charge). We've always been completely satisfied with our rooms during our stays at Caribbean Beach. The walk between your room and Old Port Royale is along a lake and very relaxing, with ducks almost coming right up to you. Other guests there have usually been friendly, saying "hello" or "good morning" as we pass each other.

  Caribbean Beach Resort - Overview

  Caribbean Beach Resort - Standard Room

• Coronado Springs, where we stayed in December 2004, is themed after a Mexican or Southwestern resort. It is made up of three main sections -- Casitas, Ranchos, and Cabanas. The Casitas are 3- and 4-story buildings, with elevators, that are supposed to represent city-style apartments. There are five Casitas buildings that are interconnected by walkways and interior gardens. The Ranchos are smaller, stand-alone 2- and 3-story buildings that represent country apartments. And the Cabanas are also stand-alone 2- and 3-story buildings that represent ocean-side apartments. All of the sections are built around a large central lake, with the Casitas on one side and the Ranchos and Cabanas on the other side. The main facilities are located in El Centro, which is where the food court, Maya Grill restaurant, gift shop, and game arcade are located. The main hotel lobby for check-in is also located in El Centro (not in a separate building like at Caribbean Beach). Because Coronado Springs is a convention center, it caters more to business travelers. We didn't have any problem while we were there since a convention seemed to have ended the day we arrived. One thing that we did notice in the food court, which is themed for a Mexican market, is that the dining experience is a little more formal than the food court at the Caribbean Beach. For example, here you are escorted to your table by a server who gives you a menu of what's available at the food stations and gets your drinks for you, they use cloth napkins and real (not plastic) plates and flatware, and you don't pay at each food station but at a cashier station when you are finished. These differences are probably to cater to the convention guests. A central swimming pool is located directly across the lake from El Centro and is themed with a Mayan pyramid. Each section of room buildings also has its own smaller swimming pool and guest laundry. The rooms are identical in size to those at Caribbean Beach, but the bathroom vanities here only have one sink (two at Caribbean Beach). Our room had a small refrigerator, which was handy for keeping bottled water cold. We found that other guests didn't seem to be as friendly as at Caribbean Beach, and most didn't respond to our "good morning" greetings. Despite this, the resort was very nice, quiet, and relaxing, and the hotel staff were friendly and helpful.

  Coronado Springs Resort - Overview

  Coronado Springs Resort - Standard Room

• Port Orleans, where we stayed in December 2005, actually used to be two separate resorts, which are now considered to be one hotel. The French Quarter consists of seven 3-story buildings laid out to resemble a little piece of downtown New Orleans. The central facilities building is called The Mint and that's where the main hotel lobby, food court, and gift shop are located. French Quarter doesn't have a full service restaurant. Nearby is the one central swimming pool, which is themed like a Mardi Gras sea serpent float. A 15-minute walk away from the French Quarter is the Riverside section of Port Orleans. This resort is in two subdivisions, one themed like Southern plantation mansions and the other as rustic riverside cottages. Riverside has its own central building with check-in lobby, food court, and a full service restaurant. The guest rooms are the same size and layout as those at Caribbean Beach, but with an "Old South" decor. We found the French Quarter section to be very quiet and relaxing and, because this is the smallest of the moderate resorts, therewere never long lines at the bus stop. Based on trip reports I've read, most people who have stayed at the French Quarter section really like it. I haven't seen many comments about the Riverside section.

3. Deluxe Resorts: There are 13 deluxe resorts, including the Contemporary, Polynesian, and Grand Floridian, all right on the monorail route to the Magic Kingdom; the Wilderness Lodge and Fort Wilderness, a short boat ride away from the Magic Kingdom; the Beach and Yacht Clubs, Boardwalk Inn, Swan, and Dolphin, all near Epcot; Animal Kingdom Lodge, near the Animal Kingdom park; and the Old Key West and Saratoga Springs, near the Downtown Disney shopping and entertainment district. Even if you don't stay at any of these resorts, they all do have some very nice full service restaurants, and many people include lunch or dinner at one or more of these resorts as part of their Disney vacation. We have eaten at both the Contemporary and the Polynesian in the past.

4. Disney Resort "Perks": There are some special advantages to staying at a Disney resort instead of an outside hotel. First, you have complete free access to Disney World's transportation system. I'll go into this in more detail later, but it includes a very extensive bus system, the monorail train, and a series of ferryboat services. Also, as a Disney resort guest, on selected days you have the opportunity to enter the theme parks an hour before they're opened to the general public or stay up to 3 hours after they're closed to the general public. This is called "Extra Magic Hours," and you should ask about the schedule for this when you make your reservations. You can also check for the schedule at www.disneyworld.com or www.mouseplanet.com. The Disney World web site has a calendar function where you can check park operating hours and parade and fireworks show schedules several months in advance. Mouseplanet posts an updated page every Monday that includes the schedules for the Extra Magic Hours, park opening and closing times, parade and fireworks times, and attraction closings for refurbishment.

Another advantage of staying in a Disney resort is that you can have any items you purchase at a theme park or at Downtown Disney sent to your resort for pickup the following day. That way you don't have to lug those packages around with you all day at the parks. And, because all of the resorts are so heavily themed, you're immersed in the Disney magic all day long, even at your hotel. For example, sometimes when the housekeepers fix up your room, they'll make animal figures out of towels and leave them on the beds or the bathroom vanity. Lastly, your room card key also serves as your theme park admission pass and as a credit card at almost all shops and restaurants, so you don't need to carry a lot of cash around with you. These purchases are charged to your room and eventually to the credit card you used at check-in.

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C. Making Your Reservations

If you plan on going during any of the busiest seasons at Disney World, I recommend that you make your reservations as early as possible. This can be done either by phone (407-W-DISNEY) or through www.disneyworld.com. What I have found useful is to go to the web site and check to see what kind of packages might be available for the planned dates and the cost, and then calling the central office to make the reservations personally. In each case, the price they quoted me was exactly the same aswhat I found on the web site. Disney is always looking for ways to keep its hotel rooms filled, so there are often very good discounts or package deals available for visitors during the slower times of the year. But most people say to be careful about packages that include meals unless you're a big eater, because many do not people eat all of the meals they've paid for up-front in that type of package.

1. Park Tickets: Effective January 2, 2005, Disney made major changes to its park ticket pricing. They used to sell what they called "Park Hopper" tickets that let you go from one park to another on the same day. These tickets were available for different number of days (1-day, 2-day, etc.). They also had an "Ultimate Park Hopper" ticket that included not only admission to the four theme parks, but also to the two water parks, an interactive video game complex at Downtown Disney called "DisneyQuest," and the night clubs at the Pleasure Island section of Downtown Disney. But many people were paying for special admissions or park hopping privileges that they never really used. So, now Disney sells a basic park ticket (in whatever number of day increment you want) that gives you admission to one park each day. These basic tickets start at about $65 per day for a 1-day ticket, but the average price per day goes down for longer stays. For example, a 10-day ticket's price averages out to less than $30 per day. If you wanted to have the ability to park hop, you could buy that as a separate add-on feature for an extra fee (about $35, I think). Also, if you also wanted to go to the water parks, DisneyQuest, or the Pleasure Island night clubs, you could also buy those admissions as an add-on feature. Overall, this is a good change, because you're not paying for special admission features that you might not use. Since this is something new, you should ask about it when you make your hotel reservation.

Generally you can get a good discount on the park tickets by getting a package that includes both your hotel reservation and park tickets for the length of your stay. But if you plan to spend some days away from the Disney parks, this type of package might not be a good idea for you. For example, if you stay at a Disney hotel for 10 days but will be at Universal Studios, Sea World, and Kennedy Space Center for a total of four of those days, you probably wouldn't want a package that's going to include 10-day park admission tickets (unless you planned to go to a Disney park on those nights after getting back from the non-Disney attractions). In this case, you might be better off getting your hotel reservation and then separately buying the park admission tickets.

One last piece of advice, make sure to buy your park tickets in advance, either separately or as part of a hotel package, because they'll be cheaper that way. The ticket prices are higher if you wait until you get to the park to buy them. Besides, you'd be wasting time waiting in line to buy the tickets when you get to the theme parks instead of just heading to the entrance with tickets already in hand.

2. Special Room Requests: When you call to make your reservations, be sure to specify if you want some special accommodations, such as a preference to be in a building that's closest to the food court, or a room on the first floor. There's no guarantee you'll get the specific room location you requested, but there will be a better chance if you make the request at the time of reservation instead of waiting until you check-in. I did this in 2003, 2004, and 2005, and each time got exactly the room locations we wanted.

3. Deposit and Cancellation Policies: Unless things have changed with the new ticket pricing policies, when you make a reservation for a package deal that includes hotel and park tickets, you'll have to make a $200 deposit at the time you make the reservation and then pay the balance no later than 45 days before your scheduled arrival date. They also have certain penalties for cancelling your reservation after a certain time period, so make sure you get that information when you call. Lastly, they offer vacation insurance that protects you in the event that something comes up and you have to cancel your trip at the last minute. I don't remember the exact cost of that, but it was pretty inexpensive considering the large prepayment you're going to have to make.

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D. Getting Around

Once you arrive at the Orlando Airport, you'll need ground transportation to get to Disney World. in May 2005, Disney started a new service, called "Magical Express," that takes all of the hassle out of getting to and from the airport. When you make your reservations with them to stay at one of their resorts, they will make arrangements to pick you up at the Orlando Airport and have your luggage delivered to your room. You wouldn't even have to go to baggage claim. Similarly, they'll care of getting you and your luggage to the airport on your departure day.

If you'd rather go it on your own, you can either make arrangement for a rental car that will be waiting for you at the airport of take one of two other transportation mode, a shuttle bus service or a limo service. Mears Transportation Service (407-423-5566) is the best known shuttle bus service to get to Disney World. They charge $25/person for a round-trip ticket. But you may have to wait around at the airport until the bus is full, and then your hotel might not be the first stop. Many people like to use a limo service for more personal attention. One of these limo services,Tiffany Towncar (407-251-5431 or 888-838-2161 or www.tiffanytowncar.com), charges about $90 round-trip for the carload. Also, they provide a free stop at a local grocery store on the way to Disney World so you can stock up on water, laundry detergents, or snack items you might want to have for your room.

Once you're at Disney World, you can rely completely on Disney's internal transportation system. They have an extensive bus system that runs from an hour before park opening time until at least an hour after park closing (even longer at busy times). Buses generally run on a 20-minute schedule and run directly between each resort and the four major theme parks. Buses are clearly identified as to their destination. Buses to Animal Kingdom may also stop at the Blizzard Beach water park, and buses to Downtown Disney may also stop at the Typhoon Lagoon water park. Depending on your resort and your destination, the actual bus ride can take as much as 30 minutes each way, so plan accordingly. The buses drop you off at designated bus stops at each park, which are clearly marked for your return trip to the hotel.

Traveling from one resort to another is a little more complicated because buses don't run directly between resorts. You have to go from your hotel to a central hub (such as the Magic Kingdom) and then get on another bus to the resort you want to go to. Other resort transportation systems include the monorail and ferry boats. For example, if you want to go to the Polynesian Resort, you would take a bus to the Magic Kingdom and then transfer to the "resort" monorail. (Be careful not to take the "express" monorail, which only stops at the central ticket and transportation center for the Magic Kingdom.) To get to Fort Wilderness for the Hoop-Dee-Doo Revue dinner show, you would again take a bus to the Magic Kingdom and then get a ferry boat over to this resort. Use of all of the Disney transportation is at no charge as a Disney resort guest.

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E. Checking In

When you arrive at your hotel from the airport, Disney Magical Express bus, outside shuttle, or limo will drop you off at the resort's check-in facility (the Customs House at the Caribbean Beach or El Centro at the Coronado Springs, for example). If you're on the Magic Express, your luggage will be delivered directly to your room within a couple hours of your check-in. If you're not on theMagic Express, the bell hop will get your bags and give you a check ticket to retrieve them after you've checked in. Inside the lobby area, there will be queue lines with a large number of check-in stations. The attendant will retrieve your room information, get a swipe of your credit card for any in-resort charges, and give you your room card keys. These will also serve as in-resort credit cards and also as your park admission tickets if you got a package deal that included the park admission. So, be sure to protect them or you won't be able to gain admission to the parks. (If you bought your park tickets separately from the hotel reservation, they'll be cardboard tickets instead of plastic cards.) The attendant will also give you a packet of information about the resort and about park schedules and special events for the time you'll be there. Once check-in is completed, you would go to the bell hop who will retrieve your bags and take you (usually by golf cart) to your room.

If you made any dining or dinner show reservations, this would be a good time to go to the guest services station right there in the lobby to purchase the dinner show tickets and to get a printout of your dining reservations. (More about dining reservations later.)

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F. Where to Eat

You'll most likely eat breakfast at the food court of your hotel. But there are literally hundreds of places where you can eat lunch and/or dinner. This can range from snack carts and fast-food places at the theme parks to fancy full service restaurants at the deluxe resorts. I'll quickly describe some of the ones we've eaten at in the past, but Birnbaum's Official Guide or any of the other Disney World guide books have more detailed information and reviews of the restaurants. Also, I recommend going to www.allearsnet.com to see actual menus from almost all of the restaurants. Of course, the fancier the restaurant, the higher the price, but this web site's menus will give you an idea of cost. What we like to do is have a heavy, late lunch (1:00-2:00) to get a little break from the heat and crowds in the park and then just snack on something back at the hotel's food court at night. Also, lunch prices at full service restaurants are definitely much lower than at dinner time.

1. At the Resorts: The Shutters restaurant at Caribbean Beach and the Maya Grill restaurant at Coronado Springs are both great places for dinner on your check-in day, since you'll be tired from your trip to Orlando. Dress is informal and both have excellent quality cuts of beef (prime rib at Shutters and filet mignon at Maya Grill). Of course they also have chicken and seafood options on the menu. We've also eaten lunch at the Concourse Steakhouse at the Contemporary Resort. They serve steaks, burgers, sandwiches, pizza, pasta. One place where we've wanted to eat but haven't had a chance yet is ‘Ohana at the Polynesian Resort. This place always gets good reviews for its family-style all-you-can-eat dinner, where the meats (beef, turkey, pork, shrimp) are brought to your table on large skewers. Veggies and other side dishes are placed on a lazy susan at your table. If you're lucky to get a window table at the right time, this is supposed to be an excellent place to see the Magic Kingdom fireworks.

2. At the Magic Kingdom: Right on Main Street are two places that we have enjoyed a lot. The Crystal Palace has lunch and dinner buffets with Winnie the Pooh, Tigger, Piglet, and Eyore coming around to each table. We've had the dinner buffet in 2003 and 2004, and the spread was very good and at a reasonable price. Tony's Town Square is a good place for Italian food, including pizza. The Liberty Tree Tavern in the Liberty Square section of the park is also good. It's themed after a Colonial-style mansion and serves traditional American meals like pot roast, roast turkey, and salmon. Two good fast-food places are Columbia Harbor House, also in Liberty Square, and Peco Bill's Café, in the Frontierland section.

3. At Epcot: There are a few fast-food places in the Future World section of Epcot and many snack carts throughout the World Showcase section. But at the Land pavilion in Future World, you'll find the Garden Grill, which has all-you-can-eat family-style table service with Mickey, Pluto, Chip, and Dale coming around to the tables. Over in the World Showcase section every country pavilion has at least one quality full service restaurant. Of course, the food in each will be based on the particular country. We've eaten at the Teppanyaki Grill in Japan at least three times and have always enjoyed it. On our 2004 visit, we ate lunch at Le Cellier in Canada, where the filet mignon was very good but expensive for lunch servings. One restaurant that people like but we didn't have a chance to try until 2005 is the San Angel Inn in Mexico, which serves a variety of traditional Mexican dishes. This restaurant is inside the Mexico pyramid but feels like you're at an outdoor café at sunset -- very attractive and relaxing.

4. At Disney-MGM Studios: This park has a couple of "fun" places to eat. One is the SciFi Dine-in, where the setting is as if you're at a drive-in theater. The booths are made to look like convertibles and they're all parked so you can see the big screen that's showing 1950s scifi movie trailers and newsreels. The burgers are good too. At the ‘50s Prime Time Café, the setting is like a diner you would see in an old TV sitcom show. The service staff pretend to be your "mom," "aunt," or "uncle" and do funny things like mildly "scolding" you if you don't clean your plate or if you put your elbows on the table. You have to have a good sense of humor to be comfortable in this one, but most trip reporters who have gone there seemed to have had a lot of fun. A more upscale place is the Hollywood Brown Derby. The food and atmosphere here is great, but the price (even for lunch) is a bit steep. We've only eaten at one fast-food place at Disney-MGM Studios, that being the Backlot Express. They serve standard burgers, chicken salads, and turkey sandwiches. The time we ate there, the crowd was so big that it was almost a mad house. Since then we've gone for table service restaurants instead.

5. At Animal Kingdom: There's really only one full service restaurant at Animal Kingdom, a Rainforest Café that's located right at the park entrance. This is actually a non-Disney chain and it has a very large menu and generally good food. We've eaten at Rainforest Cafés here, at Downtown Disney, and in Ft. Lauderdale and never been disappointed. Fast-food places at this park are Flame Tree Barbecue, Pizzafari, and Restaurantosaurus. Flame Tree serves ribs and BBQ chicken, beef, or pork sandwiches. Pizzafari has salads and deli sandwiches in addition to pizza. And Restaurantosaurus is actually a fancy McDonald's. Again, there are also snack carts around the park.

6. At Downtown Disney: Since this is basically a shopping and entertainment area, it's loaded with places to eat. Our favorites are another Rainforest Café, Gloria Estefan's Bongos Cuban Café, and Planet Hollywood. These are all non-Disney chains.

7. Dinner Shows: There are two regular dinner shows at Disney World -- the Hoop-Dee-Doo Revue and the Spirit of Aloha Luau. We highly recommend the Hoop-Dee-Doo Revue, although it's a bit expensive at $50 per person. This is a Western-style comedy and musical show that's held at the Fort Wilderness Resort. The all-you-can-eat menu features fried chicken, BBQ ribs, corn bread, corn on the cob, baked beans, and strawberry shortcake. The actors go around the dining area and involve everyone in the show. It's really a lot of fun. I also recommend the Spirit of Aloha luau. The food is pretty good and the show is a tie-in to the "Lilo and Stitch" movie and includes demonstrations of the typical dances of several of the Polynesian island groups.

8. Advance Dining Reservations: Disney World restaurants don't accept formal dining reservations in the sense that they would hold an empty table for your arrival time. Instead, they accept "advance dining" reservations where you are given priority seating at the next available table at your reservation time. If you'll be traveling at a busy time of year, it's very important that you make dining reservations as much in advance as possible for any meals at full service restaurants. This is especially true for meals that involve interactions with Disney characters. You can make advance dining reservations beginning 180 days ahead of the planned date. Simply call the Disney dining reservation center (407-WDW-DINE) and let them know which restaurant you want to dine at, which date, at what time, and how many people. They'll give you a confirmation number that you should keep a record of. By the way, most of the non-Disney restaurants (like Rainforest Café and Planet Hollywood) don't take reservations. They just operate on a first-come first-served basis.

On the day for your special meal, make sure to arrive at the restaurant at least 15 minutes early to give yourself time to check-in at the restaurant podium. (We have gone as much as 45 minutes early and still not have to wait more than 15 minutes to be seated -- which in effect let us eat 30 minutes before our reservation time.) If possible, they'll seat you right away. But most likely you'll have a short wait until a table is available. Although you were given a confirmation number at the time you made the reservation, we have found that the restaurants usually have the reservations listed on their computer or printout alphabetically by last name within each time window. But be sure you have the confirmation number with you in case there's a mix-up with the spelling of the last name and they need the number to find your record. Although it's not mandatory, it's a good idea to cancel an advance dining reservation (even on the same day) if for some reason you can't make it. Just call the dining reservation number (407-WDW-DINE) and let them know you have to cancel. This frees up the time slot for the next group or for walk-ins who may not have made reservations.

About the timing of full service meals, you also need to take into consideration whether you want to see the daily afternoon parades. The Magic Kingdom, Disney-MGM Studios, and Animal Kingdom all have afternoon parades. The Magic Kingdom and Disney-MGM Studios parades are usually held around 2:00-3:00 pm, so you would want to time your meal to be either early enough before or late enough after the parade. Because you have to start finding a viewing spot for the parades as much as an hour ahead of time, you would want to eat at least 2 hours before the parade start time or instead just have an early dinner after the parade. Since Animal Kingdom's parade is usually later, around 3:00-4:00pm, eating lunch at a reasonable time usually isn't a problem.

The process for the Hoop-Dee-Doo Revue is a little different. First, you can make reservations up to 1 year in advance. Since this is a very popular show, I suggest calling the dining reservation number and making your reservation on the same day that you make your hotel reservation. You'll have to give a credit card to guarantee the reservation, and you must call to cancel your reservation if you can't make it. Otherwise they will charge the credit card for the full fee (about $50 per person). At the time that you check-in at your hotel, you can also purchase your tickets for the Hoop-Dee-Doo. On the day of the show, you want to be sure to give yourself enough time to get from where you are to Fort Wilderness, where the show is held. This will involve getting to the Magic Kingdom bus stop area and then taking a ferry boat over to Fort Wilderness. I suggest giving yourself a couple hours, if you're not already at the Magic Kingdom. Even if you get to Fort Wilderness early, you can look around the place and browse in the gift shop. Before they let you into the show building (Pioneer Hall), a photographer will be there to take pictures of each family group, which you can purchase later if you want to (no obligation). There'll also be someone there to handle check-in and to have a server take you to your table. After the show, you'll have to take the ferry boat back to the Magic Kingdom and then your bus back to the hotel.

If you decide to go to the Spirit of Aloha Luau, the process is exactly the same, except that the luau is held in a special dining theater set up at the Polynesian Resort. It's a short walk from the hotel's main lobby building. Again, remember to give yourself enough time to take a bus from your hotel to the Magic Kingdom and then the "resort" monorail to the Polynesian.

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G. Where to Shop

As you might expect, Disney World probably has even more stores than restaurants. If you're just interested in basic items, the gift shops at the resorts are probably all you'll need. The ones at the Caribbean Beach, Coronado Springs, and Port Orleans resorts had a wide assortment of items including: basic toiletries, snack items, and magazines; t-shirts, polo shirts, sweaters, hats, dresses, and nightgowns; key chains and other souvenir jewelry; photo albums, picture frames, and post cards; park DVDs and music CDs; Disney stuffed characters, other toys, and dolls; boxed candies and cookies; glasses and mugs; and much more. But remember that these items will all be either generic to Disney World as a whole or specialized to the particular resort's theme.

There are also tons of shops all throughout the theme parks. These usually sell items that are themed specifically to the attractions that they are located right next to. For example, the store at the exit of the Star Tours ride sells all kinds of Star Wars items. The stores in the World Showcase section of Epcot specialize in items from each country. The store in the Japan pavilion, for example, has an amazing assortment of Japanese-made items.

Downtown Disney: This is a huge shopping and entertainment district that's almost like a theme park in itself. Downtown Disney is divided into three areas: Marketplace, Pleasure Islands, and West Side.

• Marketplace is where most of the stores are, and there's a huge variety, including stores devoted to stuffed animals, other toys, Disney trading pins, kitchen items, Christmas ornaments, Disney animation art, Lego sets, and even Ghiradelli chocolate. But the biggest store is called World of Disney. It has (I think) 12 interconnecting rooms with just about every imaginable type of Disney clothing or collectible item. There are also a few restaurants in this area, including a Rainforest Café with an erupting volcano and Fulton's, a seafood place that's in a building which looks like a big steamboat.

• Pleasure Island is the next area, and this is devoted mainly to night-time entertainment and clubs. But you might find a few stores and snack shops open during the day. At night, one of the more popular clubs is the Comedy Warehouse, where they have improvisational comedy skits like those on TV's "Whose Line Is It Anyway." There are also clubs with different types of music for listening and/or dancing.

• West Side is the last area and furthest from the bus stop. The stores here tend to be smaller and more specialized, and include a store that sells only collectible kitchen magnets and another that sells only sunglasses, for example. Gloria Estefan's Bongos Cuban Café, a Planet Hollywood, and a House of Blues restaurant/club are in this area. There's also a huge Virgin Record Store and a 24-screen AMC movie theater complex. Also in West Side is a theater where Cirque de Solei has a live acrobatics show that's exclusive to Disney World. We've never gone to see it because the ticket price is something like $100 per person! West Side also has DisneyQuest, a huge green building that has 4 or 5 floors of video games, including everything from classic arcade games like Asteroids and Pacman to state of the art virtual reality games, including one based on Pirates of the Caribbean and another one where you can build and then ride your own roller coaster.

As a Disney resort guest, items that you purchase at the stores in the theme parks or at Downtown Disney can be sent to your hotel for you to pickup at the hotel gift shop the following day. One thing to remember about the stores in the theme parks is that many people tend to leave their shopping for the last thing of the day. So, the stores are very crowded at that time. It's best to do any shopping during the day as you come to a shop you're interested in. As long as you're not checking out the next day, just have the items sent to your hotel.

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H. Non-Theme Park Attractions

Before getting to the theme parks, I'll just run down some of the other non-theme park attractions and facilities available at Disney World.

1. Water Parks: There are two water parks at Disney World. Typhoon Lagoon is themed on a tropical island where a ship was run aground on the top of a mountain by a hurricane. The big attraction here is a large wave pool. Around this large pool there are a lot of different water slides and a lazy river where you can slowly float along in big tubes. The newer water park is Blizzard Beach, which is themed as a ski resort after a freak snow storm hit Florida. The big attraction here is a very steep and long water slide that's supposed to be one of the biggest in the world. But there are also many different types and sizes of water slides and also a lazy river for tube floating. The bus to Downtown Disney usually stops at Typhoon Lagoon and the bus to Animal Kingdom usually stops at Blizzard Beach. But if you plan to visit either one, ask the bus driver to make sure you're getting on the right bus.

2. Wide World of Sports: This is a big sports complex where major league baseball, football, and basketball teams sometime come to practice during the off-seasons. Otherwise, there are some attractions where visitors can try their hand in batting cages, going through typical football training exercises, and so forth.

3. Miniature Golf: There are also at least two miniature golf courses. As you might expect, they're heavily themed, with one having a setting based on the Fantasia animated movie.

4. Boardwalk: This is another entertainment district that's located right at the Boardwalk Inn resort and is within walking distance from Epcot (there's a pathway to it between the United Kingdom and France pavilions). During the day it's basically an area where there are some more places to eat. At night, there's also some musical and other live entertainment going on. The whole place is themed after an Atlantic City-style seaside boardwalk.

5. Admission Policies: The regular park admission tickets do not include admission to the DisneyQuest video amusement center or the Pleasure Island night clubs at Downtown Disney, nor the water parks, the miniature golf courses, or the sports complex. You can get admission tickets for these as add-ons to the regular tickets. But the pricing for these has changed since January 2, 2005, so you'll have to ask the central reservations office (407-W-DISNEY) if you're interested in visiting any of them.

6. Other Activities: Disney World also has some other activities that you might be interested in taking advantage of. These include the Cirque de Solei show; several championship-quality golf courses; rental of small powerboats, pedal boats, and bicycles; and the Walt Disney World Speedway, where they offer the opportunity to either ride as a passenger in a NASCAR stock car or to take lessons to drive the racer yourself. Use of all of these activities are at specific prices separate from any admission ticket add-ons. Disney World also offers a wide variety of "behind the scenes" tours of the theme parks and special romantic boat rides for a sunset dinner cruise or to view the night-time fireworks shows. Again, these are separately priced and ticketed events.

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II. The Theme Parks

A. Some Preliminaries

First some preliminary pointers. The bus from your hotel will drop you off in the bus stop area of each theme park. Usually the driver will tell you which bus stop number you should go to when you're ready to return to your hotel. In the event that you forget the bus stop number, there are also signs that direct you to the right bus stop for your hotel. At most of the parks you'll have a bit of a walk before actually getting to the park entrance.

1. Entering the Parks: Once you get there, you'll have to go through a quick security screening before being allowed to go through the turnstiles to enter the park. The security officers will want to look into every compartment of any bags or backpacks you're carrying. So, to speed things along, it's best to have all zippered or buttoned compartments opened before stepping up to the security stations. They'll just take a quick look inside and send you on your way. After the security check, there will be small counters where you can stop to re-close everything.

Something that's new since Disney instituted the new ticket policy in January 2005 is that at the entry turnstiles visitors have to press a finger against a scanning device. The only purpose I can think of for this new procedure is to stop people who don't have tickets with the park hopping add-on feature from trying to sneak into a second park on the same day. You might want to ask the central reservations office about this when you make your hotel reservations. The Mouseplanet web site recently had pictures of the new equipment at the turnstiles, and they have clearly labeled instructions for the 3-step park entry process (insert ticket, press finger, pick up ticket). With this new system, you no longer have to get your hand stamped as you leave a park if you intend to return to that park later in the day.

Once you go through the turnstiles and are inside the park, make sure to look around the immediate area for racks with the park maps and time schedules (two separate items). (At the Magic Kingdom, these are usually located in the entry tunnels that go under the railroad station.) The schedules are especially important for finding out exactly when the parades, fireworks, and other live shows are going to take place. Times may have changed from what you may have gotten online before leaving home or even from the information you were given at the time of hotel check-in.

2. Disney Photographers: When you're in the park, you may come across Disney photographers wanting to take your picture. These are good opportunities to get nice family portraits that include everyone. The photographer will give you a card with a code number for the picture. Later in the day you can go to the store listed on the card to see the picture and, if you want, to buy prints in different sizes. In December 2003 the cost was about $18 for an 8x10. Something new that Disney is now making available is the opportunity to wait until you get home and access a web site where you can see all the photos of you taken by Disney photographers and then buy prints online. I'm sure the photographers will give you information on this new feature, which is called Photo Pass. If you do decide to buy any of the pictures at the park, try not to leave this until the end of the day, because the lines can get very long. You can usually view and buy the pictures a couple hours after they were taken and then have them sent to your hotel for pickup the next day.

In additional to the professional pictures, there are several rides in the parks where pictures are automatically taken. After you get off the ride you can see your picture on a monitor and decide if you want to get a print. If so, make sure you get the picture's code number off the monitor and go straight to the desk to buy the prints (again, you can have them sent to your hotel). I don't think the ride pictures are available at a central location or online after you get home like the ones taken by the photographers. So, if you want a print, you need to get it then. I'll mention which rides take automatic pictures during my description of the attractions.

3. Fastpass Tickets: Lastly, you should try to use Fastpass whenever possible to save time standing in line. I expect that during the busy summer season some non-Fastpass lines (called "standby lines") will have waiting times of an hour or more. The various Disney World guidebooks and the park maps show which rides and attractions have Fastpass (not everything does). At the attractions with Fastpass, you'll see signs indicating what the next return time period is. There you'll find ticket machines. All you have to do is, for each person who wants to go on the attraction, insert their park ticket into the slot. The machine will give you a paper ticket (looks like a movie ticket) with the return time stamped on it and also give you back your park ticket. Now you can go do something else and then return to this attraction anytime during the return time period. (Usually the return times are given in increments of an hour, such as 1:15 to 2:15.) When you return, look for a sign directing you to the Fastpass line for that attraction. The person at the entrance to that line will verify the time on your Fastpass ticket and send you along the queue. At the other end, another attendant will take the ticket from you before letting you board the ride. Another timesaving trick is that once you're into the return time period for your existing Fastpass, you can get a second Fastpass ticket for another attraction (or for the same attraction if you want to ride it again).

Now, let's go visit the theme parks!

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B. Magic Kingdom

The Magic Kingdom was the first theme park at Disney World. It opened in 1971 with many of the same attractions as the original Disneyland in California. But since then many new things have been added to the Magic Kingdom that were never added to Disneyland. The park is arranged like a wheel, with spokes leading out to the different "lands." To orient yourselves, as you enter the park you'll be facing North. Tomorrowland and Mickey's Toontown Fair will be to your right (or East) side; Fantasyland will be directly ahead and through Cinderella's Castle; and Adventureland, Frontierland, and Liberty Square will be to your left (or West) side. I recommend trying to devote two days to the Magic Kingdom, because there are many attractions in each "land" and this is always the most crowded of the Disney World parks. If you can do that, you could tour Tomorrowland, Mickey's Toontown Fair, and Fantasyland one day, and Adventureland, Frontierland, and Liberty Square the second day. If you can only devote one day, I suggest starting at Tomorrowland (on the right) and working counterclockwise around the park. But you'd have to stay well into the night to be able to do everything in one day.

1. Main Street USA: The central spoke, where you enter the park, is Main Street USA. This street is modeled after a turn-of-the-19th-century town and is where you'll find many stores, eating places, and the guest service center. Main Street leads up to a central plaza (called the Hub) where you'll find a statue of Walt Disney and Mickey Mouse called "The Partners." The other spokes of the "wheel" branch out from the Hub. Directly beyond The Partners statue is the main icon of the Magic Kingdom -- Cinderella's Castle. In fact, it's probably the first thing you'll notice as you walk onto Main Street.

• Disney World Railroad -- Just above you as you enter the park onto Main Street is the main station of the Disney World Railroad. This steam train makes a 15-20 minute ride around the outer boundary of the Magic Kingdom. There are also stations in Frontierland and Mickey's Toontown Fair where you get on or off. There's nothing thrilling about the ride, but it's a relaxing little tour on a hot afternoon after you've seen most of the main attractions.

• SpectroMagic and Wishes -- The Magic Kingdom has a lively character parade down Main Street around 2:00 to 3:00 every afternoon. But for a special treat, try to make it for the night-time SpectroMagic parade and Wishes fireworks show. Both feature characters and music from the Disney animated movies. The SpectroMagic parade features floats and characters that are all lit up with small twinkling lights and fiber optics. With all lights in the park turned down during the parade, the effect is spectacular! The Wishes fireworks show follows a short time after the parade and is best seen from the end of Main Street that's closest to Cinderella's Castle. Near the start of the fireworks show, look out for Tinker Bell to fly down from the top of the Castle to the area of Tomorrowland. During busy seasons, the SpectroMagic Parade is repeated after the fireworks, and this second showing usually has a much smaller crowd of spectators.

2. Tomorrowland: This section of the Magic Kingdom is themed to represent the future as shown through science fiction. Two of the most popular rides -- Space Mountain and Buzz Lightyear's Space Ranger Spin -- are located here, so it fills up quickly in the morning.

• Space Mountain (Fastpass) -- This is the most popular thrill ride in the Magic Kingdom. It's an indoor and dark roller coaster that sends you on twists and turns through space.

• Buzz Lightyear's Space Ranger Spin (Fastpass & Ride Photo) -- You ride in 2-person vehicles and try to shoot lasers at evil characters from the "Toy Story" movie. You can turn the vehicle left and right with a joystick mounted between the two riders. Think of it as being inside and part of a lively video game. Your points are totaled up as you go along, and a photograph is taken during the ride and available for purchase at the end. (Hint: Aim at the Z's that you see on the characters. Hitting the ones on the big robot earn big points.)

• Stitch's Great Escape (Fastpass) -- This is the newest attraction in the Magic Kingdom. You enter a round theater where you are to witness the teleportation of Experiment 626 (Stitch) to a prison facility. But he escapes in the theater, knocks out the lights, and goes on a rampage, jumping on and spitting at the spectators. This is basically a toned-down and more kid-friendly version of the old Extra-Terror-estrial Alien Encounter attraction.

• Tomorrowland Indy Speedway -- You ride low-speed go-karts on a road course guided by metal rails. This is a bit of a bore for grownups and older kids, but the younger set usually enjoys steering the cars around the track.

• Astro Orbiters -- You ride rocketships that go round and round like a merry-go-round, but the riders can regulate the height at which they fly.

• Tomorrowland Transit Authority -- This is a simple but relaxing slow ride above Tomorrowland that also enters inside the Space Mountain building.

• Monsters, Inc. Laugh Factory Comedy Club -- This show is scheduled to open in January 2007 and replaces The Timekeeper, which began with a robot (voiced by Robin Williams) setting up a widescreen movie about traveling to the past to meet Jules Verne and H.G. Wells. The new Monsters Inc. show will feature Mike (the one-eyed green monster) and several other characters from the Pixar film as they interact in realtime with the audience. It supposedly will use a more advanced version of the computer technology that is already popular at the Turtle Talk attraction at Epcot's The Land pavilion.

• Carousel of Progress -- This show is actually an attraction that Walt Disney built for the New York World's Fair back in the early 1960s. The revolving theater takes you on a tour of the progress in home technology from 1900 to the 21st Century. This show has been frequently closed during the past couple of years, and may be down either for refurbishment or replacement.

3. Mickey's Toontown Fair: Going in a counterclockwise direction from Tomorrowland, you'll find a small area called Mickey's Toontown Fair. This area consists of colorful buildings constructed in a "cartoon" style. Here you'll be able to take tours of <b>Mickey and Minnie'sCountry Hhomes</b> and Donald's Boat, ride on Goofy's Barnstormer roller coaster, and visit with Mickey and many of the other Disney characters in the Toontown Hall of Fame. There's also a Disney World Railroad station here for a quick trip back to the main entrance of the park or to Frontierland.

4. Fantasyland: Continuing around counterclockwise, Fantasyland is next. You can also get to Fantasyland from the Hub area by going right through Cinderella's Castle. There are no rides or attractions inside the castle, but there is interesting artwork to look at if you have some spare time, and a restaurant is located in an upper level of the castle. Also, stage shows are held on a stage in front of the castle during certain times of the day. This entire section of the Magic Kingdom is geared mostly towards younger children, but there are still some classic Disney rides here.

• Mickey's PhilharMagic (Fastpass) -- This is the newest attraction in Fantasyland. It's a 3D movie that has Donald Duck stealing Mickey's "sorcerer's hat" and having some mis-adventures as part of key scenes from popular Disney animated films. Because this is a new addition, it's very popular and usually crowded.

• The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh (Fastpass) -- This is also a new attraction. You enter a honeypot vehicle and go on a wild little adventure with Pooh and his friends in the 100 Acre Woods. Again, this is a popular ride.

• Peter Pan's Flight (Fastpass) -- You board a sailing ship that takes you on a flight over London and Neverland. Although this is an older ride, it's still very popular.

• Snow White's Scary Adventure -- Again you board a moving vehicle and travel through scenes from the Snow White movie. The wicked witch makes quite a few appearances on this ride, so some young children might be scared by this one.

• It's a Small World -- This is a boat ride that takes you through the different countries of the world, with animated dolls singing that well-known tune in their native languages. Although this is also a popular ride, the boats hold many people and the lines usually move quite quickly. It's a Small World was down at Christmas 2004 for major refurbishment, but should be open again by Summer 2005.

• Carnival Rides -- Fantasyland also has a number of outdoor rides that I'll just list here together. These include Cinderella's Golden Carousel (a themed merry-go-round), Dumbo the Flying Elephant (ride Dumbo up and around above the ground), and the Mad Hatter's Tea Party (a spinning tea cup ride themed on Alice in Wonderland).

5. Liberty Square: Continuing past Fantasyland, you'll come to Liberty Square, which is themed like colonial-era Philadelphia, complete with a replica of the Liberty Bell.

• Haunted Mansion (Fastpass) -- At the Haunted Mansion, you ride "doom buggies" through creepy scenes followed by 999 "grim grinning ghost." Always a popular ride, but the line tends to move quickly. (Hint: While in line waiting to go inside, look for Lady Leota's tombstone for a little surprise.)

• Hall of Presidents -- This is a stage presentation featuring animated figures of all the U.S. presidents. This cool, air conditioned theater is a great place to take a break in the hot afternoon.

• Liberty Belle Riverboat -- The Liberty Belle takes you on a leisurely and relaxing ride around Frontierland and Liberty Square, which is another good afternoon ride to unwind.

• Goofy's Country Dancin' Jamboree -- This is a stage show with Goofy and Disney characters that is geared mostly for the younger set. Goofy's Jamboree is scheduled to be replaced by a show featuring Woodie (instead of Goofy) and other characters from the Toy Story animated movies. The new show should be in place by January 2007.

6. Frontierland: When you pass the building where Goofy's Country Dancin' Jamboree is located, you'll be in Frontierland. Here the buildings are of a more rustic log-cabin style. A Disney World Railroad station is located near Splash Mountain.

• Country Bear Jamboree -- This is the first Frontierland attraction you'll come to after leaving Liberty Square. It's a fun-filled show featuring animated bears giving musical renditions of old country songs.

• Splash Mountain (Fastpass & Ride Photo) -- This is a water ride based on the stories of Brer Rabbit, Brer Fox, and Brer Bear. It ends with a 50-foot drop down a water flume, so be prepared to get wet (maybe bring either rain ponchos or a change of shirts for everyone).

• Big Thunder Mountain Railroad (Fastpass) -- This is a wild roller coaster ride aboard a runaway mining train. It's a mild ride compared to Space Mountain.

• Tom Sawyer's Island -- You take a raft across the river to an island where you can explore Fort Sam Clemens and a cave. Mostly for younger children.

7. Adventureland: Your counterclockwise tour of the Magic Kingdom ends in Adventureland, which has several attractions based on exotic locales.

• Enchanted Tiki Room Under New Management -- Originally based on an attraction at Disneyland, this show was updated a few years ago to include Iago from "Aladdin" and Zazu from "The Lion King." They take over the establishment and lead a set of animated birds in a lively musical show.

• Swiss Family Treehouse -- You can climb up into the treehouse from the movie "Swiss Family Robinson." There's no show here, just a climbing and exploration spot.

• Magic Carpets of Aladdin -- Another ride like Dumbo and the Astro Orbiters, but based on the flying carpet from "Aladdin."

• Jungle Cruise (Fastpass) -- Board an African riverboat and travel slowly through exotic rivers, being "threatened" along the way by hungry hippos and angry elephants.

• Pirates of the Caribbean -- Very popular, especially after the recent hit movie based on the ride. You take a boat ride through scenes of a pirate ship battle and of pirates looting a town while singing their "Yo Ho, Yo Ho" song.

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C. Epcot

Epcot (originally called Epcot Center) was opened in 1982. It's like a constantly-updated world's fair, with the Future World section focusing on science and technology, and the World Showcase section focusing on world harmony. As you enter the park you'll be facing South and directly in front of you will be Spaceship Earth, the gigantic geodetic globe that is the icon of Epcot. The Future World attractions are arranged in two semicircles on either side of Spaceship Earth, with World Showcase beyond the globe and across a man-made lagoon. As with the Magic Kingdom, the best way to see all of the attractions is to divide your touring into two days: one for Future World and the second for World Showcase. But you can see most of the attractions in one day if you stay into the night. In this case, devote the daytime to the Future World attractions (which open and close earlier in the day) and then spend the evening sampling the attractions, shopping, and the Illuminations fireworks show at World Showcase.

1. Future World: Future World is located on the near side of the central lake and includes the Spaceship Earth globe and a series of buildings located on either side of it.

• Spaceship Earth -- There's a ride inside the globe called Spaceship Earth that takes you on a short journey through the history of communications, from the days of cavemen to the future of the internet.

• Innoventions -- Immediately past Spaceship Earth are two semi-circular buildings which hold science and technology exhibits on a rotating basis. As of December 2004, Innoventions West had an exhibit called Where's the Fire and Innoventions East had an exhibit called Fantastic Plastics Works.

• Universe of Energy -- On the left (or East) side of Spaceship Earth, there are four main buildings. The attraction at the Energy pavilion, which is closest to the park entrance, is Ellen's Energy Adventure. This is a combination of a movie about energy conservation starring Ellen Degeneris and Bill Nye "the Science Guy" and a ride through a prehistoric landscape complete with life-sized dinosaurs. This part of the ride is very dark and very loud, so it might be frightening to youngsters.

• Wonders of Life -- This pavilion is now rarely open, and then, only during very busy seasons. The pavilion has two main attractions. Body Wars uses flight simulator technology to take you on a trip through the human body. It's very interesting, but is a very jerky ride. Cranium Command is a tamer and funnier look inside the head of a 12-year old boy and how his brain controls other parts of his body. The pavilion also has a number of hands-on health and fitness related exhibits, including a short movie called Goofy About Health and another movie called The Making of Me.

• Mission: Space (Fastpass) -- This is the newest attraction at Epcot, and it's really awesome. Using a combination of centrifuge and flight simulator technology, it takes you on a trip to Mars, from launch from Earth to a crash landing on Mars. Several times during the ride you're subjected to G-forces of up to 2.5 Gs. They warn you to keep your head straight ahead, not look to your side, and not close your eyes during the ride to avoid becoming motion sick. But I've read of some people still becoming nauseous from the ride. I didn't have any problem, although I sometimes suffer from vertigo back home. This is very popular and very busy most of the day. In early 2006, Disney started operating two versions of Mission: Space -- one with the spinning motion that creates the G-forces and the other without the spinning.The non-spinning version is preferred by people with any doubts about whether they'll become motion sick on the original version.

• Test Track (Fastpass & Ride Photo) -- Here you ride in 6-passenger vehicles in a simulation of the types of tests (hill climb, bumpy road, sharp turns, emergency braking, hot and cold environment) that new cars are subjected to. The ride ends with a 60 mph run around the outside of the building on a track that's banked about 30 degrees. It's a big rush! Of course, this one is also very popular and always busy.

• The Seas with Nemo and Friends -- There are three main buildings on the right (or West) side of Spaceship Earth. The one closest to the park entrance is The Seas with Nemo and Friends (formerly The Living Seas) pavilion. This takes you on a trip to the undersea work of the animated movie Finding Nemo. Through computer and other technology, Nemo and other undersea characters from the movie are projected into the six million gallon sea water tank that is the home of over 2,000 real life sea creatures, from dolphins and sharks, to sting rays, to fish of all sizes. A variety of educational exhibits themed on the "Finding Nemo" movie were also added. One of the most interesting is Turtle Talk, which allows the audience to interact in real-time with Crush, the computer-animated turtle from the movie. Crush responds directly to questions and calls upon members of the audience by their physical characteristics or the color of their clothes. The level of interactivity is really remarkable.

• The Land -- Next up is the Land pavilion. Obviously, the emphasis here is on agriculture and conservation. The main attraction is Living with the Land, a boat ride through a hydroponics farm. This boat ride is very popular. There's also Circle of Life, a movie with Simba, Timon, and Pumba from "The Lion King" about conservation and the potential for ecological disaster. A new attraction called Soaring (Fastpass) was opened in 2005. This ride simulates a gentle hang glider flight over various California landmarks. It's a very popular ride, so using Fastpass is usually a must..

• Imagination -- The Imagination pavilion has two main attractions. Journey into Imagination is a slow ride that explores the concept of the imagination. At the end of the ride there's an area called Image Works with a lot of fun and educational hands-on exhibits. The other big attraction is Honey, I Shrunk the Audience (Fastpass), a 3D movie based on the movie "Honey, I Shrunk the Kids."

2. World Showcase: The country pavilions for World Showcase are arranged in a circle around the lagoon that's on the far side of the Spaceship Earth globe. All of the countries have shopping and eating establishments and offer live entertainment out in front (remember to check the show schedule card). The first two countries, if you start at the left (or East) side of the lagoon, are Mexico and Norway. These are the only two that have rides. Continuing around, you'll come to China (movie), Germany, Italy, American Adventure (multimedia show), Japan, Morocco, France (movie), United Kingdom, and Canada (movie). I'm only going to describe the Mexico, Norway, and American Adventure attractions in detail.

• Mexico -- El Rio del Tiempo is a boat ride that's very similar to It's a Small World in the Magic Kingdom, except that the theme is obviously on the Mexican culture.

• Norway -- Maelstrom (Fastpass) is also a boat ride, but darker and potentially more frightening to small children. There are encounters with trolls, polar bears, and a couple of small drops over water falls. The attraction ends with a short movie about Norway.

• American Adventure -- This is a combination movie and animatronics presentation that is a very moving, patriotic look at the history of the United States. I highly recommend it, although some children might find it a bit boring. Another plus is that the huge theater takes in a large crowd for each show and it's always nice and cool (good to rest up from the afternoon heat). Before the main show, an acapella group (either Voices of Liberty or America Vybe) performs a few songs in the first floor rotunda before you're guided up to the second floor theater.

• Illuminations -- Illuminations is a fireworks and laser show that is presented every night at Epcot. It can be viewed from just about anywhere around the World Showcase lagoon, but our favorite spots are near the center of the Spaceship Earth side of the lagoon or at the water's edge in front of the Germany pavilion. The theme of the presentation and music is one of world peace and it's an exciting presentation. Try not to miss it.

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D. Disney-MGM Studios

Disney-MGM Studios was opened in 1989. The whole theme of this park is "the movies." The only problem is that the park's layout is somewhat helter skelter, so it's easy to get lost. As you enter, you're on Hollywood Boulevard, which is lined by art deco stores. Hollywood Boulevard faces South, and leads right down the middle of Disney-MGM Studios towards a huge replica of Mickey's blue Sorcerer's Apprentice hat. Under the hat you'll find information and souvenir kiosks. The hat is located in a circular central plaza, and directly behind the hat is a replica of the Mann's Chinese Theater in Hollywood. The other areas of the park branch out from this central plaza, but they don't have specific names (like Fantasyland or Tomorrowland). So, I'll refer to them by the names of the main walkways through each area. That's the way you'll find the park map labeled. If you get an early start, use Fastpass, and stay into the evening hours, you should easily be able to cover the entire Disney-MGM Studios in one day.

1. Sunset Boulevard: When you're about halfway down Hollywood Boulevard as you're entering the park, you'll see a main street branch off to the right (or West) side. This is Sunset Boulevard, which is the location of four of the most popular attractions at Disney-MGM Studios -- Hollywood Tower of Terror, Rock ‘n' Roller Coaster, Beauty and the Beast stage show, and the night-time Fantasmic fireworks show.

• Beauty and the Beast Stage Show -- This is a very well produced and presented musical production based on the animated movie "Beauty and the Best." The music is lively and it's popular with visitors of all ages. A "must see" in my book.

• Hollywood Tower of Terror (Fastpass & Ride Photo) -- This is a high intensity thrill ride that uses a back story from the "Twilight Zone" TV show to subject you to successive rises and drops in a runaway elevator. The ride is programmed to be random, so you never know how many drops you'll be subjected to.

• Rock ‘n' Roller Coaster (Fastpass) -- This is an intense roller coaster that blasts you away from the start at almost 60 mph and twists you upside down, mostly in the dark and to the music of Aerosmith. As you might expect, this ride and Tower of Terror are both extremely popular.

• Fantasmic -- This is presented at night (twice during busy seasons) and features Mickey trying to ward off the evil witch and other villains who enter his dreams. By using water effects, fireworks, lasers, and live action elements, Disney-MGM Studios presents that I think is one of the best night-time shows in all of Disney World. The soundtrack and fireworks can be loud, but I again highly recommend this show. To get a good seat, plan to arrive about an hour before showtime. It's best to sit as close to the center of the arena as possible, but not down in front because the wind blows a mist from the water effects into the audience. While waiting for the show to start, expect the audience to start a human wave going back and forth. With over 1,000 people exiting the amphitheater after the show, it can become a madhouse. So, it's actually a good idea to just stay back until most people have cleared out.

2. Hollywood Boulevard: As I mentioned before, Hollywood Boulevard ends at Mickey's Sorcerer's Hat. Behind that, you'll find the Mann's Chinese Theater, with many celebrity hand prints and autographs in the concrete walkway. A fun ride into the movies is located inside the Theater.

• The Great Movie Ride -- Once you take your seat in the large moving vehicle, you begin a slow trip through scenes from popular movies, ranging from the "Wizard of Oz" and "Mary Poppins" to "Casa Blanca" to John Wayne westerns to James Cagney gangster films to the "Alien" scifi thriller, and much more. Some of the scenes might be a bit scary, but they pass quickly and overall it's a fun ride. There's a nice movie at the end showing clips from many famous films.

• Stars and Motorcars Parade -- Around 2:00 to 3:00 each afternoon the Stars and Motorcars Parade heads out of the Echo Lake area (to the left side of the Sorcerer's Hat) and down Hollywood Boulevard. The parade features popular Disney movie characters riding in cars that were modified to be themed to their occupants.

3. Animation Courtyard: If you stand on Hollywood Boulevard facing Mickey's Sorcerer's Hat, on the right (or West) side of the hat you'll see a green and gold colored arch. Go through this arch for the Animation Courtyard and Mickey Avenue attractions.

• Magic of Disney Animation -- This is a tour highlighting the history of Disney animation. The tour used to include a backstage walk-through of actual working studios where such films as "Mulan" and "Lilo and Stitch" were made. But the studio is no longer in operation (all consolidated in California). Now the tour begins with a host who will discuss (with help from Mushu, the dragon from "Mulan") how different Disney characters were developed and animated. Then you'll pass through a small gallery with art and clay figurines from recent Disney animated movies, followed by an opportunity to meet The Incredibles. This is followed by an area with many hands-on exhibits where you can do such things as record yourself saying dialogue or singing songs from animated movies, and comparing your personality to that of some Disney heroes and/or villains. Lastly, in an area called the Animation Institute, you can actually try your hand at sketching Disney characters, with help from an animator.

• Playhouse Disney - Live on Stage -- If you're a fan of Playhouse Disney on the Disney Channel, don't miss this live show that features characters from "Bear in the Big Blue House," "Rolie Polie Olie," "Stanley," and the "Book of Pooh."

• Voyage of the Little Mermaid (Fastpass) -- By using special lighting and laser effects, Disney manages to make you feel like you're actually under water for this shortened telling of the story of "The Little Mermaid." It's really a treat to see and hear the characters sing all the great songs from that film.

4. Mickey Avenue: The alleyway off to the left of the Magic of Disney Animation building is known as Mickey Avenue. Here you'll find what look like movie soundstages, which actually house a number of different attractions.

• Walt Disney: One Man's Dream -- This is a presentation on the life and achievements of Walt Disney that includes many photos and models from Disney history and a great (but too short) movie on Walt Disney's life.

• Monsters, Inc. Midway Madness (possible Fastpass) -- The popular Who Wants to Be a Millionaire - Play It! game show was closed in early 2006 to make room for a new interactive ride that is scheduled to open in 2008. The new ride, like Buzz Lightyear's Space Ranger Spin at the Magic Kingdom, will allow riders to shoot at targets to rack up points. However, the technology of this new ride is supposed to be on a level way above that used on the Buzz Lightyear ride.

• Studios Backlot Tour -- This is a combination of a walking tour that shows how different types of special effects are produced for movies and a riding tram tour of the backstage areas of the park that includes a visit to Catastrophe Canyon.

• Lights, Motors, Action! (Fastpass) -- This new action stunt show is a fast-paced presentation on how auto stunt scenes are created for the movies. Professional drivers put cars and motorcycles through a series of incredible chase scenes, jumps, and other automotive stunts.

5. Echo Lake and New York Street: If you were to go back to your starting point in front of Mickey's Sorcerer's Hat and take the walkway to the left (or East) side, you would be in the Echo Lake/New York Street section of Disney Studios. There are five attractions back in this area. (By the way, New York Street has been remodeled to become Big City Street, with sections representing New York, Chicago, and San Francisco.)

• Indiana Jones Stunt Spectacular (Fastpass) -- This show is presented as a demonstration of how certain scenes in the first Indiana Jones movie were staged. It's a lot of fun, but there are loud and fiery explosions during the show, so be warned.

• Sounds Dangerous with Drew Carey -- This is an unusual presentation where you sit in a completely dark theater and use your imagination to picture what Drew is up to during an undercover mission just by listening to the sounds. Definitely not for children who are afraid of the dark.

• Star Tours (Fastpass) -- Next up is Star Tours, which uses flight simulator technology to take you on a wild ride into space and into the trenches of the Death Star. It's a lot of fun, but might be too rough a ride for very young children.

• Muppet*Vision 3D (Fastpass) -- Another 3D movie, this is one based on the ever-popular Muppets. There are a couple places where it gets a bit noisy, but overall this should be okay for most children.

• Honey, I Shrunk the Kids Studio Set -- This is a playground, based on the movie, where all the props are oversized to simulate a "shrunken" feeling for the kids.

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E. Animal Kingdom

The Animal Kingdom park was opened in 1998 and, as you might imagine, is the largest of the parks in terms of acreage. The 50-foot tall Tree of Life, the park's icon, is located on Discovery Island (formerly called Safari Village) and right in the center of the park. The entrance walkway leads to Discovery Island, and the other areas of the park branch out in different directions away from Discovery Islands. As you enter the park, you'll be facing North and, after you pass through a lush area called The Oasis, you'll see the Tree of Life directly in front of you. Animal Kingdom usually closes shortly before sunset. But if you get an early start and use Fastpass, you should have no trouble seeing everything in one day.

1. Discovery Island (formerly Safari Village): Discovery Island has three attractions, with one of them actually located inside the Tree of Life. If you take a close look at the tree itself, you'll notice that hundreds of animal characters have been carved into the tree's trunk. Incidentally, the Tree of Life is actually a building, not a live tree.

• It's Tough to Be a Bug (Fastpass) -- This 3D movie is based on the movie "A Bug's Life" and is presented in a theater constructed inside the base of the Tree of Life. People who are deathly afraid of insects might want to avoid this presentation, since they're everywhere. Most are friendly and fun, but Hopper the grasshopper from "A Bug's Life" makes a noisy entrance and threatens the audience at one point in the show. The theater can fill up quickly.

• Discovery Island Trails -- These are lush nature trails around Discovery Island. Many water birds, including pink flamingoes can be found here.

• Mickey's Jammin' Jungle Parade -- Every afternoon around 4:00, Rafiki, the familiar mandrill ape from "The Lion King," leads a colorful and lively parade around the park. Mickey and Minnie ride their safari vehicles dressed in safari gear and are joined by other characters jammin' to the lively African-inspired music.

2. Camp Minnie-Mickey: Once you're on Discovery Island, the first trail on the left (or West) side leads to Camp Minnie-Mickey. This area has special locations where many of the Disney characters can be met. There are also two attractions here.

• Festival of the Lion King -- This is a musical and acrobatic stage show presented in a theater in the round. Pumba and Timon are your guides through a fun-filled mixture of acrobatics and music from "The Lion King." Definitely fun for all ages.

• Pocahontas and Her Forest Friends -- This is a short show where Pocahontas presents interesting facts about small forest creatures. Of course, the animals themselves are the real stars of the show.

3. Africa: The second trail on the left (or West) side of Discovery Island leads to the Africa section of Animal Kingdom park. As the name implies, it's themed after an African village and focuses on wildlife commonly found in Africa. There are three main attractions here.

• Kilimanjaro Safari (Fastpass) -- This is perhaps the signature ride of Animal Kingdom park. You join other visitors on a safari bus for a ride through the heart of the park's wilderness areas to see the animals in their natural habitats. Depending on the time of day, you'll get to see elephants, rhinoceros, hippos, giraffes, zebras, wildebeests, ostriches, and even lions and cheetahs. This is the park's most popular attraction.

• Pangani Forest Exploration Trail -- This is a walking tour of other wildlife viewing areas. The big highlight here is a family of gorillas who are often right out in the open looking at you as curiously as you're looking at them.

• Rafiki's Planet Watch -- You ride a replica of an African village train to the backstage areas of Animal Kingdom, where you get to see exhibits about wildlife conservation, visit a petting zoo, and observe the goings on inside Animal Kingdom's veterinary facilities.

4. Dinoland USA: The first trail on the right (or East) side of Discovery Island takes you to Dinoland USA, which is a combination of reality-based and whimsical attractions mostly about dinosaurs.

• Dinosaur (Fastpass & Ride Photo) -- This is a wild thrill ride into the past to save a dinosaur from extinction. The ride vehicles sway and swerve and buck, making for a very rough ride, and the majority of it is in the dark. Plus, you get real close and personal with life-sized replicas of dinosaurs.

• Chester and Hester's Dino-Rama -- This is like a gaudy (very colorful) carnival, complete with a couple of wild roller coaster-type rides -- Primeval Whirl and Triceratops Spin -- and a lot of midway games. This are is geared more for the younger crowd.

• The Boneyard -- Lastly, the Boneyard is a playground for the small ones that's themed like a dinosaur dig.

5. Asia: The second trail on the right (or East) side of Discovery Island leads to the Asia section. This is themed after an Asian jungle setting and has four attractions, with a fifth under construction.

• Finding Nemo: The Musical -- The Tarzan Rocks show was closed in early 2006 and moved to Tokyo Disneyland. In it's place is a fun-filled musical show based on the animated movie "Finding Nemo." Through special lighting effects, the undersea characters come to life in the form of puppets manipulated by human actors who also participate in the show. In early preview showings, the production has earned rave reviews.

• Maharajah Jungle Trek -- This walking tour takes you through wildlife viewing areas that include a bat cave (if you choose to go in) and an area where you can few beautiful Asian tigers up close and personal without endangering your life.

• Flights of Wonder -- This is an entertaining show that presents some common and many exotic birds doing what they do out in the wild, but on cue from their trainers. Watch out as the hawk flies low over the audience. Definitely a must for everyone.

• Kali River Rapids (Fastpass) -- This is a simulation of a rafting trip down the white water rapids of an Asian river. Be warned that you WILL get soaked on this ride. So, plan to bring either rain ponchos or a change of clothes for everyone.

• Expedition Everest (Fastpass) -- The newest attraction in Asia, is a roller coaster ride based on the idea of an expedition into the Himalayas meeting up with the abominable snowman. The thrill ride was opened in early 2006 to huge crowds of enthusiastic riders.

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III. Conclusion

For more information about Walt Disney World and other major attractions in the Orlando, Florida area (including Universal Orlando, Sea World, and the Kennedy Space Center), I recommend several guidebooks: Birnbaum's Official Guide (several different editions are available including a version for travelers without children and one specifically for children), The Unofficial Guide (which includes detailed plans for touring each theme park), The Passporter Guide (which includes pages to record travel schedules, trip expenses, and so on), and Fodor's Guide (which is a good overall guide that includes reviews of almost all of the hotels, restaurants, and attractions in and around Orlando). I also recommend visits to these internet web sites for more up-to-date information than presented in the published guidebooks: www.disneyworld.com (the official Disney World web site, where you can actually make your hotel reservations and purchase park tickets), www.mouseplanet.com (for weekly park updates, published every Monday, plus daily informative articles, and trip reports from Disney park visitors), www.allearsnet.com (for a detailed online guide to Disney World, including actual restaurant menus). For information on non-Disney attractions in the Orlando area, I recommend: www.universalorlando.com, www.seaworldorlando.com, and www.kennedyspacecenter.com. Lastly, you can find my own photo tours of Walt Disney World and recent narrative trip reports starting at: www.sandcastlevi.com/travel/disney/intro.htm.

Updated: November 2006

To Table of Contents ^

| Home | Intro | Ventures | Sea | Air | Space | SciFi | Racing | Movies | Art | Travel | Exit |

| Intro | Magic Kingdom | Epcot Center | Disney Studios | Animal Kingdom |
| Water Parks | Downtown Disney | Resorts | All the Rest |

Last Updated: November 10, 2006