T.G.I.F. Pic Of The Week: “Larger Than Life” Fun Awaits You At The WDW Value Resorts

There are tons of places to stay in and around Walt Disney World – and when it comes to narrowing it down to which one I want to book, I have to say I am partial to the Value Resorts – not only are they the most wallet-friendly (as the name implies!), but they are also really great places to spend some time with your family too – they are all intricately themed, and the décor is really enjoyable too. Check out some of the BIG FUN that awaits you at the WDW Value Resorts:

 

Now I realize that not everyone is into giant Mr Potato Heads or Mickey Mouse pool fountains, but I think they are great, and I can bet your kids would love them – so why not save some money and stay someplace fun and family friendly like the WDW Value Resorts? I have stayed at them all, and loved every one!

TGIF

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Landscape Of Flavors Offers Delicious Fresh Menu Options For All!

My family and I were lucky enough to get to travel to Walt Disney World last month for Christmas, and even luckier still to get to stay in the NEWEST Disney Resort – The Art of Animation Resort. Let me tell you, this place did NOT disappoint, the Little Mermaid/Finding Nemo/Lion King/Cars themes were awesome, the service was great as usual, and probably the best thing about the Resort is its Landscape of Flavors Food Court – which offers up tons of great and unique menu options. Here’s a rundown of what you can expect to find here:

Breakfast: Omelete station, pancakes, Mickey Waffles, French toast, make your own yogurt/fruit/granola parfait, breakfast sandwiches (like this “steak” sandwich, and the chicken sausage sandwich!) breakfast platters (both American AND Mongolian!), and tons of bakery and packaged choices (fruits, yogurts, etc)

Lunch/Dinner: Create your own salad station (a personal favorite of mine!), Mongolian grill, hamburgers/sandwiches, pizza/pasta (and cheesy pesto bread yum!), plus packaged items like salads, sandwiches, and sushi

Desserts: There’s a bakery case that was offering some delicious seasonal options while we were there – sugar free cranberry apple pie, Pecan pumpkin tart, Gingerbread cookies, and then there were also cupcakes and other cookies, and then there’s the gelato station – serving up tons of great flavors (including seasonal ones like peppermint and pumpkin!). Or you can go a bit healthier and have a fruit smoothie whipped up just the way you like it (strawberry/banana/mango comes to mind? Yum!)

Drinks: They offer the standard Coca Cola soda machines (which offer Sprite Zero in addition to Diet Coke and light lemonade, which I was glad to see!), as well as plenty of bottled choices: waters, Gatorade/Vitamin water, smoothies, juices, and a decent selection of beer and wine too (available by the single serving, or full size bottles/six packs are available too!)

Our personal favorites from the Landscape of Flavors? It’s REALLY a tough call, but for me personally it had to be the Pumpkin Pecan Tart (which I got multiple times!) and I know my parents really loved the Cranberry Apple Pie, and my husband loved the Mongolian Sausage plate – which was delicious sausage served with rice, two sides, and fresh naan bread

We will definitely be staying here again, partly (ok, largely!) due to how amazing the food was! I would highly recommend the Resort (and its food!) to anyone and everyone!

T.G.I.F. Pic Of The Week – The Little Mermaid Makes A Splash At WDW’s Newest Resort

I know I have talked about the new Art Of Animation Resort before, and I honestly can’t stop saying enough good things about it! It’s Walt Disney World’s newest Value Level Resort, and it has been opening in phases, the Finding Nemo, Lion King, and Cars themed areas have already opened, and as of tomorrow, September 15th, the 4th and final phase of the Resort will be open to the public – the Little Mermaid area! This area is the only area comprised of standard rooms – the other 3 areas of the Resort are comprised of family suites.

I personally am VERY excited to stay here, in the Little Mermaid area, as I love the movie and am thrilled about the whole theming of this new Resort!

Today is also a special day in my book – it is exactly 1 year from today that I will be heading back to WDW! My husband and I will be staying at the Art of Animation Resort, and can’t wait to get that “Under The Sea” feeling these new rooms are sure to deliver! Check out more on this Resort at Disney’s Art Of Animation Page
TGIF!

Happy 2013 Vacation Package Day!

In case you didn’t know, today is a very glorious day in the world of Walt Disney World vacation planners – Disney released their 2013 vacation packages today – and I know I personally can’t wait to book our trip for Sepember 2013. We are going to stay at the brand new Art of Animation Resort, and can’t wait to try the brand new Be Our Guest Restaurant inside the brand new Beast’s Castle, inside the brand new Fantasyland …. wow that’s a lot of new stuff!

Disney is really working hard to make the guest experience even better, so now is really a good time to think about Booking A Trip to Walt Disney World!

Happy Planning!

T.G.I.F. Pic Of The Week – Disney Brings Art To Life At It’s New Resort

Disney is always striving to improve their guest’s vacation experience, and one way they do this is by opening new Resorts for guests to enjoy. Their newest resort, the Art of Animation Resort, will be opening in phases, starting with family suites later this month and by the end of 2012 all rooms will be open. The rooms will be themed after famous Disney movies: Cars, The Little Mermaid, Finding Nemo, and The Lion King

The Kitchen area in a Cars themed Suite

A Standard room – Little Mermaid themed!

The Resort’s Main Pool Area

I think one reason people adults may initially dismiss the Value Resorts is that they are kind of tacky, with their giant decor everywhere, and they seem more for families than for adults/couples. This is true to a point, in that they are geared towards families (especially with the family suites being the focus of this new resort), but adults can still enjoy their stay at these resorts – King beds can be requested instead of the standard doubles, and there are many quiet spots to take a stroll at the Value Resorts. Personally, I love them, you can’t beat the price, and the food courts are always serving up delicious eats!

The Food Court at Art Of Animation

I plan on staying at the Art Of Animation Resort next September and I can’t wait! I am excited to see what they did with all the decor and the food court is supposed to be amazing, new and different foods than the other Value food courts

So if you love Cars/Finding Nemo/The Lion King/The Little Mermaid, or if you just love the idea of staying in a brand new Resort, I highly recommend you check out Disney’s Art of Animation Resort!

TGIF!

Quick Pros and Cons – Value Vs. Deluxe Resorts

I have started planning our next trip to Walt Disney World (yay!) for next September 2013. Yeah, it may be a year and a half away, but it gives us time to save up, and really think about how we can make this our best WDW vacation yet!

Disney’s Polynesian Resort

One question that came up immediately was where should we stay? It can be tough to figure out the WDW Resorts (if you need help deciding what level of resort would work best for you, check out my post on the WDW Resort Categories!), and after some intense deliberation, my husband and I narrowed it down to Disney’s classic Polynesian Resort, and Disney’s newest resort, the Art of Animation Resort

The Art of Animation Resort (What it WILL look like!)

Each resort had its pros and cons. The Polynesian Resort is on the monorail line which means the Disney Magic is just a short ride away, and it’s a beautiful tropical paradise where Hawaiian music plays and a fireworks viewing from their beach is an amazing end to any evening. Its main drawbacks for us were that they didn’t offer any regular rooms with king beds (just 2 queens), and the biggest negative about the resort is its cost – the per night room fee was nearly triple that of the Value level resorts, which meant that this paradise would cost us almost $2000 more for a week’s stay than the cheaper Resort options

 
The Art of Animation Resort is brand new (in fact it hasn’t even opened as of yet, the first rooms open later this month!) which means everything from the beds to the toilets will be new too! It is rumored to have a very different menu than the other Value Resorts, plus the bottom line is, it would make our vacation a LOT cheaper. The cons? The only transportation from this resort will be by Disney Bus, which can take a while and you can end up standing on a crowded bus for 20 minutes or more. Also, the rooms are small and aren’t exactly “romantic”, and are designed more for families than for couples like us. Also, with it being brand new, there are really no reviews to go by, so who knows how nice it will be?

The Extremely Kid Friendly Art of Animation Rooms

After weighing all the pros and cons, we have decided to go with the Art of Animation Resort. Between the $2000 savings and the promising food court choices, we are looking forward to experiencing this brand new addition to the Walt Disney World family of resorts. Yes, it will be crowded and loud, and yes we will have to wait for buses every time we want to go somewhere, but in the end, we think it will all be worth it

A typical room at the Polynesian (complete with balcony!)

As for the Polynesian, it really just didn’t make sense to spend THAT much more for a room that we will basically only be sleeping in. It is a beautiful resort, and we hope to someday be able to stay there, and I know there are tons of people out there who won’t stay anywhere else, but for now? We will keep visiting and hoping for our big lottery win, so that someday we can experience all the beauty and amenities a Deluxe Resort like the Polynesian has to offer

 
Most of all, we are just excited to be going to the Happiest Place On Earth!