T.G.I.F. Pic Of The Week – Dining In Paradise At Disney’s Aulani Resort

I have written about Aulani before – it’s Disney’s Resort and Spa located in beautifully tropical Hawaii, and it is a place I would LOVE to go with my husband – and we are hoping to make it there for our 10 year wedding anniversary (which gives us 6 years to save up and plan for it!)

If you’re considering going, then I think you’re making a SUPER smart choice – beautiful views, clear water, plenty of activities for everyone of all ages, and then there’s the FOOD – you won’t want to miss all that they have to offer in that department either…

Off The Hook is an open air lounge that’s located right on the beach, and they serve up plenty of tropical drinks, as well as an assortment of fresh appetizers like shrimp cocktail and beef sliders

If you’re a fan of buffet dining, then you’ll want to check out Makahiki-The Bounty Of The Islands – where you can join your favorite Disney characters for breakfast, and enjoy a peaceful delicious dinner of seafood and asian inspired entrees

If you’re looking for more of a gourmet experience, then Ama Ama is the place for you – contemporary Hawaiian dishes are served up here (with an oceanside view of course!) for breakfast, lunch, and dinner – oh, and they make all their own desserts fresh in-house daily

Or let’s say you are in a hurry or just looking for a quick snack to tide you over – then might I recommend you check out some of the Aulani Quick Service Dining Options – which include traditional Hawaiian shaved ice, hot dogs/chicken tenders, salads, pretzels and more!

Aulani has it all – a full service spa, amazing rooms and service, plenty of activities to keep you and your family busy and happy, amazing ocean views, and some pretty awesome FOOD too! Hope you get a chance to visit this amazing vacation spot someday and that you get to indulge in all the amazing cuisine they have to offer!

TGIF

 

Top Five Ways We Will Be Cutting Costs On Our Next WDW Trip

My husband and I are expecting a baby in October – which is SUPER exciting and amazing – and we can’t wait to be able to take the little guy to Disney in hopes that he loves it as much as we do! However – since that is likely several years away, we have been talking about a vacation he and I might take just the two of us in a year or so – we are hoping to go to Disney (again, of course, what did you expect?!), but we know that money will be MUCH tighter with a baby to take care of, so I have been brainstorming and have come up with these top five money saving tips that we will be using on our next trip:

Pack Our Own Supplies: You can buy almost everything you could need at Walt Disney World – but it comes at a price, and I don’t know about you, but spending $18 on a bottle of sunscreen (that costs $8 at home) – doesn’t exactly thrill me – its not the best souvenir ever, that’s for sure. So we like to make sure we think ahead and pack stuff we know we will need: sunscreen (in small TSA approved bottles since we don’t like to check luggage!), ponchos, extra camera batteries and phone/tablet chargers, and another big one is medicine – I like to travel with a little mobile medicine cabinet – advil, tylenol, tums, NyQuil, and band-aids/neosporin are some things you might want to consider including in your “take to the Parks” bag – you’ll be glad you did, trust me!

Bring Food From Home: We like to pack snacks to help keep us tided over between meals – things that are easy to eat on the go work best – like granola bars, small packages of nuts/pretzels/trail mix, dried fruit, gum (not really a snack, but you won’t find it for sale at any WDW stores so best to pack your own!), water bottles – which we like to fill and freeze using our room fridge (perfect for those long hot days at the Parks), and most important of all – breakfast! It might seem strange to pack breakfast in your suitcase for the whole vacation, but its such a money and time saver – apples, bagels, peanut butter, fruit cups, cereal – these are items we have found to work the best over the years – you can usually purchase some small variety of these and some perishable items like milk, fruit, etc at your WDW Resort gift shop to supplement what you brought – and while the prices are high, they are still cheaper than a Disney breakfast (which can cost around $8-$15 a person – yikes!)

Share Meals: Being that we are a party of 2 adult travelers (for now, until our son is old enough to come with us!), we are lucky in that it’s easy for us to split meals – and many Disney meals and snacks are large enough to allow for this. Most meals include an entrée and a side, and then sharing a drink helps save money too – check out this article for more sharing ideas

Skip The Dining Plan: This might seem like a strange one – as the dining plan is hugely convenient, being that you pay for it before you even arrive and then just swipe your Magic Band when it comes time to pay, and you’re done! But – it isn’t always cost effective, especially if you have people in your party who aren’t big eaters or who can share most larger meals. This time around, we will be skipping the upfront cost (which is a BIG savings), and bringing our own breakfast, sharing lunch, and then splurging on 1 or 2 nicer sit down dinners – which will save us a lot in the long run (and still allow us to sneak in a few character meals too, which is imperative!)

Souvenirs: Disney souvenirs are pricey. Amazing, but pricey. I usually make myself a budget before I leave for any WDW trip regarding what souvenirs I want and how much they are and which ones I really want versus which ones aren’t really necessary. I do this by using the DisneyStore.com website to estimate prices and see what items might be available for me to buy at Disney. I mean – in reality, no one needs more than 1 or 2 souvenirs, and I always have loved trip photos so much that they end up being my favorite souvenir each and every time – a great way to relive the memories for years to come. So stick to 1 or 2 small things per person (and make that clear to the kids before you leave!) and then make sure you take tons of pictures – those are the most cherished souvenir anyway (in my opinion that is!)

You might have noticed that the majority of these money saving tips involve FOOD – and it’s not because we want to deprive ourselves of all the amazing Disney Dining options – but rather because the cost of dining at Disney is HIGH – meals are expensive, and yes the food is amazing – but it adds up quickly, especially if you are paying out of pocket for your whole party for every meal

Check out more money saving ideas here, and hopefully you will be able to make a WDW trip an affordable reality soon for your family!

T.G.I.F. Pic Of The Week – Enjoy Some 100 Acre Wood Fun In The Magic Kingdom

 

As a kid, I REALLY loved Winnie The Pooh – so much so that I wore out the video tapes (yeah, videos – you remember, the ancestor to the blu-ray?). Luckily for me, I can get my Winnie the Pooh fix right at the Magic Kingdom as there’s a ride and restaurant just for us 100 Acre Wood Fanatics!

The Crystal Palace is a buffet that serves up breakfast, lunch, and dinner daily – with a side helping of characters of course! Pooh, Tigger, Piglet and Eeyore circulate and hand out hugs and autographs and pose for pictures while you get to enjoy the delicious buffet! Check out my breakfast review on the Disney Food Blog for more details

Then once you are full from your delicious Crystal Palace eats, I suggest you head over to The Many Adventures Of Winnie The Pooh ride (don’t worry, it is safe to ride on a full stomach – and kid friendly too!) – where you travel through the classic Winnie The Pooh stories (blustery day and Heffelumps anyone?) while riding in an adorable honey pot

Oh – but don’t be sad once the ride is over! As there is of course a gift shop where you can bring home your very own Eeyore or other cuddly Pooh character!

TGIF!

Planning 101: Packing For Disney

 

I love all aspects of planning when it comes to my Walt Disney World vacation – from Itinerary making to dining reservations to reading guidebooks and blogs and websites, and I even love PACKING – making a list and checking it twice really makes me feel like I am ready to take on the World (the DISNEY World that is!)

So what are the Top 5 MUST PACK Items on my list?

A Filtered Water Bottle: I bring one of those Brita water bottles with me to Disney – not because I’m someone who will only drink filtered water – but because the water at Disney does NOT taste great – filtering helps make it more palatable, plus I don’t want to pay $3 for a bottled beverage every time I get thirsty (which is pretty much all the time while walking all day in the Florida heat!)

Ziploc Baggies: When they say “Caution, You May Get Wet!” while you’re waiting in line at Splash Mountain – they aren’t kidding! I prepare for this and other “wet” rides by carrying Ziploc baggies in several sizes in my bag that I bring along to the Parks – when getting on a potentially wet ride, I stash my cell phone, wallet, and camera in sealed baggies – it works perfectly! This is also a must because it rains a LOT in Florida – like daily showers in the summer, so you will definitely want to be prepared for that

Ponchos: Like the baggies, they are a must have for the ever-changing Florida weather – I picked up some cheap ones at the dollar store, or nicer ones are available at Target/Wal-Mart. You can buy them in the Parks too, but they are more expensive and not all stores carry them – so I prefer to be prepared and bring my own

Sneakers: Yes, it tends to be warm in Orlando Florida, but does that mean I just toss some flip flops in my suitcase and go? HECK NO! You can’t expect to last all day on your feet in flip flops or regular flat sandals – you will be in a LOT of pain and as dorky as sneakers with socks paired with shorts may sometimes look, packing comfortable walking shoes is an absolute must (trust me, I learned this one the hard way!)

Medications: I always make sure I have all my prescriptions refilled and that I have enough to get through my trip a few weeks before I go, but aside from that, I also like to pack a little “mobile pharmacy” – band-aids and neosporin, Tylenol, Sudafed, cough drops, Airborne, Day-Quil and Ny-Quil, Tums and Pepto Bismol, and Kleenex packs are the main items I always carry with me on vacation – some of these are available at shops within the Disney Parks and Resorts, but they are costly, and they don’t always carry what you need – and getting to a CVS or Walgreen’s off property without a car can be a pain for sure – so be safe and bring these items along with you – you probably won’t need them, but if you do, trust me – you’ll be glad you packed them!

These are the most important items on my packing list – there are obviously other essentials – cash, cell phone charger, extra underwear and socks, snacks, etc – they are all important in helping keep you happy while visiting the Happiest Place On Earth!

T.G.I.F. Pic Of The Week – “Cheers” To A Disney Happy Hour!

Walt Disney World is a GREAT place for adults to vacation, and one of the things that only the 21 and over crowd can enjoy there is the huge variety of alcoholic beverages available on menus all around the Disney “World”

Here are a few of our faves:

 

 The beer list at Raglan Road Irish Pub is long, and full of delicious options!

Or head over to Big River Brewing Company – where the beer is brewed on site!

Boma has a great selection of whiskey drinks – a few of which my family and I have sampled and really enjoyed!

 

So cheers to Disney, Friday, and good times! TGIF!

“My Disney Experience” Makes WDW Planning Easy And Fun!

I am a planner. It’s in my blood. I can’t help it. I like to be organized, and to have itineraries and lists and all that jazz – especially when it comes to vacations. And now – thanks to the “My Disney Experience” app and website – planning for Walt Disney World trips has gotten much easier – and more fun!

 

The website allows you to create a profile (complete with a Disney Character pic to complement your personality!) and once you are setup, you can link your Resort reservations, as well as Dining ADR’s, and you can even add which fireworks shows and parades you want to see, as well as fastpass+ reservations

I have been playing around with it for about a week now, and It’s pretty cool – It pulls up a calendar style list of your daily dining/faspasses/shows, and you can add other people to it or share plans with other Disney fans

I also have the app on my iphone – and it is also easy to use, and the information I save on the online website easily transfers to the app and is immediately available for viewing

I suggest you check it out – it can help you organize your trip, plus it is something you can do to get excited about the fact that you’re DISNEY BOUND!