Click here to see the video of the entire ride through of the newest ride at Walt Disney World!
Full Ride Through of Seven Dwarves Mine Train
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Author Archives: Mouse Ear Momma
Dietary Issues at WDW
I have written about Traveling to Disney with Food allergies, but now it is time to talk about other dietary restrictions. I understand the stress that occurs while planning a vacation when there are medical issues with foods. Where do we eat? Can we bring our own “safe” food? One thing to know is that you can bring in your own cooler with your comfort foods (with some rules attached) or just stuff your backpack and stroller with necessary items.
Bring a Cooler into WDW
Did you know you can bring in a soft sided cooler into the WDW Theme and Water Parks? Yippee! Another way to save money!! It is also a way for those with dietary issues can enjoy without worry.
Here are the official cooler rules:
Theme Parks:
- Coolers must be smaller than 24″L x 15″W x 18″H
- Coolers can be stored in lockers (the above size would fit in the large locker)
- Wheeled coolers are not permitted
- Must be a soft sided cooler
- No glass allowed
- No alcoholic beverages permitted
- No coolers are allowed at Animal Kingdom for the safety of the animals
Water Parks:
- Coolers are permitted, including wheeled coolers
- No glass allowed
- No alcoholic beverages permitted
- No cooler storage is available
- Wagons are not permitted
Some Tips from The Mouse Ear Momma:
- Make sure you inform the security upon entering the park that you have a guest with food allergies/intolerance, diabetes, or metabolic disorder.
- Freeze water bottles and use as ice packs in your cooler
- Remember that Central Florida is steamy (and can be at any point of the year)
- Pack food that will not spoil; avoid lunch meat, dairy products, and anything that will smash or bruise easily (like bananas). Think PB&J, apple juice, squeeze apple sauce, fruit strips.
- Pack small portions; you will want to a quick grab and go pick me ups between rides.
- Don’t forget your Ziploc bags; helpful if you have any leftovers from your stash or a restaurant.
Tomorrowland Terrace Fireworks Dessert Party
There is a wonderful experience to be had at Magic Kingdom. It is not widely known, it is small and intimate (which is a shocker anywhere at WDW), and it is relatively inexpensive (another WDW shock)!
The Tomorrowland Terrace Fireworks Dessert Party!!
Now that I have experienced this twice, I feel like I can write about it for my fellow Disney lovers. This is a great experience to add some magic to your trip. Reservations are difficult to get because it only holds a limited number of guests and they now accept reservations 180 in advance like the other restaurants. It is not on the Disney Dining Plan, so you will be paying out of pocket for the experience. The price is around $22-26 for adults (ages 10 and over) and $12-14 for children 3-9. This does not include tax and can vary depending on the time of year, more expensive during the holiday peak seasons. You will prepay for this when you book and they accept cancellations up to 48 hours in advance.
You are given a time to arrive about an hour before the fireworks – you arrive at 9:05pm for a 10:00 viewing of Wishes. After you check in at the desk and receive your wrist band, you will be shown to your reserved table. This isn’t first come first serve, so it isn’t worth queuing up in a line an hour before your scheduled arrival.
My nieces and nephew enjoying the desserts and view.
Once you are seated, you are welcome to go to the self service, all you can eat dessert buffet in the back of the restaurant. There are 2 stations full of items and drinks in the middle. The buffet includes: tarts with fruit, key lime, apple pie, banana creme, and chocolate peanut butter; Full sized chocolate chip and sugar cookies, Crisped rice treats, Chocolate dipped strawberries, Itty bitty cannolis, tiny cups of cheesecake, chocolate mouse, creme brulee, & tiramisu, mango shooters, build your own sundae station and fresh cut fruit. The little mango shooters are a favorite of my family. The drink options are lemonade, raspberry lemonade, iced tea, milk, coffee and tea.
The desserts on constantly refilled during that hour between your arrival and the fireworks. The cast members come to clear your place on regular basis. My daughter wouldn’t give up her 6 mango shooter cups and straws as a symbol of her triumph.
You can see the Main St. Electrical Parade from this location, but it is definitely from a 
distance. They also pipe in the music for the parade for you to enjoy. The castle light show is very enjoyable but you don’t get the same angle you have from Main St. and the hub.
Glow with the show ears that change with the fireworks!
The most spectacular thing is the flight of Tinkerbell from the Castle to the roof of Tomorrowland Terrace. (Tried and failed to get good pictures of this!).No one in our group believed that this really happened until the live Tinkerbell was directly overhead waving to us.
Overall, this is completely worth the experience. Would I do it every trip? No…but I would as a special surprise or treat for the family. Most of our group of 14 said that this was their favorite experience of the entire trip. I think that $26 per person is worth the experience of the fireworks, all you can eat desserts, NO crowd jostling you around…and Tinkerbell smiling directly at you!
Fastpass +: Your questions answered!
Goodbye my old friend Fastpass…Hello FastPass + and My Disney Experience!
I have to say that I am nostalgic about the old system because most of us frequent WDW visitors had that down to a science. But as of this month, the old fastpass machines at the entrance to the most popular rides are no more! Instead, all guests are now expected to take part in the new My Disney Experience, My Magic+, Magic Bands and FastPass + (FP+) online system.
Things work differently depending if you are staying on property or off site.
This is the same for all guests:
- You select (and can change) your return time for the ride/experience.
- You can only choose 3 FP+ per day
- You can only get your 3 FP+ in one park each day
- FP+ includes character experiences and seating for fireworks & parades
- You can change your FP+ selections at any point, even during your return time(if you get to your ride return and see no line, you can adjust your FP+ at the entrance for a different ride) Continue reading
Everyone loves a Fairy Godmother!
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Love stumbling upon favorite characters!
Oh No! I can only go when it is crowded!!
What do you do if you can only travel during the more crowded times of the year? Don’t fret, help is on the way.
First of all, you need to know the most crowded times of the year. Basically, if kids are on a break then WDW is crowded.
The busiest times are:
- February over President’s Day Weekend
- Spring Break season: Mid March through Easter
- Easter: Date changes but week before and after are second most crowded of the year
- Summer: Mid June-Early August
- Columbus Day Weekend: Modest increase in crowds
- Thanksgiving: Third busiest time of the year for the week
- Christmas – New Years: Busiest time of the year from Christmas Day-New Year
Here are my tips for traveling during the busiest times of the year:
Lower your expectations: You can not expect to go to Magic Kingdom and ride everything on your list. Pick your top 3 priorities and know there will be time to do other things. By doing this you won’t be walking away disappointed and you will be pleasantly surprised when you get more accomplished.
Stay on Property: The convenience of staying on property outweighs the additional cost in this situation. The resort transportation will be more crowded than normal, but will not be as bad as driving your own car into the crazy parking lots, then taking a tram to the entrance or WDW transportation. This is especially important for Magic Kingdom because you park at the Ticketing and Transportation Center then take a monorail or ferry to the entrance of the park. By staying on resort property you also have the benefit of Extra Magic Hours (EMH).
Extra Magic Hours: When staying on property you are given access to certain parks for 1 hour in the morning before it opens to the public and 2 hours in the evening after close. Taking advantage of this can greatly increase the amount of attractions you are able to see and do! I personally like to enjoy EMH mornings at one park and then leave when it gets crowded to go to a different park by park hopping. Alternatively, if you are a night owl the evening EMH might be up your alley. The evening EMH are much more crowded than the morning, but if you can stay until the end you will reap the benefits of extra ride time with little wait. If you are not staying on property, avoid the parks with EMH during your vacation.
Park Hop: The additional cost of the park hopper is the most beneficial during these times. You can go to one park until the crowds overwhelm you, then hop over to a less crowded park. Or you can head back to your hotel (especially when staying on property) and then hop to a different park in the evening.
Go to the parks EARLY: I know you are on vacation, but so is everyone else going to Disney. That being said, WAKE UP EARLY and be at the parks for rope drop (official opening) or soon after! Most people will not get themselves together and moving by 8am, but by 10am the parks will be crowded. No one goes to Disney for a relaxing, sleep in vacation. For example: Christmas Day at Magic Kingdom has been at capacity the last few years around 10:30am. You can walk right in at 7am, but you can’t even get past the gates at 10:30. What does this teach us (other than avoid MK on Christmas!)? Get to the parks early, you will thank yourself when you are walking out to take a swim at 11 and the entrance turnstiles are 20 deep!
Take a Mid Day Break: The parks are most crowded from 11am-4pm. Take a break back at the hotel for swimming and a nap. Or have lunch in a hotel near the park and do some hotel hopping to check out the different WDW resort hotels.
Make ALL your dining reservations: When going during a crowded time of year, you will not have a snowball’s chance of getting into the more popular restaurants without reservations far in advance. That being said, you can still get into table service restaurants. Choose less popular restaurants in the park or ones located in the resort hotels.
Utilize the Fastpass system: This is the time when Fastpasses are your best friend. Decide your most important priority and get a fastpass at park opening for that ride. You can get your next fastpass 2 hours later, so at 9am if your fastpass return for Space Mountain is not until 2-3pm, you can get another fastpass at 11am for a different ride as well. With the new Fastpass+ system, you can prearrage your fastpasses (up to 3) which will be a huge benefit to staying on property during a crowded time.
I hope this advice helps and doesn’t scare you! I have traveled over Christmas with a group of 14 and I am going back at the same time this year. Take this advice and you will still enjoy your trip!
What you need to know about park tickets…
One of the most common questions is about the different types of park tickets. This can be very confusing for anyone who is not a WDW nut like myself. So here are the answers to those questions!
Theme Park Tickets:
- These are tickets for admission into the 4 Walt Disney World Parks (Magic Kingdom, Epcot, Hollywood Studios, & Animal Kingdom)
- Adult tickets are for ages 10 +, Child’s tickets are ages 3-9, Children under 3 are free of charge for tickets (and dining plan)
- Base Ticket: Allows entry into ONE park per day. You can leave and reenter later in the day, but you must return to the same park.
- The ticket cost varies based on how many days you purchase. The per day ticket cost is less per day for each additional day you add. The longer you play, the less you pay! is the tagline used by WDW.
- Park Hopper option is an add on to your base ticket that allows you to enter more than one park per day.
- Water Parks and More option is another add on to your base ticket that gives you access to the following: Blizzard Beach & Typhoon Lagoon Water Parks, ESPN Wide World of Sports, DisneyQuest Indoor theme park, Oak Trail Golf Course, Fantasia Gardens & Winter Summerland Miniature Golf Courses.
- WP&M option does have some limitations. You cannot hop between these activities, you can return to the same one. Mini Golf must be played prior to 4pm as well.
- Each of the add on options are a flat rate per ticket of $62.84/ticket including tax, but if you add both it is $89.46/ticket including tax. This is the cost for both adult and child tickets.
- Tickets expire 14 days after the first use.
- Tickets cannot be used by more than 1 person. Disney uses a biometric finger scan upon entry to guarantee this.
- This is a great site to look at the prices from www.allears.net
There are reputable discount ticket agents out there, but I prefer to purchase mine through WDW. If you purchase through a second party vendor and there is a problem, Disney is less flexible about assisting you. I have priced AAA as well and when you include the tax, AAA can be more expensive than buying from WDW directly. Now, if you are someone who needs a travel agent to handle the details, then go for it. In this day and age of Internet, it seems much easier to make your own arrangements and do your own research. I have found that travel agents are happy to make the commission but might not have the knowledge of all the aspects of Disney outside of a training session.
What are the MYMagic + bands you ask…Soon there will be wrist bands instead of cards that will contain all of your information for ticketing, dining, room key and charging back to your room. In May, they had the RFID readers at Hollywood Studios and Epcot and you just placed your card in front of the Mickey and waited to the biometric scanner for your finger. It will also include your fastpasses if you so choose, but you will need to
schedule your fastpasses prior to leaving for your trip similar to dining. But that is a topic for another article. This is an example of one at the Winnie the Pooh ride.
Words of warning:
- Do not purchase used tickets! Disney uses biometric scanners to link the ticket to the individual. You can’t use anyone’s ticket but your own. So avoid eBay and Craigslist for discount tickets.
- If you have old tickets with no expiration, you must trade them in at a ticket window or WDW hotel concierge desk. Disney now uses RFID technology and you need a ticket with a chip to get past the scanners.
- Your tickets do expire 14 days after the first use, so make sure you use all your days or get the no expiration option. I find the no expiration a waste of money, but I plan my days to utilize them.
Surprise!
UPDATE: The surprise was a success! They had no idea even though a few people (including myself dropped the ball a few times). Little did I know how crazy a time it would be. We had a blast and it was a little more crowded than expected. The end of May is probably not the best idea for me with school ending 2 weeks later along with final dance recitals and a festival to follow. It has been an exhausting few weeks and I have been a complete slacker when it comes to my blog. Summer is here and I am back in action. Watch for posts on all the amazing experiences we had while at Walt Disney World!
Today is the day we are surprising the kids with a trip to Disney. We have been keeping this a secret for 3 months and they still have no clue. So many people, myself included have blabbed right in front of them and neither have picked up on it. The fact that I am the Mouse Ear Momma and constantly talk Disney with people has helped tremendously, I think they are immune to the word Disney. My 5 year old keeps telling me it is time to plan another trip, wait until she hears she is leaving today! We decided to pick up the 2nd grader and then have my husband on the porch with a sign and ear hats waiting for us. I will post pictures of the surprise as soon as we are on our way
May the 4th be with you…
For you Star Wars fans out there, tomorrow is the big day…May the Fourth be with you! 
Now that Disney owns Star Wars, they are capitalizing on this popular day among the geeks. (No offense, this includes me too!) As part of this year’s Limited Time Magic, tomorrow Hollywood Studios will be celebrating “May the Fourth be with you”. The plans are special Star Wars entertainment, merchandise, dance party and fireworks (which are a rare occurence in Hollywood Studios).
There will be Star Wars characters greeting guests and even riding on Star Tours occasionally. I can imagine what my kids would do if we went to sit on Star Tours and Boba Fett was sitting there! Characters will appear from 9-7:30 and expect to see Darth Vader, Chewbacca, Boba Fett and many more surprises.
Jedi Training will also be changed for the day with parents being able to join their children on stage (ages 4-12) for training and fighting the Empire. Oh, how I wish I could be there to wield a lightsaber at Darth Vader! Shows will be every 30 minutes from 9-7:30. Get to the park before opening to sign up for Jedi Training.
After dark, a Star Wars themed dance party will take place with DJ Lobot from Star Wars: Episode V The Empire Strikes Back. Expect Star Wars characters to be dancing as well. This will be from 6-7pm & 7:45-12am.
The day will be capped off with a special Star Wars themed fireworks show at 9:45.
So, put on your best Star Wars gear and head out to Hollywood to celebrate May 4th. This is a good way to pump yourself up for the upcoming Star Wars weekends!
Mouse Ear Momma 