Tag Archives: Walt Disney World

USA Today Names America’s Best Theme Park Restaurants

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USA Today has recently named America’s best theme park restaurants. There were a variety of factors that helped determine which restaurants would make the list. Some of these factors considered included the variety of offerings, value, quality of food, and reflection of the associated attraction or park’s theme.

As may be expected, the Walt Disney World Resort in Florida claimed five of the sixteen spots on the list. The Walt Disney World Resort restaurants that have been named one of America’s best theme park restaurants are:

  • Boma Flavors of Africa at Disney’s Animal Kingdom Lodge
  • The Hollywood Brown Derby at Disney’s Hollywood Studios
  • Chefs de France at Epcot
  • La Hacienda de San Angel at Epcot
  • Sci Fi Dine In Theater at Disney’s Hollywood Studios

The Universal Orlando Resort also claimed two of the best theme park restaurant spots, including:

  • Mythos at Universal’s Islands of Adventure
  • The Three Broomsticks Restaurant in the Wizarding World of Harry Potter at Universal Studios

The Disneyland Resort in California also grabbed two spots on the list:

  • Club 33 at Disneyland
  • Carthay Circle at Disney’s California Adventure Park

Other theme parks honored on the list of America’s best theme park restaurants include Knott’s Berry Farm, Busch Gardens, Dollywood, King’s Island, and more.

What do you think of the list? Where do you think America’s best theme park restaurants are?

Siera is a travel agent with Destinations to Explore. She can help you plan your next Disney World, Universal Orlando, Disneyland, or any other theme park vacation at no cost to you. She is paid by each destination to help you plan your vacation! Contact her today at spreadingmagic@gmail.com!

Refrigerator Removal at Disney World, Disneyland, and Aulani

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As many of you know, every guest room at the Walt Disney World Resort had received a mini fridge, even all of the value resorts. However, if you are traveling soon, you may not have a mini fridge available in your resort room.

Unfortunately, due to a possible defect in the refrigerators in some of the guest rooms at the Walt Disney World Resort in Florida and the Disneyland Resort in California, as well as Aulani, a Disney Resort and Spa in Hawaii, Resort hotels at these locations have removed or temporarily disconnected guest room refrigerators until the problem can be resolved.

Guests staying at these Resort hotels will be notified of the refrigerator removal by a letter in their room. Currently, the schedule for replacing the refrigerators at these Resorts is expected to last several months.

Disney will have a limited number of fridges available for medically necessary purposes (diabetes, food allergies, any medication that requires refrigeration and nursing mothers who need to store breast milk). We will update you as soon as we hear more!

Siera is a travel agent with Destinations in Florida, an authorized Disney vacation planner. She would love to help you plan your next Disney destinations vacation. Plus, if you book a Walt Disney World Resort package, you can receive up to a $100 gift card! Email her at spreadingmagic@gmail.com for more information! 

Celebrate Independence Week at Disney Parks

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This year, Disney Parks are honoring America in style by celebrating the Fourth of July 2013 with a little Limited Time Magic!

From July 1 to July 7, 2013, the Disney Parks on each side of the country are ringing in Independence Week—a red, white and blue bash where both the Disneyland Resort in California and the Walt Disney World Resort in Florida will be saluting our nation’s birth.

Some of the Limited Time Magic at Disney Parks will include a special fireworks spectacular, when Independence Week lights up—from sea to shining sea!

A Fourth of July Concert in the Sky
Every evening will ignite into a heroic display at both the Disneyland Resort and Walt Disney World Resort! Rocketing into cosmos each and every night of Independence Week 2013, you can experience “Disney’s Celebrate America! A Fourth of July Concert in the Sky.” You can view an altogether different kind of star-spangled banner exploding to life in the air high up above!

Catch the American Spirit at the Disneyland Resort
You can meet Mickey Mouse and more during Independence Week at the Disneyland Resort! Head into Disneyland Park to snap a picture with Mickey, who will be sporting all-American attire each evening at Town Square in Main Street, U.S.A. Then, you can put on a pair of illuminated Mouse Ears and “Glow with the Show” during inspirational performances of both “Disney’s Celebrate America! A Fourth of July Concert in the Sky” at Disneyland Park, as well as a patriotic pre-show to “World of Color” at Disney’s California Adventure Park.

Join the Festive Fun at Walt Disney World Resort
You will shout “Hooray!” each day at Walt Disney World Resort as Goofy, Donald and Pluto spread the “Spirit of ’76” on Main Street, U.S.A. in the Magic Kingdom. You can join the trio as they introduce the “Celebrate a Dream Come True” Parade with a rousing new pre-show, featuring the Main Street Philharmonic and the Citizens of Main Street, in addition to Walt Disney’s historic horse-drawn calliope. You won’t want to miss this flag-waving, song-and-dancing celebration of the United States!

Collect Classic Americana Disney Merchandise
Commemorate what makes America great during Independence Week with a proud assortment of flag-waving merchandise! Be on the lookout for star-spangled souvenirs, including red, white and blue Mickey T-shirts, patriotic trading pins, light-up star necklaces and even costumes for Duffy the Disney Bear, colored just for the occasion at both Disney parks.

Indulge in Desserts as American as Apple Pie
Discover the spirit of America with delicious desserts at the Disney Parks!

Take a tour of Walt Disney World Resort and find irresistible offerings in each of the four parks. Stop by StoryBook Treats at Magic Kingdom to try out the Red, White and Blue Strawberry Shortcake. Or, experience a flavor explosion at Disney’s Hollywood Studios, Disney’s Animal Kingdom Park or Downtown Disney area with the Fourth of July Cupcake, complete with Apple Pie filling, Caramel Buttercream and Apple Crisp Topping. For even more sweets, pop into Epcot for a Skillet-baked Peach Cobbler with Vanilla Whipped Cream or the Red, White and Blue “Baked Alaska” Mousse.

Want all the best the West Coast can offer your taste buds? Head into Disneyland Park at the Disneyland Resort and savor the Red, White and Blue Mason Jar Desserts at Carnation Café. For other sorts of sweets, enjoy Patriotic Cotton Candy, Apple Pie Pockets or Fourth of July Cupcakes. Each one of these candies and cakes can be found right inside several Main Street Shops!

You can find more details about the Independence Week celebration at Disney Parks on the Disney Parks Blog.

Siera is a Disney travel specialist and would love to help you plan your next vacation at no cost to you. Contact her at spreadingmagic@gmail.com for more information! 

Here’s What you Can Look Forward to Coming Soon to Walt Disney World

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At Disney Parks, the Walt Disney Company is always working to improve their offerings and add new, magical experiences. New Fantasyland is now open at Magic Kingdom Park and there’s even more on the horizon at the Walt Disney World Resort. The addition of New Fantasyland completed the largest expansion in Magic Kingdom history, but there is still more coming soon to Walt Disney World!

Here are some of the newest offerings you will find at Walt Disney World later this year:

  • You Will Soon Be Able to Interact with Big Thunder Mountain Railroad in a New Immersive Queue–In the works in Frontierland at Magic Kingdom Park, Big Thunder Mountain Railroad is about to get a new interactive queue.
  • Seven Dwarfs Mine Train at Magic Kingdom Park – Imagineers have laid the first pieces of track in the Seven Dwarfs Mine Train attraction in the New Fantasyland expansion, set to open in 2014.
  • Development of AVATAR-Themed Land at Disney’s Animal Kingdom Park Continues – Work continues to bring the epic fantasy world of AVATAR to life at Disney Parks.
  • Starbucks Locations at Magic Kingdom Park and Epcot Set to Open Next Year – The first two Starbucks locations at Walt Disney World Resort will open next year, one at Magic Kingdom Park and one at Epcot.

Would you like to see these new changes and updates at Walt Disney World for yourself? Email spreadingmagic@gmail.com today to book your Walt Disney World vacation! Right now, you can get up to 30% off your resort room, plus discounted tickets when you purchase at least 4 days. As my special gift to you, you will even get a free gift card when you book a package!

Why You Should Use an Authorized Disney Vacation Planner

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I know, you have been to Disney World Florida or Disneyland or on a Disney Cruise several times in the past. You know all the ins and outs of planning a Disney vacation. You have all your bases covered. You also have a job, family, and home to take care of, in addition to planning a vacation that could be the third largest expenditure in your life, behind your home and cars.   You’re sitting up until all hours of the night, booking dinner reservations, making sure you have tickets to Cirque du Soleil, getting up early to ensure you get booked for Cinderella’s Royal Table, and after all this, you forget to schedule a card from Mickey for your youngest child’s birthday.

Now imagine this identical situation, only you have never been to Disney World or only been once for a short trip.  Wouldn’t you want some assistance with planning this type of major event? Wouldn’t you be willing to pay for someone to walk you through the planning or even take care of these issues for you?

What if I said you could have all that for free?

As a travel agent focusing on Disney and Universal Studios vacations, I am better thought of as a vacation planner, not really a travel agent. We help guests book their vacation package and then our real work begins, all at no cost to the guest. We help guests with every aspect of the vacation planning including itinerary planning, restaurant suggestions, dining reservations, birthday celebrations, directions around Orlando, and so much more. We even do the little extras, like calling your Resort Manager to request a birthday Character Card for your child, delivering your package to your resort (if you have a last minute trip) or getting that “hard to get” breakfast reservation with Cinderella. We have the contacts and are locally based in Orlando to do the “extras”. Additionally, Destinations in Florida is an Authorized Disney Vacation Planner.  This means we are the first to receive new discount package deals and I am a graduate of Disney’s travel agent training, the Disney College of Knowledge.

Another important part of our services, that brings guests back to us year after year, is our price checking service. We know all of the discounts available and always offer the best possible price for a Disney Resort, Disney Cruise, or Universal vacation. This is a unique service, since most companies, including Disney direct, will not offer any discounts unless you tell them about it.

Here are some of our free services we provide our guests:

  • Free Itinerary Planning (Valued at $149)
  • Free Dining Suggestions & Reservation Planning (Valued at $69)
  • Free Know Before You Go Guide
  • Free MousePerks – Magic in your In Box!
  • Free Disney Theme Park Guide Maps
  • Free Orlando Magicard (Hundreds of dollars in additional Orlando travel savings)
  • Free Mickey Mouse autograph pictures for the kids in your family
  • Free Discount Watching (We will watch for future discounts that may save you money, even after you booked your package
  • Extra Surprises…you never know what other fun surprises you will get for your family vacation…just wait and see!

It is in my best interest to ensure that you have the best possible Disney experience.  I want a happy customer that will refer friends and family and return to them the next time they are booking a vacation.  I hope you book your Disney vacation with me!  This way, you can spend your evenings having dinner with your family and your nights enjoying some quality time with your husband or wife, while we do the work for you.

Isn’t having an assistant great?

Email spreadingmagic@gmail.com and take advantage of my free services! I’d love to help you plan your next adventure!

Happy 15th Anniversary to Disney’s Animal Kingdom!

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Happy 15th Anniversary to Disney’s Animal Kingdom! Fifteen years ago today, on April 22, 1998, Walt Disney World’s newest park, Disney’s Animal Kingdom opened! This celebration also happens to coincide with Earth Day 2013.

Animal Kingdom has celebrations planned throughout the entire day. The day’s celebration began with a special opening ceremony led by Josh D’Amaro, Vice President of Disney’s Animal Kingdom, along with Dr. Jackie Ogden, Vice President of Animals, Science and Environment. The ceremony was highlighted with a fun performance of “Circle of Life” from the park’s “Festival of The Lion King” show. Other special activities planned for the day include special Earth Day “Party for the Planet” festivities as well as unique merchandise and food & beverage offerings.

When the park originally opened in 1998, it featured several lands that were each dedicated to exploring wildlife and wild places – Africa, Discovery Island, Oasis, Camp Minnie-Mickey, Rafiki’s Planet Watch, and DinoLand, U.S.A. An additional land, Asia, was added to the park in 1999. Animal Kingdom has seen many exciting additions since its debut in 1998, including TriceraTop Spin in 2001, Primeval Whirl in 2002, Expedition Everest in 2006, “Finding Nemo – The Musical,” which grand-opened in 2007, and Wild Africa Trek in 2011.

What do you think of Disney’s Animal Kingdom? Is this one of your favorite Disney parks? What is your favorite attraction at Animal Kingdom?