Month: January 2007

Categories
Disney World Orlando Florida USA

Survivor’s guide to Walt Disney World Part 3: Disney-MGM Studios

Mickey's giant sorcerer hat from his role in the movie Fantasia. This is the symbol of Disney-MGM Studios.I must confess that Disney-MGM Studios is my favorite family travel park in Florida’s Walt Disney World (and not just because the water tower has massive Mouse ears.)

It appeals to me and my husband as an adult movie buffs, to our teenage daughter who loves Aerosmith’s Rock ‘n’ Roller Coaster, to our young son on a variety of levels, and to all of us with its wonderful evening show, Fantasmic!

It is also relatively compact, which is such a relief after making vast footsore treks across the huge acreage of the other parks.

** This park summarized. The magic of movies for all ages. This park is also particularly strong in live shows. Remember, the Disney company casts a wide net, so there is everything here from Narnia to High School Musical to an ESPN Sports Weekend in March.

** Key tidbit. With just a little forethought, you can have a nice early dinner and then avoid standing in line forever as you sit down in an excellent seat in the Hollywood Bowl-ish theater to enjoy the multimedia, everything-Disney-but-the-kitchen-sink Fantasmic! nighttime show.

How?

Call (407) WDW-DINE and ask for the Fantasmic! Dining Experience package for the day you’re visiting. You’ll get a fixed price dinner and reserved dining time at one of the park’s sit-down restaurants (Brown Derby, Mama Melrose or Hollywood & Vine as of this writing.) We ate dinner at a rather ridiculous afternoon time at Hollywood & Vine because I didn’t call early enough and that was the only time left. Still, it was worth it to not have to wait two hours or more to get into Fantasmic!

Note: Unlike most “secret good deals,” which are usually laid out pretty clearly somewhere on the official Disney site, I could not find much/any info about this except on the unofficial Disney fan sites. Also, fair warning: this show may be too scary for very little kids.

** What to do as soon as you arrive. From previous posts in this series, you know the drill….if you want to get on the “screamers” like Rock ‘n’ Roller Coaster or Twilight Zone Tower of Terror, get that FASTPASS time right away. The Star Wars Star Tours ride tends to get rather crowded as well.

** Entertainment. Lots of live shows here, plus fun street performers on Hollywood Boulevard. In the one park where your feet aren’t killing you, the sit-down options abound.

** Dining options. We had a hilarious meal at the 1950’s Prime Time Cafe, where the meatloaf is hot and Mom says to get your elbows off of the table. There’s even a groovin’ lounge next door, but we couldn’t figure out how to stash the kids in a potted palm or something, so that we could go enjoy a libation.

** Attraction that surprised us. The fact that, at last, we were in a human-scaled, manageable Disney property was our first pleasant surprise. We loved the peek-behind-the-scenes of the Indiana Jones Epic Stunt Spectacular (complete with the giant rolling boulder,) and my young son couldn’t get enough of Jim Henson’s Muppet Vision 3D (just like any Muppets show, there are plenty of inside jokes and fun for the adults.)

** Lodging. There are no Disney hotels in this park.

** Special Disney/Character Meals. Have lunch with a Disney Imagineer at the Brown Derby. Preschoolers will enjoy the Play n’ Dine special meal with characters from TV’s Disney Playhouse.

** More tidbits. The soundtrack during Aerosmith’s Rock ‘n’ Roller Coaster is actually a compilation of their songs; I couldn’t get it out of my head so I asked a Disney Cast Member which one of their hits was playing as we were screaming up and down, and she said that it was a medley.

We always saw Toy Story characters at Al’s Toy Barn in the Backlot area, if you like those autographs and photo ops.

Go behind the scenes on a special Backstage Magic tour — it actually starts in Epcot but includes Disney-MGM Studios and Magic Kingdom plus lunch in Mama Melrose’s Ristorante Italiano. A mere 7 1/2 hours, $200 per person, minimum age 16.

One more link: the Fodor’s Blitz Tour of the park.

Next in line (or in the queue, for my UK readers) is the Big Kahuna, the Magic Kingdom.

BlogBurst.com

Categories
Disney World Orlando Florida USA

Survivor’s guide to Walt Disney World Part 2: Epcot

Epcot entrance with Spaceship Earth dome (Scarborough photo)The Epcot (Experimental Prototype Community of Tomorrow) theme park, which was originally conceived as a futuristic community with people actually living in the park, has something of an identity crisis.

There are two sections to the park. Future World has excitement and G-forces, including a ride that occasionally kills people, but it’s combined with the fairly staid international destinations in the World Showcase.

Disney positions Epcot as a more appealing venue for adults — a permanent “World’s Fair” with special highbrow-ish events like the annual spring Flower and Garden Festival, plus the fall Wine and Food Festival (which gets an OK review here on Mousesavers; they generally like it but feel that the paid seminar-type sessions are overpriced.)

That’s not to say that there aren’t plenty of things for kids; mine had a great time. Then again, they’re both travel nuts and were really into the World Showcase pavilions of the different countries (comparing “Norway” to our actual visit to Norway was a treat.)

World Showcase venues often stay open later than the rest of the park since there are tons of different restaurants plus the nightly Illuminations fireworks/laser light show over the park’s lagoon.

Kids also like fun/educational rides like going deep into the sea on The Seas with Nemo & Friends, although you have to put up with Crush, the surfer dude Aussie turtle who is a takeoff on Sean Penn’s perpetually stoned “Fast Times at Ridgemont High” character Jeff Spicoli.

Like, totally, Mr. Hand.

** This park summarized: Disney for grownups and travel enthusiasts (but you’ll really need a map.) Be ready to do some walking, but the wide-open pathways make it stroller-friendly even in crowds. Once older kids have knocked out the thrill rides they may bug you to leave the park, but try to hit a little of World Showcase for their edification. Bribe them with the varied international gift shops if you have to.

** Key tidbit: This park may work best towards the end of the day, if you want to kick back a little. Ferry boats (FriendShip water taxis) across the big 40-acre lagoon can save aching feet from walking all the way around the semi-circle of pavilions. There are boat stops in Mexico, Canada, Morocco and Germany.

The Maelstrom water ride in Norway and El Rio Del Tiempo water ride in Mexico are mildly hokey but fun breaks that younger kids can usually handle.

** What to do as soon as you arrive: Get your FASTPASS times for Mission: Space, (blasting off in a rocket) Soarin’ (sort of hang-gliding above the sights in California) and Test Track (a racing ride.)

The thrill rides are the only ones with significant lines in this park. Read the restrictions carefully if you have medical problems, especially Mission: Space. They aren’t kidding about the G-forces.

Also grab a daily calendar for the park as you enter; there are lots and lots of small performances all day in World Showcase. We loved the Chinese acrobats and mariachi band.

If the front of the park is already packed, head to the back to start, just like I recommended for the Animal Kingdom.

Continue reading “Survivor’s guide to Walt Disney World Part 2: Epcot”
Categories
Disney World Orlando Florida USA

Survivor’s guide to Walt Disney World Part 1: Animal Kingdom

Contented tiger on the Maharajah Trek, an Asian-themed zoo habitat, Animal Kingdom, Walt Disney World (Scarborough photo)In my Intro to this family travel series on Walt Disney World (WDW) I talked about the importance of good planning in order to really enjoy the sprawling attractions of Disney’s giant theme parks in Orlando, Florida.

Think of a trip there as a major fun-but-pressured event, like a wedding. You wouldn’t just “wing it” for a wedding, would you?

It can be overwhelming to try to meet your entire family’s expectations, plus you’ll hear the marketing hype drumbeat of whatever Disney advertising campaign is in full swing. The 2007 theme is “Year of a Million Dreams.” There are some new rides and productions, giveaway contests plus the chance to sleep in the Royal Suite of Cinderella’s Castle, overlooking the park.

Don’t worry, though; there are specials and extras all the time, every year at the parks. Anyone can enjoy them with a little digging.

To get the scoop, a good starting point is ordering Disney’s free vacation planning DVD. Of course there’s a lot of woo-woo and slick, sparkly Tinkerbell stuff, but it does provide a good overview and comes pretty quickly in the mail. Watch it to take a quick virtual tour of the parks and get a sense of layout, rides, etc. (there are also helpful maps on each park’s Web site homepage.) Have your children decide which attractions interest them the most, so that you can begin sketching out how you’ll spend your time.

Meeting Goofy in his safari gear, Animal Kingdom, Walt Disney World (Scarborough photo)

We started our WDW visit at Animal Kingdom, and it was a good choice. The park is relatively small, nicely laid out and can be “done” pretty quickly, so you don’t wear yourself out at the very beginning of your vacation.

My top tips:

** This park summarized: Mellow and compact, this is mostly African-themed good times for animal-loving younger kids, although bigger ones will like thrill rides like Expedition Everest and getting (very) soaked on the Kali River Rapids.

** Get there when it opens, or even better, a half hour before opening. Yes, this pretty much applies to every park, but if you want to see animals at their most lively, then 2 in the afternoon is NOT the right time. Not only are the critters more visible in the earlier morning, the Disney characters (usually dressed in safari gear here) are out and about and very accessible, if you want those photo ops. My daughter hates mascots/characters of any kind, my son loves them, so there you go. 🙂

Continue reading “Survivor’s guide to Walt Disney World Part 1: Animal Kingdom”
Categories
Disney World Orlando Florida USA

Survivor’s guide to Walt Disney World: Intro

Mickey's Sorcerer Hat at WDW (photo by Sheila Scarborough)Over the next few days, I plan to post a short series on travel with kids to Walt Disney World in Orlando, Florida.

I’ve been resisting this because I’d much rather focus on more unusual destinations, but the fact is that theme parks are a big part of family travel, at least in the U.S. This includes my own two kids, even though I’m amazed that they don’t want to see more, I dunno, Civil War battlefields or art museums or interesting ethnic neighborhoods. 🙂

Nope, they want the Mouse and a lot of it.

Even savvy travelers may not have a clue about how to get the most out of a visit to the parks. I recently read a series of posts by the flabbergasted Will Allen, who freely confesses during a lessons-learned series on his blog that he was not up to speed on planning his recent WDW trip. His specialty is air travel and business travel, and the Mouse ate his lunch.

His commenters raked him over the coals for not prepping enough, and I have to somewhat agree. If you’re really into creating a “magical experience” (and would also like to avoid spending a fortune) this is the trip when you do your homework. It’s not that hard — there’s a lot of good guidance out there, and the payback is less aggravation for you and more fun for everyone.

I will run separate posts on each park in WDW: Animal Kingdom, Epcot, Disney-MGM Studios and the Magic Kingdom. For those who are saying right now, “Wow, you mean there’s more than one park?,” this series is definitely for you! As always, comments and feedback are welcome and appreciated.

There will be one post on Blizzard Beach, one of the two Orlando Disney water parks, but it will all be feedback from my daughter’s school trip there; I did not actually go myself. Heck, a teenager’s perspective is probably better, anyway.

Done right, the parks can be a blast.

Done poorly, they are expensive misery.

Let’s ensure that you’re one of the visitors who creates a dream vacation and not a nightmare.

Here’s the first park we’ll visit: Disney’s Animal Kingdom.

Update 4 May 2007: The Washington Post blog Travel Log notes that Zagat has published a “Walt Disney World Insider’s Guide,” just in case you didn’t already have enough research to do. It’s not just restaurants, either; they have reader opinions on parks as a whole, rides and lodging. Reviewer John Deiner throws in his own point of view as well.

Technorati tags: travel, family travel, Walt Disney World

Categories
Asia

Go-Today package deal

I do not usually plug specific companies, but I noticed that Smarter Travel is highlighting a $25 discount on some of Go-Today’s packages.

This is the company that gave my daughter, nephew and I the unbeatable airfare/hotel package to Hong Kong and Tokyo last summer.  

There are also side tours offered as options, but we didn’t take any of them.  If you know exactly what you want from a major destination like London, Buenos Aires or Rome, and you aren’t too rigid about hotels, they have good options to get you there as inexpensively as possible.

Categories
New York City USA

Family Travel to New York City

Looking up at the Statue of Liberty (Scarborough photo)The Big Apple is one of my very favorite cities, and I’ve had a few good links laying around that I need to get out there for those who may be thinking of a trip to New York.

I’ve visited as a single person, as part of a couple and as a parent, and the place just never disappoints. It is truly an amazing town.

For a good overview of options, see Fodor’s 5 great itineraries for the city. If you just want the down-and-dirty:

** If you have time for one museum, take the kids to the Museum of Natural History (Ben Stiller’s fun new movie “Night at the Museum” is set there.) Want to throw in some art? My children liked the Guggenheim, mostly because of its cirucular ramps and neat architecture. Not sure they even remember the art works within!

Running around on Ellis Island (Scarborough photo)

** The Staten Island ferry gives great harbor views for 25 minutes for an unbeatable price: free.

** I think that for kids, the Statue of Liberty is actually more interesting when viewed from a distance out in the harbor, especially since you can’t climb up to the crown any more for security reasons (plus it can get really crowded.) Ellis Island is a worthwhile visit for older kids; my youngest mostly enjoyed running around on the grounds rather than looking at immigration exhibits.

** See a Broadway play. The spectacle is well worth the cost, especially if you luck into less expensive seats from the TKTS booth in Times Square or the lesser-known booth down at South Street Seaport. Frommer’s online has a comprehensive guide to maximizing the New York theater experience — click here. Try to see bustling, bright Times Square at night to complete your theater event.

Bronze casting of the Statue of Liberty's foot (Scarborough photo)

A new site on educational travel, Gifted Travel, has some unique ideas for avoiding New York tourist traps and finding alternatives to the “usual places.”

From a British perspective, here’s one father’s trip to NYC in the UK’s Times Online.

For some midwinter ideas about seeing the city without spending a fortune, here’s Newsweek’s “New York on the Cheap.”

How about something for kids who are budding foodies? Smarter Travel talks about a number of culinary destinations, but here is their take on New York for chowhounds.

Want to see something besides Manhattan? Cross over the iconic bridge into Brooklyn for all sorts of treats.

And finally, here’s Gotham with an 11-year-old, with all kinds of good ideas for those ‘tweens. Enjoy your visit!

Subway ride with toddler backpack (Scarborough photo)

Update 08 January 2007: Just came across some good hotel deals for families going to New York, courtesy of About.com Guide Teresa Plowright’s always-useful Travel with Kids site.

Update 23 January 2007: If you visit New York over the holidays, I have to absolutely agree with Wendy Perrin’s blog post on the Radio City Music Hall Christmas Spectacular. My daughter and I loved it a few years back, but my son was too young to go. No problem; Dad gets to take now-old-enough son on our next NYC trip and it’s MY turn to ice skate at the Rockefeller Center rink under the giant tree!

Update 31 March 2007: Take a look at this fun video, 24 Hours in New York, from concierge.com (the umbrella Web site that includes Conde Nast Traveler magazine.)

Technorati tags: , travel, New York

Categories
Philosophy

Blah, blah: overused travel stories

Just to be a contrary old bat during the terribly cheery and determined New Year, there are a few travel destinations/stories/ideas that have really been flogged to death by major travel magazines and Web sites. It’s a big planet; can’t we find something else to explore and talk about?

I’d like a short reprieve from:

Your “secret” Tuscany. Hel-lo. This part of Italy has been a big deal for centuries. Let’s find another room with a view.

Eastern Europe is the new place to go. Yes, OK, got it. Croatia. Poland. Cheap Europe. I dare someone besides the intrepid Leif Pettersen to get into Really Cheap & Kinda Grungy Europe, like Romania and Bulgaria.

Dubai is the new place to go. And it’s safe and Westernized so you can feel adventurous about going to the Middle East and….shopping at modern malls, buying Gucci and staying in gazillion-dirham hotels. Um, no thanks. I’d rather go to Oman or Saudi Arabia. Heck, I’d rather go back to Iran.

Argentina is cheap, and they have tango and beef. OK, OK. Give me some Uruguay and Paraguay, which I don’t know anything about. More Chile, please.

Costa Rica. I’m sure it is lovely and jungly and all that, but by now it must be overrun with tourists all looking for a green eco-adventure or a beach hit.

Austin is hip and funky even though Texas is (mostly) not. I live here now and I’m actually tired of reading about my hometown. Yes, Austin is sort of the Berkeley of Texas. It’s been that way for decades; why is this news? Liberals can eat BBQ and put on Wranglers to go two-stepping. I know that already. So do thousands of Aggies, and they are usually perturbed about it.

Now, there are “evergreen” destinations that I personally never tire of reading about: New York, Paris, London, San Francisco, Hong Kong, Tokyo. Sydney seems to be on a tear, India is on the rise and I’m sure we’ll be overrun with China articles as the Olympics approach. Keep them coming, for now. I haven’t reached saturation yet.

Here’s where I’d like some more travel insight: Chicago, and the Midwest in general. Wales. Malaysia. The BENELUX countries. Mexico (not just the beach resorts.) Russia. Canada. The American South, especially Mississippi, Alabama and Louisiana. Botswana. Northern Ireland. Brazil. Jordan. Hungary. Finland. Minneapolis.

Just quit telling me that there’s a “secret” Tuscany.

Categories
Blog Tips

Happy New Year Blogtipping

Blogtipping

Thanks to some post-a-day ideas from Successful Blog, my brain doesn’t have to think of writing topics for the entire month of January.

I’ve never been a blogtipper, although I think Easton Ellsworth’s concept from Business Blogwire is a great idea. However, since it’s a new year and a new month, I’m going to take a stab at highlighting a few blogs/sites that I enjoy.  They are more writer-related than travel-related, but if I decide to keep tipping I’ll start paying more attention to travel-specific blogs that I can spotlight.  Here goes:

**  My year of getting published — here’s a fellow writer, a travel writer mostly, named Liz Lewis. She is putting it all out there about her determined efforts to get her work published.

1)  I like the details about items that are accepted and rejected; statistics of how many pitches are sent/accepted/rejected, and editor’s comments. You’re obviously working your tail off, with lots of queries going out.

2)  I like your other blog about travel in New Zealand.  It’s very detailed, full of photos and interesting links.

3)  Your list of writing goals for 2007 is an inspiration.  You’re very good at laying out measurable milestones and a clear roadmap to success; no wonder you’ve been successful getting published this past year.

Tip:  Give us a picture of you with your bio info!

**  StartupNation — Jeff and Rich Sloan’s comprehensive site for anyone running their own business, big or small.

1)  You have a vibrant and informative community Forum that never fails to give me interesting ideas and good info.

2)  You are always coming up with neat stuff like the new Marketplace (in beta) for fellow entrepreneurs.

3)  Your “10 Steps to Open for Business” really helped me focus when I started my own freelance writing services.  Hey, it’s just me, myself and I, but it’s still a business!

Tip:  Tell your readers more about the StartupNation blogs; I just found them today.

**  The Renegade Writer blog — Linda Formichelli and Diana Burrell wrote one of the key books that got me started as a full-time freelance writer. This is their blog.

1)  Your organizational makeover of one of your writer-readers had lots of good work flow ideas.

2)   The “You Ask, We Answer” advice section is always ready with a direct, helpful response to those nagging writerly questions.

3)   You tackle one of every writer’s favorite topics: how to send a terrific query letter. Not only did you write the book on the subject, you also provide helpful advice on your blog about queries.

Tip:  Your bios (and maybe a photo) should be more “front-and-center” towards the top of the home page, in my opinion.

Well, that was fun, and I certainly think I’ll try again February 1st.  Happy New Year to all of you travelers and writers….

I Love Blogtipping