Disney World - Pitstops for Kids

Tips on how to make the most of a family holiday to Walt Disney World

June 21, 2013 By Amy Hagstrom

The following post is brought to you by one of Pit Stops for Kids’ sponsors. Sponsored posts contribute to the site’s operational costs, so our editorial team can keep bringing great pit stops to vacationing families.

A Walt Disney World holiday in Florida is a fantastic experience that all family members will enjoy, both parents and children alike. It’s fun, colorful and exciting, but with so much to do and see, it can be difficult to know how to make the most of your time, especially if it’s your first time on a family holiday to Walt Disney World. Here are a few useful tips:

1. Explore the resort before you arrive

You don’t want to miss out on an amazing experience simply because you couldn’t find it or didn’t even know it was there. There are various visitor guides and online tools that can help you plan your days, and Walt Disney World offers a free holiday planning guide so you can explore this amazing resort before you even get there to make sure you make the most of all the attractions on offer.

2. Dress for the weather

Make sure you wear clothing and footwear suitable for walking around for long periods of time, taking into account the weather. It will most probably be hot and humid if you visit in the summer months, but there is a chance of rain so lightweight ponchos are a cheap option that can easily fold up into a rucksack when not needed. Consider hats, sunglasses and sunscreen for the hotter months so your family is protected.

3. Eat well and drink plenty of water

You can bring your own food into the resort which helps to keep costs down, while having the additional benefits of being able to eat a bit healthier and making sure your child likes the food, if they are a fussy eater. Remember to stay hydrated. With the humidity and lots of walking, running, dancing and general excitement, you’ll need to drink more water than usual.

4. Stay safe, not separated

While Walt Disney World ensures the resort is very safe for children, sometimes they do get separated from their parents, especially in peak seasons when the crowds get extremely busy. Cast Members are all trained to reunite lost children with their parents as soon as possible. There are a couple of steps you can take to reduce the chance of becoming separated, for example all the family can wear bright tee-shirts to be easily seen, or a distinctive feature such as a hat. If not everyone in the family goes on a particular ride, arrange a waiting point to meet up afterwards.

5. Take advantage of the package and pickup service

With souvenir shops everywhere you turn, even as you are getting off a ride, it can be tempting to buy, buy, buy! But some souvenirs aren’t suitable for carrying around with you all day – you know the ones we mean, a giant Mickey Mouse plush toy that is incredibly soft and cuddly, but also incredibly difficult to carry! Luckily, all Disney stores on the resort offer a package and pickup service where your purchases will be looked after and you can pick them up when you leave for the day.

If you haven’t yet planned this year’s holiday, there’s still time to book a late holiday in 2013 to Walt Disney World so you and your family can experience the magic and enchantment.

Disney done right: Disney’s Port Orleans Resort

January 19, 2011 By Amy Hagstrom

I wrote recently on the benefits of staying on-site in Walt Disney World. Of course, deciding a Disney resort is right for you and your family hardly narrows down your field of options, given that at last count, there were almost 20 of them to choose from. For our Disney World vacation, we finally settled on Disney’s Port Orleans Resort, Riverside, and we never once regretted our decision. Why?

1. Location. Port Orleans is one of Disney’s largest resorts, but due to its beautiful and extensive landscaping, winding pathways, and sweeping public areas filled with magnolia blossoms and lawn, you’d never know it. It includes two distinct and separate complexes: Riverside and French Quarter, both of which have their own restaurants, pools, and recreational activities, connected by the river walk along the Sassagoula River. We stayed in Riverside, which was, yet again, divided into two sections: Alligator Bayou and Dixie Landings. Maybe we’re just not used to Southern ambiance (and hospitality), but we felt tucked away from the bustle of Disney World throughout our stay. Despite being just minutes from the theme parks by way of Disney transportation buses and even closer to Downtown Disney by boat, Port Orleans felt quiet and tranquil. Not easy to come by in Orlando! (Note: I’d heard complaints about the walk from the far buildings to the lobby/dining area (Riverside Mill). We were quite far from the center of things in Building 36, and didn’t mind the ten minute walk in the least. Ol’ Man Island, the main swimming complex, is situated in the middle of the buildings (think of a hub and spokes), and is easy to access for everyone.)

2. Amenities. Port Orleans is listed as a ‘moderate’ Disney resort, which distinguishes it from the lower-cost ‘value’ resorts in two main ways that made a difference to our family (and might make a difference to yours): recreational opportunities and dining. Each moderate resort has at least one themed pool and several ‘quiet’ pools (we had one right outside our door and loved it!), and other recreational opportunities such as canoe or boat rentals, video arcades, and thematic activities (in Port Orleans’ case, cane-pole fishing). Ol’ Man Island features a free-form pool, slide, hot tubs, and a pool-side bar (values do not have slides or hot tubs) that we used nightly (the pool and the bar). In addition, each moderate resort features at least one sit-down restaurant in addition to their food court, Riverside Mill. (Value resorts do not.) If you envision yourself and your family spending even a moderate amount of time (no pun intended) at the resort, and don’t want to drop the dough for a deluxe room, a moderate such as Port Orleans might work best for you.

3. Price. In my opinion, you get far more for your resort dollar at a moderate than you would at a value, and not much less than you would at a deluxe. (That sounds like a riddle!) Let me try that again: you get almost as many bells and whistles as you would at a deluxe for up to half the nightly room rate. (Note: Port Orleans’s Alligator Bayou rooms fit families of five…provided that one family member can fit on their ‘trundle’ bed, which pulls out from underneath one of their standard ones. Our youngest son found it quite comfortable, but I wouldn’t try it with anyone over the age of 6-8.)

What not to miss: As I hinted at above, staying in a Disney resort is almost like visiting an additional theme park: there’s a lot to do and see, and you want to make time to enjoy it. We took an entire day off from the parks just to explore Port Orleans, but even if you can’t spare that kind of time, make sure you swim at Ol’ Man Island (and maybe fish for bluegill in their stocked pond), take a cruise down the river to Downtown Disney (have your kids ask your boat captain for a Disney Transportation captain’s card), take in the evening comedy show at the River Roost, and take the plunge on the dragon slide at the French Quarter pool (guests of Riverside has use of the French Quarter pool, and vice versa!).

Room Rates: $130-150 at time of our visit. Check for most up-to-date rates.

Main Dining Options: Riverside Mill Food Court and Boatwrights (both on the Disney Dining Plan). Snacks available at the general store. Rooms have mini-fridges, which we used to fill with breakfast supplies and snacks. If you’re flying to the resort, as we did, consider pre-ordering groceries to be delivered to Port Orleans on the day of your arrival with Garden Grocer.

Distance from the parks: Under five minutes. (Note: we’re big believers in leaving the car behind and using Disney transportation. We never waited longer than ten minutes for a bus at any of the Port Orleans bus depots.)

Photo credit

Disney done right: Making the most of your Disney vacation

January 16, 2011 By Amy Hagstrom

At Pit Stops for Kids, we’re big fans of Disney, but we know planning (and enjoying) a Disney vacation with kids can be overwhelming! In our upcoming series of articles, Disney Done Right, we offer our (kid and parent tested) tips for making the most of your time in the happiest place on earth!

1. Plan an extended visit. If possible, book at least one week at Disney World or three days (This is especially beneficial if the most expensive single cost of your vacation is getting there and back.) You just can’t do these massive theme parks justice with less time, and you’ll only exhaust yourself trying. (You can’t see it all in a week, either, but a month or more isn’t an option for most families!) A longer visit equals more downtime, and while you may think R&R is hardly the goal at a theme park, without it, you’ll be miserable by Day 3. We made sure to rest every day, and reserved one entire day for simply exploring and enjoying our resort. More time also leads to more inter-family harmony: if you have two days to devote to Animal Kingdom, for instance, you can focus on rides one day and dining and shows the next. It’s simply more relaxing when you’re not sprinting through the Florida humidity, agreed?

2. Stay on-site at a Disney property. Yes, I know it’s much cheaper to stay half a block awayfrom the main gates. And yes, I happily advice families to take advantage of the price and convenience of rental properties such as HomeAway whenever possible,Â but in the case of Disney, I am a purist. Why? Because never is the adage ‘time is money’ more true than during a Disney vacation. And I’m not talking about Extra Magic Hour: when you stay on-site, you’re simply closer to all the action…and to your hotel room should someone (you, most likely) need a nap, a snack, or a dip in the pool. Plus, you can use Disney transportation and have the opportunity to add the Disney meal plan, not to mention the fact that most Disney resorts are like additional theme parks in themselves. When we stayed at Disney’s Port Orleans Resort, we did our own laundry, ate all our breakfasts in our room, and returned to the hotel every day of our vacation to rest and swim mid-day. I like to think staying on-site kept us sane. (Extra tip: if you have very young children in strollers, consider staying on the Monorail Line at the Disney World resort–the Contemporary, Grand Floridian, or Polynesian–so you don’t have to disturb sleeping kids and babies to fold strollers!)

3. Make (and follow) an itinerary utilizing planning tools. I admit it: I’m a schedule Nazi. But even a generalized itinerary for your visit helps you to make the most of your day. We’ve all seen people wandering the happiest place on earth, grumbling about what to do next, and we certainly don’t want to be them. Start by looking up the exact hours each park will be open for each day during your visit, figure out what shows and parades you want to see, and which restaurants you want to try. It makes a difference: the parks open earliest will fill up the fastest but also empty the fastest in the later afternoon, as everyone who attended the morning Extra Magic Hour jumps ship for another park later in the day: consider taking an alternate path from the masses. If you’re very ambitious, I can personally recommend Tour Guide Mike, an online planning tool and wealth of park information that will change the way you look at touring Disney parks. ‘Mike’ will give you the ideal days to tour each park during your visit based on a scientific-(ish) using factors such as time of year, projected crowd levels, park hours and events, and more. The small membership fee is well worth your money.

4. Take advantage of shopping opportunities. No, I don’t mean you should get out your wallet every time you’re fed through a souvenir shop, although that’s up to you. I mean that Disney’s shopping areas signify two things: crowd control and extended hours. For instance: Disneyland and Magic Kingdom‘s Main Street typically stays open up to an hour after official park closing. If you were planning on browsing the shops (or even having a late dinner or evening dessert) at the end of your day, don’t make the mistake the other thousands of visitors will do: there’s no need to hit the shops an hour before closing. Use that final hour to ride attractions, then shop and eat during your ‘bonus’ hour…the same hour everyone else is filing onto buses and into parking lots. Concerning crowd control: you know how Main Street (and Disney’s other parks’ equivalents) become jam-packed before and after parades and fireworks? So does Disney…which is why all their shops connect. That’s right: there are no walls between 99% of Main Street’s stores, which allows savvy visitors to walk straight through (in the comfort of air conditioning) instead of elbowing through the crowds on the street.

5. Visit with characters at the table, not in the parks. You can spend half your day chasing down Piglet and Pooh in Fantasyland, or you can meet-and-greet in style at the Crystal Palace while dining on stuffed french toast. Seems like a no-brainer to me. Same goes for those princesses your preschooler is bugging you for some face-time with. It’s a huge time-saver, and you and your family almost always get extra attention than if you’d waited in line in the Florida sun. (Extra tip: for dining venues inside parks, schedule your character breakfasts for approximately one hour before park opening. You’ll finish eating and be released into the park right before opening, giving you the jump on all the rope-droppers.)