Erika

I remember the first year our family traveled as a family of 6 to the Walt Disney World® Resort.  I read guidebooks and searched online looking for rooms that would accommodate 6 people. It seemed I could only find rooms for families with up to 5 people, while most were for only 4. I went into panic mode. What were we going to do?  There’s no way Disney would want to turn away larger families, right? Right???  After digging a little deeper, I discovered that Disney provides MANY options for larger families. Crisis averted! We were able to stay together and have a fantastic time at a reasonable price. Our family found that the least expensive way to stay onsite with a larger family is to get two connecting rooms at a Value Resort. A connecting room gives you two rooms that are connected by a door in between the two rooms. It gives you two bathrooms 4 standard sized beds and you can have an infant or toddler up to two years old in a portable crib in each room. So that gives you space for a total of 8 children or adults in both rooms and one infant/toddler aged [...]

In my first installment on traveling to Walt Disney World with larger families, I discussed ways of housing a large family while in Walt Disney World.  This time I’d like to talk about my favorite topic…food!  Anyone who has a large family knows that it can cost a small fortune to feed a large family if you’re not budget conscious.  So what are you supposed to do when you are in the Walt Disney World® Resort?  Put the family on a diet?  I don’t think so!  There are several ways your family can eat well without breaking the bank. My number one recommendation is to take advantage of “free dining” if or when it is offered as a promotion through Disney.  If you have flexibility in your dates and can go when it is offered, free dining is a great deal.  Depending on the resort level, your family will receive at least two meals, one snack and a refillable mug (good at Disney resorts for the length of your stay) per person per day.  Your family won’t be able to take advantage of any room promotions or other special offers, but most of the time for a larger family, free dining [...]

Have you ever wanted to be part of one of the incredible nighttime events at Walt Disney World® Resort or Disneyland® Resort?  Well, now you can!  After a successful launch of Glow with the Show ear hats at the Disneyland® Resort, these fantastic ear hats have now been introduced to the Walt Disney World® Resort!  So what’s so spectacular about these new ear hats?  Everything!!  These new ear hats light up in time to the music of many of the nighttime entertainment events at Walt Disney World® as well as the World of Color at Disneyland® so that you are literally part of the show.  Currently, these incredible ears are synchronized to light up to the music at Fantasmic!, Osborne Family Spectacle of Dancing Lights, Wishes fireworks show, Holiday Wishes fireworks show, and the Celebrate the Magic show at Cinderella Castle in Walt Disney World® and the World of Color Show at Disneyland®.  These ears not only light up during these select shows, but can be turned on manually at anytime for your own nighttime glow show when you are cruising Walt Disney World® or Disneyland® in the evenings and at home after your vacation. These hats are battery operated. [...]

“No, no, no!!  Tell me it isn’t true!!  What am I going to do?”  This panicked question has been bantered around Disney fan sites for a couple of days now.  So what’s the hubbub about?   “Hold onto your hats”, as they say on Big Thunder Mountain Railroad®, because this is definitely unexpected news;  effective immediately, all mini refrigerators will be removed from Walt Disney World® Resort, Disneyland® Resort and Aulani, A Disney Resort & Spa!  The exceptions to this removal policy are the refrigerators in Disney’s All-Star Music Resort Suites, Disney’s Art of Animation Suites, Disney Vacation Club accommodations, and Disney's Fort Wilderness Cabins which all utilize a larger model.  The affected refrigerators are being pulled out of the rooms AFTER vacationers have left for home so if you are staying in a Disney resort currently, you don’t need to worry about your refrigerator disappearing while you are out of your room.  It is expected to take at least 4 months to replace all of the refrigerators in the resorts.  In light of this stunning revelation, affected vacationers are left with this burning question…WHAT ARE WE GOING TO DO??????  First, don’t panic.   There will be a limited number of refrigerators available [...]