Tips about Epcot, Magic Kingdom, Planning and Resorts

Polynesian - We recently returned from a six-night stay at the Polynesian. We stayed in the Tokelau House and found that walking to the Transportation and Ticket Center when going to Epcot was a timesaver versus taking the Resort Monorail through the Grand Floridian, Magic Kingdom then to the Transportation and Ticket Center. - Lori C.

Free Dining is sometimes offered with a resort package. My trip dates didn't include all of the free dining dates. I called Disney reservations to ask how I could take advantage of the free dining that is being offered and got a wonderful agent who checked into it for me. When she came back on the line, she had booked my trip for free dining for all 10 days. My tip is even if your dates are only partially covered, CALL! You may be able to get the whole trip included. It definitely made for a magical day in my house. - Stefanie

Magic Kingdom - I read about another reader having problems making reservations for the Harmony Barber Shop. I called 407-WDW-PLAY and the cast member helped me immediately, there was no confusion. She also told me that there are some appointments available BEFORE 9 a.m., some days as early as 8:05 a.m. Might give you a head start on your Magic Kingdom day. - Marianne

Magic Kingdom - I read about another reader having problems making reservations for the Harmony Barber Shop. I called 407-WDW-PLAY and the cast member helped me immediately, there was no confusion. She also told me that there are some appointments available BEFORE 9 a.m., some days as early as 8:05 a.m. Might give you a head start on your Magic Kingdom day. - Marianne

All Resorts - Disney resorts themselves have a limited number of wheelchairs, which they will allow you to use for free for the length of your stay. I found this out when a member of my party fell and broke her ankle on property. If you go to the main desk, they'll ask you to "sign out" the wheelchair like a library book. It can be taken anywhere: your room, the parks, Disney Springs, off property. Best of all, unlike rented chairs, it doesn't need to be returned and picked up again daily. You just need to make sure it is returned before you leave. - Melody Townley

EDITOR'S NOTE: Please note, you can not check into the resort and expect a free wheelchair for your stay. The loaner chairs are for unexpected accidents as described above. If you need a wheelchair, push or electric, during your stay, AllEars recommends

http://www.buenavistascooters.com/

Magic Kingdom - Unfortunately, I am a victim of motion sickness. When I took my 7-year-old son to Magic Kingdom, he had no fear of riding the "big" rides by himself. I was able to stand in line with him and once we reached the ride, he got on, and I found the exit and waited for him to get off. However, we ran into a problem on two of the rides (Space Mountain and Big Thunder Mountain Railroad). Both of these rides have two exits depending on where you get on. So if you plan to do this, be aware and pick a good meeting place. In our case, before our trip, I ensured my son knew my cell phone number and we discussed how to find a cast member if he got lost. - Christine Crews

YACHT CLUB - Just returned from a stay at the Yacht Club resort and found that the Ale and Compass Lounge serves a continental breakfast each morning. Muffins, croissants, fruit, cereal & milk, juices, coffee and more. I stumbled upon this on my first morning and was pleased to see that I didn't have to go to the Beach Club or Boardwalk to get a quick breakfast. - Ruthie White

ALL PARKS - We have gone down to Walt Disney World 24 times and are looking forward to going again in November. My tip is that when you go, always take a break where there is a water feature. If you are over-warm, they will help cool you off and if you are not then the sound helps relax and focus your mind so you can enjoy the rest of your day. At Magic Kingdom, the best one is right next to the Splash Mountain ride. If you don't want to get wet, step back. In Epcot, they are all over. They are in every park and various places, so ENJOY. - Dana Lind

EDITOR'S NOTE: The water features Dana refers to include the various fountains, water play areas, and misters found around the parks, such as the squirting Tiki Gods in Magic Kingdom's Adventureland or the Cool Wash mister near Test Track in Epcot.

ALL PARKS - We have gone down to Walt Disney World 24 times and are looking forward to going again in November. My tip is that when you go, always take a break where there is a water feature. If you are over-warm, they will help cool you off and if you are not then the sound helps relax and focus your mind so you can enjoy the rest of your day. At Magic Kingdom, the best one is right next to the Splash Mountain ride. If you don't want to get wet, step back. In Epcot, they are all over. They are in every park and various places, so ENJOY. - Dana Lind

EDITOR'S NOTE: The water features Dana refers to include the various fountains, water play areas, and misters found around the parks, such as the squirting Tiki Gods in Magic Kingdom's Adventureland or the Cool Wash mister near Test Track in Epcot.

Animal Kingdom Lodge - We recently stayed at Jambo House in the Animal Kingdom Lodge. While there, we noticed a sign stating that all balloons had to be kept in the luggage holding room for the duration of the guest's stay. Apparently, they are concerned that balloons will find their way onto the savanna, and cause problems for the animals. You may want to reconsider purchasing a balloon, if staying at the Animal Kingdom Lodge! - Paul and Kris Munson

Magic Kingdom - On our May 2010 trip to WDW we ate, as always, at Pecos Bill's at the Magic Kingdom. We always order the veggie burgers. The cast member gave us our tray with only our drinks and sides. She told us the burgers were being prepared at the "Fixin's Bar" and we needed to go there to pick them up. The reason given was that they are prepared on a separate grill, away from meat, making them totally vegan. Other counter service restaurants which grill them in the kitchen told us they always use a separate grill. - Jeannie B.

Epcot - My husband and I recently learned of something called the "Wine Walk" at Epcot. For $20 you can purchase a passport at the France, Germany or Italy wine shops. The passport allows you to taste six different wines (two per country). The passport lists the two specific wines in each country. What is unique about the Wine Walk is that you do not have to use the whole passport in one trip. You can try a few and then save the rest for a future trip if you like. Each wine is a two-ounce pour, but Germany seems to be the only country that was very strict on this. Italy and France were a bit more liberal with their pours. Our favorite country for the tastings was Italy. Even though you only get about two ounces per taste, we felt it was a pretty good bargain as we would have paid about $35 if we bought each pour individually. - Tiffany Harmon

Epcot - My husband and I recently learned of something called the "Wine Walk" at Epcot. For $20 you can purchase a passport at the France, Germany or Italy wine shops. The passport allows you to taste six different wines (two per country). The passport lists the two specific wines in each country. What is unique about the Wine Walk is that you do not have to use the whole passport in one trip. You can try a few and then save the rest for a future trip if you like. Each wine is a two-ounce pour, but Germany seems to be the only country that was very strict on this. Italy and France were a bit more liberal with their pours. Our favorite country for the tastings was Italy. Even though you only get about two ounces per taste, we felt it was a pretty good bargain as we would have paid about $35 if we bought each pour individually. - Tiffany Harmon

Epcot - When my family and I go to Epcot we try to make our World Showcase adventure memorable. We have tried making a mask and saving a section for each country and writing a special fact in that section, but that didn't work very well, so we then tried having the people working at the Kidcot station write our names on the attachable paper picture from each country. This was very cool, but if they got wet from rain they bled and washed away. This past time my sister and I decided to get a candy from each country. You can usually find these in the gift shops or even at restaurants. At each pavilion we took a picture of us eating the candy and we saved the wrapper/box. We then came home and made a collage with the wrappers and pictures. This was a very exciting thing for us -- we had never thought of doing anything like this before. You can even do this with the little kid menus. I know when I was little I used to circle what I wanted to eat, write the restaurant name and chef's name on top, and then if it was a character meal, have the characters sign the menu. I did this with my younger sister and she loved doing her paper menu collage while I worked on my candy wrapper collage. I think this is a very creative and fun activity for kids of all ages. My mom is going to do it with us this time! - Lindsay

Epcot - When my family and I go to Epcot we try to make our World Showcase adventure memorable. We have tried making a mask and saving a section for each country and writing a special fact in that section, but that didn't work very well, so we then tried having the people working at the Kidcot station write our names on the attachable paper picture from each country. This was very cool, but if they got wet from rain they bled and washed away. This past time my sister and I decided to get a candy from each country. You can usually find these in the gift shops or even at restaurants. At each pavilion we took a picture of us eating the candy and we saved the wrapper/box. We then came home and made a collage with the wrappers and pictures. This was a very exciting thing for us -- we had never thought of doing anything like this before. You can even do this with the little kid menus. I know when I was little I used to circle what I wanted to eat, write the restaurant name and chef's name on top, and then if it was a character meal, have the characters sign the menu. I did this with my younger sister and she loved doing her paper menu collage while I worked on my candy wrapper collage. I think this is a very creative and fun activity for kids of all ages. My mom is going to do it with us this time! - Lindsay