Tips about At Large, Epcot, Kids, Planning and Resorts

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

While Disney resorts don't have microwaves in the room, they do have at least one microwave for common use that is usually situated close to the food court. They are available 24 hours a day and can be a great money-saver. From a snack such as popcorn to soup or noodles, using the microwave to replace or supplement bought food can be a big money-saver. - Connie McGouldrick

Animal Kingdom Lodge - If you are staying at Animal Kingdom Lodge, Jambo House, I would strongly suggest considering renting a car. My husband, 4-year-old and I have just returned from a 14-night trip and found that with the completion of Kidani Village, the bus transportation picks up and drops off at Kidani FIRST. This meant that when the bus transportation arrived at Jambo House to go to the parks, it was sometimes already full (standing room only) and on the return journey from the parks we had to drive past Jambo House to drop off and collect new people at Kidani before going to Jambo House.

On our last stay, we stayed at the Port Orleans Riverside for 10 nights. We were a bit worried: How could we enjoy some late night TV without waking our 5-year-old daughter? How would she fall asleep with the lights and TV on? We found a great solution. We bought our daughter a small dome tent (it packs up very compactly), which we shipped ahead of our arrival. When we got to the room, there was just enough space (once we rearranged a table and chair) to set her tent up in a corner. She loved it! She put all her "babies" in there each night with her, and couldn't wait to zip herself in for "camping out." Interestingly enough, the housekeeper brought in extra bedding unasked and one of those foam egg-crate pads to soften the "bed" inside the tent. Housekeeping also rearranged the "babies" around the tent each day. - Laura Suffi

Epcot - Just wanted to add to the reason to pick up a Passport kit from Epcot. I got one on our last trip and secretly had each country stamp and write Happy Birthday to my husband on the Passport. A month after we got home it was my husband's birthday. I put the Passport in a Mickey birthday card and he was very pleased and surprised with his multi-language greetings. - Sue S.

Epcot - Just wanted to add to the reason to pick up a Passport kit from Epcot. I got one on our last trip and secretly had each country stamp and write Happy Birthday to my husband on the Passport. A month after we got home it was my husband's birthday. I put the Passport in a Mickey birthday card and he was very pleased and surprised with his multi-language greetings. - Sue S.

Epcot - To save money, instead of buying the Epcot passport in the parks, create your own passport! You can make your own by cutting regular 8x11 paper into fours and stapling the pages together. You can have your children personalize the cover with their names, so Kidcot cast members don't have to ask them. And for each country, you can have children draw out the flag of that country. This can help prepare your children for the experience of World Showcase! Remember to leave the adjacent page empty for the special messages the cast members will be writing. - Ban-Hing Ng

Epcot - To save money, instead of buying the Epcot passport in the parks, create your own passport! You can make your own by cutting regular 8x11 paper into fours and stapling the pages together. You can have your children personalize the cover with their names, so Kidcot cast members don't have to ask them. And for each country, you can have children draw out the flag of that country. This can help prepare your children for the experience of World Showcase! Remember to leave the adjacent page empty for the special messages the cast members will be writing. - Ban-Hing Ng

Epcot - Just wanted to add to the reason to pick up a Passport kit from Epcot. I got one on our last trip and secretly had each country stamp and write Happy Birthday to my husband on the Passport. A month after we got home it was my husband's birthday, so I put the Passport in a Mickey birthday card. He was very pleased and surprised with his multi-language greetings. - Sue Schultz

Epcot - Just wanted to add to the reason to pick up a Passport kit from Epcot. I got one on our last trip and secretly had each country stamp and write Happy Birthday to my husband on the Passport. A month after we got home it was my husband's birthday, so I put the Passport in a Mickey birthday card. He was very pleased and surprised with his multi-language greetings. - Sue Schultz

Epcot - On our last trip to Epcot, we purchased the passport set that allows children (or adults who are children at heart) to visit the Kidcot stations in each country and get a passport stamp. On that day, my daughter happened to be wearing a Minnie Mouse shirt that was personalized with her name, Isabelle, on the front. That turned out to be wonderful, since every time she went to get her stamp, the Disney cast member would write her name in their native language. I think they normally do this, but they never had to ask her name since it was on her shirt and every cast member seemed to notice it right away. Now, she has a wonderful keepsake with her name written in several languages. - Teresa Frangakis

Epcot - On our last trip to Epcot, we purchased the passport set that allows children (or adults who are children at heart) to visit the Kidcot stations in each country and get a passport stamp. On that day, my daughter happened to be wearing a Minnie Mouse shirt that was personalized with her name, Isabelle, on the front. That turned out to be wonderful, since every time she went to get her stamp, the Disney cast member would write her name in their native language. I think they normally do this, but they never had to ask her name since it was on her shirt and every cast member seemed to notice it right away. Now, she has a wonderful keepsake with her name written in several languages. - Teresa Frangakis

I found a tip that sounds really good especially if you are traveling with little ones. Get a pizza box for each child and you can store crayons, paper and color book in there and they can use the box as a desk when riding in the car. Crayons don't roll around the car and when done it all goes back into the box. I think you could just go to your local pizza store and ask for a clean unused box. - Suzy Kozicki

Our most recent trip to Disney was a very busy one between extra activities and dinner reservations. Before leaving home, I prepared a schedule, which upon arrival I posted on the fridge (we stayed in a villa) with magnets I brought from home. This way, everyone knew where and when they needed to be somewhere. - Ann