Tips about Characters, Mousecellaneous and Planning

I LOVE your YouTube videos. I watch them a lot -- especially when I am missing Disney World, and want to go right now! I'm not sure how many of your readers know that you have this channel on youtube. But I think it'd be a great "tip" or comment to make! I love your website and appreciate all the work you put into it. We go to Disney every year, and this site is my first site for planning, and for just keeping in touch with my favorite place in the world! - Melissa

EDITOR'S NOTE: Thanks for giving us a chance to plug our YouTube.com channel here, Melissa! You can see all of AllEars.Net's videos, covering a wide array of Disney subjects, at: http://www.youtube.com/allearsnet

I like to make my hotel room feel a little more special by bringing in a small bouquet of flowers. You can buy these at the local supermarket for a few bucks. I always bring an old vase from home (which I leave at the hotel when I return home) and have a nice smelling and beautiful thing to come back to at the end of every day. - Amanda Bohning

After reading the tip in a recent newsletter about utilizing Google Docs for planning purposes, I thought that I'd share, too. I utilize Microsoft OneNote for Disney (and other) trip planning. OneNote is included in the Microsoft Office Home and Student Edition, as well as the higher-end Office editions. I have tabs for an overall trip calendar (generated from MS Outlook), travel itineraries for my husband and me, as well as our two adult children (traveling from different cities), Roman Catholic mass times, dining reservations, park operating hours, and that ever-useful Miscellaneous tab. I then set the Notebook to be shared via MS SkyDrive (Hotmail addresses and the like) and our kids can pull up whatever information I have culled for the trip, as well as dining reservations. OneNote has a newly released iPad specific app, as well as an iPhone App (alas, I have an Android phone. But the Android Disney Parks app is terrific!). All your information available to you at your fingertips! - Cel V.

You can find Dug and Russell from Pixar's UP at Animal Kingdom. I thought you may want to add them in case others are looking for them! - Tricia

I am currently planning a trip to WDW for a large group of 15. With crazy schedules and one family living in another state, it's hard for us to get together to plan. In order to include everyone in on the planning, I am using Google Docs (http://docs.google.com/). They are easy to set up, easy to share with others (via email) and allow everyone to edit/add to the document. I just ask everyone to use a different color font when using it. We have three docs going: one to plan where we need ADRs, one to discuss special events/activities that we may or may not want to do, and one that is a to-do list (dates to purchase tickets, reservations, make ADRs...). As we get closer to the trip, I'll probably add another doc for our itinerary (with reservations written in) to allow people to comment on it and make suggestions. - Cate

Our kids love getting autographs while visiting Disney World and we've filled a couple of books. On a recent trip I thought I would surprise the kids with something different. I purchased a white pillowcase and some colored fabric permanent markers along with a small clipboard for each child. I wrote each child's name and date of our visit on their pillowcase. Before heading out, I would arrange a blank space for a character to sign and secure it with an elastic. After a character signed it, I would quickly refold a new blank space for the next signature. I kept all the markers in a small sandwich bag and the pillowcases in a zip-top storage bag. It easily fit into my backpack, was easily accessible and stayed dry, too. The kids loved picking out a specific color for each character and now have a great decorative pillow keepsake of our magical trip! Goofy even wrote "sweet dreams" on my daughter's pillowcase! - Suzy

I love last week's article about the Walt Disney Family Musuem - AllEars #637. We had a chance to travel out to California last summer and went to the museum. It is a wonderful place to go for all Disney fans. We spent hours there and still could have used more time. Just make sure if you go out to check to make sure the days they are open. They were closed the day we were there so we changed our plans to be there the next day they were open. It was well worth it. - Andrea

I enjoyed reading about the Walt Disney Family Museum in last week's newsletter AllEars #637. We had the opportunity to visit this past July. It was fantastic and I could have spent hours upon hours reading all about Walt, his family, and all that Walt did during his life. It was fascinating. The art you see, the history and facts you learn -- all well worth the price of admission. And yes, I cried at the end. I also enjoyed the gift shop. Lots of unique-to-the-museum items. My son was introduced to Davy Crockett that day (on the wall of TVs) and chose a coon-ish skin cap as a souvenir. I thought that was neat. Another cool thing to check out if you go to the museum and happen to have a Star Wars fan with you (as I did) is to visit the ILM/Lucasfilm headquarters just a couple blocks away. You can visit the lobby full of memorabilia -- just check in with the receptionist and be respectful. The Yoda fountain in the courtyard outside is really cool -- a great photo spot! Between the two stops, it makes for a great day! - Anna Burch

On a recent trip to WDW, we stayed at the brand new Wyndham Grand Orlando in Bonnet Creek... However, we found out that when some non-Disney hotels include "scheduled transportation" to the parks, it doesn't always mean that the buses run every 20 or 30 minutes as the Disney resorts and Disney Springs member hotel buses do. The shuttle from the Wyndham Grand only went to and from the parks two or three times PER DAY! Just beware that if you want the convenience of being able to head to the parks (or head back from the parks to your hotel) whenever you choose without renting a car, stay at at a Disney-owned hotel or one of the Disney Springs member hotels that run several shuttles per hour to and from the parks. Otherwise, if you intend to stay at a hotel with less convenient transportation options, consider renting a car so you can still come and go as you please. - Jeff Hogan

Buy a thin wallet that fits in your shorts pocket to hold your Disney cards, Fastpasses, and money, then buy an antibacterial lotion that clips to your belt. You can then go right through the no bags line at the park entrances. It saves you waiting in another line. - Michelle

Before our trip, we purchased a sports towel at the local sports store. It is about 12" x 16" and folds up into a sandwich-size zip-top bag. What a lifesaver! We used it after the daily August rainstorms to dry off outdoor tables, ride seating, benches, and even ourselves when we got soaked in the rain! These types of towels are made by Speedo, TYR and other companies that make competitive swim equipment. When they get soaked, just wring out and they're dry again. For the $11 we spent it was worth it not to have to sit on wet seats or have wet behinds all day. We got ours at a sporting goods store, but they are also available on Amazon.com. - Becky Hecker

I used the Disney Parks Mobile Magic App from Verizon for my recent trip. It was amazing. It was great for information on character meet and greet times and ride wait times, but the most magical part of it all was the ability to make dining reservations. Believe it or not, at 3 p.m. I was checking availability for Epcot restaurants for dinner while waiting for a ride in the Magic Kingdom. To my utter disbelief, I saw Le Cellier open for a spot at 5:30. I quickly chose it and got my email confirmation in seconds. A short two-and-a-half hours later, my family of four was enjoying one of the best and most sought-after meals in Walt Disney World. Can't believe we were so lucky. (Note: I saw openings on this app for Le Cellier two more times during the trip, so use it if you can.) Love the newsletter. - Chris Hellerman

Polynesian Resort - In late August we had a character breakfast planned at 'Ohana. When our server greeted us and offered juice and coffee, on a whim I asked about getting a French press of 100 percent Kona coffee, which they serve over at Kona Cafe. The server had never served one herself, but was happy to oblige our request! The coffee was the same price as next door, $7.99 for the pot, and worth every penny. After enduring Nescafe for more than a week, the fresh Kona coffee was like liquid gold to us! It was so good that we nearly ordered a second pot of it. For $7.99 this is a great way to perfect the 'Ohana breakfast experience. The French press serves about four cups of coffee. And remember that this is 100 perent Kona, not a blend like at the coffee bar. - Doug H.

One of the best places to meet characters is at The Magic of Disney Animation at Disney's Hollywood Studios. We've met lots of great characters here before, but on our visit last month we went there during an afternoon rain. Among the regulars (Pooh and the Incredibles), were Pinocchio and Geppetto, Chip and Dale, Mulan, Mary Poppins and Mr. Penguin, Minnie and Pluto, and Goofy with his son Max. We were thrilled to get to meet some of the harder-to-find characters, and there wasn't more than a 10-minute wait for any of them. - Rebekah McM

On my family and friends' trips to Walt Disney World, we tend to be a bit tired when we arrive. We will get a snack and refillable mugs before heading to the pool to relax (some of us take a short nap there). Afterwards we go to the Animal Kingdom Lodge to see the animals they have there. It is a little taste of visiting one of the parks without using a park pass. We then get dinner at this resort before heading back to our own resort for a stroll around the paths and a good night's sleep. - Deb Wilde