Tips about Disney Cruise Line and Epcot

EPCOT - As an avid newsletter reader and fan, I thought I'd give you guys a little tip. In the Soarin' ride, there's a Hidden Mickey besides the obvious one in the ending fireworks. It's on the golf ball that's hit in Palm Springs. - Sue Murphy

Epcot - If your kids aren't big enough to ride Test Track go into the gift shop/exit. I thought it was just a gift shop, and I was wrong. My 3-year-old was thrilled to be able to sit in a Hummer and a Saab. All he talks about are the cool cars he played in at Test Track. I am so glad I didn't walk by this attraction. - Robin from Deltona, FL

Epcot - If your kids aren't big enough to ride Test Track go into the gift shop/exit. I thought it was just a gift shop, and I was wrong. My 3-year-old was thrilled to be able to sit in a Hummer and a Saab. All he talks about are the cool cars he played in at Test Track. I am so glad I didn't walk by this attraction. - Robin from Deltona, FL

Our family went to Cozumel and Costa Maya on the Disney Magic in September 2004. We wanted to go to the beach in Cozumel. The Disney staff only recommended private beaches to us. Thanks to our taxi driver, we went to Mr. Sancho's Beach, which is a public beach -- which means no admission fee. It's a beautiful beach with water activities. Also in Costa Maya, we didn't take the taxi anywhere, but later talked to someone who said she paid $3 to go to Tequila Beach. Feel free to talk to the locals when you're in Mexico since they can recommend great places to visit and sight-see. - Janine Ho

On our recent cruise on the Wonder, we went to guest services to obtain an extension cord for my husband's CPAP machine. The cast member asked if we needed distilled water, and said if so, they would provide it, free of charge. When we arrived back at our cabin later that evening, there was a gallon of distilled water waiting for us. This is a great service since it's so hard to get liquids through airport security. - Sue Sansoucy

We just returned from a whirlwind Disney vacation including a 3-night Disney Cruise on the Wonder. Traveling with our 9-month-old son was obviously a different experience, but the Cast Members on the cruise made everything go as smoothly as possible. Here are a couple of tips for cruising with a baby: Disney has portable cribs available for your stateroom; just make sure to request one when you book. Something we do when out and about is bring zipper baggies for the stinky diapers -- this was a nose saver in the stateroom. We packed a bunch of those and the dirty diapers were sealed to prevent any odor problems. The dining room waitstaff were more than happy to bring bowls and heat up baby food at dinner. Finally, my main concern was cleaning our baby bottles while on the boat. One of the nights I asked our stateroom host if it was possible to get dish soap so we could wash the bottles. Instead, he took the bottles and had them sterilized. He also learned our son's name and always made sure to say hi to him every day. Everyone onboard made sure that we had the most relaxing trip you could have with an infant. - Tracey Perry

Epcot - The new Disney and Pixar Short Film Festival in the Magic Eye Theater (in the Imagination pavilion) has a 15-minute standing pre-show that, while informative, is not very entertaining for kids. - A Reader

Epcot - The new Disney and Pixar Short Film Festival in the Magic Eye Theater (in the Imagination pavilion) has a 15-minute standing pre-show that, while informative, is not very entertaining for kids. - A Reader

Epcot - Don't forget the single rider lines at Test Track and Mission: SPACE, especially if you're just part of a couple. This is a GREAT way to ride quickly. Even when we have the kids, we'll each take the 9-year-old (the other kids are too small) and ride using the single rider line, then we switch... oftentimes it even beats out the child swap option because you don't have to stand in the regular line. - - Sarah

Epcot - Don't forget the single rider lines at Test Track and Mission: SPACE, especially if you're just part of a couple. This is a GREAT way to ride quickly. Even when we have the kids, we'll each take the 9-year-old (the other kids are too small) and ride using the single rider line, then we switch... oftentimes it even beats out the child swap option because you don't have to stand in the regular line. - - Sarah

ALL PARKS - I just returned from a trip to WDW. The 3M Company now has a new Post-It Flag Highlighter that includes both a highlighter and Post-It flags in one. It was PERFECT for marking the maps to the parks. I would circle the attraction number with the highlighter and then put a Post-It flag on the number on the map. They are see-though, so they don't cover up the number. The "pen" fit perfectly in my fanny pack! - Leah Price

ALL PARKS - I purchased "The Unofficial Guide to WDW" book before our trip. I tore out the pages in the back of the book (the ones that suggest which attractions to see and in which order -- a very valuable tool) and laminated them. I then punched a hole in a corner of each page. As we set off for a certain park for the day, I would attach that set of pages with a binder ring to my fanny pack. I then had a quick reference guide for all the attractions and restaurants in that park. It was outside my fanny pack so I could look at it quickly without having to open my fanny pack each time. It was laminated so if it rained, the pages were not ruined, and they could withstand a lot of abuse. I took along a Sharpie marker and marked off each attraction as we visited it so I could see at a glance where we'd been and where we were supposed to go next. It worked out very well for our trip. - Lisa Kent

We just returned from our Spring Break trip on the 7-day Disney Cruise. It was a great adventure for my sons ages 5 & 8. I did several thing to extend the excitement of our trip. We mailed postcards to grandparents and friends at Castaway Cay and I secretly slipped in a card for them from Mickey, Minnie and Goofy. I also bought a box of Disney character cookies to pack along with a plastic sword (the ones that are used for the fruit garnish in the fun "adult" drinks) in their lunchboxes when they returned to school on Monday. They were delighted to have a little reminder of our vacation on their first day back to school! - Lisa Brannock

ALL PARKS - On our last trip to Disney we brought our own 2 way radios. This came in extremely handy and we were able to separate and change plans as we needed. We had to share the frequency with quite a few other people, but if you don't mind waiting your turn, it really is a convenient way to communicate if you decide to split up. - Sharmon Simonetti

ALL PARKS - Assign a meeting place IN THE SHADE! Meeting by the fountain at Epcot is great except it can be brutal in the afternoon sun. Better to meet at one of the Innovations cafes where you can stay cool and relax if your party is late. - D. Hamilton