Tips about Epcot, Kids, Mousecellaneous and RFID

When at WDW, no matter the time of year, there always seem to be a "wait" for something! We help pass the time with our 3 yr old by packing a deck of cards. While waiting for meals, Mickey's Philharmagic, parades, and even the boat back to the hotel, we'll play quick games of "Go Fish" or "Crazy Eights." She'll even make up her own games to help pass the time. It's truly been a lifesaver for an ansy little pre-schooler! - Alison Boeckman

We have just returned from a week in Disney World with our almost 4-year-old granddaughter. With the help of PassPorter and AllEars® we were able to do it up right. Our own saving grace was purchasing a pair of "earmuffs" (sound protection earmuffs) for our princess. We kept them easily accessible on the top of our knapsack. The excitement, loud noises, fireworks and scary rides were a piece of cake. We saw and heard lots of little ones crying from the noise. Our granddaughter has always been scared of fireworks and we wanted to make the whole experience positive. She enjoyed everything and was so proud of herself that she wasn't afraid of anything, because nothing in Disney World would hurt her! - Diane Russell

This summer, my family decided to give back a little to the Cast Members who make each stay even more magical. Before leaving home, we printed (using print programs that are out there on the Web) character thank you cards. Each card had a different princess or Tinker Bell on it, and said something nice like, "We put your service to the test, and you're the best!" or "Thank you for making our vacation magical!" We added our family name, hometown, and "Summer 2004." We printed them out, and each member of our family got a sheet of their own to color. After coloring, we laminated them. Once in the park, we handed them out to Cast Members who we felt had gone above and beyond the call of "normal magic." Most of the Cast Members we handed them out to were so surprised and thanked *us*! We really enjoyed doing this, and I feel sure that it will be a new tradition for our family. - Ashlee Farris

Magic Kingdom - On my last trip to WDW I had my 9 month old with me. After running out of formula, I asked around and none of the cast members knew where I could get any within WDW. After taking a $30.00 cab ride to the nearest grocery store, I found out that WDW does stock the popular brands of formula, among other baby necessities, at a small baby store by the Crystal Palace at Magic Kingdom. - Cara Nelson

EDITOR'S NOTE: Each of the 4 theme parks at Walt Disney World have a Baby Care Center (usually located near the First Aid building). They have a variety of items for sale.

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

We Recently took our 4 year old daughter to Disney for the first time. Before we went I bought foil wrapped chocolate coins with the Princesses on them at the Disney store. Each morning I put a coin, along with a note from Tinkerbell somewhere in the room so our daughter would find it as soon as she woke up. Our last morning she found a Cinderella coin purse with the remainder of the coins and a note that said thanks for visiting Cinderella at the castle (we did the breakfast there). It was so fun to watch how excited she got when she discovered her treats from Tinkerbell each morning!! She couldn't wait to show the other family members who were there with us. - Nancy Bush

When I drive to WDW (or anywhere) with kids, I give them each a roll of quarters at the START of the trip. They can spend the money any way they want when we get there. Oh, every time they ask any question resembling "Are we there yet?", they have to give me back 25 cents. Either way, I win. - Larry Herman

ALL PARKS - There is another show at WDW that most people miss; sit down and watch the other guests. You will never see so diverse an amount of tennis shoes, fashion statements or age groups. - CMarlan

Parents should remember to shorten their strides to match their child's stride. The little kids are taking 4-8 steps to your one step. - CMarlan

ALL PARKS - What our tip is, is to tie a bright bandana on the luggage rack or one of the mirrors of your car/minivan/truck that face the tram pick up area. We tied a bright colorful bandana nearest the tram pick up side on our while rented minivan, each day of our 11 day trip to WDW. It didn't matter what park we were at or what row we parked at. All we had to remember was the section, (example, stage, donald, unicorn, etc) we always found our van many times from very far away. We also used the bandana's on our stroller and on our luggage. - Clemley

On a recent Disney trip I decided to forgo bringing my purse and just buy a cheap, small man's wallet. I just popped my ID, credit cards, ticket and a few dollars in, and off I would go. I could skip the bag line and not worry about where my money and information was. It made airport check-in a breeze also. I still use it today and leave all my other seldom-used cards in my larger wallet in my purse. How often do you really use all that other stuff you drag around with you? - Donna

Want to get prepped for your Hidden Mickey hunt at WDW, Disney style? Just watch Lion King 1 1/2. There are so many Hidden Mickeys in this movie that I lost count! - Alea L.

ALL PARKS - We read complaints about some of the attractions being too loud so we carried a set of earplugs in our fanny packs and found that they helped tremendously! We could still hear well, but our ears were much more comfortable. The earplugs don't take up any room at all either! - Diane Taylor

A tip for parents is to carry a few changes of clothes for the kids. There are a few places where there are fountains that come out of the ground (like at the bus stop entrance to Disney Markeplace) and some rides on which you can get very wet. This way the parents can take their kids into a restroom and change them into dry clothes so that they'll enjoy the rest of the trip to the park without having to run around in wet clothes or underwear. - W.V. Daniels, Jr.