Tips about Epcot, Kids and Other

I wanted to expand on a tip given this week from Alea Laughery in regard to taking pictures of your kids in each country in Epcot. We do this every year and some other ideas we have done: playing an instrument, waving a flag, eating a candy or treat not from a restaurant and taking a picture with a cast member from that country. My son gets excited every time and is always coming up with what he wants to do. (He came up with the instrument idea!) Next trip... Toys! - Lisa H.

I wanted to expand on a tip given this week from Alea Laughery in regard to taking pictures of your kids in each country in Epcot. We do this every year and some other ideas we have done: playing an instrument, waving a flag, eating a candy or treat not from a restaurant and taking a picture with a cast member from that country. My son gets excited every time and is always coming up with what he wants to do. (He came up with the instrument idea!) Next trip... Toys! - Lisa H.

I wanted to expand on a tip given this week from Alea Laughery in regard to taking pictures of your kids in each country in Epcot. We do this every year and some other ideas we have done: playing an instrument, waving a flag, eating a candy or treat not from a restaurant and taking a picture with a cast member from that country. My son gets excited every time and is always coming up with what he wants to do. (He came up with the instrument idea!) Next trip... Toys! - Lisa H.

Three of the restaurants at Disney Springs (Fulton's Crab House, Wolfgang Puck Cafe, and Portobello Yacht Club) are operated by the same parent company, Levy Restaurants. They have a Preferred Frequent Dining Program that you can use at any of those three restaurants and earn points that can be traded in for gift cards, etc. http://www.levyrestaurants.com - Erick

ALL PARKS - While spending the day in Epcot in the hot weather, when my feet are hot from the pavement, I always change to another pair of socks and sprinkle on some baby powder. It's a quick refresher. - Claire Rozzi

EDITOR'S NOTE: this works great at all the parks!

ALL PARKS - While spending the day in Epcot in the hot weather, when my feet are hot from the pavement, I always change to another pair of socks and sprinkle on some baby powder. It's a quick refresher. - Claire Rozzi

EDITOR'S NOTE: this works great at all the parks!

ALL PARKS - If you are not going to ride an attraction with your family, meet them in the ride's air-conditioned gift shop. Most rides have a gift shop into which the ride will exit, so it's a convenient place to meet up with your family. - Angela H. Nisbett

ALL PARKS - If you are not going to ride an attraction with your family, meet them in the ride's air-conditioned gift shop. Most rides have a gift shop into which the ride will exit, so it's a convenient place to meet up with your family. - Angela H. Nisbett

A really helpful site to visit when considering Priceline is biddingfortravel.com. Scroll down to Florida -- Orlando/Walt Disney World and see what bids others are winning. It's helpful to know prices that others got and on what dates, what hotels are in the different zones, and to read reviews from other travelers about the hotels that Priceline offers. - Christina

ALL PARKS - On some of the rides, it was easier to stand up slightly when pulling the lap bar down (so that it actually fit closer to my lap than my belly) and then sit down properly for a snug fit. This worked especially well when I went on the rides with my younger children -- they felt more secure with the lap bar closer to them. I can honestly say that large-sized folks are easily accommodated at WDW -- so go, have a great time and don't worry! - Grace

ALL PARKS - On some of the rides, it was easier to stand up slightly when pulling the lap bar down (so that it actually fit closer to my lap than my belly) and then sit down properly for a snug fit. This worked especially well when I went on the rides with my younger children -- they felt more secure with the lap bar closer to them. I can honestly say that large-sized folks are easily accommodated at WDW -- so go, have a great time and don't worry! - Grace

Our 7-year-old daughter lost a tooth while on vacation at WDW. She is a pin collector, so we bought her a Blue Fairy pin and put it under her pillow in exchange for the lost tooth. She was thrilled that the Blue Fairy visited her and left her a special gift. - Michele Sickler

ALL PARKS - We just got back from a week at WDW in mid-May. The first day in the Animal Kingdom was an Extra Magic Hour day. We noticed that the park was really crowded and extra busy. On the buses to and from our hotel, we were constantly hearing people talk about making sure to visit the parks on the Extra Magic Hour days. So I had an epiphany -- I thought that if everybody was going to the parks on the Extra Magic Hour days then that would leave the other parks that are non-magic hour parks practically vacant. I was right. We walked right on rides and had no waits. We were able to ride all of the major attractions twice or even thrice before noon. - BryantH

When my son and I fly he likes to bring both his Leapster and VideoNow Jr. Even though we use rechargeable batteries and I put fresh batteries in before we leave for the airport, they both eat batteries like there's no tomorrow. To change the batteries, I have to unscrew a couple of screws. Since screwdrivers are not allowed on airplanes now, I unscrewed the screws and used a piece of clear packing tape (the kind you use to close boxes that are being shipped) to hold the battery cover on. It is so much easier I never went back to using the screwdriver. - Julie Skinner

EPCOT - While at Epcot recently (in Future World, near the Mouse Gear entrance), I noticed that the soda/ice cream carts had a new item: chocolate/vanilla swirl push-up pops for only $1.00! That will be a great low-cost treat when it's hot! - Carol Kelley