Tips about Magic Kingdom and Special Events

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

ALL PARKS - You will only move at the pace of the slowest person in your group. Accept this, be patient, and do what you can to help that slowest person - under certain circumstances, it might be you! (Jen Kitchen)

Just back from our first trip with a toddler. He goes down for a nap each afternoon. We were unsuccessful getting him down in the Magic Kingdom (too much stimulation) so we headed out for the buses through Tommorrowland. As we strolled through the Tomorrowland Terrace, we realized less noise, no visual stimulation, and protection from the sun! It was the perfect place for our son to finally fall asleep. It probably saved us an hour to the hotel. - Doug C

CHRISTMAS - We had our own Christmas ornament idea. We bought the official attraction collectibles -- the ones that look like a ride car -- tied clear string and a hook to them, and hung them on our tree. These only cost about $5 each! - Bill Fosbenner

CHRISTMAS - Our family always checks out the key rings at WDW. A lot of the key rings are suitable to be used as Christmas ornaments or jewelry. On our most recent trip we purchased a monorail key ring to use as a Christmas ornament. We saw a glass monorail ornament that was twice the price and I wasn't sure it would survive the plane trip home. We also bought a key ring that had a Tinker Bell charm on it. I removed the charm (silver) and placed it on a chain to wear as a necklace. The key ring cost $6 compared to the actual Tinker Bell charms that were $12. - Ronda

As great as zipper-top bags are for holding snacks, you might want to think about hard plastic storage containers for them or something equally sturdy. I've witnessed a squirrel literally rip a hole in a reusable supermarket bag to get at the chips inside, no matter how many times we shooed him away. Anytime you're in a show or a ride with a long line the squirrels and birds have PLENTY of time to mess with your stuff that you've left in your stroller or scooter. - Aren

We were in Disney World last month and noticed that there are new ways that the MagicBands interact with various attractions. At Rock 'n' Roller Coaster, there is an electronic poster in the queue that displays the name and home city of guests. At Mission: Space, there are video screens in the post-attraction room that will display the names of the guests who finished the ride, along with their hometown and their mission projection. At Space Mountain there are video screens along the moving walkway that display the names of the guests who finished the ride. At the end of "it's a small world," look for the video screen to display the names of the guests on the boat. There may be more attractions that may also implement this technology, so keep your eyes open in the queues and in the post-attraction areas. - Brian Kehoe

We were in Disney World last month and noticed that there are new ways that the MagicBands interact with various attractions. At Rock 'n' Roller Coaster, there is an electronic poster in the queue that displays the name and home city of guests. At Mission: Space, there are video screens in the post-attraction room that will display the names of the guests who finished the ride, along with their hometown and their mission projection. At Space Mountain there are video screens along the moving walkway that display the names of the guests who finished the ride. At the end of "it's a small world," look for the video screen to display the names of the guests on the boat. There may be more attractions that may also implement this technology, so keep your eyes open in the queues and in the post-attraction areas. - Brian Kehoe

MAGIC KINGDOM - When two showings of a parade are offered at the Magic Kingdom in an evening, the second is almost always much less crowded and just as nice! - Timeless Tip o' the Week brought to you by www.themouseforless.com and Mike Boyer

ALL PARKS - In regards to having bags and whatnots inspected at the parks, the best thing is to have all pockets and pouches opened. Also, if you have a dayplanner or something similar, have that unzipped, too. When we went to Disneyland recently (to see the new Haunted Mansion Holiday), my husband was asked to open his dayplanner for them to inspect. When we park-hopped over to DCA, he was ready for the inspection process and dutifully had everything unzipped and ready to be looked at. - Milady

ALL PARKS - I found that if you get tired of waiting in long lines, and you don't mind splitting up your party ( maybe to 1, 2,or even 3) some attractions offer singles lines. These lines help fill up unused space. I tried this at Test Track and the normal wait time was 70 minutes. It took me 5 minutes on the singles line and I still got a seat with my parents. - Matthew

CHRISTMAS - Nothing beats Disney at Christmas - the music throughout all the parks - decorations - everything - it's wonderful - We will never go back in the summer again. - AHalton

CHRISTMAS - Buy a Christmas ornament that commemorates that year in one of the Christmas shops. My father started this back in the early '90s and when I got married. He gave me all of them from the trips just the two of us made. Now every year when my husband, son and I decorate our Christmas tree it reminds me of each trip we have taken to the park. - Megan Kelley

CHRISTMAS - Several years ago for a mid-December trip to Disney World we took along a huge Christmas stocking (about 3 feet long). This was our first Christmas trip (our girls were 4 and 7) to Disney World. Each day during the trip, my husband and I would purchase small items such as candy, stickers and other items related to the trip or to what we had done on that particular day. We would also purchase one larger item for each of the girls (water toys, balls, etc., or something they might have seen during the day). Each morning we would stuff the stocking full of all the fun goodies and hang it outside the room on the doorknob. Then once the girls' "Mickey wake - up call" came, they would spring out of bed to see if their "Secret Disney Santa" had come, which he had every morning. I'm not really sure who got the biggest kick out of it, the girls, or Mom and Dad! - Jan Reynolds

CHRISTMAS - I had two little ones at the time who were very scared that Santa could not find them at Walt Disney World, so we sent Santa a letter telling him where we would be on Christmas morning.

My husband and I packed an entire bag full of presents. My sister and I packed a three-foot artificial Christmas tree, and we had collected several ornaments prior to our trip. Add some Christmas lights, and it was a miniature version of home! We set it up late Christmas Eve, when everyone was asleep. You can imagine their surprise when they saw it Christmas morning complete with gifts! We even strung some lights in our hotel window! We just had it shipped home when our trip was over so we didn't have to deal with it on the plane. My mother has set it up along with her real tree every year since! - Laura Bonke