Tips about Souvenirs and Special Needs

Our son has autism and is now 17. We have been to WDW five times over an 11-year span (most recently in November 2005). I highly recommend character meals -- especially for lunch, as it allows a little bit of winding down from overstimulation. We especially enjoyed the Liberty Tree Tavern for dinner as the characters quickly tuned into our son and gave him extra attention -- it is also an exceptionally quiet place. The Garden Grill in Epcot is also great, as you quickly leave the hustle behind and are totally alone in the booth. These are family-style meals and do not provide the variety of the buffets at places like the Crystal Palace. We also thought that Hollywood & Vine for the Fantasmic special entrance was worthwhile (this is a buffet). Another tip: while you may want to avoid the stares from others, you might consider wearing a Cure Autism Now or similar t-shirt. - Mike Roberts

We have been several times to WDW throughout the past several years, with and without our daughters. Now that they are all grown up, we seem to visit WDW more often without them. They always get a postcard or two from us to let them know we are thinking of them. On our latest trip we started what we call our "audio postcards." While we were in Pirates of the Caribbean we called them on our cell phone and instead of saying "Hi" we put the speaker phone option on just as "Yo Ho, Yo Ho, a pirate's life for me" could be heard. After a few moments of that I quietly said (so as not to disturb others in our boat), "We're having fun and guess where we are." They LOVED it, and we used several more opportunities during our visit. Some easily recognizable sounds are "Dead men tell no tales,""It's a small world after all," the "zapping" sounds from Buzz Lightyear, and the drummers from the Japan pavilion. There were so many opportunities once we got started. We just had to be careful not to disturb our fellow park-goers with our phone. Toward the end, we didn't even have to say anything; we just let Disney do the talking for us. - Jodi and Jim M.

I just returned from WDW where I stayed at the Wilderness Lodge with my mom who has trouble walking. We were returning from the California Grill by taxi and she was in a lot of pain by the time we got to the lobby, so I sat her in a chair right inside the lobby doors. I asked at the front desk if there was a wheelchair I could borrow to take my mom back to the room. Moments later the Cast Member returned with a wheelchair -- all I had to do was sign in a few places on a form since I had a credit card down on my room. They took my name and room number and the wheelchair had a number on it that they recorded. They asked me my departure date and asked that I return the chair before I leave the resort on that day. I thought maybe your readers would like to know that at least this resort has a limited number of wheelchairs available for rental during your stay. I was leaving the next morning and was not charged anything. - Erin Reich

EDITOR'S NOTE: Please note, you can not check into the resort and expect a free wheelchair for your stay. The loaner chairs are for unexpected situations as described above. If you need a wheelchair, push or electric, during your stay, AllEars recommends

http://www.buenavistascooters.com/

When my wife and I are at WDW we always send postcards home to our parents. Each parent gets their own postcard for each day that we are at WDW. It is a lot of fun finding the right card and writing the right message. Last year, while at breakfast at 1900 Park Fare, we had all the characters sign each card and we didn't add any message of our own. Our parents got the cards and couldn't figure out what was going on, since they had been reading our messages explaining what had happened on each day. They loved them! We later found out that these cards were our parents' favorites and are the ones that they show to other family members first. - Ray & Cindy Kuykendall

Save those receipts! Twice our receipts from food service locations at Walt Disney World included a 20 percent off total merchandise purchase (from store opening to 1 p.m.) coupon at the bottom, good at select locations, good through January 5. This happened at both Pizza Planet in Disney's Hollywood Studios and also at the Electric Umbrella at Epcot. - Cheyenna

EDITOR'S NOTE: This promotion usually runs several times a year. Be sure to check if your receipt is one that has the coupon.

Save those receipts! Twice our receipts from food service locations at Walt Disney World included a 20 percent off total merchandise purchase (from store opening to 1 p.m.) coupon at the bottom, good at select locations, good through January 5. This happened at both Pizza Planet in Disney's Hollywood Studios and also at the Electric Umbrella at Epcot. - Cheyenna

EDITOR'S NOTE: This promotion usually runs several times a year. Be sure to check if your receipt is one that has the coupon.

If you are renting a power wheelchair, remember to put sunblock on the back of your hands. I put it everywhere else, but didn't think of there, and ended up with the back of my hands sunburned! - E. Dennis

Did you forget to purchase that special souvenir? Although Walt Disney World does NOT have an Internet shopping site, nor do they have a catalog of park items, they do have a Mail Order Merchandise Department that can get most items for you. They are open Monday through Friday from 8:30 a.m. - 11:45 a.m. and 12:30 p.m. - 5:00 p.m. (Eastern) and may be reached by phone, fax or e-mail.
Telephone: 407-363-6200
Fax: 407-352-6369
Email: [email protected]

Shipping charges are $8.95 to $13.95 for UPS, and $13.95, $18.95, $22.95 and $27.95 for Federal Express charges, depending on the value of the order and the service requested. - Glo from Miami

We took them all home, also, but what we used them for was to "wrap" our everyday photo album with our pictures in it from our vacation! This lets us know exactly which album is our "Disney" album among our other ones. - CapeGoofy5

I also use the Disney plastic bags that I bring home to carry my lunch to work. It helps me have a little bit of the magic here in the frozen tundra of Indiana. - Jude Wood

Another benefit of shipping purchases home is that Florida sales tax won't be applied to the purchase if shipped outside of the state. I'm pretty sure the cash registers take care of it automatically now, as long as the shipping is processed on the same transaction. - Kenn C.

Don't forget that the gift shops will also ship directly to your home. I usually buy water globes and my husband buys steins from Epcot. It's much easier and safer to have them shipped directly to the house, and if I remember correctly it wasn't that expensive. - luvmy2girls

Although lots of people ship home their souvenirs, I usually UPS home most of our clothes. I go to the laundromat, wash them and pack them up in a sturdy box (usually provided by the store from whichever Disney Resort we are staying in). They help tape it up and it goes UPS Ground. That way the kids can play with the souvenirs and/or bring them to school, and our vacation clothes arrive 3-5 days after we do! - Brenda Hawk

My son has sensory issues and doesn't deal well with loud music and noises. I bought kid-size ear plugs and put them in before every ride and show. They cut down on the loudness, but he still didn't lose any of the effect. It was the first time my son was able to enjoy loud shows without covering his ears and crying. They became his "magic bravery plugs." - Anne Truger

Someone mentioned using all those Disney plastic bags to wrap packages. We brought them all home (seemed like thousands!) and the kids use them to bring snacks to school/daycare, transport gym clothes, or anything else needing a quick bag. Not only are they much cuter than grocery store bags, they are a fun reminder of a magical trip. - Amanda