Epcot International Food & Wine Festival

Hello and Happy Fall!

Fall is a favorite time to visit Walt Disney World in our family, and for good reason. In September and October, you can catch Mickey’s Not So Scary Halloween Party (a separate ticketed event on certain nights at the Magic Kingdom), and in November and December, you can check out Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Party (also a separate ticketed event). This November, my family will be enjoying our very first Christmas Party, which I am really looking forward to. For the last several years, our fall visit has been in early fall. However, after being stuck at the resort for a couple of days during Hurricane Matthew in October 2016, we decided we’d go later in the season in 2017. As excited as I am to visit during the Christmas season, I will sure miss the cute Mickey Mouse pumpkins, as seen below:

(Cute Mickey Mouse pumpkin decorations at the Magic Kingdom)

(The entrance to the Magic Kingdom in October 2016)

Perhaps our favorite fall event is the Epcot International Food and Wine Festival. There are booths set up all throughout World Showcase (and some in Future World) representing various countries around the world, which offer a few options of cuisine from that region. There are also alcoholic and non-alcoholic drink options to choose from.

(The Epcot International Food & Wine Festival in 2016)

The 2017 Epcot International Food and Wine Festival kicked off on August 31, and will run through November 13 this year, making it the longest running Epcot International Food and Wine Festival in the history of the event! Most everyone in my family is a huge fan of this event, which offers food and drinks from around the world, including Australia, Brazil, Greece, India, Poland, South Korea, and more! This year, a record 35 booths are promised to be at this event, and personally, I am looking forward to sampling my favorite foods from previous years, AND experiencing some new flavors!

(One of our favorite booths at the Epcot International Food & Wine Festival)

Here are a few examples of some of the dishes you can find at the Epcot International Food and Wine Festival-

Australia- Grilled lamb T-bone with mint pesto and potato crunchies

Canada- Wild Mushroom Beef Filet Mignon with Truffle-Butter Sauce

Germany- Apple Strudel with Vanilla Sauce

Hawai’i- Kalua Pork Slider with Sweet and Sour Pineapple Chutney and Spicy Mayonnaise

Ireland- Warm Irish Cheddar Cheese and Stout Dip with Irish Brown Bread

Morocco- Kefta Pocket (Seasoned Ground Beef in a Pita Pocket)

Thailand- Marinated Chicken with Peanut Sauce and Stir-fried Vegetables

Each booth has several different food options to choose from, along with a few beverage options. Prices range from about $3 to $8 for each selection, and so it can get pricey if you are planning to eat and drink your way around the world. One tip that I have is to purchase a gift card in the amount you’ve budgeted for Food and Wine- this will ensure that you will not go over your budgeted amount (a good thing if you are enjoying multiple adult beverages throughout World Showcase!).

(Enjoying margaritas in Mexico)

(My husband and brother ready to order some saki in Japan)

Another tip that I’d like to offer is to use this Festival exclusively as your lunch or dinner location if you plan to sample multiple foods at this event. My family’s plan this year is to skip a sit-down lunch on our Epcot day, and instead enjoy walking around World Showcase, trying different foods as we make our way around the Festival. We then have a late Table Service dinner at Biergarten in Germany that evening. 

(My hubby enjoying 'lunch around the world')

The Epcot International Food and Wine Festival also hosts a different band each night of the Festival- my friend Samantha was recently at WDW, and she let me know that the Baha Men were there the evening she was at Epcot- her whole family really enjoyed the live performance of ‘Who Let the Dogs Out’! Other bands slated to be at the Festival this year include The Plain White T’s, Sister Hazel, Boyz II Men, Kenny G and Hanson. 

(My husband and sister-in-law enjoying the Festival)

One more thing- if you are a lover of the culinary arts, I would suggest you look into the many seminars, demonstrations, and talks given by different celebrated chefs from around the world! For more information, check out www.disneyworld.com.

Feel free to email me at dana_aimee@hotmail.com with any Disney questions! Happy Travels, and Happy Eating!

Walt Disney World Dining Tips

Happy August, my friends! I hope that everyone has enjoyed their summer, and the kids are refreshed and ready for a great school year!

(Starting off this post with a photo of an ice cream sundae from Ample Hills Creamery at Disney's Boardwalk Resort- because who doesn't love ice cream sundaes?)

I have a friend who is going to Disney this October, and this will be her family’s first trip to Walt Disney World without my family tagging along. When she booked this trip, she contacted me to review her plans, and stated that she was nervous to travel to Walt Disney World without her ‘travel guide’ (that would be me!). I assured her that she would be fine, and that I would help her fine-tune her itinerary.

(In addition to other locations, my friend booked a reservation for Via Napoli in Italy at Epcot, which serves DELICIOUS pizza!)

She sent me her tentative plans, and told me that she had hoped to find a reservation for ‘Ohana, but that nothing was available, and so she was trying to figure out where to dine instead. I worked my magic and was able to get her an ‘Ohana reservation for 6 people less than 3 months out from the date they’d be dining there. There are some tricks to this, and that is what I would like to share with you today, in addition to a few other Disney dining tips that I've picked up throughout my travels.

(A few of the yummy appetizers served at 'Ohana- this is a family-style, all-you-can-eat restaurant)

After booking a Walt Disney World vacation (or even before it’s booked), you will want to download the ‘My Disney Experience’ app on your smartphone. This is an amazing app- you can review any reservations you’ve made and tickets that you’ve purchased, make dining reservations, choose your Fast Passes (see my post here for a planning timeline, including when you may book FastPasses), view any photos you have had taken by the PhotoPass photographers while on your trip, locate characters in the parks, and even order food at select Disney restaurants, which allows you to bypass the line once you are there! You’ll have to create an account to get in to view these (and other) features.

(You can make reservations for a quick-service lunch- and even pre-order your food- at Be Our Guest in the Magic Kingdom)

Okay, so on to the good stuff. When I am looking for a reservation that is difficult to obtain, and it is less than 180 days out, I arm myself with both my phone AND my laptop. I will use my laptop to search for reservations on the website, www.disneyworld.com, and my iPhone to search for reservations on the 'My Disney Experience' app. While all of the reservations should be the same, once in a while, I have found that the reservations available vary slightly, so I highly encourage you to try both methods. The other method is to call, but I will tell you that I have never had luck scoring a reservation via telephone if not available on the app or website.

(Chef Mickey's is one of those tough-to-get reservations)

The next thing I do is to vary my search parameters. You can select either a time, or simply a meal. So, for instance, I will try putting ‘Dinner’ into my search, and if that does not yield any results, I will put in a specific time- let's say, 7:00pm. If that does not pull anything up, I’ll try several other times- say, 5:00pm and even 9:00pm (we are night owls in my family, so I figure it’s worth a shot!). If you’ve tried this method on both the website and the app (and perhaps even called) and you have had no luck, don’t quit just yet! Keep trying! Try until the day you are wanting this reservation, if necessary. Since reservations have to be cancelled 24 hours in advance, this is a great time to try. I have never NOT been able to land a reservation that I wanted. I will note that we have never been interested in eating at Cinderella’s Royal Table, the most coveted reservation at Walt Disney World- this is one that you simply may not be able to get (but I could be wrong- for goodness sake, it’s worth a try!), but for most other restaurants, please keep trying!

(A delicious filet at Citrico's at Disney's Grand Floridian Resort & Spa- an overlooked restaurant that has AMAZING food, and also usually has last-minute reservations available)

And speaking of Disney Dining, I have some more tips to share that may help some of you out! Once you have made all of your dining reservations, and are now at Walt Disney World enjoying your coveted reservations, I want to point out that Walt Disney World is RIDICULOUSLY allergy-friendly. Last February, the two girlfriends that I traveled with for the Disney Princess Half Marathon both needed special dining accommodations. My good friend and former roommate Tiffany has a severe tree nut allergy, and my other travel friend Kari (my maid-of-honor in my wedding!) is a vegan. While all of the restaurants were super accommodating, one restaurant that really stands out is the Turf Club Bar and Grill at Saratoga Springs Resort & Spa. The Chef came out to speak to my friends personally, and he changed one of the entrees so that Tiffany (my friend with the tree nut allergy) would have no issues. He also created an entrée especially for my friend Kari who is a vegan, which she raved about, and brought out special vegan butter and rolls for her to enjoy. I truly feel that this restaurant went above and beyond for my friends!

(Did you know that Dole Whips are vegan? I certainly did not! Kari was not planning to have a Dole Whip, but asked if these were made with dairy, and was told that they are not, so she was able to enjoy one as well!)

(Epcot is a great place to go when you eat vegan- Kari was able to find many treats throughout World Showcase, including chips, guacamole and margaritas in Mexico, and a veggie platter in Morocco!)

Along those same lines, my mother is sensitive to some spices, and one night while dining at ‘Ohana at the Polynesian Village Resort, the Chef came out with unseasoned meats for her to enjoy. Even if someone in your party does not like a certain food- such as my dad with bread pudding (side note- I do not understand this! The bread pudding at ‘Ohana is what dreams are made of!), the staff is willing to accommodate you- they brought my dad fresh pineapple chunks with a caramel dipping sauce, which he ate every morsel of! No matter what your situation, Disney is willing to work with you to create a meal that you will love!

(My dad enjoying his fresh dessert at 'Ohana)

The next dining tip I have to offer is actually in regards to dining in your resort room. On our next trip, we are having groceries delivered to our resort, Saratoga Springs, from Garden Grocer. While we still are going to eat all of our dinners out, we are going to eat breakfast and some lunches in our room to save money. If I order our groceries 60 days ahead of time, I get a 10% discount. On arrival day, our groceries will be delivered in a time frame that I choose- if we are not at the resort at that time, bell services will store our groceries (they’ll refrigerate and freeze the items as appropriate), and we can get our groceries anytime we wish once we are back at the resort. (Edit: A friend is going next week and having groceries delivered to the Fort Wilderness Cabins, and she states that if her room is ready when Garden Grocer arrives, they will put them in the room for her, refrigerating and freezing as appropriate; she also states that if her cabin is not ready, bell services will deliver her groceries directly to the cabin her family will be staying in later on that day. I am not yet sure if this varies from resort-to-resort, which is why I am simply putting in this edit- I do know that whoever places the groceries and/ or stores them will do so appropriately, keeping cold foods cold and so forth).

(My girlfriends making vegan sloppy joe's in our villa one evening)

(Tiffany preparing breakfast in our villa one morning before hitting the parks!)

My last dining tip that I want to offer is that you truly can customize your trip to accommodate all of your dining wishes and needs. As you now know, you can do everything from eating a simple meal in your room, to enjoying a Disney Signature Restaurant (Disney’s best!), and everything in between. You can do a dining plan, or not. There are quick service spots located all throughout Walt Disney World, serving everything from burgers and nuggets, to Moroccan cuisine, French cuisine, and more. There are plenty of character dining locations that you can enjoy for breakfast, lunch, or dinner. Table service locations vary greatly in theming- one night you can dine at a restaurant overlooking the African savanna, and the next morning, you may find yourself at a Polynesian-themed café sipping Kona coffee. And I recommend splurging and trying at least one Disney Signature Dining location- the filet mignon and lobster dish at Narcoosee’s at the Grand Floridian Resort & Spa is truly a meal to write home about!

('Surf and turf' dinner at Narcoossee's at the Grand Floridian Resort & Spa)

(Of course if you are feeling like a burger, fries and a Coke, you may get that at many WDW locations, including Cosmic Ray's Starlight Cafe in Tomorrowland at the Magic Kingdom)

I hope that some of these dining tips will help you on your next Walt Disney World vacation. As always, feel free to email me at dana_aimee@hotmail.com, and please check out my Disney-themed Instagram account- username: DanasMouseTails. Thanks for reading, and Happy Travels!

Disney made Affordable!

Recently, I have had a few people ask me to share our ‘secrets’ when it comes to being able to afford several Walt Disney World vacations per year. Honestly, there are so many variables, and so I can’t really tell you how you can do this- in my family, we don’t have to send our child to daycare even though my husband and I both work full-time (edit: I work part-time at my job at the hospital, and the rest of the time I work as a Travel Agent), which saves us thousands of dollars per year, as we simply work opposite days of the week. We don’t have weekends off together unless we are on vacation, as one of us is ALWAYS working on the weekend, and so the traditional ‘entertainment budget’ that other families may reserve for weekends at the zoo, the beach, the museum, and other fun locations goes straight to our ‘Disney budget’, and when I pick up extra shifts at the hospital, that money also goes into our Disney account.

(At the entrance to the Magic Kingdom in the fall season)

Despite every family having a different budget and financial situation, I CAN offer some tips that may help make your dream of going to Walt Disney World a reality. The first thing to consider is the time of year you will be visiting. I would recommend comparing different times of the year to see when is cheapest- if you have flexibility in your schedule, you are much more likely to score a deal. We have found that January (after Marathon weekend) and early February are some of the best months to visit in terms of price. The week after Thanksgiving through the week before Christmas may offer some good discounts as well. I HIGHLY recommend staying on-property. Recently, I was looking at prices for the value resorts in January, and I found All-Star Sports for just over $100 per night- for 5 nights (this was back in 2017- the costs have risen a bit, but there are still great prices to be found!), the total was just a few cents over $600 with tax (you can read more about the Disney Value Resorts here). This is a great price, as you get all of the benefits of staying at a Disney resort, including free transportation to and from the airport, free transportation to all of the parks during your stay, Extra Magic Hours (extra hours at the parks reserved specifically for Disney resort guests)- and my favorite, being right in the middle of all the Disney magic 24/7!

(Staying in the Lion King section of Disney's Art of Animation Resort means that you never have to leave the Disney magic during your stay!)

Since my family knows that we always have a trip to Disney on the horizon, a common gift that we receive for birthdays and Christmas is a Disney Gift Card from multiple family members. I would suggest you start telling family that if they are looking to purchase a gift for you and/or your kids, that you would really love a Disney Gift Card. My parents also gift us with Southwest Gift Cards from time to time, as they know that this is the airline we always use to fly to Orlando.

(My son enjoying his Southwest flight)

And speaking of Southwest Airlines- a few weeks ago, I scored a $69 fare from Indianapolis to Orlando, and a $69 fare back home in February (edit: This was back in 2017, but last week I scored $79 fares each way, and so this pricing definitely still exists!). You HAVE to be quick with these, however. I had told my dad that we were looking to go back to Disney in January or early February to celebrate our son’s 4^th birthday, and he checked the Southwest website every day for me to see if fares for this time of year had been released yet. The day they finally were released, he called me and told me to get on and book. For the three of us (my husband, son and I), it was just over $400 round-trip- this is a VERY good price! I booked these flights a little over two weeks ago- today, these SAME FLIGHTS are over $1000 for the three of us. This is why I say that you have to be quick when purchasing these flights- Southwest only offers a limited number of seats at the low price that is shown when the flights are released, and once these seats are booked up, the price continues to go up- though at times, Southwest will offer a sale, and I am sometimes able to get a credit for a future flight (which I have to use within a year of booking). Due to the (Southwest-only) money I frequently receive back, I often do have some sort of credit to apply, making the price we pay to fly to Orlando even lower.  We also rack up Southwest frequent flyer points- in November, my husband is flying free, having used his frequent flyer points for free flights (this is where using the same airline every time you fly comes in handy).

(My son's first flight- on Southwest Airlines- at 8 months of age)

On our last trip, we stayed at Saratoga Springs Resort & Spa in a Studio. This is a Disney Vacation Club resort, and the studios have small kitchenettes with a sink, toaster, refrigerator, and plastic utensils and paper plates (there are also one-through-three bedroom villas, which all contain full kitchens). To save some money on breakfast, I brought pop-tarts for the family to share and applesauce packs for our son, and we bought a carton of milk at the resort upon check-in. Even though we only stayed two nights, as this visit was before we set sail on our Disney Cruise, we probably saved close to $60 bringing our own food, as I estimate we probably would have spent about $10 per person, per day on a ‘Disney’ breakfast. Even if you are in a regular resort hotel room, you still will have a refrigerator in your room (please call to confirm this before arrival!)- you could bring granola bars, cereal bars, cereal with milk after purchasing some milk in the resort gift shop, etc. Disney also allows you to bring soft-sided coolers into the parks- you could pack peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, chips, fruit, cookies, and drinks, which would, on average, save you about $15 per person, per meal.

(A quick breakfast option- Pop Tarts and the coffee provided in the room- in a Disney Vacation Club studio)

The food at Walt Disney World is so good that I would recommend splurging on dinner at the park or a nearby resort. Quick-service eateries are going to be your best bet, and all of the theme parks have several that we love- listed below are our favorites in each of the theme parks. Please keep in mind that the option to visit a nearby resort’s quick service eatery is also an option!

Magic Kingdom

Pecos Bills Tall Tale Inn & Café (burritos, fajitas, nachos)- Frontierland

Columbia Harbour House (chicken, salmon, fried shrimp)- Liberty Square

Cosmic Ray’s Starlight Café (BBQ, burgers, salads)- Tomorrowland

Epcot

Sunshine Seasons (sandwiches, rotisserie chicken, Mongolian beef)- Future World, in the Land pavilion

(The strawberry shortcake at Sunshine Seasons is out of this world!)

Les Halles Boulangerie Patisserie (quiches, sandwiches, salads)- World Showcase, France

Tangierine Café (chicken, beef and lamb combination platters)- World Showcase, Morocco

(A chicken Shawarma platter at Tangierine Cafe in Morocco in Epcot)

Lotus Blossom Café (orange chicken, pot stickers, fried rice)- World Showcase, China

 Hollywood Studios

ABC Commissary (fish and chips, burgers, steak)- Commissary Lane, near the Chinese Theater

Min and Bill’s Dockside Diner (foot-long chili cheese dogs, sausage in pretzel rolls)- Echo Lake

Woody's Lunchbox (Sandwiches)- Toy Story Land

Animal Kingdom

Flame Tree Barbeque (ribs, chicken, pulled pork)- Discovery Island

Yak & Yeti Local Food Cafes (stir fry BBQ chicken, teriyaki beef bowl, honey chicken with rice)- Asia

(We love the honey chicken with rice at Yak & Yeti Local Food Cafes)

Please also note that at any quick service location, you may feel free to ask for a cold cup of ice water for free at any time, alleviating the need to purchase pricey bottled water in the parks.

The park tickets into the 4 theme parks are, more often than not, the most expensive part of a Walt Disney World vacation. My family does not do the theme parks every day, which saves us HUNDREDS of dollars every trip. If you are doing a five-day trip or longer, I suggest taking a day in the middle of your trip to check out everything else that Walt Disney World has to offer. Every resort on property is fun to walk around and explore- for instance, if you are staying at the value resort Pop Century, you can walk over to Art of Animation across the lake and check out the Cars, Finding Nemo, The Lion King, and The Little Mermaid theming, before coming back to the pool at Pop Century to cool off! 

(The main pool- the Hippy Dippy Pool- at Disney's Pop Century Resort)

What else is there to do in the World? You can take a bus over to Disney Springs to check out this fun and newly redesigned shopping and entertainment district. You can go miniature golfing at one of the two mini golf courses, Winter Summerland and Fantasia Gardens. You can hop a bus over to Fort Wilderness and enjoy a horse-drawn wagon ride in the evening, or a campfire sing-a-long with Chip and Dale. You can take a monorail tour of the three Magic Kingdom-area monorail resorts to check out the fun theming, and maybe grab a small treat or drink at one of the quick-service spots or lounges at these resorts. You can visit one of the water parks. You can visit the Boardwalk Resort, which is especially fun at night, where you can always catch a free ‘street performer’ or grab ice cream at Ample Hills Creamery. Every Disney resort has a free ‘Movies Under the Stars’ outdoor movie night. You can rent a surrey bike, or a boat, which the whole family can enjoy for an hour or so (available at select Disney resorts). You can enjoy a character breakfast or brunch at one of the Disney resorts, and enjoy taking your time and not feeling like you have to rush out to maximize your park time. Truly, there are countless ways to enjoy Walt Disney World without stepping foot in a theme park!

(Ample Hills Creamery- a new spot for delicious ice cream- at Disney's Boardwalk Resort)

(Enjoying the Christmas store, Days of Christmas, at Disney Springs)

It should be no surprise to you at this point that I spend a lot of time looking for ways to stretch my vacation dollar. Just last week, I was checking to make sure the price of our hotel room for an upcoming stay hadn’t gone down, and I realized that a cheaper view was now available. Let me explain, using Disney’s Port Orleans Riverside Resort as an example. There are multiple room ‘views’ that you can purchase at this resort- standard view, garden view, pool view, and river view. The layout of these rooms is EXACTLY the same. The only difference is the view out of the window (this resort doesn’t have balconies)- honestly, we don’t spend any time looking out of our window, so this does not matter to us in the least. When I booked this resort, I had to book a garden view, as standard was not available at that time. I hated to pay extra, but this is where we wanted to stay, and this was what was available. However, less than 2 weeks after booking, I found that the standard room was now available, and would save us over $60 for five nights. It’s little things like this that you can do to decrease the price of your Disney vacation (oftentimes I am able to change my clients into a less expensive room type as well after initially booking their trip if they do so choose).

(A king bed room at Disney's Port Orleans Riverside Resort)

I hope that some of these tips will help you make your dream trip to Walt Disney World a reality. If you have any Disney-related travel questions, please feel free to email me at dana_w@WishingOnAStarTravel.com. Happy Travels!