Recent Trip!!
So I got back from my most recent Disney trip just over a month ago and have finally managed to post videos from the trip :)Click here to view my video from Walt Disney World
And Click here to watch my video from our Disney Cruise! :D
Showing posts with label america. Show all posts
Showing posts with label america. Show all posts
Friday, 10 June 2016
Click here to view my video from Walt Disney World
And Click here to watch my video from our Disney Cruise! :D
Sunday, 20 March 2016
Get Ready With Me: Disneyland 60th
Click here to watch my latest video, get ready with me for a day at Disneyland celebrating the 60th Anniversary.
Sunday, 6 March 2016
The Walt Disney World Tag
Saturday, 27 February 2016
Sunday, 1 November 2015
Rachel's West Coast Adventure
It's been nearly 2 months since I got home from my trip and I still haven't done a single blog post or video about it. It's been a super busy time at home with work and study and trying to find time for a social life that I've not had the time to sit and do it until now!So here is my first post which is a link to my video montage of the holiday, I will be reviewing the Disneyland portion of my holiday in a separate blog post, along with our attempt at another 24 hour challenge and I will probably do a post about my other travels too :)
To view the video click here! (I still can't work out how to embed a video without it messing up my home page on my blog :[, if you know how please help! haha)
Monday, 24 August 2015
How to Maximise Your Fastpass+ Choices
So you're off to Walt Disney World and you've heard about fastpass+ but you're not 100% sure about how it works, well let me share with you my fastpass+ tips.
1. Book as soon as possible! If you're staying on site you can book fastpasses 60 days in advance, if you're staying elsewhere then you can book 30 days in advance. Make sure you take advantage of this especially if you're aiming for the more in demand fastpasses.
2. Plan your days ahead of time, for fastpass+ to work effectively you need to know which parks you're planning to visit on which days of your trip and also if you're planning to visit in the morning or afternoon or all day long. My way of choosing this mainly goes off EMH (if I'm staying on site) and where I've made my dining reservations (I generally do Dining in line with EMH unless I know EMH isn't worth the crowds).
3. Don't waste them, If you want to get the most out of fastpass+ avoid using them for night-time spectaculars and parades as this will severely limit the amount of fastpasses you can get in a day.
4. Don't just choose your favourite attractions, think strategically. Some rides although they may be your favourite, will never have a queue line long enough to justify fastpass+.
5. Know the park layout, try to organise fastpass+ in an order that makes sense, or incorporates other attractions between, this will ensure you aren't going back and forth all over the park just for your fastpass.
My Recommendations
Magic Kingdom
There is no tier system in Magic, so it depends on your priorities the most popular choices are Anna & Elsa, Seven Dwarves Mine Train and Peter Pans Flight, and the queues for these are guaranteed to be long so if you want these you will need to be on the ball, especially for Anna & Elsa!
If these aren't your top 3 choices then I would advise picking any of the following:
- Big Thunder Mountain
- Space Mountain
- Splash Mountain
- Tomorrowland Speedway
- Enchanted Tales with Belle
Any of the others I would say have a small enough queue at other points in the day for it not to be worth it.
Epcot
Epcot does have a tiering system, so you can choose one from Tier A and 2 from Tier B.
Tier A
- Soarin'
- Test Track
- Illuminations
- Living with the Land
Tier B
- Mission Space
- Captain EO
- Journey into Imagination
- Turtle Talk
- Spaceship Earth
- The Seas with Nemo & Friends
- Character Spot
For my recommendations I would suggest Soarin' or Test Track, in terms of the others I would choose Mission Space and then not get another, then once I'd used those I would try to get one for whichever of the first two I didn't pick (if they were still available).
Hollywood Studios
As with Epcot, Hollywood Studios has a tier system, so again 1 choice from tier A and 2 choices from tier B.
Tier A
Tier A
- Toy Story Midway Mania
- Great Movie Ride
- Rock n Rollercoaster
- Fantasmic!
- Beauty and the Beast
Tier B
- Star Tours
- Tower of Terror
- Voyage of the Little Mermaid
- Disney Jnr
- Indiana Jones
- Lights Motor Action
- Frozen Sing Along
For Hollywood studios I would generally go for Toy Story from tier A and then Star tours and tower of terror (or frozen) from tier B, but again this will depend on the situation, if you are with young children then you are more likely to want to use it for Beauty and the Beast, Disney Jnr and Frozen (or something along those lines).
I wouldn't waste a fastpass on Great Movie Ride or any of the shows (except frozen) as you can easily see these without a fastpass and the queue will die down for great movie ride at certain points during the day.
Animal Kingdom
Animal Kingdom doesn't have a tier system, I would recommend using your fastpass+ choices on Expedition Everest, Kali River Rapids and Kilimanjaro Safari. Again with the shows you can see them easily without a fastpass and the other rides will die down at certain points of the day :)
Monday, 3 August 2015
Disneyland Trip!!
So with less than a month to go until my trip to Disneyland, I thought I would share with you my Disneyland to do list :)- Watch Soundsational
- Watch World of Color
- Watch Paint the Night
- Watch Disneyland Forever
- Ride the Matterhorn
- Watch Aladdin
- Ride Big Thunder Mountain
- Go on Soarin'
- Ride Radiator Springs Racers
- Visit Trader Sams
- Character breakfast at Storytellers Cafe
- Walk in Walt's Footsteps
Oh and of course we will be doing a 24 hour challenge when we're out there with a mix of old challenges with new challenges for Disneyland :)
Is there anything else you think I need to do when I visit? Any hints or tips for navigating the parks?
Friday, 12 June 2015
My Favourite Places to Eat in... Epcot
Now if there's one thing Epcot is not short of it's places to eat, but where's the best place to grab a bite when you've got the whole world to choose from, here are my favourite places to eat.
Breakfast
Now I have to be honest, I've only eaten breakfast at Epcot once but it was a very nice experience. It was at Akershus in Norway, as with Magic kingdom there are reservations available before the park opens, so this is a great way to see a very quiet Epcot. The buffet itself is very different to the other buffet breakfasts available at WDW, there is a lot more of a European continental feel, which being Norway makes sense. It's also a great experience for young and old princess' alike, you get to meet 5 princess' in total, which is well worth the time saved queuing to meet them, plus you get a free photo included in your meal price with Belle :)
Lunch
Now I don't really do lunch at Epcot either, I'd rather have some snacks from around the world, but there are a few quick service places I would recommend for a quick bite.
UK Pavillion
The chip shop in the UK pavillion is a great shout for quick service, especially if you're craving some proper chips not fries, the seating area outside looks over the lagoon and it a lovely place to sit and relax for a while.
USA
The quick service in America is another great place to eat for quick service with sandwiches and general lunchtime food.
Japan
Katsura grill in the Japanese pavillion is a nice stop off around the world, I love teriyaki chicken, and it's good for something a little bit different.
Snacks
The best part of a day in Epcot is definitely the snacks my top place to head is Germany to Karamell Kuche I have loved Werthers sweets as long as I can remember and this is caramel heaven :)
Some of my favourite picks are the brownie, cookie and the chocolate pretzel sticks :)
Another great place to stop off is the France Pavillion and L'Artisan des Glaces, the ice cream is amazing :)
If you're happy venturing outside the park then you should take a quick trip to the beach club and visit beaches and cream, home of the kitchen sink. Now I'm not sure we can technically class this as a snack, but ice cream isn't really a meal so... snack it is.
Dinner
My favourite place for dinner in Epcot is Coral Reef, the food is really nice but the location is what makes it my fave. Located next to the seas, one wall of the restaurant is a giant fish tank, so while you're eating you can watch sharks and giant turtles swimming around. One of the best food items is the coconut-mango chiffon cake, it is delicious and light too which is great after a big meal :)
Another good place to eat, although a little pricey, is Le Cellier in the Canadian Pavillion. Le Cellier is a steakhouse and serves up many different cuts served in different ways, when I went we ordered the largest steak, which I remember being about $64, although I have just looked on the menu on the website and can no longer see it :( It was huge, I ended up leaving a fillet steak size piece because I couldn't finish it. Another great thing about this restaurant is the bread :'], you get pretzel bread and it is delicious!
So there we have it, my favourite places to eat in Epcot, I've not eaten too many meals at this park, but the few that I have had were all great and I can't wait to explore more of the dining options on my next visit to Walt Disney World.
Where are your favourite places to eat in and around Epcot??
Sunday, 10 May 2015
Friday, 17 April 2015
Why I love Disney...
One of the questions I get asked so much in my life is "Why do you love Disney, isn't it just for kids?". The majority of people who ask me this have never been to a Disney park, so I want to explain why I love Disney.
The Parks
The Disney parks are what I love the most about Disney, don't get me wrong I love the films and the music and the characters, but Disney parks bring all that together, along with so much more.
I first visited a Disney park in the summer of 2013 when I participated in the International College Program, I didn't really know what to expect when I went, I've loved Disney films my whole life and I was really excited to see what it would be like, but I had no idea I would fall in love with the place as much as I did.
Living and working at Walt Disney World was everything I hoped and so much more, I made friends who I hope will last a lifetime, and experienced so many new things. Walt Disney World honestly feels like a second home to me now, and going back there just makes me remember all the good times I've had, and excited for all the memories I can make.
Being in a Disney park is like being in a bubble, everything is clean and everyone (more is less) is friendly and happy. Cast members will go out of their way to make your day special, from a smile and a wave, to the odd magical moment, greeting your children as princess' or space rangers and helping out in anyway that they can.
You can become you inner child and no one will judge you, wearing Minnie ears while meeting your favourite princess is just as acceptable at the age of 3, as it is at the age of 53.
The shows and parades are spectacles that make you smile, the rides aren't for the thrill seekers of the world, but they are so well themed and the stories behind them mixed with the nostalgia make them just as good as the fastest roller-coasters in my book.
The resorts offer service that I've never experienced at any other hotel I've stayed in.
It really is not just a place for kids, there's plenty for adults to do, from fine dining, spa's, golf courses, drinking around the world.
I've spent over 3 months worth of time at Walt Disney World over the last 2 years and there is still so much that I still haven't done, parks that I still haven't visited (Typhoon Lagoon). My short trips to Disneyland and Disneyland Paris even though they are much small resorts, there is still plenty I haven't done and there are still resorts I haven't visited in destinations I've always wanted to see.
The Films
The first film I ever saw in a cinema was Pocahontas, I loved watching Sleeping Beauty and Snow White as a child. As I got older I watched more and more films, some classics I never even properly watched until I was in my teens. Pirates of the Carribean are films me and my family loved to go to the cinema to watch together, people forget that Disney don't just make animated films, Mary Poppins, The Princess Diaries, Alice in Wonderland and lets not forget that the Walt Disney company now own Marvel and LucasFilm and some people also don't seem to realise that Disney has owned Pixar since 2006 and has been involved with the studio since before Toy Story was released.
Everything else
Disney own the Disney channel and Disney junior but they also own ESPN and the abc channels in america and have produced many well loved shows such as Lost, Grey's Anatomy, Scrubs, Ugly Betty, Once upon a time...
All of which I love and there are so many more.
Disney musicals are some of the best loved musicals going, the main one being the Lion King which is still hugely successful on Broadway and the West end and has been going for over 15 years.
I went on my first Disney Cruise in 2014, and it was my first ever cruise, and I loved it, the Disney bubble at sea and getting to visit new countries. Castaway Cay is the Disney bubble on an island it was great, and I can't wait to plan my next Disney Cruise.
So when people ask my why I love Disney, really what's not to love? There is so much going on in that company, that at some point everyone in their life has probably loved Disney in one way or another. Is it just for kids? No way, the whole point of the Disney parks when Walt first opened Disneyland was somewhere that families could enjoy together, something that wasn't just for kids or adults, but for all ages. I personally think that the parks do that and so does everything else that they do.
The people I have met through Disney and the memories I have made being in Disney parks, watching Disney films with friends and family, laughing and crying at TV shows are all the reasons I love Disney.
Thursday, 9 April 2015
24 Hour Challenge
Summer 2013 was the best Summer of my life working at Walt Disney World, at the end of our programme we wanted to make the most of our last day in Disney by setting ourselves a 24 hour challenge, I got the idea from Amy’s DCP(Youtube channel), we went off her challenge, but changed it a little bit so we could do everything that we wanted to do. We titled it 24 things in 24 hours :)
1. Ride the 3 mountains
2. Eat a dole whip
3. Wish upon a star
4. Drink the Beverly
5. Hold up the Earth
6. Get a picture with each of the big 6
7. Eat a turkey leg
8. Conquer Everest
9. Join the circle of life
10. Spin in a teacup
11. Sing the national anthem in the UK pavilion
12. Collect a fastpass from each park
13. Enter the twilight zone
14. Trade a pin
15. Ride the rock n roller coaster
16. Take an animation class
17. Become a sorcerer
18. Meet a princess
19. Get pixie dusted
20. Max out Buzz
21. Find 10 hidden mickeys
22. Ride the monorail
23. Meet your favourite character
24. Be at the castle at midnight
We took pictures before starting our day :’] When we entered the park we got ourselves fastpasses for tower and rock n rollercoaster to complete that part of our challenge later on, plus got a fastpass from toy story mania to keep as our fastpass from that park. We managed to cheat the fastpass system that day as we had our maingate tickets, room key and cast member ID’s all of which could get a fastpass :’]
After collecting our fastpasses we went to take an animation class to complete that task, we were drawing Perry, who I love, but both Becky and Mari hate :’] My Perry turned out a lot better than my attempt at Snow White :)
After our class we could use our fastpasses for tower so went to ride that for the last time :(
After tower it was time for Rock n Rollercoaster so that we could leave Hollywood Studios.
On the way out of Hollywood Studios I stopped in the clothes shop to buy the Ariel top I’d wanted for a while as that was the only shop I’d ever seen it in :) So that was it, our last visit to Studios, but I feel we did it justice on our last visit, and all in a grand total of 2 hours :)
We went and got the friendship boat over to Epcot as it’s a nice relaxing trip and we decided we had a spare half hour to enjoy our trip over there rather than rushing.
When we got to Epcot we headed straight to the UK pavillion so that we could get singing the national anthem over and done with :’]
We found a nice quiet corner near the exit for the Pooh and Tigger meet and greet, plonked ourselves next to a postbox and started singing. We got quite a few funny looks, but not too many as there weren’t very many people around us :’]
23. Meet your favourite character (half complete)
After meeting Aladdin and Jasmine we decided to go and face the Beverly, neither of us had tried it our whole program. We told the woman we bought our turkey leg off that we were going to try it and she wished us luck, which wasn’t the BEST sign. We got to club cool and a guy offered to take photos of us when we told him we were going to try the beverly, he laughed the whole time and took a good lot of photos to capture our reactions :’]
After meeting Aladdin and Jasmine we decided to go and face the Beverly, neither of us had tried it our whole program. We told the woman we bought our turkey leg off that we were going to try it and she wished us luck, which wasn’t the BEST sign. We got to club cool and a guy offered to take photos of us when we told him we were going to try the beverly, he laughed the whole time and took a good lot of photos to capture our reactions :’]
I did NOT like it, at all… haha
4. Drink the Beverly
On the way out of Club Cool, we went past Character Spot and noticed the wait was literally 0 minutes, so went and knocked off 3 of the big 6 we had to meet :)
6. Get a picture with each of the big 6 (half complete)
We then went to the seas to ride nemo as Becky had never done it, then went to mission space to pick up a fastpass. On the way out of Epcot we completed our last task, hold up the earth.
And that was it for Epcot, it was my 2nd least visited park, and I felt like I never really spent enough time in it, when I go back I will make sure I do a full day there and see it all properly.
We then went and got a guest bus over to Animal Kingdom, it was about 3pm at this point so we were making good time.
We went straight over to Expedition Everest, we had planned to go in the single rider queue, but it was closed which meant we had to queue, we ended up queuing for about half an hour, which wasn’t the plan, but at least we got to ride together…
We went straight over to Expedition Everest, we had planned to go in the single rider queue, but it was closed which meant we had to queue, we ended up queuing for about half an hour, which wasn’t the plan, but at least we got to ride together…
After riding Everest we headed to camp minnie-mickey so that I could meet Pocahontas, my favourite character, her meet and greet was at 5:20 and the last show of lion king was at 5:30 so we were cutting it close, but they were next to each other and there were only a few people in front of us in the queue to meet Pocahontas.
We made it just in time for festival of the lion king, we were sat in the giraffe’s section, which I was in the time before, but it meant I DID know what sound a giraffe made :’]
We were done in Animal Kingdom, we got a final picture in front of the tree before leaving, then went to get a resort bus to the Grand Floridian.
We arrived at the Grand Floridian and went to get the monorail round to MK, there was a band playing in the lobby and they started playing Beauty and the Beast, so we ended up staying for that song, it was so cute, I love that hotel, if I could stay in any hotel it would be there or the Polynesian, I love them both :)
We then got the monorail to MK.
We then got the monorail to MK.
We got into MK at about 7pm, which meant we had 6 hours to complete the rest of our challenges, we were staying in a Disney hotel, so got EMH :) We went straight to the fire station so that we could become sorcerers :)
We then walked up main street and got some last pictures taken in front of the castle as sun was setting, which is my favourite time in MK, I think everything looks so pretty at that time, especially the castle.
We headed over to Adventureland as we were getting hungry and dole whip was calling our names. That was my last dole whip I had, it was a good dole whip :’] I got Vanilla and Pineapple swirl which is my fave, and Becky got Orange and Pineapple swirl.
After getting out dole whip we decided to cross off another challenge of meeting a princess, we decided that our favourite characters couldn’t count as our princess, so we went to meet Tiana with Naveen, I’d never met her with Naveen before so that was another thing to cross off my own list of things I wanted to do :)
We decided we needed some proper food at this point, so decided to head to Pinocchio’s, the castle was still open to walk through so we walked through for one last time, I love the mosaics under there it’s so magical walking underneath Cinderella’s castle, it’s such an icon, I love it. On the way to Pinocchio’s we decided to see if we could get pixie dusted, we went into castle couture, and asked a cast member where we could get pixie dusted, she was just like “here” and got out her wand, I swear I instantly turned into a 5 year old girl again, we had to make a wish as we got pixie dusted, I can’t even remember what I wished for now :’] hopefully it comes/came true :)
After being pixie dusted we went and got our food, and sat at one of the tables that you can look into small world from, after seeing small world, we ended up going on it as Becky hadn’t been on it all program and she remembered going on it when she was little with her parents.
We decided we should probably finish going to meet the big 6 at this point as we didn’t know if they would still be out after wishes, so we went over to storybook circus to meet Donald, Goofy and Daisy, we probably spent about half an hour in there queuing for them so not half as speedy as character spot, but we got it done.
After our meet and greet, we still had 30 minutes before celebrate the magic started so we went to ride the tea cups as we knew it wouldn’t take much time, Becky hates spinny things, so was not at all excited about being on the tea cups, I on the other hand love the tea cups :D (unless Brent is in charge of spinning)
We then made our way to the hub to watch celebrate the magic and wishes, we managed to bag a spot right centre in front of the castle, it was the best view of celebrate the magic I’d ever had, I was quite emotional knowing that this would be the last time I would ever see this show, I love it so much, I didn’t cry (I never have at a show or any fireworks) but I felt very sad and a little heartbroken, and wishes hadn’t even started yet.
After Celebrate the Magic it was time for Wishes, and what was probably the worst view I’ve ever had of it. NEVER go right in front of the castle for wishes, if you’re in the hub you need to be either mid sides or further back middle, front middle is too close for wishes, the castle blocks half the fireworks, don’t get me wrong, I’ve seen wishes many times, so I wasn’t TOO bothered by this, and the fireworks either side of the castle were great from this location, but the big fireworks were pretty much hidden. I also never watched wishes from Main Street my whole program, it was only ever from the hub, Tomorrowland or the polynesian, when I go back I will venture to watch it from a few more places :’]
But we still saw wishes, even if it wasn’t the best view, it was still heartbreaking to know I wouldn’t be watching wishes again for at least a year if not longer (which now seems like it’s going to be longer).
But we still saw wishes, even if it wasn’t the best view, it was still heartbreaking to know I wouldn’t be watching wishes again for at least a year if not longer (which now seems like it’s going to be longer).
After wishes, we were on a bit of a downer, knowing that we were nearing the end of our day and our time at Disney… but we still had challenges to complete, so we ventured on.
3. Wish upon a star
We still needed to know out the three mountains so we made our way to splash, as I knew it wouldn’t be open for EMH and we didn’t want to miss out on it, on the way to splash we stopped into Becky’s restaurant, liberty tree tavern, so that she could say a last goodbye to people she worked with, we also got free drinks :D we left and continued on, we used a couple of re-adds so we could use the fastpass queue at splash.
1. Ride the 3 mountains (1/3)
As we were next to Big Thunder we decided to ride that too, and once again used re adds to avoid the queue, I love re adds I will miss them when magic bands get introduced properly.
As we were next to Big Thunder we decided to ride that too, and once again used re adds to avoid the queue, I love re adds I will miss them when magic bands get introduced properly.
1. Ride the 3 mountains (2/3)
Throughout the day we had been collecting fastpasses from each park, we got our final one from Big Thunder so had successfully collected a fastpass from each park :D
Throughout the day we had been collecting fastpasses from each park, we got our final one from Big Thunder so had successfully collected a fastpass from each park :D
We got to the front of the castle at 11:59, just in time, at midnight the castle changes colours and goes all pretty so we took some pictures and of course proof that it was midnight.
We went over to buzz to ride through a couple of times so I could show Becky what she needed to shoot in order to max out, we went round about 4 times, and we’d gone from 20,000 to 400,000, so we decided to give up for a bit go ride space, then come back. We stopped in the buzz gift shop so that Becky could trade her pin, I’d traded mine in Epcot with a guest, I got an ariel shoe, which I showed in my souvenirs part 2 video :), Becky had been searching for the perfect pin all day and hadn’t found it, so she just gave up and traded for a reasonably nice pin off a merchandise cast members lanyard in the gift shop.
Also on the way out of buzz we found our last hidden mickey, again throughout the day we had been finding hidden mickeys, we wanted a couple from each park, and wanted to find some new ones that we didn’t know about (we only ended up finding about 2/3 new ones)
Girl in tower of terror preshow is holding a mickey doll. (I was a bit slow taking the picture)
We went back over to Buzz to try and max out, we went round in separate cars this time, Becky only managed to get to 600,000 but I maxed out on one gun and very nearly maxed out on the second so we decided that just me maxing out was good enough to complete our task, which was lucky as there was 5 minutes until park close.
And that was it, our 24 hour challenge was completed. We stayed at buzz and waited for everyone to close the ride so that I could say bye to Tarin and Eric. Then we walked over to the castle, I realised I was leaving Tomorrowland for the last time and very nearly broke down again, but I managed to hold it together, we took some “we don’t want to leave pictures” and hung around the castle waiting for the goodnight kiss, which was about 1:40pm, it was so cute and I’d never even known that it happened until that day so it was good to see before we left.
We walked down main street for the last time, taking it all in and made our way out of Magic Kingdom to get the bus back to riverside.
It was a very long and tiring day, but I can’t imagine being able to make any more of that last day, we experienced everything we wanted to and visited all 4 parks. We got back to riverside at about half 2, and had to be up at 10am to pack and check out of our room, we literally collapsed into bed after an amazing day.
