>Disney Anticipation

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When you first decide to go to Walt Disney World for your family vacation, it is a Magical Experience. You start looking up information on line, you order the planning video, and you start talking about what you want to do when you get there. If you are like my family, you start a countdown. As you start finalizing plans the anticipation grows until you are ready to go, NOW! We actually did that once. We were supposed to leave on a Tuesday to get to Disney on Wednesday and my wife turned on Saturday

and asked why we couldn’t leave on Sunday. There was no reason, except the room reservation, so I called and got us a night at Port Orleans French Quarter for Monday and Tuesday night. We left on Sunday and enjoyed two extra days in Disney. Not

everyone can do that I know, and we haven’t done it since then, but it was a great way to deal with our anticipation. When you go to the Walt Disney World Resort, the Anticipation is a Magical Experience in itself. So, I present for you today, The Unknown Magic of Disney Anticipation.

Once you get to Walt Disney World, the anticipation might just keep growing for you. Driving past the big Walt Disney World sign is a Magical Experience that just helps to get the family more excited and as you drive up to the Resort and see the entrance way, you start to think about how great this place is going to be to stay in. Then after you check in and you go to your room, as you stand on the outside of your door, you may think, what is on the other side? How great is this going to be? What

is waiting for us for the rest of our stay? I recommend getting into the room as quick as possible, especially if you have kids with you, that way their heads don’t explode from the anticipated excitement.

When you finally head out to the parks, each of the parks has some ways to keep building the excited anticipation for you. Each park kind of shields their weenie (the focal point that you see and move toward) until you have entered the park, building the Anticipation until you are so excited that you are almost running to get into the park. If you look at the Magic Kingdom, you can actually see the Castle, well some of it, from as far off as the Ticket and Transportation Center. Just getting that glimpse is exciting when you are first coming to the Park, and if it is your first time, you can’t wait to see all of it.

Over at the Disney Hollywood Studios the Sorcerer’s Hat calls to you from above the park gates and you can even see it from the boats that bring you from Epcot and the Epcot Resorts. Over in Epcot it is the same. From the Front Entrance, Spaceship Earth can be seen above the entrance, from the Parking Lots and the Bus Station. If you enter Epcot form the International Gateway, it is the World Showcase that beckons for you to come and see what is there.

At Animal Kingdom, the Tree of Life is just barely visible as you are coming into the park, but you know there are some great things in this park, because the atmosphere is humming with animal excitement. But going into the parks aren’t the only places you might get excited with anticipation. When you are in the Animal Kingdom for example, you may be filled with excitement caused by the anticipation of going on a specific attraction, such as Expedition Everest. This can be caused by seeing the Mountain rising into the clouds from across the park.

This anticipation for attractions happens in all of the parks. From seeing Tower of Terror from afar
or walking up to the Mexico Pavilion and wondering what is inside this wonderful architectural wonder, to seeing the top of the Astro Orbiter from the bridge leading into Tomorrowland.

It can also happen outside of the park too, in Downtown Disney, for example, seeing the Disney Quest building for the first time may fill your kids with Excited Anticipation, as it is a neat looking building and they know the inside is filled with interactive video games.

The one thing that fills me with anticipation every time we are in Walt Disney World is when I first see this:

I get excited and happy whenever I see the Monorail coming at me for the first time during any of my trips to the Walt Disney World Resort. It is a Magical Experience for me every time.

So, now you know, there is a Magic that is built in to any trip to Walt Disney World. It is the Magic of the Excitement of Anticipation. It starts before you even leave home, and it continues all through your trip, even days after you arrive. So, enjoy it as an Unknown Magic within Walt Disney World, one you don’t even have to look for.

>The Highway in the Sky*

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Por favor manténgase alejado de las puertas. In my mind, these words are the Most Magical Words in Walt Disney World. They are the words that make me smile no matter where I am. My ring tone on my phone is actually this set of words by Jack Wagner, the Original voice of the Walt Disney World Monorail. This leads me to present today’s Unknown Magic, The Walt Disney World Monorail.

The Wonderful, Amazing Monorail System also known as the “Highway in the Sky,” has been running non-stop since October 1, 1971-opening day for the Walt Disney World Resort. There are 12 different Monorail trains; each has a different color stripe as an identifier. There are three different routes. The Epcot Route, the Resort Route, and the Express Service Route from the Ticket Transportation Center to the Magic Kingdom.

The reason the Monorails are on the top of my Magical Experience list is because, they are different than any other form of transportation I’ve ever taken. And the Only place I’ve ever ridden one was Disney World. It is a Magical Experience to be whisked from a Resort or from the Ticket and Transportation Center (TTC), to the Magic Kingdom. It is even more Magical to arrive at the Magic Kingdom. The Feeling inside as they announce “Welcome to the Magic Kingdom” is truly unforgettable.

The Monorail trip to Epcot from the TTC is a great trip. It is about a 12 minute ride and you are actually above the roadways leading into the Magic Kingdom area of Disney World. During most of the trips either to Epcot, or around the Resort Loop there is commentary about what you are seeing and what station you are entering. If you ride the Monorail more than once, you will always remember the following :

Please Stand Clear of the Doors My favorite Words in the Magic Kingdom.
So, now you Know, you can take the Monorail and have a Magical Experience!

The Sounds used in this post are from the webpage: Sounds From Disney World

**This is a repost of one of my favorite Unknown Magic posts.

>Take the Earliest Flight?

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A man gets on a plan in Philadelphia at 8:00 am. His Resort check in time in Walt Disney World is 3:00 pm. If his plane ride takes a little less than 2 1/2 hours, what does he do with himself, if he is using Disney’s Magical Express to get to the Resort? (Disney’s Magical Express was explained in our post of August 11 called “In Disney”) I know this seems like an odd question, but this happens to many people in Disney World as they are either first coming in, or as they are leaving. They book a flight that lands earlier in the morning or one that takes off later in the day. Then they are at the resort without a room. A lot of them sit around the lobby and wait for their room, or for the bus back to the airport, but that seems like a waste of a Day in Disney to me. So, if you are in this situation what should you do? After you have checked in to your Resort and found your room isn’t ready, you can enjoy the Unknown Magic of things to do when you don’t yet have a room.

The first thing you should do is something I mentioned in a post a while back, check out your surroundings. Find out what your resort has and what you can do there. Take the time to look for the Unknown Magics that it has to offer, things like a beach or a playground for the kids. Then you should decide if your park tickets will cover every day that you are in Disney, if you go to a park, now. If they do, you can always go to a park. We have on occasion gone to a park, at this point, but most of the time, we wait until after we have been in the room, so that we can change and freshen up, then we head out to a park (of course if you have a park hopper, which is the best way to go, you could do both). If you are like us and don’t want to do the park without freshening up, or you don’t have enough days on your tickets, then there are plenty of other options available to you that can lead to Magical Experiences.

You can Hotel Hop (as described in my post of August 17) this is a great way to find different places to eat and maybe a different place to stay on your next trip. You can also go over to Disney’s Boardwalk, and have lunch at any of the great restaurants. Our family stops in at Big River Brewing Company, usually our first day in Walt Disney World, for lunch, it is one of our favorite places to eat. While on the

Boardwalk, you can shop in some wonderful places like Thimbles and Threads or the Wyland Galleries. The Wyland Galleries have some very cool art work and the prices are not as extreme as you would think they’d be. There is also a Wyland Galleries in the Polynesian Resort.

The Polynesian Resort is another great place to go if you are waiting to get into your room. The Kona Café is wonderful for lunch and the Waterfall in the Lobby is a very nice place to sit and relax before a busy Disney Vacation starts. Another thing to do while you’re are waiting for your room, is to ride the Monorail. Disney’s Highway in the Sky is a Magical Experience in itself.

And on the Magic Kingdom Loop you can get out at the Contemporary Resort and enjoy the Grand Canyon Concourse, and at the Grand Floridian you can enjoy the piano playing in the lobby. You can also ride the Monorail over to Epcot and get a sneak preview of the park as the Monorail makes its loop around the entrance to the Epcot Station.

Another fun thing to do as you are waiting is to take a boat ride. If your resort is one of the many Disney resorts that offers floating transportation, this is a great way to learn where it goes. Not only that but it gives you a different view of the Walt Disney World Resort you may miss later in your trip.

If you get to Disney World very early and you have an hour or two before your room is ready, you can go play miniature golf. The Fantasia Gardens Minature Golf Course is near the Dolphin and Swan Resorts. To get there you need to take a bus to any Park and then take one to the Dolphin and the Swan. Winter Summerland mini-golf is connected to Blizzard Beach, so to get there you just need to catch a bus to Blizzard Beach.

Which brings up another option for you if you have a lot of time; you may want to go to either Blizzard Beach or Typhoon Lagoon. If you don’t want to purchase the ticket to either of the water parks, or didn’t have it as an add on to your Park Hopper Pass, then you can enjoy one of the most wonderful things to do for the wait before your room is available, Swim in your Resort’s Pool (I talked about the Resort pools in my article Let’s Take a Dip, back in June).

So, now you know, if you get an early flight and have to kill sometime in Disney before you get into your room, there are some great things you can do to create Magical Experience. So, book that early flight and enjoy your extra half day.

>Have a Seat, Part II

>In yesterday’s post, we were in the Magic Kingdom. The Magic Kingdom always gives me the feeling that it is the busiest Disney Park. It seems as if the visitors there are always on a mission. They have to get to that next attraction, they have to ride so many rides before lunch or dinner or the end of the night. Epcot doesn’t feel that way to me. Yes, you do get the occasional group that runs past you to get to Soarin’ or Test Track. But most of the time, Epcot is a more laid back place to be. And with this feeling there comes many places to sit and relax. Of course like yesterday’s post I will not be able to tell you every great spot there is, but I’ll share some of my favorites and hopefully they will provide you with the Magical Experiences they have given me. So, with that in mind, I offer to you, the Unknown Magic of a Quiet Seat in Epcot.

The first quiet spot I offer isn’t even in the park. If you come to the back entrance of Epcot from the Epcot resorts, the International Gateway has benches just outside the gates which offer a wonderful place to sit and relax. Few people go by and there isn’t much activity at all. The Friendship Launches that come from the resorts only dock every 12-15 minutes, providing a nice amount of time to catch your breath and relax.

Once you enter the park from the Intenational Gateway or even if you don’t come into the park this way, there are three really nice places to grab a seat and relax near it. The first one is at the top of the little hill after you pass through Great Britain in the World Showcase. Off to the side of the walkway, almost directly across from the bridge leading to the rest of the World Showcase is bench that is very shaded and not often used. Most people don’t even notice this bench and very few even notice when someone is sitting on it. It is a great place to sit, relax and almost become “invisible” in the middle of the park.

As you start across the bridge toward France, there is another nice sitting area, it is actually off the bridge and down near the water. This area is not shaded at all and a great place to watch Illuminations, but during the day it is a place that rarely sees a visitor. The other great place to sit in this general area is well shaded, but still rarely visited. It is behind the shops of Great Britain. After you stroll

through the shops, if you continue through to the back of the courtyard area, there is a small stage where the British Invasion plays. When they aren’t playing there, this whole area is very quiet and relaxing. There are benches and it has a nice flower garden where you can enjoy a peaceful sit down. You might even like some fish and chips from the Yorkshire County Fish Shop.  One of my other favorite places in Great Britain to sit is inside or outside at the Rose and Crown Pub, but I

would not recommend either of these places to sit if you are looking for a quiet spot. The Rose and Crown is very busy and although it is a lot of fun, it’s not real quiet.

There are other great places to sit around the World Showcase if you are looking for a quiet spot to relax and maybe take a break. Over at the Morocco Pavilion, there are some great places to sit and relax, right in the middle of the Pavilion. There really aren’t benches, but the courtyard has many low walls which are surrounding the trees that grow in the courtyard. These provide a nice place to sit. The trees all surround a fountain in the middle of the courtyard, making this a wonderful place to sit and meditate.

As you continue around the World Showcase one of the best places to stop and relax is past Germany, near the Outpost. The Outpost is a small refreshment cart, like building. They sell Coke products and a few snacks. It always seems like this is the hottest place in Epcot whenever we are walking past it, which is ok because right off the side of the main walkway there are tables with umbrellas. This is one of those places that a lot of people walk by, because there really isn’t much in this area, except for the refreshment stand and a small store, which is an awesome little shop, but most people don’t pay any attention to it. This is a great place to sit and relax and enjoy a refreshment and the views of the World Showcase.

Finishing your trip around the World Showcase, past the Mexico Pavilion, is the Entrance bridge to Future World. There are benches located on the sides of this walkway which are a nice place to sit and relax, because you can watch the Monorail go by.

Future World itself has many great places to sit also. The areas between the Land and the Seas with Nemo and Friends are a very nice place to sit, because of the ponds and flowers beds. The Butterfly Garden behind Mousegears is also a nice place to enjoy some quiet time.

And although there is no Walt Disney World Railroad type attraction in Epcot, you can still take a relaxing journey that will create a Magical Experience. To do this get on the Monorail, as you are leaving through the Main Gate. The Monorail will take you to the Ticket and Transportation Center. This is about a ten minute ride that is very cool, because you can see all the different things that are located between the Magic Kingdom area and Epcot.

So, know you now, even as laid-back as Epcot seems, there are still some seating areas that are better than others for sitting and relaxing and creating Magical Experiences. So, when you are in Epcot, keep an eye out for that spot and Have a Seat.