{"id":594,"date":"2011-08-08T21:29:13","date_gmt":"2011-08-09T02:29:13","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.nealbreeding.com\/blogs\/?page_id=594"},"modified":"2012-11-16T14:26:18","modified_gmt":"2012-11-16T20:26:18","slug":"wdw-resorts","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"http:\/\/www.nealbreeding.com\/blogs\/wdw-resorts\/","title":{"rendered":"WDW Tips — Resorts (ours)"},"content":{"rendered":"

Food and Young Kids:<\/h2>\n

Disney’s kids\u2019 meals are for “9 and under.” A toddler is MUCH different than a 9 year old and we’ve found that many of the kids’ meals a 2 or 3 year old may not eat. Bring snacks and peanut butter and jelly and bread, assuming your child loves PB&J like ours does! Many of the hotel\u2019s convenient store shops sell small jars of peanut butter, jelly, and even loaves of bread! Other suggested snacks are: individual servings of applesauce, pretzels, goldfish and teddy grahams.<\/p>\n

\u00a0A PB&J Tip:<\/h2>\n

“In the resort food courts, you can buy two slices of bread (white or wheat) for $.69 plus tax. Peanut butter is about .50, and in some food courts it’s free because there are packets of it with the condiments. Jelly can be obtained for free because it’s a condiment. So for around a dollar or less, you can make a peanut butter and jelly sandwich.” -Grace<\/p>\n

Dinning Plan:<\/h2>\n

In our many trips to WDW we have only used the meal plan once and it was the Quick-Service only. Our experience was very good and we will be considering for our future visits. We have a number of friends that used the meal plans that include the Table-Service plans and they all thought it was a good idea, but warned us that it is a lot of food! Our dinning plan came with a re-fillable resort mug. We would usually eat breakfast at the resort, use this mug, and then get bottled water with our meal to use later in the day. The drink stations usually have a sink where you can wash out the refillable mug.<\/p>\n

\u00a0Extra Bun Trip:<\/h2>\n

“Since 2008 some locations have increased the price of an extra bun to insane levels, with some locations charging as much as $4. So ask before using the price before using this tip. Order one double cheeseburger combo meal and ask for an extra bun. (The cashiers actually have an “extra bun” button on the register, so this is not an unusual request.) Then take one of the hamburger patties off the double burger, and put it on the extra bun. Most of the counter-service restaurants have a condiment bar where you can add any toppings you like to the two burgers. Split the fries and drink or order an extra drink.” – Grace<\/p>\n

\u00a0Top 10 Quick Service Bites<\/h2>\n

(taken from the Disney Blog<\/a>)<\/p>\n

    \n
  1. Sweet Potato Cart<\/strong>, Frontierland,\u00a0Magic Kingdom<\/a>. Vegans, vegetarians and carnivores love this filling snack that\u2019s low fat and full of vitamins \u2013 and you can eat on the run. Sweet potatoes are seasonal, so if we don\u2019t find them, we head to\u00a0Columbia Harbour House<\/strong>\u00a0for the Lighthouse Sandwich \u2013 hummus, broccoli slaw and tomatoes on whole-grain bread. Or we throw caution to the wind and order the restaurant\u2019s fried shrimp platter.<\/li>\n
  2. Ditto for the veggie egg roll from the\u00a0Egg Roll Wagon<\/strong>\u00a0in Adventureland in the Magic Kingdom. Low fat, not so much. But satisfying and easy to eat when you\u2019re dashing through the park.<\/li>\n
  3. \u00a0Taco Salad,\u00a0Pecos Bill Tall Tale Inn and Cafe<\/strong>, Frontierland, Magic Kingdom. Better than a burger and you can load up with jalape\u00f1os at the toppings bar.<\/li>\n
  4. \u00a0Half slab of St. Louis Ribs,\u00a0Flame Tree Barbecue<\/strong>,\u00a0Disney\u2019s Animal Kingdom<\/a>. We\u2019ve peeked in the kitchen to watch the chefs grill these tasty favorites \u2013 finger-lickin\u2019 good.<\/li>\n
  5. \u00a0Kung Pao Beef,\u00a0Yak & Yeti counter service<\/strong>, Disney\u2019s Animal Kingdom. Grab some chopsticks and dig in.<\/li>\n
  6. \u00a0Pressed Tuscan deli sandwich with shaved smoked ham, smoked breast of turkey, provolone, Caesar dressing and Pesto marinated tomatoes on a Tuscan roll, served with apple slices or French fries at\u00a0Studio Catering Company<\/strong>,\u00a0Disney\u2019s Hollywood Studios<\/a>. Go for the fries.<\/li>\n
  7. Southwest salad with chicken, tortillas, black bean relish, avocado, and cilantro vinaigrette at\u00a0Backlot Express<\/strong>, Disney\u2019s Hollywood Studios. And since it\u2019s relatively healthful, sometimes we sneak in a late-afternoon peanut butter and jelly shake at the bar at\u00a050\u2019s Prime Time Cafe<\/strong>.<\/li>\n
  8. \u00a0Roasted Beets and Goat Cheese Salad with honey sherry dressing at\u00a0Sunshine Seasons<\/strong>, The Land pavilion,\u00a0Epcot<\/a>. Plain delicious if you love beets. If not, go for the seared tuna salad with sesame-rice wine dressing.<\/li>\n
  9. \u00a0Does a chocolate crepe count as a meal? We think so. Stop at the\u00a0Crepes des Chefs de France<\/strong>\u00a0kiosk in\u00a0Epcot World Showcase<\/a>.<\/li>\n
  10. \u00a0Sit at the outdoor tables and people watch while you share a shawarma platter at\u00a0Tangierine Cafe<\/strong>\u00a0at the Morocco pavilion in Epcot World Showcase. Generous tastes of hummus, tabouleh, couscous salad and Moroccan bread. We suggest the chicken and lamb combo.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    Pre-order a PhotoPass:<\/h2>\n

    If you booked through Disney you probably will get the opportunity to preorder a PhotoPass cd before you leave (at a discounted rate). We did this our last trip which be felt like was a good deal and it made us find the Disney people to take photos with and well as let us take family photos throughout the parks.<\/p>\n

    update 8\/27\/2011: <\/strong>Tower of Terror photos (that are taken durning the ride) now may be added to the PhotoPass.<\/p>\n

    Character Dinning:<\/h2>\n

    We have only eaten at Chef Mickey and Ohana’s Best Friends Breakfast with Lilo & Stitch Restaurant at Disney’s Polynesian Resort, but have had reports from friends on all the other ones that are listed here:<\/p>\n

    Princess Storybook Dining at Akershus Royal Banquet Hall (in Epcot) — had multiple friends recommend this one<\/p>\n

    The Garden Grill Restaurant Restaurant at The Land Pavilion (in Epcot)<\/p>\n

    The Crystal Palace Restaurant at Main Street, U.S.A. (Magic Kingdom)<\/p>\n

    Resorts:<\/h2>\n

    Photos of the different Resorts:\u00a0http:\/\/allears.net\/acc\/gallery.htm<\/a><\/p>\n

    We believe in staying on property. \u00a0It may seem that it is too costly and there are many better deals to be found just outside of Disney\u2019s gates, but from outside Disney’s gates, it is at least a 15 to 20 minute drive to get to Magic Kingdom (a little closer for some of the other parks).<\/p>\n

    By staying on Disney property, you can take advantage of a few of these perks:<\/p>\n