Caring for Giants Elephant Tour at Disney's Animal Kingdom

 

Caring for Giants Elephant Tour

by Annaliesa McBride

 Caring for giants is an up close look at what it takes to take care of the elephants at Disney's Animal Kingdom. It is a wonderful opportunity for animal lovers, and Disney fans alike. This behind the scenes tour is a unique experience that is only available to guests ages 18 and older.

Tour groups meet at the Curiosity Animal Tours kiosk across from the entrance to Kilimanjaro Safari where they sign a waiver, and are given a lanyard to identify each member as a part of the group. The tour guide then leads the group to a bus, which takes the group to an observation deck that overlooks the elephant habitat. The observation deck is about 80-100 feet from the elephants so you do get closer to them during the tour than in the park. Tours get ample opportunity to observe the elephants, and take photos as an elephant caretaker explains how the elephants are cared for, and answers questions. You may not take photos in the back lot but you can take pictures in the non-backstage areas. The tour lasts about 60-minutes.

After all questions are answered, guests get the opportunity to hold a piece of elephant poop that has been glazed and baked. (This was my favorite part, thought my sister and I were the only ones in the group brave enough to handle the poop.) Cast members are happy to take photos of each party in front of the elephant habitat before bringing the group back to the park.

On this tour, we learned that Disney is held to the highest standards. We learned about elephant poaching, and were introduced to multiple charities that fight off poaching, and remove traps left to catch elephants in their natural habitat. I left feeling informed. It was a truly breathtaking experience that will stick with me for quite some time.

Caring for Giants Tour Details;

  • Cost: $30 per person

  • Reservations; Call 407-919-7529 for advance reservations (recommended). Same day reservations are sometimes available at the Curiosity Animal Tours kiosk in the Africa area.

  • Age restrictions: You must be at least four years old to go on this tour and guests under 18 must be accompanied by a participating adult.

  • Accessibility: Guests may remain in a wheelchair during the tour but you will want to call 407-398-1487 to arrange/confirm accessible transportation to the backstage area. Guests using an ECV will have to transfer to a courtesy wheelchair to participate.

  • Allergies: Be aware that you will be in areas with common allergen like dust and hay.


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Best Disney World Quick Service Meals Available Now

Disney Dining Beyond Burgers or Hot Dogs

Finding variety at the Quick-Service restaurants

Disney is currently operating under limited capacity and you wil find that not all quick-service restaurants are open right now or, if they are open, they may have limited menus.   Hot dogs, hamburgers, and chicken nuggets are readily available but that can get monotonous every day of your trip so we’ve put together a list of locations that offer more great menu options.  Taking the time to quickly read the information below and noting options that look good will help you enjoy better meals in the park.

Many of the locations below will also include hot dogs, hamburgers, and/or chicken nuggets but we don’t mention that because this list is to help you find other options so you don’t feel like you’re eating the same thing at every meal.  We also excluded locations that only have snack items and sweets. Links have been provided so that you can see the whole menu.   We did not include any table service locations in this list.  Quick-service locations do not accept advance reservations at this time.

Quick-service restaurants located at the hotels are not included in this list unless they are reasonably easy to get to from one of the theme parks.  We did include several options with Disney’s Hollywood Studios since the in-park options are so limited.  Allow plenty of time for transportation.

TIP: Most of these locations are utilizing mobile ordering unless you have dietary restrictions.  You will be able to access the menu through the MyDisneyExperience app. QR codes available at the restaurant to access the menus so take time to learn to scan QR codes if you don’t already know how.  Be sure to link a form of payment to your MyDisneyExperience account to simplify the whole dining process.

Magic Kingdom:

  • Cosmic Ray’s Starlight Café has a Greek salad or a grilled chicken club sandwich.  Kids can get mac ‘n cheese.

  • The Friar’s Nook has creamy bacon macaroni & cheese tots or loaded Buffalo tots.  Yum!  Kids can get tots and cheese sauce.

  • Gaston’s Tavern doesn’t have meal items but people love the warm cinnamon rolls for breakfast.

  • Liberty Square Market sells Turkey legs and an assortment of snack and whole fruit options.

  • Pecos Bill Tall Tale Inn and Café has the most variety of current offerings in the Magic Kingdom.  You can get a fajita platter, southwest salad with chicken or pork carnitas, chicken or beef nachos, black bean nachos, pork carnitas rice bowl, pork carnitas nachos, chicken rice bowl, or a veggie rice bowl.  Similar options available as kids meals.  This location has a nice selection of allergy friendly menu items too.

  • Pinocchio Village Haus has a selection of flatbreads (kind of like pizza but this location doesn’t get good reviews.)  You can find better food elsewhere.

  • Sleepy Hollow has a very limited menu but people love the sweet-and-spicy chicken waffle sandwich.  They also have a fresh fruit waffle sandwich or funnel cakes if you’re looking for dessert. 

Good options at nearby resorts

Contemporary Resort – Contempo CaféBreakfast options include a bounty platter, grilled breakfast sandwich, Mickey-shaped waffle, breakfast tofu bowl, steel-cut oatmeal, and similar options for kids.  The lunch and dinner menu features Caesar salad with chicken, spicy chicken sandwich, hot turkey sandwich, meat lover’s flatbread, grilled tofu bowl, kale power greens salad and a couple of soup options.  Kids’ meals include turkey pasta marinara, cheese or pepperoni flatbread. 

Polynesian Resort – Capt. Cook’s – breakfast options include a bounty platter, morning flatbread, Mickey waffles, a breakfast burrito, power breakfast bowl, steel-cut oatmeal or the ever-popular Tonga toast with similar items on the kids’ menu.   Lunch and dinner options include an Aloha park sandwich, pan Asian noodles with vegetables, Thai coconut meatballs,  Asian-style noodle salad, and  Superfood Salad.  Kids will love the chicken and pineapple skewers or the turkey sandwich.

Wilderness Lodge – Geyser Point Bar & Grill has teriyaki chicken wings, shrimp on a wife, roasted salmon, or a crab cake with spicy slaw.   Other great options include a smoked turkey sandwich, grilled portobello salad with or without salmon, chicken or steak, or crispy fried oysters.  Kids’ meals include grilled chicken or a finger food sampler.

Wilderness Lodge – Roaring Fork serves breakfast items like chicken and waffles, a breakfast platter, bagel sandwich, Bananas Foster French Toast, and steel-cut oatmeal.  Kids can get Mickey-shaped waffles.  For lunch and dinner, you’ll find a 10-hour smoked pulled pork sandwich, tuna salad sandwich, chicken and waffles, house-smoked turkey sandwich, or a Caesar salad with chicken.  Kids’ meals included mac ‘n cheese or a pepperoni flatbread.

Animal Kingdom:

  • Flame Tree Barbecue has a St. Louis rib dinner, half chicken, ribs and chicken combo, backed macaroni & cheese with pulled pork, and a smokehouse chicken salad.  Most of these are served with baked beans and coleslaw.  Kids can get a baked chicken drumstick. 

  • Isle of Java has a sausage, egg and cheese biscuit available at breakfast along with things like muffins and danishes. 

  • Nomad Lounge has small plates with things like a Chicken Manchurian Nomad Bowl, Tongarishi-spiced Tuna Nomad bowl, and a bread service.   These are small plates so the servings are small but it does offer some nice options; the setting is lovely!

  • Pongu Pongu has sausage, egg, and cheese biscuits at breakfast as well as French toast sticks and their very popular Pongu Lumpia which is a pineapple cream cheese spring roll.   The Pongu Lumpia is available all day but they do not offer any lunch or dinner entrees

  •  Restaurantosaurus has breaded shrimp with fries or a cobb salad.

  • Satu’li Canteen has some delicious options like their combination grilled beef and chicken bowl, chili-garlic shrimp bowl, shopped wood-grilled chicken bowl, and their chili-spiced crispy fried tofu bowl.  The children’s menu also includes several bowl options as well as cheese quesadillas.  Don’t rule out the cheeseburger steamed pods (bao buns) as they are kind of different and good, as long as you like mustard.  This location has a great selection of allergy-friendly options.

  • Trilo-Bites has Buffalo chicken chips that might work as a small meal or a savory snack.

  • Yak & Yeti Local Food Cafes has some great breakfast options like a scrambled egg breakfast bowl with or without bacon or sausage, egg white English muffin or sausage and egg muffin; kids options include French toast or a pancake and sausage stick.  For lunch or dinner, you’ll find great options like honey chicken, vegetable tikka masala, or sweet-and-sour tempura chicken all served with white rice.  They also have a Korean fried chicken sandwich, teriyaki chicken salad, and egg rolls.

Disney’s Hollywood Studios: Plan on this being your burger day!

  • ABC Commissary has a curry rice bowl with shrimp or tofu, chicken club, buffalo chicken grilled cheese sandwich, shrimp tacos, pork carnitas tacos, and Mediterranean salad with chicken.   They also have an arugula-farro side salad.   Child meal options include a pork taco, grilled cheese sandwich, or a turkey sandwich.

  • Backlot Express mostly has burgers but you will also find a Cuban sandwich, southwest salad, and Tatooine two suns hummus. 

  • Baseline Tap House doesn’t serve full entrees but they do have a couple of tasty small plate options like a coffee-rubbed rib-eye beef puff and a California cheese and charcuterie plate.

  • Docking Bay 7 Food & Cargo has beef pot roast, fried chicken with vegetable mashed potatoes or mac & cheese, smoked pork ribs, roasted chicken salad, or kefta and humas garden spread.  Kids meals include pasta with marinara sauce, veggie dippers, and fried chicken.   They have an allergy-friendly menu too.  Everything we’ve eaten here is good but the portions were small and we left wanting more.

  • PizzaRizzo has individual sized pizzas, a meatball sub, and antipasto salad.  There are similar options on the kids’ menu. Sadly, Disney’s pizza is famous for all the wrong reasons and everything here falls somewhere between “okay” and “somewhat disappointing”.   In our opinion, nothing is truly terrible or really good. 

  • Ronto Roaster serves breakfast options like a morning wrap with eggs, pork sausage and cheese, or overnight oats.  The lunch and dinner menu is pretty much limited to a wrap with roasted pork and tangy slaw.  They have allergy friendly options available.

  • Rosie’s All-American Café’ primarily has burgers and hotdogs but also has a fried green tomato sandwich. 

If none of these are appealing, consider exiting the park and taking the Skyliner to Epcot and then walk over to the Beach and Yacht Club which have options at the two market locations and Hurricane Hanna’s

Beach Club – Beach Club Marketplacebreakfast options include a bounty platter, breakfast sandwich, or Mickey-shaped waffles.  For lunch, you’ll find an Italian sandwich, roast beef sandwich, caprese sandwich, pulled pork sandwich, turkey and swiss sandwich, grilled veggie and hummus sandwich, bacon topped macaroni & cheese, chili topped mac & cheese, and pulled pork topped mac & cheese. Other great options include plant-based chili, chicken Caesar salad, clam chowder, or a Greek salad.  Kids’ meals include a turkey sandwich, hot dog, or baked mac ‘n cheese.  Dinner has most of the lunch options along with a half roasted chicken dinner option. 

Beach Club / Yacht Club – Hurricane Hanna’s Waterside Bar & Grill offers Greek salad, seafood roll, Caesar salad with chicken, Italian Focaccia sandwich, or a turkey and Swiss sandwich.  Kids can get a turkey sandwich meal.

Yacht Club – Market at Ale & Compassbreakfast offers a breakfast bowl, egg-white breakfast wrap, turkey and cheese breakfast sandwich, Mickey-shaped waffles, and a ham and cheese breakfast sandwich.   Lunch and dinner feature grilled chicken panini, roasted vegetable panini, Cuban sandwich, ham and cheese sandwich, or a spicy Italian Panini.  The kids’ menu includes grilled cheese, mac ‘n cheese, or a ham sandwich.

You can also take the Skyline from Disney’s Hollywood Studio to Disney’s Riviera Resort where Primo Piatto which has a breakfast menu that includes a classic ham and swiss breakfast sandwich, blueberry-lemon pancakes, Mickey-shaped waffles, smoked salmon and everything bagel, plant based egg platter or scrambled eggs served over Mascarpone polenta with a sweet brioche roll with bacon and Italian sausage.  The lunch menu has a hearth baked sausage and pepperoni pizza, grilled chicken sandwich, classic French ham and swiss sandwich, spicy Italian sandwich, tomato soup, a couple of salad options, a grilled vegetable skewer, and a smoked salmon and Everything bagel.  The kids’ meal includes pasta with sauce, a burger, cheese pizza, and chicken strips.

 Epcot:

  • Choza de Margarita doesn’t serve full entrees but they do have small plate items like tacos al pastor, tostada de pollo, spicy corn, empanada de barbacoa, and guacamole.

  • Fife & Drum Tavern has turkey legs.

  • Kabuki Café has small plates with options like sushi or a California roll.

  • Katsura Grill has sushi, shrimp tempura udon noodle bowls, vegetable noodle bowls, and ramen with pork and vegetables.  They also have options like shrimp and chicken teriyaki, chicken and beef teriyaki, and chicken cutlet curry.   The kids menu features various teriyaki options.

  • La Cantina de San Angel has Mexican food favorites like pollo cascabel, chicken or beef tacos, nachos.  The kids’ menu includes chicken tacos, chicken tenders, cheese empanadas, or mac ‘n cheese

  • Les Halles Boulangerie-Patisserie features some wonderful sandwiches, lobster bisque in a bread bowl, a cheese plate, quiche Lorraine, and a lovely selection of pastries.

  • Regal Eagle Smokehouse has so many great options like Memphis dry-rub pork ribs, sliced Texas beef brisket sandwich, Kansas City smoked half chicken, North Carolina chopped smoked pork butt platter, and a power greens salad with or without chicken.  Vegetarians may want to try the BBQ jackfruit burger.  Kids’ meals include BBQ chicken leg with coleslaw and watermelon, BBQ ribs, or chicken salad.  This location has lots of great allergy-friendly options too.

  • Sunshine Seasons has a power salad with or without chicken, oak grilled salmon or rotisserie chicken, pulled pork and cheddar on Texas toast, and a roasted jackfruit and veggies pita.  Kids can get salmon or a chicken drumstick with rice and apple sauce, mac & cheese, or cheese pizza.

  • Yorkshire County Fish Shop has fish and chips.

  • The wonderful thing about Epcot is that they often have festival booths with delicious seasonal food offerings.

Disney keeps adding dining options; click here to stay up to date

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Quick-service meals discontinued at Be Our Guest / Now Table Service Only

It looks like Be Our Guest will no longer be a quick-service location and will not serve breakfast when the Magic Kingdom reopens on July 11th. In the past, this location was a quick-service location for breakfast and lunch and a table service location for dinner. Due to its incredible popularity, it was the first location to offer reservations for a quick-service meal. At this time, Disney is showing the same choices and prices ($62 per adult and $37 per child, age 3-9) being offered lunch and dinner for their 3-course prix fixe menu.

Be Our Guest is no longer showing quick-service menus for breakfast and lunch.  The menu shows table service only for lunch and dinner and breakfast is not being offered at all.

Be Our Guest is no longer showing quick-service menus for breakfast and lunch. The menu shows table service only for lunch and dinner and breakfast is not being offered at all.

As of this time, Disney has not made an official announcement about the change but just quietly updated the menus and description on their website so we do not know if this is a permanent change or something that is just being tried during the phased reopening stages when physical distancing requirements are in place.

More Helpful Dining Information:

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Annette's Opinion About Re-theming Splash Mountain

Did you hear the announcement that Disney is changing the theme of Splash Mountain to The Princess and the Frog at both Disneyland and Disney World? If not, you can read about it here.

An argument in favor of keeping the Brer Rabbit theme at Splash Mountain in Disneyland park in California  and Magic Kingdom at Walt Disney World Resort in Florida.

An argument in favor of keeping the Brer Rabbit theme at Splash Mountain in Disneyland park in California and Magic Kingdom at Walt Disney World Resort in Florida.

Like most thoughtful and reasonable people, I begin with an opinion and then cherry pick my supporting arguments while conveniently ignoring any valid points to the contrary. And I certainly understand that Song of the South is problematic with its depiction of plantation life that ignored the realities of the slave experience and its use of racial stereotypes but I am over 50, have only seen the movie once in my entire life, and I don’t remember it. Here’s the thing though, I think that re-theming the ride is an unfortunate loss in a way because the Brer Rabbit stories predate “Song of the South” and are of African origin. If Disney wanted to pay homage to this African/slave contribution to American storytelling culture, they could create a “Legends of the Frontierland” show for Disney+ that ties in the Mark Twain element of Tom Sawyer Island, Pecos Bill’s Tall Tales Inn and Cafe, the Big Thunder Mountain Railroad back story. They could also develop interactive exhibits about the origins of Brer Rabbit for the Splash Mountain queue. At some level, it seems a shame to remove stories and characters that were brought to America by actual black people and replace them with a story of European origin (The Frog Prince - Brothers Grimm) that has been recently reworked to feature black characters.

You can read more about the history of the Brer Rabbit stories at  https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Br'er_Rabbit

Disclaimer #1: I love Splash Mountain and might feel differently if I didn’t care for it. Let’s face it; Disney can be annoyingly polite at time and, if they re-theme it, there will be no rides that snidely declare “I’ll show you a laughing place” before dropping me into a pool and soaking me to the skin.

Disclaimer #2: I was grumpy about them re-theming Maelstrom to Frozen so maybe I am just not good with change.

On the Other Hand…

I love The Princess and the Frog and admit that the song “Going Down the Bayou” and all the music from the movie will work well with this ride. Disneyland’s New Orleans Square is right next to the Critter Country area where Splash Mountain is located so I think the Princess and the Frog theme will work very well. It won’t be out of place in Disney World given the ride’s proximity to Tom Sawyer Island which also is very southern and the Liberty Square Riverboat going though the area also ties in the theme. Since the last theatrical release of the Song of the South was in 1980, most of the young children and their parents have never seen the movie so The Princess and the Frog will feel more Disney and be more recognizable to them.

Splash Mountain – at both Disneyland park in California and Magic Kingdom park in Florida – will soon be completely reimagined. The new theme is inspired by the animated Disney film, “The Princess and the Frog.”

Splash Mountain – at both Disneyland park in California and Magic Kingdom park in Florida – will soon be completely reimagined. The new theme is inspired by the animated Disney film, “The Princess and the Frog.”

One of the things I love about the Disney parks is the way they celebrate people and cultures. The World Showcase pavilions in Epcot include Cast Members from those countries, Disney’s Animal Kingdom park celebrate Asia and Africa, Disney’s Animal Kingdom Lodge resort have Cultural Representatives from Africa and who could forget “it’s a small world ride”? I love that my kids got to experience and discover all of these things and people on family trips to Disney World. Disneyland has a space limitation that has prohibited their being able to develop similar experiences. It is wonderful that black children will ride the updated Splash Mountain and see primary characters that look just like them and it is equally wonderful that my fair skinned, blue eyed granddaughter will grow up loving a ride where the main characters do not look exactly like her. We certainly have to tackle racism by addressing inequalities and injustices but I also think barriers break down when we take time to celebrate people and enjoy one another in a welcoming environment and that is one area where Disney really shines.

Hmmm….now that I have a minute to think about the whole thing and get past my initial reaction to a change coming to a beloved ride, I am okay with this and am even a little excited to see what they do with the attraction.


Disclaimer #3: This is my personal opinion and I am not certainly not claiming to speak for any of our dear clients, our wonderful travel agents, or you who may all have very valid reasons for disagreeing with me.

About the author - Annette and her husband Steve launched Build A Better Mouse Trip 13 years ago because they love the Disney theme parks and love helping people have great vacations. Annette knows that sensible business owners steer clear of publicly voicing controversial opinions that may alienate clients but she has been on hold, listing to a repeating loop of Disney music, since 5AM and that always affects her judgment. Steve is definitely the more sensible of the two!

More articles:

Here is the version of the Brer Rabbit stories that my children grew up hearing. This is the video format but we had a CD that we would listen to in the car. I loved the music too.

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Book Review: Our Kingdom of Dust by Leonard Kinsey

It isn’t All Squeaky Clean at the House of Mouse

Our Kingdom of Dust is a great tale to read during the pandemic when so many of our plans have been upended and rising anxiety about jobs and the economy have us wishing for happier, safer times. It is normal to think about the places you want visit once we are able to move freely again and many of us dream of the day we can return to our beloved Disney destinations.

The same is true of Blaine McKinnon, the lead character of the story. He is hurt and angry after a major set-back at the company he built from the ground up and the discovery that all of his relationships are superficial at best. He wistfully longs for the happy times spent at Disney World when he was younger and his parents were still alive. There is nothing wrong with this, in fact, taking some time away from a stressful situation can be really healing like the time my mother somehow scraped together the money to take my sister and I to Hawaii a few months after our dad died cancer. We were reeling and grieving and she showed us that life is still full of beauty and discovery even in the face of loss.

But…

What happens if you run after the joys of childhood at the cost of abandoning everything else? What lengths will you go to keep feeling the magic when a feeling can’t be sustained indefinitely? What would you do to protect the walls of the Disney bubble you’ve built around yourself when it is threatened by the sometimes excruciating pain of reality?

All bubbles pop eventually…then what?

That is the journey Blaine McKinnon takes when he heads to Disney World to mute the aching pain that is his life and discovers a group of people whose stories are different but who are also clinging to the comfort found in “the Most Magical Place on Earth”. This is a book of self-discovery and very definitely not a religious book but I cannot help but paraphrase the Bible in saying that Blaine has to come to grips with the question, “What good is it for someone to gain the whole (Disney) world, yet forfeit their soul?" (Mark 8:36) Ultimately, it isn’t really Disney World that will demand his soul; the truth is that he was already soul sick before he headed there looking for faith, trust and pixie dust. What will he do when that fragile thread of hope he grasped so desperately isn’t able to hold his heart, his soul, and all of life’s baggage?

WARNING: The characters are relatable and layered and the story is gripping but this book is not for everyone - it is full of sex, drugs, profanity, and brutality. If you were bothered by Netflix’s “Tiger King”, you will probably be bothered by this book. There is a very genuine yearning in these wounded characters and there are rays of hope and light but it is not a sanitized, family-friendly Disneyesque story. If Dostoyevsky was tackling suffering as a means of redemption for the Disney obsessed, it might look a lot like Our Kingdom of Dust. At only 192 pages, Kinsey tackles the “dark night of the soul” in a lot fewer pages than anything by Dostoyevsky and, at only $2.99 for the Kindle version (paperback and hardcover versions cost more), it is a very inexpensive and enjoyable examination of Disney escapism.

Leonard Kinsey also wrote Habst and the Disney Sabateurs, another fiction book set at Disney World. My review of that book is much shorter…I hated it; wouldn’t have minded if the main character was eaten by a dragon. In fact, I bought the two books at the same time and put off reading Our Kingdom of Dust for a long time because I disliked Habst so much but then found myself on a flight where Our Kingdom of Dust was the only thing downloaded to my phone that I had not already read and was wonderfully surprised. Habst and the Disney Sabateurs gets good reviews on Amazon so maybe I missed something. It’s Kindle version is also cheap - only $2.99 (paperback version also available) - so it isn’t a big risk if you want to give it a try.


About the reviewer: Annette is an avid reader who dreams of doing two back-to-back, long transatlantic cruises where they feed her and she has plenty of time to sit on deck reading a giant stack of books. She and husband Steve are the owners of Mouse Trip Travel, LLC, a travel agency specializing in Disney destinations. She purchased this book on Amazon and is receiving no compensation of any kind for this review.

More Reviews:

Disclosure:  If you click on the Amazon link/book cover in this article and make a purchase, we will receive a small commission from Amazon and I'll no doubt just spend it on more books. ;-)


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Book Review: Kingdom Chaos by Jeff Dixon (No spoilers)

One of my guilty pleasures is reading fiction stories set in the Disney parks. I wasn’t feeling well yesterday so it was the perfect opportunity to lay on my bed with the cat all day and binge read Jeff Dixon’s new fiction work Kingdom Chaos. This is the fifth book in his Dixon on Disney / Key to the Kingdom series that are all set in and around the Walt Disney World Resort though this story really does stand alone just fine so you can read it without having read the others. I don’t want to give to much away but the story is about the race to find the President of the United States and his family when they disappear from the Epcot monorail on the way to give a speech beneath Spaceship Earth. Will Disney’s Chief Creative Architect Grayson Hawkes and his team be able to unravel clues, rescue the first family, and expose the people behind this brazen kidnapping? The story moves along quickly and held my interest all the way through. It was a very fun read with polical intrigues, deep state conspiracies and divided loyalties.

These books have a similar tone to stories like the National Treasure movies or Brad Meltzer’s historical/political conspiracy novels. Because the book is so new, it may remind you of the TV series “Designated Survivor” whose story lines seemed taken right from the pages of this morning’s news. The President in this book is named Tyler Pride and he is controversial, bombastic and constantly at odds with the media. Hmmm, that sounds vaguely familiar…..

Jeff Dixon calls his books “Faction” - a combination of fact and fiction - because he weaves so much true Disney trivia throughout his stories. As a Disney fan, I read his novels with a colored highlighter in hand so that I can quickly find those gems hidden throughout the story again. Sometimes I want to read more about something he includes and other times I want to be sure to check out something he mentions when I am next at the Walt Disney World Resort.

Kingdom Chaos combines true Disney trivia with a fun fiction story.

Kingdom Chaos combines true Disney trivia with a fun fiction story.

I once wrote to Jeff Dixon in a fit of frustration because I read one of his books after reading Kelly Ryan Johns’ two Deadliest Cast Member books. I wanted to know what the fixation was with strong male protagonists and stories that killed off the women characters. Isn’t it enough that so many mothers are dead in the classic Disney animated movies!?! Let the women live already!!! He sent a very kind reply and told me that I would probably appreciate this book, which was not yet released, and he was right. There were two amazing female characters - Jillian Batterson and Juliette Keaton. They were strong, capable women who could look the head of Secret Service, the media or anyone else in the eye and stand their ground without a moment’s hesitation. The lead character Grayson Hawkes is clearly the hero of the story but it is equally clear that he couldn’t do what he does without the people he has at his side. It was Mr. Dixon’s kind email response that prompted me to invite him to become a guest contributor to this blog. You can find all of his posts by clicking on the Dixon on Disney tag.

This photo was shameless lifted from Jeff Dixon’s facebook profile to prove my point. @KeytotheKingdombook

This photo was shameless lifted from Jeff Dixon’s facebook profile to prove my point. @KeytotheKingdombook

Dixon doesn’t dive too deeply into his physical description of his protagonist Grayson Hawkes but there is one mention of Hawkes having a mop of shaggy, white hair. Have you seen Jeff Dixon’s photo? Maybe it is time for a second email to Dixon asking if he has ever jumped from the top of a Disney Skyliner car to keep ahead of pursuers.

Jeff Dixon’s day job is as a pastor so it tickles me a little that the book features physical battles, gun shots, death, and all the usual things that go with political intrigue but nary a naughty word. The strongest drink is a cup of coffee and no one has time to roll in the hay with everything that is going on in the story. Don’t worry though, it isn’t a heavy handed or preachy book other than a comment that the lead character has more confidence in divine providence than in luck and the suggestion that we should all pray for the President regardless of how we vote. If you are comfortable with someone saying, “God bless you” after you sneeze, you will be comfortable with this book even if you are not particularly religious. Well, there is one pretty preachy part towards the end but it was political and not religious in tone, or maybe it just seemed that way to me. Truly, the book works very hard to to be nuanced and thoughtful when presenting situations that parallel our real world challenges.

I think this is Dixon’s best fiction work yet and hope he has many more books percolating in his mind.

Click here for Jeff Dixon’s Amazon Author page

More about Jeff Dixon: Jeff has written a series of novels set in and around Walt Disney World entitled, The Key to the Kingdom, Unlocking the Kingdom, Storming the Kingdom, Terror in the Kingdom and his newest book, Kingdom Chaos. He is also the author of The Disney Driven Life, a book that draws life lessons and leadership principles from the history and life of Walt Disney. Some know Jeff as Dixon On Disney – and he resources and comments on Disney history, attractions, and news. He is a researcher that draws heavily on the incredible works of Disney historians and biographers with an attempt to understand and apply the life lessons that are uncovered. He is also a storyteller that transports readers into a world beyond their imagination.

About the reviewer: Annette is an avid reader who dreams of doing two back-to-back, long transatlantic cruises where they feed her and she has plenty of time to sit on deck, reading a giant stack of books. She and husband Steve are the owners of Mouse Trip Travel, LLC, a travel agency specializing in Disney destinations. She purchased this book on Amazon and is receiving no compensation of any kind for this review.

More Reviews:

Disclosure:  If you click on the Amazon link/book cover in this article and make a purchase, we will receive a small commission from Amazon and I'll no doubt just spend it on more books. ;-)

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Guest Post - History of the Candlelight Processional

One of the most loved Christmas traditions at Disneyland and Epcot at Walt Disney World is the Candlelight Processional – as we dig into the history of the Candlelight Processional at Disneyland, we travel back to the park’s earliest days. During the park’s first Christmas season in 1955, a group of twelve Dickensian carolers under the direction of Dr. Charles C. Hirt of the University of Southern California performed at various points around the park, and other choirs periodically performed at the Main Street Bandstand. The numbers of carolers and guest choirs grew through the 1956 and 1957 holiday seasons, quickly becoming one of the park’s most popular seasonal offerings.

In 1958, Hirt went to park management with the idea of adding a procession of a larger mass choir. The full choir has been a part of the show ever since, and they now perform on a large “Christmas tree” made of risers. Since 1982, the choir has been comprised of cast members who are part of the Disney Employee Choir.

The Processional began to look like the experience we know today in 1960, when the performance was moved to Main Street, U.S.A., and actor Dennis Morgan was brought in to read excerpts from the Biblical Christmas story to tie together the classic hymns being performed by the choir. Over the course of the decades since, luminaries including Cary Grant, John Wayne, Henry Fonda, Jimmy Stewart, Gregory Peck, Charlton Heston, James Earl Jones, Jodi Benson, Dick Van Dyke, John Stamos, and Chris Hemsworth have all been narrators for the event.

Just over a decade after Disneyland’s Candlelight Processional took on its modern form, the processional was duplicated for the east coast during Walt Disney World’s first holiday season in 1971. The show was performed in Magic Kingdom’s town square, similar to its Disneyland location, for 22 years. In 1994, the Candlelight Processional was moved to Epcot, eventually becoming the centerpiece of the park’s sprawling Festival of Holidays celebration.

The music is amazing – the narration is moving – and we are reminded of what Christmas is all about.
The following lines are from the script of the Candlelight Processional at Epcot …

He was born in an obscure village, the child of a peasant woman. He grew up in still another village where he worked in a carpenter’s shop until he was thirty. Then, for three years he was an itinerant preacher. He never wrote a book. He never held an office. He never had a family or owned a house. He didn’t go to college. He never visited a big city. He never traveled two-hundred miles from the place where he was born. He did none of the things one usually associates with greatness. He had no credentials, but himself. He was only thirty-three when the tide of public opinion turned against him. His friends ran away. He was turned over to his enemies, and went through the mockery of a trial. He was nailed to the cross between two thieves. While he was dying his executioners gambled for his clothing, the only property he had on earth. When he was dead, he was laid in a borrowed grave through the pity of a friend. Twenty centuries have come and gone and today he is considered by many to be the central figure of the human race and the leader of mankind’s progress. All the armies that ever marched, all the navies that ever sailed, all the parliaments that ever sat, all the kings that ever reigned put together have not effected the life of man on this Earth as much as that one, solitary life.

Although hundreds of years have passed we still celebrate the birth of the baby in Bethlehem. And the joy of that first Christmas still lives in our hearts.

For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given, and the government shall be upon his shoulders and his name shall be called Wonderful! Counselor! The Might God! The Everlasting Father! The Prince of Peace!

May the joy and peace found at the manger be yours in abundance this Christmas season and always.

Take the magic and joy of Christmas at touch and change the world…Merry Christmas to you!

More about Jeff Dixon: Jeff has written a series of novels set in and around Walt Disney World entitled, The Key to the Kingdom, Unlocking the Kingdom, Storming the Kingdom, Terror in the Kingdom and his newest book, Kingdom Chaos. He is also the author of The Disney Driven Life, a book that draws life lessons and leadership principles from the history and life of Walt Disney. Some know Jeff as Dixon On Disney – and he resources and comments on Disney history, attractions, and news. He is a researcher that draws heavily on the incredible works of Disney historians and biographers with an attempt to understand and apply the life lessons that are uncovered. He is also a storyteller that transports readers into a world beyond their imagination.

Click here for Jeff Dixon’s Amazon Author page

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Super Cute Disney World Buses

Monica is having fun in Disney Springs today and she has been snapping pictures of the super cute Disney buses. The Toy Story bus is my favorite though that Cinderella bus is delightful too! Complimentary bus transportation to the Disney theme parks, water parks and Disney Springs is one of the great benefits of staying in a Walt Disney World Resort hotel.

Walt Disney World Bus with a Toy Story wrap.

Walt Disney World Bus with a Toy Story wrap.

Walt Disney World Bus with a Pluto wrap.

Walt Disney World Bus with a Pluto wrap.

Walt Disney World Bus with a Frozen wrap.

Walt Disney World Bus with a Frozen wrap.

Walt Disney World Bus with a Cinderella wrap.

Walt Disney World Bus with a Cinderella wrap.

Seeing these reminded me that my daughter had this Mickey's Dance Party CD with a version of "We Like to Party" and the lyrics included: "The Mickey Bus is coming..." I haven't listened to it in ages but these bus pictures have me singing it today! I always believe that, if a song is stuck in my head, I should make sure it gets stuck in everyone else’s head too so….

Let's Have A Party (We Like To Party) - Mickey's Dance Party

What do you think, should they play that song at the resort bus stops in the morning and get people dancing in line along with this song while they wait for their bus to the park?

Speaking of getting to the parks in the morning? Do you know what the Disney crowd means by “rope drop” and the advantages of getting to the parks before they open? If not, click the button below to learn more.

About the photographer - Monica is our most experienced travel agent and has been to the most training events of anyone in our office. She is a whiz at helping people plan fantastic Disney vacations. Click here to read more about Monica

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Candy-Corny Disney Halloween Jokes

Make them groan like ghosts with these corny halloween jokes set to images from the Disney theme parks. Click here to see our whole Pinterest board devoted to Disney dad jokes.

Halloween joke: knock knock….Who’s there?….Orange….Orange Who?….Orange you glad it is Halloween? Photo: Glowing Mickey Mouse jack-o-lantern from Main Street USA in the Magic Kingdom at Disney World.
Halloween Joke: Why Don’t skeletons fight?…Because they don’t have the guts!
Halloween Joke: Why is there a fence at the cemetery? ….Because people are dying to get in!
Halloween Joke: Why don’t skeletons play music at church?…. They have no organs!
Halloween Joke: What did one pumpkin say to the other pumpkin?….Let’s get glowing!
Halloween Joke: What does a skeleton say before dinner?….Bone appetite!
Halloween Joke: What do monsters order at fast food restaurants? French frights!
Halloween joke: Why didn’t the skeleton want to go to school? His heart just wasn’t in it.
Halloween Joke: What is a ghost’s favorite dessert? I Scream! (ice cream)
Halloween Joke: What is a skeleton’s favorite instrument? The trom-bone!
Halloween Joke; Why do ghosts make great cheerleaders? Because they have a lot of spirit!
Halloween Joke: Did you hear about the ghost comedian? He was booed off stage.
Halloween Joke: Knock Knock! Who’s there? Boo! Boo who? I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to make you cry!

Are You Boo-Hooing Because You Want  A Disney Halloween?

This is a great time to lock in your Halloween adventure for next year because booking early gives guarantees the best prices and availability and the deposit is refundable if your plans change!  The best part is that Halloween is not just one day in the theme parks.  The Disney resorts offer charming events that are perfect for the whole family.  If your Disney darlings have grown into thrill-seekers craving a more intense experience, you can head over to Universal Orlando.  These events require a separate ticket and are not included in regular theme park admission but pair wonderfully with the Epcot International Food & Wine Festival.

Mickey's Not So Scary Halloween Party (Disney World, Florida) is offered on select nights in the Magic Kingdom from mid-August through October

The Oogie Boogie Bash(Disneyland, California) is offered on select nights in Disney California Adventure from mid-September through October

Halloween Horror Nights (Universal Orlando, Florida) is guaranteed to set teens and adults screaming on select nights in September through October

Hey, I want a kooky-spooky Disney or Universal Halloween Trip!  

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Thursday 3: The 3 Disney Springs Character Breakfasts

Disney Character Breakfasts at Disney Springs Area Hotels

I recently visited the Disney Springs Good Neighbor hotels that participate in Disney World resort benefits like Extra Magic Hours and the ability to book FastPass+ reservations 60 days prior to arrival and thought you’d be interested to know about the three character breakfast locations available on select days.  It is important to note that these character breakfasts do not take place at restaurants within Disney Springs itself but are located in nearby Disney Springs Resort Area hotels, all within walking distance of Disney Springs. While the adult prices are comparable in price to the Disney World resort character meals, the child prices are significantly lower which is great for large families.  Another perk is that two of the locations do not charge for 3-year old children and also offer child pricing for 10 - 12 year olds whereas the Disney character meals start charging the child price at age three (3) and adult prices start at age ten (10).   None of these locations accept advance reservations and are a great option if you’re having trouble getting reservations at a character meal location found in the Disney reservation system.  You do not have to be a guest of these hotels to dine at the restaurants.

Which characters are offered:   Disney sends over the characters and they usually just list “Disney Friends” or “Disney Pals” but Minnie Mouse, Pluto and Goofy seem to be fairly frequent visitors to breakfast.   Brer Bear and Brer Fox were making the rounds the morning we were at Hilton Orlando Lake Buena Vista which I thought was neat because you don’t usually see those two outside of Frontierland in the Magic Kingdom.

How to Get There:  If you’re staying at one of the Disney Springs hotels, you can easily walk over.  If you’re staying at one of the official Disney World resorts, the free option is to take the bus or boat, where available< from your hotel to the Disney Springs Marketplace stop and walk over.   It may be easier to have a taxi, Uber or Lyft drop you off at the resort entrance.

For comparison purposes, here are the prices at three character breakfasts featuring classic Disney characters that are located in official Disney hotels:

  • Contemporary Resort - Chef Mickeys breakfast: $41 / Child: $25 (age 3 – 9)

  • Polynesian Resort - Ohana character Breakfast: $34 / Child: $20 (age 3 – 9)

  • Beach Club Resort - Cape May character buffet: Adult: $26 / Child $21 (age 3 – 9)

Wyndham Lake Buena Vista Disney Springs Resort Area  

Character breakfast available Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday mornings in the Lakeview Restaurant at the Wyndham Lake Buena Vista Hotel / Disney Springs area - Walt Disney World Resort.

Character breakfast available Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday mornings in the Lakeview Restaurant at the Wyndham Lake Buena Vista Hotel / Disney Springs area - Walt Disney World Resort.

Lakeview Restaurant - this is the only character meal where we ate and I highly recommend it.  The Lakeview restaurant is a very pleasant setting with a lovely view and the buffet was delicious with fresh fruit, breads and breakfast pastries, breakfast potatoes, bacon, ham, sausage, made-to-order omelets, and other tasty options.  The children’s section delighted me because it included breakfast pizza and macaroni and cheese along with traditional breakfast items.   The person at tending the station explained that children need a good breakfast and energy when they go to the theme parks so you have to provide options that they’ll want to eat.  You can’t argue with that logic!

Character breakfast Buffet on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays 7:30 – 10:30AM
Cost: Adults - $26.95 (age 12+) / $12.95 children, ages 4-11
Disney Dining Plans not accepted
No advance reservations – first come, first serve
15% gratuity added to parties of 5 or more

Hilton Buena Vista Palace Hotel

Sunday morning character breakfast at the Letterpress restaurant in the Hilton Buena Vista Palace Hotel / Disney Springs area - Walt Disney World Resort.

Sunday morning character breakfast at the Letterpress restaurant in the Hilton Buena Vista Palace Hotel / Disney Springs area - Walt Disney World Resort.

Letterpress Restaurant – Letterpress is a bright and modern restaurant located on the lower level of the hotel’s main tower.  

Sunday Character Breakfast Buffet - Characters from 8:30AM to 11:30
Cost: Adult: $30 / Child: $12, ages 4 - 12
No advance reservations – first come, first served

 Hilton Orlando Lake Buena Vista Hotel

Sunday Morning Character Breakfast at the Covington Mill restaurant in the Disney Orlando Lake Buena Vista hotel / Disney Springs area - Walt Disney World Resort.

Sunday Morning Character Breakfast at the Covington Mill restaurant in the Disney Orlando Lake Buena Vista hotel / Disney Springs area - Walt Disney World Resort.

Covington Mill Restaurant – restaurant has a charming country feel with a faux porch and rocking chairs at the entrance; the buffet menu includes Mickey Mouse waffles, made-to-order omelet station and a nice selection of other breakfast options like fruit, cearls, yogurt, fresh baked breads and more.

Sunday Character Breakfast – Sunday 8:30AM – 11AM
Cost: Adult (age 10 & up) $30, Child: $10, ages 3 -10
No advance reservations – first come, first served
Disney Dining Plans not accepted

Don't Miss Out On Great Experiences At Disney World!

We want to help you have the most wonderful, most memorable Disney vacation possible. We know that giving you good, up-to-date information and a few simple tools will make a huge difference in your Disney vacation. Long lines become short lines and you will have great memories of shared experiences instead of missed opportunities. That's why we're called Build A Better Mouse Trip.

Here’s how we help you have a great vacation:

1. Your travel agent – You have one agent from start-to-finish who knows your name and your priorities and who wants to do everything possible to help you have a wonderful experience.

2. “Best Days” Itinerary – We’ll help you build an itinerary that includes your priorities for fireworks, parades, crowds and shows. Then we help with dining & Fastpass+ reservations.

3. Saving Money – Of course we watch for discounts and promotion and automatically apply the best available offer to your reservation but we also help you avoid up-sells and options you won’t use.

4. We Are Fee-Free - We book directly through Disney and we never charge a service fee so you never pay any extra to use our services when you book your trip through us. You can have all the benefits Disney offers PLUS all the services we offer. You can also purchase planning services through us if you've booked on your own or through another travel agency.

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Have you thought about visiting Universal Orlando?

If you haven’t been to Universal Orlando lately, you are missing out! Universal Orlando is full of amazing and innovative experiences that try for yourself. This is not a theme park - it is a full-fledged resort with hotels to fit most budges, two incredibly fun theme parks, a beautiful water park and the CityWalk entertainment district with shopping, and dining.


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Guest Blog - Hunt chameleons, not eggs, this Easter

Find Pascal, the chameleon from Disney’s Tangled, in the Magic Kingdom park at Walt Disney World Resort in Florida.

Find Pascal, the chameleon from Disney’s Tangled, in the Magic Kingdom park at Walt Disney World Resort in Florida.

Since it is Easter – here is another Disney Easter Egg Hunt – another chance to find hidden surprises within the world of Disney. This particular Easter Egg Hunt is one you can take for yourself the next time you visit Walt Disney World. Believe it or not, the details in WDW are so amazing that you can even make a trip to the restroom an adventure – especially if you visit the Tangled themed restroom area in the Magic Kingdom.

This is actually a chameleon hunt and he appears first in the movie Tangled, but has more frequent appearances in the Tangled themed follow-up films and series. As we meet Rapunzel her one true friend is her silent, color-changing sidekick, Pascal. Although just a small chameleon, he plays a big role in Rapunzel's life. Confidante, coach and cheerleader, Pascal is a driving force behind Rapunzel's decision to leave her lonely tower. This supportive and encouraging companion's true colors held a key to solving an amazing mystery.

When you visit the Tangled themed bathrooms there is a sign that alerts you that there is something to look for…and if you look closely, you will begin to find Pascal hidden throughout the carefully and creatively themed area. Included in this post are a few pictures…if you really want clues, here are a few…but not all you need to find them all

Egg Hunt or Pascal Hunt spoiler alert follows….
Find the “Look for friends of Pascal in the scenery” sign and turn your eyes to the bridge on your left. You’ll see something looking right back at you on the rock!

Look in the other side of the water, notice the rock with an indentation…there you’ll discover a set of eyes that blend in perfectly to the moss surroundings.

Look at the sign again. Straight across from you, you’ll see a boulder…on the right side is a boulder-colored Pascal hiding from everyone.

Find Momento Mori, look carefully and search until you find three flower boxes. Someone’s hiding underneath the second one.

Take a look at one of the light posts and you guessed it – Pascal is there.

On this Easter weekend, remember that each of us need friends who stick beside us, encourage us, help us, and motivate us to be more. We all need them in our lives and whether you realize it or not, you just might be the very person to make that kind of difference in the lives of others. Sometimes it is subtle, and you can bless and encourage others without being flashy, maybe even blending into the background…but never underestimate the value that you have in the lives of others and take the time to thank those who bless you!

About the Author: This article, which first appeared on Facebook, is by author Jeff Dixon. Jeff has written a series of novels set in and around Walt Disney World entitled, The Key to the Kingdom, Unlocking the Kingdom, Storming the Kingdom, and as mentioned and linked above Terror in the Kingdom. He is also the author of The Disney Driven Life, a book that draws life lessons and leadership principles from the history and life of Walt Disney. Some know Jeff as Dixon On Disney – and he resources and comments on Disney history, attractions, and news. He is a researcher that draws heavily on the incredible works of Disney historians and biographers with an attempt to understand and apply the life lessons that are uncovered. He is also a storyteller that transports readers into a world beyond their imagination.

Click here for a list of places to see or meet Rapunzel from Tangled

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Guest Blog - "Easter Eggs" in Disney Movies

It is Easter weekend! Hopefully you are planning a fun-filled Spring weekend loaded with surprises and excitement. The tradition for many is to participate in Easter Egg Hunts, if you have been a part of one, you know how much fun they can be. In the world of Disney, an Easter Egg Hunt can take on a whole different meaning. Most, if not all Disney fans, know that the animators and designers of Disney films hide “Easter Eggs” in each feature. These are things that you don’t usually expect to find and are usually carefully hidden. Usually after a feature is released and enjoyed, then fans start searching for the hidden surprises that make the films even more fun.

Big Hero 6 is one example. Look closely at the picture below. It gives us a glimpse of events that we should have been paying attention to when Frozen was released. The rat Hans, actually showed up on a wanted poster in the police office. If Elsa and Anna would have known, the story line could have been so different.

Hans, the villain from Frozen, on a Wanted poster in the police station in Big Hero 6.

Hans, the villain from Frozen, on a Wanted poster in the police station in Big Hero 6.

Next time you watch 101 Dalmatians, look to the shadows. You can see this is the second picture. You'll notice some dogs wandering the streets of London in the background. Look closely and you will see that two of these pups are none other than the title characters of Lady and the Tramp.

Lady and Tramp hidden in the shadows on Disney’s 101 Dalmatians.

Lady and Tramp hidden in the shadows on Disney’s 101 Dalmatians.

In Beauty and the Beast, Maurice and Phillipe become lost in the woods and come upon a faded road sign. If you look closely, you can see that two of the cities listed on the sign are Anaheim, where Disneyland is, and Valencia, where California Institute of the Arts is located. Look closely at the third picture and you can make out what they saw.

Anaheim and Valencia road signs in Disney’s Beauty and the Beast (1991 animated version).

Anaheim and Valencia road signs in Disney’s Beauty and the Beast (1991 animated version).

Many will remember the film, Finding Nemo. The film is about a search of a father for his lost son, who is in trouble. Eventually they are reunited, but little did we know that the little clownfish Nemo was actually hiding in Monsters, Inc. – watch the film and see Boo hand a Nemo plush doll to Scully when he is in her room.You see that in picture four.

Boo holding a Finding Nemo toy in Monster’s Inc.

Boo holding a Finding Nemo toy in Monster’s Inc.

There is one more. You can find it in A Goofy Movie, everyone is jamming out at the Powerline concert — and Disney makes sure their most famous character of all is there - Mickey Mouse himself is in the audience. Those are all fun Easter Eggs – Disney style.

Mickey Mouse in the concert crowd on A Goofy Movie.

Mickey Mouse in the concert crowd on A Goofy Movie.

Easter Egg Hunting (look for real eggs) began in Germany and is said to date back to the late 16th century, where Martin Luther, organized egg hunts for his congregation. Men would hide the eggs, while women and children went to find them. Communities all over the world include some form of Easter Egg hunting as part of the Easter season… and the laughter, fun, and smiles of children and families finding a special egg, getting an unexpected gift, or discovering an extra ordinary surprise are all a part of the Easter celebration. Finding the unexpected can bring joy in life but you have to take time and look for it. May you find some time to go on the hunt over the next few days, discover joy, and share it with others.

About the Author: This article, which first appeared on Facebook, is by author Jeff Dixon. Jeff has written a series of novels set in and around Walt Disney World entitled, The Key to the Kingdom, Unlocking the Kingdom, Storming the Kingdom, and as mentioned and linked above Terror in the Kingdom. He is also the author of The Disney Driven Life, a book that draws life lessons and leadership principles from the history and life of Walt Disney. Some know Jeff as Dixon On Disney – and he resources and comments on Disney history, attractions, and news. He is a researcher that draws heavily on the incredible works of Disney historians and biographers with an attempt to understand and apply the life lessons that are uncovered. He is also a storyteller that transports readers into a world beyond their imagination.

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Guest Blog: Disney and Notre Dame

It is with great sadness that we watched as so many did, the Cathedral of Notre Dame burn in Paris, France. This iconic structure was a part of the fabric and lore of the city and the loss is tremendous. In the aftermath of this loss, our hearts and prayers are with the people of France, who have lost a part of their culture and a landmark that was a hub of activity within the city.

Even in the world of Disney, this great cathedral was a part of the storylines of many films.

Disney and Notre Dame Cathedral

Disney and Notre Dame Cathedral

Of course, we remember The Hunchback of Notre Dame. To stay consistent to the architecture and details of Notre Dame, animators spent several weeks in and around the actual cathedral. This building in the picture serves as a home to the main protagonist, Quasimodo. He viewed the cathedral as a home as he rings and cares for its bells, each of which he has bestowed a name. In return, the cathedral shelters and protects him

The cathedral also is seen in the Aristocrats, as Edgar Balthazar drives past Notre Dame while taking the cats into the countryside. In Ratatouille, we see the cathedral on two occasions. More recently it was seen in Cars 2, as a street musician performs music in front of the cathedral after Mater, Finn McMissile and Holley Shiftwell's arrival in Paris. In the live action film, Beauty and the Beast, the Notre Dame Cathedral appears as a background in the backstory of the lead characters as they are being developed.

Sometimes it is easy to take for granted those places that become the backdrop for the stories that create the memories that define our lives. For the people and city of Paris this is a great loss - it is also a loss for citizens of the world. Never take for granted the places and more importantly the people that help create the moments that define our lives. In the days ahead remember to pray for Paris as they have lost a piece of their history as well as a place that was so much a part of the heartbeat of the city.

About the Author: This article, which first appeared on Facebook, is by author Jeff Dixon. Jeff has written a series of novels set in and around Walt Disney World entitled, The Key to the Kingdom, Unlocking the Kingdom, Storming the Kingdom, and as mentioned and linked above Terror in the Kingdom. He is also the author of The Disney Driven Life, a book that draws life lessons and leadership principles from the history and life of Walt Disney. Some know Jeff as Dixon On Disney – and he resources and comments on Disney history, attractions, and news. He is a researcher that draws heavily on the incredible works of Disney historians and biographers with an attempt to understand and apply the life lessons that are uncovered. He is also a storyteller that transports readers into a world beyond their imagination.

Did you know? The Hunchback of Notre Dame was featured in two live shows in Disney parks? The Hunchback of Notre Dame: A Musical Adventure was presented at Disney’s Hollywood Studios from 1996 to 2002 and The Hunchback of Notre Dame: Festival of Fools ran at Disneyland from 1996 to 1998.

The Hunchback of Notre Dame: A Musical Adventure was a live show presented from 1996 to 2002 in Disney’s Hollywood Studios park at the Walt Disney World Resort in Florida. Photo by Steve Johnson.

The Hunchback of Notre Dame: A Musical Adventure was a live show presented from 1996 to 2002 in Disney’s Hollywood Studios park at the Walt Disney World Resort in Florida. Photo by Steve Johnson.

Disney is donating $5 million towards the work to restore Notre Dame Cathedral. Disney CEO Bob Iger released this statement, '“ Notre-Dame is a beacon of hope and beauty that has defined the heart of Paris and the soul of France for centuries, inspiring awe and reverence for its art and architechture and for its enduring place in human history.”

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New Disney Policies for Strollers, Smoking & Ice

STROLLERS:

2019 Updated Disney Policies concerning Strollers, Wagons, Smoking, and Ice.

2019 Updated Disney Policies concerning Strollers, Wagons, Smoking, and Ice.

Beginning May 1, Disney is adjusting guidelines on stroller sizes, which will require them to be no larger than 31" (79cm) wide and 52" (132cm) long or smaller. The good news – many of the strollers on the market, including many double jogging strollers, fit within these size guidelines. Also, just a reminder that wagons are not permitted in the Disney parks. Beginning May 1, stroller wagons will also no longer be permitted. These updates are designed to help guest flow and ease congestion, making the parks more enjoyable for everyone.

TIP: The smaller your stroller, the easier it is to navigate and maneuver the parks. At Walt Disney World Resort, you can rent a single or double stroller once you arrive, and they can be rented each day. Or, they can choose a Length of Stay Rental, which will save them time and money. While Walt Disney World already offers a double stroller rental, Disneyland Resort will soon offer one too.

SMOKING:

Also beginning May 1, smoking areas will no longer be present inside Walt Disney World or Disneyland theme parks, water parks, ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex or Downtown Disney in California.

TIP: Designated smoking areas will be available outside the entrances to the areas listed above, and at Disney Springs in Florida. For guests who have room or dining reservations, smoking areas are also available at Disney Resort hotels.

LOOSE ICE

Beginning today, if you plan to bring a cooler or cooler bag to store snacks and drinks for theme park or water park adventures, it’s important to know that loose or dry ice are no longer permitted.

TIP: We recommend you use re-useable ice packs instead. Complimentary cups of ice are available at Food & Beverage locations inside the parks if needed.

Click here to request your no-obligation Disney vacation quote.

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What Is A Dole Whip?

Dole Whips at Disney World and Disneyland

Imagine yourself miserably hot and humid - you dread moving because that'll just make you even hotter. Then someone (maybe an angel) hands you a dish of a cheerful yellow, softly frozen pineapple (flavored) treat. From the first bite, your outlook brightens while visions of hula girls dance in your head. Okay, that might be a little bit of over-sell but Dole Whips are just plain wonderful! My whole family loves them and we'll use any excuse to get one.

If you prefer hard facts to hyperbole, here is the official (though uninspiring!) description: "Dole Soft Serve Mix is a lactose free dry mix that is reconstituted with tap water and frozen down in a soft serve machine. Marketed under the popular Dole brand name, this unique product delivers an intense, natural pineapple fruit flavor, yet is fat free and cholesterol free.". That may be technically accurate but it certainly fails to capture the joy your taste buds experience when introduced to a Dole Whip

Where To Get A Dole Whip at Disney World

Aloha Isle - Magic Kingdom Theme Park - Adventureland Area :This refreshment stand carries both pineapple and vanilla Dole Whip. You can also get pineapple spears, pineapple juice, and Dole Whip floats here. If you're on a Disney Dining Plan, you can use one of your snack credits to get a Dole Whip. There are those - even in my own family - who get sprinkles on their Dole Whips. Sprinkles!?!? Yuck! Click here to learn how to skip the line at Aloha Isle using mobile ordering.

The floats have Dole Whip floating in pineapple juice - very refreshing.

TIP: If there are multiple lines, check to see which server gives the bigger servings and get in that line.

Tamu Tamu - Disney’s Animal Kingdom - Africa Area: This location sells a cups of Pineapple Dole Whip suitable for children and teetotalers like myself but they also offer a very popular option that includes dark rum or coconut rum for those who can present photo ID proving that they are at least 21-years old.

Epcot International Flower & Garden Festival is a seasonal event usually held from early March to Early June. The festival’s Pineapple Promenade usually features both regular Dole Whip and a pineapple float made with Coconut Rum.

Marketplace Snacks at Disney Springs also sells Dole Whip.

Everything Pop at Disney’s Pop Century sells pineapple soft-serve and pineapple floats from 6PM to 11PM.

Pineapple Lanai, at Disney's Polynesian Village Resort Hotel - located just outside the Great Ceremonial House (main building), sells Dole Whips but doesn't carry as many items as Aloha Isle, in the Magic Kingdom. No sprinkles here but you can buy a souvenir tiki bowl or sipper.

Trader Sam’s Grog Grotto, at Disney’s Polynesian Village Resort, sells a drink called Spikey Pineapple that features Barbancourt Pango Rhum blended with Dole Whip. Must be 21 or older.

TIP: My family loves to buy a Dole Whip at Pineapple Lanai just before going out to the Polynesian resort's "beach" area to watch the Magic Kingdom fireworks and the Electric Water Pageant (floating parade). This is one of life's simple pleasures.

Where to Find Dole Whip at Disneyland

Tiki Juice Bar - Disneyland Theme Park - .Did you know that the Tiki Birds were the first Disney Animatronic figures? It is a quaint show and the line for Dole Whips is often shorter on the show's courtyard side than on the Adventureland side. You can use Disneyland app mobile ordering to skip the line at this location.

Tangaroa Terrace - Disneyland Hotel now serves Dole Whip soft serve, Dole Whip floats and Dole Whip floats with Rum.

The Coffee House - Disneyland Hotel sells Dole Whip and Dole Whip floats.

Dole Whip at Aulani - A Disney Resort & Spa in Hawaii

Aulani - A Disney Resort & Spa on beautiful Oahu Island in Hawaii has Dole Whip available for purchase at the Ulu Cafe.

Of course, you might also want to visit the Dole Plantation while you’re on Oahu and try a Dole Whip there.. The Plantation Grill offers Dole Whip cones, cups, waffle cones, waffle bowls, a float and Dole Whip cups with topping.

Does Everyone Like Dole Whips?

Strangely enough, there is a small minority of people who think Dole Whips are terrible. There are also some people who think Dole Whips are entirely over-rated - they aren't bad; they're just not amazing. I'll admit that nostalgia may be part of the attraction since many people experience these for the first time while on vacation.

Disney sometimes goes a little crazy around Christmas, serving Dole Whips that are tinted green or red and some people find that just a little weird.

What Is In Dole Whips (Ingredients)

Water*, Sugar, Dextrose, Pineapple Juice Concentrate, Coconut Oil**, Stabilizers (Cellulose, Xanthan Gum, Locust Bean, Karaya Gum, Pectin), Silicon Dioxide (Anticaking), Corn Syrup Solids, Citric Acid, Sodium Caseinate (A Milk Derivative), Artificial Flavor, Potassium & Sodium Phosphate, Mono & Diglycerides, Artificial Color (Yellow 5 & 6), Soy Lecithin.

*This ingredient statement was written with water added according to the recommended preparation instructions. Product is sold without water.

**Adds a trivial amount of fat.

Serving size: 1/2 cup

Calories: 80 per 1/2 cup serving

Calories from Fat: 5 per 1/2 cup serving

Nutrition: Clearly you're confused about the purpose of a Dole Whip...this ain't about nutrition. (there are trace amounts of vitamin C)

You Can Make Dole Whip at Home

If you have a sorbet maker, you can purchase a 4-pound bag of Dole Whip mix from Amazon for about $25 and enjoy a Dole Whip at home any time you want. The video below tells you what to do. Click here to order Dole Whip Mix - they even have other flavors.

Similar to Dole Whip - Recipes to Try at Home

It may not be convenient for you to head to Disney World for a Dole Whip or to purchase a bag of Dole Whip mix so here are a few look-alike recipes that might get you through a Dole Whip craving. These include dairy products but they're probably more nutritious that the real Dole Whips.

Dole Whip (Easy Version)

Ingredients:

  • Frozen Pineapple Chunks

  • Juice of one fresh lime

  • Coconut milk, other milk, or pineapple juice

Put the pineapple chunks, lime juice and enough coconut milk to keep things moving in your blender and blend until smooth. Try not to add too much liquid, if possible, but you can just put the mixture in your freezer for a little while before serving if the mixture is too soft. We tried this first without lime juice but we find the lime juice actually enhances the pineapple flavor.

DOLE WHIP (VERSION 2)

Ingredients

  • 1 quart pineapple juice (Dole)

  • 1 teaspoon vanilla

  • 3 cups cream

  • 3 cups sugar

  • milk

Directions

Mix the pineapple juice and sugar -- make sure that the sugar is dissolved. Next add the cream and vanilla. Pour the whole mixture into a 4-quart Ice Cream freezer container. Add milk to finish filling to the "fill line". At this point simply follow the instructions on your ice cream maker. When the ice cream is ready you can serve it as is or you can stick it in the freezer for a while and let it set up a bit. Makes 8 Servings

DOLE WHIP (VERSION 3)

Ingredients

  • 2 cans (20 oz. each) DOLE crushed pineapple

  • 2 tbsp. lemon juice

  • 2 tbsp. lime juice

  • 1/3 cup sugar

  • 1 1/2 cups heavy whipping cream, whipped

Directions

Drain pineapple: reserve 2 tbsp. juice. Set aside.Place pineapple, lemon juice, lime juice, sugar and reserved pineapple juice in blender. Cover and blend until smooth.Pour into two 1-quart freezer zipped bags. Store bags flat in freezer. Freeze 1 1/2 hours or until slushy. Stir pineapple slush gently into whipped cream until slightly blended in large bowl.Return to freezer until completely frozen, about 1 hour and serve.

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Monica's Review of Disney's Caribbean Beach Resort Pirate Rooms

Review of the Pirate Rooms at Disney’s Caribbean Beach Resort / Walt Disney World Resort - Florida.

Review of the Pirate Rooms at Disney’s Caribbean Beach Resort / Walt Disney World Resort - Florida.

My daughter and I recently stayed in the pirate rooms at Disney’s Caribbean Beach Resort. These rooms are all in the area farthest from the feature pool and main services, though they do have a smaller pool in this section. I didn’t think it would be a big deal being so far from the lobby and food court, but on the first night, we needed to get some food and during check in, they told us the Spyglass Grill was open until 11pm so we decided to get to our room and then run down there to eat since it was right outside our room. By the time a van took us to our room, and we got down there, it was 10:10pm and they had just closed! I told the lady that worked there that we were told they were open until 11 and she said no, just until 10. So as tired as we were, we had to walk all the way back to the restaurant in the main lobby to eat because we hadn’t eaten all day and were starving. If we had known before we left, we would have grabbed something before heading to our rooms!  Then we had to walk back in the cold. Being the last on the bus line wasn’t too bad. There was always room on the buses but sometimes it took forever for a bus to come.

Pirates Ship Beds: The room was absolutely charming, but those beds were awful! They weren’t thin, like I’d heard….they were thick like regular mattresses, but when you laid in them, you sank down to the box spring! I guess sinking in a pirate bed is a good thing!!??!  Lol… Of course, pirates are probably used to sleeping in the gallows or on wooden planks so the beds might be fine for them! The ships beds are full-sized where the non-pirate rooms at the resort are queen-sized.

Practical considerations: The buildings at Disney’s Caribbean Beach resort do not have elevators and the stairs could be pure torture after a full day at the parks! Definitely get an Accessibility room with guaranteed ground floor access if you have anyone in the party with stamina or mobility issues or parents carrying sleeping children. Because this resort is SO big, I really do recommend the preferred location rooms which aren’t pirate themed but they are a lot closer to the feature pool and main services areas. These rooms have a maximum capacity of four guests plus child, age 0-2, if they can sleep in a Pak ‘n Play style crib.

Note about the author:  Monica is our most experienced travel agent and has been to the most training events of anyone in our office.  She is a whiz at helping people plan fantastic Disney vacations. 

Click here to read Monica’s Bio

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Early Morning Magic at Disney's Hollywood Studios

Review of Early Morning Magic at in Toy Story Land at Disney’s Hollywood Studios / Walt Disney World Resort - Florida

Review of Early Morning Magic at in Toy Story Land at Disney’s Hollywood Studios / Walt Disney World Resort - Florida

My daughter and I just got back from our Mother-Daughter trip to Disney World and I highly recommend the Disney’s Hollywood Studios Early Morning Magic.We had a blast!! Yes, I know you can arrive at the park early to get back to ride Slinky Dog Dash, but we rode it 9 or 10 times, plus did Alien Swirling Saucers (not as fun) and Toy Story Mania. We just rode the rides and walked around before the park opened and once the floodgates were opened. I’m not kidding when I say floodgates, hat’s exactly what it looked like! We could see the crowds coming back while we were on Slinky Dog! Once it was 9am and the park opened to the general public, the wait time almost immediately went to 85-minutes and the line stretched back to the Star Wars Launch Bay area outside of Toy Story Land. It was CRAZY! For the record, Slinky Dog Dash is now my 2nd favorite ride at Disney World.

Breakfast: The breakfast was at the ABC Commissary (one of the park’s quick service restaurants) and had some delicious choices. It was nice that they kept serving the breakfast until 10:00am so we didn’t have to waste any of the pre-park opening time eating. You could order whatever you wanted from the menu and they had a continental type buffet. We ordered a couple of the different menu items so we could see if they were good or not. I loved the charcuterie plate! This was Emily’s favorite day so well worth the money I paid for it.

Early Morning Magic is a separately ticketed event that is different from Extra Magic Hours, which are open to all guests at the official Disney World hotels (admission required). This is offered on select Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays from 7:30 to 8:45AM. There are a limited number of tickets sold and only the Toy Story Land attractions are open. You must have valid theme park admission ticket in addition to the Early Morning Magic ticket.

Cost:

  • $79+ tax per person age 10 and older

  • $69+ tax per person age 3 to 9

  • You must also have valid theme park tickets

Disney World has a similar Early Morning Magic Event on select mornings in the Fantasyland area of the Magic Kingdom.

Note about the author:  Monica is our most experienced travel agent and has been to the most training events of anyone in our office.  She is a whiz at helping people plan fantastic Disney vacations. 

Click here to read Monica’s Bio

Places to Meet Santa at Disney World - 2021

Where to find Santa at Disney World - Magic Kingdom, Epcot, Disney’s Hollywood Studios at Disney Springs.

Where to find Santa at Disney World - Magic Kingdom, Epcot, Disney’s Hollywood Studios at Disney Springs.

Mickey Mouse and the Disney Princesses are great, of course, but sometimes we just need to get a word in with Santa before he checks the naughty and nice list for the last time before making his rounds. Here are the places you can meet Santa Clause at Disney World:

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Disney World Santa Sightings 2021

Magic Kingdom - Santa Claus sighting in the gazebo near the entrance to Liberty Square. daily through December 24, 2021. Photopass photographer on hand for socially distanced photos with Santa. He’s also available at Disney’s Very Merriest After Hours events on select evenings. (separate ticket required)

Epcot - Santa appears daily through December 24, 2021 in the American Adventure pavilion, typically at 11:45AM, 1:45, 3:45, and 5:45PM. You can also meet Père Noël at posted times in the France Pavilion and Father Christmas in the United Kingdom pavilion. Click here for more information.

Disney’s Hollywood Studios - Santa Claus Motorcade on Hollywood Boulevard. This is not a meet-and-greet but seeing Santa cruise by in a bright red convertible is fun.

Disney’s Animal Kingdom - Santa Claus flotilla on the lake.

Meet Santa at Disney Springs - November 12 - December 14, 2021 from 10AM to 10PM / December 15 - 24, 2021 from 10AM to 11PM at Once Upon A Toy store in the Disney Springs Marketplace area. Here’s how it works:

  • Check in at the podium.

  • Physical distancing is in place at this photo opportunity.

  • Because this is an indoor experience, masks are required.

  • A virtual queue will be available.

  • Disney PhotoPass photographers will be on hand to capture digital portraits, available for purchase.

  • Click here for more information

More Helpful Information:

Don't Miss Out On Great Experiences At Disney World!

We want to help you have the most wonderful, most memorable Disney vacation possible. We know that giving you good, up-to-date information and a few simple tools will make a huge difference in your Disney vacation. Long lines become short lines and you will have great memories of shared experiences instead of missed opportunities. That's why we're called Build A Better Mouse Trip.

Here’s how we help you have a great vacation:

1. Your travel agent – You have one agent from start-to-finish who knows your name and your priorities and who wants to do everything possible to help you have a wonderful experience.

2. “Best Days” Itinerary – We’ll help you build an itinerary that includes your priorities for fireworks, parades, crowds and shows. Then we help with dining reservations that coordinate with your itinerary.

3. We Are Fee-Free - We book directly through Disney and we never charge a service fee so you never pay any extra to use our services when you book your trip through us. You can have all the benefits Disney offers PLUS all the services we offer. You can also purchase planning services through us if you've booked on your own or through another travel agency.

Review: The Florida Project

Movie Review: The Florida Project - a

While most of my fiction reviews are directly Disney related, The Florida Project is a little different in that it is a fictional movie set near Walt Disney World Resort in Florida. The movie is about Halley, a very young single mom, and her daughter Moonee who live in The Magic Castle, a budget hotel in an area that caters largely to Disney World tourists and low income extended stay guests. The challenging circumstances of the main characters are not caused by Disney World but the setting serves as a backdrop that poignantly contrasts the difficult realities of real life with the shining clean artificial world of the theme park next door. It is easy to try to paint people in one color – they’re either good or bad – but people often present multiple conflicting truths and The Florida Project presents that reality very well. Halley’s conflicting truths are that she really does love her daughter and she really is a train wreck. Mooney is a clean, happy, and delightfully mischievous and Halley provides for her basic needs, albeit in ways that are not always legal, but Mooney is also left unattended in ways that leave any sensible person with a sense of dread. In one scene, Halley goes to a lot of effort to make a birthday special for Moonee’s best friend by taking the girls and hitchhiking to where they can see the Disney World fireworks; it was really sweet but, doggone it, you put yourself and the kids at risk by getting in a car with a stranger, Halley! In another scene, a creepy man takes an inappropriate interest in the children who live in the hotel and is very firmly dealt with by Bobby, the hotel manager who is does a heroic job of treating the extended stay residents with understanding while holding a firm line against their excesses. You’re thankful that Bobby is there but you also realize that he is having to step in and provide the type of protection that should come from better parenting. Moonee is a resourceful and happy child and you can’t help but cheer her on, even when she is behaving like a budding young con artist, but you know that trouble is coming and life won’t always be kind or good to Moonee.

What I loved about the movie

The Florida Project steers away from platitudes and simple answers because life isn’t always simple. When you watch Halley’s parenting, you can’t help but see problems but you also find yourself wondering, “Where is Moonee’s father? Where are the grandparents?” Halley is not a great parent but she is doing it from a place rooted in love and she is doing it alone. Does that make her a bad mom, a good mom or something far more complex? The movie depicts other low income families doing the best the they can in their circumstances and sometimes that results in a touchingly supportive community while it breeds conflict in other cases. There is a scene where Family Services appropriately gets called into the situation and you wrestle with whether Moonee is better off staying with her mess of a mom who genuinely loves her or in the foster care system, which we all know also has its problems. The movie gives us a glimpse into circumstances that play out in communities everywhere and it does so without falling to either hopelessness or simplistic “solutions” that only work in the movies. The movie leads you to questions about what we can or even should do rather than taking you to a specific conclusion.

Another great thing about this movie is that it shows that simple acts of kindness and decency actually can make a difference, especially in the lives of people who are in difficult circumstances. There is a scene where a charitable group brings free bread and you know that an arm load of white bread doesn’t provide a long term solution to anything going on for the people at The Magic Castle but it does meet an immediate need where lack of food is a real and pressing worry. The manager Bobby is a good man; someone who does right by the people around him with a quiet, unassuming strength. If you have a good life, you’ve no doubt been touched by at least one person who lives their life that way. You also see people in difficult circumstances go out of their way to be helpful to one another. When you are struggling to get by on service industry wages, the person who watches your kid for free while you pick up a shift is a lifeline.

The movie is also good in that it doesn’t gloss over or romanticize Halley’s poor choices. There is another single mom in the hotel who holds down a job at a nearby restaurant; Halley doesn’t seem to be able to hold down a legitimate job. Halley is belligerent and foul-mouthed and Moonee has learned those things from her mom. Some of their situation is beyond their control but there is wisdom to not making a hard situation worse.

Viewer Warnings: This is a movie has a lot of heart but it is not a squeaky clean, feel good movie that wrap everything up in an easy moral at the end. Because of the serious themes and prolific profanities, I do not recommend this movie for children or tweens. Because it handles the circumstances and characters so well, I would recommend the movie for thoughtful teens, especially ones with a heart for making the world a better place, but you’ll definitely want to plan on some discussions to help them process the different elements. You’ll also want to be aware that Halley turns to prostitution to earn money but, other than other characters referencing the fact and a man seen leaving Halley’s hotel room, nothing graphic is shown.

The Magic Castle Inn and Suites actually exists and there is a funny scene where the kids are screaming at and flipping off the tourists who on the helicopter tours that take off and land, take off and land, take off and all day long next door to the hotel. If you lived there, you would feel that way too. I took these pictures of those locations when I was recently in the area. Actual gift shops, ice cream shops and other area businesses also show up in the movie.

The Magic Castle Inn and Suites and helicopter tour as seen in The Florida Project.

The Magic Castle Inn and Suites and helicopter tour as seen in The Florida Project.

I watched The Florida Project on AmazonPrime and it is available on DVD. It is not currently available on NetFlix

You might also like: Disney World is alluded to in the way a lot of people think of Heaven, a place where all our troubles just magically disappear. That can be really attractive when life insists on throwing hard and heartbreaking things your way and you really hope that Moonee gets to Disney World someday. If you enjoy The Florida Project and aren’t put off by the language, you might also enjoy the book Our Kingdom of Dust by Leonard Kinsey which also tackles the appropriate role of Disney magic and the dangers of escapism in our hard circumstances.

The Florida Project
Starring Willem Dafoe, Brooklynn Prince, Bria Vinaite
Buy on Amazon

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Disclosure:  If you click on the Amazon link in this article and make a purchase, we will receive a small commission from Amazon.  At least that is the theory; it has not happened yet.  If it does, I'll no doubt just spend it on more books. ;-)