Star Wars Weekends 2014 - Part 3

The Magic Kingdom has had a lot of changes made to it over the past several years what with all the construction that's been underway in creating New Fantasyland, an expansion of the existing Fantasyland section of the park. (There's still construction happening but it's at the front of the park near Cinderella's castle; the project there is geared towards adding more walkways so as to alleviate congestion as well as to give more room to spectators for viewing parades and fireworks.) The final piece of that effort is the Seven Dwarfs Mine Train roller coaster attraction, which we were able to ride even though the official opening date for it wasn't until May 28. If we're going to be guinea pigs, at least we were guinea pigs for Disney!

Truth be told, we weren't sure we were going to be able to ride the Mine Train. We got in line as soon as we entered the park because we didn't think FastPasses were available for it - low & behold, after we'd been in line about 30 minutes, FastPasses became available. (If you don't know what FastPasses are, please do your own research; the system is much too complex for me to quickly surmise here!) We quickly grabbed a pair of them for later in the afternoon. When we returned and entered the FastPass queue we got turned around because the ride had a malfunction and had to close. We were told to come back in about an hour and that our FastPasses would be honored at that time (Jill became immediately paranoid at this). Sure enough, about an hour and a half later, the ride re-opened and we were able to get on.

[SIDE NOTE: While we were waiting for the ride to re-open, we ventured over to Gaston's Pub to cool off with some of LeFou's Brew. No, it's not an alcoholic beverage, it's a frozen beverage made from apple juice that's topped with a passion fruit foam. The result looks kind of like a beer but of course it tastes nothing like it.

A lot of people compare LeFou's Brew to Butterbeer which is available at the Wizarding World of Harry Potter inside Universal Studio's Islands of Adventure park. Personally, I think Butterbeer is better as I love butterscotch and that's the primary flavoring behind Butterbeer. That's not to say LeFou's Brew is bad, though, as it was quite tasty & refreshing on what was an extremely hot day.

Speaking of heat, that is my one complaint with how New Fantasyland is arranged. There are almost no areas where someone can go to get some shade to try and cool off. There are few trees and what seating areas are available are either concrete made to resemble stone (meaning that sitting on them is like baking your tush on hot rocks) or too few & far between to give fair service to patrons.]

Jill & I both feel like we've watched this ride come up out of the dirt as we can remember when it wasn't much more than a hole in the ground. The area around the Mine Train is so intricately decorated that you truly lose track of the fact you're in a theme park. Disney does an amazing job of making their experiences immersive and this is another great example of the kind of work the Imagineers do.

I almost wish we had been in the standby line instead of the FastPass queue because there are interactive elements in the standby line to which the FastPass queue apparently doesn't get access. Even so, I think we waited in line about 20 minutes, tops, before we were on the ride.

I'm a bigger guy and I always have concerns about getting on rides like this because I have long legs and the lap bars won't conform to my anatomy. Case in point, I can't ride Space Mountain. I can get in the car but when the lap bar comes down it hits my knees and won't go any further. There are a few rides at Universal Studios Orlando I've hesitated to get on because they, unlike Disney, offer tester seats outside certain attractions so you don't waste your time waiting in line for a ride you may not be able to get on. The Mine Train presented a challenge to me because the lap bar is a U-shaped. The tips of the bar connect at the floor of the car then the restraint swings forward to hold you in place. Your knees/legs have to fit into the restraint and I had a real time forcing mine into the gap. (I had to squeeze my legs together as tightly as I could then pull down on the bar to get it in place.) It made for a very uncomfortable ride and the sides of my knees are sore as a result. I don't know why these ride vehicles can't be made larger. It boggles my mind that the designers seem to think most people are 5'6", weigh less than 200 lbs., and have rear-ends that are less than 18 inches wide.

My personal issues aside, the ride itself was fun but very short. The portion where you see the Dwarfs inside the mine seemed especially quick. By comparison, Big Thunder Mountain Railroad and Everest are at least twice as long as the Mine Train, so in terms of bang-for-your-buck I would say there are better rides out there. Regardless, it was quite cool to be able to partake in a brand new ride that wasn't even technically open.

The other big event of our day at the Magic Kingdom was Jill's visit to Princess Fairytale Hall to meet Anna & Elsa, characters from the hugely popular Disney animated film Frozen. Fairytale Hall is another relatively new addition to Fantasyland; the presentation therein is that guests are invited inside to meet any number of Disney princesses (or queens as is the case with Elsa). Anna & Elsa have been residents at Fairytale Hall for a number of months now and you need no further proof of their popularity than to look at the standby line wait times - it's not uncommon to see 300 minutes on the signage outside the attraction. I'm not sure if that means it's a legitimate 5 hour wait or if that's just as big of a number as the sign can display. We wouldn't have to worry about that, though, because we had FastPasses which Jill had booked several months (yes, months - they get snatched up that quickly) in advance.

The experience at Fairytale Hall is definitely geared towards those young at heart and Jill fits that bill. She and I are still kids even though we look grown up, and you need look no further than her reactions to getting to spend time with Anna & Elsa for proof of this.

And yes, she took a selfie with them as well (Anna & Elsa referred to it as an "us-sie")...

No, I didn't get my picture taken with them. Why? By that point in the day I probably smelled like the inside of a gym locker, and if I had gone to meet them I'd have probably spent the whole time pestering Elsa with questions about how she's way more powerful than anyone seems to realize.

We had dinner that evening at Tony's Restaurant, an Italian eatery taken directly out of Lady & the Tramp. I have to share with you that our waitress there (who was an Asian woman named Jing) did something I've never had any other member of the service industry do. I ordered the New York strip and asked that it be cooked medium as I like a warm, pink center on my steaks. A member of the kitchen staff delivered our food and our waitress arrived not long thereafter but before I'd had a chance to cut into the steak. She looked directly at my steak and I could tell by her expression that something was wrong. She said that the steak had been butterflied to speed cooking and that it was more than likely overdone. This was the plate in question.

I am not one to send food back unless there's something clearly wrong. To her credit, she was 100% correct in her statement as the steak was overcooked (not horribly so, mind you, just more than I would've preferred). I allowed her to take it back as she wanted us to have the best experience possible. The second steak she brought out could not have been more perfect.

The meat was tender, succulent, and juicy. The herb butter it was basted with added to the flavor but the beef was still the real star of this show. I haven't had many steaks in my life that could top this one and I have eaten a LOT of steak in my day. It goes without saying, though, that I greatly appreciated our waitress's effort. She is a shining example of what a top quality server should be and I felt privileged to have had her assistance.

We finished off our meal by sharing two deserts, the chef's special cheesecake (the plate was adorned with an image of Lady & the Tramp made from powdered cocoa) and tiramisu.

By this point in the day the weather had started to sour, not only with rain but with thunder & lightning. Instead of trying to wait out the storm to try and get a few more rides in (it was in the area of 9 PM but the Magic Kingdom typically doesn't close until at least 1 AM) we spent some time wandering through the shops along Main Street. Inside the Crystal Arts Shop, we found an example of hidden things there are to do and see around the Magic Kingdom (and all the Disney parks, for that matter) in the form of an artist who was giving a demonstration on glass blowing. In less than 30 minutes, he completed a Frozen-themed vase from nothing more than raw materials right before our very eyes.

The ride back to our hotel that evening was a little sad, truth be told. That's the disappointing thing about vacations, at some point they come to an end. The reality of the matter just hurts a little more when it's a Disney vacation that's ending, I guess. We made the long drive back home the next day.

So much of what makes Disney appealing, to me, is the fine details. The little things that add so much to whatever it is you're being a part of in the moment. When a Make a Wish child is allowed to go to the front of every line. When a waitress goes out of her way to make sure your experience is memorable. When Minnie Mouse leans in to give you a kiss and you can hear a smooch sound come from the character. Okay, I admit that last one's a little creepy but you get the idea. There aren't many other companies that go to the lengths that Disney does to make magical memories for their customers - I, for one, am a huge fan of how they do business and I can't say enough about how amazing this trip was. It was too short, that's for sure, as Jill & I both have said to each other in the days since we returned "When are we going back?"

I don't know but I'd bet it will be sooner than later.

Star Wars Weekends 2014 - Part 2

Unfortunately for us, our neighbors in the hotel weren't all that kind in maintaining a quiet atmosphere. We could hear children running and yelling outside (this shouldn't have come as a surprise since the Magic Kingdom was open for 24 hours that day) and it sounded as if there was a baby crying in one of the adjacent rooms. I know we were both up until at least midnight and I was up at several points during the night. Come to think of it, I'm not sure that I ever got into a deep sleep. I knew it would make things tough on us the next day since our wake-up call was at 6 AM, but we were going to make the best of it regardless.

One of the best things about staying on property at the Walt Disney World Resort is that as a guest you're provided with transportation all around the resort. You have access to buses, the monorail, boats, and probably other methods of conveyance I don't know about. Point is, you never have issues getting from where you are to where you want to be. The buses typically run on a schedule to where you can expect to see one roughly every 20 minutes.

Maybe it was just my anticipation of wanting to get to Hollywood Studios as early as possible, but on the morning of May 24 it felt like they were running more than a little late. We were in line outside the hotel by 6:45 AM; I believe the bus arrived near 7:15 AM and we were dropped off around 7:40 AM. By the time we got there a sizable crowd had already gathered at the front gate, however it wasn't as huge of a crowd as I'd expected. Again it seemed like it took forever for us to get through admissions - I take the blame for that as I picked the ticketing lane we got into. Fortunately we were inside the park for the first treat of the day, "Storm the Gates"!

We immediately headed for Pixar Place so that we could get in line for Toy Story Midway Mania. If you didn't know, TSMM is arguably the most popular ride in any of the Walt Disney World parks. It's not unusual to see wait times for it upwards of 90 minutes. We had a FastPass for the ride later in the day but we wanted to get on it first thing so we could do it twice. I think we may have waited 10 minutes, tops, which boggles my mind.

Next we went to Darth's Mall (Get it? Darth Maul - Darth's Mall?), a pop-up shopping mall filled with - you guessed it - Star Wars merchandise. You'll find apparel, toys, and plenty of accessories therein, most of which was emblazoned with either the SWW logo or the logo for the upcoming Star Wars: Rebels animated show. There is a character meet & greet area in Darth's Mall and we were able to spend time with Darth Goofy as well as Jedi Mickey and Princess Minnie. Also in Darth's Mall is Ackbar's Snack Bar (as in Admiral Ackbar), an eatery offering themed beverages & snacks. This year the hot item was a Storm Trooper stein, which they were sold out of when we were there. They also had popcorn buckets shaped like Darth Vader's helmet, churros, cupcakes, frozen beverages, and a pair of specialty drinks called the Dark Side and the Force which could be served with or without alcohol. Not only was it too early for vodka and rum, it was also much too hot which is why we sampled the non-alcoholic versions.

Both were quite refreshing but I enjoyed the Force more so than the Dark Side. (Side Note: The Dark Side came with a glowing Death Star "ice cube" and the Force came with a light-up lightsaber.) I can't say that they paired too well with our cupcakes, however I will say that the Vader cupcake was amazing. It was like a German chocolate cupcake with a combination of chocolate and peanut butter flavored toppings.

The great thing about SWW is that there's a lot going on throughout the day, and yet the horrible thing about SWW is that there's almost too much going on throughout the day. What I mean by that is it felt like we were running from one area of the park to another for the rest of the day so that we could try to make it to certain events. The scorching heat only made matters worse (local news outlets were reporting that the days we were in Orlando were the warmest they've seen so far in 2014). I don't believe I've perspired as much as I did that day in a very long time. To Disney's credit, there are water fountains everywhere and park guests can bring canteens in from outside (which we always do), so they have obviously realized they have an obligation to protect their customers from heat-related injuries by offering water.

We rode a several more rides (Star Tours, The Great Movie Ride, and the Tower of Terror) and saw a special preview of the upcoming film Maleficent, starring Angelina Jolie. We didn't get to some of my favorites like the Back Lot Tour, the Indiana Jones Epic Stunt Spectacular, or Lights, Motors, Action, but we definitely had a full day. There were an assortment of meet & greet spots set up throughout the park so that fans could interact with a number of characters including Darth Maul, Darth Vader, Boba Fett, Jango Fett, Storm Troopers, Clone Troopers, and more. My favorite moment of the day, though, was getting to see Stars of the Saga, a live variety show of sorts hosted by James Arnold Taylor (the voice actor who gave life to Obi-Wan Kenobi in the Clone Wars animated series) and featuring appearances by Jeremy Bulloch (Boba Fett) and Warwick Davis (Wicket).

We waited in line for almost 90 minutes to be assured that we'd get a seat in the theater for Stars of the Saga and I'm glad that we did. It's a one of a kind show and those three made for a very entertaining combination of personalities.

For supper that evening we dined at the 50's Prime Time Cafe, which is a real hoot of a dining experience I'd recommend to anyone who might visit Hollywood Studios. The gimmick is that the interior dining rooms are all decorated to resemble kitchens or diners from the 1950s. The staff take things further by addressing everyone as "you kids", the kitchen staff are collectively known as "Mom", and you better eat your vegetables and keep your elbows off the table else you won't get any desert. Jill & I started off our meal with an order of beer battered onion rings served with horseradish sauce. (I've noticed the kitchens at Disney use horseradish regularly; you won't find any complaints from me about that as I love the flavor.) We both selected the Mom's Favorite Recipes sampler as our main course. It comes with fried chicken, pot roast, meatloaf, mashed potatoes, sauteed green beans, and collard greens.

I don't eat fried chicken often (all the KFCs in our area closed last year, believe it or not) but that there was some of the best fried chicken I've ever had!

Our day at Hollywood Studios ended with the Symphony in the Stars fireworks show and a ride on the Tower of Terror. I get a kick out of that ride regardless of what time of day I ride it but it's especially awesome at night. (PRO-TIP: If you want to feel what it's like to free fall, leave a little bit of slack in your seat belt.) I think Rod Serling would be impressed with it.

Speaking of impressions, I can't say enough about how much fun the whole day was there at Hollywood Studios for Star Wars Weekends. It would've been nice to have had more than one day there to get the full experience of all there is to do at the park normally plus all there is during SWW. That's as good of a review as I guess anyone can give of something like this - to emphasize that it would've been great to have been able to stay longer.

Trust me when I say we didn't have any issues sleeping that night. We took luke-warm showers to wash off the grime of the day (a rather grotesque mixture of sweat residue, body oils, and sunblock) and I'm fairly certain we were both asleep by the time our heads hit our pillows. Good thing, too, because we had another busy day ahead of us, this time at the Magic Kingdom.

THE ADVENTURE CONTINUES IN PART 3!

Star Wars Weekends 2014 - Part 1

Like most people who grew up in the 80s, I am a huge fan of Star Wars. I had the toys when I was a kid, I still have replica armor from the various classes of Imperial troopers, and I have multiple copies of the movies - you know, because there was that awkward moment in time where George Lucas thought he should go back and "improve" the original trilogy. I've been to a few fan conventions in my life but one event that I've always wanted to attend yet never had the opportunity to get to is Star Wars Weekends, an annual month-long celebration of all things Star Wars running from mid-May to mid-June held at Disney's Hollywood Studios located in the Walt Disney World Resort.

SWW has been something I've wanted to check out for a very long time. It's Disney and it's Star Wars, who wouldn't want to be a part of that? The event was first held back in 1997, way before LucasFilm was sold to Walt Disney (it was not held in 2002 but has been ever since 2003). Hollywood Studios was the natural choice to host SWW seeing as how the park features a Star Wars-themed ride called Star Tours which has been in operation almost as long as the park itself (the original version of Star Tours was taken offline in 2010 so that it could be updated; the ride re-opened with its current configuration roughly half way through 2011) and the park also hosts the Jedi Academy, an interactive live show where young prospective Padawans can train with a Jedi Master. There have been rumors that Star Wars' presence at Hollywood Studios could expand even further in the future but whether or not that will ever come to fruition remains to be seen.

A few months ago, my loving wife caught me off guard when she hatched a plan for us to make a trip to Walt Disney World on Memorial Day weekend during the 2014 edition of SWW. Suffice to say, I was surprised - when someone does something for you because they love you is the best kind of surprise.

We've become seasoned veterans as it pertains to making trips to Walt Disney World (see my previous entry "10 Things That Will Help You Survive a Walt Disney World Vacation"), and we were both looking forward to spending more time in the Mouse's House. This would be a shorter trip than our previous visits, though, with only 2 full days at the Disney theme parks. We anticipated that this trip would be a whirlwind of an adventure, packed to the gills with memories, and that's exactly what we got!

Having packed the car, we departed from our base of operations in Saint Matthews, South Carolina after work on the evening of May 22. Jill was behind the wheel, I had shotgun. We got hungry not long after we crossed over into Georgia so we stopped in Pooler, GA for a bite to eat. We didn't intend to go there but we wound up chowing down at a pizzeria called Stevi B's, which is a chain neither of us had ever heard of. It's like Pizza Inn or Cici's Pizza in that there's a buffet but you can also request a custom-made pizza or order one of their specialty pizzas. I don't know that we'll be near one of their locations again any time soon but the hot wing pizza is enough to make me want to return.

To split up the drive into more manageable segments whenever we make this trip we've gotten into a habit of stopping in Kingsland, Georgia, a town that is literally half way between our home and our destination in Orlando, Florida. We've stayed in a number of hotels in Kingsland and for this occasion we'd booked a room at the Red Roof Inn.

I don't know what it is about staying in hotels but it's something I enjoy for whatever reason. Maybe it's because I feel like I don't have to worry about messes we may make or that it reminds me of sleeping over with friends. This particular Red Roof Inn was perfectly adequate - no frills but it presented all we needed for an overnight stay while on the road.

We awoke Friday morning and went down to the hotel lobby for breakfast. (There was a Shoney's in Kingsland, which we ate at on one of our first stops there, but for whatever reason it has closed.) Freebies are never easy to turn down, even on something that can be a toss up like a continental breakfasts; sometimes you luck up and get a selection of hot items with proteins, then sometimes you feel lucky because you got the last box of Fruit Loops. That morning we had your typical continental affair, that being a ton of carbohydrates. I had a waffle and a bagel while Jill had cereal (much to her chagrin, there was no fresh fruit to be had). We choked down our food with what little bit of juice & milk was available as the coffee maker had gone kaput at some point during the morning (truth be told, I'd made a cup of black sludge that passed for coffee using our in-room coffee maker while Jill was getting ready). Several patrons complained and the staffer at the front desk didn't seem to know what to do.

In the days since we've returned from this trip, I received an email from Red Roof Inn with a link to a survey asking for my input on our experience. I relayed what happened with the coffee maker and also suggested that it would be great if they offered a wider selection at breakfast beyond various types of bread. This was the response that I received.

I don't know quite what to make of that other than I am almost certain whoever wrote it doesn't have English as their first language.

With our bellies full of dough, we returned to the interstate, heading south on I-95. We weren't on the road for long, though, as Kingsland is only a few miles from the Florida state line. You can't enter Florida without making a stop at their welcome center because they offer free samples of fresh orange and grapefruit juice. I don't drink grapefruit juice that often but I always get a cup when I'm there - I love that sweet, tangy, peppery flavor.

Jacksonville can be a tricky area to get through and I expected it to be especially so seeing as how we were traveling on a holiday weekend but it wasn't all that bad aside from a few construction zones. Construction was an issue as we got onto I-4 past Daytona as well. It seems as though that stretch of road has been a construction zone for several years, though, and likely will continue to be for several more from the look of the terrain.

For us, driving to Orlando could be summed up like this: Drive south for 4 and a half hours then turn west and drive for 2 and a half more. That's really all the route is until you get close to where we were going, in this case the Pop Century Resort.

[SIDE NOTE: When last we were at Walt Disney World, we stayed at the All-Star Sports Resort. The food court at the hotel was undergoing refurbishment while we were there so we would go to breakfast at either the All-Star Movies or All-Star Music Resort. It was during this stay that my wife developed an affinity for Minute Maid Lite Pomegranate Lemonade. Apparently this is a product that's made exclusively for the Disney parks as you can't find it anywhere else. Trust me, we looked! As such, my wife had a plan to get herself a stash of it when we returned - the plan involved a sanitized gallon milk jug and some skillful pouring. Unfortunately it turned out that the Pop Century food court did not have the drink on tap at their soda fountains. Such is life, but I have a feeling whenever we book our next trip we'll be back at one of the All-Star resorts.]

We arrived at the hotel around 1:30 PM. This would be our second stay at Pop Century, a hotel that is classified as a value resort by Disney standards. That may make it sound cheap but believe me when I tell you that a cheap Disney hotel is nicer than most any hotel you will ever stay in. The rooms aren't palatial and there's no mini-bar but the beds are comfortable, the air conditioning works great, and the showers are hot. What more do you really need from a hotel, especially when you're only going to be in your room long enough to sleep and bathe?

Not our room but an example of one at Pop Century

After we got checked in (a process during which we managed to witness a patron get into an argument with a member of the concierge staff and I unwittingly gave a stiff hip check to a 7 year old resulting in bar-b-que sauce on my pants), we dropped off our stuff in our room then went over to the Blizzard Beach water park to play a round of miniature golf at Winter Summerland, where Santa & his elves go to get away from the chill of the North Pole. We played the Winter course and, somewhat unsurprisingly and despite my having hit several holes in one, Jill won.

We came back to our room to freshen up a bit after our golf outing as we didn't have much time until our dinner reservation was due. This night we would be dining at Raglan Road, an Irish pub and restaurant in Downtown Disney. I got a real kick out of the experience at Raglan Road as it is definitely a scene where a party could break out at any moment, although I will say that if you want to have a quiet evening with the one you love this probably isn't the place to go. Between the music, dancers, and crowd the noise inside was just this side of deafening. Be that as it may, the food and drinks were fantastic. We started off with an appetizer that could've been a main course, a combination they call Appetizers D'Lirrah - sausages, fried scallops, wings, and ribs. For her dinner Jill chose the Mighty Mixed Grill, a platter loaded with several different meats and mashed potatoes. I had the braised beef, which was similar to traditional pot roast only this was so much more tender than any pot roast I've ever had. It was served with roasted carrots & parsnips and a big dollop of horseradish mashed potatoes (my new favorite kind of mashed potatoes). Finishing up the meal with desert (as if we needed more to eat by that point), we each ordered a unique dish so that we could share and each get a taste of something different. (This became a trend at supper over the next few days.) Jill ordered the Ger's bread pudding and I had Dundon's Delight, a pavlova with raspberries and vanilla ice cream. The bread pudding was amazing - like eating a bowl of sweet, buttery fresh bread - and the Delight was great even though I had no idea what it was when it was brought to our table (good thing I like meringue).

When we were done eating we wandered through the gift shop where we picked up a Raglan Road magnet and a print of the Truesdale family coat of arms. It was too cool looking not to bring home. The shops at Downtown Disney are nice but they were extremely crowded that evening and we needed to get some rest - for in the morning we would have to be up bright & early so that we could be at Disney's Hollywood Studios!

THE ADVENTURE CONTINUES IN PART 2!

10 Things That Will Help You Survive a Walt Disney World Vacation

My wife and I have just recently returned to the "real world" after having spent a week at the All-Star Sports Resort at Walt Disney World in Orlando, Florida. It was a fantastic trip - a truly magical combination of experiences and happenings that we're both incredibly happy and humbled to have been able to take part in. This was our second trip to the House that the Mouse built (as a couple, that is) and by now we consider ourselves to be seasoned veterans when it comes to being a guest therein. We know the ins & outs of what there is to be had and, what's more, I'd like to think that we know how to make the best of any situation we might encounter.

I bring that last bit up because of the fact that one of the prevailing memories I have from this particular trek are the folks we saw who did not look like they were having a good time at all. (In my opinion, not having fun is a difficult thing to do around those parts - I sincerely believe that if you're having a bad time at Disney you're probably the one to blame.) From the sourpuss expressions to children screaming in disagreement, from grown-ups arguing with each other to kids in strollers being unwittingly used as battering rams to get through crowds, my wife and I have pretty well seen the worst of what being at Disney World can bring out in people. To be quite honest, it's kind of scary. Case in point, we witnessed a family squabble over how a check for a meal would be divvied up while having dinner at Liberty Tree Tavern in the Magic Kingdom and we also saw a couple get into a physical altercation while at Epcot Center.

Walt Disney World, despite all its beauty and grand assemblage, can be trying on a person's constitution. On any given day you're likely to be dealing with massive crowds, humid weather, transit issues, and ride queues with waits so long that you could conceivably pass the time by catching up on episodes of your favorite TV shows.

That said, instead of putting together a recap of our vacation in blog form (which I sort of did last year after our first Walt Disney World vacation - click here for that entry, then skip down to the section titled "Walt Disney World is Awesome") I thought I would do my best to share some tips with you, dear reader, on how you can best make your way through time spent in "the happiest place on Earth" without developing a sincere desire to commit an act of violence upon a member of your own family.

10) Bring Only What You Need To Survive

If you get the reference, give yourself 10 points and a gold star for the day

With this, I'm talking about stuff but I'm relating the point to two environments. The first is what you bring with you on vacation in general. Clothes, toiletries, medication - essential items necessary for each of us to function from one day to the next. The second and arguably more important point is what you bring with you when you go to the theme parks.

Almost every group or family that comes into the theme parks has at least one individual burdened with carrying a backpack of some variety. Bringing a backpack is a great idea. You can keep all your stuff together in one neat and fashionable package. However, problems arise when people bring more than what they need.

Don't bring your iPhone, your iPad, your biggest, thickest jacket, 3 pairs of flip flops, 9 bags of chips, a copy of War & Peace, and a 6 pack of Diet Dr. Pepper. Leave that crap at home - you're going to the Magic Kingdom, not on an aid mission to Haiti, for crying out loud. Along these same lines, I'll point out that any bag brought into the theme parks is subject to inspection prior to entry, meaning if you bring a bag expect it to be searched before you get so far as the ticket booth.

So what do you need? In the case of my wife and I, that's 2 bottles of water (you can bring in bottled water so long as it's sealed), our cameras, and a wallet. (Yes, we have our cell phones but we usually keep them in a pocket as you want to have quick access to it for photos and video or whenever the urgent need to tweet sets in.) That's a fairly light load, which isn't a bad thing because it means the person carrying the bag isn't going to be worn out from lugging it before lunch and it will also leave room to store any acquired baggage like purchases. Depending on the day and the park you're visiting, necessities might also include things like a change of clothes, a towel, rain gear, sun block, etc.

The bag also makes a difference. Your average backpack is great, but I would suggest something made from nylon as it's resistant to moisture and stains. We carry a Sitka Gearslinger made by Maxpedition - it's a great bag that's come in handy for a number of years.

9) Footwear is Your Friend

It's hot in Florida about 90% of the year. By "hot", I mean the temperature is at or above 85° and that's not even considering the sort of humidity you can expect to encounter which only exacerbates the situation. Sandals and flip-flops may sound like a good idea, however I would contend that they're actually a horrible choice if you're going to be spending your days pounding the pavement at the theme parks.

Running or cross training shoes are a great choice as they provide cushion and support. They also grant protection against things like rain (as well as other forms of moisture) and debris but also stroller strikes (more on strollers later) and sunburn. (Trust me when I say that you should consider yourself lucky if you've never had sunburn on your feet - it happened to me on our honeymoon!) Additionally, I will say that investing in good socks with padded soles can really do great things for your feet.

SIDE NOTE: I had the misfortune of coming down with what's referred to as golfer's vasculitis during our most recent trip. I include this here because golfer's vasculitis is a randomly occurring heat rash that typically affects the lower extremities of golfers but also commonly affects that of visitors to Walt Disney World. It happened to me the day we were at Epcot Center; I noticed the trademark red splotches and that my ankles were swelling. By the time we got back to our room, I'd begun to have chills. I was slightly worried about what was happening but as it turns out this is something you more or less just have to endure as it will eventually go away on its own.

8) Buses Be Crazy

My wife & I choose to stay on the Walt Disney World property at one of the resorts. One of the biggest benefits to doing this is the fact that you have free transportation to any of the Disney facilities provided to you in the form of a transit system of buses, boats, and monorails that will ferry you to and fro at no additional cost. You can literally park your car and not drive again for the entire duration of your stay (so long as you don't desire to leave the compound, as it were). Every morning we would look forward to boarding a bus near the lobby of our resort as we knew it wouldn't be long before we'd be at the front door of the park we'd be visiting that day. Each resort has its own designated bus stop with pick-up points for each of the theme parks; in turn, the theme parks have pick-up points for each of the resorts and, in some cases, certain of the other parks as well.

As great as the transportation services are, they are not without their share of quirks. The buses don't run on a schedule but there are enough of them in circulation that you can count on one showing up at a given pick-up/drop off point at least once every 20 minutes. That doesn't mean you're guaranteed a spot on said bus, though, as there are often situations during busier times where a bus will fill up. That said, we find that it's usually best practice to allow yourself a 30-45 minute window based on where you want to be and when for bus service.

The tricky aspect of Disney transportation is when you wind up having to transfer from your resort to a theme park in order to get to another resort. This happened to us this year on one evening in particular as we had dinner reservations for the Hoop-Dee-Doo Musical Revue at Pioneer Hall in the Fort Wilderness Lodge. To get to Fort Wilderness we would first take a bus from our resort over to the Magic Kingdom, and from the Magic Kingdom we took a boat to Fort Wilderness. We thought we were going to have to take another bus but Pioneer Hall wound up being within walking distance of where the boat dropped us off. We made it to where we were going in time, but the point of this is to say that leaving early is a good idea because you never know when delays might crop up.

Believe me when I say that these buses will take on passengers until they are nearly bursting at the seams. The Disney buses are equipped with handrails that are intended to let patrons stand in the aisles safely while riding. I wound up standing quite a bit during our most recent trip; it's not that bad, although I will point out that these buses don't exactly stop on a dime. When the driver engages the brakes, you'd best be holding on tightly else you're going to wind up in someone's lap or on the floor.

If you get into a hurry, though, and you feel like you'd be best served by driving to wherever it is you're going on the grounds, as a resort guest you do receive complementary parking at each of the parks. The only issue here is the fact that you don't get any kind of preferential parking, meaning you might get to the park quicker but you might also wind up in a lot about a mile from the front gate.

7) Hygiene, Please

I can't think of a gentle lead-in to this comment. Some people stink and I don't know whether or not they realize it. Several times during our most recent trip we would be in amongst a crowd of people and I found myself overcome with the stench of body odor. I'm talking about the kind of funk that not even an entire can of Axe body spray could cover up.

Before I go further, I know there are medical conditions that can cause a person to give off an odor; I'm not talking to those individuals. There's a difference between having an ailment and having poor hygiene. This is to the people who either don't bathe or think they can get one more wear out of their favorite shirt even though they had it on when the rode the Khali River Rapids and that was 2 days ago. If you're staying in a Disney resort, there's no reason for you not to bathe with soap and shampoo at least once a day because every room gets stocked daily with plenty of both. Please do the rest of us a favor - give yourself the classic "pit sniff" test and if you get a whiff of something foul, take 10 minutes to scrub off the cheese before you forcibly introduce your musk to the rest of us.

6) Don't Be Normal

How often do you get a chance to cut loose these days? Chances are if you're a working stiff like most of us are, the answer is not nearly often enough.

That's one of the best parts about being on vacation, and on a Disney vacation it gets even better. Where else in the world is it okay for a grown man to wear a set of mouse ears? Or a baseball hat shaped like Pluto? Or to have their picture taken with characters like Buzz Lightyear and Mr. Incredible?

Vacation is about having fun and there are very few occasions in the real world to do the sort of things that being in Walt Disney World allow. Did you grow up adoring a certain character? Go out of your way to get to a character meeting involving them! (Trust me when I say that the characters do an amazing job of creating a unique, one-on-one encounter with everyone they meet.) Bring silly t-shirts, wear Crocs with socks every day, or something of the sort - take full advantage of the opportunity, in other words, because when you leave it's back to wearing the monkey suit (a phrase I use to affectionately refer to the sort of clothes I'm expected to wear to work).

5) "Value" is NOT Synonymous With "Cheap"

I think people have the opinion that taking a Walt Disney World vacation is only slightly less expensive than taking a trip to the moon. I don't know where this comes from because the truth of the matter is that we've been able to do it two years straight now and at a tremendous bargain.

I will be upfront in saying that the time of year you want to visit the Mouse will dictate greatly the kind of offers that are available for staying in the resorts. For example, we have gone the week of Veteran's Day for two reasons: 1) We both have Veteran's Day as one of our paid holidays, and 2) by booking that time of year we were able to get a package that included the cost of staying in the resort, theme park tickets, and a free dining plan. Yes, you read that last part right - a FREE dining plan.

For our trips, we've thus far opted to stay in what Disney refers to as their "value" resorts (we were in the Pop Century Resort last year and this year we were at the All-Star Sports Resort), which puts them at the bottom of the spectrum as they also offer "moderate" and "deluxe" accommodations. Trust me when I tell you that this is a great way to save money. Sure, you could opt for nicer digs, but the fact of the matter is that we are typically in our room long enough to sleep, bathe, and get dressed. (PRO-TIP: All hotel rooms look the same when your eyes are closed!) The rest of the time we're out and about enjoying our vacation. Why pay more for a higher-end room?

The view from our front door at the Touchdown building of Disney's All-Star Sports Resort

What's more, I don't find there to be that big of a difference between the moderate and value rooms, at least not the ones I've experienced. I stayed in the Coronado Springs resort in 2008 when I was attending a conference - it's a moderate resort and I could not tell you anything about that room which was superior to the ones we've had on our recent vacations. All the rooms I've seen have been spacious and equipped with all the necessary amenities (including refrigerators).

I mentioned the free dining plan. In selecting a value resort, the offer included a free dining plan featuring what Disney calls "quick service" meals, which is more or less their descriptor for fast food. (If we'd have selected a moderate or deluxe resort we'd have gotten what they call "table service" meals, which involves more traditional, sit-down and order style restaurants.) The plan gives each guest an allotment of meals and snacks; in this situation, we received 2 meals and 1 snack per day which was fine for us as we brought breakfast items like Pop Tarts with us and kept them in our room. Don't let that fool you, though. Just because it's fast food doesn't mean all you have to choose from is hamburgers and hot dogs (although you could conceivably get that). When we were at Epcot Center we had lunch at the Seasons restaurant that's located inside The Land pavilion. My wife had a bone-in, seared pork chop that was probably 1.5 inches thick smothered in a tomato barbeque sauce and served with garlic mashed potatoes. She also had her beverage and a strawberry shortcake desert. It was the kind of meal that would've cost you upwards of $20 in a steakhouse but it cost us absolutely nothing! That's just one example of the kind of food you can expect to encounter while at Disney.

This was my lunch at Be Our Guest - IT WAS FREE!

We had a 7-day reservation with a 5-day theme park ticket package. So how much did all this vacationing actually cost us?

Right at $1,300.

You can't get a hotel room for a week in most resort towns for that kind of money and yet we had our room, our park tickets, and we got fed. Also, since we booked in advance we were able to pay an initial deposit of $200 then we had up until 90 days prior to our vacation to pay off the balance. It takes some budgeting and planning, but the point of all this is to say that YES, you can take your family to Disney without breaking the bank!

4) Pace Yourself

Something that any seasoned Disney veteran will tell you as a beginner is that it's important to understand in advance just how much there is to do and see at any of the theme parks. There is so much more to these facilities than what one day will allow for, even with certain of them opening early and staying operational later for resort guests. (Did I mention that if you stay in the resort you get access to Extra Magic Hours, a program wherein at least one park opens early and/or stays open late just for resort guests? No? Well, there, I did it.) The fact of the matter is you've got to have goals for your day and you've got to understand that you will get eaten alive by the grandiose nature of the thing if you try to do too much.

You'll see it on the faces of your fellow guests. It's a look that is equal parts 3-day binge hangover and post-awesome sex fatigue. Their bodies are utterly exhausted and yet they ache for more of what's put them into said condition.

How do you avoid this? (I know some of you reading this might not want to, given my description; that's fine, just pack plenty of energy drinks and consider getting a B-12 injection.) It may be unavoidable but the best means I've discovered are to set realistic expectations for your day. Make a list of the attractions you're most interested in experiencing, like a top 3-5, and have that as your goal. Anything you do on top of that is thick, luscious icing on top of an already bountiful cake.

Another part of this discussion is the concept of overexertion. I don't care if you're a triathlete, you're going to get tired while you're at Disney. It's vital that you take a few moments each day to rest and recover. Sit on a bench and get in a bit of people watching (trust me, it's more entertaining than it sounds). There are water fountains everywhere - use them in lieu of drinking 15 Cokes a day and stay hydrated.

3) Plan Ahead

It wasn't that long ago that Disney World guests were more or less forced to wing it in terms of trying to plot out their adventures with a schedule. You had to wait until you arrived on property to get an idea of what the park hours were, what were the show times, and if there were any ride closures to be concerned about. That's not the case anymore as Disney has done some fantastic things in making smartphone users the kings of their own virtual kingdoms.

Near the end of 2012, Disney launched the My Disney Experience app for Android and iPhone (sadly, and for whatever reason, no version exists for Windows phones). The app allows resort guests to manage literally every aspect of their vacation - from dining reservations to ride wait times, it's all in there.

Before I go further, I feel like I need to describe that for almost every attraction (meaning rides as well as shows) there are two lines - standby and FastPass+. Standby is your traditional first come, first served queue. FastPass+ is a line only accessible by patrons who have booked a reserved spot on a ride during a given time frame (usually an hour). Everyone gets the same ride experience, however FastPass+ patrons get preferred access when it comes to who gets seated first. In other words, if I'm a standby patron I might have to wait 30-45 minutes to get on a ride whereas if I'm a FastPass+ patron  I might have to wait 5-10 minutes to get on a ride.

"How does one get this FastPass+?", you ask. Read on, dear reader!

FastPass+ is an evolution of Disney's original FastPass system which saw park guests use their ticket in order to access a kiosk nearby a given attraction that would then spit out a paper ticket with a time on it. This time was when you, as a patron, were guaranteed a quick jump to the front of the line. Problem is and always has been the fact that only so many FastPass-es and FastPass+-es get issued per day. What that means is that preferred access to particularly popular rides is sometimes difficult if not impossible to get. In turn, this means a patron might wind up spending upwards of an hour waiting to get on a ride. This is especially true for one ride in particular, Toy Story Midway Mania at Disney's Hollywood Studios. It's a fun ride but FastPass-es for it are almost always gone within an hour of the park opening and the standby line is commonly posted as being anywhere from an hour to 90 minutes.

(SIDE NOTE: Is it a fair system? Kind of, but not really. It's been implemented in the hope that more patrons get to partake in more experiences, but I think it's wound up being a deal where more people spend more time in one line as opposed to less time in 5 lines.)

Using the app and FastPass+, patrons can schedule a window of time during which they'll be able to access a ride weeks in advance. All but gone are the days of having to run from one ride to another as soon as you get inside a park - the older paper ticket kiosks are still there for some attractions but they're in the process of being phased out. You'll more than likely still have a brief wait even with FastPass+ reservations but it will be significantly less than that of the poor sods relegated to kicking it in the standby line.

Trust me when I tell you that my wife had a ball in using this app as she was able to secure for us a range of FastPass+ reservations. The fact that it can provide up to the second wait times for rides as well as use GPS to locate your exact position on a map of the park makes it the perfect companion for a trip to any of the Disney parks and a great tool for scheduling your day.

2) Realize That Unique is Often Better Than Expensive

I mentioned earlier how much our vacation cost us. I think we're fairly frugal people and we like to get the most bang for our buck. It goes without saying, though, that if you want to do so you can spend untold thousands of dollars on a vacation like this (between your room, food, purchases, and other amenities). The thing is, just because you spent a lot of money doesn't mean you got the most out of your opportunity or, perhaps more importantly, that you were able to make lasting, valuable memories with people you love.

One of my favorite moments from our 2013 vacation was when we took several classes at the Animation Academy within Disney's Hollywood Studios. DHS when it first opened was called Disney-MGM Studios; the partnership with MGM eventually soured and they were dropped from inclusion. At one point in the history of the park, inside of it existed a functional animation studio - this was back when animators made cartoons and films using pencils, paper, paint, and cells. That studio has since been emptied of its easels, but the spirit of animation survives as in its place now sits the Animation Academy where park guests can come to learn how to draw some of their favorite Disney characters.

The classes are about 20 minutes in length and they feature instruction from an actual Disney animator. They don't cost anything extra, either, as it's included in standard park admission. If you can't draw at all you're more than likely not going to come out of the class as a Rembrandt but at the very least you'll come away from it with your own drawing, however good or bad it may be. More importantly, as was the case for my wife & I, you'll leave with a fresh set of memories involving time spent doing something fun and unique with a person (or people) you adore. It's the kind of experience that tends to get lost in all the hubbub of a vacation like this - I'm glad we took the time to make it a part of our plans.

1) Exercise Patience

You can ruin a Disney vacation by not observing just a little bit of patience. To that end, there are three things you have to accept when on a Walt Disney World vacation.

1. At some point during your stay, you will suffer an injury to your lower extremities as a result of having been struck by a stroller or motorized wheelchair (I'm convinced that certain people use these devices more as battering rams to make their way through crowds than as a method of conveyance)
2. You will spend significantly more time waiting to get on rides than you will spend on said rides
3. You're in the same boat as the guy or girl next to you - no point in whining or arguing because none of that will make it better

What I'm getting at here, especially with the third item in that list, is the notion that the lines and delays are unavoidable. You have to accept it but you can also do something about it. Play a game on your phone that's good for a group (we saw several folks playing Heads Up!), have random and rambling conversations about nothing in particular, or debate the subtleties of how Episodes I-III of the Star Wars franchise would've been better (or worse) if Jar-Jar Binks had been killed early on in a horribly bloody lightsaber accident. It's not that hard, and chances are once you get the ball rolling your time spent in queue won't seem that bad because you've got something to effectively occupy the time.

When we were on our 2012 vacation, we saw two families almost get into a fist fight while at the Magic Kingdom waiting to see the Main Street Electrical Parade. They were arguing over the fact that one group had taken up a position that was in front of the other. Maybe it's just me, but that didn't seem like grounds for a man to verbally threaten a woman with physical violence. The whole scene could've been avoided if cooler heads had prevailed - as it was, we wound up watching the parade on eggshells wondering when the first punch was going to be thrown.

Things happen on vacation just as they do when you're at home or at work. Don't be overly dramatic about it, whatever may come. Room keys malfunction, MagicBands don't always work, and occasionally the lady at the lunch counter serves you up a chicken sandwich instead of a bacon cheeseburger. Deal with it with tact and professionalism, not drama and spite. It frustrates me to no end to watch grown men and women make a scene out of an issue that's not exactly life-altering in its scope. You may think Walt Disney himself has something against you but I can assure he doesn't.

In wrapping this up, let me reiterate an opinion of ours that I hope has permeated this blog - when it comes to vacation destinations, we'd sooner go to Walt Disney World than just about anywhere else. Even going two years in a row as we have, we've managed to find new things to do and enjoy while also revisiting our favorite attractions. I don't know that we'll be back in 2014 but if we receive a similar offer we'll definitely consider it. Otherwise, and Lord willing, we may find ourselves on another big boat floating somewhere out in the Caribbean.

We Got MagicBands!

My wife & I made our first trip to Walt Disney World as a couple about a year ago and it was an incredible experience for the both of us! Jill hadn't been since she was a small child, which made it particularly special for her as she adores the Disney princesses (as most little girls, even those in grown-up bodies, usually do). For me, it had only been a few years since I last visited the House that Mickey built seeing as how I was there back in 2008. At that point in time, I had the distinct opportunity to attend a software conference held on the grounds at Disney's Coronado Springs resort; Jill would've gone with me then, too, but she was dragging her feet in becoming a part of my life (that conference happened in June, we wouldn't meet for the first time until September).

Truth be told, Disney is kind of old hat for me. There's no way I can tell you what I'm about to without it coming off like I'm bragging or that I was a spoiled kid so I'll just be out with it: My family & I went to Disney quite often when I was but a young lad - as in almost every year. It was something of an annual event for us and I have tremendously fond memories of those trips. While I can honestly say we never had a bad trip to Disney, I will say that there were times where it got repetitive. Those parks don't change that frequently, truth be told, and having the same experience over and over again became redundant. However, change has been in the air for the Disney parks for what seems like the better part of the last few years with the creation of New Fantasyland and a slew of other updates, refurbishments and the like. It's a great time to fall in love with Walt Disney World again, in other words.

The parks have gotten a fresh coat of paint, as it were, but that's not the only big alteration that's being made. Perhaps more significant are the changes that are happening with Disney's resorts and how resort guests are granted access to the various properties. Disney is taking a big leap forward in using devices equipped with RFID (radio-frequency identification) chips to replace aging technologies like key cards that rely on bar codes or magnetic strips to store guest data. The most shining example of this are MagicBands - a brand new accessory that's all the rage in Orlando these days.

Therein lies the uniqueness of these things right now. You see, at this point Disney hasn't rolled out MagicBands as being fully implemented seeing as how they're testing their functionality to gauge what is and what isn't working all that well. What that means is that only certain Walt Disney World Resort guests are being invited to participate in testing MagicBands and the various systems associated with them (more on that later). It's a fairly exclusive club to be in, needless to say, and Disney fanatics have had a field day in jockeying for an opportunity to get their hands on them. No one seems to know for sure when full deployment will occur but it would seem to be fast approaching seeing as how it was recently announced that all resort guests staying on the property after October 23 will begin receiving MagicBands. They're still considered to be in test phase, though the breadth of this new round of testing would seem to indicate that it's only a matter of time before MagicBands become standard equipment for resort guests.

The October 23 date hadn't been publicized when we received this in the mail about a week ago - kind of takes the novelty off of it in hindsight, to be completely honest, but we're not about to turn down the opportunity to be involved.

We've been following the development of MagicBands since they were announced. We were both really hoping we'd get to participate when we booked our vacation back during the summer but we weren't sure that we'd get an invitation seeing as how not every resort was taking part in the initial round of testing. To make the sense of anticipation worse, some friends of ours made us quite jealous as they took a family vacation to Disney within the past month or so and they were in on the testing. That said, I'm not lying when I tell you that my wife and I literally turned into two small children when we opened the letter - yes, I'm a grown man and I got schoolgirl-giddy over the fact that Mickey & Co. wanted us to help them out!

Obviously we went online to customize our MagicBands the same day that we received the letter. You're able to pick what color band you would like and also have it branded with your name - I picked a grey band whereas my wife picked a red one. I will register one complaint with Disney at this point. The letter stated that we had until October 31 to customize our MagicBands, however when we went online we were presented with a quandary because the site stated we only had 1 day remaining to make our selections. We got everything handled in time, thankfully, but I'm glad we got the letter the day that we did else we might have missed out on getting to customize our bands.

We completed our customization request on Friday, October 11. They were delivered by 9:30 AM on October 15 - that means in less than 3 days, our MagicBands were customized, packaged, and shipped to our home. As someone who's a fan of logistics, that kind of turn around on something like this is really impressive.

I've never done an "un-boxing" before but I figure this is something that's so new it stands well to be documented. The box itself was very nondescript; it had no logos or markings that would've tipped someone off to its contents other than the from information block on the shipping label.

The box had no adhesive, rather just one convenient peal strip was all that kept it together.

Tearing back the strip revealed a piece of art in terms of geometry and packaging design. Did you know people actually go to college specifically to learn engineering geared towards developing boxes?

It's almost like some kind of magical box that springs open only when the heart of a true believer is near...

What I found most interesting about the MagicBand box is the fact that out of all the characters that could've been featured on it, Disney chose Elasti-Girl from The Incredibles which is one of my favorite movies, ever (personally, I think it's a better example of what a Fantastic Four movie should be - i.e., a family that just happens to be made up of superheroes - than what any of the actual Fantastic Four films have been able to capture).

Then it was time for the moment of truth - I'm always skittish about things that are to be customized and whether or not they'll be made correctly.

As one of my old co-workers would have said, "Oh, happy day, happy day!"

In describing them, MagicBands look like rubber watch bands without an actual watch face. Instead of the watch face you have a logo that's become synonymous with the MagicBand, that being a new take on the classic Mickey emblem. Underneath this logo is where the RFID chip is contained. The band uses a pair of pegs that fit into a number of corresponding holes in order to secure it to the wearers wrist.

 

There is already a line of MagicBand accessories out that allow for users to customize their bands even further by adding covers (called CoverBands - no "Freebird", unfortunately), Bandits (studs featuring character faces and other logos that can be inserted into the empty holes on the bands), and MagicSliders (a slip-over piece that makes the band look more like a watch but doesn't include a timepiece). These items are only for sale at Disney resorts, which plays into the fact that this is, after all, a technology that's still in test.

I will bring up the fact that MagicBands fall into the category of "one size fits all". This was mildly terrifying to me because I have never fallen into the category of person for which "one size fits all" was applicable. "All" being a relative term, as it were, I had misgivings about whether or not the band would fit my wrist as I have had issues in the past in finding watches that fit. Thankfully, Disney had me covered as my MagicBand fit perfectly, and I didn't even have to resort to using the last or next-to-last holes in the band.

Regarding the sizing of the bands, there is an accommodation in place for small children who might find that the band has too much slack for their wrists. The darker grey section of the band can be removed in order to make for a tighter fit. A word of warning, though - that section of the band CANNOT be put back on once it is removed, meaning it would be best to follow the old saying of "measure twice, cut once" before pulling it off. This isn't something that I determined by trial and error, rather it's plainly spelled out on the interior of the box's lid.

You may be saying to yourself, "This is cool and all but what do these things actually do?" MagicBands are part of what Disney is calling MyMagic+ which is a multi-tiered system that allows resort guests the opportunity to take greater control of their Walt Disney World experience. MyMagic+ includes MagicBands, FastPass+, and the brand new My Disney Experience app for Android and iOS smartphones (apparently there is no version available for Windows phone). You MagicBand is essentially the way you're identified while on the Disney properties (to make a TRON analogy, it could be said that the MagicBand is your identity disk); it can be used to open the door to your room at the resort, it functions as your ticket to the parks, and it allows the wearer to make purchases. FastPass+ is a reincarnation of the original FastPass, a reservation system that allowed for park guests to be assigned a time when they could return to a ride or attraction and get quicker service than they would by joining the standby line. The My Disney Experience brings all of these assets together under one convenient app as users can view park information, get ride wait times, change their FastPass+ reservations, and more all from their smartphone.

There have been some concerns levied about MagicBands and how they could be used to collect data on the wearer. I hate to break it to people who are complaining about this, but that's not exactly anything new. You know all those discount club cards you have in your wallet or clinking around on your key chain? What do you think retailers are doing every time you swipe that card when you make a purchase? They're collecting data too, so don't try to demonize Disney as being some kind of unique entity in the modern marketplace.

My wife & I were already looking forward to our vacation but needless to say we're now REALLY looking forward to it! I hope the MagicBands add to the experience. I know there will be some learning involved and some getting used to, but that's all part of the fun for me.