A couple of tips for the Magic Kingdom

I have a huge show coming up starting Thursday and my head is still somewhere in Orlando. Forgive my blog neglect in both posting and reading, I'll be back on track soon!


Ms. C ready to hit the Magic Kingdom doing the stiff handed princess/beauty queen wave. Not sure where she learned this but boy did we all love it!

I wanted to share some HOT tips I found for the Magic Kingdom if you are planning a trip soon (I can't take credit for all of these b/c some are from Keely and my cousin Sara!)

• If you have a little girl go to Costco or BJ's and buy them a princess costume dress BEFORE your trip. MANY of the little girls are wandering the park in these dresses and look adorable. Caroline was Belle (thank you Keely!) This costume cost 30 dollars at BJ's wholesale club and was 65 and up at the park. All of the park staff would greet her saying - good morning princess, hello princess etc - she loved it! One staffer even asked for her autograph in their book - she ate it up.



• Go to the park in Sept, Oct, or Nov - the longest line we waited in was 25 minutes. We walked on almost everything (with the exception of Saturday which was noticeably more crowded)



• If a ride offers FASTPASS - get one and don't wait in the regular line. This is especially true for Peter Pan in Fantasy land- that line is slow as molasses and they definitely "favor" the fast pass line.



• You are only allowed one fast pass per time window per ticket so plan wisely! For example I knew some of my kids would do Thunder Mountain and others would not so we got 3 fast passes for that ride and Dave used the other 3 to get fast passes for Peter Pan



• Do Dumbo ride FIRST - this ride has no fast pass and is S L O W to load and unload causing for longer lines



• SKIP Stitch's escape. Seriously, horrible. The kids of all ages (including me) hated it.



• Go to the library and or buy the Unofficial Guide to Disney. It was a fantastic resource FULL of awesome tips!



• The kids loved having dinner at Pinocchio Village Haus with a table overlooking Small World. It's fast food but they loved waving to the people on the ride! It was a fun spot to take a break.



• I hate those autograph books ... they totally slow up the character picture line but we broke down and bought 2 books anyway.



• Disney's fireworks cannot be beat they are great, but NOT for everyone. Ms. C nearly had a nervous breakdown when they started - forcing us to flee from the park. They are beautiful but very loud.

• Take full advantage of the ride switch if they offer it. Tell the staffer at the front of the line you want to ride switch and they hand you a fast pass good anytime that day for up to 3 people. Total score and won't interfere with getting another fast pass since the one in your hand wasn't dispensed by a machine and therefore not in the system.

Best Ride for the whole family (our kids scare easily) = Buzz Lightyear's Space Ranger Spin

Best 3D movie of all the parks is here = Philharmagic

Best parade - 3pm down Main St = Disney Dreams Come True. All your favorites are in this - it's really cute! Slip into the gift ship Emporium on Main Street (gets my vote for best gift shop btw) and out their side door for secret FRONT ROW seats :)

We also had a "magical moment" at the park which I honestly thought wasn't "real" but it is. Free ice cream for Ms. C! Thanks Mickey! xo, Brie

Coming soon - tips for Epcot and Hollywood Studios along with my review of the Nickelodeon Suites hotel