Parks Around the World

So this whole blog has been about Disney World in Florida, and we all know there are other parks around the world, but where are they? Do they have the same things as Disney World does? These are good questions that will be answered in today's blog.

Disney is Global

There are seven Disney theme parks in total, and that's including the one in Florida. Let's list them off...

There is:

Disney Theme Parks

• Disneyland in California
• Aulani in Hawaii
• Disneyland Paris in France
• Hong Kong Disneyland in Hong Kong
• Shanghai Disney Resort in China
• Tokyo Disney Resort in Japan
• And of course Disney World in Florida

All of the links above are for the parks official websites, so feel free to see more of the parks if you wish to.

The only theme park not shown in the picture to the right is Aulani.

The newest resort would be the Shanghai Disney Resort when it opened on June 16th, 2016. The oldest Disney theme park is Disneyland in Anaheim, California, opening on July 17th, 1955. 

But I'm sure that you guys want to know more about the parks themselves and what you can do there, so let's get right into it.

Disneyland

Disneyland is the only theme park to have been designed and built under the direct supervision of Walt Disney.

Disneyland's Building Site

Disneyland has three main hotels, and then some neighbouring hotels that are in Anaheim. Their hotels are Disney's Grand Californian Hotel and Spa (kind of sounds like the Californian version of the Grand Floridian doesn't it?), Disneyland Hotel, and Disney's Paradise Pier Hotel.

Disneyland has a lot of the same things that Disney World has (I'm going to be comparing all of these parks to Disney World, just so you know), but Disneyland only has two parks to it, and it isn't even as big as the Magic Kingdom in Florida, alone. That doesn't mean that it's a bad park just because it isn't big. I would still love to go there and experience the Disney in California.

There are still character meet-and-greets that you can do, and formal dining or character dining. There are a lot of Disney-themed shops that are in Disneyland where you can get any type of Mickey ears you want.

Overall, it seems like a great place to breathe in all of that Disney nostalgia from when it was first built. And to think, Walt Disney himself walked around in that park so many years ago.

Disney's Aulani Resort and Spa

While it may be super cool to go to a Disney resort in Hawaii, I should tell you that there is no theme park there. Aulani is just a resort, but it has a lot of things that you can do at the resort.

Disney's Aulani Resort and Spa

At Aulani, they have pool parties with the Disney characters. A pool party, can you believe it? I honestly would love to party with Goofy or Stitch.

And we can't forget about the spa and salon. The Laniwai Salon and Spa offers family massages as well as treatments for new or expecting mothers. Talk about a good way to relax. There is also a salon where you can get a facial, manicures, pedicures, whichever, and your kids can too in their own little salon.



Another cool thing about Aulani is that there is a Rainbow Reef, where you can snorkel and see hundreds of bright and tropical fish, along with artistic carvings in the rocks. There are also so many pools at Aulani. I mean, if you look at the picture above, you can see how many pools there are and I don't think that that's all of them. Can you tell I like to swim?

Disneyland Paris

Disneyland Paris is located in France, and they're just celebrating their 25th anniversary of being open, so let's give a small clap to Disneyland Paris. 

Disneyland Paris

I believe the castle that is the centerpiece in Disneyland Paris is Belle's castle, which makes sense, since Beauty and the Beast is set in France.

Disneyland Paris also has character dining and they also have parades and firework shows, where you might see a certain dragon (Maleficent) who breathes real fire.

From what I've read on the Disneyland Paris website, they have character parades everyday.  So if you really like parades, I would suggest you go to one and enjoy all of the characters.

I feel like I will cut the list of Disney parks in half for this blog post, and then do the other three parks in a future blog post. I just don't want to make this blog too long for you guys, so let me know if you're interested in reading about the other three parks.

"Do what you do so well that they will want to see it again and bring their friends"
                                           - Walt Disney

Different Types of Tickets and Transportation

We all know about the amazing things to do at Disney World, but how much does it cost to do those things, and how can you get there?
These are two very good questions that will be answered in this weeks blog, as we look at the different park tickets that you can buy, and what resources there are for getting from place to place.

What kind of tickets are there?

So there are two different kinds of tickets. There are just the one day tickets that you can only go to one park for that day. But, if you want to go to multiple parks in a day, you can choose to get the park hopper tickets. The name literally says what you can do, by going from park to park.

One of the first tickets designed for Walt Disney World

According to the official Walt Disney World website, if you want to purchase park tickets for, let's say, 2 days, then the price per ticket is $99.50 but if you want to purchase park tickets for 10 days, it's $44.00. Keep in mind that these are just the starting prices, and if you want to get park-hopper tickets, then the price will increase. And of course, adult tickets are more expensive then children's tickets.

A picture of the price of theme park tickets for Disney World

If you want a 2-day ticket for one park and for one person over 10 years old, then it would cost $199.00, but if you want a 2-day park hopper ticket for one person over 10 years old, then it would cost $259.00. As you can see, the park hopper tickets are about $60 more, but you get to go to another park in the same day, so if you felt like going on some rides in the Magic Kingdom, and then going to see the show in the Tree of Life later on, then the park hopper tickets allow you to do that.




There are also tickets that you can purchase for extra magic hours (when the parks are open after closing hours). These tickets are for Mickey's Not So Scary Halloween Party, which I've been to and it's honestly so cool to see so many people dressed up as Disney characters.

My aunt and I at Mickey's Not So Scary Halloween Party

To the left is a picture of my aunt and I at Mickey's Not So Scary Halloween party. I went dressed up as Minnie, and my aunt was Mickey. I thought there would be a lot more people dressed up as Minnie and Mickey but I was wrong. Now that doesn't mean that there weren't a lot of people dressed up as them, there just wasn't as much people as I thought there would be.

It was really cool though, we got to see a lot of different costumes, for example, I saw someone dressed as Maleficent, I saw a Jack Skellington, and there was even someone dressed up as Tweedle Dee and Tweedle Dum.

If you go to Disney World, I definitely recommend going to this party. The tickets start at $74 for adults and $69 for children, and you have to purchase these tickets individually but it's so fun and you get to walk around all of Magic Kingdom and collect candy from these huge bins that they have, and you can get special Halloween pins to collect and trade, it's just a really good time so I recommend going.

How can you get to all of the parks?

If you're worried about not being able to bring your car to Disney World, then stop it because there are special Disney buses that take you from your hotel to whichever park you want. There are even buses that can take you to Blizzard Beach and Disney Springs.

So you don't need to call a cab to get from park to park, instead you can save that money and go on the buses that run 45 minutes before all the parks open, and they run until 1 hour after the parks close, so it's plenty of time for you to enjoy the fun of the parks from open till close (if you want to).

Disney Transport Buses

The only time you will need to call a cab is if you want to go to a mall or something like that, because the Disney transport buses don't go to places outside of Disney World. There is also a monorail that will take you to the Polynesian resort, the Grand Floridian resort, the Magic Kingdom, and the Contemporary resort, in that order.

This is really the only mode of transportation that Disney offers, that I know of at least. If you guys know of another one and I didn't talk about it, please comment down below what it is.

"We keep moving forward, opening new doors, and doing new things, because we're curious and curiosity keeps leading us down new paths"
                                                  - Walt Disney

Disney Springs and Extra Places to Visit

We've learned all about the parks, but what's outside of them? Well, there's a lot more places to go in Walt Disney World without having to go to any of the actual parks.

So, if you don't feel like going on any rides and you don't want to lounge around your hotel, there are plenty of things for you to do downtown.

Disney Springs

One very popular place is Disney Springs, formerly known as Downtown Disney. Disney Springs is located on Buena Vista Dr. not far from the Disney World parks where you can go and shop all day long. You actually might need a couple days to get through all of the shops that Disney Springs has.

Disney Springs, Walt Disney World

There are also a lot of places where you can eat and try different foods, whether it's seafood, Chinese food, or having a burger at the Rainforest Café.

Now let's get into the shops...

Places to Shop in Disney Springs

Lefty's - The Left Handed Store Mugs

I was searching what the best stores were in Disney Springs recently, and I came across a store that I find really cool. It's a store for people who are left-handed, and it's called Lefty's - The Left Handed Store. Being someone who's left-handed, I think that this store is pretty cool to have. I would especially love to have left-handed scissors because the right-handed ones never work for me (obviously) but I have to give props to the Disney company for thinking of this.

There are also a lot of clothing stores in Disney Springs, and I mean a lot. On the Disney Springs website, I counted roughly 51 clothing stores, not including all of the jewelry stores or shoe stores either. Now you get why I said you might need a couple of days to complete your visit to Disney Springs.

One of my favourite stores though is called Disney's Design-a-Tee. You get to design your own t-shirt using different colours and different patterns or you can even put your favourite Disney characters on it. When I went there, I designed a shirt that was blue, and it had characters from the movie Frozen on it. You don't have to do characters though, you can put anything on your shirt and make it any colour you want.

The World of Disney store

Another huge and very well-known store on the Disney Springs boardwalk is called The World of Disney. This store has just about everything you need to satisfy your need for Disney merchandise. There are about twelve "rooms" in this store that are filled with character toys, ornaments and decorations, clothing, household items, pins, and so many collectibles. All Disney themed of course.




Extra Places to Make Your Stay More Magical

One place that I have heard so many great things about (but never had the chance to go) is Disney's Typhoon Lagoon Water Park. It's a huge water park with a beach, a lazy river, so many pools and a lot of waterslides. Typhoon Lagoon just recently added a new attraction to the park which is called Miss Adventure Falls, and it is the longest ride in the history of Disney water parks, so I would definitely want to go on that. You get on a raft with three other people, and throughout the ride, you see treasure and you meet a special character for that ride.

Disney's Typhoon Lagoon Water Park

Of course, this is isn't the only waterpark that Disney has. There is another one, and it's called Disney's Blizzard Beach Water Park. This water park is themed to be an old ski resort that melted down into water park. You can go down one of the world's tallest and fastest water slides called Mount Gushmore, or you go float down a relaxing river and then get tan on the white-sand beach. Younger kids even have their own splash pad and water slides to have fun and get soaked in.

Overview of Disney's Blizzard Beach

I haven't been to this water park either, but it definitely seems like it would be a great way to cool off during a really hot day.

I also would really want to go on Mount Gushmore, because I love water slides, especially if they're longer, because there are so many waterslides that are over a few seconds after you just got on, and I like the thought of having a waterslide that is long enough to actually enjoy it.


These aren't all of the places that are available for you outside of the Disney World kingdoms, but they're the most popular or well-known places that Disney has. If you have heard of a place that Disney has and I did not list it, feel free to comment down below what it is and I might include it in my next blog. Thanks for reading!

"All our dreams can come true, if we have the courage to pursue them"
                                           - Walt Disney

Different Hotels in Disney World and Their Amenities

I've told you all about the parks and what you can do in them, but where can you sleep? Maybe the question should be where can't you sleep? There are so many hotels to choose from in Walt Disney World, and they all have different themes.

I have only been to three out of the huge variety that they have, but a lot of the hotels have the same kind of layout and elements to them. Today, I will be separating some of the hotels into two categories: more budget-friendly hotels, and the more expensive high-end hotels.

First, let's start off with the more budget-friendly hotels.

Keeping an Eye on Your Budget

We all know that going to Walt Disney World is not cheap, so you don't really want to worry about how much your room is costing you per night. You can probably imagine all of the fancy hotels that Disney World has, but that's for later. Right now, let's look at some of the more affordable hotels that Walt Disney World has to offer...

All-Star Music Resort: Rock section's entrance at night

The least-expensive hotels to stay at would have to be a part of Walt Disney World's All-Star hotel set. There are three hotels apart of this set, and those are the All-Star Music Resort, the All-Star Sports Resort, and the All-Star Movies Resort. I have been to two out of three of these resorts. I have been to the Movies and Music resorts, and their hotels are really nice. I love the pools, especially since most resorts have at least two or three swimming pools, and I especially love the cafeteria's. In each Disney World resort, there is some form of dining, whether it be a simple cafeteria or an actual restaurant.

You can eat at the cafeteria as a part of your dining plan, or if you upgrade your dining plan, you can eat at more fancier restaurants inside of hotels, as I talked about in my last blog post, so if you would like to know more about the dining plan, please feel free to check out my previous blog post to get more of an understanding on what it is. But this post is about the hotels so let's focus back on them.

The All-Star resorts have different sections in them, so if you are staying at the Movies resort, then you could be in the Toy Story section, or the 101 Dalmatians section.

All-Star Movies Resort: Toy Story section

If you are in the Music resort, then you could be in the Rock and Roll section, or the Pop music section. And the same goes to the Sports resort. I have never been to this one, but I know that one part of the hotel is football, where another part could be soccer.

Now let's talk rates. These hotels are the cheapest ones to stay at, only costing $96 per night for a standard room, which for Walt Disney World, I think it is pretty cheap. That doesn't mean that the hotels aren't nice though: don't associate price with quality when it comes to Disney.

But of course there are more affordable resorts than this one.

Another great resort that you can stay in while staying budget-friendly is Disney's Pop Century Resort. At only $108 per night for a standard room, it is $12 more than the All-Star Resorts, but I have been to Pop Century and I can say that it is so cool. The interior décor in the rooms takes you back through the years, by having souvenirs from those decades, so you can see what was trendy back in the 1980's and so on.

Bowling pin swimming pool at the Pop Century Resort

Sleeping in Luxury

We have now seen some of the more affordable hotels, so let's see what we can get if we spend a little more.

I have never been to an expensive hotel before in Walt Disney World, so I have no idea what they're like, but I've heard that they can get pretty fancy.

Savannah at the Animal Kingdom Lodge

One hotel with a high price tag attached to it is Disney's Animal Kingdom Lodge, starting at $324 per night. If you have read my post on the Animal Kingdom, then I have mentioned this hotel before, just not its exact price. For this much money you get to stay in a lodge-style hotel with a savannah, where giraffes and other animals can come to your window.

But I have also heard that there are few animals in the savannah and that it's not really worth it to stay there for that reason. I guess it all depends on what you like in an animal-themed hotel.

Disney's Saratoga Springs Resort and Spa

Another expensive hotel is Disney's Saratoga Springs Resort and Spa, with the price of $338 per night. This hotel has a late 1800's theme and there are even tree-house villas that are elevated 10 feet off of the ground. And, as the name states, there is a spa at this hotel where you can get a facial, massages, pretty much anything you want.


The resort also features pools with a waterslide, which we all love because how can you not love a waterslide? There is also the Lake Buena Vista Golf Course, where you can play right beside lakes and forests. There are also golf carts with GPS's so that you can find your way around the huge golf course.

And I saved the most expensive for last. The hotel that takes the "Most expensive hotel in Disney World" award is the Grand Floridian Resort and Spa. I'm just noticing how many Disney hotels have spas in them. The price of this Victorian-style resort is $574 but it can go all the way up to $2,047 per night! Can you imagine spending that much money for one night? I can't, that's for sure.

Disney's Grand Floridian Resort and Spa

I've always wanted to just go and see what it looks like besides seeing it in a picture, but there is no way that I would spend that much money if I'm just going out to the parks all day and only sleeping in my room. Sure I would swim but you can do that at a more affordable hotel, right?

The hotel itself though does feature a world-class spa and health club where you can go to relax and have a mind retreat in the Floridian garden at the turn of the 20th century. There is also dining, which includes dining with Disney characters and signature dining feasts. There is also the Grand Floridian Café that you can have breakfast, lunch, or dinner at, and the price can be included in some dining plans.

Keep in mind that the prices I am listing are for standard rooms only. If you wish to upgrade your room, it will most likely be more expensive.

This are all the hotels that I will list for this blog post, but if you guys would like another post on affordable and expensive hotels, just comment down below and let me know. I'd love to hear what you thought!

"There is more treasure in books than in all the pirate's loot on Treasure Island"
                                     - Walt Disney

Fast Passes and the Dining Plan

Now, I have mentioned the fast passes and the dining plan quite a bit throughout my blog posts, but I don't believe that I've ever actually told you what they are. Well, now I'm going to.

When you go to Walt Disney World, you definitely want to make sure that you have some fast passes because let me tell you, if the regular line is long, it will not get any shorter, so booking a fast pass for that ride lets you be in a different line where you can get on the ride before a majority of the people in the regular line. It makes the waiting time shorter for you, and it lets you experience the joy of the ride without the annoyance of the line-up.

Now, if you see a ride that doesn't have a long wait time for the regular line, I wouldn't recommend you booking a fast past for that ride. Instead, use it for one of the more popular rides that always has a long line up, and this way, you will get more value out of your fast passes.

With the fast passes, you can book three a day to start, and then once you have gone on those three rides, you can book more at a fast pass kiosk that they have located around the park.

The sensor that will scan the Magic Band

At your arrival to your resort in Walt Disney World, they will give you your magic band at the time you check in, and you can choose the colour you would like your magic band to be, when you plan your trip online. How is this relevant to the fast passes, you ask? Well these magic bands are your key to everything. They're the key to your hotel room, you can use to get your snack credits and meals from your dining plan, and they are also your fast pass ticket. All you have to do is hold the front part of the band up to the glowing Mickey Mouse sensor that will be on the posts just before the ride, the light will turn green, which means that you're good to go!

When I went to Walt Disney World, I got a blue magic band, and then the next year I got a pink one. It is definitely neat to be able to choose your magic band colour. The colours you can get for them are yellow, grey (boring), orange, green, blue, red, and pink. Quite a few options am I right?

But back to the fast passes.

Booking fast passes is surely a must for people who dislike long lines (which, let's be honest, is all of us no matter how patient we think we are), and they allows you to go on more rides in less time because you don't have to wait so long to enjoy the ride. It's a win, win. You get to go on more rides, and you have a snazzy band the lets you do pretty much everything.

Moving Onto the  Long-Waited Dining Plan

If you have read any of previous blog posts, you know that I have mentioned the dining plan quite frequently, but let me just explain what it actually is.

The dining plan is a great way to save some money on food while you are on vacation in the magical land of Disney. While the food is delicious in all of the parks, that doesn't mean that it won't get pricey, and even though it costs some money to get a dining plan, it is an easy way to save money on food. Now, you're probably thinking, "Save money? But you just said that we have to spend money on the dining plan, and now you're saying that we will save money by spending more?"

Walt Disney World's Dining Plan

Valid questions, and my explanation may not have

 been so precise, so let me enlighten you some more. At the time that you are booking your trip to Walt Disney World, you can select whether you would like a dining plan or not. Yes, it does cost a bit of extra money, but it allows you to go to certain restaurants and eat there without having to pay any extra money. See where I'm going with this? There are many dining plans to choose from, that allow to you eat at the cheapest restaurants, or you can upgrade your plan to be able to eat at more fancy places like the Grand Floridian hotel. The dining plan may cost money, but in return, it is cheaper to have a dining plan that to not have one and spend even more money on the food that you would eat anyways. I hope that makes sense. When going to Walt Disney World, it's normal to be budget-cautious when it comes to food, but the dining plan really helps take the pressure off of eating out.

The Grand Floridian Restaurant

The picture below to the left, is a picture of the Grand Floridian café. The Grand Floridian is a hotel right by the Magic Kingdom, and to stay there for one night can cost over $1,000, which is pretty crazy but just look at where you get to eat. My Aunt had just recently gone to Disney World and she upgraded her dining plan to where she could eat her without having to pay at the table. She is very lucky because I don't imagine that it would be cheap to eat there, even for one person. My Grandma was jealous because she loves the Grand Floridian (even though she knows it's expensive) and she would have loved to have seen the hotel even if she didn't eat anything. So guess what my Aunt brought back from her dinner at the Grand Floridian hotel? A mint. She brought my Grandma an after-dinner mint from the Grand Floridian hotel. Well, at least she can say that she has something from the fanciest hotel in Walt Disney World, right?

Another thing that I almost forgot, the dining plan allows you to eat in your hotel's cafeteria. I know right, the hotels have their own cafeteria's, and they can be pretty big. Your hotel will have a cafeteria that your dining plan allows you to eat at, so if you don't feel like eating in one of the parks and you just want to relax and eat in your hotel, you can do that. The dining plan lets you eat wherever you want with no hassle, and of course their food is delicious, just like all of Disney World's food is.

Beverage stand in the Pop Century resort cafeteria

If you plan on going to Walt Disney World, I would definitely recommend getting fast passes and getting a dining plan. They will help you avoid long lines and get the most out of your culinary appetite.

Thank you for tuning into this week's blog post, and I hope you come back next week for even more info and tips to get the most out of your trip to Walt Disney World!



"It's kind of fun to do the impossible"
                                          - Walt Disney

Hollywood Studios

We all know Hollywood Studios for its Tower of Terror ride, but there is so much more to this park than that. Of course, just like every other park, you have great places to eat and shop, but no other park has the Rock n' Roller Coaster that blasts Aerosmith as you speed down Los Angeles in a limo. No other park has so many Star Wars attractions as Hollywood Studios has (seriously, there is a lot of Star Wars there).

How much Star Wars, you ask? Well let's see, there is the Star Tours - The Adventure Continues, the Star Wars: Path of the Jedi film, there's a Star Wars Launch Bay, they have Star Wars Photo Opportunities (I mean, who wouldn't want to have their photo taken of them holding a lightsaber?), and last but not least, there is a Star Wars Launch Bay Theater, where you can see
the behind-the-scenes of how new filmmakers are creating future Star Wars movies. There are also Star Wars shows called Star Wars: A Galaxy, Far, Far, Away, where iconic scenes from the movies are portrayed.

Star Wars show in Hollywood Studios

Does this sound like a lot of Star Wars? This is only 6 attractions that have to do with Star Wars, and that doesn't include all of the gift shops that exist just for Star Wars. If you are a huge fan of this movie saga, then Hollywood Studios is a great place for you to go spend your day.

Of course Star Wars is not all that Hollywood Studios has to offer, it's just a big part of it.

Let's look at some other great attractions that Hollywood Studios has.

All of the Fun and Games at Hollywood Studios

One of the big things that Hollywood Studios is known for is its Tower of Terror. In this ride, you sit down in rows in front of a wall that has parts open to the rest of the park, and it lurches you up at a very fast speed, then it drops you down. When I was in Hollywood Studios, I definitely heard a lot of screaming coming from this ride, so if you don't like heights or fast rides where they drop you down, I don't recommend that you go on this. Personally, however, I would love to go on this ride at least once.

Front View of the Tower of Terror

Another ride is the Rock n' Roller Coaster. It features music from Aerosmith (I personally have never listened to them) and the ride goes really fast. I'm not sure if it goes upside down or not, but I would love to go on it at least once, even if it does. If you like speed and music, I definitely recommend this ride for you.

There are so many more rides and attractions that Hollywood Studios has to offer besides the Tower of Terror, Rock n' Roller Coaster, and a lot of Star Wars, but these are just some of the most popular attractions.

Where to Get the Most Delicious Food and Best Souvenirs

A great place to satisfy your appetite would have to be the Sci-Fi Dine-In Theater Restaurant, where you sit in these old-fashioned cars from the '50s in front of a drive-in theater. You can get anything from burgers to pastas, and it might be a little bit expensive, but I think that sitting in old cars in a drive-in theater would be pretty cool.

Another good place to eat would be the '50s Prime Time Café (I know, they have a few '50s themed places in Hollywood Studios). There are no old-fashioned cars that you eat in but, the restaurant looks like a home would in the '50s. There are tables that have the old TV's up above them and they're in black and white, so it's really cool to eat there. You just feel like you're living in the 1950's when you go to Hollywood Studios.

Now that you've eaten, you can return to the hot sun outside and then quickly retreat into some cool shops (see what I did there? Cool shops as in the shops are cool, but they're actually air conditioned? Anyways...). I can't say that I've been in too many of the shops in Hollywood Studios but from walking around, I can tell that there are some places that would definitely be worth the look. One great shop would be a store called Beverly Sunset where you can get Disney villain merchandise, because you can never get enough of the villains, and they also sell house-made candy there (yum!).

Mickey's Fantasia Hat in Hollywood Studios

A store that I like to go to would be the Legends of Hollywood shop. It has all you could need for getting apparel for everyone and getting those iconic Mickey ears that you see everyone wearing (not gonna lie, those ears aren't cheap), but they're totally worth getting. You can also get some great gifts for bringing back home to your friends and family who might not have gone with you, but at least you brought back a souvenir for them, right?

Hollywood Studios is such a great place if you love movies and old-fashioned diners like I do. It is just one of the many places that makes Walt Disney World what it is today. I am sad that they took down Mickey's blue wizard hat from Fantasia, which I don't know why they did that, but Hollywood Studios is still a great way to spend your day, with or without the ears.

"That's the real trouble with the world, too many people grow up"
                                         - Walt Disney World

Epcot and Spaceship Earth

We all know Epcot as the park with the huge ball in the center that looks like a golf ball, right? Well the actual name for that golf ball is Spaceship Earth, as that is the name of the ride inside of the big sphere. Epcot is actually an acronym for Experimental Prototype Community of Tomorrow. Kind of glad that it was shortened to Epcot, otherwise that would be a really long name to say.

Attractions

Epcot's centerpiece: Spaceship Earth

Epcot is more than twice the size of the Magic Kingdom park at spanning 300 acres and Epcot is dedicated to the celebration of human achievements by hosting some of the most well-known attractions in Disney. Some of the rides in Epcot are the Test Track ride where you can customize a car, then race it against other players vehicles. Another ride is Mission: Space where you and three other people get into a ride car that is designed to look like a launching space inside of a rocket, then you get assigned roles like Commander or the Engineer, and you have to fly yourself into space, and then back down again. A great ride that I always enjoy going on is The Seas with Nemo and Friends where you go on a ride that takes you through the journey of Nemo as he gets lost again, then at the end of the ride you go into this room where you can talk to Crush and ask him questions about being a talking turtle.

But the ride that is the most popular would be the Spaceship Earth ride inside of Epcot's centerpiece. In this ride, you travel in time and explore the history of communication that takes you from the Stone Age, all the way to the computer age.

A map of Epcot, and the countries around the lagoon

Another huge attraction at Epcot is where you can travel the world around the lake behind Spaceship Earth. Travel the world, you say? Yes, you can travel the world. There are many countries to see in the Around the World showcase such as Mexico, Japan, the United Kingdom, Italy, France, Morocco, China, Germany, Norway, the United States, and yes, Canada.


You are able to get a Disney passport when going around the world so that at each country you visit, there will be a worker who will stamp your passport and sign it, saying hello in whichever language is most dominant in that country.
When my family and I went there, my aunt made sure that I got all of the stamps from each country and we didn't leave until I had them all. It was a really fun experience though, especially getting to see what some of the countries look like and their culture. I even got to wear a sombrero in Mexico (which I unfortunately don't have a picture of).

At night, before you go back to your hotel room, there is a show that I suggest you don't miss. It's Epcot's IllumiNations: Reflections of Earth light show, where a huge globe that sits in the World Showcase Lagoon, lights up and moves around in the lake while fireworks are going off around the different countries. It was a lot of fun to see as I have never seen it before, and I learned that they use around 2,800 firework shells for the show. I don't even want to know how many fireworks they go through in a year, if that's just for one night.

Of course there are many more attractions in Epcot, but these are just the most popular ones that I would definitely recommend that you do if you ever decide to go to Disney World.

Where to Get Your Epcot Merchandise

There are plenty of shops in Epcot where you can get your own Mickey ears, and some are great shops to get a Disney-themed Christmas present!

A great shop to get any merchandise, apparel and accessories would be the SeaBase Gift Shop, where you can help to save our oceans by making a donation before getting your hooks into some Nemo merchandise.

I like to donate every time I go there, whether it's just a dollar or two and every little bit helps to clean and protect our oceans. But, back on the topic of shopping, if you are interested in pin trading (which is where you can buy some Disney pins and then trade them for even better pins that the Disney workers will be wearing on their lanyard), a great shop to get you started on some pins would be the Pin Central - Future World shop, where all they sell there are pins. You can even get some special pins like ones with Mickey Mouse and Walt Disney on it.

I have a huge pin trading book specifically designed to hold all of my pins that I have collected the last two times I was at Disney. There are over 8 pages that are longer in length so that you can fit more pins into it, and I have filled them all. That should give you an idea of how many pins I currently have.

Places to Eat and Relax

After you've spent the whole day going on rides and getting yourself a cute stuffed Nemo, you just want to relax and have a good meal before you go back outside for the IllumiNations: Reflections of Earth show, and a great place to do that is the Coral Reef Restaurant, where you can have views of an amazing coral reef that features around 4,000 sea creatures, and you can enjoy it while eating your favourite seafood.

The interior of the Coral Reef Restaurant

Another great place to eat is around the world, of course! Each country that you visit in the World Showcase will have its own little restaurant that features some of that countries most popular dishes, like in France, there is the Les Halles Boulangerie-Patisserie, where you can get croissants and you can also get almost everything with cheese and seeing as how I'm a cheese lover, I am just fine with that. These little restaurants are in all of the countries so you can try all the food you'd like, without having to pay for a plane to get to that country.

Epcot is a great place to spend the day travelling the world, visiting with Nemo, going to space, eating under the sea, and trading pins.
I truly love Epcot for its variety in what it has to offer for visitors. All 11.98 million of them that go there in a year.

"Laughter is timeless. Imagination has no age. And dreams are forever"
                                            - Walt Disney

The Animal Kingdom and All of Its Roaring Fun

Visiting the Animal Kingdom can be a really fun experience for all animal lovers.

It has different parts of the world that you can visit and see different kinds of animal-themed rides.

It has everything you could ask for like riding inside a mountain away from a yeti in Asia's ride, Expedition Everest.

Being the largest kingdom at Disney, with an area of 235 ha, it has approximately 10.9 million visitors a year, ranking it the fourth-most visited amusement park in the United States and the seventh-most visited park in the world, in 2015.

The entrance to the Animal Kingdom

The Animal Kingdom has so many rides and attractions that you can see, such as the famous Bug Life show that is inside the Tree of Life, right in the middle of the Animal Kingdom.

You can also explore their savannah and see many different kinds of animals on the Kilimanjaro  Safaris ride, where you sit in a big jeep with other passengers and you can take pictures of the animals as the guide talks to you about them.

If you're wanting to cool off in the Animal Kingdom, there is a ride called the Kali River Rapids that might be a perfect way for you to get another ride in, and also get a bit wet.

My aunt and I taking a photo with Simba,

Timon, and Pumba

There are also photographers in the Animal Kingdom that will take pictures of you and add special effects to them relating to the animals and classic Disney stories.

But you can only have the pictures with the themes (like the one to the right) if you have purchased the Photo Memory Maker, which allows you to have a disc of all the photos that were taken of you from Disney, and you can then download them onto your computer or you can print them off and have your own personal Disney photos.

When my family and I last recently went, we got the Disney Photo Memory Maker, and we took so many photos, everywhere we went. You don't have to take multiple photos of the same place as we did (because my aunt insisted), and you don't have to wear matching Lion King shirts like we did, but the Memory Maker is a great way to personalize your photos at Disney no matter what kingdom you're in.

There are also many great places to eat in the Animal Kingdom, which are sure to satisfy your animal-like hunger after exploring all that the Animal Kingdom has to offer.

A great place I like to go is to the Rainforest Café where you can get breakfast, lunch, and dinner. You can eat anything you'd like from their delicious menu while being surrounded by elephants, birds, and the famous green frog.

The lobby of the Animal Kingdom Lodge

If you want the true Animal Kingdom experience, then staying at the Animal Kingdom Lodge would be the perfect place for you. It does cost more to stay there per night because right outside your bedroom window is a small savannah of animals such as giraffes and many more.

I have never been there myself but I would like to go at least once just so that I can have the experience of waking up and possibly having a giraffe standing outside my window.

I mean, who wouldn't want to wake up like that?

"The more you like yourself, the less you are like anyone else, which makes you unique".

                                              - Walt Disney