Back when my son was in middle school, he dreamed of being an Imagineer. We created curriculum around it, bought all kinds of books on the Disney Imagineers and theme park engineering and he even took an online college-level course on it (and aced it!). So maybe that’s why I find myself all these years…
Author: StaceyCotrufo
Change jars, yard sales and hold the Starbucks
Saving for anything takes sacrifice and saving for a trip to the Walt Disney World Resort is no different. As a family who lives paycheck to paycheck most of the time, we have made that sacrifice several times and found the results to be well worth it. If you are financially secure, then you really…
Testing and touring the waters
I really wish that Disney would let its resort guest’s pool hop. Believe me when I tell you that not all pools are created equally. To be honest, we do not utilized the pools much when we are at Walt Disney World as a family but I tend to take the time to laze around…
Making the Most of a Multi-Generational Trip
When planning your trip to the Walt Disney World Resort it is easy to get swept up in to the dream of the “whole family” going. You know, you, your spouse and kids, aunts, uncles, cousins and of course, the grandparents. While this is a lovely image and Disney has created their “Magical Gatherings” to…
Happy Birthday, Love Mickey Mouse
A couple of years ago, the Walt Disney Company did a campaign where you got in to the parks for free on your birthday. I think this was an awesome idea and if you were a Florida resident, it was probably easier to coordinate than it was for those of us around the country. I’m…
Rides We’d Love to Rehab
If you are a long time traveler to the Walt Disney World resort, after you get over your feeling of nostalgia while walking through the parks and riding the rides, there are times, if you are like me, that you think, “Wow, that ride could totally do with a make-over!” I know that there are…
Rides We’ll Ride Over and Over: Buzz Lightyear’s Space Ranger Spin
You don’t have to be a kid to love you some Buzz Lightyear! Ever since the very first “Toy Story”, we have all been fans of his here in my family! When Magic Kingdom opened “Buzz Lightyear’s Space Ranger Spin” my family and I could NOT wait to ride it. Years later, it is still…
Rides We’ll Ride Over and Over: Soarin’
I’ll never forget the first time I experienced the ride Soarin in Epcot. I was on a trip with my sister and when the seats rose in to the air I thought I would die. Where were we going? Why are we up in the air? Wasn’t this a movie? Oh, it’s that and so…
Do you join the Jamboree?
And by Jamboree, I mean parade. Nobody puts on a parade like Disney. I’ve seen holiday parades, daily parades, I’ve seen them in all of the parks that offer them; I’ve seen the parade on land and parade on sea. I’ve seen parades in the daylight and in the evening; I’ve even seen parades that…
How Early is Too Early to Plan?
There is often a great debate amongst travelers to the Walt Disney World Resort about how far in advance to you start to plan. What is too early? What is too late? What are the pros and cons to both? Let me start by saying, as an unabashed ultimate fan of WDW that it is…
What if Disney had a museum?
So this topic came up at my last gathering of my Disney friends: what happens to all of the rides that were once at the Walt Disney World Resort after they are taken down? I mean, I understand the concept of construction/deconstruction but those rides are not just walls, wood, plaster and paint, there are…
If you only had a Day in Disney
Not everyone is lucky enough to be able to afford a six, seven or eight day stay at Walt Disney World. Sometimes you lucky to be able to squeeze in a three to five day stay. But what if you only one day? How would you spend it? Last year we actually did that and…