We’re here with a series of quick posts, “Disney in a Minute,” bite-sized nuggets of information that can better help you understand a Disney term or planning topic. Enjoy!
What is an Adult?
The girl on the left may still have missing teeth, but Disney considers her an adult.
For many purposes, if you’re at Walt Disney World, Disneyland, or on a Disney Cruise Line ship, you become an adult at age ten. Yep, Disney considers people ages ten and older to be adults for pricing on tickets, the Disney Dining Plan (currently on hiatus), fixed-priced restaurants, tours, and several other situations. If you’re choosing a date to visit, be aware that you may be able to save significant money if you visit when your child is age nine rather than waiting until she turns ten.
While Disney will begin charging adult prices for tickets and food when your child turns ten, there are some exceptions to this rule. Guests must be at least 14 years old to go into the theme parks on their own. And for legal purposes, sometimes a Disney adult is a real adult. You must be at least 18 to be the lead guest on a hotel reservation. And, of course, you must be at least 21 to purchase or consume alcohol.
Let us know what Disney topics you think merit a minute of explanation!
You’re planning a super fun Walt Disney World vacation! Your sister-in-law hears this and thinks a Disney vacation sounds super fun too.
And she wants her family to travel with you. Yayyyyy!!!
Yayyyy????
If you have enough conversations about your Disney World trips, inevitably your in-laws, or sister, or your college roommate, or your next door neighbor will come up with the brilliant idea that if you’re both going to have amazing Disney vacations, then wouldn’t it be great to have those vacations together.
When traveling with others, make sure that all the kids and all the adults get along well.
Is that a good idea or a bad idea? As with most things Disney, the answer is, “It depends.”
Traveling with friends or extended family could be a wonderful experience for all involved, or it could be a way to beat a perfectly nice relationship to death with a grotesquely over-sized turkey leg. Now more than ever, it’s important to look closely at what traveling with others really means and do an honest assessment of whether it makes sense for you.
Here are some things to think about. While a few of these points are specifically targeted to travel during the time of Coronavirus, most items apply any time:
Can the people you’re traveling with follow rules? During the Coronavirus pandemic, there are lots of rules. Wear your mask, keep social distance, sanitize often. If you know that your prospective travel companions are rule flaunters in general, then now is not the time to travel with them.
Have your travel companions kept good COVID hygiene? Are these folks who have been staying home and wearing masks from the onset of the pandemic, or have they been out maskless at large gatherings? Are they/you willing to get tested before you travel together? Make sure that people you might spend time with have the same protection philosophy you do.
Do you actually like these people? All of them? Sure you love your sister like, well, a sister, but what about her overbearing husband or her bratty daughter? While you may be able to cope with these folks at a two-hour birthday party, will you actually remain sane if you have to listen to bro-in-law complain about his boss for five straight days of your precious vacation time. If you can’t honestly say that you enjoy spending time with every single person in the other family, then reconsider making the trip.
Do your kids actually like each other? Up until age seven or eight you can usually throw youngsters together and they’ll find a way to make it work. But once the kiddos get their own interests, all bets are off. Does a cheerleader cousin make your goth daughter’s skin crawl? Will throwing your children together with polar opposites ruin their vacation (and thus yours)?
Do you have a similar financial situation? This may be difficult to assess, because most folks in the US would rather sleep on hot coals than have an honest discussion about money. Despite the discomfort, you’ve got to have the money talk before embarking on a vacation with someone. Do your friends think a vacation only a vacation if you’re staying in a five-star resort, while you’re clipping coupons to splurge on a moderate hotel? Do you want to eat table service for every meal, while your friends want to save their pennies by making oatmeal in the room for breakfast and bringing granola bars for snacks in the parks? Obviously, neither approach is right or wrong, but if you’re not on the same page then resentment is bound to happen. The “haves” will feel like they’re being held back. The “have nots” will feel over-extended or guilty. If your spending ability and philosophies are not in sync, save your socializing for your home turf.
Are your bravery levels compatible? There are plenty of situations at the Disney parks which challenge the senses. Will you react to them in the same way as your companions? If they want to do Expedition Everest six times in a row, while you get dizzy during the rotations at Carousel of Progress, then resentment is likely to accumulate while one group cools their heels waiting for the other.
Do you have similar attitudes about time? Are you always early for reservations while your bestie is often later than fashionably late? Are you ready for rope drop and pooped by 8:00 pm, while your in-laws like to sleep until noon? It’s difficult to have a great time with someone if you’re never awake at the same time or if you don’t have the same attitude about promptness.
Do you discipline the same way? In some families, the rules are the rules, no matter where you are. In other families, vacations are where rules are made to be broken. If one set of kids in having ice cream for breakfast, while the other gets no dessert unless they finish their green beans, tensions will arise.
Even if you’ve been in a close educational pod with your proposed companions for months, completely secure in your COVID plan and truly BFFs at home, it’s important to think about the ways in which travel will put different stresses on the relationship. Daytime and nighttime routines can be very different. Unknown stimuli (such as overstimulation in a theme park) can cause perfectly balanced relationships to skew. Do you really want to mess with a great relationship now? Or ever?
The more people you bring, the more opinions you’ll have to accommodate on what is the best way to do Disney.
Now before you start thinking that there is NEVER a situation where you’ll be comfortable traveling with another family, there are also some pros to group vacations that may outweigh any cons:
Date night is easy. Assuming that the other family is willing, you can trade evenings out with your spouse. You watch their kids while they watch yours. Enjoy big savings on sitting fees and feel safety in leaving your kids with a known supervisor.
Shared experiences can build bonds. If your son and his cousin simultaneously chicken out when attempting Space Mountain for the first time, that’s a story they’ll later laugh about for years to come.
There may be some economy-of-scale savings. This is particularly true if you decide to stay in off-site accommodations. Splitting the cost of an Orlando-area rental home may allow you substantially upgraded amenities for the same prices as staying on-site with a smaller party.
If you do decide to take the plunge, here are some guidelines you may want to set before you travel:
Everyone pays for their own food. Tell your server at the beginning of each meal that you want separate checks. This eliminates hard feelings when the sirloin and martini eater wants to go halfsies on a meal with a teetotaler vegetarian, for the third time this week.
Plan some time apart. Just because you’re vacationing together, that doesn’t mean you have to spend every waking minute together. If you plan to have some activities separately, that will give you more to talk about when meet up again.
Distribute tasks. Get everyone involved in the trip planning. This gives everyone ownership in making the vacation a success. This also ensures that no one person is overwhelmed with tasks like making dining reservations or planning itineraries.
Write out a list of expectations. Items covered may include items such as expected bedtimes, souvenir budgets, or disciplinary tactics for typical misbehavior situations. Share the list with children. The more everyone understands what the common goals are, the fewer opportunities there will be for hurt feelings and misunderstandings.
Over the years, I personally have traveled to Walt Disney World with neighbors, my parents, my sister-in-law and her family, adult friends, unrelated young adult babysitters, and even a group of twelve teenage girls. There have been great successes (priceless photos of the extended clan) and some frustrating challenges. Meeting at 8:00 does actually mean meeting at 8:00, why don’t some people understand that?
What have your experiences been? Have you enjoyed your journeys to the World with others, or are you going nuclear-family-only from now on because of a negative situation? Give us your tips in the comments below.
Considering a large-group trip and want help with the planning experience? A TouringPlans travel agent can assist with your trip whether it is a party of 2 or 200. Visit us at Touringplans.com/travel.
Disney’s Animal Kingdom is perhaps the most beautiful and most detailed park of the four Walt Disney World theme parks. Our team spent time in the park today researching various aspects of Disney’s Animal Kingdom and in between all that research they captured some lovely photos.
Majarajah Jungle Trek is one of the walk-through animal exhibits at Disney’s Animal Kingdom. It is located in the Asia section of the park and its main attraction is the breathtaking tiger exhibit. The slightly cooler weather today encouraged the park’s animals to be a little more active than they are in the oppressive summer.
Our team also spent some time in Pandora – World of Avatar, in part to enjoy Satu’li Canteen and make sure it is still as good as ever. Read our review here. Pandora truly is a visual delight.
Pandora World of Avatar
Besides beautiful, intricate details throughout the park, there’s some fun ones too. Like the highway sign in Dinoland USA which is a tribute to the park’s opening year and month.
Dinoland Detail – Opening Date SignTree of Life
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What’s your favorite detail inside Disney’s Animal Kingdom?
From our friends at touringplans.com Filed Under: Attractions, Disney’s Animal Kingdom Theme Park, Dos and Don’ts, In the Parks, Observations, Trip Planning, disney covid, disney reopening, Disney’s Animal Kingdom
Disney’s Animal Kingdom is a park that grows on you. It is the kind of theme park that invites you to slow down, and the more you take the time to appreciate its detailed atmosphere, the more you’ll enjoy it. Dawa Bar inside Harambe Village, the park’s land themed around Africa, is a fan favorite. Its location allows patrons to savor the immersive atmosphere while sipping a refreshing cocktail.
Over the years Dawa Bar has changed its offerings. It did not reopen when the park itself did; it reopened just a few days ago. Has anything changed at this beloved bar?
Dawa Bar with Protective Shield September 2020
One thing that changed even before the COVID-19 shutdown was the removal of an entertainment act loved by many Disney fans. Burudika performed almost daily, offering irresistible live music and dancing. Live entertainment is scarce at Walt Disney World right now, so part of the appeal of Dawa Bar is diminished slightly. Right now seating at the bar itself is not allowed, but there is plenty of seating nearby for you to sip and savor.
Dawa Bar Outdoor SeatingDawa Bar with Distancing Markers September 2020
According to over 500,000 surveys from our readers over the past few years, Dawa has earned a 96% thumbs up rating and is ranked number 4 out of 60 bars at Walt Disney World. No food is offered here, so if you are looking for a bite to accompany your beverage, consider a visit to Nomad Lounge, another highly rated bar inside Animal Kingdom. Highlights of the Dawa Bar menu include the Sugar Cane Mojito and the Lost on Safari rum drink.
Jungle Juice Cocktail at Dawa BarDawa Bar with Protective Shield September 2020
During an important research trip, our field team toasted the reopening of Dawa Bar with a Ngumu Jungle Juice. Snow Leporard Vodka is mixed with Bols Peach Schnapps, and Tusker’s Famous Jungle Juice. The Jungle Juice itself is POG: Passionfruit, orange, and guava juice. POG is a popular tropical cocktail base, and tastes great on its own too. For $13.00, the Jungle Juice is the price of an average cocktail at Disney. It’s fruity, refreshing, tropical, and not overly sweet.
Like learning about the best things to see and do at Walt Disney World? Become a TouringPlans Subscriber. You’ll get access to our Lines app that will help you maximize your time and have access to ratings of Disney’s bars and restaurants right at your fingertips.
Have you had a drink at Dawa Bar before? What’s your favorite?
From our friends at touringplans.com Filed Under: Disney’s Animal Kingdom Theme Park, Drinking, In the Parks, Observations, Walt Disney World (FL), dawa bar, disney bars, disney drinks, Disney’s Animal Kingdom, theme park bars
The Walt Disney World Resort has been taking great strides to make dining even more accessible for more and more Guests visiting the resort. With the introduction of things like Mobile Ordering, Mobile Dine Check-In, and the Mobile Dine Walk-up Waitlist, dining has never been so easy and enjoyable! And now, there are even more restaurants that are available for the Mobile Ordering option! So, if you’re ready to eat, you can get to the grub even faster!
Mobile Ordering is one of the best inventions. Guests can use the My Disney Experience app to browse menus, select what they would like to eat and drink (don’t forget the desserts!), and then place their order, all with ease. They then will tap the “I’m Here” button when they arrive at the dining destination and they’ll be able to enjoy a delicious meal in no time, with minimal wait and in an effort to keep health and safety in mind.
For the first time ever, Mobile Ordering is available for a table service dining location and it’s one of my personal favorites! Sanaa at Disney’s Animal Kingdom Lodge – Kidani Village will allow hotel Guests to place an order TO GO(!) from a selection of items. (Hello bread service on the go!) This is just the start though. The Mobile Ordering option for Table Service restaurants will be expanding to other options here soon. The My Disney Experience app will be the place to go to find out which restaurants are available.
But that’s not the only location that’s adding the Mobile Order Service. Many quick service locations at a number of resort hotels are also adding the option. They include The Market at Ale & Compass at Disney’s Yacht Club Resort, P & J’s Southern Takeout at Disney’s Fort Wilderness Resort and the BoardWalk Bakery and Pizza Window at Disney’s BoardWalk. And that’s just the start as the plan is to expand to even more locations soon.
Stay tuned, as we’ll likely have an article here soon discussing how this process works at many of these dining locations.
From our friends at touringplans.com Filed Under: Dining, News, Walt Disney World (FL), BoardWalk Bakery, Mobile Order, P & J’s Southern Takeout, Sanaa, The Market at Ale & Compass
