We arrive in line at the will call window at 8:45am. While waiting in line, I took off my prescription sunglasses so that I could apply sunscreen to my face and I accidentally dropped-and broke-my sunglasses, hopefully the day will get better.  It was 9:15am by the time I had my turn at the window. I turned in my registration paper (if you are going to take advantage of the “Free Admission on Your Birthday” promotion go to http://disneyworld.disney.go.com/ and pre-register). I got my ticket and my birthday badge and entered the park.

Since there is still a week left in the annual Flower and Garden Festival we were greeted with beautiful topiaries of the princesses and their princes. I love this picture of Cinderella’s pumpkin coach rising out of the pumpkin patch.

We headed to Test Track first, since there was a 20 minute wait for regular riders we chose to go as single riders. We walked right in, skipped the pre-show movie and were on the ride in less than 3 minutes. As soon as the ride finished we went back in the single rider line and rode again. We enjoy riding Test track with strangers, especially if we get to ride with people who have never ridden before. It makes the ride even more fun! Next we walked over to get our fastpasses for Soarin’. We then went to The Living Seas with Nemo and Friends. the line wasn’t that long so we rode the ride, spent some time watching the manatees and fish and then went in the theatre to see Turtle Talk with Crush.

Next it was off to Innoventions. There have been a lot of new attractions added to Innoventions since our last visit. We did Storm Struck, about severe weather safety, that was very interesting especially for those of us that live in hurricane plagued Florida. We also did The Great Piggy Bank Adventure-sponsored by T. Rowe Price. This is a great interactive exhibit on finances, saving and investing. We had a lot of fun working to save and make money for our ultimate family vacation. Here is Jordan with our piggy bank. In Innoventions I got to ride a Segway for the first time, that was way cool! We also went to the SlapStick Studios show sponsored by Velcro. That was a funny audience participation game show about all of the uses for hook and loop fasteners.

After eating lunch at the Electric Umbrella and riding Soarin’, it was time to head to World Showcase. In France we had a tweet-up! We were able to connect with Lou Mongello from WDWradio.com. I have talked to Lou on line and it was great to meet him in person. After meeting with Lou we took a turn at the new Kim Possible World Showcase Adventure. This was a lot of fun. Back in Innoventions we had registered for our “Kimmunicator”. We picked it up when we arrived in the World Showcase. It is a cool Verizon phone with amazing graphics and sound. You receive clues to help Kim and Ron solve a case in the country they send you to. here is a video of part of our mission in France.

We had a lot of fun on the adventure. Each mission takes about 35 minutes to complete and depending on how busy it is in the park you can do 1-2 missions before being told where to turn in your Kimmunicator. Our second mission was in China and most of it took place in the large store at the back. That was a good thing because, the only rain we saw all day came then and it was torrential!

We visited Mexico to ride the Gran Fiesta Boat Tour and Norway to ride Maelstrom before heading back to Future World. In Future World we rode Journey into Imagination with Figment, took another ride on Test track via the single rider line, and then ended our day by riding Spaceship Earth. We had a great day, met a new friend and basked in the magic that is Walt Disney World.

If you want more information on Epcot or any of the attractions I mentioned in this post, please leave me a comment, I love to answer your questions.

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A one-day ticket for Disney‘s water parks, Blizzard Beach and Typhoon Lagoon, has increased by $5. The adult ticket has gone to $45 (up from $40) and the child ticket (ages 3-9) is now $39 (up from $34). This price increase brings it into line with that of Aquatica (SeaWorld Orlando‘s waterpark) and Wet n Wild, which are both $44.95 for adults and $38.95 for children.

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Tonight Lou is hosting a LIVE broadcast of WDW Radio, here is all the info on that cool event.

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1. Will you have a car while visiting Disney World?
2. Will you be visiting other non-Disney attractions while visiting central Florida?
3. How many people, adults and children, will be traveling in your party?
4. How much time do you plan on spending in your room?
5. What is your per night budget?

Let’s review the answers to the questions.

1. Will you have a car while visiting Disney World?

a) If you will not have a car I suggest you stay on property. If you fly into Orlando International Airport you can use Disney’s Magical Express Service. They will pick you up at the airport and bring you and your luggage to your Disney resort. You must sign up for this service at least 10 days prior to your arrival date.  Also, guests staying on property do not pay the daily $12 parking fee.

b) If you will have a car, don’t mind driving to and from the park each day and paying the parking fee, you can stay off property.

2. Will you be visiting other non-Disney attractions while visiting central Florida?

a) If you will be visiting other non-Disney attractions you will want a car. The estimated taxi fare from Walt Disney World to Universal Studios (14 miles away) is over $32.00!

b) Your other option would be to rent a car for 1-2 days of your vacation. The problem with renting for only part of your vacation is picking up and returning the car plus a short term rental of a small car can easily cost almost $100.

c) If you aren’t planning on visiting other attractions just stay on property and use Disney transportation, it’s free.

3. How many people, adults and children, will be traveling in your party?

a) Most hotel and resort rooms sleep 4 people, some sleep 5-6 in a family suite. How many rooms will you need? Sometimes 2 connecting rooms still costs less than a large suite or DVC property that sleeps 8 or more people.

b) Some people rent vacation homes so that their kids can be in a separate room or accommodate a larger party.

4. How much time do you plan on spending in your room?

a) Are you using the room to sleep, shower and dress? Then you can stay off property or on property in a value resort.

b) Are you all about using the resort amenities? Laying by the pool, going to the spa, renting a pontoon boat? You can stay off or on property but pay close attention to the amenities the particular property offers.

5. What is your per night budget? For this one we re going to assume you are a family of 4, 2 adults and 2 children between the ages of 3-17. You want at least a 3-star hotel from May 4-7, 2009.

a) Orbitz has several 3-star hotels on 192 in Kissimmee (close to Disney) ranging from $48-$100 per night. Most of these properties do not have a restaurant on site and you will need to add $12 per day for parking at the Disney parks.

b) You could stay at a Disney value resort for $68 per night, have a food court on site and free parking.

Other perks of staying on Disney property include discounts on room and ticket packages, ability to purchase the Disney Dining Plan, the very detailed Disney theming, Disney’s top-notch service and the feeling that you are staying in the middle of the magic.

I hope this post has given you some things to think about as you plan your magical Disney vacation. If you have any questions or comments, please feel free to leave me a comment on this post.

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