Christmas at Walt Disney World!

We just returned from a winter vacation to Walt Disney World and we had an amazing time!  We spent the entire week dining with the characters, riding fun rides, and taking in all that Disney had to offer during the Christmas season.  I must say that Cinderella’s Castle was a beautiful sight with the millions of Christmas lights that adorned it and the “Wishes” fireworks spectacular was gorgeous, especially with their accompaniment to Christmas carols! 

Our first day was spent at Animal Kingdom.  We began the day by having breakfast at the Tusker House with Donald Duck, Daisy Duck, Mickey Mouse, Pluto, and Goofy.  The buffet breakfast was wonderful and it was so much fun to visit and take pictures with each character.  This was a perfect start to our day and I was really surprised with the individual attention they gave to each child!   The “Jingle Jungle Parade” was a fun Christmas parade with all of the characters dressed up for Christmas.  Jackson and Preston’s favorite attraction here was the Kilimanjaro Safari. 

We spent two and a half days at Magic Kingdom and, WOW, what fun we had here!  Jackson’s favorite rides were Peter Pan’s Flight, Goofy’s Barnstormer roller coaster and Buzz Lightyear’s Space Ranger Spin.  Preston’s favorite rides were It’s a Small World, Dumbo the Flying Elephant, and the Mad Tea Party.  

 

 

 

 

Of course, both of them really enjoyed riding the WDW railroad.  We had lunch with Pooh, Eeyore, Piglet, and Tigger at the Crystal Palace and this was one of the best meals we had at Disney.  The funniest thing happened here…..Jackson asked Tigger to bounce on his tail.  Needless to say, Tigger just giggled and indicated he might his head on the ceiling!   

One of the days we were here, photographers that worked for Magic Kingdom asked if they could follow us for a few hours to take pictures of our fun.  After confirming their legitimacy, we agreed and it turned out to have it’s perks!  We were able to bypass the lines on a few of the rides and go directly to the front so they could ride in front of us and take pictures of our family.  They also took pictures of us playing in front of Cinderella’s Castle.  As a result, we received a fastpass to any ride of our choice and authentic artist drawn pictures of each of the main Disney characters.  If Disney likes the pictures their photographers took, you just might see us in their advertisements! 

Jackson and Preston were both overjoyed to meet Buzz Lightyear, Woody, and Jesse from the Toy Story.  Buzz Lightyear was HILARIOUS!!  He spent so much time with my boys, played with them, and took several pictures with us.  I think he was the most animated character we met and was very much into playing with the kids!  Of course, the Main Street Electrical Parade was the perfect finish to our day in Magic Kingdom.

Our day at Epcot was low key, which was much needed and completely what I expected.  Our family’s favorite attraction in this park was Soarin’ and Turtle Talk with Crush. 
We had dinner at the Garden Grill that evening with Chip n Dale, Pluto, Goofy, and Mickey.  Dale sat down at the table with Preston and colored with him for a while.  Preston also asked him to “wag his tail”, which he did and the boys got huge laughs out of that (we all did….even Dale). 

After dinner, we went to the Candlelight Processional, which was nice but not as “amazing” as what I had heard.  I’m sure my “lack of amazement” had to do with the fact that we were super cold!! By the way, it was cold throughout our entire trip!  Of course, Florida had to have record breaking temperatures the week we visited, but we enjoyed it in spite of the 40-50 degree temperatures.  I think our night at Epcot was the coldest one! 

We also spent a day at Hollywood Studios.  Both of my boys’
favorite ride here was Toy Story Mania.  We ate at the Sci Fi Dine in Theatre, which was a fun “drive-in movie” experience complete with old fashioned cars and car hops.  The night ended with The Osbourne Family Spectacle of Dancing Lights, which was a huge display of Christmas lights choreographed to music.  Both boys also enjoyed seeing “Mater” and “Lightning McQueen” from Cars.  

Although we spent 6 days at the parks, we did have one free day which was a nice addition to our week.  This day, we browsed the Christmas decorations at the Deluxe Resorts and had dinner at Chef Mickey’s with Mickey, Minnie, Donald, Goofy, and Pluto.  Although Chef Mickey’s was fun, I was a bit more impressed with the food at the Crystal Palace and the Tusker House.  Of course, Jackson and Preston were much more interested in dancing and chatting with the characters than eating dinner! 

Well, I think I have at least skimmed the surface to our Walt Disney World experience.  Although this was not my first trip to Disney, it was definitely the most memorable.  Seeing my boys smile that big left a lasting impression on my heart and made the trip one I will never forget!