Walt Disney & Nick Resort 2011-12

                                                       Arrived at the Orlando Airport

            I believe I am the biggest kid at heart. I decided to take my family of 5 to Disney World for the holidays in the week of December 25, 2011 to January 1, 2012. What better & happier place can you be at?? This was our second trip to Walt Disney World Florida. This time around we wanted to share some of the magic with our six year old, who was not able to go last time. The trip was magical from the time we stepped off the plane in the Orlando airport to leaving the parks. 

            Our Disney vacation started at Champion World Resort
in Orlando, it is an official Walt Disney World “Good Neighbor Hotel” (ehhhh... it was ok). Just an average hotel nothing special. The only good thing is that it is pretty close to the attractions and it is right off a main road so it is highly accessible. For the price I guess I can’t complain, it was a decent place to lay your head for a few hours and off we went to the attractions all day. I must mention we had accumulated points so we used it on our 5 night stay at this resort. They do offer free scheduled shuttle rides to Walt Disney World Theme Parks. We used their shuttle service only once for the Animal Kingdom Park, that was the only Disney park we visited. For the rest of our stay we used a private shuttle by ‘Discover USA Tours’. They were the most reasonable we could find; it cost us around $25 to $80 r/t (round trip) depending on the distance of where you wanted to go. It was worth every penny!

            Disney is not the only thing worth coming to Orlando for. I had begun researching the area we intended to visit for events or activities available during the time of our visit six months in advance. If you've come to Orlando and seen only the Walt Disney Parks, here are some suggestions for other experiences. The list is endless but I will share our experience of all the fun things we did.  

            We went to see the ICE show at The Gaylord Palms Resort. This was our first time going and we weren't sure what to expect. Oh my goodness this place is breathtaking indeed! This place is like its own city. Ginormous indoor resort with great scenery complete with alligators and turtles. The atrium is incredible. It is climate-controlled so while it's cold or humid outside, you can be in the atrium and feel like you're outside but really you’re inside. Before we went for the ‘ICE’ sculpture exhibit the boys had a great time running around the paths. We had lots of photo opportunities around the lobby and were able to listen to a live Christmas concert show. It put us in the cheery holiday mood for sure. Finally we are headed for the big freeze! ‘ICE’! Upon entering you are given a coat (Parka) to stay warm; they come in every size, even for kids!

~ DAY 1 ~

 

 

 

        It is FREEZING in there! Please wear closed toe shoes and long pants. I can’t stress this enough: bring your scarves & gloves and maybe an extra jacket to wear underneath your blue parka (coat). It is a shocking 9 degrees inside. Brrr! There are several employees standing around to make sure you are not sitting on or touching the ice sculptures. (Shhh--we did!)  This place is unique and mind blowing. I have honestly never seen anything like this!  What a fun excursion. The attraction is built around a “Shrek the Halls” theme featuring the animated ogre and family as ice sculptures. (Note: Theme changes every year) Everything was amazing. The kids were cold even with the provided parkas as well as the multiple layers, gloves, and mittens we brought.  However, our red noses were well worth it! We also tried the thrilling ice slides that are more than two stories tall. I have to admit not only the kids loved it but so did we. I can’t say WOW enough… The Nativity scene carved from crystal clear ice – it will astound you. Don’t forget your cameras!  Afterwards, we enjoyed walking around the beautiful resort, warming up with some delicious complimentary hot chocolate, looking at the huge Christmas tree in the center of the resort, and listening to Christmas music throughout the resort. 

 

The Nativity Scene 

   

  Note:  Stay for the 'Illumines' show in the evening, beautiful light displays!

                                                                 

 ~ DAY 2 ~            We cut back from four parks to one this trip to Disney and really enjoyed our time at Animal Kingdom. I recommend riding Kilimanjaro Safaris as your first stop to the park. This was our second visit to the park and missed the Safari ride on our visit in 2005. You don’t want to miss it! I loved the setting, and how it makes you feel like you are in Africa. The animals are real and amazingly beautiful. This is a perfect ride for the entire family. Once you are off the ride, you will see a Disney photographer who will happily take a photo of you and save it on a Disney Photo Pass that you can view at home and order online. She will take you to just a couple of safari props that you can take pictures with.
                                             

 

 

            Next we headed for the ‘Expedition Everest’. We needed an adrenaline rush! As we were walking on our way we saw the crowd lined up for ‘Nemo the Musical’ and joined them just on time! We had to get in and we did! ‘Finding Nemo the Musical’ is beautifully staged with dozens of large puppets and multiple sets. The way the story is presented is very touching, sweet, and humorous. This kind of show is something you could easily pay a lot to see elsewhere. It will definitely keep the attention of adults and little ones alike. They only do the show a few times a day so check the times when you go into the park and fit it in. One of my other favorites is the ‘Tree of Life’, a beautiful sculpture that is very impressive in person. They took all the wild beasts of the savannah and carved it into the tree—JUST BEAUTIFUL TO SEE!                                             

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

  Due to the down pour out of no where that day, we had to find an indoor ride fast before we got soaked! Oh well, it was too late and we got soaked anyways. It was actually fun and a little wet! We spotted the ‘Dinosaur’ ride next. The ride consists of a time rover and goes back 65 million years into the past. This was an indoor ride. I had witnessed a family ahead of us walking out, because the little girl was in tears & terrified of the darkness. My little guy, the six year old, did great! I have to admit I was a bit worried at first but it all went smoothly. A surprisingly good ride and it kept us dry!

I highly recommend for youto pack some ponchos into your suitcase incase of a downpour!

            Finally it had stopped raining. We all decided to go see the ‘Festival of the Lion King’. It is amazing, and a must see every time we go. If some of you have seen ‘Cirque du Soleil’ as we did in 2005 in Downtown Disney, the acrobatic style is similar to that. A must see for the entire family! 
        

 

            Another good one that you can’t miss is ‘The Pangani Forest Exploration Trail’. We were all fascinated by the gorillas, but yet so sad to see them in captivity. Yeah yeah, hillsides and waterfalls, but they are still in captivity…it’s just sad. They just seem so much like you and me. Someday I wish to visit them in their natural habitat, the real Africa.

 

It’s time to leave and we are tired and ready to go back to our hotel. The ‘Animal Kingdom’ is a gem not to be missed.
 

Note: The park usually closes at 5:00pm. Even if the park stays open late, the animals are taken in by 5:00pm. Get there early and make the most out of your day.
 

~ Day 3 ~

            When we visited Gatorland we didn't know what to expect but we were pleasantly surprised. We strolled around the lakes and ponds gazing at the gators and things around us. This is a good chance to relax and get away from the crowded theme parks.

            Gators? Snakes? Creepy-- Ok I admit I’m not a big reptile fan, but I did this for my kids and what an experience this turned out to be for all of us.

            All three of my kids got up close and personal with a Gator. They got a chance to sit on the Gators back and get their picture taken by a professional photographer. Towards the end of the day we purchased our photos with the Gators, it makes a lovely souvenir to take home.   



 Watch a live wrestling match between man and gator!! We all thought this was an awesome show to see. The people who work here are awesome too. Extremely knowledgeable, and most of all loads of fun! They add so much humor to the experience. It was a joy to watch.

 

    We also got to feed many colorful parakeets and also took a train ride around the back half of the park. It costs an extra $2 above the basic admission.They also had a zip line around the entire park over the gators, we passed on that one.

 

 Note:  Gatorland is open daily from 10:00 AM to 5:00 PM so get there early and enjoy all the shows and animals.

 ~Day 4~                                          

            We visited the ‘Islands of Adventure’ two days before New Years Eve. We had bought our tickets online so we could skip those long lines. We had met a family there and they had told us they were going to come the day before, but the park was over crowded by 11 A.M., therefore it was closed to the public. Ugh, if that would have happened to us I would have been furious! I kind of prepared myself for delays, and even closures, due to all the researches I had done before hand. Thankfully that didn’t happen to us.
                                                                 

 

            Finally we got in! The first and only ride we had on our minds was to head for The ‘Harry Potter and the Mysterious Journey’ ride. After seeing the long lines we decided to get a bite to eat before hitting the crazy never-ending lines. It is the most popular area in the park. To tell you the truth we’re not big Harry Potter fans, but due to the hype we had to try the ride. My husband and 11 year-old son decided that they didn’t want to wait in the long line, so instead they went to try the other rides. So it was my daughter, six year-old & I left for the adventure of ‘Harry Potter’!!  We had to wait 3 hours in line that twisted and turned through the park just to get a return ticket -- which would allow us to go into the ‘World of Harry Potter’ and once we were in, another 2 and a half hours of waiting in line just for the ride---craziness!! I saw a family with a younger child walk away after 3 hours of waiting, just before getting into the ride. 

 




He is pooped! 



                                        So proud of my 6 year old for hanging in!!!                    

            We are finally in and to our surprise it started to snow inside of Hogwarts! We are about to get on the ride—we all had this great sense of accomplishment. We did it after 5 and a half hour!!! We didn’t fly all the way from California for nothing! Just have patience and you can do everything. We tried to get as many rides in as possible before the park closed.

 

 

 

 

 

 

  Tip: Keep your receipts and don't forget to pick up your photos on the way out, it makes a great souvenir.                                 

 ~ Day 5 ~ 

This morning we are getting ready to check out from the Champion World Resort.
We are all waiting for our shuttle to take us to the world famous Nickelodeon Resort! My six year old kept on asking me if we can spend the night there (shhh, he has no idea what is about to happen).


 We visited Orlando in 2005 and he was 3 months old, but didn't come with us. So I made a promise that when he turned 5 we would return to continue our trip. My baby being 6 and a half, the promise was a little overdue. He had no clue we would be staying at the Nickelodeon Resort.

 

  After checking in and seeing our new room (which had 2 bedrooms, one with a Sponge bob theme and a master bedroom, and a spacious living room!), my daughter and I went and found one of the hotel’s photographers and asked her a huge favor: “My son has no idea that we’re actually staying here for 3 days,” I began, “when we were back home in California, we had told him that the only way you guys would let us stay at this resort was if he sang the Sponge bob Square pants theme song. If he sings it correctly, then ‘we’ll get a hotel room for 2 nights and 3 days’. Would you mind being the one to make it all happen?” She loved the idea and agreed to it. We handed her a bag which contained a giant Sponge bob hat which we bought from the souvenir store at the mall inside the resort and told her to hand it to him when he is finished singing as a reward. She handed him the bag and said you were the best singer we’ve had all day! His face was filled with joy and started to dance around. He had a big smile on his face for the rest of the day ( mission accomplished my babies dream came true!

 

 

 

 

We did the character breakfast our first morning (12/31/11), extremely memorable event for us. I made the reservation way in advance while we were still in California, It’s a must do if you have younger kids. A little pricey, but my kids LOVED this. We took many pictures with all the Nick characters. The kids had a blast dancing with them as well. The Sponge Bob 4d show cost's 12.00 a person but I had bought a package that had everything included. We had access to all the shows plus more. The live shows by the pool were fun and definitely ‘slimy’! My daughter was chosen as one of the volunteers for a game they were having by the pool and got slimed with a lot of other people. We created memories to last a lifetime.                                                  

Thomas dancing with Sponge!





 

Note:  IMPORTANT TO REMEMBER: Reserve hotel activities and shows in advance at the Guest Services Desk inside the mall.

 The Mall is where most of the action takes place. Catch a live show at Studio Nick. Slime time live, Sponge bob show, 4D Theater, souvenir shops, a lounge, kiddy’s spa, a food court, an Arcade. Buy your Nickelodeon souvenirs at Nick Stuff. Sponge Bob fans will find many Sponge Bob items at Nick Stuff.

 



Waiting to get slimed!

 Traveling will make kids come back feeling more self- confident, more independent, open minded, and knowledgeable about the world we live in. Let’s enrich their lives forever! Train up a child in the way he should go; even when he is old he will not depart from it. (Proverbs 22:6 ESV)

Happy New Year 2012!!