That's the Ticket!

Your tickets are your keys to the World, and there are so many keys to choose from.
Disney offers a variety of ticket options and packages so you can build a vacation to suit your needs and budget. It’s kind of like building a hamburger. You start with the bun and the meat, and then layer on as many extra goodies as you want. The “bun” of your Disney hamburger is the Magic Your Way Base Ticket. This $82 ticket is for one park for one day. You can add options to this base ticket to suit your needs.
Add-on Ticket Options
* Water Park Fun & More option gains you admittance to Disney’s two water parks, as well as Disney’s virtual theme park called Disney Quest. This option is only available when you purchase tickets for 5 days or longer. It costs about $54 per person for a 5 day ticket.
* No Expiration option allows you to save some of your days for another vacation. My family and I have done this a few times. Let’s say you can only stay at Disney for 4 days, but you have extra money and can afford the 7 day tickets. You can go ahead and purchase the 7 day tickets with the No Expiration option, only use them for 4 days, and then the next year you can go for 3 more days and it will already be paid for (your tickets will be, but not your hotel). This option costs about $142 per person on a 7 day ticket.
* Park Hopper option allows you to visit multiple parks in the same day. I always purchase this option because it offers so much flexibility to your vacation schedule. Without this option you can only visit one park per day, and once your ticket is scanned, you can’t leave the park and get back in. With Park Hopper you can start your morning at one park, leave at lunch time and head to another park to catch a parade, then leave and go to another park that night for the fireworks. This way, you won’t waste a minute of the magic, and it allows you to see more in fewer days. It costs about $54 per person for a 5 day ticket.

Ticket & Hotel Packages
Disney offers packages that include hotel and tickets. There are also options that add dining to the package as well. (I’ll briefly touch on that here, but I’ll post a whole blog devoted to dining plans later, as well as one on hotels.) Packages include a minimum 3-night/4-day stay at a Walt Disney World Resort hotel and base theme park tickets. The price for each type of package varies depending on which hotel and ticket options you choose. 
* The Magic Your Way Package is the most basic package on the menu. It includes base theme park tickets and hotel stay. For a family of four at a value resort for the minimum stay costs around $1,350.
* Magic Your Way Plus Quick- Service Dining includes base tickets, hotel, and 2 quick-service meals and 2 snacks per person per day. This is the smallest dining plan that Disney offers. For a family of four at a moderate resort for the minimum stay costs around $1,950.
* Magic Your Way Plus Dining includes base tickets, hotel, 1 table-service meal, 1 quick-service meal and 1 snack per person per day. For a family of four at a value resort for the minimum stay costs around $1,800.
*Magic Your Way Plus Deluxe Dining includes base tickets, hotel, 3 meals and 2 snacks per person per day. For a family of four at a moderate resort for 6 nights/7 days it costs around $3,800.
* Magic Your Way Premium includes base tickets, hotel, 3 meals and 2 snacks per person per day, unlimited use of Disney recreation and tickets to Cirque du Soleil. For a family of four at a deluxe villa resort for the minimum stay costs around $4,000.
* Magic Your Way Platinum includes everything in the Premium package plus pre-arrival planning services, a fireworks cruise, reserved seats at Fantasmic, spa treatment, turn-down service and more. For a family of four at a deluxe resort for the minimum stay costs around $5,200.

Later, I’ll talk more specifically about the first three dining plans and the different types of resort hotels, but for now you can have idea of what each package includes and costs. As always, you can find more info on the Walt Disney World Resort website. See the Links panel at the right for the URL.  

Now that we've got the business part out of the way, I thought I'd share something with you guys. I told you in the first post that I've been going to Disney World since I was 3 years old. Here's a photo from my very first visit in April of 1990. I remember it every detail like it was yesterday, and so will your little ones!

Have a good one!

Miranda

Tools of the Trade

Disney offers several tools to help you plan every detail of your visit. The Walt Disney World Resort website is always my best friend when I'm planning. There you can find detailed information about each park, restaurant, resort hotel, ticket packages, dining plans and more. If you create a Disney account, even more planning tools open up to you.
I'll introduce you to the parts of the website that I use the most, starting with the My Disney Vacation planning tool.

To access the My Disney Vacation tool, you'll have to create an account with the website. Creating an account also allows you to sign up for e-mail updates  and newsletters about what's going on at the parks.
The tool is located in the second navigation bar at the upper right of the screen.

Once you've logged in and opened the My Disney Vacation tool, you'll see this screen:

I've highlighted some of the areas that you might find most helpful.
The first thing I want to note is the Free Vacation DVD. I highly recommed you get this. It is a great source of information and gives you a visual overview of everything at the resort, and best of all, it's FREE!!
The menu at the left is a shortcut to just about anywhere you need to go on the site. The My Reservations tab takes you to the place where you can make, cancel or view any of your reservations, from hotel to dining to special events. The Park Hours tab provides detailed, day-by-day opening and closing times for each park. Most parks open at the same time every day, but the closing times vary on week days and weekends.
Park Maps is a great way to familiarize yourself with the Disney World Resort before you ever set foot on the property. People have always asked me how I can know exactly where every attraction is in each park. Well, it's because as a kid, I kept every park map from every trip and would just sit and read them at home because I couldn't wait to go back. Dorky, I know :). Anyway, here's a quick look at what the map viewer looks like:

You can view a detailed map of each park, including the water parks and Downtown Disney area. Resort hotels are also featured on the Disney property overview map.
The Closures tool is a new one and I love it! There's almost always something closed at Disney World for renovation. This will let you know what's closed and when.
The biggest tool that I use is the entertainment calendar for each park. The first thing I plan (after tickets and hotel of course) is what parades and firework shows we're going to see. Most events are every day, but some, such as the Main Street Electrical parade or Fantasmic laser show, do not. These events are spectacular "can't miss" moments, so I usually try to plan my days around them. You can view the calendars by month like this:

Or you can click on any day and get a detailed view of events and times. You can also click on each event to learn more about it.

Well, I think I've overloaded your  brain enough for one day :). If you decide the My Disney Vacation tool isn't for you, I still suggest to request the free vacation planning DVD. If nothing else, it will get you (and especially the kids) super excited!


Until next time,


Miranda

But first, the introductions!

Hola amigos!! Welcome to the Keys to the Magic Kingdom blog! I’m Miranda, photographer/artist/Disney junkie, and I’ll be your personal tour guide for your Walt Disney World vacation… at least in spirit :).
I’ve been visiting the Walt Disney World Resort since I was 2 years old. December of 2010 marked by 14^th trip. Needless to say, I’ve learned my way around the place over the years. I guess that’s why when any of my friends or relatives decide to plan a trip, I’m usually the first person they call.

Where are the best places to eat? What attractions are best for the kids? When should we visit which park? Where is the best place to stay? How do I even begin to plan this??
There are a million questions and things you need to know when planning a Disney trip, especially if it's your first one. When people ask me for tips and advice, sometimes the information can be overwhelming. There’s just so much to know and see and do, so I thought, why not break it down and write about it?

And so the Keys to the Magic Kingdom blog was born!

Each week I’ll feature a specific topic, everything from where to stay, to what to do and when to do it. Parents, one thing to remember: Although I have yet to take a Disney vacation as a parent, I have had tons of experience being a Disney kid. So my recommendations for the little ones are based off what I know kids love and how my own parents handled carting a 3-year-old all around the parks. I’ll try to give you as much helpful information as I can, but remember, this is YOUR vacation. Decide what works best for you and your family. Everyone’s Disney experience is unique and special, so make it your own! Have a magical day!

Miranda

Yours truly enjoying the snow at Mickey's Very Merry Christmas Party at the Magic Kingdom this past December.

P.S. If you have questions or a topic request, just leave a comment on the blog or send an e-mail to imaginationphotog@yahoo.com. Oh, and if you need a portrait or wedding photographer, check out my photography blog at http://imaginationphotog.blogspot.com/ and website at www.imaginationphotog.com. OK, I promise no more commercials ;).