Tag Archives: memories

Disney Cruise Line Fall 2015

Disney Cruise Line just released their new Fall 2015 itineraries and they’ve got some exciting things going on.

Back in Galveston!

That’s right, they’ve returned to the port of Galveston, Texas for a limited time. Holiday season sailings to the Bahamas and Western Caribbean.

The Wonder is will be in Hawaii for 2 special 10 night sailings September 7th and 17th. Then she is off to San Diego for the month of October with 6 sailings to Mexico!

Of course, the traditional sailing from Port Canaveral Florida continue with Bahamas and Caribbean itineraries which all include a day at Disney’s private island paradise, Castaway Cay.

Contact me to get pricing on these fabulous cruise itineraries, these limited engagements will book up quickly!

 

Disney World FREE Dining Promo

It’s the most wonderful time of the year ~ Disney World’s free dining promotion for fall 2014 has arrived!

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When you buy a non-discounted room and ticket package at select Walt Disney World Resort hotels (at least 3 nights with a 2-day ticket), you’ll get a dining plan for free! Quick-service dining is included at value resorts, and regular dining is included at moderate, deluxe, and deluxe villa resorts.

This special offer is for arrivals most nights: 8/31-10/3/2014, 10/26-11/1/2014, 11/9-11/20/2014 and 12/12-12/23/2014.

The number of rooms allocated for this offer is limited, so please contact me if you’re interested in taking advantage of this wonderful deal. Promotion begins today, May 7, 2014.

Magical Moment

There is something about Disney World. It’s hard to explain or put into words what it is. More than one person has told me about “that feeling when you walk down Main Street and see the castle” , that feeling when you are there, the entire world goes away. I know it well, I feel it too and it’s why I love the place so much.

As much as I already loved it, there was a specific event that amplified the love of Disney for me. It was a chain of events that led to a very short 2 second moment. But that 2 second moment was so exciting and special, I knew I was hooked for life.

It started on our family trip in August of 2010. I took a video, a short little 6 second video with my Flip Camera. I took lots of videos. But this one was really cute.

This was the year Disney was prepping for their Share the Memories theme for the following year. In September they started a website where people could share their memories, pictures and videos of their magical moments. I shared this video and another cute one from our trip. And life went on.

In December I was contacted by Disney marketing. They wanted me to sign release forms because they may want to use my video for something or other. I did. They sent me some lovely character lithograph prints as a thank you and told me if it was used in a commercial they would sent me a copy on DVD. Commercials started popping up on tv where Disney used people’s actual home videos, some shared from that site to promote their Share the Memories theme. These were mainly people surprising their kids with trips, they all made me cry. In January, on my internet travels one day I saw that this new show would be debuting soon. The Magic, the Memories and You. A 10 minute lights and special effects show projected onto the castle each night before Wishes.

A few days later, was the debut for the media. One of the big blogs posted the video online the next day. I sat and watched it, teary eyed the whole time. Then it happened, almost at the end, the last possible moment, the last little face on the screen before it goes dark and Walt says, “to all who come to this Happy place…” there he was. My little guy’s face up on the castle at Magic Kingdom. I jumped, I screamed. I called my husband right away and  told him that we are going to Disney again this summer. We HAVE GOT to see this in person! That little moment from riding Dumbo made it into the show.

We did go that August. We sat right in front of the castle and got to see it in person. It was an incredibly magical moment. Fan for life now. And so is my little guy. He is my Disney nut.

We’ve had other pixie dust moments on trips, but that moment was the BIG one. The one that sealed the deal for me and my love of Disney.

I’d love to hear from you, what are some of your magical moments from your trips?

Benefits of Using a Disney Travel Planner

A trip to Walt Disney World can be an overwhelming vacation to plan for. This is especially true for first-time visitors. There is so much to see and do and of course, everyone wants to “see it all!”

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First things first…you can’t and won’t see it all, no matter how many days your trip is. You can, however, maximize your vacation time with less stress by getting professional FREE planning help.

That’s right, the #1 thing many people don’t know is that using the services of a Disney Travel Planner is FREE.

Disney, like most other suppliers in the Travel Industry, pays agencies a commission. The Guest pays the same whether they do all the work themselves or have an expert do it for them.

When planning my first trip with my family I spent months…it was basically a full-time job for me, researching and planning our trip for several hours a day. I wanted it to be perfect and made it my mission to study everything I could find. Had I not been lucky enough to be a stay a home mom at the time, I would not have been able to devote that time to our vacation planning. Luckily I also had a professional background in the travel industry and had been to Disney World a few times prior.

 

A Disney Travel Planner will get you the best deal. They are current on all the best offers and can determine which one is best suited to your family and situation. Even if you are already booked, your agent will keep up to date and switch your booking over to a new special offer when it becomes available if possible. Your agent worries about getting you the best price, not you. Your agent will spend the time on the phone lines getting you the best option so you don’t have to.

A Disney Travel Planner will suggest and even book all your dining for you. Disney restaurant and special character meals can sell out fast, 6 months before your travel date! It can be daunting to even think about where you are going to eat 6 months in advance and then wrestle with the online booking system or spend hours on the phone with Disney Dining. But if you little ones have their hearts set on dinner with a certain character you’ll be out of luck if you don’t plan for it well in advance. Your Disney Planner can and will do this for you.

A Disney Travel Planner will give you as much itinerary planning help as needed. Whether it be just some simple tips if you have your own plan down to planning out a detailed itinerary if you want step by step guidance.

A Disney Travel Planner will recommend the best hotel option for your family. There are so many options at Disney World and a wide price range. A Disney Planner can narrow down the best options to suit you and your theme park touring style.

By getting help with the planning from a travel agent that works with an Authorized Disney Vacation Planner, like me :), you’ll be sure to make the best of the time you have and come home with the most MAGICAL of memories!

Stay up to date with me on Facebook or Twitter, follow this blog and be sure to contact me ( barbara@atimetotreasuretravel.com )when you are ready to head back to the House of Mouse!

Happy Birthday Hollywood Studios

Today, May 1st, Hollywood Studios celebrates 25 years. The first 2 times I visited the park, it was still Disney’s MGM Studios and I call it that a lot still to this day.

On our last trip, this park became a favorite of my boys. They are getting older and having a few more thrilling rides was a big plus. We all love Toy Story Mania, but Rock N Rollercoaster became the boy’s new favorite. They even got me on it, and I had never been on a coaster that went upside down before then. I rode it at least 5 times and I am screaming and look like a dork in the picture on every single ride. It was fun though!

Toy Story Mania

Rock N Roller Coaster

My favorite ride though at Hollywood Studio’s has to be the Tower of Terror. Enter the Twilight Zone!

Tower of Terror

I am not crazy about the drops, especially when they do a lot, every ride is a different sequence. But I love seeing the park out the window for a few seconds before the drop and I love the old dilapidated hotel. The theme design at this attraction is just spot on! Right down to the Cast Members and their attitudes.

Tower of Terror Lobby

What’s your favorite attraction at Hollywood Studios?

Top 3 Memory Keeping Methods

How do you preserve your treasured vacation memories? My tried and true top 3 methods make it super easy to relive the memories quickly and easily whenever I want to.

1. Make a video

This is our last Disney vacation video, I make one for every trip, so much fun to watch and relive the trip.

2. Make a Photobook

There are plenty of photo printing sites and always deals available to make it an affordable option. A “coffee table” photobook makes it easy to view the fun photos anytime.

3. Photo Collage

This is my favorite way to get a bunch of my best most meaningful moments on display. I can’t display 20 pictures from each trip around the house, but I can blend them together into one photo. I usually have this printed on a Desktop Plaque and they look fabulous!