Adam’s birthday happened last week. We were so busy with our work schedules that we kind of had to split up the celebration. Our first official “celebration” was visiting a new-to-us restaurant for breakfast.
Saving For Your Disney Trip
There’s no denying that any Disney Vacation is expensive. Saving for a Disney Trip is one of the first steps in the planning process. It can take some time to save up for your trip. This post is going to talk about how to save for your Disney trip. I have a lot of thoughts about this so let’s just jump right in!
#1- Start Early
#2- Create a Savings Plan
#3- Find Extra Ways to Find Extra Funds
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#3- Change jar- We have a jar that we keep on our dresser and every time one of us gets change, we put it in the jar. We also stick our gift cards in the jar and occasionally we add in cash we get for gifts or we just take out a little extra in cash and put it in the jar. And then when we get close to the vacation, we take out the coins and see what we have. It definitely adds up.
#4- Garage/Yard Sale- Everyone has extra stuff laying around that we don’t really use or need to keep. Sell it! With social media, you can even just post your items online to see if your friends or friends-friends have been looking for those things for their lives. You’ll clean out your house and add to your fund!
#5- Don’t Treat Yo Self- This might be one of the only times I say this (haha). But your Disney trip will be the ultimate Treat Yo Self, so you can do without for a few months as you save. Take the money from your Treat Yo Self days and put them in your Travel account.
Why We Decided to Blog
We’ve been doing this blogging thing for a few months now. And many of you might be wondering why we started this blog and the YouTube channel. I figured it was time that we talked a little bit more about our adventure and why we’re sharing it on this blog.
As I’m sure you’ve deduced, we’ve always loved Disney and we’ve spent a lot of time planning and going on Disney adventures. Now that we’re living here, we thought it might give us an opportunity to share some of that knowledge and experience. And with our close proximity, we could keep updating information and make things fun too! We know there are a lot of travel bloggers and vloggers out there and plenty of them specialize in Disney. But we have our own unique perspective on things and thought others might benefit from that.
We also wanted a way to chronicle our own adventures. In a way, this blog and videos are a kind of journal for us. We can keep track of our own adventures and what we learn from our experiences out here.
There are a lot of people out there making money from blogging and vlogging. And while we don’t expect to make our millions and quit our day jobs, it would be nice if we could make a little money from our blog and help us pay our bills and student loans. I’ve done a little research and we became Amazon Affiliates so we could post links of products we like and recommend and possible make a little side income from the blog. We’ve only just begun, so things are still struggling to get up, but hopefully our hard work will pay off (literally…we’d like to pay off our student loans)!
Anyway, so as you read through our blog and notice Amazon ads or our affiliate links, that’s why. We’re out here working out tails off during our Disney College Program, but we’re also working hard to make our Blog and YouTube Channel successful. We’d love your help with that! Please share our blog and YouTube Channel with your friends who might be interested!
And we would love your feedback on our content! Are there things you’d like to hear about? Please leave comments! We’re just kind of playing it by ear right now and hoping we can guess what our audience wants. But it would be better if you told us! Do you want to hear more about us as a couple and our journey here? Or would you like more Disney dining details? Attractions recommendations? Planning tips? Weather reports? Movie reviews? We want to give you what you want to read!
Leave some suggestions in the comments! We want to get to know our readers!
Insider Tips for Conquering Hollywood Studios Park
Hollywood Studios has kind of been overlooked for the last few years as it’s been going through big changes. With the opening of Toy Story Land just recently and the expected opening of several other new attractions, including Star Wars Galaxy’s Edge, Hollywood Studios is about to become a much busier park.
In this post, you’re going to get a few tips to help your visit to Hollywood Studios be more comfortable and enjoyable for everyone! They’re in no particular order, just kind of as they popped into my brain!
1. Don’t take photos at the Mickey and Brooms topiary first thing in the morning. You’ll thank me later. The morning might seem like a great time to take photos because everyone is still happy and not sweaty. But for the Mickey Topiary, morning is just not ideal. The sun will be RIGHT IN YOUR EYES! Even if it’s cloudy, you’ll still be squinting with the brightness. Do your whole family a favor and get that photo in the afternoon/early evening.
2. Get to the park for rope drop/opening. With Toy Story Land being BRAND NEW, the crowds are just really crazy. There is currently not a single-rider line for Slinky Dog coaster and it’s wildly popular. Get to the park at least 20 minutes before it’s scheduled to open as sometimes the park will open early. I’ve heard from multiple guests that if you get in right when it opens, you’ll be able to ride all of the rides, multiple times in some cases.
3. If you’re not an early morning person, you need to stay at a Disney Resort hotel and book your FastPasses 60 days in advance. You’ll still only be able to book one (1) FastPass for a Toy Story ride. I would suggest Slinky Dog as your FastPass ride. That line seems to be the longest. If you’re going to be able to visit Hollywood Studios on more than one day, you can get a FastPass for a different Toy Story ride for that other day.
4. Be aware that there is not a ton of shade, especially in Toy Story Land. Come prepared to hydrate and stay cool. Have your cooling towels and water bottles ready. Wear hats. Plan to see some of the shows throughout the day so you have sit-down and cool-down time.
5. Know which eating locations have indoor seating. Of course the Table Service restaurants will have indoor seating with beautiful Air Conditioning. But those are not your only options. Backlot Express will have some limited indoor seating, but they also have outdoor seating. Backlot Express can be found over by Star Tours. ABC Commissary has quite a bit of indoor seating and is located behind the Hyperion Theater (where the Frozen Sing-a-long shows).
6. The First Order marches every hour on the hour (except for 1:00 pm). So if you have a Star Wars crazed kid, you’ll have ample opportunities. It is pretty cool and lasts around 10-15 minutes so you can catch it and move on. Also, on the half hour, there is a Star Wars character show as well. Coordinate well and you can hit the First Order and then the Character show since they happen in the same place.
7. Speaking of Star Wars crazes…the Jedi Training Academy show is a really cool experience for kids age 5-12. They get to work with a Jedi Master and then fight elements of the dark side (i.e. Kylo Ten and Darth Vader). There are photographers on site to take photos too so you can just watch your kid be in Star Wars heaven. But if this is an experience you really want your kid to have, you need to get to the park as soon as it opens and go right to sign up. The sign up is located over by the Indiana Jones show, just down the way from 50’s Prime-Time Diner. There are quite a few shows, but this is an experience that is in high demand so you’ll want to follow these instructions so your kid can get into the show.
8. The Tower of Terror height restriction is 40″. Please keep in mind that just because your kid is tall enough, doesn’t mean they are ready for this ride. It can be quite scary. And while I’m all for encouraging children to step out of the comfort zone, let’s make sure we’re not scarring them for life.
I hope these tips help you out in your planning! If you have any questions about Hollywood Studios, feel free to comment below!
What to Wear to the Parks – Guys Edition
Hello everyone!
Recently Wendi wrote an awesome post about what to wear when you travel to Disney or any other theme park. It was catered more to women, but I’m here to help out the guys! A lot of the same principles will apply, but guys get the advantage of having deep pockets and usually comfortable shoes. As Wendi mentioned in her post, it’s really nice to go into a park without having to take a bag. That way you can go through security quickly and not have to lug a lot around. I’ll tailor my suggestions to that end. Here are my tips!
#1. Comfortable shoes
When you go to a theme park, you will do a LOT of walking. When I’ve traveled to the parks I often log about 25,000 steps per day. Most guys’ shoes are comfortable already, but maybe avoid things like high tops or other kinds of shoes that could rub against your heal. I usually just wear my running shoes or similarly built sneakers. Like THESE Nike Pegasus Running shoes from Amazon.
#2. Fun shirts!
It’s not required, but walking into the parks with a fun nerd shirt is the best (to clarify, it is required to wear a shirt). I’ve gotten multiple compliments on my pixilated Star Wars shirt or my Zelda: Breath of the Wild shirt. It’s just fun! I also recommend finding some shirts that are made of breathable material, like workout shirts. I have a Spiderman and Captain America shirt with that material and they breathe really well. If you plan to attend a park during the rainy season, you must plan to get wet. These shirts will be super helpful since they dry so easily. If you don’t have any nerdy shirts, get some! Here’s a similar Spider-Man shirt on amazon for only $12.99!
#3. Comfortable shorts
I’ve gone to Disney many times with normal khaki shorts and I’ve loved them, but recently I’ve found something even better. Costco was (is?) selling long Adidas basketball shorts with zipper pockets. These ones on Amazon look similar! They are amazing. I often get really anxious riding a rollercoaster that my phone is gonna fly out of my pockets. Not with these babies! They also breathe well, so Splash Mountain recovery is quick!
#4. Sunglasses/glasses and a microfiber cloth
I often like to wear my glasses into the park so I can see the shows better. I have sunglass attachments that I keep in my pocket. One thing that drives me nuts is going on a rollercoaster and hooking my glasses onto the inside of my shirt, because then it creates smudges all over. That’s why I bring a small microfiber cloth to clean them off afterward. It’s made a lot of difference.
#5. If rainy season, a poncho
Disney sells ponchos in every gift shop in the park, but they cost $10 each. If you can find a small poncho that folds down well, you should be able to slip it into your pocket and “save it for a rainy day.” In Florida it will often pour rain for about 20 minutes or so, then clear up. On other days, it will rain the whole day. I was at work yesterday without my poncho and got to experience the joy of that firsthand. Save yourself some trouble and some money by buying a poncho BEFORE you get into the park.
#6. Sunscreen/hat
If you can sunscreen yourself before entering the park, that is a good idea. I usually don’t bring it into the park myself, but thought it was important to mention it here so y’all don’t get burnt. It’s also handy to try to wear a hat. They don’t take up much space and they usually have bins on the fast rollercoasters so you can store them during the thrills. Make sure you SPF is at least 30! This Neutrogena is one of our favorites!
Those are the items I regularly bring. Pretty simple. That’s the best way to experience the parks, in my opinion. If you bring a backpack, you will get super sweaty from the humidity. Disney has free water at every quick service food location, so you should be able to effectively stay hydrated. If you want to save a few bucks on money, maybe you can pocket a protein bar or two. But I personally love to keep it simple.
I hope this helped! If you have specific cases or questions, please contact us and we’ll help you pack according to your needs. We’d love to hear from you!
Sun Survival Tips for Work or for Play
With my new job, I spend a lot of time outside. Like A LOT. Especially since right now I’m only trained to work in the daytime. And while I come from the desert climate of Utah and am well adjusted to heat, Orlando heat and humidity for a 6 or 8 hour shift can be rough.
As an added “bonus” I discovered I have some weird skin conditions that rear their grotesque heads after intense exposure to the sun and heat. When I’ve traveled to Disney or other theme parks, I spend time outside, but I also go inside frequently for attractions, shows and eating. My job has me outside all the time for now. So I didn’t realize until the last couple of weeks how intense these issues were.
But, because of that, I’ve got some really useful tips and product suggestions for surviving work or fun in the sun!
#1- WEAR SUNSCREEN!!!
#2- STAY HYDRATED!!!
#3- PROTECT YOUR FACE
#4- ACCESSORIZE!!!
#5- AFTER SUN PRODUCTS
Disney Fashion Series: What to Wear to the Parks
Disney Fashion is definitely a thing now. From character merchandise to Disney Bounding to what a person should wear in the theme parks, the category of Disney Fashion is full of fun!
These are just a few thoughts about your Disney Park apparel! Everyone has their own style so you should choose what works best for you. But these are tried-and-true tips! Do you have any tips of your own to add? Comment below!
And stay tuned for more Disney Fashion Series posts!