Helpful tips for Jedi Training Academy

Disney's Jedi Training Academy is located in the Hollywood Studios park.  In order to participate, valid theme park admission is required.  The attraction is only for young padawans ages 4-12 and you can not make advance reservations for it.

Here are a few helpful tips:

1. The Indiana Jones Adventure Outpost is where the sign-ups are located. If you are there when the park opens, there will likely be a cast member with a sign held up and she will guide the group to that location. If you arrive once the park has already opened, it is to your left behind the giant dinosaur, near the Indiana Jones show.
2. Children must be present at the time they sign up and they will have to verbally tell the cast members that they want to participate in the academy.
3. The show lasts about 25 minutes, but you need to return to the location where you signed up 30 minutes before your show time, so make sure that you allot enough time with your Fastpass and dining plans.
4. Sign-ups start approximately 15 minutes before the park opens, so we suggest you arrive at the park entrance about 30 minutes before the opening time.  On the mornings that Hollywood Studios has Extra Magic Hours, sign-ups start during the extra magic hours.  If you are staying on property, you may want to take advantage of the reduced crowds, but if you are not staying in a Disney resort, you will probably want to plan to participate in this activity on a different day of your trip.
5. Disney provides training lightsabers and plain brown Jedi robes, but they do not close, so I recommend letting your child wear their favorite Star Wars t-shirt or something that has their name on it.
6. If you have not yet purchased Memory Maker, call your Wishdrawals travel agent right now and have that added! The pictures taken by the photo pass photographers at the show are phenomenal and you can relax and enjoy the actual show if you know you'll get to download all of their pictures.
7. Be prepared for a little Star Wars trivia and some extremely corny jokes.  Laughter is greatly appreciated by the Jedi trainers.

The Jedi Training Academy is one of Disney's
 most fun activities offered and it's FREE!

 So head to Hollywood Studios and may the Force be with you!

Memory Maker

Disney PhotoPass is a program that takes pictures on rides and provides photographers throughout the parks (and at some character meals) to take pictures of your family.  Memory Maker is a package that will allow you to download all of the high-resolution that Disney takes during your trip.

What are the perks?

• Magically enhanced pictures – you didn’t see Tinkerbell posing with you, but she’s there!
• Get everyone in the shot! Now the world will know Dad was on vacation with you, too!
• High-quality photographs without having to carry around your heavy, expensive camera!
• All of the photos can be downloaded to your computer at the end of your trip with a limited license release so that you can print them anywhere you want as many times as you’d like! Just be sure to download them within 45 days of the date they were taken.
• Travelling with a large family or a group of friends? You can share one Memory Maker package by linking your accounts as “family and friends” to save money.

Attraction photos and videos

Animal Kingdom: Dinosaur and Expedition Everest

Epcot: Test Track and Frozen Ever After

Hollywood Studios: Rock’n Roller Coaster and Tower of Terror

Magic Kingdom: Buzz Lightyear, Space Mountain, and Splash Mountain

The Jedi Training Academy at Hollywood Studios also has PhotoPass photographers.  I think this one event alone would make the Memory Maker photo package worth it for many families.  My three daughters were in the show, but with the PhotoPass photographers taking pictures, I was able to enjoy the show.

Disney has some stationary photographers planted at specific locations throughout the parks, but you should also use the My Disney Experience app to locate them if you want to make the most of the package. Scroll across the sidebar and look for the “PhotoPass” tab. You can narrow down to just one park by tapping the funnel-shaped icon in the bottom right-hand corner of the screen.  When you are on an attraction that takes a photo, you will have to scan your band to claim the photo immediately when you get off the ride.

Helpful tip: Be sure to buy Memory Maker more than 3 days before your trip so that you can save money!  Memory Maker costs $169 within 3 days of your trip, during your trip, or afterwards.  If you purchase it at least 3 days before your trip, you can save $20 and purchase it for just $149.  Memory Maker does not include a burned copy of your pictures on a CD, but you can order that for about $35 if you want it.

Tips for saving time, money, and battery life at Disney World!

Making the most of your technology is a fundamental part of getting the most out of your vacation.
Here are a couple of steps to help you optimize your time, money, and technology on your next Disney trip:

1. Download the My Disney Experience app before you leave home and practice using it to check wait times and adjust/make fastpasses.
2. I LOVE Disney's Memory Maker package that allows you to download unlimited digital copies of your Disney photos and print them at your convenience.  It is great to have high-quality pictures without having to carry your camera around (and worry about it getting lost or wet).
3. Put your phone on 'low battery' mode and reduce the brightness of your screen (when you can).
4. Bring a portable phone charger like this great Duracell one I use!  It will be much cheaper to buy one at the local store or Amazon than to purchase one of these at Disney! Don't forget to grab your USB cable when you head to the parks so that you can charge your phone!
5. Have a backup... make sure you have a written/printed list of your fastpass times and dining reservations just in case your phone does die or get lost. 
6. Have a plan just in case that worst-case scenario comes true and your phone really does get lost. This article had some helpful information.
7. Bring a sandwich-sized ziploc bag for any electronics you may want to protect in case it rains. If you get caught in a storm without one, you can ask a cast member at a gift shop for a free bag and they'll give you one.

Disney provides complimentary wi-fi in the resorts and parks.  If you have unlimited data, I recommend turning your wi-fi off, since it will use your battery if your phone is constantly looking for the next wi-fi signal to join.  If you don't have unlimited data, then I recommend you join the network and monitor if it seems to be cutting in and out and causing your battery to drain.  Hopefully Disney will continue to improve this service and it will not be an issue in the near future.

Food and Wine Festival

The Food and Wine Festival is a Disney event that is not to be missed.  If you can escape for an adults-only weekend, this is a perfect time to visit Disney.  But even if you bring the whole family, you'll have fun and enjoy trying new dishes from around the world.

Here was is our game plan for Food and Wine Festival:

Rope drop!
Arrive in Epcot as soon as the park opens and ride rides from 9am-11am.  We started with Test Track, then rode Mission Space several times (none of us struggle with motion sickness during that ride, but we did not want to push it for after we started eating and drinking). Baymax and Joy and Sadness are now in the character meet'n greet areas at Epcot, as well.

Perfect combo?
Buy a Tasting Sampler card and use it for drinks.  Use snack credits for food.  Yes, it is a perfect plan. The tasting sampler card is a lanyard-hanging credential that has 8 tabs on it. As you come up on the kiosks, you can use it for food or drinks (there are a few obvious exclusions such as tasting flights with multiple drinks and one or two pricey champagnes). The price was $59+tax in 2015, so in order to get your money's worth, don't use your tabs for anything that is less than $7.  There were more than 150 menu options in 2015. The tabs can be used over multiple days and can be purchased at one of several locations while you are there.  More information about the Tasting Sampler card. Or you can order it buy calling (939)WDW-FEST.

My friend Samantha with the cute
ears she made and her tasting sampler card.

Get your kids involved!
Last year the Ratatouille Recipe Search was a TON of fun.  It helped get my kids all the way around the World Showcase for the first time. At 4, 6, and 7, they were completely into finding the missing ingredient that was hidden in each country.  

For older kids, Agent P's World Showcase Adventure is a great way for them to enjoy the countries. The $10 passport kits are also fun for older kiddos.  They can have them autographed in each country and make a fun souvenir.  You can buy the passports in the kiosks or gift shops as you enter the World Showcase, but the Agent P challenge is free.

Pace Yourself
Rather than trying to do all of our eating and drinking at once, we started with Mexico at eleven and toured Mexico, Norway, the outpost, Germany, and Italy.  We shared most of our snacks and drinks so that we could try more things.  One or two of us would stand in line and order the food and/or drinks that we wanted from a kiosk while the other parents helped the kids on find their clues, then we would all partake in the sampling.  After we made it through that half of the World Showcase we headed back to Germany and rode the boat back to the Future World side of Epcot.

We headed to our 2pm fastpass for Soarin' and then watched the new Pixar Short Films (super adorable) and rode Figment. We had a 3pm fastpass for Nemo and then enjoyed Turtle Talk with Crush before heading to our 4pm fastpass for Spaceship Earth.  This little break for rides was a nice 

After a relaxing ride on Spaceship Earth, we headed back to the boats and rode over to Germany.  We bypassed Italy since we had toured it earlier and started back up with the American Adventure and slowly toured our way through the rest of the World Showcase through Japan, Morocco, France, United Kingdom, and Canada.  We stopped to meet Belle in France and Mary Poppins in the UK and ended near the Epcot dessert party area.  We stayed near that area and enjoyed Illuminations! 

So what were a few of our favorite snacks?
The lobster roll in the American Adventure Pavilion
Belgian Waffle with chocolate ganache
Canadian cheese soup
Kalua Pork Slider from Hawaii
Chicken gyro from Greece 
Beef bourguignon in France
Escargot in France
Beef skewers with chimichuri sauce from Argentina 
Grilled swet and spicy shrimp from Australia (you can smell it before you even get to it)
Spicy Hand Roll from Japan
Korean BBQ Beef with steamed rice and kimchi

Feel free to chime in with some of your favorite foods and beverages from the Festival!

Four Parks in One Day

Pick up a free celebration badge to mark your big day!

Doing all four parks in one day is one of Disney's most thrilling challenges! 

We recommend this challenge for the 10+ crowd.  This would not have been fun with a stroller.  

Here are a few suggestions to get you started:

1. You will greatly benefit from using a travel agent's expertise when planning this day.
2. Be flexible, but be sure you have a game plan.  Your plan will likely evolve as you check wait times on the (free) My Disney Experience and deal with unexpected crowds and shorter-than-expected attractions you may pass as the day goes on.
3. Plan to start at the park that opens first and end at the park that closes last - this seems basic, but it's a key part of making the most of your time.  Closing times a tie? If so, pick the park that's closer to your resort - you will be tired by the end of the day!
4. Use your fastpasses for the park that you'll be in during the peak hours of the day (1-5pm) OR Make your fastpasses for the earliest times you can in the first park you visit.  Then add an extra fastpass as you know where (and when) you'll be next.  You can do this at a kiosk or on the My Disney Experience app.
5. Know your maximum wait times.  For our group, we decided not to stand in a line that was over an hour long.  We decided to prioritize our favorite attractions over trying to ride as many rides as possible.  
6. Make sure everyone gets to pick a least one must-do - you may have to be slightly flexible on #4 in order to achieve this, but no one should be disappointed at the end of a big day like this one.
7. Be sure you know how you'll get from one park to the next - Disney transportation is simple, but you'll save time if you know exactly how to get from one park to another. We don't recommend using your own car since you would have to move it from each park to the next or go back for it at the end of the day.  The buses DO run directly from one park to another.
8. Make use of the single rider lines - not sure which attractions offer this feature? Scroll to the bottom for the list...
9. This is a challenge best accepted on a good night's sleep.  You won't want to have to head back to your room for a nap or a pool break on this day. We did our day on less than 4 hours of sleep, but it was tough! 
10. Stay hydrated - yes, this can include adult beverages...but drink plenty of water, too!
11. Have a plan for food - we suggest bringing your own snacks and not trying to stop for any table service meals.  Picking a place to eat while standing in line can be fun, but I recommend picking one quick-service spot at each park that you know everyone would be happy to eat at since you can't be sure of where exactly you'll be at meal time.
12. Have a picture of your family/group taken at every park, then post them together and use the #4parks1day hashtag.

Here are the attractions we enjoyed:

EPCOT

Soarin'

Test Track

Frozen Ever After

Pixar Short Films

Hollywood Studios

Rock'n Roller Coaster

Toy Story Mania

Animal Kingdom

Dinosaur

Everest - we used the single rider line for this attraction, as well.

Magic Kingdom

Haunted Mansion

Wishes

7 Dwarfs Mine Train

Buzz Lightyear

Space Mountain

Which attractions have a single rider line?
Everest
Kali River Rapids (at least for now)
Test Track
Rock'n Roller Coaster

Drinking on a Disney Cruise

One of my favorite spots on the ship: the swim-up bar!

Currently Disney does not offer alcoholic drinking packages with their cruises and they recently updated their alcohol policy.  The new policy allows each adult to bring two bottles of wine OR a six-pack of beer on board with them.  At each port, you are allowed to bring on an additional six-pack or two more bottles of wine. (Side note: I could not find bottles of wine or bottled beer for sale anywhere on Castaway Cay).

You can purchase bottles of liquor in the sundries shop where you can purchase sunscreen, Dramamine, and other medications.  I was very surprised at the prices - and not in a bad way!  You could purchase a standard-sized bottle of vodka or rum to take to your room for $13.95+ tax each. They had a decent selection of full-sized bottles of liquors and wine and cordials.

You could also purchase a fun drink
 in a souvenir glass for about $11.

They offered drinks at breakfast such as a Bloody Mary or Mimosa for $4.  You could also order a glass or bottle of wine with dinner.  And anywhere you wander around, you can get the drink of the day for about $6-7 dollars.  Not bad for mixed drinks.

There is a bar district on the ship, where you can drink in any number of cool environments.  And some of the bars host trivia or fun adult activities.

We went to a Mixology class on our Bahamas day and for $20/person got to make and sample 6 mixed drinks.  That was fun!

We spent our day at Castaway Cay on the adult-only beach since we were travelling without children on this cruise.  Don't worry - the only "adult" thing about it is the lack of children.  Everyone is in a bathing suit and being decent - it's still Disney!  Bartenders did wander around on the beach to ensure anyone who wanted a drink had one. Laying in the sun all day, we were careful not to overdo it.

Disney Dining Plan Tips

You can eat in a car at the drive-in at the Sci-Fi Diner!

One of my favorite parts of a Disney trip is eating.  Seriously, I love food.  And the food there is fantastic.  From the snacks to the drinks and most especially the meat, Disney offers a wide variety that will please even the pickiest of eaters.  Although the dining plans have been available for years, many people still have a lot of questions about them.  Hopefully this will help you decide if there is a dining plan for you and also help you identify which one best fits your trip.

Which dining plan will work best for you?

Option 1: If you plan to run around and do not want to spend any time sitting down to eat, you will probably benefit from having the Quick-Service Dining Plan.  It is also great for families who only want to do one character meal, but are trying to stick to a strict budget.

Option 2: If you want to have one sit-down meal each day, you will greatly benefit from the Plus Dining Plan. You can save quite a bit of money with this dining plan.  For example, dinner at Chef Mickey's is $50/adult $23/child, but the total cost of the dining plan per night is $62/adult and $21/child.

Option 3: If you want to enjoy several of Disney's signature restaurants or more than one sit-down meal per day, the Deluxe Dining Plan will be a great fit for you.  It has the most flexibility (you can use your 3 credits allotted per night in any combination of quick-service or table-service meals).  Disney's signature restaurants offer some of the best food in the country and many are highly-rated.  This is also great if you want to try out one or more of Disney's amazing dinner shows!

To look more in-depth, these are links to the official Disney PDFs describing the dining plans:

Quick Service Dining Plan

Plus Dining Plan

Deluxe Dining Plan

How to keep track of used credits:

Whenever you use credits to pay for a meal or snack, you will receive a receipt that lists your remaining credits available.  If you lose track and want to check, you can head to pretty much any gift shop and they can scan your band and print a receipt that will list your remaining available credits.

A few dining FAQs:

Q: When can I use my credits?

A: They are available from the morning you check in until midnight on the day you check out from your Disney resort.

Q: Is the Disney dining plan available to visitors who are not staying in a Disney resort?

A: Nope.  It's a perk available only to Disney resort guests.

Q: Do you have to have theme park admission to add the dining plan to your resort stay?
A: No.  You can book a package with just a resort room and the dining plan, but you will need valid theme park admission for any restaurants that are inside of Disney parks.

Q: How many credits do character dining meals use?

A: Cinderella's Royal Table requires two credits per person, but all of the other character dining meals use just one credit per person.

Q: What should I do if I have leftover credits when I'm ready to head home?
A: You can downgrade your leftover credits as snack credits and use them to purchase food or snack items at your resort's gift shop.  Goofy's Candy makes a great souvenir for kids' friends. ;)