DATES ANNOUNCED FOR THE 2018 EPCOT INTERNATIONAL FESTIVAL OF THE ARTS AT WALT DISNEY WORLD RESORT

The Epcot® International Festival of the Arts, most all-inclusive celebration of the arts, returns for its second sensational year at Walt Disney World® Resort Jan. 12- Feb. 19, 2018. During this event, you can experience an exciting extravaganza replete with phenomenal artists, gourmet fare, musical performances, stage productions and other amazing acts.

New for 2018, the Festival will remain open 7 days a week, with various entertainment offerings planned each weekend. Stay tuned for more updates about this event!

Thanks for reading

Sonja

Holiday Happenings around Walt Disney World this year

 

The holiday season returns to the Walt Disney World Resort on Nov. 9, 2017 with must-see new magic and beloved traditions. You will discover countless ways to make memories together as you get wrapped up in everything from delightful décor and enchanting events to festive entertainment, sensational shopping and more.

This year, Holidays Around the World is transforming into the Epcot International Festival of the Holidays. Starting earlier than ever on Nov. 19, 2017 the festival includes fifteen Holiday Marketplaces, a new scavenger hunt, fresh and returning entertainment celebrating the holidays of cultures across the globe and more. The beloved Candlelight Processional returns again this year Nov. 24 – Dec. 30, 2017 with new narrators like Matthew Bomer, CCH Pounder and Pat Sajak. Candlelight Dining packages are available again this year for you if you wish to enjoy a delicious meal and priority seating at one of the shows.

You can get wrapped up in a Flurry of Fun at Disney’s Hollywood Studios Nov. 9 – Dec. 31, 2017 with the return of the nighttime favorite Jingle Bell, Jingle BAM! and new holiday happenings around the park. You can also catch the new Sunset Seasons Greetings where you can see Mickey, Minnie, Buzz, Woody, Olaf and more as they celebrate the season sharing stories, songs and holiday jubilee. Plus, there will be larger-than-life Christmas ornaments floating all along Echo Lake.

Don’t forget, you can revel in tasty treats, a holiday parade and fireworks, plus Mickey’s Most Merriest Celebration stage show at Magic Kingdom Park during Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Party (special tickets required).

During  the holidays at Disney Springs, you can find everything they need to fill your wish lists (and tummies). It’s the perfect place to bask in the joy of the season and discover unique shopping, festive décor, live entertainment and even a visit with Santa.

Happy Planning

Sonja

 

First Time Visiting Disney’s Pop Century Resort – my thoughts and review

I have been to Disney many times but have never stayed at a Value resort until this passed July.  We were staying at Disney World for two nights before our Disney Cruise and I thought it would be a good idea to stay at a Value Resort and check it out.  I have always been intrigued by Pop Century so I booked it.  We got a great rate at $125 a night average. I think our first night was $115 and second $135.  And I should also mention that we travel with our teenage kids who are 13 and 15.  So pretty much four adults.

Pop Century is located in Wide World of Sports Resort Area.  We took Magical Express Bus from the airport and were a second stop for drop off.

We got in very late I think I got to my room at 1:30am so I didn’t get to experience the grounds very much until the next day. We did an online check in but because we are from Canada I had to go and get my Magic Band at the Reception.  Which went very smoothly with no one in line.  We didn’t get to stay at a newly renovated room, which was ok because I am sure I will in near future and this way I got to experience the older room before it is gone.  So my first impression of the room was “Small” . 260 square feet to be exact.   Definitely smaller than the deluxe resort.  I do prefer a bigger room simply because we are a large family with four grown bodies.  But if I had small children the size would definitely not bother me.  The old room came with two double beds which where a bit of a challenge for my husband and I since we are use to a king at home.  The over all theming of the room was great in my opinion really capturing the theme of the resort.  The cleanness was to Disney’s standards and I had no complaints what so ever.  So overall opinion of the room at the this resort was clean, well themed but a bit small. If you are a type of a person that likes to spend some time at the resort and hang out in your room that I would suggest a Moderate or Deluxe Resort.  Otherwise I see no reason why this room would not meet all your needs.  And the price is excellent.

 

Now moving on to over all Resort.  Lets start at theming.  I think it is right on point, with lots of different large icons from the eras.  I think this resort would definitely appeal to families with younger children.  Even though my kids are teenagers it was pretty neat to see different  larger than life icons of the Resorts.  We had lots of fun walking around the resort and taking pictures and seeing the different sections and their themes.

We even had time to swim at the pool which was lots of fun, plenty of loungers and chairs to hang out at.  And I enjoyed the music that they were playing at the pool.

How about a food court?  Well if you have done any research you might have come across many posts about Pop’s food court called Everything Pop, having a bit of a cult following with it’s colorful blast from the past theme, bringing every decade together to make a modern day cafeteria that celebrates everything POP.   It is superior to the food courts at the All Stars, with one of the favourites being a  Tie-Dyed Cheesecake.  There is plenty of seating inside and outside so We never had a hard time finding a spot to sit and enjoy our meals.  We had lunch and breakfast here and there was food for everyone.

We used bus service twice once to get to the Magic Kingdom and once to Disney Springs and I did not see any difference in the wait time compared to Moderate and Deluxe.  The only difference was that the bus stop was not covered.  Which it didn’t bother us because we never had any rain while we waited for the bus.

My overall experience was great and I would stay here on my shorter visits for sure.  I am looking forward to staying in a new room.

You can also check out my walk through video on my channel

Pop Century Resort Tour

Until than Happy Reading

Sonja