Kilimanjaro Safari at Disney’s Animal Kingdom was temporarily closed this afternoon when Masai giraffe Mara gave birth to a calf around 2:00 pm. Visitors to the ride were able to catch a glimpse of Mara in labor before the ride was closed.
Monday, January 14, 2019
Monday, June 12, 2017
Review of Leaning Palms at Typhoon Lagoon
The main quick service eatery at Typhoon Lagoon is Leaning Palms serving lunch when the park is open. The theming for Typhoon Lagoon is carried on at Leaning Palms as the eatery has been damaged by the storm that has just past through. The Disney Dining Plan is accepted at Typhoon lagoon and is a Quick Service Credit with Snack Options also available. An average adult meal is priced at $14.99 and under with burgers, sandwiches, salads, chicken, wraps, and hot dogs offered. Kid's meals at Leaning Palms are served in plastic sand pail that is taken home with them.
Seating for Leaning Palms is outside with plenty of seating available.
Here are some of the options we enjoyed at Leaning Palms:
Island Burger - topped with Monterey Jack Cheese, Barbecue and Pineapple
Served with Housemade Chips (you can choose other sides)
$12.99
Pictured above and below
Barbecued Pork Sandwich with Housemade Chips
$9.99
Chicken Sandwich - topped with Chipolte Ranch Dressing, Lettuce and Tomato
Served with Housemade Chips and Cole Slaw
$10.49
Pictured above and below
Contempo Cafe at Disney's Contemporary Resort
The Contemporary Resort is one of Walt Disney World's flagship resorts and is a deluxe resort on the monorail system. Open from 6 AM until midnight each day The Contempo Cafe is the Contemporary's counter service restaurant that offers breakfast, lunch, and dinner options that are a Quick Service credit on the Disney Dining Plan.
Part of the dining experience of The Contempo Cafe is the atmosphere, a Mary Blair mural hangs near the cafe and the monorail runs overhead.
The Contempo Cafe is one of our favorite counter service restaurants and is one that we often visit during our trips. It is a good place to go for respite during a Magic Kingdom day or a fun place to resort hop to during a non-park day as The Contemporary has plenty of places to explore.
The Contempo Cafe offers a self-serve condiment bar, a self-serve beverage station with a refillable drink mug wash sink, several refrigerated cases with beverages and prepared food options, and a food line with several freshly made food options for breakfast, lunch, and dinner that include salads, sandwiches, flatbread, and pasta options.
Guests at The Contempo Cafe will place their order, then find a seat while they wait for their food to be cooked and delivered to them. Meals at The Contempo Cafe average $14.99 and below for adults with plenty of kids meal options as well.
Here are some of the dinner options we chose on our last visit to The Contempo Cafe:
Contempo Pasta, $11.29
Beef Pot Roast with Seasoned Potatoes and Asparagus, $12.99
Buffalo Chicken Flatbread, $11.49
Disney's Art of Animation Food Court - Landscape of Flavors - Review
Disney's Art of Animation Resort is a Value Plus Resort that is also Walt Disney World's newest resort. As such, it has the newest food court, named Landscape of Flavors, which is similar to other food courts while offering fresher and more customizable options than other resort food courts.
As with almost all food courts on Disney property Landscape of Flavors offers a self-serve condiment bar, a self-serve soda station with a refillable drink mug wash sink, several refrigerated cases with beverages and prepared items, a bakery station, and several lines offering a different selection of foods. One thing that makes Landscape of Flavors different than other food courts is that real tableware is used instead of paper plates and plastic silverware.
Landscape of Flavors is open daily from 6:00 am until midnight each day, and is a Quick Service credit on the Disney Dining Plan. Landscape of Flavors serves breakfast, lunch and dinner with meals averaging $14.99 and under per adult.
Here's a look at some of the food items we enjoyed from Landscape of Flavors during our stay at Art of Animation.
Challah French Toast with Fresh Fruit Topping and Bacon $8.49
Kid's Pancakes with Turkey Bacon and Fresh Fruit Topping, $5.99
Chocolate Croissant from the Bakery, $3.49
Kids Egg White Omelet with Spinach, Apple Slices, and Grapes, $5.99
World Flavors Breakfast Platter with Sausage Links, Bacon, Eggs, Breakfast Potatoes, and Naan Bread, $10.99
Create Your Own Pasta Bowl, Choose your pasta type, sauce, fresh ingredients, Chicken or Shrimp
$11.99
Kid's Meal - Chicken Burger with French Fries
Photos above and below
Jumbo Slice of Pepperoni Pizza, $10.99
Wednesday, June 7, 2017
Watching Magic Kingdom Fireworks from Bay Lake
One of our favorite things to do on our non-park days at Walt Disney World is to resort hop. We love visiting different resorts, trying the different restaurants that each resort has to offer, and the entertainment there. On a recent visit we had dinner at The Contemporary. After dinner at The Contemporary we went for a walk on the dock behind the Contemporary.
As we were exploring the dock the boat transportation that runs between The Contemporary, Fort Wilderness Campground, and The Wilderness Lodge came in. We had been wanting to check out Fort Wilderness and thought that this would be a great opportunity to do so.
When we got to Fort Wilderness we took some time to walk around, visit the shop, and then took a horse drawn wagon ride through the campground. After the wagon ride it was dark and the Magic Kingdom fireworks were just beginning. As we approached the boat dock to head back to The Contemporary the music from the fireworks was piped in. The boat dock and the beach at Fort Wilderness was the perfect atmosphere to watch the fireworks from.
However, as we were on the dock the boat pulled up to take us back to The Contemporary and we decided to take it back. From the boat we had a wonderful view of the fireworks, and this is now my favorite place to watch the fireworks from outside of Magic Kingdom.
Tuesday, June 6, 2017
Review of Disney's Blizzard Beach
The legend of Blizzard Beach goes:
"It was a meteorological phenomenon of the strangest order.
One balmy day, a freak winter storm developed over the western end of
Walt Disney World Resort and covered the area with a thick blanket of
powdery white snow. Before you could say "hot cocoa," plans were underway
for Florida's first ski resort.
Ski lifts
were put up, toboggan runs were laid down and an entire resort area blossomed
around the mountain of snow. Yet before the first skier could strap on
a pair of boots and stick his poles into the snow, the temperatures returned
to their normal Florida levels, and the powdery snow quickly turned into
slippery slush. The ski resort operators saw their dream melting down
the hillside. Yet that's not all they saw.
As the slush
began cascading down and pools of water began to form, an echoing "yahoo"
was heard from the summit of the mountain. Everyone looked up to see a
playful alligator careening down the melting hillside. He slid to the
base of the mountain and landed in a pool of water with a thunderous splash.
They knew at once that they were back in business.
Slalom courses,
bobsled and toboggan runs became downhill waterslides. The creek of melted
snow that formed at the base of the mountain became a relaxing tube ride.
The chairlift carried swimmers instead of skiers. The ski jump became
the tallest and fastest water slide in the world. The ski resort became
known as Disney's Blizzard Beach, the most slushy, slippery, exhilarating
water park anywhere!"
Blizzard Beach opened on April 1, 1995 and is located on 66 acres of land. The water is heated to a constant 75 to 80 degrees year round.
Like all things at Walt Disney World, there is immersive theming at play at Blizzard Beach and you will feel as if you are in the midst of a melting ski resort.
The centerpiece of Blizzard Beach is Mt. Gushmore, a snow-capped 90 foot high peak. There is a chair lift that takes guests to the top of Mt. Gushmore where they can access Summit Plummet, Slush Gusher and Teamboat Springs. Guests must be at least 32 inches to ride the chair lift. Guests who do not meet the height requirement for the chair lift or who do not wish to use the chair lift may access the top of Mt. Gushmore by stairs.
At the top of Mt. Gushmore is the launching pad for Summit Plummet, a 360 foot waterslide that is 12 stories high with a 120 foot slope. Riders of Summit Plummet can reach up to speeds of 60 mph, making it one of the fastest waterslides in the world. Guests must be 48 inches tall to ride Summit Plummet.
Not far from the base of Mt. Gushmore is the Ski Patrol Training Camp which is an area designed for pre-teens to enjoy Blizzard Beach.
This area of the park contains a thin ice training course for guests to test their balance by walking across ice flows with the help of an overhead cargo net, a T-bar zip line that ends in a 8 1/2 foot deep pool of water, two mild body slides, and an inner tube ride.
Running throughout Blizzard Beach is Cross Country Creek, a 3,000 foot long lazy river tube ride that is also a great way to make your way around the park. It takes about thirty minutes to make a loop through the park on Cross Country Creek.
There are 7 different landings where you may enter or exit Cross Country Creek and plenty of tubes available at each landing.
As you make your way throughout the park make sure to keep your eyes open for Hidden Mickeys!
Melt-Away Bay is Blizzard Beach's one acre wave pool located at the foot of Mt. Gushmore that features relaxing, bobbing waves. Tubes are available on a first-come, first-served basis.
Another favorite attraction at Blizzard Beach is the Downhill Double Dippers. The Downhill Double Dippers are two side by side 50 foot high racing slides. The slides end in a catch pool that is 54" deep. While kids must be 48" tall to ride, the catch pool may still be over their head, so be sure that they know how to swim when they reach the end. Riders can reach up to 20 mph and often skip across the catch pool.
The Toboggan Racers are also located at the top of Mt. Gushmore and are eight lane water slides that are a 250 foot slope with 3 exhilirating dips. Racers go down headfirst on racing mats.
Tips and Thoughts
* There are several ways to pay for admission to the Disney Water Parks - you can add the Water Parks and More option to your vacation package, purchase a one day admission, or purchase an annual water park pass. In my opinion the annual water park pass is the best value, as two visits to the water parks pay for the pass and it is good for one year from the date of purchase.
* Be at the water park about thirty minutes before the park opens, this will allow you to do the slides first thing in the morning before the lines get long. You should be able to ride each attraction before the lines back up. Also, during busy months the water park can reach capacity and you may not be able to enter the park.
* Rent a locker for your belongings. Small lockers are currently $10, while large lockers are currently $15.
*Charge to your Magic Band. If you are staying at a Walt Disney World resort and have linked a credit card to your Magic Band you can charge to your Magic Band while at Blizzard Beach. This is extremely convenient as it eliminates the need to carry any money with you while at the park.
* Wear a one-piece bathing suit. While that bikini may look super cute, the slides at Blizzard Beach are no joke and many women have lost their bikini tops on them.
* Bring water shoes. The concrete is hot and rough so after a long day at the water park it can really take a toll on your feet, water shoes can help prevent this from happening.
* Bring your own towels. The water park does not offer towels. You can rent towels for $2 each but they are very similar to those found at hotels, they are not beach towels.
* Drive to the water park even if you are staying on property. While we are staying at Disney resorts we almost always use Disney transportation to get us back and forth from the parks. However, we have found that driving to the water parks is the easiest.
At the top of Mt. Gushmore is the launching pad for Summit Plummet, a 360 foot waterslide that is 12 stories high with a 120 foot slope. Riders of Summit Plummet can reach up to speeds of 60 mph, making it one of the fastest waterslides in the world. Guests must be 48 inches tall to ride Summit Plummet.
Not far from the base of Mt. Gushmore is the Ski Patrol Training Camp which is an area designed for pre-teens to enjoy Blizzard Beach.
This area of the park contains a thin ice training course for guests to test their balance by walking across ice flows with the help of an overhead cargo net, a T-bar zip line that ends in a 8 1/2 foot deep pool of water, two mild body slides, and an inner tube ride.
Running throughout Blizzard Beach is Cross Country Creek, a 3,000 foot long lazy river tube ride that is also a great way to make your way around the park. It takes about thirty minutes to make a loop through the park on Cross Country Creek.
There are 7 different landings where you may enter or exit Cross Country Creek and plenty of tubes available at each landing.
As you make your way throughout the park make sure to keep your eyes open for Hidden Mickeys!
Melt-Away Bay is Blizzard Beach's one acre wave pool located at the foot of Mt. Gushmore that features relaxing, bobbing waves. Tubes are available on a first-come, first-served basis.
Another favorite attraction at Blizzard Beach is the Downhill Double Dippers. The Downhill Double Dippers are two side by side 50 foot high racing slides. The slides end in a catch pool that is 54" deep. While kids must be 48" tall to ride, the catch pool may still be over their head, so be sure that they know how to swim when they reach the end. Riders can reach up to 20 mph and often skip across the catch pool.
The Toboggan Racers are also located at the top of Mt. Gushmore and are eight lane water slides that are a 250 foot slope with 3 exhilirating dips. Racers go down headfirst on racing mats.
Tips and Thoughts
* There are several ways to pay for admission to the Disney Water Parks - you can add the Water Parks and More option to your vacation package, purchase a one day admission, or purchase an annual water park pass. In my opinion the annual water park pass is the best value, as two visits to the water parks pay for the pass and it is good for one year from the date of purchase.
* Be at the water park about thirty minutes before the park opens, this will allow you to do the slides first thing in the morning before the lines get long. You should be able to ride each attraction before the lines back up. Also, during busy months the water park can reach capacity and you may not be able to enter the park.
* Rent a locker for your belongings. Small lockers are currently $10, while large lockers are currently $15.
*Charge to your Magic Band. If you are staying at a Walt Disney World resort and have linked a credit card to your Magic Band you can charge to your Magic Band while at Blizzard Beach. This is extremely convenient as it eliminates the need to carry any money with you while at the park.
* Wear a one-piece bathing suit. While that bikini may look super cute, the slides at Blizzard Beach are no joke and many women have lost their bikini tops on them.
* Bring water shoes. The concrete is hot and rough so after a long day at the water park it can really take a toll on your feet, water shoes can help prevent this from happening.
* Bring your own towels. The water park does not offer towels. You can rent towels for $2 each but they are very similar to those found at hotels, they are not beach towels.
* Drive to the water park even if you are staying on property. While we are staying at Disney resorts we almost always use Disney transportation to get us back and forth from the parks. However, we have found that driving to the water parks is the easiest.
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