Orlando Mini Golf Experiences

We all know that the big theme parks are loads of fun, but occasionally you may want a little break from the lines and crowds while keeping that feeling of being immersed in the magic. This is a great time to check out one of the numerous well-themed miniature golf courses Orlando has to offer.

Walt Disney World Mini Golf

At Disney World located near the Swan and Dolphin resorts, you have Disney’s Fantasia Gardens Miniature Golf Course, with 2- 18 hole adventures based on Disney’s Fantasia.  One course, perfect for families and beginners, will have you aiming through twirling obstacles, across fountains and other surprises.  Their second course, resembles a traditional golf course built on a miniature scale with sand traps, bunkers, water hazards and more.  Both give you a view the Twilight Zone Tower of Terror in the background.  The cost is $12 for kids ages 3-9 and $14 for those ages 10 and up.

For the same price, you can experience a little winter or summer in Florida at Disney’s Winter Summerland Miniature Golf Course. The summer course will surround you with surfboards and sand castles.  You’ll putt around peppermint-striped inner tubes and a melting snowman.  Or try the Winter Course and watch out for Squirty the Snowman! This course is located near Disney’s Blizzard Beach Water Park.

Universal Orlando Mini Golf

Over at Universal Orlando Resort, you can try out the Hollywood Drive-in.  Upon entering the drive-in theater box office, you can choose your family-friendly course- The Haunting of Ghostly Greens and/or Invaders from Planet Putt.  You’ll play through elaborate movie-style scenes- passing through a cemetery, under a giant spider, around an enormous alien robot, and many more.  Their LED neon edged-lighting allows you to plan during the day and night. The cost is $12.99 for ages 3-9 and $14.99 for those ages 10 and up for one round. If you want to play all 36 holes, add $9.99 for ages 3-9 and  $11.99 for ages 10 and up.

Orlando Mini Golf – Pirate’s Cove

If Pirates are more your thing, check out Pirate’s Cove with 2 swashbuckling- themed miniature golf courses.  Play through the world of 18^th century pirates, exotic vegetation, waterfalls and marauding buccaneers.  Your family will discover mountain caves and learn about legendary pirate exploits all on a family friendly course. If the name Pirate’s Cove sounds familiar, it may be because they have locations in 14 states! In Florida, you can find Pirate’s Cove locations close to both Walt Disney World and Universal Orlando.

The Lake Buena Vista location is conveniently located in the Crossroads Shopping Center at the corner of I-4 and SR 535 in Lake Buena Vista, Florida. The cost is Adults $10.95 plus tax and Children (ages 4-12) $9.95 plus tax for a single course. If you want to play both course, the cost is Adults $10.95 plus tax  and Children (ages 4-12) $9.95 plus tax. The Orlando location is on International Drive, approximately 1 mile from the Orange County Convention Center. The cost is Adults $12.50 plus tax and Children (ages 4-12) $11.50 plus tax for a single course. If you want to play both course, the cost is Adults $20.50 plus tax  and Children (ages 4-12) $18.95 plus tax.

Written by Diana Edgar. Diana is a travel agent with Destinations to Explore.  She books trips all over the world, and specializes in Florida travel including Disney and Universal. Contact her at diana@www.destinationsinflorida.com or740-953-0373.

If you would like to enjoy an extra-fun meal while vacationing at Walt Disney World, consider Whispering Canyon Café at Disney’s Wilderness Lodge. This table service restaurant is just a short boat ride away from the Magic Kingdom theme park and is a great place to enjoy a nice meal with a few shenanigans!

The western-themed Whispering Canyon Café is open for Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner. The menu is fairly extensive and heavy on the meats – yet offers something good for everyone, including those with special diets. The Banana Bread French Toast is great for breakfast and the All-You-Care-to-Enjoy skillets are very popular during each meal. Other favorites include chicken, ribs, steaks and fish with western-style sides. If you enjoy milk shakes, this is the place for you as they are bottomless. Be sure to try the Apple-Caramel pie… Yum!

This restaurant is not very quiet as the name might suggest as it can be quite rowdy at times! The servers have a reputation for some hilarious antics and are very entertaining. We were greeted by our wise-cracking server with a fist full of straws who later brought us a tray full of ketchup bottles! You just never know what they might say or do so be careful what you ask for. Kids are entertained with sing-alongs, Lincoln logs and hobby horse races.

Take a break in the middle of a hot, busy day at the Magic Kingdom and enjoy a meal at Whispering Canyon Café.  You’ll have a rootin’ tootin’ great time and will surely leave with a full belly and a smile!

Written by Sheri Morris, “Main Street Morris”   Sheri is a proud grandmother with a keen eye for detail. She specializes in Disney Travel for adults and RV travel.  Book your next vacation with Sheri at 804 405 5005 or at sheri@destinationsinflorida.com.

Disney’s Contemporary Resort Pool Video Tour

Ready for a swim? One of the best pools at Disney World is at Disney’s Contemporary Resort!

The Main Pool

Laughin’ Place Playground Near Splash Mountain at Magic Kingdom

Did you know there’s a playground near Splash Mountain in Magic Kingdom? It’s great for little ones to play while bigger siblings ride Splash Mountain or Big Thunder  Mountain Railroad!

The Laughin’ Place offers tunnels to crawl through and places for kids to climb and play. It’s a fun playground to burn off some energy, especially when waiting for other members of your party to return from rides on Splash Mountain and Big Thunder Mountain, both of which have a height requirement of 40 inces (102 cm).

Behind the Scenes with Avatar at Disney’s Animal Kingdom Park

This excerpt from the Disney Parks Blog sets up who you’ll see in this great behind the scenes clip!

This creative process has been one of the most dynamic and collaborative ones we’ve ever undertaken. It began when our then-Chairman of Disney Parks and Resorts proposed to James Cameron that together we might recreate the world of Pandora at Disney. Since that time, our creative development team, led by Joe Rohde, has been working hand-in-hand with Jim, Jon Landau and their team of artists and designers at Lightstorm on every aspect of this project—from overall design to the smallest—yet crucially important—details. And along each step of this process, Tom, as well as Disney CEO Bob Iger have been actively involved in helping guide the creative vision that is shaping the extraordinary world we’re building.

Pandora’s grandeur will be available to guests in early 2017.

Meet Disney Authors and Disney Author/Historian Jim Korkis

Meet The easy Guide to Your First Walt Disney World Visit co-authors Josh and Dave, plus the contributor of the “Jim’s Gem’s” vignettes in The easy Guide, Jim Korkis, at Epcot on Monday, April 20th!

All three authors as well as Allison from Destinations in Florida Travel will be on hand to meet friends and fans, sign books and give out some great prizes to attendees.

Date: Monday, April 20, 2015

Time: Starting at 7pm

Place: Epcot – Outside Liberty Inn, American Adventure Pavilion

We hope you will stop by and see us!

Journey into Imagination with Figment at Epcot Imagination Pavilion

Figment the playful, purple dragon is your guide on this whimsical tour of the Imagination Institute.

Climb aboard your carriage and get ready for surprises galore as you travel through Dr. Channing’s sensory labs. Little ones will love learning and laughing about the 5 senses—sound, sight, smell, touch and taste—on this madcap musical trip with Figment.

The Institute’s beleaguered chairman Dr. Nigel Channing (played by Eric Idle) sets out to prove how the 5 senses capture the imagination but is upstaged by the mischievous Figment, who sabotages the doctor’s sound experiment, interferes with the eye chart and causes quite a stink in the Smell Lab.

Then up becomes down as you cruise through Figment’s fluorescent, topsy-turvy house and discover that imagination really does work best when set free!

Afterward, be sure to head to ImageWorks, an interactive play area where you can use your imagination to make music, digital pictures and more.

About the attraction:

Learn to Draw Disney Characters at Animation Academy

With help from a Disney artist, enjoy a unique hands-on opportunity to draw your very own Disney character sketch at Animation Academy. This is a free activity that is available to all park guests. The experience runs approximately every 20 minutes. Here’s an example of the experience.

Animation Academy is located within The Magic of Disney Animation attraction in Animation Courtyard at Disney’s Hollywood Studios in Walt Disney World. The artist instructions do a great job at explaining the techniques they use to draw Disney characters. The whole family can participate, though little kids might just end up drawing whatever they like if they can’t keep up with the instructor. The instructor teaches you to draw a different character each class, so go back a few times and create your own portfolio of masterpieces!

After the class, they will give you a rubber band to roll up your artwork so you can carry it with you and take it home.

If you have a Disney vacation coming up, a good way to get the family excited about your upcoming trip is to sit down together and learn how to draw Tinker Bell right from your home with our video! Enjoy!

Experience the Dolphin Plunge at Aquatica

The most popular ride in the Aquatica by Sea World park is the incredible Dolphin Plunge. One look and it’s easy to see why.

Two side-by-side enclosed tube slides send you racing through an underwater world that is home to a playful pod of beautiful black-and-white Commerson’s Dolphins.

Known for their playful nature and electrifying speed, you may well see them racing right alongside you as you zoom by.

It’s a ride unlike any other in the world- one only a waterpark by SeaWorld® could create.

Ride Requirements

• Guests must be at least 48” (1.22) tall to ride.
• Guests over 300 lbs (136 kg) may not ride.
• Appropriate swim attire required, cotton shorts or shirts, sport shorts, cover ups, loose fitting articles, or similar items are not permitted.   Swim wear with buckles, rivets, or any sharp objects are not permitted.
• Footwear of any kind is not permitted.
• Loose articles such as jewelry, phones/cameras or any other item that may damage the slide or cause harm to others are not permitted.
• At the discretion of Aquatica certain items may be held by the rider, however we recommend you leave them with a non-rider.  Aquatica assumes no responsibility for lost or damaged items.
• Riders must be able to maintain proper riding position without assistance: feet first, lying on your back with legs firmly crossed at the ankles, and arms folded across the chest during the entire ride.

New Show Your Disney Side App Transforms Your Personal Photos and Videos

We love this new Disney app that allows you to transform your own picture into your favorite Disney or Star Wars character.  It is really fun for the whole family!

The app brings your Disney Side – that side of you that comes out to play the moment you step through the gates at Disney Parks – to life like never before, transforming you into characters from our most popular park attractions and experiences.

With the Show Your Disney Side app, you can become an X-Wing Pilot from the Star Tours – The Adventures Continue attraction, a swashbuckler from the Pirates of the Caribbean attraction, a princess from “Frozen” and even a favorite Disney villain, Maleficent. And If you visit Disneyland Resort or Walt Disney World Resort, you can unlock special Haunted Mansion characters like the Hitchhiking Ghost and Madame Leota. It’s also possible to unlock these special characters by sharing three creations on Facebook or Twitter.

• Start with a selfie and let the app do the rest.
• Choose your Disney Side from iconic attractions and experiences like Frozen, Star Tours®, Pirates of the Caribbean®, and Villains of Disney Parks. You can unlock special Haunted Mansion® characters by visiting either Disneyland® Resort or Walt Disney World®  Resort, or by sharing three Show Your Disney Side app creations.
• Customize your characters with different costumes and frames.
• Tap or swipe and watch your Disney Side magically react! Experience thrilling special effects for each character.
• Record video of your creations as they come to life and share with friends.
• Visit Disneyland® Resort and Walt Disney World® Resort where your Disney Side will be unleashed to the fullest!
• Don’t forget to show off your Disney Side! Tag your photos and videos with #DisneySide and see how others around the world are expressing their Disney Side.

You can download the app from your app store or visit https://itunes.apple.com/app/id945289759