Welcome to those of you joining me from A World View and those of you just hopping aboard. I am the 2nd stop on our Magical Blogorail.
For this month's Magical Blogorail topic, we were asked to share our favorite planning resources, other than ourselves and our Blogorail buddies.
When it's time to plan my own Walt Disney World vacations, I have a few sites that I always visit. I check TouringPlans.com for the crowd calendar. It's handy for choosing travel dates and getting input into which park to visit each day. AllEars.net is a great all-around resource and I'll double-check there for any special events we may need to work around. AllEars.net is also terrific for restaurant menus when we are choosing where to make dining reservations. I'll also visit DisneyFoodBlog.com when planning meals.
Honestly, for years I barely referenced the official Disney site. The large unofficial resources had so much more detail. However Disney.com is stepping up their game and now offers menus, resort photos, special event details and more. My family used the new My Disney Experience website and app for our vacation in May. It has some nice planning features, such as making reservations on the go (handy when you've had enough of the Honey, I Shrunk the Kids play area and need to make sure you have a table waiting at Mama Melrose. Oh, wait. maybe that's just me.)
I listen off and on to a bunch of Disney podcasts but before a trip, I'll tend to catch up on WDW Today.
We have a Links tab here on Growing Up Disney, where we keep track of our favorite sites and blogs, podcasts, books, radio stations, and vendors. It's handy for quick access to additional resources. I know I am not really supposed to include them in my list for this article but my Blogorail pals and our own Minnie Moms are awesome for reviews, tips, ideas, and magical stories.
Thank you for joining me today. Your next stop on the Magical Blogorail Loop is My Dreams of Disney.
Here is the map of our Magical Blogorail should you happen to have to make a stop along the way and want to reboard:
1st Stop ~ A World View
2nd Stop ~ Growing Up Disney
3rd Stop ~ My Dreams of Disney
4th Stop ~ Disney Donna Kay
Final Stop ~ Colorado Mountain Mom
Great resources. Like you, I never spent much time on the official Disney site, but that's been changing lately. It's getting more fun!
ReplyDeleteI actually use the Disney site quite a bit, and now, with my TA side, I have access to DTA as well, so there is a lot I use it for. I definitely agree about Touring Plans for their crowd calendar and touring plans! Thanks!
ReplyDeleteGreat ideas Amy!! I think I need to start planning a new Disney vacation - it may be just a dream vacation but I need to use all these great resources.
ReplyDeleteAll of the above; we use every resource you mention Amy, and in exactly that order!! I'm in the process of tinkering with My Disney Experience for our upcoming trips- I think we'd make good use of the reservation capability too. Thanks!
ReplyDeleteThanks for the TouringPlans.com tip! I always utilize All Ears, and it is a great resource. My Disney Experience is definitely coming along. We've been using it more and more.
ReplyDeleteI also keep Touring Plans handy, for my own appreciation but also as a great resource when helping friends and family in thier trip planning. It's on my computers, my iPad, and my phone. I especially like checking wait times; don't know why when my next visit is months or even a year away!
ReplyDeleteI am ALLLLLL about DFB & AllEars when I'm planning Disney trips and cruises. The food is one of the things I look forward to the most, so I love pouring over the amazing photos and yummy menus before a trip!
ReplyDeleteGreat post, I see we share some favorites! The new Disney site is growing on me. I think you're right, in some aspects it offers more than it did before... (my favorite thing is the countdown to your trip!)
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