I’m a Disney World reporter, and I do some pretty weird things for my job!
The Flower & Garden Festival is HERE!
I take WAY more pictures of my food than any normal person, and it often means that strangers are staring at me in the parks. I’ve eaten at plenty of table service restaurants by myself, carried Tupperware in my park bag for snack leftovers, and memorized countless merchandise displays and Mobile Order menus. But on the first day of the EPCOT International Flower & Garden Festival, you could’ve found me in one really unexpected place!
We’re leaving the winter season here in Florida, and on the first day of the Flower & Garden Festival (which was February 28th), it was unseasonably warm. Our team was in the parks all day, trying every single food booth at the festival, but we were definitely battling the elements a little bit — my phone overheated no fewer than three times because of the sun!
EPCOT
This is a pretty common problem in Disney World in the summer, and usually, I can head into a gift shop that’s air-conditioned for a few minutes to let it cool down. But when you’re in the middle of a festival booth review, the show must go on! At the time, I was sitting with my full spread in World Celebration, and the only shade nearby was under a high-top table. (A high-top table that had a hidden secret! But more on that in a minute.)
My view for part of my day
Yep, that’s right! I spent probably 25 minutes of my day sitting on the curb in the shadow of this table so that my photos and videos would send to our writer and social media teams. And ultimately? It worked! Unconventional solutions, my friends.
2024 Florida Fresh Full Spread
Our reporters will go to some pretty wild lengths to bring you content from the parks (I wasn’t the only one sitting under a table that day!), and we’re happy to do it! You guys make our job so much fun!
In my defense, the Florida Fresh booth wasn’t physically open yet, so they didn’t have their own tables.
And as an added bonus, while I was sitting underneath the table, I noticed that this seating area comes with purse hooks. How neat is that?! Now you won’t have to sit your purse or Loungefly on the ground! You can find these tables in the newly opened World Celebration area of EPCOT.
Table hooks!
Stay tuned to DFB for more updates from the parks and all the tips you need to know for your vacation!
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I would recommend a battery powered fan. I just got one within the last year and it’s been revolutionary for me. But what a cool find!
I have been going to WDW since it opened. I live close and my husband and I stay at WDW about every other week. We film and photo for our reality show. From my years at WDW I probably know, or continue to devise, any hack as needed, especially when it comes to the heat here. I wear my GoPro attached to a camera holder that goes around my neck. I was filming last year when GoPro’s new Enduro battery burst in my 11 from the extreme heat and was leaking. I realized that if that can happen to my GoPro, it could probably happen to my phone battery too. I researched and found that it could. To keep small snacks and our meds that we must take throughout the day from getting ruined in the heat, I carry them in a small child-size thermos. I went to Amazon to find a similar thermos type product for my phone and camera. What I found was a thermal phone cover. I also bought one for our snacks and meds so we can ditch the bulky thermos! The cover also fits over my GoPro to protect it when not in use. To keep my phone always handy and protected when not in use I have been using a padded, adjustable neck/crossbody phone holder from Club Cool in Epcot. I have also been using hands free, neck worn duel fans that I turn outward to blow on my phone or GoPro when in use. Now I have added the use of the thermal covers when my phone/camera is not in use. When removed I use them to hold over my phone/camera with my other hand for reflection and even more protection and from the sun/heat when filming. It also helps me to see what I’m filming and when used to review. I had to laugh when a group of teen boys came up to me to compliment me on the great setup I had for my phone and GoPro.