food IS a theme park
We’ve got updates from Animal Kingdom at Walt Disney World!
Animal Kingdom Park Map Cover
With all the new attractions coming to the parks, Hollywood Studios and Epcot have gotten a lot of the glory this past year, but Animal Kingdom just got something new too!
Lights, camera, action!
Disney’s Hollywood Studios
If you’re a fan of that classic Hollywood style, Star Wars, Toy Story, thrill rides, and more, then Disney’s Hollywood Studios is your park! Come along with us as we take a trip around the park to show you everything that’s new here. From Christmas Dooney & Bourke bags to a Baby Yoda toy deal, there’s lots to see!
We’ve got updates from Hollywood Studios!
New Park Map
The last few years have brought a LOT of changes to this park. From Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge to Mickey and Minnie’s Runaway Railway, Hollywood Studios has had quite the transformation. Now, its map is getting a makeover too!
So you want to bring your baby to Disney World?
It’s Disney World!
We’ll be the first to say — we’ve been there. You’re thinking this beautiful little bundle of joy needs to experience the magic of Disney World, right? Oh, and it’s time to take advantage of Disney World’s “children under three are free” policy! 🙂 Take it from some parents who have braved Disney World with a babe in tow — bringing a baby to Disney World is totally doable, and can be great, but we learned some lessons the hard way.
Disneyland Resort
has been the place to be since last Friday, when Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge officially opened its weathered gates to visitors for the very first time in Disneyland Park. We were on hand to celebrate — and we’ve brought TONS of info, reviews, and insights over the past few days.
Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge at NIGHT
But Galaxy’s Edge isn’t the ONLY new thing to see at Disneyland Resort, so we’re bringing you everything else in this installment of What’s New at Disneyland!
In Downtown Disney, Marceline’s Confectionery is now carrying gluten free Snacks With Character! [Read more…]
While the Disney Website re-vamp gave a lot of us headaches for a while, I’m very pleased to see that they’ve added two planning tools to the dining section that have been sorely needed.
Menus
You’re not the only one who faithfully prints out the menus for all your ADR restaurants and pores over them for weeks deciding exactly what you’re going to order. Apparently, enough of us are obsessed enough with Disney food that Walt Disney World has seen fit to pander to our idiosyncrasies and finally post many of their restaurant menus on their website! What’s so great about that, you ask? Two things:
Here are a couple of screen shots of how you can get to the menus on the Disney website. You begin by searching “Dining,” and clicking on the restaurant for which you’d like details. From there, you’ll see a screen that looks like this:
Location of Menus on Disney World Website Restaurant Pages
Simply click on the menu for the meal you’re curious about, and out pops a cool PDF that looks exactly like the menu you’ll get in the restaurant in Disney World. Here’s Liberty Tree Tavern’s dinner menu:
Menu PDF Pulled Up When Choosing Menu Option From WDW Website
Unfortunately, Disney doesn’t yet have ALL menus available, but you’ll find that about 80%-90% of what you’re looking for is there. Remember that buffet menus change daily, so those are often not posted.
Maps
Disney has also added what many of us consider to be the quintessential planning tool, maps, to its individual restaurant pages.
Map Section of Disney Restaurant Web Pages
Simply click on the “map” icon; when the map is pulled up, scroll down the list to the left until you find the restaurant you’re looking for. Its location will be highlighted on the map!
This is a great planning tool to help you determine where you’ll need to be in your touring plan (e.g. what rides you’ll want to be scheduling for before and after lunch) around the time of your restaurant ADR.
Visual When Opening Map From Restaurant Page on WDW Website
Happy Planning!
The Disney World website is getting more and more user friendly, and the inclusion of these tools, along with the interaction of the Mom’s Panel and other informative additions, makes me optimistic that the site has the potential to be a truly useful planning tool–even for veteran Disneyphiles!
If you’ve seen or used other great Disney dining planning tools, I’d love to hear about them!
Our handy (and portable!) ebook guides make sure you get the best deals and can plan a vacation of a lifetime.
