So how is a crowd-hating Disney-lover supposed to enjoy one of her favorite things when it consistently draws tons of people?  I think I may have found the perfect solution: The Tomorrowland Terrace Fireworks Dessert Party.

So what is this exactly? Well it is a party where you can watch Wishes from under the canopy at Tomorrowland Terrance with a limited amount of other guests (the seating area can hold 50 people). But wait, I haven’t told you the best part yet! There is a buffet of desserts at your disposal throughout the evening! According to Disney’s website it currently costs $14.99 per adult and you cannot use Disney Dining Plan meal credits to pay for this experience.

Because seating is so limited at the Tomorrowland Terrace Fireworks Dessert party, advanced reservations are highly recommend, although walk ups are permitted if space is available.

Seating opens and hour before Wishes begins. The night we attended we were running more than 15 minutes late, but they had kept our table open for us, and we were seated after waiting in a short line (with other parties that were late!).

As soon as we sat down a Cast Member came to our table to direct us to the buffet.

Our mistake was that we had finished dinner less than an hour prior to the dessert party. So we were full! Luckily the desserts were small so we were able to take some small tastes and I enjoyed a cup of coffee to keep me awake after all the food I had consumed that day!

There was an assortment of baked goods and my favorites were the peanut butter chocolate tart, mango shooter (a little mango juice mixture in a shot glass), crème brulee and a cannoli. But there were at least a dozen items to choose from. The buffet stayed open all evening, with the Cast Member coming around to let us know it was last call about 15 minutes after the Wishes finale.

We were lucky to be seated on the edge of the pavilion nearest the castle. There was still a good amount of space between the table and the rail. The Cast Member let us know that people would be standing up in that space as soon as the show started. This concerned us. While this did happen, it wasn’t overly crowded and we were easily able to find a space to stand at the rail with a perfect view.

The most magical part of the show? When Tinkerbell flew down from the castle, RIGHT OVER OUR HEADS!  It was the closest I had ever been to her during Wishes and it took my breath away!

The only drawback was that there were a few kids really afraid of fireworks. They were not having fun, and some screamed. It wasn’t too bad, but I felt bad for the kids and it did take away a little from the fun. My kids weren’t with me on this trip, and I had just been thinking that I want to do party at least once every trip. But when I saw the terror some kids had, I remembered that my little guy was also afraid of fireworks. So I will wait a few years to take him so we can ALL enjoy this great party.

And as we departed there was a Disney PhotoPass photographer that was able to capture some great shots with the Castle as backdrop. The perfect end to a magical evening!

Contact MickeyTravels to learn more about the Tomorrowland Terrace Fireworks Dessert Party!

Devene Godau
Guest Blogger
MickeyTravels, LLC
www.mickeytravels.com

Making Magic One Vacation at a Time…

The Be Our Guest Restaurant is located inside of Beast’s Castle and opened in December 2012. It marks the first time a restaurant inside the gates of Magic Kingdom would sell wine and beer. It is unique in the fact that lunch is quick service and dinner is table service. The pictures of the restaurant were simply amazing. It truly seemed like you were stepping into Beauty and the Beast.

With all of the buzz generated by the Be Our Guest Restaurant, and the New Fantasyland in general, you can only imagine my excitement when we secured an advanced dining reservation for our most recent trip!

On the day of our reservation we entered the Magic Kingdom and headed straight to the New Fantasyland to check it out. Lunch had just started at Be Our Guest Restaurant. The line was so long we didn’t have a chance of going in to check it out. So we enjoyed the rest of the park and returned for our 5:10 pm reservation almost 15 minutes early, as we were worried that it would be crowded. But the line at the hostess stand was fairly short. We were given a pager and we waited near the front of the castle.

Before long we were seated in the Ballroom. The interior of the restaurant was breathtaking. We were seated near windows with “snow” falling on the other side. The room was massive! I snuck a glance in the West Wing too and all of a sudden I felt like Belle sneaking around the castle (with 550 of my closest friends).

Beast walked through the Be Our Guest Restaurant periodically to wave at his guests. He would quickly retreat to the study where he bid au revoir to his dinner guests as they left. We tried to go visit Beast before our meal, but the Cast Member standing guard was adamant that we must finish our meal before greeting the master of this house.

We ordered the assortment of cured meats and sausages as an appetizer. It was served with cornichons, pickled onions, and toasted baguette*. Our only complaint was that our server did not explain what everything was. Since the offerings on this platter often changes, this would have been helpful. Thankfully one of my dining companions is a true foodie, and was able to guess what everything was.

For the main course, I had the pan-seared salmon on leek fondue which was served with creamy saffron-crushed potatoes*. Ordering salmon is often a risk. It is usually either really good or really bad, depending on how it is prepped. This had a subtle taste and was pretty good. But the fondue and potatoes were fantastic!

One of my friends ordered the grilled strip steak served with garlic-herb butter and pommes frites*.  The steak was good, but the pomme frites (the French word for french fries) were fantastic.

My other friend ordered the sautéed shrimp and scallops, which was served with seasonal vegetables on a puff pastry with a creamy lobster sauce*. It looked wonderful and my friend said it was excellent.

For dessert, a display case with selections was rolled to our table. It was hard to choose! We finally decided on strawberry-cream cheese cupcake which was a vanilla sponge cake, strawberry mousse filling, and cream cheese icing* and the triple chocolate cupcake which was chocolate sponge cake, chocolate mousse filling, and chocolate ganache*. Decadent and rich, these were the perfect ending to a great dining experience.

I will return for lunch on my next visit as the menu has more of a French bistro feel. MickeyTravels agents Kristin Vamvakitis and Sarah Curtis were at Disney World during the same week and they were so impressed by their lunch at Be Our Guest Restaurant they went back for a second visit. They told me that while the line was long, it moved very quickly. After your order is placed you are given a rose with GPS, so they can find you when your meal is ready. Your meal is brought to you in the same cart they use for desserts during dinner. Both Sarah and Kristin highly recommend the grilled steak sandwich. I can’t wait to go back to the Be Our Guest Restaurant and try it for myself!

To find out more about the Be Our Guest Restaurant contact any of the MickeyTravels agents!  They can help with all your dining reservations for this and other restaurants and also assist with all your Disney vacation planning.

Devene Godau, CPDT-KA
MickeyTravels Guest Blogger
www.mickeytravels.com
Making Magic One Vacation at a Time…

*All food descriptions were taken from the menu located on Disney’s website

Disney Cruise Line® will say goodbye to its homeport in Galveston, Texas in the Fall of 2013, but  Cruisers are still able to take advantage of a fantastic lead rate—plus, they will receive an onboard credit and half-off deposit.

Lead rates for a 7-night Bahamian or Western Caribbean cruise start at $699 for an Inside stateroom, $749 for Oceanview stateroom and $899 for Verandah stateroom (per person, based on double occupancy).  It doesn’t get much better than that!

Here are the details:
Book a Disney Wonder® sailing through MickeyTravels and receive a $100 onboard credit with an Inside stateroom, a $150 onboard credit for Oceanview stateroom, or a $200 onboard credit for a Verandah stateroom—and receive half-off deposit if booked through
May 15, 2013.

Travel Window:

• Valid on most 7-night sailings from Sept. 28 – Nov. 16, 2013

Additional Details:

• Must mention booking code MTCruise at time of booking
• Government Taxes and Fees and Port Adventures not included
• Per person government taxes and fees are approximately $80 per person for 7-night Bahamas and Western Caribbean cruises (all amounts subject to change)
• Excludes categories with restrictions (IGT, OGT and VGT)
• Half-off deposit valid for categories 00T – 11C
• Deferred deposit due at final payment
• This offer cannot be combined with any other offers, discounts or onboard credits
• See Disney Cruise Line website for cruise details and applicable Terms & Conditions
• Shipboard credit is non-refundable and non-transferable

Don’t wait to take advantage of this amazing deal on this cheap Disney cruise!  Contact me today to learn how I can help your family book a cheap Disney cruise out of Galveston, TX and to learn all about my 100% FREE Disney vacation planning services!

Elyssa Antonelle
MickeyTravels, LLC
Authorized Disney Vacation Planner
1-888-812-8750
elyssa@mickeytravels.com
www.mickeytravels.com

Making Magic One Vacation at a Time…