Planning 3 - Magic & Wishes

Walt Disney World vs Disneyland

A question we often get is around the difference between Disney World and Disneyland so today I thought it would be helpful to sum it up.

Disneyland is a) the original park, b) in California and c) much smaller. Walt Disney World is in Florida and considerably bigger. Then of course, from the UK, we are also fortunate enough to be close-ish to Disneyland Paris - which used to be called Euro Disney. This has the advantage of being close, but again, is much smaller than Walt Disney World in Florida.

Disneyland

Disneyland Resort, in Anaheim, California, is the park that Walt Disney himself imagined and over saw the creation of. It opened in 1955. These days it is made up of 2 parks. Disneyland Park is the original, quintessential Disney park, featuring Sleeping Beauty's castle as the centre piece. Disney's California Adventure is the second park. This opened in 2001. It did not initially have fantastic reviews but has under gone huge investment in recent years and is now very popular - Carsland in particular is a hit, which opened in 2012. Also within Disneyland Resort is Downtown Disney - a shopping and entertainment district, and 3 Disney hotels.

Walt Disney World

After the success of Disneyland, Walt Disney quickly realised that he was limited by the space available to him in Anaheim, and so he set out to seek an area where he could buy a significant amount of land - this was the start of the 'Florida Project' - with land bought up in secret. This was the start of Walt Disney World, which today is made up of 4 theme parks, 2 water parks, Disney Springs (shopping and entertainment district) and 28 Disney-owned hotels - with more coming from this year.

Magic Kingdom opened in Walt Disney World in 1971, having been developed by Roy Disney after Walt Disney's death. This is the park closest in nature to Disneyland Park, with Cinderella Castle at the centre of it.

Walt Disney World vs Disneyland: Cinderella Castle, in the hub of Magic Kingdom in Walt DisneyWorld

EPCOT Centre opened in Walt Disney World in 1982, now named simply 'Epcot'. It is known for the giant golf ball - geosphere, which houses the 'Space Earth' ride. The park has changed in concept over the years. It is split between 'Future World' where you will find the majority (but not all) of the rides and 'World Showcase', which showcases 11 different countries.

Walt Disney World vs Disneyland: Epcot geosphere, home to Spaceship Earth in Disneyworld

In 1989, MGM Studios opened - which was renamed to Hollywood Studios in 2008. This park is dedicated to everything movies and Hollywood. Toy Story Land and the soon to be Star Wars land are the newest additions to Walt Disney World and are found in this park.

Walt Disney World vs Disneyland: Hollywood Studios is in Disneyworld

The final theme park, Animal Kingdom, opened in 1998. This is dedicated to animals, nature and conservation and it's pivotal point is the humungous Tree of Life.

Walt Disney World vs Disneyland: Tree of Life, centre piece of Animal Kingdom in Disneyworld

Also in Walt Disney World, you have Blizzard Beach and Typhoon Lagoon water parks, and Disney Springs (formerly Downtown Disney), which is made up of shops, bars and restaurants.

So you're probably getting the jist - Walt Disney World is huge. People think we're crazy that we go so often, and we usually don't venture out of Disney at all, but most genuinely don't realise the size of it. The whole thing is 40 square miles - approximately the size of San Fransisco, or twice the size of Manhattan. You really can go for 2 weeks and do something different every day, if you want to. However, a trip to Disneyland, in California is different. While we easily could spend two weeks there, we wouldn't - even for big Disney fans we recommend spending 3-5 days there and then spend time exploring some of the other amazing destinations in California. Whichever you go to, you're going to have a fantastic time - but Walt Disney World is a destination in its own right.

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Disney World Car Hire – Should I hire a car?

Planning, Transport

If you book your holiday through anyone except Disney directly, you'll probably have the option of hiring a car. But do you need to hire a car in Disney World?

The answer to this question lies in where you are staying and what you plan to do during your time in Orlando.

Is car hire needed from a Disney World hotel?

If you are staying in a Disney hotel and plan to spend most of your time in Walt Disney World, we really do not think it is necessary to rent a vehicle. You can get free transportation from the airport to your Disney hotel using Disney's Magical Express.

There is also free transportation from the Disney hotels to all the parks and Disney Springs. This might be via bus, boat, monorail, or the new Skyliner. It picks up at a maximum of every 20 minutes, from roughly an hour before park opening to park close and is monitored to make sure this happens (unless something goes wrong). Most of the time this is going to be quicker than if you drive yourself. The transportation pick up points display wait times, and it is now possible to view these on the My Disney Experience app too, meaning you know when it is coming and should not have long waits.

In addition, when you arrive at the parks via Disney transportation, you are near the entrance. If you chose to drive yourself, you could easily be parked some distance away, and may need to get the shuttle to the entrance. In the case of Magic Kingdom, you can only park at the Transportation and Ticket centre, and have to get the boat or monorail over to the park. Only the Disney buses / boats / monorails from the Disney hotels can deliver you right to the entrance of Magic Kingdom.

If you research the topic you'll find that there is a lot of debate about whether car rental or using Disney transport is the 'better' option. Aside from at Magic Kingdom where Disney transport is always better, it probably is personal choice, but there certainly is no need to hire a car, and at Magic & Wishes, we never do.

It is important to note, in case you read it elsewhere, that in 2019, if you have booked from the UK you will NOT be charged to park at your Disney hotel. If you book in the US, hotel parking is now an additional charge, but is not on UK 2019 holidays. However, from 2020, there will be a parking charge at your Disney hotel for UK visitors too. At Disney Value Resorts it is $13 per night, at Moderate Resorts it is $19 per night and at Deluxe and Deluxe Villa Resorts it is $24 per night. So for a 14 night stay at a deluxe resort you've got to budget for an additional $336, on top of your car hire fee! There is no charge for any Disney hotel guests to park at the Disney theme parks however.

If you are staying at a Disney hotel, it is worth noting that there is no complimentary transport outside of Walt Disney World. Meaning if you are planning to visit the other theme parks, including Universal, go shopping etc, you have to make your own way there. There are a few options - Uber and Lyft are our recommendations, but there is also taxis and pre-booked shared transfer, where you pay per person. Consider what this might cost you. Mears taxis are currently quoting $49 to go from Art of Animation to Universal, for example. If you are only doing this a couple of times, this may work out cheaper than car hire plus daily parking charges ($25 at Universal, for example). However if you plan to be out of Disney a lot, we'd definitely recommend hiring a car.

Is car hire needed outside of Disney World?

If you are not staying in a Disney hotel, the complimentary transport from most other hotels in the area tends to be much less frequent, and does not come with the advantage of dropping you right at the 'door', although (Magic Kingdom aside) the coach parking is usually pretty close. The likelihood is that you'll end up taking at least some taxis or ubers/lyfts during your stay, in which case car hire might be worth it. You may wish to compare the costs of taxis to the cost of hiring a car. You can get a quote on the Mears website. But remember to add your parking charges on top of your car hire. It is currently $25 per day for standard parking at a Disney World theme park (unless you are staying in a Disney hotel), and at Universal. Plus any hotel parking charges.

We love the transport at Disney - it is efficient and a big advantage to staying in a Disney hotel. Yet another thing we don't need to worry about when we stay in Walt Disney World. But if you can't take advantage of it, or have additional needs outside of Disney, car hire should certainly be considered.

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Upgrading Free Disney Dining Plans – should you?

Dining, Planning

While it is never guaranteed, for the past few years Disney have offered 'free' Dining plans when you book a holiday with them in advance. These typically become available to book at end of April/beginning of May, for holidays the following year. - usually for holidays between January and September, but excluding the Easter holidays.

Typically if you book a Value resort, you get a 'free breakfast' plan, Moderate resorts get a quick service plan included, and Deluxe resorts get a regular dining plan included. You can read more about these dining plans here.

But you can also choose to pay the difference to upgrade the free Disney Dining Plans - so upgrade the breakfast to a quick service, or the quick service to a regular plan, for example - all upgrades are possible. So, should you?

The Dining Plans are great for dining when in Disney - they offer between 20-40% discounts compared to purchasing the same food out of pocket - but this relies on you choosing the most expensive menu items and using every dining credit available to you. But of course you are not actually paying full price as this is an upgrade, so a proportion of the plan is free to you. So it is a little harder to decide if the upgrade will be better for you than paying for the extra meals at the time.

In making the decision about whether to upgrade your free Disney Dining Plan, we recommend you consider two things. Firstly, make sure you understand exactly what you are getting free and how much you'll utilise them - and therefore if you will need the additional meals in the upgrade. And secondly, compare the cost of the upgrade to the cost of the extra meals.

Note, we have never recommended the Deluxe Dining plan. I'm sure there are some circumstances where you might make the most of it, but for it to be cheaper than paying as you go, you need to be eating at table service restaurants so often that you will have very little time left to actually enjoy the attractions and entertainment at the parks. So for this article, we have focussed on upgrading to the Quick service, or regular Dining Plan.

Upgrade your free Disney Dining Plan: Understanding your freebie

The 'free breakfast' plan is pitched as that, but as it is not a plan you can otherwise buy, it currently translates to one quick service credit for each night of your stay. Those credits work like any other quick service credit - they can be used at any time of the day, at any time over your holiday period, and at any quick service location.

The quick service plan gives you two counter service meals and two snacks a day, plus a refillable mug that can be used at your hotel for hot drinks and soda. Upgrading to the regular dining plan changes one of those meals into a sit down, table service meal.

So consider how much you plan to be in Disney and therefore how many meals you may actually need. For example, if you're planning on exploring outside of Disney on half of your days, (Universal, Sea World, shopping etc), you may not choose to use credits in Disney at all on those days. If so, on the breakfast plan you'll have enough credits for two meals on each of your Disney days. On the quick service plan, you'd have plenty of meals - so consider how many table service meals you'd want on those Disney days. In either case, upgrading plans may not be worth it as you'll only utilise it for part of your trip - it could be cheaper to buy any additional meals as you go.

Conversely, if you'll be in Disney for the majority of your stay, on the breakfast plan you'll definitely need to buy more meals than you've got credits, so at the very least consider the quick service plan. And if you plan to eat a lot of table service meals, the regular plan may be better for you. In these scenarios, an upgrade could be an easy way of knowing your costs in advance and perhaps saving a little money.

Upgrade your free Disney Dining Plan: Cost of the upgrade

So you've decided that you want an upgrade your free Disney Dining plan, in theory - but is the cost of your upgrade cheaper than what you might otherwise pay at the time?

In 2020, upgrading from the free breakfast to the quick service plan will cost £27 per adult per night and £12 per child per night. For this you get an extra counter service meal and two snacks a day for every night of your trip, plus a refillable mug that can be used at your hotel for hot drinks and soda. Would you otherwise spend that amount per person, on an additional counter service meals and snacks? We think this depends entirely on the individual.

To upgrade from quick service to the regular plan in 2020 will cost roughly £17 per adult, per night, but only £3 per child per night. Would you plan to spend that on table service meals over the course of your trip? Remember you need to additionally budget for tips at table service meals - 15-20% of the cost of your meal. This upgrade from quick service to regular dining plans is reasonable - if you do prefer to have table service meals, you will easily spend this.

This means to upgrade from the free breakfast to the regular plan in 2020 will cost £44 per adult, per night, and £15 per child per night - this will give you an additional table service meal, 2 snacks and the refillable mug, on top of your counter service meal previously designated for 'breakfast'. As long as you make sure you use your credits - i.e. eat all these meals at Disney, you could easily spend this.

Upgrade your free Disney Dining Plan: Does Magic & Wishes upgrade?

Without fail, we upgrade (where necessary) to the regular Disney Dining Plan. We rarely venture out of Disney, so we eat all our meals there. And we love trying out a variety of snacks. It makes sense financially for us to upgrade to quick service from the free breakfast, and we also don't want to eat only counter service meals each day - so for us the regular dining plan is the best choice. Food is a big part of our Disney holidays - there are fantastic restaurants in Disney World and we want to make the most of them, without worrying about the cost. We'd never have purchased the Wagyu Beef from Tiffins in Animal Kingdom, without the Dining Plan, for instance. This wont be the case for everyone, but if you do decide to upgrade to the regular plan, make sure you book your restaurants in advance. You need to make the most of those credits you're purchasing. We are sure you won't be disappointed.

Upgrading Free Disney Dining Plans: Wagyu steak at Tiffins, Animal Kingdom

Wagyu Steak on the Dining Plan at Tiffins

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Is the Disney Dining Plan worth it?

Dining, Planning

The Disney Dining plans are a fantastic way of experiencing much of the dining that Disney has to offer, without worrying about the cost, as you've pre-paid in advance. And if you make the most of it, you should save money in comparison to if you pay at the time. You can read more about the different dining plans here and if you are eligible to buy one.

So, given that we think they're great, in theory it should be an easy 'yes', the Disney Dining Plan is worth buying. But, in practise it is not the right decision for many UK visitors. There are three things to consider - how much you'll be in Disney to utilise the plan, if you'd normally purchase the amount of food available on the plans, and for the regular plan - if you would normally eat at that amount of table service restaurants.

Is the Disney Dining Plan worth it: will you be around?

Whichever Dining plan you are considering, it has to be bought for every person in your party, and for the entire length of your stay. Most US visitors to Disney are visiting for 2-5 nights - and with this length of stay, it is likely they will stay within Walt Disney World. From the UK, we tend to visit for 10-14 nights. Even if you are staying at a Walt Disney World hotel for the entirety of that time, if it is your first visit it is pretty likely that you won't spend every day in Disney - you probably also have the two Universal parks and some shopping on your itinerary, potentially Sea World, Legoland, Busch Gardens etc. Which means that even though you'll be paying for 10-14 days of dining, you won't physically be in Disney for a good proportion of that time, in order to utilise your dining credits, so it is definitely worth considering if the dining plan is worth the money. This doesn't automatically mean that you shouldn't get one - if you plan to have breakfast in your hotel each day, buy some snacks to take with you, and return in the evening for dinner, then it could well still be worth buying a dining plan. But we recommend doing a rough calculation of how often you won't be around, to see if you are better buying your meals and snack as you go, instead.

Is the Disney Dining Plan worth it: would you buy the same amount of food?

Also consider if you will eat the amount of food that comes with the plan - because if not, it may again be cheaper to pay as you go. Both the quick service and regular plan come with two meals (either counter or table service) plus two snacks for every night of your stay. Now here at Magic & Wishes, we LOVE our food - it is a big part of our trips to Disney World, and we stay in Disney the whole time. And yet by the end of the trip we always have a ton of snack credits left over to spend. It is just so much food. Thanks to the size of them, we could often split a counter service meal, especially with the kids - but we don't because we have a credit each to use. So we wouldn't necessarily be buying as many meals as we consume, if we were buying them at the time. And knowing that we've got another meal coming up soon often puts us off getting the snacks, or we choose to split them between us.

Is the Disney Dining Plan worth it: additional costs

And the final consideration for the regular Dining plan, is whether you would choose to eat at the same number of table service restaurants without the plan. Included in the plan is one drink - alcoholic or otherwise. Not included in the plan is any additional drinks or the tip - and the latter is a biggie. It is customary to tip 15-20% of the cost of the meal. Even if the service is appalling (which we have never experienced in Disney), you'd still be expected to leave around 10%. This adds up to be a significant amount if you are eating at a table service restaurant every day for 2 weeks - so make sure you are budgeting for this and take it into account when deciding which plan to purchase.

Note we have never recommended the Deluxe Dining plan. I'm sure there are some circumstances where you might make the most of it, but for it to be cheaper than paying as you go, you need to be eating at table service restaurants so often that you will have very little time left to actually enjoy the attractions and entertainment at the parks.

Having said all of that, it might surprise you to learn that we almost always buy the regular Dining plan (if we don't get it included in our stay). As I've already mentioned, we love our food and we love our food at Disney even more. Disney World has so many fantastic restaurants to choose from, and a huge array of snacks, and we don't want to be worrying about what we are spending while we are there. If we don't pre-pay using the plan, we subconsciously make different decisions. We decide against eating at the restaurants that we want to. We choose not to have the steak because it is more expensive than our second choice menu item. Does this mean that we possibly spend a bit more money than we would otherwise? Probably - even given the savings on the plans. But it allows us to budget for that in advance, and means we have the best holiday we possibly can. And the food and restaurants are generally fantastic - for us, it is absolutely worth it!

Is the Disney Dining Plan worth it? Wagyu steak we wouldn't otherwise have bought

Wagyu Steak that we probably wouldn't purchase if we weren't on the plan

If you're getting a plan 'free' with your holiday, you may be deciding whether to upgrade - learn more about whether it is worth it here.

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Booking Disney’s Magical Express

Planning, Transport

The Magical Express is the free bus transportation that Disney provide between Orlando International Airport and all of the Walt Disney World resort hotels.

So, first and foremost - if you are not hiring a car, there is no need to pay for an airport transfer if you are staying at a Disney hotel. Most travel agents, including the biggies such as Virgin Holidays, will try and sell you a transfer, without obviously telling you of the existence of the Magical Express. Decline this and book Disney’s Magical Express instead.

Worth noting, this only applies to the Disney resort hotels - not those in the vicinity. Most notably, the Walt Disney World Swan and Dolphin hotels are not eligible as they are not owned by Disney.

Why book the Magical Express?

Well, in case we haven't made it clear yet - it is free. So why wouldn't you use it? But there are two other benefits.

For us, it is a great start to our Disney holiday. Through out your journey you'll be shown videos of Disney World, with tips for your stay, as well as trivia and classic Disney cartoons. It is a fun start on what is otherwise a boring journey, and part of our personal 'we are finally here!' moments.

And, if you choose, Disney will also take care of your luggage and deliver it right to your room. One less thing to worry about!

Can I book Magical Express once I arrive?

NO!! It is essential that you pre-book the Magical Express transfer, so make sure you do it once you know your flight details.

How do I book the Magical Express?

Easy - fill in the online form.

What is all this about luggage tags?

If you live in the United States or Canada, you will be sent luggage tags, that means once you drop your bags off at the departure airport, you can forget about them entirely until they turn up in your room after you arrive.

In the UK, this works differently. As we are travelling internationally, you will NOT receive luggage tags, because you have to pick up your bags initially, when you arrive at Orlando International Airport, so you can go through customs. You can still have your bags delivered to your room though - keep reading to find out how this works.

Should I have my bags delivered to my room and how does this work?

A benefit of using Magical Express is that Disney will deliver you bags directly to your room for you - this is typically within 3 hours of you checking in at your hotel.

If you want to have your bags delivered to your room, as we are travelling internationally you MUST collect your luggage when you arrive, so you can take it through customs. However, if you'd like Disney to take care of your luggage from this point forwards, you simply place it on the luggage carousel after customs, and provide your airline baggage number to the desk when you check in for Magical Express.

Should you do it? Well this is entirely a personal choice. We never do - by the time we've arrived we've been travelling for a long time. It might only be late afternoon in Florida, but thanks to the time difference, it is late in the evening according to our bodies and all we want to do is get unpacked and go to bed. Last thing we want is for the bags to be delivered 3 hours after we arrive - waking up the kids and probably us too. So we keep our bags with us, and the bus drivers are happy to load and unload these for us. However it is purely a timing thing - if we were planning to hit the parks or go for a meal once we arrived, we'd definitely take advantage of this perk.

Where do I find the Magical Express at the airport?

Magical Express is on B side, Level 1.

When you arrive at the airport you go through customs and collect your luggage. You then have a short train ride to the main terminal - you can either take your bags with you on this ride, or return them to be delivered back to you at the main terminal (or by Disney to your room.)

So when you arrive at the main terminal, if you have kept your bags with you or are having them delivered, you will head directly to B side, and get the lift or escalator down to Level 1 and follow the signs to the Magical Express.

OR, if you need to re-collect your bags, you will head to the side where your airline is (Virgin will be A, British Airways and Thomas Cook will be B), to pick these up and then head over to B side. Orlando International Airport is not huge - side A and B are separated from each other by a shopping concourse - you simply walk across to get from one side to the other if you need to do this. We personally keep our bags with us on the train to the main terminal, to save this extra step.

Once you get to the Magical Express desk, you just check in and go where directed to wait for the next bus.

Should I tip the Magical Express driver and how much?

Yes - and this is unusual for bus drivers in Disney. The on-property bus drivers are one of the few people you do not usually need to tip. However, the drivers of the Magical Express are actually employed by Mears, who run this for Disney. It is customary to tip the driver, especially if they are handling bags for you - $1-2 per bag.

If you have your bags delivered to your room, you would tip the bell hop the same amount, $1-2 per bag, if you are in the room when these arrive.

You can read more about tipping in Disney here.

How do I get back to the airport at the end of my holiday?

The day before you are heading home, you will receive an envelope in your room, with the details of when the bus will be picking you up the following day and a voucher that you will need to give to the bus driver the next day (don't lose it!) It is always sad to see that envelope appear!

Booking Disney's Magical Express envelope

On the day of departure, you have a couple of options, depending on your airline. If you are flying with Virgin, you can check-in and leave your bags at Disney Springs - in Westside, in the valet area for Cirque du Soleil^®. This means you can forget about your bags until your back in the UK. If you plan to spend your last day in Disney Springs, this is a great option - but remember anything you buy will have to become hand luggage. Personally, we like to do one last trip to Magic Kingdom, so never utilise this option as we do not gain anything by an extra trip to and from Disney Springs.

If you're flying with any other airline, or simply don't want to go over to Disney Springs, you can leave your bags with Bell Services in the hotel. They will give you a ticket, you go off and enjoy the parks, returning in plenty of time to collect your bags (tip $1-2 per bag), and wait for Magical Express to arrive.

Wait outside the hotel for the bus at the time indicated, and hand over the voucher to the bus driver. The Magical Express will then deliver you to the airport, complete with a good bye video encouraging you to try out Adventures by Disney and Disney Cruise Line, and telling you to come back soon: M-I-C - See Ya Real Soon! K-E-Y - Why? Because we like you! M-O-U-S-Eeee!!!!

Booking Disney’s Magical Express - See ya real soon!

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What is the best age to take kids to Walt Disney World?

Planning

This, or a variation of it, is one of the most common questions we receive at Magic & Wishes - what is the 'best age' and is my child too old or too young. Our answer is always the same - there really is no bad time to take them and there are advantages for visiting at every age.

But there are somethings you may wish to consider when making your decision as to the 'best age' to take your kids to Walt Disney World.

The cost varies with age

The best age to take kids to Walt Disney World may simply come down to price, because the age of your children will have an impact on the cost of your holiday in a couple of ways.

A big chunk of the cost of a Disney holiday to Orlando, is the flights. So if price is a factor, know that a child under the age of 2 will be considered an infant - their flight will cost you a lot less. But they don't get their own seat, meaning a nine hour flight with your nearly-2-year-old in your lap. Between the ages of 2 and 11 is typically counted as a child and 12-15 is a young adult - so your teenager will cost you more to fly and you may wish to consider that trip a bit sooner.

The other big cost factor that varies with age, is Disney itself. Under 3s are considered 'Guests of Mickey Mouse' - meaning you pay for very little for them - you won't need a ticket to the parks for a 2 year old and you won't need to purchase them a Dining Plan. They just accompany you into the parks and can 'eat off your plate' when dining - which is particularly great when it comes to buffets! However in Walt Disney World, kids are classed as 'adults' from the age of 10 - meaning you pay more in park tickets and dining for your 10 year old than you do your 9 year old.

And of course, as with any holiday, it is also considerably more expensive outside of school holidays - so taking them before they turn 5 may also be something to consider.

Finally, it is worth knowing that Disney gets more expensive every year. There is an increase in the cost of tickets and room rates every year - so the longer you leave it, the more expensive it is likely to be.

So purely based on cost, you'll find an increase at each of the following ages brackets, due to either Walt Disney World, or the flights: 0-1 < 2 < 3-9 < 10-11 < 12-15.

If you're only going once...

It is pretty certain that your kids are going to love a trip to Walt Disney World, no matter when you take them. But if you only plan to take them the once, you obviously want to maximise that. So the best age to take kids to Walt Disney World becomes a bit of a balance between being young enough to believe in the magic, and being old/tall enough to ride everything and remember it all in the future.

If you strongly believe that you will only make the trip once, then we'd perhaps consider waiting until your youngest is around 7. By that point they are more likely to:

be tall enough to ride all the rides (more of an issue at Universal than Disney)
be able to stay up a bit later for the fireworks and night-time shows - without ruining the rest of the trip with meltdowns due to over tiredness
depending on the time of year that you're going, they should be able to cope with the heat better than a toddler, for example
remember it all in the future

But hopefully they would still believe in at least some of the magic!

Is Disney World 'worth it' for little kids?

A common statement we hear is that it is not 'worth' taking kids when they are under the age of 5/6 because they won't remember it. And we couldn't disagree more. My daughter's first trip to a Disney park was to Disneyland Paris, just before she turned two, followed by Disney World when she was 2 and half, because she loved it so much in Paris. And both trips were incredible. There is nothing quite like seeing your child oozing pure unadulterated excitement at seeing their favourite characters in the flesh, at an age when seeing is believing. The magic is entirely real to them. She still talks about when Chip stole her shoes (during dinner at Disneyland Paris) and showing Doc McStuffins her stethoscope (Hollywood Studios). She had her very first haircut in Harmony Barbershop on Mainstreet - and we have a certificate and some 'first haircut' embroidered Mickey ears to commemorate it. One of my husband's favourite memories is seeing her standing up in her cot in the hotel, just so excited to start the day. Mine is the look of pure adoration she gave to Elsa when she met her.

What is the best age to take kids to Walt Disney World: Making memories

You know what? She might not remember these trips when she's a lot older - but she had an amazing time, at the time - and we most definitely will remember them. So if it is in your power, take your little ones and make some memories. You won't regret it.

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