One of the best things about Disney is that it’s not all about the rides and the parks. It’s called the Walt Disney World resort because it has more to offer than just an amusement park. You can find plenty of things to do and see that aren’t located at one of the four main parks. Here are some highlights:

Downtown Disney

An area of Disney that’s free to enter, here you’ll find a wide variety of shops and restaurants, all with a Disney theme. You can spend the afternoon shopping around for unique Disney souvenirs and then get a delicious dinner at night. It’s also a good place to go if you’re looking for a little nightlife in Disney. This is the place where you’ll find the bars, many of which feature entertainment on the weekends. Downtown Disney is also home to La Nouba, the Cirque du Soleil show permanently located in Orlando. It’s definitely worth seeing if you can get a ticket.

The Water Parks

Disney is home to two water parks: Blizzard Beach and Typhoon Lagoon. Both are fun places to go on a hot day and have things for all ages. Blizzard Beach is themed after a ski resort that has melted, and it has some of the bigger slides and rides. Typhoon Lagoon has a large area for children, some family rides, some big slides, and even an area to go snorkeling.

The Resorts
Even if you’re staying on Disney property at one of the resorts, you might want to spend some time checking out what the other resorts have to offer. Many are themed in beautiful and unique ways, so if you want to see southern mansions or a Polynesian beach, you should check out the resorts. Another highlight is dining. Many of the resorts offer some of the best dining on property. So whether you’re looking to have a character meal to meet Mickey, attend a luau, or get a great view of the fireworks while dining, you can find what you want at the resorts.

Sports
Disney also has a sports complex and many options on property for those guests who are more active. They have some golf courses, including miniature golf courses for the children, a place to go fishing, horseback riding, and various boats and bicycles available to rent at many of the resorts. In addition, an exciting opportunity for racing fans is the Richard Petty Driving Experience. You can experience first hand the thrill of driving a NASCAR race car. If that seems a little too intimidating for you, you can still get the thrill by signing up to be a passenger in a car driven by a professional driving instructor.

Click here for amazing deals on visits to Disney with Travel City Direct and save money on unique family getaways.

Have you come across a website of a company or individual advertising themselves as an Authorized Disney Vacation Planner? If so you probably wondered if 1) their service was legitimate, and 2) whether or not it would actually save you time and money.

The answer to both questions is yes, but like all businesses you should look for references and reviews before signing up. Your Disney Vacation has the potential to be the highlight of your family’s year, so you don’t want to hand over the most important responsibilities until you know more about whom you will be working with.

One of the first things people are suspicious of is the price of this service. All Disney Vacation Planners work on a commission structure, so they do not actually charge you for anything. I forget where I read it, but planners earn approximately 3% to 5% of the package price the customer pays. That means they would earn about $150 for a $5000 package. Not much, but it can be a nice secondary income for a stay-at-home-mom or someone else trying to earn extra cash.

Now when it comes to saving money a reputable planner could very well save you hundreds of dollars. Typically there are a handful of Disney vacation specials going on at the same time. This can make it difficult to navigate what discount is best suited for your family. Your planner will ask you about your preferences and budget prior to making any reservations. They will then run the numbers through different scenarios to find the cheapest option for you. This by itself can make it worthwhile to work with a planner.

One thing to note is that most Disney Vacation Planners work exclusively with Disney World hotels since this is where their commissions come from. Thus, if you are planning to stay off-site you should tell them up front. Disney World offers a wide range of hotels and resorts for every budget so don’t completely rule out staying on the property for cost reasons.

The best planners will help you with all the little details to make your trip memorable. This includes creating a park itinerary that will save you time, booking character dining experience meals, and answering any questions you have about what to expect when you arrive. Having a single contact person for all this information is definitely a luxury. Busy parents and working couples will appreciate being able to call someone with questions as opposed to digging through the internet for answers.

I have not personally used a Disney Vacation Planner for any of my trips. This is mostly because I enjoy the planning process as it provides valuable insights for this blog. That being said, if you want to inquire about partnering with a  planner then I would start with Small World Vacations. They have the strictest requirements for their agents, so you can feel confident about getting an experienced representative. Each member of their team has stayed 3 or more nights at 4 or more Walt Disney World resorts within the last five years, and each is also a graduate of the College of Disney Knowledge for travel agents.

In short, Authorized Disney Planners can be a tremendous asset to first-timers and busy parents. You will definitely save time and more than likely money by outsourcing the reservation process. Just make sure you interview your planner before signing up, and be as transparent as possible about your trip. This will allow you to get the most out of your experience!

The always increasing costs of travel and accommodations means most of us need to save up for our Disney vacations. But even the most dedicated penny-pinchers can run short of ideas for finding funds.

The good news is you can always find more ways to save. To help get your creative juices flowing I created this list of 15 Great Ways to Save for a Disney Vacation…

1. Use coupons to save money on things you already buy. If you are already into couponing then try to increase the amount you save by learning new tricks from sites like Coupon Mom.

2. You can save up a nice nest egg with a family change jar. Use cash for most of your transactions and add the coins to your jar. Get your kids involved and you’ll be surprised how fast it grows.

3. Have a yard sale and put the proceeds toward your vacation.

4. Start a small business reselling vintage items at flea markets. Use garage sales and Craigslist to build your inventory.

5. If you have a talent for the arts and crafts, think about creating a store on Etsy.

6. Take on a second job and deposit the paycheck directly into a separate savings account.

7. Limit your restaurant and fast food meals to only a couple a month. Most of us have plenty of food in our cupboards; we just need to force ourselves to eat it.

8. Setup an automatic deposit into your savings account for each paycheck you receive. This is one of the most successful ways to save since it commits the money before you spend it.

9. Are you passionate about Disney World? Consider becoming a part-time travel agent at an agency like Small World Vacations.

10. Apply for the Disney Chase VISA Card to earn rewards for your everyday purchases. Card members earn rewards dollars that can be redeemed for Disney gift cards and other prizes.

11. Every time you go to the grocery store or other big box retailer, take one thing out of your cart before you enter the checkout line. Rarely do we need everything we buy.

12. Ask your family to give Disney gift cards as presents for birthdays and Christmas.

13. Sell your broken electronics (or those you don’t use) on eBay. Old iphones and cameras are particularly popular right now because their parts are in high demand.

14. Use Craigslist to sell larger unwanted items like sofas, book cases, etc. Summer is great time to do this because many college kids are looking for inexpensive futons, dressers, and desks.

15. Make a daily savings goal… something small like $5 per day. Identify simple ways you can save $5 or more each day. Things like brewing coffee at home, running outside instead of paying for a gym membership, and canceling optional services like Netflix are all good places to begin.

Also remember that Disney World does offer convenient payment plans that can help you avoid high interest credit card payments.

What’s the only thing better than a Disney World vacation? A free trip to the Magic Kingdom of course! Here is my 2012 list of sweepstakes and contest have Disney World trips as prizes.

NOTE: We are NOT associated with any of these contests, so be sure to read the rules of each contest before entering. Some allow multiple submissions while others have stricter guidelines. The list below is in order of expiration date.

Florida Orange Juice Glass Half Full Sweepstakes
Grand Prize package includes A trip for winner and one guest to Walt Disney World in Orlando, Florida. Trip consists of roundtrip, coach class air transportation. Five days and four nights hotel accommodations. Two three-day passes to Walt Disney World theme parks, $1,000 gift card for winner, and ground transportation to/from airport and hotel.
Deadline to Enter: April 30, 2012 at 11:59pm ET
Click Here to Enter 

Delta Airlines Disney World Star Wars Weekends
Contest winners receive a vacation for 4 to the Orlando Disney World Resort during Star Wars Weekends. Vacation includes roundtrip airfare for 4 to Orlando, Florida. Roundtrip transfers via Disney’s Magical Express. Accommodations at a Deluxe Walt Disney World Resort hotel for 3 nights. 3-day Magic Your Way tickets for a family of 4.
Deadline to Enter: May 6, 2012
Click Here to Enter 

VisitOrlando.com “Orlando Family Vacation” Sweepstakes
Win a Grand Prize of a 4-night trip for 4 people to Orlando, including accommodations at Hilton Orlando Bonnet Creek, a rental car, two 1-day admission tickets per person to winner’s choice of Walt Disney World, Universal Orlando or SeaWorld Orlando.
Deadline to Enter: June 30, 2012
Click Here to Enter

Rhythm of Conservation Sweepstakes
Grand Prize is a 3 day/2 night trip for four people to the Walt Disney World Resort. Includes three day/two night trip to/from Lake Buena Vista, Florida for winner and up to three guests including round-trip economy air transportation and Magic Your Way Package Plus Dining Vacation Package. Accommodations at Disney’s Animal Kingdom Lodge, and Magic Your Way theme park tickets for four people, with Park Hopper and Water Park Fun & More Options; and Disney Youth Education Series passes for two children to Disney’s Animal Kingdom Theme Park session on Saturday, September 29, 2012.
Deadline to Enter: June 15, 2012
Click Here to Enter

There are plenty of places to find helpful tips for planning your Disney World Vacation. My “Disney Blog Bites” are short summaries of the best articles I recently read online.

- Sue has put together a nice list of free things to do at Disney World. Hula Dancing anyone?

- Vera lists her 6 tips for getting the most out of your Disney World vacation. Better read this if you have any hopes of seeing Peter Pan!

- Kim at the Disney Food Blog always has the best tips for maximizing your food budget at WDW. Her latest post uncovers the Top 5 Disney Dining Plan One-Credit Table-Service Values for 2012.

The internet is creating some really cool ways to share information. My latest addictions are called Infographics. In short they are visual charts or graphs packed with interesting tidbits of information.

I was especially excited to come across this Disney World Vacation piece at InfographicList.com. It is great starting point for anyone planning a trip to WDW, and groups of 4 or more can really save money with these tips…