Disney4me Posted yesterday at 04:00 PM Report Share Posted yesterday at 04:00 PM Disney World has got some MAJOR secrets they’ve been hiding from you! Did you know these secrets? New character meet and greets that are totally free, how to walk up and get a table at the hottest restaurants, and how to get some seriously secret discounts — Disney World can sometimes play things too close to the vest. We’re here to change that. Get ready to learn about some juicy Disney secrets that you can take advantage of during your next visit! From freebies to activities that seem illegal (but aren’t), we’re spilling the tea! You Can Meet Disney Characters For FREE Best be sitting down for this big reveal, friends — because it’s not just gonna save you money. It’s also gonna save you TIME. Hey Mickey! For the past few years, Disney characters have popped up at random times around the hotels — meaning you don’t even need a park ticket OR a character dining reservation in order to take a picture with a legit Disney friend. We’ll see Daisy Duck playing lawn games around the Riviera, we’ll see Goofy waving from a Wilderness Lodge balcony, we might even catch Chip and Dale causing a little chaos inside that ever-so-classy Grand Floridian lobby. It’s Daisy! But meeting characters outside the parks has always been more of a happy little accident rather than something you can predict…until NOW. Recently, we’ve been seeing signs starting to pop up around resorts (like over at Port Orleans French Quarter and Wilderness Lodge) that directly state when character meet and greets will be happening around the hotels. Character Meet and Greet sign at Disney’s Port Orleans Resort We haven’t seen these signs pop up at EVERY resort, but it looks like it’s a new trend that’s becoming more and more frequent around the Disney hotels. Keep in mind that these resort meet and greets won’t be listed on the My Disney Experience app — so you’ll need to keep your eyes open for these specific signs if you wanna know the exact times and days of the week that you’ll be able to meet some of Disney’s most popular characters. How To Get Snack And Soda Discounts Psst. Get this. Not everyone has to pay full price for ALL drinks and snacks on Disney property. If a place is considered a retail shop on Disney grounds, then Annual Passholders, DVC members, and Disney Visa cardholders will more than likely be able to get discounts on not just merch, but the snacks and drinks available there, too. Self-service Beverage Station With an annual pass, you can get extra discounts at shops like: Disney’s Candy Cauldron in Disney Springs Goofy’s Candy Company (also in Disney Springs) Karamell Kuche in EPCOT Zuri’s Sweet Shop at Animal Kingdom Main Street Confectionery at Magic Kingdom Most of the Disney resort gift shops (a GREAT hack for soda goblins — since we can get 20% off bottled soda using our annual pass) And several other locations, too! We bet you can smell this photo Keep in mind that discounts vary depending on your membership program. To find out where your specific exclusive savings will apply, check the Disney World website for passholder discounts, check the Disney Rewards website for Disney Visa perks, and check the Disney Vacation Club website for DVC deals. How To Get Into Space 220 Without Reservations Space 220 (over in EPCOT’s World Discovery area) has been around now since 2021 but still continues to be one of the most popular dining reservations inside the park (as well as one of the most EXPENSIVE). However, we’ve been able to get into the restaurant with NO reservations and NO prix fixe prices. Space 220 We went over to Space 220, just to see if there was any walk-up availability for a party of one for the Space 220 bar. And guess what? There was IMMEDIATE seating. Mind you, this was around noon, so we were fully expecting to have our name added to a walk-up waitlist. And yet the cast members got us right onto that Stellavator and up to the Centauri Space Station, STAT. Space 220 elevator We’re not saying that this is going to be the same situation for you — especially if you’ve got more members in your group to accommodate. But while we were sitting at the bar, we saw a family of four (two adults, two kids) happily munching away on apps and enjoying the space views behind us. Most Disney lounges do NOT allow kiddos to sit up at the bar, but Space 220 has created an exception to that rule. The view is cool While we were at Space 220, we ordered some shrimp wonton tacos and a glass of water, and we are happy to announce that we got to do the WHOLE Space 220 experience for under $20. (Instead of the $79 per person you’ll have to fork over if you book the main restaurant seating area during dinner time.) Sure, we had a much more limited menu to choose from — and we were seated a little further away from the main windows — but we still saw everything just fine and felt more than satisfied with the experience. Flight Bites and Drinks from Space 220 Lounge If you don’t have ressies for Space 220 but you still wanna experience this space-centered restaurant, try walking up to the host stand and asking about bar availability. Even if you’re put on a wait list, you’ll still be able to go back into the park and explore for a bit while waiting for a text saying it’s your turn to shoot up into space! Don’t Trust Disney’s Opening Timelines Disney’s got a LOT of new stuff in the works. But before you get your hopes up about seeing any of these new attractions during your next visit, we wanna remind y’all that no Disney release date is ever completely set in stone — ESPECIALLY the release dates that are really, REALLY vague. ©Disney We’ve seen Disney push back a lot of opening dates before… like how Roundup Rodeo BBQ in Hollywood Studios was originally supposed to open in 2020. And THEN it was supposed to open in 2022. But REALLY it opened in March of 2023. Roundup Rodeo BBQ The Cake Bake Shop at Boardwalk Inn had similar pushbacks. Originally, it was supposed to open in late 2023, but it didn’t officially open until fall 2024. And “The Little Mermaid Musical Adventure” stage show that was originally slated to open in fall 2024 has since been pushed back to summer 2025. The Cake Bake Shop Disney’s opening timelines change fairly frequently. And that’s not because Disney wants to get us all worked up and angry, but sometimes a pushback is necessary if there are any delays and hiccups that happen for a project, or if the project simply needs a bit more time to work out the kinks before going live for the public. ©Disney Once Disney puts out a specific opening DATe for a project, you’re gonna have a much better idea of if a project will be open by the time your vacation kicks off. But if you’re not seeing a specific opening timeline just yet for something and your trip is quickly approaching, we wouldn’t necessarily get your hopes up about seeing it go live during your visit. Test Track construction You can always push back your trip if you want to improve your chances of seeing a new attraction go live by the time your trip kicks off (if you’ve got the wiggle room in your schedule, that is). But otherwise, just make sure you stick with us and we’ll let you know once we find out the specifics regarding when a Disney attraction is specifically slated to open. The Transport Troubles Over At Saratoga Springs You know those really cool treehouse villas over at Saratoga Springs Resort? The ones where you and up to 9 guests can hang out in a space that’s eye-level with the trees? Yeah. These rooms are really cool. But they do come with their fair share of transportation problems. Treehouse Villas If you’re planning on booking a treehouse at Saratoga, your group is only allowed to park ONE car per treehouse. That can be a major snag if you truly are using this room to house a group of 9 guests. Fortunately, if your group is made up of more than one vehicle, Saratoga isn’t just going to turn your group away and say, “Sorry, Charlie — get rid of your extra cars and THEN we’ll talk.” You’ll just need to park any additional vehicles in the main area of the resort — outside the Carriage House (which is a good distance away from the treehouses themselves. Just something to keep in mind). Another snafu? Saratoga Springs doesn’t let rideshares into the treehouse area. So, once again, if you’re trying to book a rideshare to get you anywhere, you’re gonna have to travel a good distance over to the Carriage House if you’re looking to hitch a ride. Carriage House And here’s the FINAL kicker: Saratoga’s treehouses do NOT have their own bus routes. So unless you have one car that’s parked nearby and that’s ALL you’re gonna rely on when it comes to getting you from place to place, you will need to plan on walking over to the nearest bus stop (which in this case would be the Grandstand area). Treehouses? Super cool. Transportation struggles? Eh. Not so much. The Disney Springs Hot Air Balloon Is Not Always A Guarantee Yes, we want the Disney Springs’ hot air balloon to let us down…But AFTER we’ve already been up in the air. And yet, sometimes it has to for our own safety. Disney Springs The Aerophile is the big blue tethered hot air balloon that’s become a pretty iconic part of the Disney Springs area. For $30 per adult, you can soar up high — 400 feet above the shopping district — for an 8-minute look at Disney from a bird’s eye view. Disney Springs Some may think the price is worth it, some may not, and some may not have a say one way or another because the Aerophile won’t be open on the day of their visit. If it’s storming OR if the wind that day exceeds 22 mph, the Aerophile will NOT take people up. Aerophile But the good news here is that you can check ahead of time to find out if this attraction is something that you can keep on your itinerary for the day. Just call 407-938-9433 to find out if the Aerophile is going to stay open or search for the Aerophile on your My Disney Experience app and see if the page lists that the balloon is “temporarily closed” or not. Disney Springs Want to learn about MORE Disney World secrets? Stay tuned right here at DFB for all the latest tips, tricks, reviews, updates, and more! 9 Secret Shortcuts We Always Use in Disney World What are some of your favorite Disney World secrets? Let us know in the comments!The post 6 Secrets Disney World Doesn't Want You to Know first appeared on the disney food blog.View the full article Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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