Our Family Holiday in Orlando, Florida

Magic Kingdom, Walt Disney World, Orlando, Florida

Earlier this month, we took a memorable trip to Orlando, Florida where we visited Magic Kingdom, Epcot and Universal’s Islands of Adventure – and plenty in between! It was wonderful to see Little T enjoying his first Disney experience and it also exceeded our expectations to the point that we’re already speaking about our next visit as a family of four.

I’ll be sharing reviews on our resort hotel and the attractions, along with our experience visiting the theme parks with a preschooler and plenty of tips for planning a family holiday in Orlando. In this post, I’m starting off with the highlights of our Orlando vacation [May 2017] – the resort, attractions and restaurants.

Where We Stayed

Located next to the Animal Kingdom park, what sets the Animal Kingdom Lodge apart from Disney’s other deluxe resorts, is its stunning African-inspired architecture, cultural activities and animal programs throughout the day, and rooms overlooking a savanna with over 200 animals and birds. There are three notable restaurants on-site: Boma for a great breakfast buffet and Sanaa and Jiko for fine dining.

Lobby of Disney's Animal Kingdom Lodge resort hotel, Walt Disney World, Florida

From our balcony, we could spot giraffes, zebras, cattle, gazelles, cranes and more roaming about the grounds. We stayed in the main section, Jambo House, and our room was comfortable with two queen beds.

Savannah Room view at the Animal Kingdom Lodge, Walt Disney World, Florida

While Jambo House has a large swimming pool, for younger children, it’s worth visiting Kidani Village next door for the water play area, zero-entry swimming pool with water slides, and a playground with water cannons and tipping buckets of water.

Kid's Pool area at Kidani Village, Animal Kingdom Lodge, Walt Disney World, Florida

Read on for more details and photos in my Hotel Review: Animal Kingdom Lodge, Orlando post.

Disney’s Animal Kingdom Lodge, Walt Disney World Resort, 2901 Osceola Parkway, Orlando, FL 32821

https://disneyworld.disney.go.com/resorts/animal-kingdom-lodge/

What We Did

Magic Kingdom

The classic Disney World park was our top choice for visiting with 3 1/2 year old Little T. After a character lunch with Pooh & Friends at Crystal Palace (which I’d highly recommend), we set out to explore FantasyLand, AdventureLand and FrontierLand.

Tip: Visit midweek to avoid the crowds – Tuesday and Wednesday are the quietest days of the week to visit the theme parks.

The rides that worked best for us, visiting with a preschooler and with me being pregnant, were the gentle boat rides. We went on Under the Sea – Journey of the Little Mermaid, It’s a Small World, Pirates of the Caribbean and the Jungle Cruise.

Cinderella's Castle at Magic Kingdom, Walt Disney World, Florida

Little T and Mr. G also went on the Mad Tea Party spinning teacups ride, which you’re allowed on while pregnant but you’re advised against spinning the cups which is part of the fun, so I sat that one out (trust me, I didn’t mind!)

The two also went on Splash Mountain, which was possibly Little T’s favorite experience at Magic Kingdom! He still speaks about it and even re-enacts the ride with his stuffed toys.

Mad Tea Party Spinning Teacups ride at Magic Kingdom, Walt Disney World, Florida

During our trip, Little T loved the opportunities at parks or restaurants to meet his favorite characters. While at Magic Kingdom, we stopped by Pete’s Silly Sideshow at the Storybook Circus to meet Donald Duck and Goofy.

You can read more about our experience in my post – Visiting Magic Kingdom with a Preschooler.

Meeting Donald Duck at Magic Kingdom, Orlando

Character Meal at Crystal Palace, Magic Kingdom

Our day at Magic Kingdom started off with meeting Pooh and Friends at Crystal Palace, a beautiful restaurant just around the corner from Main Street. You can book breakfast as early as 08:05am, so it’s a great way to get into the park early and kick off the day at Magic Kingdom.

Character Meal at Crystal Palace with Pooh and Friends, Magic Kingdom, Walt Disney World, Florida

The character lunch at Crystal Palace was a fantastic experience and my favorite out of the three character meals we booked. The buffet spread was very good, the service was great and Little T loved having the chance to meet Pooh, Tigger, Piglet and Eeyore. You can read more about our experience in my Lunch at Crystal Palace with Pooh and Friends review.

Character Meal at Crystal Palace with Pooh and Friends, Magic Kingdom, Walt Disney World, Florida

Epcot

I’d highly recommend at least one evening at the parks to experience the nighttime shows, dining out and fireworks – and to explore or go on rides when it’s cooler out. We spent our last evening in Orlando at Epcot, where there’s a great selection of restaurants in the World Showcase and a brilliant fireworks display. During May, Epcot was also beautifully decorated with topiaries and gardens for its annual International Flower & Garden Festival.

Epcot International Flowers and Gardens Festival 2017, Walt Disney World, Florida

We arrived in the late afternoon and first stopped at the Character Spot for photos with Mickey, Goofy and Minnie.

Tip: Link your park admission tickets to your My Disney Experience account so you can start booking FastPass+ reservations 30 days in advance (60 days if you’re staying at a Walt Disney World resort). FastPass+ is free to use, and you can book up to 3 reservations per person per day for park rides, character spots and other experiences. Definitely worth it!

Mickey Mouse at the Epcot Character Spot, Walt Disney World, Florida

Afterwards, we went on the Spaceship Earth ride within Epcot’s iconic sphere, which takes you through mankind’s technological advances over the centuries. We spent the rest of the evening at the World Showcase, watching the fireworks before dinner at the San Angel Inn in the “Mexico” area.

You can read more about our experience in my post – Visiting Epcot with a Preschooler.

Epcot Spaceship Earth sphere, Walt Disney World, Orlando, Florida

Character Breakfast at Cape May Cafe, Beach Club Resort

At this character meal, we met Minnie Mouse, Goofy and Donald Duck all decked out in their swimwear at the lovely Beach Club Resort. I managed to book this breakfast only a few days in advance and I’m glad I did – the food was pretty good and we enjoyed the experience.

Little T participated in a parade, pretending to swim with Goofy, and he enjoyed watching the characters from our table and of course meeting them and getting autographs whenever they stopped by our table.

Minnie Mouse at Cape May Cafe Character Breakfast

You can read more about our experience in my review – Cape May Café Breakfast with Minnie & Friends

Character Breakfast at ‘Ohana, Polynesian Village Resort

Out of all the character meals, I was pretty disappointed with our experience at the ‘Ohana at the Polynesian Village Resort. We waited an hour to be seated, despite having a reservation and the restaurant being half empty, and to be honest we found the food disappointing and preferred the variety at other restaurants’ buffets.

That said, it was our first opportunity to see the Disney characters and Little T was over the moon to meet Mickey Mouse, Pluto, Lilo and Stitch.

Breakfast with Lilo & Stitch at 'Ohana Restaurant, Disney's Polynesian Village Resort

You can read more about our experience in my post: ‘Ohana Character Breakfast with Mickey and Friends.

Universal’s Islands of Adventure

We had a packed day at this park visiting Marvel Super Hero Island, Jurassic Park, The Wizarding World of Harry Potter (Hogsmeade Village) and Seuss Landing. We started off with meeting Spider-Man, definitely a trip highlight for Little T!

Meeting Spider-Man at Universal's Islands of Adventure, Orlando, Florida

At Jurassic Park, we spent some time at the Camp Jurassic playground and the Discovery Center, which was also fun and interesting to visit!

We continued to the Wizarding World of Harry Potter and I purchased an interactive wand for us to practice magic on some of the shop windows. It was a fun experience casting spells around the village for a special surprise!

Using an interactive wand at The Wizarding World of Harry Potter, Orlando, Florida

And finally we ended the day at Seuss Landing which is just perfect for young children and Dr. Seuss fans of all ages. Little T and Mr. G went on the High in the Sky Seuss Trolley Train Ride and then we all went on the Caro-seuss-el together, before bringing Little T to the fantastic If I Ran the Zoo interactive play area.

You can read more about our experience in my post – Our Visit to Universal’s Islands of Adventure.

If I Ran a Zoo water play area at Seuss Landing, Universal's Islands of Adventure, Orlando, Florida

Day Trip to Clearwater Beach

Located on the Gulf of Mexico and Florida’s west coast, Clearwater is an easy drive from Orlando – about 1 hour and 45 minutes. We made a day trip out there to enjoy some time at its gorgeous white sand beaches. Our first stop was near Pier 60 – after being by the water, we rented a surrey bike, which had a space for Little T to sit up front, and rode along the boardwalk.

We ended our day having dinner at the lively beachfront Frenchy’s Rockaway Grill – excellent food there and great spot to watch the beautiful sunset. Definitely worth visiting for some beach time and a break from the theme parks – it turned out to be one of the highlights of our trip!

Clearwater Beach, Florida at Sunset

Read more about our day trip in my post: Day Trip to Clearwater Beach, FL

Where We Ate

There are loads of dining options around Walt Disney World – at the parks, at Disney Springs (shown below), at the resorts and plenty a bit further afield at the shopping malls if like us you decide to rent a car. I made bookings for the Disney World restaurants (besides the ones at Disney Springs) because it’s easy to do through the My Disney Experience app and the restaurants were always pretty busy.

Disney Springs, Shops, Dining and Entertainment at Walt Disney World, Florida

Tip: Sign up to the My Disney Experience website or app and start booking your dining reservations up to 180 days ahead of your trip – popular restaurant bookings go quickly! You can always cancel or amend your reservation up to 24 hours before. Phone numbers must be 10 digits, so to book with your UK number, drop the first ‘0’.

Here’s where we ate while at Disney World;

Boma, Animal Kingdom Lodge – Great selection here at the breakfast buffet, from typical items – Mickey waffles, pancakes, fruit and yogurt, oatmeal, biscuits, scrambled eggs or omelettes, pastries – to more delicious additions such as plantains and hand-carved roasted ham, turkey or African spiced corned beef.

‘Ohana, Polynesian Village Resort – Brunch was served in a big pan: waffles, bacon, sausages, biscuits and scrambled eggs to share “family style”, along with a plate of fruit and sweet bread. It was a disappointing meal, considering the price, and we would have preferred the variety of a buffet or ordering a la carte.

Cape May Cafe, Beach Club Resort – A good breakfast buffet with the usual items: Mickey waffles, bacon and sausages, quiche and scrambled eggs, pastries, pancakes with lots of sweet toppings, cold cuts, roasted ham, asparagus and hollandaise sauce, etc.

Crystal Palace, Magic Kingdom – The lunch buffet exceeded our expectations, with various salads, a children’s buffet (chicken nuggets, corn and peas, mac and cheese, etc), oven roasted chicken, salmon and tilapia, jambalaya, roast turkey and roast beef; broccoli sautéed green beans, cornbread, collards and ham; and a delicious selection of desserts and pastries.

The Polite Pig, Disney Springs – We had lunch at this casual barbecue place and the service was pretty slow and the food was all right. I had a pulled pork sandwich, Little T had chicken tenders with carrot sticks and Mr. G had the wild salmon from the smoker.

Sanaa, Animal Kingdom Lodge – Recommended for its African and Indian fusion cuisine. We had the appetiser of five kinds of naan and nine sauces that were all delicious. Little T had the kid’s butter chicken meal which was actually much tastier than the braised lamb shank I ordered. Mr. G had the very good trio of grilled meats, a South African Braai sampling. Little T’s meal also came with a chocolate brownie to paint with coloured icing.

Kona Cafe, Polynesian Village Resort – We had dinner at the Kona Restaurant the night we arrived in Orlando, before watching the Magic Wishes fireworks in the distance from the resort’s beach. I’d recommend this place for a casual meal – the Asian noodles were pretty good.

San Angel Inn, Epcot – This restaurant in the Mexico part of Epcot’s World Showcase is designed as a 17th-century hacienda at the base of Mayan ruins, dimly lit and overlooking boats going by in the small lagoon at the foot of the ruins. My carne asada was good, very tender and delicious, but I found the rest of my meal (the rice and empanada) dry and tasteless.

Getting There

I booked our trip with Virgin Holidays which at the time (January) was having a sale that made it slightly cheaper than booking through DisneyWorld.co.uk. I booked only the flights and hotel through Virgin Holidays as the car rental, with full car insurance, would have cost extra and I could find a better deal booking an Avis rental (which is what I use whenever we visit the States) via the British Airways Executive Club.

Flying Long-Haul Virgin Atlantic with Kids

We’ve flown with Virgin Atlantic with Little T a few times now and are generally happy with the airline. The service at the airport and on the plane is always pleasant and efficient, the food is all right and there’s a good selection in the inflight entertainment.

We could use the Disney Springs check-in facility, free when you book with Virgin Holidays (otherwise £10 per person). With this option, you can drop off your suitcases by 1pm at Disney Springs, check in for your flight and receive your boarding passes. We still had to stop by the bag drop at the airport to drop off our car seat, but otherwise we were all set for our flight which was very convenient.

More on our Trip to Orlando

Stay tuned for more posts coming up over the next weeks with tips and reviews to help with planning a family holiday in Orlando! Here’s what’s coming up – I’ll link each post on this list once they’re published;

Hotel Review: Disney’s Animal Kingdom Lodge

Our Visit to Magic Kingdom, Walt Disney World

Our Visit to Universal’s Islands of Adventure

Our Visit to Epcot, Walt Disney World

Day Trip to Clearwater Beach, Florida

Review: Disney Character Meal at Crystal Palace, Magic Kingdom

Review: Disney Character Meal at Cape May Cafe, The Beach Club Resort

Review: Disney Character Meal at ‘Ohana, Polynesian Village Resort

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  1. We plan to take the children to Orlando next year. What a helpful resource your post was! I’ll be checking back to read your other Orlando posts once you publish them. Also, I LOVED your pictures… especially that first shot with the Walt and Mickey in front of the castle. Thanks for sharing! #CityTripping

  2. I can’t wait for my lo to be old enough for Disney. Looks like you had a great time #citytripping

  3. I went to Disneyland in Anaheim for the very first time last year and absolutely loved it. I went in with a bit of a “meh” attitude, but absolutely loved every second of it. We stayed from opening to closing time. I love the look of the Animal Kingdom Lodge, but I always expect them to be so expensive that I don’t even bother looking them up. Did you find it affordable? #CityTripping

  4. We were surprised at how much we enjoyed Disney World! There are many options for staying at a Disney resort – they have budget, mid-range and deluxe resorts, and I do think it’s worth having a look at the Disney World website to check prices and benefits as you might find it actually works out to a better deal to stay on-site. That said, there are plenty of accommodation options to choose from nearby, with great pools and other facilities, so I’d also recommend HotelsCombined.com for comparing the hotels (Disney and off-site) around the area. Thanks for stopping by!

  5. Thanks for stopping by! I had been looking forward to bringing our son to a Disney park and he absolutely enjoyed it! It was a great age for it too (3 years) since he was really in awe of the characters like Mickey Mouse, Goofy and Winnie the Pooh.

  6. Thanks very much and happy planning for your trip! Feel free to let me know if you have any questions. I found it a bit overwhelming at first but learned a lot over this trip. The main tip would be to take advantage of booking reservations ahead of time – dining and FastPass+ – especially if you have your heart set on a particular restaurant or park ride. Thanks for stopping by!

  7. I would so love to go here one day and posts like these just make me want to book it right now. I definitely will one day….hopefully! 🙂

  8. Oh my goodness, it looks so magical! I haven’t visited Orlando since having children and can’t wait to do all the disney parks with my girls. The character lunch looks amazing. Thanks so much for linking up to #FamilyTravelTips.
    Nat.x

  9. Thank you- I’ve pinned this to my Disney planning board. We’ve started to plan for 2 years time and these tips will prove very useful. #familytraveltips

  10. I really like Clearwater Beach too. I’m working on convincing my other half that a Disney trip would be fun – not sure it’s going to work! #MondayEscapes

  11. Looks fantastic! I can’t wait to take Baby Lighty to Disney! Clearwater Beach looks beautiful too! #MondayEscapes

  12. Sounds like you had a great trip. We love going to Disney. #mondayescapes

  13. I know I’ve said it all over your Instagram pictures, but what an amazing trip! Good call about not going on the tea cup rides – they make me feel so sick! The rest of your posts sounds like they are going to be so handy for anyone planning a similar holiday. Thanks for linking u with #MondayEscapes

  14. Disneyland is my absolute favorite places to be at. I haven’t been to Disney World yet but I am dying to go! It just looks so fun. Plus I’m a huge Disney fan so I know I’d have lots of fun. And it looks like you had lots of fun there too! I’d want to visit all the parks as well since I’m already there. And the universal studios Wizarding World is always a place I want to go to, and I’d definitely buy a wand to do all the interactive spells around the town! Great post, i’ll have to keep this in mind when I finally make my way over there.

  15. It sounds like a lovely holiday – Animal Kingdom Lodge is the dream hotel!! Saving this post for future reference; you’ve shared some great information and tips.

  16. We just did this same trip in December – looks like you had a fabulous time! My favorite was Universal..Disney is a classic, but the rides at Universal are so innovative and the Wizarding world is like no other. Hope you’re feeling well! #mondayescapes

  17. […] loved Piccolo Explorer’s wonderful pot about their Family Holiday in Orlando where they visited Magic Kingdom, Epcot and Universal’s Islands of […]

  18. What a great introduction to Disney Orlando – with lots of helpful links too. I’m the same with the tea cup rides- they always make me feel so wobbly! Wizarding World would be so interesting. Huge Harry Potter fan here so I love that aspect! I like the fact you incorporated day trips out of Disney too. There is just so much to do in the area! Looking forward to the hotel review! #familytraveltips

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