Since those early days Celebration has grown in size with several new property phases being added, each with their own individuality and style. Names such as North Village, West Village and Evalyn Lake enrich the community with homes ranging from small condominiums to great mansions. Whether Disney’s original values still hold good is, I guess, a question for today’s residents to answer.

At first glance the Disney influence is very apparent, a hotel very much in the Floridian style, an Art Deco cinema that could easily have been transported from Hollywood Studios and a lake with walking trails reminiscent of Disney’s Boardwalk area. It is hard to come to terms with the fact that this is a working community with its own infrastructure including all emergency services and local amenities including schools, libraries and leisure facilities.

At the far end of Water Street, along a beautiful tree lined avenue is the entrance to Celebration’s very own championship golf course and back in downtown, just a ten-minute stroll away are the chic boutiques and elegant restaurants that can be found dotted around the lake.

Try Sherlock’s, which is a quintessential English teashop that also specialises in fine wines, or sit outside in the evening sunshine and enjoy Spanish tapas at the Colombia restaurant.  A tad cheaper is the Market Street Café, which does ‘the best breakfast’ in Celebration according to many reviewers. The Front Porch is an ice cream parlour with pavement seating, and is an ideal place to rest on a hot summer’s day with your favourite ice cream concoction in hand.

The visitor can be forgiven for thinking they have stumbled upon a perpetual movie set as Celebration is so far removed from the ‘real world’ yet only minutes from hustle and bustle of the US192 corridor. There are no chain stores or recognisable fast food outlets here and Disney has been clever enough to link Celebration Boulevard to World Drive so that residents can reach the theme parks and return home without having to venture on to any other major roads or thoroughfares.

So can the visitors…but don’t tell everyone!!

More & more good news keeps coming for us Villa Owners and Holiday makers alike.

With Universal Studios confirming the first Phase of Harry Potter’s Theme Park opening in Spring 2010, both Disney and Busch Gardens have followed with announcements of their latest offerings in the pipeline. Neither dare be left behind but they have welcomed Universal’s lead as they know it will continue to bring in the visitors until their own Parks are up dated.

Disney’s Night’s of Joy will be moving back from Hollywood Studios to The Magic Kingdom in 2010 where they originally started.

The Princess Area to be created is now being cleared at Magic Kingdom. It is their biggest change which will allow guests to Interact with some of Disney’s most famous Princesses including Cinderella, Aurora and Belle.

The existing Dumbo Flying Elephant ride will be doubled in size (not before time, with those long queues) and be included in a Circus Big Top Interactive queing area to entertain all of us during our wait. There will also be a new Pixie Hollow Greeting Area to meet all of the Disney Fairies. The 1st. Phase including The Mermaid ride and the Princess Area will open in 2012 and Pixie Hollow by 2013.

Busch Gardens are also getting in on the act and will be bringing The Sesame Street Safari to life on the Land of Dragons site. The Sesame Street-themed play area will feature Elmo, Big Bird and many other popular Sesame Street characters.

The only downside, sadly is the closure, again, of Cypress Gardens which unfortunately falls way behind the other Parks pulling Power.

Hope the new owners of Seaworld also respond to all of the proposed changes, it can only good for us all.

Regards,

Mary & Larry

Universal & Busch Gardens actually employ THOUSANDS of extra staff to dress up and SCARE the visitors as they make there way around the Parks. Their costumes are absolutely brilliant and with all of the Scarey bits there are lots & lots of laughs.

Seaworld include their nights in with the price but Disney, Universal & Busch have special ticketed nights so it is best to check the nights & prices out.

Universal have a Special Themed event each year & this year it is from The Silver Screen –CHUCKY & THE WOOLFMAN.

REMEMBER some Halloween Events are NOT suitable for young children. We have this chart below which will give you a good idea of the shows but again it is best to check everything out for your own family.

Halloween 2009 At a Glance

The events really do Blow the Socks off our shows here in the UK and are well worth visiting—IF YOU DARE!!!!!!

Have fun - we are over there so we certainly will

Mary & Larry

You’d be hard-pressed to find a small child who is not a big fan of going to the zoo.  Animal Kingdom is like no other animal park your child has ever seen and amidst the animal exhibits are the wonderful attractions characteristic only of Disney. 

Animal Kingdom is the smallest of the Disney parks and allows families with small children ample time to cover  the park at a toddler’s pace.  Your children will enjoy seeing some unusual animals that they may have never seen before like Komodo dragons, anteaters, and the Flying Fox (the largest bat in the world with a wing-span of 6 feet)!

The attractions that you will need to avoid with your small children are Kali River Rapids, Expedition Everest, Dinosaur, It’s Tough to be a Bug and Primevil Whirl.

The rest of the park is totally suitable for all ages including Kilimanjaro Safaris which is a pleasant ride in an open-air safari jeep across the “African Savannah” where riders can view giraffes, zebras, lions and more in their natural habitat.

Your small children will enjoy the Wildlife Express Train or a ride on the TriceraTop Spin which is similar to Dumbo in Magic Kingdom (and always a family favorite) as well as playing in the Boneyard which is a play maze built around dinosaur fossils but don’t miss the fabulous performances.  Our favorite is The Festival of the Lion King.  The colorful costumes, incredible imagery including giant floats with all your favorite Lion King characters, stilt walkers, acrobats, trapeze artists, and talented singers rival the Broadway performance of The Lion King we saw a few years back in New York City!  

Finding Nemo – the Musical is not to be missed by little Nemo fans!  This colorful live performance with actors and puppetry is a shortened  re-telling of the movie only with original music numbers added in.

Flights of Wonder is an interesting program but may not be interesting enough for young children.  And if your children have a fear of birds, then this may a good one to avoid as some of the birds will be flying over the audience.

Have you ever thought of taking a cruise. Then look no further than Disney Cruise line in Florida. Their Disney wonder Ship leaves from Port Canaveral to head for the Bahamas and their own private island - Castaway Cay.

Over the last couple of years we have been lucky enough to travel on this ship on their 3 day 4 night cruise to the Bahamas.

As we boarded the ship we were announced by the staff and made really welcome. All food is included but not your alcoholic drinks.

Each night you will be seated in a different restaurant and sometimes with other guests. This is nice as you can get to know people from all over the world. You also have the opportunity to book a table at Palo’s a fantastic a la carte restaurant on the top deck. The chocolate souffles are to die for.

There are lots of different bars for the adults that provide different entertainment into the early hours.

During the day there are three seaparate pools - one for the little ones, one for families and an adults only pool. Sit by the pool and order your bucket of Buds.

There is entertainment during the day as well.

You will be astounded by the amount of food that is available. They even lay on a late night buffet following their pirates party.

During the cruise you will visit Nassau in the Bahamas and have the opportunity to go on tours of the island to see the different sights. Then you will move on to Castaway Cay Island - this is just out of this world. White sandy beaches, gloriously blue clear seas and barbecues. Get some bikes and explore the island or participate in beach games of sea activities.

It is just fantastic try it!

We exited the elevator and entered “The Zone”! (Actually there are four “Zones”, the Explore Zone, the Score Zone, the Replay Zone and the Create Zone)!   Our first encounter was with Buzz Lightyear’s Astroblasters.  This was pretty cool, though it took me awhile to figure it out.  Of course, my 10-year old son, on the other hand, was a pro in seconds!  You ride in these bumper car spaceship type vehicles and battle with the other vehicles by scooping up cannon balls and firing them at each other. 

Next, we tried Invasion which is a virtual reality ride where you have to try to rescue people who were captured by aliens.  I wasn’t much use to those poor people, but fortunately for the captives, I had my 13-year old daughter as co-pilot. She was the hero!

The Comix was interesting to watch – my husband and kids did this one without me.  You put on a virtual reality helmet and enter into a cyber battle with your laser sword.  They looked pretty goofy swinging their swords through the air at nothing!  Well, it looked that way to me, of course, but they were thoroughly engaged in their encounters with comic book villains!

I never thought I could draw! Well, in the Animation Academy, I found out that I had some hidden talent!  This was great – an instructor took us through the process of drawing a Disney character!

The Virtual Jungle Cruise was great fun.  We climbed aboard a raft and plunged down a raging river back in the age of the dinosaurs!  It was quite an adventure as we dodged some scary obstacles along the way.

The Mighty Ducks Pinball Slam was where I shined!  You stand on a moving platform that you maneuver with your feet and you control a pinball up on the screen trying to get the most points possible to beat out the other players.  I totally impressed my kids when I won by a landslide!  What – no prize?

It was about now that I discovered the Replay Zone and well, I was hooked!  I thoroughly enjoyed playing all my favorite arcade games from my university days.  Only this was way better because no tokens needed and I could keep playing to my heart’s content.  I enjoyed revisiting many classics including Pacman, Frogger, Space Invaders, and Centipede.  I never made it to the remaining virtual reality rides, but maybe next time!

Here’s what’s left for me to try when we go back:

Cyber Space Mountain allows you to design your own roller coaster on a computer.  When you’re finished with your creation, you get to take a ride.

Pirates of the Carribean – Battle for Buccaneer Gold must be very good as there was a VERY long line for this one.  You put on a head piece and enter the world of pirates in a race for gold.

Aladdin’s Magic Carpet Ride is another virtual reality ride where you put on your helmet and enter Agrabah and go for a ride with the characters from the beloved film Aladdin.

Our entire family really enjoyed our day at Disney Quest.  There’s definitely something for all ages!  Give it a try on your next trip!

There are lots of these band type lights here in the UK at our Pound Stores so it may suit some visitors to stock up before they leave, making sure they are in their suitcases and not their hand luggage.

Our American guests also recommended booking the Disney Character Dining seats at The Parks,  before their vacation as the availability is so hard to get on the days just before you go to The Parks. They are really Special experiences, When we visited, even at our age, Larry & I joined in the Dancing Chains & Napkin waving with Mickey & Minnie and all of their Friends. Great fun, just to see the little one’s faces and to get as many close up photo’s as you want.

Happy Holidays

Mary & Larry

You will also find on one of the Disney Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutiques here - this is where my little daughter loves to go and enjoys having her hair and make up down, as well as dressing up in one of her favourite disney costumes.  The last time we went we went for the full package where you get a photo shoot included.  My daughter looked amazing when they had finished and the photos are an ever lasting memory.  It was well worth the money!  Everyone was commenting on her as we walked through Downtown Disney.  She also remembers that moment and she is only 6.  A must for every little girl. 

You will also find great shops with all the Disney Merchandise;  if you forgot to buy a particular item in one of the parks, you will hopefully be able to purchase it here.  There are also various other retailers, as well as some great themed restaurants.  

There are also some great entertainment venues, like Cirque de Soleil which is located in Downtown Disney. 

I have listed a few of  shops/restaurants, etc, which you can find at Downtown Disney below:-

World of Disney - if you are looking for loads of fun whilst shopping, this is the place to go.  It is one of the largest stores and has so much to choose from.  This is where you will also find the Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique mentioned above. 

Once Upon a Toy - Play happily ever after at this amazing toy store that offers the largest assortment of toys and games in all of Disney.  From princesses to pirates you will find some great toys in here.

Lego Imagination Centre - this shop is great, especially if you kids are into lego.  Not only can they buy some great lego sets (which my son has plenty) they get to play and make models with the lego stands outside.  This has kept my kids occupied for hours (for free) whilst we sat and watched enjoyed a cup of coffee. 

Disney Days of Christmas - this is my favourite shop at Downtown Disney - its Christmas all year round.  You also get to personalise a lot of the ornaments so they make them very personal to your visit. 

Rainforest Cafe and the new T-Rex restaurants can also be found at Downtown Disney.  We have visit the Rainforest cafe a few times now, and the kids love it.  We have never eaten in the T-Rex one, but have had a sneek look inside.  If you kids love dinosaurs this is the resturant to visit.  It has large interactive models of dinosaurs dotted around the restaurant that move at certain times.  You will also DinoBear (part of the build a bear workshop) in her.  My son loved this as he was able to choose his own dinosaur and dress it.  Quite appropriate for a boy!

This is just a taster of what can be found at Downtown Disney. 

Don’t forget to make a visit on your next trip.  We hope you enjoy it.

During October the Food and Wine Festival is in full swing and gives the visitor the opportunity to sample speciality dishes from, not only the cuisines of countries permanently represented in Epcot but also from several other guest countries whose temporary stands, dotted around the lagoon, cannot fail to attract those with an appetite to try something a little different.

We tend to enter the park via the International Gateway and stroll in an anti clockwise direction in the hope of timing our visit to coincide with a performance from the Japanese drummers whose energetic and rhythmic routines are truly exquisite.

This spot is also provides a great photo opportunity with the Japanese arch set against a red sky with the familiar Spaceship Earth globe as the backdrop.

We’ll probably get a quick bite to eat from one of the temporary stands, the Australian Kangaroo steaks can be recommended, and then walk towards the American Garden Theatre which probably holds around a thousand people. This is located adjacent to the Great American Adventure and is attractively set amongst trees with fairly lights suspended from their branches.

The concerts last for half an hour appeal to all tastes. Artists such as Sheena Easton, Sister Hazel and David Cassidy were all performing during the Food and Wine Festival.

The culmination of the day’s events is the Illuminations, Reflections of Earth firework spectacular which takes place every evening at nine o clock and visitors tend to claim their favourite vantage spots up to an hour before. In our opinion this just isn’t necessary because viewing all around the lagoon is more or less unobstructive.

We tend to ease our way around the United Kingdom pavilion which not only provides great views of the lagoon but also givers us the opportunity to slip quietly out of the park once the fireworks have finished.

If there is anybody reading this that hasn’t yet seen Illuminations then we can tell you that, in our opinion, this is the best firework display in Disney and should not be missed.

Make sure you have a go if you are an avid golfer