Easter Happenings at Walt Disney World

EasterIf you are going to be in Walt Disney World for Easter, there are some fun offerings at the parks and resorts to enjoy this spring holiday. Guests looking for religious services can attend Protestant service at the Contemporary in the Fantasia ballroom on Easter Sunday at 9am. Catholic services will be held at 8am and 10:15am. For other holiday services, resorts can assist guests in directing them to off property sites for Hindu, Muslim, Judaism and other religious services.

Table service restaurants across property have Easter meals for booking if you are looking for a special meal. Breakfast with a character buffet is offered at Disney’s Beach Club Resort at Cape May Cafe. A special Easter dinner is also occurring at Cape May with the addition of a Roasted Lamb to the carving station at the buffet. Next door at the Yacht Club, Captain’s Grille is hosting a brunch with Roasted Strip Loin and Baked Ham with assorted sauces with the buffet. Another character meal offered is Chef Mickey’s Fun Time Easter Brunch at Disney’s Contemporary Resort. Also at the Contemporary at the Wave there is a brunch with a carving station featuring New York Strip Loin and Bone-In Ham. The Walt Disney World Swan offers a character dinner buffet at Garden Grove. Kouzzina at the Boardwalk and Olivia’s at Old Key West are also providing special dinner menus in addition to their regular dinner menus.

Cupcakes for Easter will be offered in locations at the Boardwalk Bakery, in the food court at Caribbean Beach, and at Roaring Fork at the Wilderness Lodge.

Special Easter merchandise will be available for purchase at gift shops at Coronado Springs and the Yacht and Beach Club. Other resorts will have Easter baskets for purchase in addition to these at the Boardwalk, Caribbean Beach, Contemporary, Fort Wilderness, Grand Floridian, Old Key West, Polynesian and Wilderness Lodge. Some will be pre-made and others will have the opportunity to create your own Easter basket. Consult the resort directly for further questions.

At Roaring Fork at Disney’s Wilderness Lodge, guests will have the ability to vote for winners of the Recycled Craft Contest in the dining room.

There will also be a chocolate Easter Egg display in the lobby of the Grand Floridian from April 5 – 22nd.

Stay tuned for more resort and theme park recreation activities to be updated in a future post in April as we get closer to Easter!

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March Madness basketball at Walt Disney World

If you are at all a college basketball fan, like I am, your brackets for the NCAA basketball tournaments are already filled out and ready to go. This year there is a new offering at the ESPN Club at Disney’s Boardwalk for VIP seating during March Madness. Beginning March 20th guests have the ability to book reserved seating area. Prices vary based on the portion of the tournament they are attending. For the elimination rounds (March 20 – 23) adult prices are $50 and children are $25. The Sweet 16 Round is $65 and Final Four is $75 for adults and both are $25 for children. During the basketball tournament there will be two sets of seating times, one from 12 – 4:30pm and the other from 5 – 11pm. ESPN Club’s hours of regular operation are from 11:30am – 1am, but are subject to change during March Madness.

From the ESPN Club website: “ESPN Club VIP Premium Club Seats are available for $50 per adult and $25 per child, and include all food and beverage orders up to those amounts; additional charges will apply for orders exceeding the cost of each individual Guest’s admission. Tax and gratuity are not included.”

If playing is more your style, Walt Disney World has several locations on property where you can shoot hoops. At the Walt Disney World Dolphin you can find an outdoor court near the lap pool. Equipment can be checked out at either the Swan or Dolphin health clubs. The court and equipment rental are exclusive to guests staying at the Swan or Dolphin. The Campgrounds at Fort Wilderness also have six quarter quarts located in different loops throughout the resort. Balls are typically available in a box located adjacent to each court. In addition to these, a few deluxe villas properties have courts at Animal Kingdom Villas – Kidani Village, Saratoga Springs Resort & Spa and at Disney’s Old Key West Resort. Balls are usually available at Community Hall. When it opens in August, the new Four Seasons Orlando will also offer a basketball court in their recreation area Explorer Island.

basketball

For those looking to be completely immersed in a basketball theme, you may want to check out Disney’s All Star Sports Resort and check in to the Hoops Hotel section. This value resort is one where you can surround yourself in all things basketball with larger than life icons outside the buildings and the theme carries over to the room decor. Pennants decorate the outside of the building featuring college basketball teams from around the country. Basketballs also adorn the exterior of the resort buildings that are more than five feet in diameter and number more than 70. The megaphone giant icon is 45 feet tall and the whistles are 60 feet long and 20 feet tall. If you, or any family members, are fans of basketball, this is a fun resort to enjoy great sports theming in the rooms and throughout the lobby area.

hoops hotel baskets

hoops hotel whistle

Are you all geared up for March Madness or are you just a basketball fan in general? If so, I hope you’ll check out these resorts to live, eat, sleep and breathe basketball at Walt Disney World. Shout out to your favorite teams you’re routing for in the NCAA tournament in the comments. Go Vols!

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New Year’s Eve at Walt Disney World

New Year’s Eve is upon us and I’m sure some of you are wondering what to do for last minute plans. If you aren’t planning on braving the crowds to visit the theme parks at Walt Disney World, don’t worry, there are still options for you.

At DisneyQuest they are playing host to a New Year’s Eve party from 8pm until 1am for guests of all ages. The party is a hard ticket event with tickets for guests ages 3 and up for $61.03 plus tax. Included in the party ticket is unlimited access to DisneyQuest games, two DJ dance parties, unique character meet and greets with Wreck-It Ralph and Vanellope as well as Chip and Dale, food, party hats, noisemakers, etc. are also included. Tickets are available for purchase online at  disneyworld.com, over the phone at 407-W-DISNEY, in person at DisneyQuest, Disney resorts, Swan, Dolphin, ESPN WWOS or any Guest Relations locations.

New Year's Eve
image copyright Disney

Some of the resorts at Walt Disney World are even offering their own activities for New Year’s Eve tonight. Animal Kingdom Lodge – Jambo House is playing host to guests in the Sunset Savanna Lounge just off the lobby for a different kind of New Year’s Even party. You can learn from Cultural Representatives at the resort how they ring in the New Year at 5pm as it becomes the New Year in Africa. Guests can also learn what kind of resolutions they can make to help protect animals and the environment in the New Year.

Fort Wilderness is planning a whole evening of fun for their guests. The New Year’s Eve festivities begin at 6pm for two hours of beach games along the shores of Bay Lake. From 8 – 9pm they will have a New Year’s Eve photo both for family fun pics. Bingo is at 9pm, followed by 2013 trivia at 10pm. The countdown to the fun starts at 11pm, with the Fantasy in the Sky Fireworks blasting off at 11:50pm.

Not to be left out are the Polynesian with their beach bash from 7pm until midnight and Port Orleans Riverside with a New Year’s Eve Bayou Bash from 9pm until 12am.

If you are a resort guest at Walt Disney World, it is a great time to be here. There are several options for fun outside the parks if you aren’t wanting to deal with the crowds. What are you doing New Year’s Eve?

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