Walt Disney World and pictures go hand in hand. You have to figure close to a million photos are taken on Disney property each day, and that is just by guests, not including all the ride photos taken. So, where are the places you shouldn’t miss having your picture taken? Below is our Top 10 Walt Disney World photo spots:

#10: Lego Store – Downtown Disney – This is a unique choice, as it really isn’t Disney, but a Lego store located in Downtown Disney. Lego has done a great job making the Lego Store a fun place to be, with a bunch of life size lego creations that you can have your photo taken with.

#9: From the top of the Contemporary Resort – Located on the  top floor of the Contemporary is the California Grill. If you are lucky enough to get a reservationn there,  you will have access to the Contemporary catwalk. This is a big platform on the North end off the building, and is outside, with fantastic views of the Magic Kingdom, Grand Floridian and Contemporary.

#8: Japan Pavilion, Epcot -  While the Japan pavilion is beautiful and all, what makes this spot special is the great view you get from the lakeside looking back across the lake towards Spaceship Earth.

#7: Expedition Everest – Animal Kingdom – Disney’s newest thrill ride also give you some great photo opportunities, from up close, or further away. It is a beautiful mountain, and with all the work Disney has done to make it look like it rises from a small town in Nepal, you are sure to find some great photo spots.

#6: Tree of Life – Animal Kingdom -  The centerpiece of the Animal Kingdom park is a bigger than life tree, carved with hundreds of animals into it’s trunk, and can be seen from just about anywhere in the park. My personal favorite spot is on the bridge going from Discovery Island to Harambe Village, you get a nice clear shot of the Tree, and there is plenty of space to get your whole group in the shot.

#5: Sorcerer’s Hat – Disney’s Hollywood Studios – A relatively new theme park icon, Mickey’s Sorcerer Hat has become one of the most photographed items in any of the Disney theme parks. Just a fantastic backdrop to your entrance to Disney’s Hollywood studios, and while great looking during the day, it is at night when it really shines.

#4: Spaceship Earth – Epcot – Located at the entrance to Epcot, guests constantly stop to get a picture with Spaceship Earth in the background. No mistaking where that photo was taken. If you want to try a less popular, but honestly better angle, try walking past the ride and on the other side of the Fountain of Nations, you get a great angle, plus the fountains.

#3: Entrance to Magic Kingdom – Once you walk through the turnstiles of the Magic Kigndom, there is a great photo op, with the over sized Mickey made of flowers and the Magic Kingdom train station in the back, you can’t help but snap a photo of the kids.

#2: Tower of Terror – Sunset Boulevard – Disney’s Hollywood Studios -  While you may be a big chicken and wimp out before you actually get to the Tower of Terror, there is nothing like having your picture with it in the background while you are still feeling brave.

#1: Cinderella’s Castle – By far the most photographed area of Disney World is Cinderella’s Castle. There are several great areas to shoot from to get a great photo, walking down Main Street, from Tomorrowland or Adventureland, from Fantasyland even to get the back side. My favorite is from the entrance to the Crystal Palace. There isn’t anything block your photo, it is all trees and grass.

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Most people head to Walt Disney World with kids in tow. One of the most important decisions in planning your Disney World vacation is deciding where to stay. And if you will have kids along with you, that decision becomes even more important. So, here are out top 10 Disney resorts for kids.

#10: Port Orleans Riverside – Riverside, along with the other moderate resorts are ok for kids, but honestly, are better for adults without kids. They are quiet and decent resorts, but not anything overly fun or stimulating for kids. Riverside is the one exception, as they have a very fun pool, a cool boat you can ride to Downtown Disney along with the coolest thing, old time bamboo fishing poles you can rent and fish in the river. Riverside is a great resorts as well if you have three kids, as many of the rooms will sleep 5, the only moderate resort that has this amenity.

#9: Pop Century – While Pop Century, and the #8 All-Stars, were built for kids and families, they really aren’t the best resorts for kids. The pools do not have slides, and the resorts tend to get pretty crowded and often loud. Granted, Pop Century is well thought out and it is a fun resort. It has several big pools and a great arcade and food court, and plenty of Disney magic.

#8: All-Stars – While technically I would put All-Star Movies here at #8, in reality, the All-Stars are basically identical with only their theme separating the resorts. These resorts are similar to Pop Century, in not having a slide at the pools, but they have fun themes that kids seem to love. Whether your kids are into Sports, Music or Disney Movies, you can find something at one of these resorts to make your kids happy.

#7: Disney’s Fort Wilderness - Fort Wilderness offers both camping spots for tents, trailers and RVs as well as cool Wilderness Cabins. Kids love camping, and if you don’t want to rough it, the cabins are a great answer. Fort Wilderness has fun activities from campfires at night to hay rides and golf carts you can rent. A fun resort to spend time at for kids and adults.

#6: Polynesian – The Polynesian has many great attractions for kids, a great pool with ultra cool volcano slide, a beach, the monorail and a great view of the Magic Kingdom. The rooms are fun, and you really get into the feel of the Polynesian, especially at night, with the tiki torches. Plus, all kids love sitting on the beach and watching the water parade at night.

#5: Boardwalk Inn – Disney’s Boardwalk Inn is a great kids resort, with a fantastic roller coaster water slide at the pool, a great location near Epcot and Disney’s Hollywood Studios and the Boardwalk right out your door. Not only are there great restaurants on the Boardwalk, including the ESPN Zone, but you can also rent surrey bikes and hang out and watch the buskers, where are a blast.

#4: Wilderness Lodge – The Wilderness Lodge is a great resort for kids, with a fun, swimming hole type pool, great courtyard area and one of the funnest restaurants in Disney, Whispering Canyon Cafe. Plus, there is a great boat ride over to the Magic Kingdom available if you wish. Also, you can get a room with bunk beds, which always seems to solve a few fights over sharing a bed between the kids. Now, you just have to deal with the fight over who gets to sleep on the top bunk.

#3: Beach Club/Yacht Club – While technically the Beach and Yacht Club are separate resorts, in most cases, they really are only one resort. The Beach Club and Yacht Club have the best pool by far at WDW, Stormalong Bay. In addition to the great water slide, this sand bottom pool has a lazy river, a whirlpool and many other fun places to explore. Kind of like having your own water park outside your hotel room. Plus, the Yacht and Beach Club is right next to Epcot, and not far from the Boardwalk and Disney’s Hollywood Studio.

#2:  Contemporary – there is just something magical about the Contemporary for kids. I don’t know if it is the monorail running through the lobby every few minutes, or the great views of the Magic Kingdom from the room, or the kids pool that is out in Bay Lake. The rooms are fun, just having been totally redone, and have nice balconies where kids can hang out and watch the fireworks at the Magic Kingdom. Plus, it is only a 5 minute walk over the Magic Kingdom if you don’t want to wait for the monorail, the only resort you can walk to the Magic Kingdom from.

#1: Animal Kingdom Lodge -  Well, kind of a no brainer for me. The Animal Kingdom Lodge is my kids favorite resort, and that holds true for most kids I have ever asked. With rooms right on savannas, kids can sit and watch the animals for hours from their rooms. Plus, there is a great pool with super fun water slide and you can even see animals from the pool area. Just a great place for kids to stay, they never seem to complain when you are leaving the parks to head back to the resort.

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Just in case you hadn’t noticed, Walt Disney World is pretty smart. They realized a while ago that Disney World needed special events to draw people into the parks during “off season”. Now, summer is always crowded, as is the week of Christmas and Spring Break, but other times of the year can be pretty slow at Disney World. So, enter the Event. As time has gone on, a few more events have been added, most recently, the Pirate and Princess Party that has been happening in the Spring and Fall since 2007. Here are our top 10 Walt Disney World events:

#10: ABC Super Soap Weekend – Now, granted, I hate soap operas, so it plausible this may be #1 on your list, but it barely squeaks into the top 10 on mine.  Usually held the second weekend in November, the Super Soap Weekend brings together all of ABC soap starts and their adoring fans in one theme park (Disney’s Hollywood Studios). Get your autograph with your favorite soap star, or even win a chance to star along side one of the hunks in “I want to be a soap star!”. Good luck ladies!

#9: Star Wars Weekend – again, not really up my alley, but this one at least sounds a little cool. Usually held in late May or early June, the Star Wars Weekend has become more like the Star Wars Weekend for a month event. Meet Star Wars characters and actors, learn how to use a lightsaber or  talk like Yoda. If you love, or even like, Star Wars, you should make your way to Disney’s Hollywood Studios one of these weekends.

#8: Night of Joy – Usually held in the Magic Kingdom the first full weekend in September (not ever Labor Day Weekend though), the Night of Joy features Contemporary Christian acts performing live for two nights. For 2008, the event moves to Disney’s Hollywood Studios, it will be interesting to see if it stays there.

#7: ESPN The Weekend – If you are into sports, and who isn’t?, the ESPN Weekend is for you. Featuring ESPN’s top celebrities, and sports stars that you all know, ESPN the Weekend is a blast, and covers just about every square inch of WDW. Usually held the last weekend in February, the coolest part is all these guys have families, and they want to ride the rides too. You never know when you will get to ride Pirates of the Caribbean with Peyton Manning and family, or Tower of Terror with Johnny Bench.

#6: Pirate and Princess Party – The new kid on the block, and already very popular. Held each Springs (January and February), and then again in the Fall (September), the Pirate and Princess party allows kids of all ages to dress as their favorite Pirate or Princess in the Magic Kingdom for a few hours, complete with rides, a special parade, and classes on how to be a better pirate or princess.

#5: Mickey’s Not So Scary Halloween Party – Along the lines of the Pirate and Princess party, the Mickey’s Not So Scary Halloween Party allows you to come into the Magic Kingdom all dressed up for Halloween. Special parades and fireworks great you, and you can even trick or treat your way up Main Street. This is really a fun party, and your only chance to get a picture with your favorite character all dressed up for Halloween.

#4: Holidays Around the World - Held in Epcot, this is basically all the countries of the World Showcase dressed up for the holidays. Epcot is the place to be at Christmas time, with the Candlelight Processional, special storytellers and carolers in each country, tree lighting ceremonies, and if you are lucky, you could glimpse Santa Clause in each country, dressed as that county sees him.

#3: Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Party – The Grand daddy of them all. Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Party is held yearly in the Magic Kingdom during late November and December. The Magic Kingdom is all decked out for the Holidays, and nothing is more special than walking down Main Street while it snows and Holiday music is playing (and it is still 78 degrees outside). Special Holiday events and activities await you, even photos with Santa Clause and hot chocolate add to the mood.

#2: Flower and Garden Festival – Held in Epcot during the late Springs (March through May), the Flower and Garden festival dressed up Epcot like you have never seen before. Special Flower arrangements abound, nothing like seeing your childhood Disney stars made out of plants. Plus, the Flower Power concert series makes it all worth while, with great acts from the 60′s performing nightly.

#1: Epcot International Food and Wine Festival -  Truly, the reason why I love Epcot and Walt Disney World. I love to eat at the many restaurants of Epcot, and during the Food and Wine festival, an additional 40 or so booths are set up throughout the World Showcase featuring food from around the world, most coming from countries not represented in Epcot. This is a great opportunity to taste food you normally wouldn’t see in Epcot, or anywhere else for that matter outside the host country. All portions are small, so you don’t fill up after one or two countries. Drinks are available as well from most countries, so pace yourself so you make it all the way around the World Showcase. Held each fall from late September until the middle of November.

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Every year, millions of people visit Walt Disney World, it is after all the most popular tourist destination in the world. Even though you may stay in the same hotel as another family, and go to the exact same theme parks, everyone has a different Disney vacation. Here are our top 10 tips for planning your WDW vacation. If you are going to spend the money, you might as well do it right.

#10: Plan for down time – Walt Disney World is huge, and often very crowded and hot. Nothing can ruin a vacation to Walt Disney World, especially if you have little kids, than trying to do too many things in one day. During your planning, make sure you figure in some down time at the resort for naps or swimming. You will be surprised how refreshed your group will be near the end of the day, while others are having to go home early after trying to stay in the parks for 16+ hours at a time.

#9: Disney Message Boards - Visit a few different Disney message boards while planning your vacation. You can ask questions, or read about other’s trips. Any tips you can pick up will help you on your vacation, plus you might make a few new friends. We suggest DisBoards, they are the biggest, but can be overwhelming to find helpful information. Also check out MouseBuzz, smaller and more intimate that DisBoards.

#8: Pick your resort wisely – Making sure you stay in the right resort for you is very important. Whether it is the location, theme or quality of the resort, each Disney resort differs, and most likely, one resort may be better for you. If you are unfamiliar with the resorts, make sure you spend time doing the research to find the right resort. Looking at pictures and maps is the best first step. We suggest SuiteDisney, for each Disney resort, they have hundreds of quality photos. They also have great photos of the parks and resorts.

#7: Check Park and Parade Hours/Plan your days -  Disney World posts park, parade and fireworks hours 6 months in advance for each park. They also post a schedule of Extra Magic Hours for the parks as well. You need to check out the hours and schedules for each park, and plan out which parks you will be doing each day. While you don’t need to stick to the schedule once you are there, things always change, it is nice to have the schedule set up, and go from there. You can see current Magic Kingdom park hours here, and from there, you can get to the other Disney parks and other months.

#6: Plan and Book Early – Make sure you start your planning as early as possible.  Planning early allows you time to figure out where you want to stay, gives you the best opportunity at getting the resort and room type you want, and get discounts on your reservation. You will also then have plenty of time to make dining reservation and any other plans you need. We usually plan 12 months in advance for our trip.

#5: Disney Guide Book – We suggest you pick up a good Disney Guide book for your trip, even if you have been 100 times before.  A good guide book will inform you about changes at the parks, new rides or restaurants, and will give you good insight to what will work best for your family. We suggest either the Unofficial Guide to Walt Disney World or the Passporter’s Guide to Walt Disney World. Both books are honest and insightful. Our friends over at Disney World Guide have a great overview of all Disney Guide Books.

#4: Travel During the Off Season -  No one likes crowds. Try to plan your trip during an off season time at WDW. If you can avoid summer, which is very crowded and very hot, and also Spring Break and Christmas, which while not hot, are just as crowded, you should have a much better Disney vacation. Please note that you will need to do more research than just making the assumption that any month will not be crowded. With the numerous Disney sites and guide books, people have figured out that some months are really good times to go, as they historically have very low crowds. Those months are now extremely crowded. For example, for years, early December was the best time to go, no crowds, great weather and you get to take advantage of all the Christmas activities and decorations. The last few years, the first two weeks of December have been sold out, and just as crowded as Christmas week. This is a good question to ask on a message board.

#3: Disney Discounts - Disney World typically offers discounts on rooms and packages throughout the year, but more specifically, during slower times of the year. Another great reason to plan early and travel during the off season. Lately, Disney has been releasing discounts about 5 months before the travel dates, and they usually only last a few weeks, and if you miss them, you are out of luck. We suggest checking out MouseSavers, they do a great job of keeping people up to date on current Disney discounts. There is usually no problem adding a recently released discount to an existing reservation, so no need to wait for the discount to be released to book the reservation.

#2: Use a Disney Only Travel Agent -  In all honesty, this should be #1, but it was a toss up, so I switched places. Using a Disney Travel Agent will help you immensely, and usually will save you money over booking directly with Disney, or heaven forbid, and internet travel company such as Expedia (please, please, never, ever book your Disney Vacation this way). A Disney specialist will be able to help you pick the right time to travel, help you with your resort choice, make dining suggestion, and answer any other question you may have. They also should take care of any discounts for you, assuming you booked early. We strongly suggest Mouseketrips, the only Disney Travel Agent we would ever use.

#1: Advanced Dining Reservation - I cannot stress how important making your Disney Dining Reservations are to the quality of your trip. Since the introduction of the Disney Dining Plan, all of the resort and theme park restaurants are for the most part, sold out all year long. Disney now allows you to make your Advanced Dining Reservation up to 180 days in advance of the day you check in (assuming you are staying on Disney property). Some reservations, such as Cinderella’s Royal Table sell out quickly, usually within a month of opening, most restaurant are still available 3 – 4 months before your travel, but the earlier you can make your reservation, the better choice you will have of restaurants and times.  The planning early and planning your days really helps when planning your dining reservations.

With this ten Disney planning tips, you should be well prepared for your Disney World vacation, and should be set to have a fantastic time.

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Downtown Disney, which is basically a big outdoor mall by Disney, is a fun destination during your Walt Disney World vacation. First off, it is free, well, as long as you don’t buy anything, which is unlikely. Second, it is a nice break from the parks. Plus, there are some fantastic stores and restaurants that you really need to visit before heading home. Here are our top 10 stores at Downtown Disney:

#10: Disney Tails - Do you have a pet that loves Disney as much as you do? Disney Tails offers unique, and in many cases personalized gifts for your four legged friend. They also offer freshly baked treats, a great place to pick up the friend you had to leave at home.

#9: Mickey’s Pantry – If you are looking for a great gift, or something to spice up your kitchen and remind you of your Disney World vacation, Mickey’s Pantry has Disney themed kitchen items, from mugs and glasses to cooking utensils, cabinet knobs and small appliances. Some of their  items are really nice looking, and are more of a hidden mickey feeling, while others are Disney all the way.

#8: Pooh Corner -  If you know someone who wishes they lived in the 100 acre woods, Pooh Corner needs to be on your list. Whether it is Pooh, Tigger, Eeyore, Piglet, Kanga or Ro, Disney has your needs covered. Fantastic little store with some great Pooh items.

#7: Team Mickey Athletic Club – For all sports fans, this is a destination rather than a shop. Great jerseys, balls, shoes, shirts and sports items of every sort. This store is always crowded, and deservedly so. Take your time looking around, Team Mickey has a much better ESPN selection than the ESPN store on the Boardwalk.

#6: The Art of Disney -  My personal favorite in Downtown Disney, The Art of Disney features all sorts of Disney art, from lithographs to posters and even those fantastic big ceramic  characters. If you are looking to decorate an office (as I am constantly doing) or a room in your home, The Art of Disney will features some affordable, and not so affordable, works of art to make your room special.

#5: Lego Imagination Center – The only non-Disney shop in the Top 10, the Lego Imagination Store is probably the best presented store in Downtown Disney. Over sized Lego items are all around the front of the store, and even a huge Lego dragon in the lake not far from the entrance. Legos are about all that are available in the store, but who doesn’t love Legos?

#4: Once Upon a Toy -  Great Disney and other toys, from board games, stuffed animals and the world famous Disney Mr. Potato Head. My favorite toy is the model monorail, and it is tough to narrow it down to just one toy.

#3: Disney’s Days of Christmas -  Whether you are visiting Disney World around the Holidays, or in the middle of Summer, Disney’s Days of Christmas is always stuck on December 25. A great place to pick up new ornaments or decorations for the upcoming Christmas season.

#2: Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique – While technically not a store, I had to list Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique in this Top 10. Probably the best place on earth for little girls, BBB takes you on  a magical adventure of turning you from a normal little girl into a princess, complete with gown, brand new hairdo and tiara. If you, or your daughter has ever wanted to be a princess, you have to make a reservation.

#1: World of Disney – The World of Disney is the ultimate Disney Store. This place is huge, and covers everything Disney, from clothes to pins and everything in between. This should be your first and last stop when visiting Downtown Disney.

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