I'm a Disney Nerd Too

Those of you that have read my previous blog posts, know that I am a math nerd. I have mentioned that I am a Disney nerd too, but I haven't really talked much about it. It took me a long time  to become a true Disney nerd. I took my first trip to Walt Disney World when I was 14 or 15 years-old. Back then, I was a surly teenage kid that didn't really appreciate what my parents were treating me to.

Walt Disney World is a treat. For many, it is a once in a lifetime event. Well, back in 2007 I decided to treat my daughter to a trip to the Happiest Place on Earth. That trip was my indoctrination into the world of Disney Nerdom. I discovered that there are websites for people like me. LOL I found the greatest community of Disney lovers in the world at www.passporter.com when I purchased the 2007 Passporter's Guide to Walt Disney World at my local bookstore.

Jennifer and Dave Marx write AMAZING guides to all U.S. Disney parks and the Disney Cruises. As an extension of their guide books, they also created the Passporter Boards. I have yet to find any other web based Disney community that is as friendly and informative as this group is. Before our 2007 trip, I joined this community and learned a whole ton of tips and information for making the most of what was intended to be a once in a lifetime trip for my daughter. We returned to Walt Disney World in 2009 with my daughter and my boyfriend. This year we are going back again, but we are also taking a Disney Cruise beforehand.

I first found out about pin trading and little extras like a conductor's license from the Passporter Boards. Souvenirs at Walt Disney World can be amazingly expensive, but with some of the advice from the Passporters, I found out about some great free or low cost souvenirs.

If you find that you just absolutely LOVE a particular restaurant at Walt Disney World, then you can ask your waiter or waitress for a copy of the menu. Want to know how to make that scrumptious dish you ate? Ask your waiter or waitress for the recipe and often the chef will send out the recipe card for you. For those of you that have special dietary needs, just note them when you make your dining reservations, or let you waitstaff know, and the chef  will come out to personally to talk to you about your dietary needs. The wonderful chefs at the Disney parks have even been known to create custom off-the-menu meals for people with special dietary needs. For instance, my boyfriend can't eat nuts and seeds. On our last trip, he was greeted by the chef at every restaurant we ate at, save one. The chef at Raglan Road even made my sweetheart a special off menu dessert since all of the desserts listed featured some kind of nut or seed.

Disney parks are also noted for accommodating all kinds of special needs from mental health disorders to severe physical disabilities. Everything from accessible lines to Guest Assistance Cards help guests with special needs enjoy every aspect of the Disney parks. My daughter has a hereditary disability. For our 2007 trip, we did not know about the Guest Assistance Cards, although there is a special forum on Passporter Boards that often discusses this accommodation. (Admittedly, I spent more time reading the Walt Disney World specific forums and didn't scroll down to the Vacationing Your Way: Your Special Needs forum to get the information I needed.) We spent so much time walking around and waiting in long lines that my poor little girl was in physical pain at the end of the day. Thank goodness for the nice hot baths back at our resort.  By 2009 I had learned so much more. I made sure to get the Guest Assistance Card for my daughter. We were able to stay out in the parks so much later because the Guest Assistance Card allowed her to wait in an area where she could sit until it was time to get on the ride. Lots of the rides at Disney parks have special cars for those that can't leave their wheelchairs.

I learned about the special diet needs and Guest Assistance Cards from the Passporter Boards. I also learned about these magical people called Fairy Godmailers. A Fairy Godmailer, is someone that offers to send postcards from their Disney destination to others that can't be there. We have been Fairy Godmailers for our last two visits to Walt Disney World. We will continue this magical sharing again this year. It is so much fun to have Disney characters sign special postcards for kids that are not able to be at Disney. When we have mentioned to the characters that the postcards are for kids that can't be at the parks, they are always excited to sign the cards and have some magic sent to a kid somewhere else in the world.

You should check out the Passporter Guides and Passporter Boards to get lots of great tips for your future Disney trip. The Passporter Guides are available at Amazon.com or at www.passporter.com. While you are www.passporter.com check out their iPad 2 contest (http://www.passporterboards.com/concierge/ipad-photo-contest.php). Just look through the photo archives to find the daily mystery photo and click on the contest link to be entered into the drawing for a brand new iPad 2 loaded with all of the most current Passporter eBooks.