Florida Guide > Disney Parks
The Magic Kingdom - A Review
Where do you begin with this wonderful day out?
Arrived at the park for opening time and parked the car it is so important to remember where you have parked (it can hold 11,000 cars) areas are named after classic Disney characters, as a tip we have a brightly coloured ball which we put on top of the aerial you will be amazed at how similar all the cars look.
They have a fleet of motorized trams which ferry you from the parking lot to the transportation centre.
Once here you need to purchase your ticket (or have them ready) they have so many options that I could write about we would be here all day, its best to plan your trip before you get there (not with Military Precision) but to have an idea what you are doing, and match your ticket accordingly. We always buy our tickets for Disney before we go, you can get discounted tickets from this web-site which I would recommend.
At the transportation centre to get to Magic Kingdom you have a choice either take the Monorail or the Paddle Steamer across the Seven Seas Lagoon, we normally take the Monorail over and come back on the boat. In January we rode up front with the driver and the kids got cards saying they were co-pilots great to show their school friends and great fun for Dads as you get to see more of the grounds and how vast Disney actually is.
It takes longer to get into Magic Kingdom, as they search all bags. We found it easier to split the bags between my wife and I, and have them open ready for inspection. If you are travelling light with no bags they do have a separate gate for you.
Through once through you are greeted are Main Street Train Station, the first stop on an old fashion stream train that takes you all round the park with stations through-out and a great way of resting your tried feet from all walking you will be doing.
If you choose to walk through the station you will be greeted by Main St containing all the Disney shops you could ever want along with a guest relation office within the main square is where you meet and greet the Disney characters.
In the distance you will see the famous Cinderella Castle, at the end of the Main St is great photo opportunity to get some great photos with the Castle as the back drop. In the front is the Castle Forecourt Stage where they stage Cinderellabration which is great show for the all the family to enjoy.
We first went into Tomorrowland with a host of rides our favorite here is “Buzz Lightyear – Space Ranger” great fun especially if you are keeping score, however do not let a four year handle the controller as all they are interested in is spinning your space ship. Also we took in “Stitch’s Great Escape” from a personal point of view our kids (their ages are 9, 5 & 4) all hated it they were scared with darkness, and the effects in general however I thought it was great fun. There are other rides and attractions but these are the big two.
We (me and my 9 year old daughter) also went on Space Mountain this is one of the most popular attractions so expect queues so make use of the Fast Pass system it is a roller coaster which plunges you into darkness, speed and high banked turns with occasional flashes of light.
A tip for the summer is ride on the “Carousal of Progress” an ideal way of cooling down and recharging the batteries it’s a ride through the innovations of the last century and has some fun moments.
We rode on the Racetrack, good fun for our kids. But limited thrills for older children and adults.
Next stop was Toontown after a ride the Mad Hatter Tea Cups, all the family enjoy this ride as we split into two cups and then try to catch the other cup. In Toontown you can meet Mickey at the Judges tent, this can get a little crowded so be prepared for a wait. You can also meet and have your picture taken with a whole army of Disney characters in Mickey’s Toontown Fair Hall of Fame.
For younger children there is a great playground and Donald’s Boat which is a superb way of cooling down on those hot summer days, however you may need a change of clothes for the little ones.
After this we stroll round to Fantasyland rode on the Cinderella’s Golden Carousal, Snow White’s Scary Adventures, The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh and Peter Pan’s Flight all these were brilliant rides for our younger children, but we all the family enjoyed them. But the best attractions is Mickey’s PhilharMagic this is brilliant, and such great fun you are transported through a host of classic Disney’s movies in a 3D cinema experience, with all Disney’s show of this nature they include other senses with smell and trying to touch as she hovers in front of you, brilliant.
From here we went to Frontierland and rode on Splash Mountain this is great fun for everyone as long as they meet the height requirements. Right next door is Big Thunder Mountain Railroad, here you are trapped on a runaway mine train as you plummet down and around the side of an abandoned mine.
Magic Kingdom is massive and has loads of attractions almost jammed in, we were here from opening time to closing time and still never saw or did all the rides and attractions, our own fault as we did several rides twice. With all the parks use the Fast Pass cleverly, and if you have small children work out what rides they can do before-hand to plan your Baby swaps.
Its best to do some research on the park before you go whether you are first time visitor or a serial visitor, we have been several times and we still do research before we go, as the opening times change and some rides are closed for refurbishment.
A tip for saving money, but in the summer would recommend you did this anyway, we freeze bottles of water the night before and take them with us, this helps to supplement your liquid intake and save you paying three times more for bottled water.
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