Buy Disney themed merchandise in Disney World.

Every year Disney World comes out with themed items for that year. For example, since it is now 2011 the merchandise that you will see most often in Disney Gift shops across the theme park will have a cute Disney themed 2011 logo on them. For more details on this merchandise as well as pictures and prices, visit the Disney store's dated merchandise page.

How to plan your first Disney World vacation

Disney World is often one of the most treasured memories for children and even, sometimes, carries over into adulthood. I am now an adult and having made over 30 trips to Disney in my life I can say that I have gained a lot of knowledge on what to expect, how to have the best time possible, and various other areas of the Disney culture. My first trip to DisneyWorld was on my first birthday and while I can't say I remember it, I can say that my parents treasure that memory, so not only will these time be precious to your children (if you have any) but it will remain precious to you for years to come. I have some tips for beginners or newbies to the Disney scene

1. Now the first thing you need to keep in mind is that the DisneyWorld area is huge, it is about 30,500 acres, total. You will not be able to see or experience everything during a week long vacation. You must accept and be content with the fact that you will only be seeing a fraction of what you want to see. 

2. Keeping number 1 in mind, do your research. Explore disneyworld.com and find the things you want to see and the things you are positive you want to experience. For me, that might be eating at Cinderella's Royal Table. For you, that might be taking a behind the seeds tour of Epcot's, "The Land," or taking a ride on the Kilimanjaro safari in Animal Kingdom. Make a list so you don't forget everything, and cross things off as you complete them!

3. Make dining reservations. If you are traveling with little ones, you MUST experience character dining at least once on your trip. To guarantee your seats, you must make reservations at least three months in advance! Some examples of character dining experiences could be breakfast at the Crystal Palace in Magic Kingdom, where Winnie the Pooh and friends will merrily greet you while you enjoy a delicious buffet style breakfast, another option would be Cinderella's Royal Table (I've mentioned before) where you get to meet the lovely Cinderella herself (perfect for any little princesses in the family). For a full list of character dining visit Disney World's character dining page. There are also plenty of options for the more mature dining crowd. Some of my favorite spots to eat are Tony's Town Square Italian restaurant in Magic Kingdom (it has an adorable Lady and the Tramp theme), Coral Reef in Epcot which has a wonderful "under the sea" atmosphere, and Citrico's at the Grand Floridian Resort and Spa. Disney World offers a wide variety of dining experiences and you can make reservations at any number of them. They offer Dinner Shows, Character Dining, Casual Dining, Fine Dining, and all of the in betweens. Visit Disney World's dining page to find the perfect restaurants for you and book your reservations!

4. Buy a pair of Mickey ears and embrace them. Disney World is a place for you to relax and embrace your inner child, not a place for you to be distracted by work and worrying about a million other things that are irrelevant. Don't get stressed out because you aren't on a perfect schedule, just chill out and let everything flow- You will have a much better time if you do!

5. Going along with number 4, don't make a schedule. Disney is an experience that you can't put time constraints on. Schedule dining times and nothing else!

6. Utilize fast passes. Fast passes during busy seasons are definite time savers. A fast pass is a little ticket you can get by using your room key or park ticket, you just locate a ride with the fast pas option, find the fast pass kiosk, slide your tickets in and abide by the time on the ticket. You can only get one fast pass per ticket at a time, so make sure it's a must see attraction. Basically what it does is eliminates some of your wait time for any given ride. You'll get your fast pass at 10 AM for example and the time on the ticket may be 2:30-3:30PM, so you come back to that attraction between those two times and you get put in a special line with little to no wait, it's awesome during the busy seasons where the lines are miles long. Rides that this would be optimum for would be Space Mountain, Soarin', Splash Mountain, Thunder Mountain, Test Track, Mission Space, It's a Small World, Expedition Everest, etc. Just look for the long lines and you'll know!

7. If you have the option, utilize the Disney dining plans. When making your Disney reservations, you will be given a dining plan option and while they are fairly pricey per guest, they feed you enough and it is well worth it. There are more specifics to it, but basically you can eat wherever you want. They give you so many of whatever meal plan you choose. Like, if you choose the Magic your way plus dining (which is the one I always choose), you get 1 table service meal, 1 quick service meal, and 1 snack per person per day. And you can sometimes use multiple table service meals to dine at finer dining locations. (Ex. you don't use a table service dining meal for each person in your group one day, the next day you use the one you didn't use and the one for the current day to eat at Wolfgang Pucks at Downtown Disney Etc). There are other options such as the Magic your Way plus quick service dining and the Magic your Way plus Deluxe dining. Visit Disney World's dining page plan for more information. 

8. If you are staying for less than four days, I definitely recommend the Park Hopper option on your park tickets. Park Hopper allows you to visit as many of the Disney theme parks as you want during any day of your stay. There are 4 theme parks, and while you may not be able to see everything, you definitely need to experience all of the four theme parks. Visit Disney's park ticket page for more information if you aren't purchasing a vacation package from Disney where park tickets are included in your overall cost. Also, if you are purchasing tickets with your package, park hopper is not included, you must select that option, and depending on how long your stay is and how many days worth of tickets you are buying will determine the added cost for Park Hopper. 

9. Have fun. No matter what resort you stay at, there will be many opportunities to partake in pool time and family time, don't ignore them. Don't rush, relax a little, stay in bed past 8 AM. And just let your inner child roam free. 

10. Look up park times in advance so you can plan which parks you may want to visit each day at http://disneyworld.disney.go.com/calendars/

11.Bring a camera!!

12. And finally, plan everything at least 3 months in advance. If you are purchasing two rooms, call the reservation line at (407) 939-7675 to have them connect the two reservations and request joined rooms. Utilize the Disneyworld.com website. Planning a DisneyWorld vacation is amazing, let them help you with your experience. 

I hope this was helpful!

Let me know if you have any questions.