Ten things I can't wait to do in Florida

With just under a week to go until we fly to Walt Disney World, I thought I'd blog about the ten things I'm looking forward to the most about this much-anticipated holiday. This will be my last blog post before we go so it seemed like an appropriate topic to blog about this week!

So, these are the ten things I'm most excited about, in no particular order...

Food

This is an obvious one (for me)... take a look at my last blog post to find out which new restaurants we're trying this year.

Rides

I love all the rollercoasters in Walt Disney World as well as all the other ride varieties. My four favourites (one for each park) are Space Mountain, Rock 'n' Roller Coaster, Expedition Everest and Test Track!

Sun

I've been obsessively studying AccuWeather for the last six weeks or so and it looks as if we'll be enjoying averages of around 30C for the duration of our stay.

Views

We walk miles when we're on holiday in Walt Disney World and there are beautiful sights to see around every turn. I can't wait to see some of my favourite views again!

Parades

From the perfectly executed and infectiously cheery parades at the Magic Kingdom to the Star Wars marches in Hollywood Studios, you can't beat an uplifting parade at Walt Disney World.

Characters

I love seeing all the various characters on their parade floats, but I also love meeting a select few individually. I'm looking forward to ticking some different ones, as well as my old favourites, off my list.

Shows

Whether you're singing along to daytime shows like Beauty and the Beast and Festival of the Lion King, or gaping with awe at one of the four stunning night shows, Walt Disney World puts on a better show than anyone else!

Shopping

As you'll have read in another recent blog post, I've already got lots of items on my shopping wish list and I'm looking forward to hitting World of Disney and the other offerings in Disney Springs, as well as the many shopping outlets in Orlando.

Disney transport

From the complimentary Disney resort buses to the Friendship boats to the airport's Magical Express, even the many modes of transportation at Walt Disney World are perfect.

Escaping into the Disney bubble

This is the most important item on the list. As soon as I step on to that Magical Express at the airport, and even more so when I walk into the Magic Kingdom on our first morning, I feel as if I'm enclosed in a Disney bubble away from the real world with all its worries and stresses. For someone who's usually stressed out, particularly after the events of the last nine months, this feeling is like gold dust so I intend to make the most of it.

See you in 6 days, Walt Disney World! 

Eating our way around Walt Disney World

We're off to Florida in just 13 days and I can't wait to eat EVERYTHING as soon as we step off that plane. We're trying out a few new restaurants this year so I thought I'd give my readers a run-through of what those new ones are, as well as a quick mention for some old favourites.

One of the many perks of going on holiday to Walt Disney World is that you can book your restaurants in advance, so we already know where we'll be eating nearly every day. We also have a list of 'maybe' restaurants up our sleeves for the days where we haven't made any reservations yet... we spend an awful lot of time talking about food!

Here are the new restaurants we've already booked for this year's holiday:


Yak & Yeti
We never usually eat a sit-down lunch at Animal Kingdom so we thought we'd change that this year. I've heard great things about Yak & Yeti so I'm very excited about this one!

Cítricos
I love everything about the Grand Floridian and, having tried two restaurants there so far, we thought it was time to try another one of the resort's signature offerings.

Kona Café

I've never visited the Polynesian Resort apart from whizzing through on the monorail, so I'm looking forward to exploring the resort after our breakfast at Kona Café.

Tutto Italia Ristorante
Tutto Italia comes highly recommended from my in-laws so we're looking forward to giving this one a try. You can never cram too many Italian meals into one holiday!

Teppan Edo 
We've been meaning to try Teppan Edo for a few years and have never managed to fit it in. It always smells amazing when we walk past so this is another one we're very excited about.



The difficult (and fantastic) thing about going to Florida is that, although we always want to try new restaurants, we also have a huge list of favourites which we just have to keep going back to. It's almost impossible to narrow down, but I think these are the five I'm looking forward to the most...

Shula's Steak House

Narcoossee's

Via Napoli

Yachstman Steakhouse

Cheesecake Factory

And, last but not least, Walt Disney World offers an amazing array of quick service options for those occasions where you just want a quick and casual bite to eat rather than taking your time at a table service restaurant. Here are the five quick service options I'm most excited about...

D-Luxe Burger

Earl of Sandwich 

The Artist's Palette 

Lotus Blossom Café
(I weirdly haven't got any photos of the food from there!)

Ghirardelli 

Have you tried any of these restaurant options? What did you think? Let me know if you have any more recommendations! 

My Florida wish list!

I can't quite believe that we're off to Florida in 20 days! Although April seemed like such a long way away when we booked this holiday last October, 2017 has absolutely flown by so far. I definitely feel ready for a break and some retail therapy, and Orlando is the perfect place for both in my humble opinion.

I make lots of impulse purchases while we're on holiday, particularly when we're in Orlando and bombarded by the Disney factor and outlets galore, but there are a few items I'll specifically be looking out for so I thought I'd share those on my blog before we go. I'll have to narrow it down in the next couple of weeks as I won't be able to afford everything on this list, but I can dream!

Minnie Mouse - I've got a few Minnie Mouse teddies
but I love her pink and white dress so want to buy this specific one!

Baymax - I feel I need my own personal healthcare companion.

Minnie Mouse jumper - I love cosy Disney jumpers for
lazy days at home (or dress-down Fridays in the office!)

Chip mug - I haven't been able to find one of these in the UK so
 I'd love to find one when we're in Walt Disney World!

Disney Parks Pandora charm - It's really difficult to choose just
one Disney charm but I think this one is my current favourite.

Dooney & Bourke Epcot Flower and Garden Festival bag - I've seen
this bag on Instagram a couple of times and I love love love it, but it'll most likely be
beyond the constraints of what I'm willing to spend on a bag!

Kate Spade bag - I probably won't end up getting the pictured bag as it's a new season
item so won't be on sale in the outlets, but I'll be happy if I leave Florida with any
type of Kate Spade bag.

Fossil watch - I'm looking for a new silver watch so I'll
be paying the Fossil outlet a visit. 

Ugg boots - I did promise myself that I wouldn't buy any more of these this year
but I might be persuaded otherwise if I see a nice pair in the outlet!

I might blog about my purchases after I get back so hopefully I manage to pick up a few things from this list. Wish me luck!