Walt Disney World in 15 photos

We've been back from Walt Disney World for two weeks and it already feels like a distant memory. Time goes much slower in the real world than it does in Disney World!

As always, we had an amazing time. We managed to fit lots of new things into this trip as well as all our old favourites, including these ten new things I identified in my last blog post. I can't even begin to describe how much I love going back and how much I miss it when I'm not there.

Don't be alarmed by the title of this blog post... I obviously took more than 15 photos during our time away. In fact, it's probably not much of an exaggeration to suggest that I took ten times that amount.

However, I decided that summarising our two weeks with one of my favourite photos from each day would be a good post to ease myself back in to the blogging routine.

Day 1 - The welcome view from our balcony when we finally got to Saratoga Springs

Day 2 - We spent our first full day at the Magic Kingdom. It's one of our traditions!

Day 3 - We love the Epcot International Flower and Garden Festival

Day 4 - View from California Grill's observation deck. Our first signature meal of the holiday!

Day 5 - A beautifully sunny day at Animal Kingdom

Day 6 - My love for the Move it! Shake it! Street Party knows no bounds

Day 7 - Our first experience of Pandora - The World of Avatar at night

Day 8 - A sunny morning at Hollywood Studios

Day 9 - Breakfast at Be Our Guest to start off a scorching day 

Day 10 - Cocktails and a beautiful sunset in Disney Springs

Day 11 - Another trip to Epcot to admire the Flower and Garden topiaries

Day 12 - A stroll along the Boardwalk followed by a meal at the Yachtsman Steakhouse 

Day 13 - The day with the crazy tropical weather, starting with a boiling hot morning at Typhoon Lagoon

Day 14 - Extra Magic Hours at the Magic Kingdom on our last night

Day 15 - One last wander around Disney Springs before catching the Magical Express to the airport

So there you have it... Walt Disney World in 15 photos. It took me a shameful amount of time and three different stints on the laptop to decide on these 15 photos, by the way.

Keep a look out for more holiday blog posts over the next few weeks!

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! 

New thing every week in 2016 #4

This is the fourth post in my 'New thing every week in 2016' series - read the first post here to find out what it's all about. The ten weeks I'm focusing on for this post were really difficult ones to look back on as, preceded by a month of worrying and waiting, my cancer diagnosis crashed into my life during Week 34. The nature of some of this post's entries means there are quite a few which don't have any images to go with them, for obvious reasons!

Read on to find out what new things, both good and bad, happened in my life between 29th July and 13th October...

Week 31: Spent the day in Abergavenny

Week 32: Went to our local Harvester for a drink

Week 33: Went on a day trip to North Wales for a work meeting

Week 34: Received a free gift in Pandora after making a couple of purchases at their special event

Week 35: Went to Romeo's by the Sea for our wedding anniversary

Week 36: Stayed in Disney's Saratoga Springs Resort & Spa

Week 37: Ate dinner at the Yachtsman Steakhouse

Week 38: Had an ECG (as part of my pre-op assessment) 

Week 39: Went through major surgery 

Week 40: Ordered a treat for myself from the Pandora website (I've always shopped in store before!)

Week 41: Ordered some more treats for myself from ASOS

As you can see, I did quite a bit of online shopping while I was recovering from my surgery... I think you'll all agree it was needed! Check back in a few days for the final instalment in my 'new thing every week in 2016' series. 

Disney's Saratoga Springs Resort & Spa - a review

We stayed in Disney's Saratoga Springs Resort & Spa for the first time in September. We really really loved it... so much so that we're staying there again next April/May for our 2017 Disney holiday!

Saratoga Springs is located in the Disney Springs resort area and is in a great central location. Launched in 2004, it's a relatively new resort compared to the others we've stayed in. The resort is inspired by New York's Saratoga Springs and has five distinct areas - The Springs, The Paddock, The Carousel, the Grandstand and Congress Park. Saratoga Springs is classed as a 'deluxe' Disney resort which means it has certain perks, such as a balcony and more amenities for your room. 

We stayed in the Congress Park area which was only five minutes' walk away from The Carriage House (the lobby and main concourse). This proved to be very useful for our refillable mug top-ups! However, for me, the huge plus of staying at Congress Park was the convenient walkway to Disney Springs. We always spend a lot of time in this bustling area of Walt Disney World and being able to walk there in ten minutes saved us so much time and effort in terms of waiting for transport. It meant we could pop over to Disney Springs whenever we had a couple of hours to spare, and it also provided us with lots of lovely views as we walked! 

We stayed in a 'studio' at Saratoga Springs which is suitable for up to four people. We were situated on the first floor (or second floor in American terms) and were really pleased with the size and quality of our room. It contained a queen-sized bed, a double sofa bed, the aforementioned balcony with a little table and two chairs, and a kitchenette area with a sink, fridge, toaster, microwave and coffee machine. There was plenty of storage room for our suitcases, clothes and shopping and it continued to feel spacious for the whole length of our stay! Our room was cleaned every day and we were very impressed (as always) with the attentive and friendly nature of all employees at the resort.

We wandered around the other resort areas a few times during our stay - this really is a huge resort. There are five bus stops scattered throughout Saratoga Springs for your free park transportation, one for each area, so it's worth considering this when you decide where you'd prefer to stay. The Grandstand is the first area where the buses pick up and drop off, and the Springs is the final area. You can also catch the boat or the bus to Disney Springs if you'd prefer not to walk, which might be useful if you're staying a little further from the walkway. All five areas are full of pretty buildings and situated in beautiful surroundings with various views, fountains and backdrops so you can't really go wrong with your choice! 

On the food front, Saratoga Springs offers a table service option and a counter service option - The Turf Club Bar and Grill and The Artist's Palette, respectively. Although we didn't eat at the Turf Club during our stay, we made good use of the Artist's Palette for breakfast and lunch on a couple of days and had some lovely quick meals there. You can also buy lots of snacks at the adjoining gift shop if you need to use up your Disney Dining Plan tokens on your last day! 

Saratoga Springs offers a main pool and numerous quiet pools around the resort. The main pool boasts the On The Rocks pool bar for all your drinks and snacks so you could happily spend a good portion of your day there, and it's also within throwing distance of the main building. The quiet pools in the Paddock and Grandstand areas also have their own pool bars which is very convenient for guests staying in those areas, and a few of the quiet pools are open for 24 hours.

I can't comment on the spa or the golfing facilities as we didn't use these during our stay, but it's always good to know that those options are there if they're important to you and what you want out of your holiday. 

I really can't wait to go back to Saratoga Springs next April. Like every other Disney resort we've ever stayed in, the customer service is second to none and you're made to feel welcome from the second you arrive until you leave on the Magical Express. 

Have you ever stayed at Saratoga Springs? As I'm sure you can tell by now, I'd highly recommend it! 

Trying my fourth Disney resort

We're going back to Florida in September and I couldn't possibly be more excited. I faithfully check my countdown calendar every day and I've already started shopping for holiday clothes and shoes... hurry up, September!

I've been fortunate enough to stay in three different Disney resorts for my three trips so far, and we'll be trying another new resort in September.

So, which three resorts have I stayed in up to this point?

Coronado Springs, April/May 2012

As a Disney first-timer who didn't understand the importance of staying on site before I arrived, I loved this resort. I was immediately captivated by the practicality, ease and excitement of the Disney transportation system - free buses to every park and back to your resort on a regular basis! The food court at Coronado Springs offers great options for breakfast, lunch and dinner and the resort is situated around a picturesque lake. The Mexican theme of this resort comes across strongly and it feels very authentic. Its location wasn't ideal as it was fairly far away from my favourite areas of Walt Disney World, but the regular buses meant it wasn't an issue.

Old Key West, September 2013 

(read my blog post here)

Old Key West was, in a word, magical. It's such a pretty and tranquil resort and has a real Disney feel to it. We had a secluded quiet pool near our room and, again, some amazing food options from a cocktail bar to quick service to table service. One of my favourite perks of staying in this deluxe resort was our balcony. We were on the third floor of our section of 'Vacation Homes' and were lucky enough to have a really beautiful view. A lot of people complain that Old Key West is too big and sprawling but I thought this added to its charm. Top marks for location too as it's so close to Downtown Disney - a big thumbs up from me!

Port Orleans French Quarter, September 2015

We debated for hours between Port Orleans Riverside and Port Orleans French Quarter before placing our booking, and I'm so glad we chose French Quarter. It's a really small resort compared to the other two we've stayed in which meant we were very close to the main concourse, the pool and the resort's one bus stop. We didn't have a balcony this time as Port Orleans is a moderate resort, but we did have a lovely garden view from our front door after being upgraded when we arrived. French Quarter's food court was probably my least favourite of the three resorts I've stayed in so far, just because the other two were so spectacular, but you should definitely try their amazing Mickey waffles for breakfast! One of my favourite things about staying in French Quarter was catching the evening boat to Downtown Disney - a definite perk of this resort.

So, now for the big reveal. Our resort for September 2016 will be... Saratoga Springs! I'm really excited about staying in another deluxe resort and being within walking distance of Downtown Disney (I still can't call it Disney Springs) and I can't wait to explore the resort's beautiful surroundings. As we regularly passed Saratoga Springs on our boat trips from French Quarter to Downtown Disney last September, I took a few photos in anticipation of our stay as we'd already booked our 2016 holiday by that point!

Have you ever stayed at Saratoga Springs? What's your favourite Disney resort?