Feeling neglected? I know! I'm sorry. Fall is a busy time for me as we have events every weekend. So I work fulltime and then work Saturday and sometimes Sundays! Which means the Sundays I have off are filled with laundry and cleaning.
But I finally wrote a Disney chapter.
http://www.enchantingbeginnings.com/enchanted-tales-belle-just-girls/
New Fantasyland in Disney World is all the rage this year. One of the major promises is more inclusive Meet and Greets. With Mickey Mouse debuting as a talking character this week (seriously! Check it out on YouTube) I thought it was appropriate to tell you how I feel about the Enchanted Tales with Belle.
There was much debate with the Fantasyland redux that it wasnt for boys. And I will admit that meeting Belle isnt nearly as cool for a 12 year old boy as riding Expedition Everest or Test Track. That being said we did this attraction as our first attraction on our Disney World trip this year, yup, all 11 of us, headed to a meet and greet to a princess. That includes 6 boys. And ya know what? They loved it.
This isnt just a quick conversation with a princess, its a show.
Heres the run down of our experience.
We got there FIRST. Get to the Magic Kingdom at least 30 minutes before opening. Scan your band or ticket, go to the potty, get organized, look at the map. And then watch the train show. There are two entrances, stand at the one to your left as you face the train. This will put the sun behind the train show and make you squint. Im sorry. But that is kinda the point. Its a less preferable view of the train show which means fewer people choose it and you will be in the park faster. Plus, only people in the know will be in front of you and that means your crowd will move faster than the right side.
Walk through the castle and go immediately to Enchanted Tales with Belle. Do NOT stop to take any photos or do any tasks. This will mean you make the first show. If you stop, you wont make that first show and this will put you behind more crowds the rest of the day. The second show would be fine too. But dont dawdle. Seriously. For more on this click here. There also is video of Enchanted Tales with Belle on that link.
So once you have arrived at Enchanted Tales you will be greeted by a lovely room that is the inside of her and her dads cottage.
One of the great things about this attraction is it is interactive. Everything is to be touched and explored. So all of us enjoyed this room. It has plenty of books and something interesting on every wall. We met a great family who were ahead of us. It was a dad with his daughter who was probably 13. And she was in a tiara! How awesome, right? I love Disney World! Families from all over the world of all different kinds embracing their Disney side.
After a short wait in this room, we were ushered into Maurices workroom. This had blueprints and tools and just a ridiculous amount of detail, especially considering you are only in there one to two minutes. Its a pretty typical inventors workroom (because Ive had a lot of experience in inventors workrooms, Ha!) except for the very fancy mirror. After a short little speech by the cast members (basically a safety speech) the mirror turns into a doorway.
Basically the first two rooms are part of the queue. They are just to count and get the right amount of people for the show. The real show begins in the Wardrobe room when they choose who will be in the show. It is in this room you begin to realize its not just for girls. Boys and girls like attention fairly equally. And my nephews were quick to volunteer to be in the show, with the youngest one being cast as the beast.
Once everyone who wants a part has a part, its into the main shows room. It is in this room that the meet and greet takes place. But, again, its not just a princess meet. There is roaring and dancing and stomping and marching. I have read online many times that only the kids that are in show are allowed to meet Belle. But this is not true. They welcome anyone who wants to meet her to join the end of the parade, but it is in the show, not afterwards, so be aware.
http://www.enchantingbeginnings.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/10/enchanted-tales-belle.jpg
The next time we go to Disney I know all our family will want to do Enchanted Tales with Belle, including the boys. If we were to go on a quick 4 day trip with just teenage boys, it could be skipped. In any other circumstances, this should be on your familys short list of whole family attractions.
Later in this same trip it was my 12 year old daughter (not the 6 year old daughter) who wanted to do this attraction again. And she chose it as her favorite at the end of the trip. The 6 year old girls favorite attraction at Disney World was Test Track.
The new Fantasyland is wonderful. It opens up Fantasyland nicely so that you dont feel cramped. And the area with Dumbo is much better than Toontown, though I miss Minnie and Mickeys summer homes. With the new roller coaster coming Im pretty sure the area will meet boys approval. We will then proclaim the whole area family friendly. Enchanted Tales with Belle is NOT just for girls any more than Test Track is just for boys. They are entire family attractions.
And just like Test Track, get to this one early.
For more on this Disney World trip see my trip report.
This was certainly a highlight of my trip. A 5 year old boy dancing with Belle, eyes shining and happy as he could be. What could be better?
We did get our Photopass and it is really good. I'm very excited to show the difference between my camera's photos and the Photopass photos and tell you about my Photopass+ experience. Hopefully it won't take me 2 weeks to get it published.
I love you all. Thanks for sticking with me!