Unique Experiences In WDW

[GrumpyPapa]

Enjoyed the Epcot seas Aqua tour so much that I've done it twice. Who wouldn't want to snorkel in the 5.7 million gallon tank at the Living seas?

 

[glocon]

How about the amphocar at The Boathouse at Disney Springs? Never tried it but looks cool!

 

[chris benton]

If you are early risers, I was a very big fan of the Early Morning Magic events at Hollywood. The included breakfast was way better than it needed to be. MK had a similar EMM, but the rides offered didn't interest us.

If the fireworks dessert parties return, I'd do them again in a heartbeat. There was plenty of savory foods to make them a very filling dinner. I think Wally had those woefully mis-marketed as "dessert" parties.

 

[revdon64]

The Pirates and Pals fireworks cruise is our family's favorite splurge ever. Not sure if they're doing it yet, but so worth it.

 

[rangerxenos]

I also like adding on special experiences and have done some really fun ones.

• Sleigh ride at Fort Wilderness (was able to celebrate my engagement from that morning on that trip)
• Fireworks dessert party with plaza seating in MK - I never used to watch the fireworks because I didn't want the hassle of finding a spot; the dessert party changed my opinion of watching fireworks, now this is the only way I will watch them. I have done this one a few times but not really for the desserts.
• The Frozen Ever After dessert party in Epcot - the best part for me was getting to ride Frozen Ever After when the park was closed - I loved that.
• Elephant tour in Animal Kingdom - great tour. I did have the rhino tour booked for my trip that was cancelled due to COVID last year. Disappointed that I didn't get to do that one, but I still hope to be able to do that one In the future.
• Circle of Flavors Harambe at Night - This was fabulous. It was definitely the most unique experience with plenty of good food, activities and drinks. This dinner had you travel from the Harambe train station to Rafiki's Planet Watch to Harambe Market. There was music, a craft, parting gifts, and even a virtual reality experience included. Every part to this experience from start to finish was incredible. I never used to be an AK fan until I did this. Best experience ever at AK for me and would love to do this again - but not sure if it will ever come back as I can't seem to find it in a search on the Disney site.
• Villains After Hours in MK. It was alright.
• Dining with an Imagineer in HS - our Imagineer was so interesting. I feel so lucky that we were able to snag this reservation. Loved it.
• Early Morning Magic Fantasyland - it was a mad rush to get to Fantasyland to do the rides but it was nice to ride everything multiple times and to finish Fantasyland before the park opened for rope drop. While everyone was entering Fantasyland, we headed to Space Mountain and then our included breakfast to relax. It was worth doing. So much fun.
• Early Morning Magic Toy Story Land - unlike the Fantasyland one which was a free for all to head to Fantasyland, the castmembers led everyone to Toy Story Land and kept everyone at a walking pace. Just like the Fantasyland one, we got a lot of rides done and went to the included breakfast when the rope drop crowd was heading to Toy Story Land. I am not sure if this experience will come back, but I wish it would.

I've always wanted to do the Dining With An Imagineer, but never managed to snag a reservation.

 

[Beckyb3]

• Not through Disney, but we have also surprised our kids with limo transport and they loved it

The surprises are fun! Happy planning!

I am curious who you used for this. This could be a fun idea for our kiddos either for our transport from Disney to Universal or from Universal to the airport since we have a larger group (six people) and we need to figure that out anyway.

 

[PalmettoPath]

We are planning a trip in 2/2022. We have 3 kids (DD 12, DS 10, 8). Last trip in 2/2020 we let them pick experiences. With it being a first trip with Star Wars Land open, they all did droids, the two boys did lightsabers, and DD did the dessert experience at Disney Springs where she and her mom got to learn how to make a dessert. We are looking for another special experience for them. Not something that is an all day event, but something special to commemorate this trip. What do you have for me? What have you done that you loved? what have you done that you think was a waste?

A little different than the park events, but we love to go horseback riding (trail ride) at Fort Wilderness and also there is archery at Fort Wilderness if either of those two activities are of interest to them? The Wild Africa Trek (Animal Kingdom Park) is a favorite of ours as well. Or, just take a hot air balloon ride at Disney Springs (Aerophile).

 

[ILoveMyDVC]

I treated our group to a polar atio at Blizzard Beach last week. It was a nice splurge and coveted by many when the thunderstorm hit. We ordered lunch from our assigned waiter and it was brought to us. Pricey but a fun treat.

 

[disneydreamer1980]

I agree with the dessert party or fireworks cruise, both are awesome. The old illuminations cruise was awesome too, not sure if they’re going to offer something similar with the new show though. Also, horse and carriage ride in FW or Port Orleans are awesome. And the Void in DS isn’t “unique” per se but it’s awesome and was my DHs favorite part of our trip when we did it. My kids have also done the kids only pirate cruise others have talked about, and they loved it. We also enjoyed the “behind the seeds” tour at Living with the Lsnd in Epcot

 

[laughinplace199]

A few years ago our family did the Wild Africa Trek at AK. It was amazing!

 

[Have3Kids&aHusband]

Lunch with an animal specialist at Sanaa.

This is one we want to do. We had wanted to do this during our daughter's sweet 16 trip last summer. Hopefully it will be available for our trip next summer.

 

[cjsmom5]

My DS13 and I just had an amazing day at Ft. W about a week ago. I booked the archery experience for him (available for ages 7 and up, 11:30 am and 2:45 pm daily). I booked the 2:45 pm, but we took the boat over to Ft. W from MK earlier in the day so we could visit the new stables, eat lunch at P&J's takeout (absolutely delicious) and then we took the bus to Meadows (you can walk as well) where we kayaked (you can also canoe), mined for gems, visited the gift shop and then he did the archery experience - it was a fantastic day. You can also rent bikes at the Bike Barn. We pre-reserved the archery experience, but everything else was simply a walk-up, ala carte experience. It also wasn't very expensive. If a wilderness-type of experience is of any interest, I would definitely take a look at everything available at Ft. W to see if their activities would be of interest to your children. One of the highlights - we took the boat from MK to Ft. W at about 10:45 am when everyone else was going to the parks and had a private boat ride to Ft. W - very special and absolutely free, LOL!

We have done archery several times - all of us. Enjoyed it at all ages! Animal Kingdom Safari tour we have done three times. Loved it all three times. Did one out of AK when staying concierge. LOVED it, too. The behind the scenes tours at AK are also neat. Very educational and everyone loved it -- from 7 years old to grandparents. The dessert parties are so nice - when they return. A little spendy but very nice. If you are a frozen fan, when that one comes back you get to ride frozen after. Worth it.

 

[cjsmom5]

I agree with the dessert party or fireworks cruise, both are awesome. The old illuminations cruise was awesome too, not sure if they’re going to offer something similar with the new show though. Also, horse and carriage ride in FW or Port Orleans are awesome. And the Void in DS isn’t “unique” per se but it’s awesome and was my DHs favorite part of our trip when we did it. My kids have also done the kids only pirate cruise others have talked about, and they loved it. We also enjoyed the “behind the seeds” tour at Living with the Lsnd in Epcot

Keep in mind with the fireworks cruise at MK - it is amazing. We loved ours. They pipe in the music but you don't see the projections on the castle, which are also very pretty. At Epcot you get to see it all. Boats park under the bridge as you go in. Typically 5 or six boats there waiting. They take you a round the Lagoon prior to the fireworks and have snacks. You can add other things. We really enjoyed this too. Carriage rides at FW or Port are very nice. The dessert party at Hollywood was ok. Nice viewing spot for the projects and show. Was not my fav but I am not a Star Wars fan - Star Wars fans LOVED it.

 

[BrotherCraig]

Fort wilderness has horseback riding and that is back now post-Covid. That could be fun!

Where do you catch the horseback riding at in FW? Hearing conflicting information that it is near the lake area and some say they don't do the trail rides from there - that you have to go at the front entrance of FW. Thanks.

 

[shawthorne44]

We'll be there Feb too. Can you scuba? There is DiveQuest. You can even do it on a non-park day.

 

[SDKMom]

I am curious who you used for this. This could be a fun idea for our kiddos either for our transport from Disney to Universal or from Universal to the airport since we have a larger group (six people) and we need to figure that out anyway.

Sorry for the delayed reply! I think we used Happy Limo and FL Tours, and I had good experiences with both. This past trip we used Tiffany Towncar which also worked well, but they don't have limos. We are a family of 5, and it worked out well. We've used limo transport from Universal to Disney, back to the airport and also from Disney to Port Canaveral for a cruise (which was also a surprise!). Lol, I love surprises, but my kids are on to me now!

 

[NotANewbie]

2019, teen daughter and I had a non-park day with a sleep in, lunch at Paddlefish and then an amphicar ride around the lake (30 min), which was AWESOME! (We are returning with husband/dad in tow and they are going to have a spin around the lake after dinner at The Boathouse (slight discount on the amphicar ride with a meal costing 'so' much there.)
After the 2019 lunch and amphicar ride, we swam at the resort, napped, then had dinner at Sana'a and then did the Starlight Safari on the savannahs surrounding the Animal Kingdom Lodge. They have two times after dark for the safari. They give you night vision goggles. The giraffes almost seem to wait for the vehicle to come by. Highly recommend it.
It was a truly magical day.

 

[lelew]

2019, teen daughter and I had a non-park day with a sleep in, lunch at Paddlefish and then an amphicar ride around the lake (30 min), which was AWESOME! (We are returning with husband/dad in tow and they are going to have a spin around the lake after dinner at The Boathouse (slight discount on the amphicar ride with a meal costing 'so' much there. After the 2019 lunch and amphicar ride, we swam at the resort, napped, then had dinner at Sana'a and then did the Starlight Safari on the savannahs surrounding the Animal Kingdom Lodge. They have two times after dark for the safari. They give you night vision goggles. The giraffes almost seem to wait for the vehicle to come by. Highly recommend it.
It was a truly magical day.

We did Wild Africa trek at Animal Kingdom twice. OMG loved it.