National Parks Christmas

Christmas at Yellowstone might be cold but spending it at the Wilderness Lodge sure isn't!

A big easy Christmas

Holiday season at the resorts is just as much fun as at the parks, esp. if you are at one that really decks the halls. The Port Orleans French Quarter brings you a jazzy little Christmas with all sorts of decorations with a New Orleans theme...

Tropical wreath

Back at the Caribbean Beach the wreathes in the Customs House are all tropical with colorful flowers, fish, and more. Considering it is a toasty -3F where I am right now anything tropical looks great!

A north woods holiday

It's a north woods style Christmas at the Wilderness Lodge. With lots of lumberjack style plaid and natural decorations (featuring pine cones, etc.) it is a peaceful and comfortable look. Nothing too fancy or wild here...

A tropical holiday season

The decorations around the Caribbean Beach resort all revolve around, well, the beach. And the ocean has provided some cool new characters for your garland - how about sea turtles and sea horses?

Trash Can Tuesday: Recycling, Island style

This tropical recycling logo can be found around the Carribean Beach resort. So after you are done sipping on that beverage in the sun be sure to pitch it in the right container...

Welcome to Palua

If you look up when in the Samoa Snacks at the Polynesian Resort you'll see the coolers are ready to be hoisted up and away at the Palua inspection area...

Desktop: Laid back in the Big Easy

Mardi Gras is in full swing, Fat Tuesday is tomorrow, and this week we're going to relax in the Big Easy. Well, actually we're in closest place to being there with out actually being there and that means only one thing - Port Orleans! With its extremely authentic details from narrow roads and sidewalks to the fountains and flowering trees and all around laid back yet festive atmosphere there is little reason to wonder why this is such a popular resort...

Trash Can Tuesday: Dophins and flowers

It's Tuesday, do you know where your trash can is? Ok, so this is an easy one. The Swan and Dolphin have almost identical trash cans with a bit more ornate style and their respective hotel logos - this one of the Dolphin was found near the boat docks. They are also quite a bit like the Grand Floridian ones with the planters on top...

Trash Can Tuesday: Carribean Beach

This week's trash can is brought to you by the Caribbean Beach Resort where they remind you to dispose of your trash properly while you are lounging in the sun...

Welcome to the French Quarter

Welcome and enjoy your stay at the French Quarter! Check in to your right, beignets to your left... The sign just says New Orleans - from the wrought iron to the Mardi Gras colors...

Desktop: The return of a classic logo...

At the Polynesian bus stop this sign greets travelers heading out for their adventures. There is one small detail that caught my eye. Note the logo by the Hollywood Studios - could it be that the Earful Tower is finally making its return to replace the dreaded hat?

A jazzy Christmas

At the always classy French Quarter resort the entry plaza has these wreaths lining the walk. There is a bit of a party feel to the wreaths - perfect for a trip to the Big Easy...

Mmmm - smells tasty!

In the lobby of the Grand Floridian the life sized gingerbread house is celebrating its 10th year. The tasty house sells holiday treats and even puffs out gingerbread smelling smoke out of the chimney. Look at the porch, the windows, the details are not only nice to look at, odds are on they could be edible as well!

Flying elephants instead of reindeer

This trio of banners are just a few that could be found last year around Downtown Disney, the Disneyland Resorts, etc. From snow to Dumbo to the marching toy soldiers they are all magical and were a fun way to add to the decor around the resorts!

Sorcerer tree

Outside the Fantasia Shop in the Disneyland Hotel is this cool little tree. What a great idea for a tree topper! The hotels are all decked out for the holiday and as you can see the shops get into the act as well. So if you are looking for a unique look for your tree here's an idea...

And a side note - Subsonic Radio has revved up their all holiday station so you can listen to holiday music from the Disney parks day and night from now till Christmas! It is the perfect cure for those of you that already have heard the same 20 tracks on the radio 50 times each by now.

Happy Thanksgiving!

For all of the readers here in the US - Happy Thanksgiving! So why in the world are we headed to the Port Orleans Riverside resort today? Well, for a number of years the family used to down around Thanksgiving. The crowds were traditionally light except on Thanksgiving and the Friday after. To avoid the rush we would always eat Thanksgiving dinner at Dixie Landings/Riverside - they shut down all the different food stations and just served up the traditional turkey. It was always a tasty meal and fun to explore a different resort for a couple hours. So no matter where you today, hopefully you are having a very enjoyable holiday.

Tiki with a Mickey

In the rooms at the Polynesian the terrific decor includes tikis (of course!) and this guy under the lamp has a hidden Mickey.

Disney Parks Celebration Tour

Main Street USA? More like Main St. Minneapolis. Ok, so it is Nicollet Mall in downtown Minneapolis, not quite Main Street but over the lunch hour today Cast Members were all around downtown handing out classic Mickey balloons! The first stop on their new nationwide What Will You Celebrate tour brought thousands of balloons to the streets of Minneapolis. Each balloon has a gold invitation with more info on the celebration. The SUV's are all decorated for the celebration, complete with huge balloon on top. The trailers have computers on them so you can enter their latest contest (related to the celebration) right on the spot.

One can only imagine how many cubes now have a balloon in them! For more info check out the schedule and see when it is coming to a town near you!

A water tower formerly known as Dixie Landings

These water tanks can be found near the marina at Port Orleans Riverside adding just another touch to the old southern river port feel. I seem to recall that these used to be labeled for Dixie Landings when the resort used to use that name yet I have yet to find a photo of that to prove that I'm not losing my mind...