trip planning Archives - Page 3 of 5 - Buster and the Banshee

Planning an EPIC 25th Wedding Anniversary Trip!

Archivetrip planning, walt disney world

2024 is a special year for Buster and the Banshee. In March, we will be celebrating 25 years of marital bliss! To commemorate a quarter century together as a married couple, we will be taking a trip to, where else.... Walt Disney World! Why Walt Disney World? There are a couple of reasons why we have decided to celebrate in Walt Disney World. First, one of our first big trips as a couple was to Walt Disney World, back in 1997. Banshee has just graduated from veterinary school. She had always wanted to go to WDW but never had that…

Tips for Having a STRESS FREE Walt Disney World Vacation

Trip Planningtrip planning, walt disney world

Vacations, especially Walt Disney World vacations, are supposed to be fun. However, if you spend any time reading WDW message boards, Facebook groups, blogs comments, etc, you would think that planning a Walt Disney World vacation is anything but. I frequently see posts where people are frazzled about doing the wrong thing. Somehow, they have convinced themselves that just one misstep is going to absolutely RUIN their vacation. I get it. For most people a Walt Disney World is not cheap. That puts a lot of pressure on oneself to make sure that you are absolutely getting the most for…

Visiting Walt Disney World With Minimal Planning

Trip Planningtrip planning, walt disney world

Dining reservations. Virtual queues. Lightning lanes. Rope drop. Sometimes it seems like a Walt Disney World vacation requires a level of planning on par with the Normandy Invasion! However, I am here to tell you that it is possible to enjoy a day in the parks with a minimal level of planning. As long as you are flexible and set your expectations correctly, you can have an amazing day without spending hours pouring over spreadsheets. In this article, I'll explore my steps to having a great and satisfying day at Walt Disney World without a lot of stress. STEP ONE:…

Why the Disney Dining Plan is a TERRIBLE Deal

Archivedining, disney dining plan, trip planning, walt disney world

When Disney announced the return of the Dining Plan for 2024, I asked the question "Is it worth it?" At the time, I didn't know because pricing had not been announced. However, now that we know how much the Disney Dining Plan will cost, I finally had a chance to run the numbers to see if it was actually a good deal. After doing the math, I have come to the following conclusion: The Disney Dining Plan is a TERRIBLE deal for most people If you really work at it, you might break even. But you are unlikely to come…

Buster and the Banshee’s Current Walt Disney World Packing List

WDW With Disabilitiestrip planning, walt disney world

Note: We earn a small commission when you buy through some of the included links. This helps to support our site, so we thank you for using them. Previously, Banshee wrote about some of the items that we pack which are unique to Little Banshee's special needs. I wanted to expand upon her thoughts to talk more about some of the items that we have found useful. Many of these items are not specific to traveling with a special needs child, so I think you will find it useful no matter what your situation. Transporting Little Banshee Because of Little…

DISNEY 101: Different Types of WDW Accomodations

Disney 101trip planning, walt disney world

DISNEY 101 is an ongoing series where we teach you the basics of a Walt Disney World vacation. In this installment, you will learn about the different types of accommodations that are available... the vocabulary that Disney uses, the different perks of each type of accommodation, and so forth. If you do nothing else, please scroll down to the bottom of the article, where we summarize the different resort type and the benefits that apply to each. We are sure that you will find it useful or your money back!! "On Property" vs "Off Property" The most common terms that…

DISNEY 101: Virtual Queue vs Genie+ vs Individual Lightning Lane

Disney 101genie+, individual lightning lane, rides, trip planning, virtual queue, walt disney world

As Walt Disney World park frequent travelers, there are a lot of things that we just take for granted: terminology, policies, procedures, and so forth. We regulars sometimes forget that many people (most people) visiting WDW don't visit quite so often. They might even be on their first trip. For those people, there can be a steep learning curve when it comes to planning their trip. To help the newbies out there, I thought I'd start a new series of articles called "Disney 101", which explains what some of these common things are in a (hopefully) clear way. For my…

Why We LOVE Staying Off-Property At Walt Disney World

Archivetrip planning, walt disney world

Many people extoll the virtues of staying at a Walt Disney World on-property hotel. Certainly, Disney hotels offer a great experience and unparalleled convenience. However, now that we have begun to stay off-property, we have discovered that the experience can be just as good, if not better. In this article, we will explore the reasons why we now stay off-property. We will also explore some of the trade-offs that we face because we aren't sleeping within the "Disney bubble". What Does "On-Property" Mean? For those who aren't Disney experts, you might be wondering what we mean by an on-property hotel.…

WDW Four Park Character Meet Challenge Recap, Part Three

Archivecharacter meets, trip planning, walt disney world

This is the third part of our recap of the WDW Four Park Character Meet Challenge where we met THIRTY-ONE (31) characters in one day across all four WDW theme parks. You can find the first two parts of this recap here: Part One: Epcot Part Two: Animal Kingdom and Hollywood Studios Quick Recap In our last episode, we had wrapped up our meets at Hollywood Studios. At this point, it was around 5:15pm, and we were getting ready to make our way over to the Magic Kingdom. We had met a grand total of 23 characters (11 in Epcot,…

WDW Four Park Character Meet Challenge Recap, Part Two

Archivecharacter meets, trip planning, walt disney world

This is the second part of our recap of our Four Park Character Meet Challenge. The challenge was to meet as many characters as we could in one day across all four Walt Disney World parks. You can read more about the background of the challenge here. If you read the first part of this recap, you know that we ended up meeting 31 characters in one day. The Guinness Book of World Records doesn't have an entry for "Most Disney Characters Met in One Day", so I don't know if this is record. But if it isn't, it is…