Disneyzone News - August 2001 Issue - TEXT VERSION This is the text-only version of the DZ News. This version will not include any photographs, special charts, calendars, or graphs. Please note that Disneyzone is not affiliated with Disney in any way. We are a group of Disney World enthusiasts who want to assist you in making the most of your next Disney World vacation Newsletter and content Copyright © 2000 & 2001 Disneyzone - Please do not alter or copy any or all of this material, or use it on a website, or printed media without prior written permission, from Disneyzone or from the individual article's author.. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Golf in the Orlando Area Play golf? There are several wonderful places to play in the Orlando area. Is your husband is upset that he will miss his weekly golf game while you visit Disney World? No need for him to fret—there are many great courses he can try! Below is a list of some of the most popular courses in the Orlando area, and of course info on the Disney Golf Courses! Cypress Creek: 407-351-2187 Lake Orlando Golf Club (407) 298-4144 Orange County National Golf Center. (407) 656-2626 Remington Golf Club 407-344-4004. Hunters Creek: 407-240-4653 Kissimmee Oaks: 407-933-4055 Celebration Golf :1-407-566-GOLF Eaglewood Golf: 407-351-5121 Meadow Woods Golf: 407-850-6500 Stoneybrook 407-384-6888 Boggy Creek: 407-857-0280 Walf Disney Golf Courses—best locations, challening, quality courses! Each course has something different to offer—the variety of choices is listed below: Bonnet Creek - Eagle Pines It’s a challenging course, with dish-shaped fairways. Water hazards on 16 holes, and the pine needles and sand give added challenge. Green Fees: $125-$140 including electric cart Bonnet Creek - Osprey Ridge This dramatic course features wide fairways and large greens surrounded by wilderness areas. A stroll through this golf course is much like a nature walk. This course is a favorite with experienced golfers. Disney pros rate Osprey Ridge the toughest of the five courses at Walt Disney World. Fees: $125-$140 including cart Lake Buena VistaThis beautiful country club-like PGA course, is blanketed with pine trees, oaks, and magnolias. Nice course with wide fairways. Greens are in nice condition and easy to read. One is on an island! Fees: $100-120 including cart Magic Kingdom - Magnolia The course has plenty of sand and water, with large rolling greens. It offers elevated greens and tees. The final round of the PGA Tour’s Walt Disney World/National Car Rental Golf Classic is played on this course Fees: $100-120 incl. cart Magic Kingdom - Palm Beautiful course, on some mornings you may see a deer, or other wildlife. Some have seen alligators relaxing along this course. This course is a challenging one, with narrow greens, many water hazards and sand traps Green Fees: $100-120 including cart Magic Kingdom - Oak Trail A nice, short, 9 hole walking course. Contrary to popular belief it can be quite challenging, as it has some of the most challenging holes at Walt Disney World. The pace is leisurely and relaxing. The nine-hole, par-36 course features two par-5s, two par-3s, and five par-4s. Fees: $25 for one round, $35 for two rounds. No electric carts. For Tee Times, call 407 939-4653. Disney resort guests can make reservations up to 90 days in advance. During various times of the year Disney resort guests can get special rates. For instance, during summer months you can get greatly discounted green fees if you accept a tee time mid-day. Ask about the different rates when you call for your tee times! For detailed pricing, maps, and info on any of the Disney World Golf courses, please visit the following site: http://www.wdwgolf.com ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Visit the Message Boards! One of the most popular sections on DZ just happens to be the Message Boards! You can post questions/answers/advice or just hang around and read what others say! We have a very friendly, helpful group on the boards! Give it a try www.disneyzone.net click on the FORUMS link! ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Our Beach Club Trip By Diane My daughter, grandson (14) and grandaughter (7) spent 8 days staying at the Beach Club with concierge service and I guarantee this is the most wonderful vacation you could ever experience!! Disney is famous for the "moments of truth" in customer service, and they lived up to the reputation. The room was very nice and spacious, they were most gracious and ready to please, and the food in the concierge room was tasty and plentiful! I recommend this service as it saves a lot of time and hassle since you can grab a bite to eat whenever you want, and when you return from the day's adventures, you can nibble a little then go out for dinner at your leisure. The kids loved it! The pools are clean, the entire hotel is immaculate -- they even wash the woodwork in the hallways on a regular basis. Expensive, yes, but a truly memorable trip for all of us. I dont think I would ever stay anywhere else at WDW unless I was camping at the campground which is also a fun experience. I have done WDW "roughing it" and now in pure luxury, and both are great! The important thing is to keep the "magic" alive until one can return. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Tips for Families with Young Kids More Tips from Allison I have been to Disney World 4 times in the past 3 years with my family. We have small children and I have been there pregnant, too. So I have a lot of tips to share. Be prepared for anything! Bring a small first aid kit in your backpack. My son had a splinter one day during our trip and was miserable. First Aid was clear on the other side of the park and by the time we got there he was so upset we couldn’t calm him down enough to take it out for 15 minutes! So now I pack tweezers in my min first aid kit. Here is a sampling of what I take in my backpack: Snacks (boxes of raisins, fruit snacks, indiv. Wrapped packages of cookies, small suckers, packs of cheese and crackers), small toys (small tablets one for each kid to draw on, get autographs, whatever, small cars for the boys to play with, little doggies that my daughter enjoys, non-crumbling playdough the new crayola stuff is cool just put it in a ziplock baggie, small misty fans they sell them for about $3 each), I put in a package of baby wipes (also some under the stroller), 3-4 dry washcloths to use later to dry off faces or to wet and cool off faces, a change of clothes for each kid, a few grocery plastic bags for dirty clothes or whatever and sunscreen. My husband carries the cameras, film, batteries, and all that sort of stuff in his! We are packed down, but we can set it on one of the strollers as we cruise around. It is nice to know we have everything we will need. More tips next time. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ AP Lounge at Animal Kingdom By DQ The last AP newsletter, the Mickey Monitor, announced the presence of an annual passholder lounge in the Animal Kingdom. On a recent trip, I had the opportunity to check out this lounge. The AP lounge is located in one of pavilions near the Flame Tree BBQ. It is accessible from the pathway that takes you from Discovery Island to Asia and is marked by a sign. You can also reach this pavilion if you follow the pathway to the left of the Flame Tree BBQ, past their dining pavilions. At the present time, the AP lounge is available only to annual passholders and premium annual passholders. The lounge is not available to seasonal passholders nor members of your party that do not have the requisite APs or PAPs. A Guest Relations CM is always present in the lounge. They will check each person’s AP/PAP. If you wish any information, park guide maps, or a little pin trading action, they are your person! You will be asked to sign their register book and make any comments you wish about the lounge. While resting in the lounge on their comfy patio furniture and by their fans, you are welcome to help yourself to a cup of water from the water cooler. Games and books are on the tables if you wish to have fun while resting. One of the games I saw was the Disney Trivia game. Books on the tables included The Making of the Animal Kingdom and Walt Disney Imagineering. The neatest surprise in the AP lounge was getting a complimentary FastPass ticket, issued for the attraction of your choice! The times we got were such that we could go directly to the attraction after enjoying the lounge! Great perk, but sorry, while you can enjoy the AP lounge as often as you wish during the day, you are limited to one complimentary FastPass per day. The AP Lounge appears to be a trial and is available through September 30th. Each time I visited the AP lounge on my last trip, the lounge appeared to be very popular with annual passholders. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Walt's 100th Birthday Celebration Walt Disney’s Hometown Celebrates his 100th Birthday Disney’s Dreams Began in Small Missouri Town (Marceline, Mo.) – The largest-ever international gathering of Disney historians and authors is expected in Marceline, Mo. on September 21-23, 2001 for The Hometown Celebration of Walt Disney’s 100th Birthday. Historians from as far away as Italy and the U.K. will converge on the picturesque town of 2,500 to gain a better understanding of the childhood experiences that defined the world’s most famous animator. Walt himself claimed Marceline as his hometown in a letter he wrote for the Marceline News in 1938, “I’m glad I’m a small town boy and I’m glad Marceline was my town.” Located about 90 miles from Kansas City in north-central Missouri, Marceline was Walt Disney’s home for his formative years and was a major influence on his work and the rest of his life. In fact, the main street of Marceline was the model for “Main Street, U.S.A., ” the entryway to Disneyland and Walt Disney World amusement parks. Walt’s time in Marceline stimulated his imagination, and it was during this time that Walt developed his interest in drawing. Historians believe that Disneyland’s Matterhorn was inspired by one of the town’s former coalmines and it’s slag pit, and that he developed his interest in trains and farm animals while in Marceline. In the 1938 letter to the Marceline News, Disney wrote of his time in this idyllic American town, “To tell the truth, more things of importance happened to me in Marceline than have happened since—or are likely to in the future.” ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Marceline Hosts Walt Disney’s 100th Birthday Celebration Marceline’s three-day birthday celebration will include lectures and roundtable discussions by Disney historians, artists and authors; storytelling and reenactments of Disney events in Marceline; the Doc Sherwood Art Contest; the Barnyard Olympics, where children of all ages can compete in some of Walt’s daily chores around the farm; a baked apple pie and barbeque contest; the Cricket Market, including unique collectibles from the world’s most famous Disney collectors; a barn raising, where Visitors can take part in the raising of a replica of Walt’s train barn; live music; and the Main Street U.S.A. Parade where visitors are invited to grab their instruments and the sheet music provided by the event organizers and join in. The town of Marceline is also converting the old train depot into an interactive museum that will celebrate the Disney family’s time in Marceline and the town’s railroad heritage. The Depot Museum, the first museum dedicated to the lives of Walt Disney and his older brother, Roy, will house thousands of treasures from their lives including many family heirlooms never seen by the public. It will be previewed during the birthday celebration in September, 2001. In addition to the Depot Museum, visitors to Marceline will have the chance to tour more than 20 different sites considered significant to Disney’s life, including the Walt Disney Elementary School, which houses Walt’s first-grade school desk with his initials carved in the century old desk. The desk will just have returned from an exhibit at the Reagan Library. Those attending can take advantage of the photo opportunity at Walt’s dreaming tree, his favorite escape where his imagination could run free. A walk down Marceline’s Main Street USA includes a stop at the Uptown Theater, where in 1956 Walt and Roy Disney held the Midwest premier of their feature film The Great Locomotive Chase. In 1998, the world premier of The Spirit of Mickey was held in the same theater. For more information about this event check out the website at www.wd100birthday.com or call the Celebration Office at (660) 376-WALT (9258). ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Restaurant Review By Eddie Wolfgang Pucks is at Downtown Disney. A priorty reservation is a must if you want to eat here during regular meal times. The restaurant is full of photos of Wolfgang Puck which are interesting to look at but are a little much. The atmosphere is festive and fun. The waiters and waitresses are very knowledgeable and will offer suggestions of what to order or how to order it. The menu had a wide variety of foods. Even the pickiest eater can surely find something that interests them on the menu. We were a group of 6 and tried many different menu items. The things that we enjoyed most where the Ceaser Salad with huge croutons, grilled portobello mushrooms with sweet peppers and a balsamic vinegar sauce, giant shrimp cocktail. For main dishes we enjoyed the pizzas. They have some interesting toppings and ways to make the pizza. One great one was a grilled salmon pizza. You must get the Zwibelbraaten steak. It’s a really long named steak and that’s what I call it. It is the most delicious piece of meat I tasted at Disney! Wife liked the pasta she ordered but cannot remember the name of it. It was a spaghetti type noodle with an olive oil sauce and shrimp. Everyone in our party really enjoyed their meal. Prices ranged from about $10-$15 per entrée. Not bad considering the amount of food you get. The service was wonderful, too. Now for dessert. We ordered a few and shared them. The Key Lime Pie was my favorite, smooth and creamy with a little bite to it. My wife said she liked the Chocolate Cream Brulee the best. We had cheesecake and a truffle cake and even ice cream of some sort. Desserts were priced all the same price, around $6 or $7. You don’t hear much about this restaurant, but you really should try it next time you want some good food, and wonderful service. Remember to get your reservations! ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Park Hours, E-Ticket and Early Entry Days Chart will not be shown in this text-only version ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Kids’ Views One of the things people like most about the DZ news is that the articles are written by Disney visitors! This spot in the newsletter is for kids’ articles. If you have visited Disney recently and your child(ren) would like to submit an article about their experiences, please email it to news@disneyzone.net We do not edit them in any way—whatever is submitted is printed. Please include the child’s name (first names only are published, and age). The article can be about any part of your vacation. A favorite meal, character interaction, rides and attractions, whatever your child would like to write about! ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Travel Polls There is a Poll on the DZ Resort Biographies Page on the site. In July it asked which Character Meal is your favoriite or which one you would like to try Here are the results : Cinderella Castle : 33% Crystal Palace: 19% 1900 Park Faire : 12% Chef Mickeys: 31% Donalds at AK: 5% We’ll have a new Poll for August! The more people who participate, the more accurate the poll will be—so visit the link below TODAY and submit your vote! www.disneyzone.net/resortbios.htm ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Something New... Many companies have asked to advertise in the newsletter. I did not want DZ visitors bombarded with ADS so I have hesitated to do this. Instead of having the advertisements scattered over the newsletter, I thought I would add them to the end. That way, if you are interested in ads, at the last pages! If not, then don’t! The newsletter is sent out to approximately 6000 DZ visitors. They are not sent out as spam, each person who receives it, has asked for it! Many say they print out the newsletters and keep them! This could be a prime spot to advertise for companies that cater to Disney World visitors. Please give me your input on this matter! If you are interested in advertising, or would like to comment regarding this issue, please email me at kimmi@disneyzone.net ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Happy Birthday to: Stuart, Daniel, Maria, Cody, 2, Austin, 5, Dominick, 3, Andrew, 12, Rachel, 12, Phyllis, Paul . . . and every other DZ’er that has a birthday in AUGUST! Sorry, Elizabeth turned 4 in July and we missed her name :) If you would like a birthday announced in the DZ News, send name, and birthday (and age if you want that in, too) kim@disneyzone.net ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ THANKS to all the Disneyzone visitors for their help with the newsletter and the site!!! Tell your friends about Disneyzone! They can get their own copy of the Disneyzone News emailed to them each month, all they have to do is go to the site and register. They will automatically be put on the list. If you would rather, you may print it out or forward it. Newsletter and content Copyright © 2000 & 2001 Disneyzone - Please do not alter or copy any or all of this material, or use it on a website, or printed media without prior written permission, from Disneyzone or from the individual article's author..