Christmas at Disney: The Good, The Crowded & The Magical

Planning a Disney World vacation during the holiday season? Join travel advisors Ryan and Julie as they dive deep into Julie's recent family trip to Walt Disney World in early December—a time she considers the absolute best for experiencing Disney's Christmas magic.

In this Christmas Eve episode, Julie shares insider tips from her week-long stay at Disney's Polynesian Village Resort with her husband, three young children (ages 2, 4, and 6), and in-laws. Discover why the first week of December offers the perfect sweet spot: full holiday decorations are up, but the Christmas week crowds haven't arrived yet.

What You'll Learn:

• Mickey's Very Merry Christmas Party: Detailed strategies for maximizing your experience, including when to arrive (spoiler: earlier than you think!), how to navigate the crowds, and whether the party is worth the cost
• Holiday Dining Recommendations: Reviews of Ohana (breakfast AND dinner!), Tusker House character dining, Via Napoli, Skipper Canteen, and the new Wai Lulu Bar & Grill at Polynesian's Island Tower
• Park Touring with Young Kids: Real talk about managing three little ones through four park days, including which rides were first-time experiences and how to build in essential downtime
• Resort Day Strategies: Why planning full resort days alongside park days makes your vacation more enjoyable and creates lasting memories
• Money-Saving Tips: How an Amazon Fresh order to your resort can save hundreds while keeping snacks and breakfast readily available
• Transportation Insights: What to expect when using Disney buses, especially to Disney Springs from Magic Kingdom area resorts

Julie offers honest feedback about the challenges of traveling with young children—even for Disney pros—and shares which holiday experiences are must-dos versus those you can skip. She also discusses whether the Christmas party is worth doing every year (her answer might surprise you!) and why the holiday season might not be ideal for your first Disney visit.

Whether you're planning your first Disney Christmas or you're a seasoned visitor, this episode provides practical advice for making the most of Walt Disney World's most magical time of year.

Featured Locations: Magic Kingdom, EPCOT, Animal Kingdom, Hollywood Studios, Disney's Polynesian Village Resort, Disney Springs

Transcript

ryan_2_12-12-2025_144849: 0:00

Hello and welcome to All Things Travel. Recently Julie's family traveled to Walt Disney World to experience all things holidays. Today she'll share the Disney magic and why early December might be the best time to visit, the most magical place on earth.

squadcaster-h526_1_12-12-2025_144849: 0:16

Listen in with travel advisors and destination experts, Ryan and Julie. He is your travel professor teaching you everything you need to know to have a magical vacation. And I'm a Disney loving Maryland mom of three and a specialist and family travel. Whether we're discussing incredible destinations, top vacation tips, or sharing personal stories, it's always all things travel.

ryan_2_12-12-2025_144849: 0:39

this show is coming out on Christmas Eve this year.

squadcaster-h526_1_12-12-2025_144849: 0:44

Oh,

ryan_2_12-12-2025_144849: 0:45

So tell me, what is Christmas Eve like at the Schaefer house? what's a must do for your family that makes it feel like Christmas?

squadcaster-h526_1_12-12-2025_144849: 0:55

it's pretty chill. we go to church, sometimes we don't go to church. Yeah, it's a really chill day.

ryan_2_12-12-2025_144849: 1:01

Mm-hmm.

squadcaster-h526_1_12-12-2025_144849: 1:02

do order out because that was something we used to do growing up. So pizza or Chinese tends to be the vibe and like the next day is so busy you don't really, like, I don't wanna cook. so yeah, it's a really chill day actually. We don't do anything crazy with family. We're pretty strict on Immediate family first, and then kind of seeing extended family the next day for a little bit. But yeah. What about you guys?

ryan_2_12-12-2025_144849: 1:23

Yeah, well this is really our first year of doing everything together, so we have the kids with us on Christmas Eve, I think we're doing stuff a little earlier in the. Week with my parents and them So we'll probably have a pretty chill Christmas Eve. I know we're gonna do homemade pizzas at night. That has always tended to be a Christmas Eve thing. but yeah, I mean, we're all things Christmas here, as I've told you in the past. it's enjoying foods and enjoying time together Especially with my daughter being in college, there hasn't been a lot of just kind of relaxed time with her.

squadcaster-h526_1_12-12-2025_144849: 1:59

yeah.

ryan_2_12-12-2025_144849: 2:00

it'll be nice to hunker down for a family day, play some games, all that kind of stuff.

squadcaster-h526_1_12-12-2025_144849: 2:04

I agree. And I think sometimes we get a little swept up in the holidays and we think we have to go everywhere and do everything. But I really think the best memories are made just hanging out in that downtime. that's what we're gonna try to focus on this year.

ryan_2_12-12-2025_144849: 2:18

Well, today we're gonna talk about your recent Walt Disney World trip, and this is a trip that your family takes every early December, so I know it's really special to you. So we're gonna get into holidays and Christmas at Walt Disney World. But first I wanna remind folks, if you did not listen to last week's episode, I discussed Jasmine and my honeymoon trip To Hyatt, Zara, Capna. Alright, Julie, so this is, like I said, this is a special time for you guys to travel. Why this time? Why early December? Because I think once the kids hit school age, you're gonna have a really hard time not taking this trip. What is it about early December that hits you the most when it comes to Disney?

squadcaster-h526_1_12-12-2025_144849: 3:04

So first of all, all the Christmas decorations are up. if you've never been to Disney World, when those Christmas decorations are up, you are missing out on a lot of magic Main Street is so beautiful. when you go to Epcot, all the countries are decorated and you know, their culture's, decorations. Animal Kingdom has really stepped up the past couple years with their decorations. The resorts have Christmas trees in them. It's just really. Really a lovely, beautiful time to visit, and the crowds have not arrived yet in the first week of December. the Thanksgiving crowds have left,

ryan_2_12-12-2025_144849: 3:41

Yep.

squadcaster-h526_1_12-12-2025_144849: 3:42

crowds have not arrived.

ryan_2_12-12-2025_144849: 3:44

it's a really good sweet spot.

squadcaster-h526_1_12-12-2025_144849: 3:45

Yeah, and I. Tell my husband this every year. to me, the Christmas season starts when I am sitting at the pool at the Polynesian and the Hawaiian Christmas music is playing.

ryan_2_12-12-2025_144849: 3:58

Well, so tell us the who and the where. I, you already mentioned Polynesian and I don't think there was, any doubt about that, but this was your immediate family and then I believe your in-laws correct.

squadcaster-h526_1_12-12-2025_144849: 4:08

Yep. So my husband's parents, who are truly wonderful helpers, whenever they travel with us, they give so much of their time to our kids and helping us out, which we so appreciate. and then, my immediate family, so me and my husband, and on this trip, the kids were six, four, and two.

ryan_2_12-12-2025_144849: 4:30

Whew.

squadcaster-h526_1_12-12-2025_144849: 4:30

we stayed at the Polynesian, we own our Disney vacation club there, and it is truly our favorite resort. I always try to, share that the Polynesian feels like a resort within itself.

ryan_2_12-12-2025_144849: 4:43

I have not been to the parks during the holiday season, but I took a Disney cruise at Thanksgiving one year, so we stayed at Disney the night before the cruise, we went around to some of the resorts and I remember going to the Polynesian it really was holiday special.

squadcaster-h526_1_12-12-2025_144849: 4:59

It is. And that Hawaiian Christmas album is on repeat in our home as well. my kids know the words to the songs and it's just a hit.

ryan_2_12-12-2025_144849: 5:08

give us the daily rundown. what was the trip that you planned as far as park days, resort days, all that stuff?

squadcaster-h526_1_12-12-2025_144849: 5:15

Okay, so we had four day park hoppers and we also had tickets to Mickey's very merry Christmas party. We were there for a full week, so a Saturday to a

ryan_2_12-12-2025_144849: 5:25

Mm-hmm.

squadcaster-h526_1_12-12-2025_144849: 5:26

and we started off the trip in Disney Springs. I am not a massive Disney Springs Fan, and we've talked about that before. I just feel like it's a bit of a hassle to get over there. And especially from the Magic Kingdom area resorts, you're quite a bit further than you are at some of the other resorts.

ryan_2_12-12-2025_144849: 5:43

Yes.

squadcaster-h526_1_12-12-2025_144849: 5:43

and this was no different. The bus ride over there just felt like. I mean, it was like a 30 minute bus ride, 35 minute. It probably also, it was a Saturday. There was some traffic. But my kids really wanted to go to the Rainforest Cafe, so I was obliging that. And this was actually pretty special and we did not realize it until right before we went. We went to this dinner on November the 29th, which is my granny's birthday, and

ryan_2_12-12-2025_144849: 6:15

Mm-hmm.

squadcaster-h526_1_12-12-2025_144849: 6:15

passed and they, my grandparents used to go to Disney frequently. loved the Rainforest Cafe. That was where they would take us every trip. in fact, that's the reason we even have ever taken the kids there because I have fond memories of going there with my grandparents and getting the volcano and the sparklers and all that kind of stuff. So it actually turned out being very sweet.

ryan_2_12-12-2025_144849: 6:36

That's a really special family, family connection, isn't it?

squadcaster-h526_1_12-12-2025_144849: 6:40

Yeah, it was really nice. So it kind of made the evening a little bit sweeter. but again, the transportation there just is not great. in fact, coming back, there was an accident outside of our bus that they had to end up calling some emergency services for. and we were delayed probably 40. Five to 50 minutes getting back.

ryan_2_12-12-2025_144849: 6:59

Ouch. Yeah.

squadcaster-h526_1_12-12-2025_144849: 7:00

it happens when you're relying on the bus system like that. It happens it was just something that we had to be patient with. So then Sunday we planned a resort day along with the Christmas party. The Christmas party this year does feel like it's a little more crowded, and we'll talk about that a little more later. Monday we did Epcot with reservations at Via Napoli, and I always love via Napoli for families with kids because you've got the pizza and it's just an easy meal. On Tuesday, we went to Animal Kingdom and we had lunch at Tusker House, which is always my absolute favorite character meal.

ryan_2_12-12-2025_144849: 7:35

It's.

squadcaster-h526_1_12-12-2025_144849: 7:36

It is. And we had, I think the best meal of our trip was there. they had the salmon that was out of this world. on Wednesday we spent the day at Magic Kingdom. It was a super long day, and we had breakfast at Cinderella's Royal Table, which was another request for my kids. Most of these restaurants were requests from the kids.

ryan_2_12-12-2025_144849: 7:55

I am sensing a very kid-centric, eating schedule here.

squadcaster-h526_1_12-12-2025_144849: 7:59

we ask them because we've been frequently,

ryan_2_12-12-2025_144849: 8:01

Yeah.

squadcaster-h526_1_12-12-2025_144849: 8:02

and they are of the age that they remember a lot of these restaurants like when we talked about Tasker House, they were like, that's the one where they play the Jambo song and we can dance. So got good memories and they wanna experience that again. on Thursday we had a full resort day and we ate at Ohana, not once, but twice for breakfast and dinner.

ryan_2_12-12-2025_144849: 8:21

Hashtag winning. The breakfast is good and the dinner is phenomenal. I ate. There for the first time with a group of friends about a year ago, and man, that meal is so good.

squadcaster-h526_1_12-12-2025_144849: 8:34

it's so good. It's a quick meal, but it's really good. And we had never done the breakfast there. my kids are just now into Lilo and Stitch, so they were really excited.

ryan_2_12-12-2025_144849: 8:43

Yeah.

squadcaster-h526_1_12-12-2025_144849: 8:44

and then our last day was Hollywood Studios and we had dinner at Roundup Rodeo Barbecue. we had a packed full trip mixed in with some rest time.

ryan_2_12-12-2025_144849: 8:55

let's talk, specifically since you went there for the holidays. I know you're really big on the decorations in Hollywood studios. You went to the party at Magic Kingdom. What are some tips that you would have for families like yours for the holiday parties?

squadcaster-h526_1_12-12-2025_144849: 9:13

Okay, so. there's two holiday parties that are available recently, and that's Mickey's very merry Christmas party that's at the Magic Kingdom. And then there's Hollywood Knights over at Hollywood Studios. We opted out of Hollywood Knights for this year. it didn't have like great reviews last year, so I didn't really wanna, you know, jump into that for this year. And I think it's actually a little more adult geared than the very merry party. The biggest tip I can say is to get there at the time it opens and have a plan.

ryan_2_12-12-2025_144849: 9:45

And when you say it opens, you mean not when the party starts, when you can get into the park, which is a couple hours earlier,

squadcaster-h526_1_12-12-2025_144849: 9:53

Correct. You can get in at four o'clock and I again. have three little kids. There were seven of us total, no matter what time we planned to leave, we did not leave at that time. So I really would've loved to be outside of

ryan_2_12-12-2025_144849: 10:06

you.

squadcaster-h526_1_12-12-2025_144849: 10:06

at about three 30.

ryan_2_12-12-2025_144849: 10:07

You, you're like, we are leaving the Polynesian lobby at one 30 in the afternoon. Therefore you are like, maybe there's a fighting chance. We'll be there by 4:00 PM.

squadcaster-h526_1_12-12-2025_144849: 10:16

Yeah, seriously, that's how it felt. so we actually didn't get there until about. of four. I would've liked to be there earlier. And I then text my clients who were going to the party after me being like, get there earlier, get there earlier. the line was huge.

ryan_2_12-12-2025_144849: 10:31

is there kind of a feeling of rope drop at the beginning of the day at that four o'clock?'cause everybody's getting in for the parties.

squadcaster-h526_1_12-12-2025_144849: 10:37

worse. Worse

ryan_2_12-12-2025_144849: 10:39

Wow.

squadcaster-h526_1_12-12-2025_144849: 10:39

mean, the entire area between getting off the monorail and getting to where you would tap your band

ryan_2_12-12-2025_144849: 10:46

I.

squadcaster-h526_1_12-12-2025_144849: 10:46

a sea of people. They directed you very well, which was great. And honestly the weight wasn't that bad. The reason it looks like such a big crowd is'cause they don't start letting you in until four, so no one's moving until four.

ryan_2_12-12-2025_144849: 10:59

Yeah.

squadcaster-h526_1_12-12-2025_144849: 11:00

and queuing and queuing. I would say once they did let it, we probably got in around four 15, maybe four 10, and then they direct you off to the right side that's where the big blow up banners are at. They're giving out the ornaments. Because you get an ornament when you go to the party. They're giving out your first cookie, which I think that's newer. The last time that I went, you got the ornament, but you didn't get a cookie right away. and the other thing I noticed was there was like a couple character meet and greets, like the gingerbread man and a couple other ones right in this little back pathway there. And I don't remember those from the last couple times that I did the party. you get a wristband, of course. That's how they know you're there for the party. And they do check that later in the evening. day guests who do not have a party ticket, have to leave by 6:00 PM and that's when they start checking the wristbands. if you don't know this, the app kind of goes down at that time, as in you can't see wait times. for like an hour or two as that transition happens. the party officially starts at seven. my game plan is always you have to pick what you're focusing on. You cannot do rides entertainment and get all the cookies it seems like you have a lot of time. It goes by so. Fast. The other thing I'll mention is that a lot of the quick services tend to close and are not offering a full dinner option in the evening. So I like to say book a sit down dinner. we chose Skipper Canteen and did that right when we got in the park. if you haven't been to Skipper Canteen, it needs to be on your list because it

ryan_2_12-12-2025_144849: 12:27

I love it. It's a great restaurant.

squadcaster-h526_1_12-12-2025_144849: 12:29

yeah, I had some sort of noodles with shrimp and it was one of the best meals I had that trip. will say this was the night after we had Rainforest Cafe, so not a ton of competition.

ryan_2_12-12-2025_144849: 12:40

So the comparison might have, but no, it is really, really good. one of my favorite beers is there, the Congo Beer. I tend to get like a couple appetizers as my meal. it's very, very good food.

squadcaster-h526_1_12-12-2025_144849: 12:52

Yeah, and if your kids are a little bit of an adventurous eater, they do have a more extensive kids menu than other restaurants do. So I can appreciate that. we did Skipper Canteen, and then my plan for the party is usually Adventure Land there's not a ton to do in Adventure Land, and if you have another. Day in Magic Kingdom, it kind of feels like check, like we got that land done.

ryan_2_12-12-2025_144849: 13:15

Mm-hmm.

squadcaster-h526_1_12-12-2025_144849: 13:16

went around, we did the tree house. We did the magic carpets of Aladdin. My kids love that. We did Pirates of the Caribbean, we did the Jingle Crews, and we were able to do all of that before the party truly started.

ryan_2_12-12-2025_144849: 13:27

Oh wow. you had dinner and did adventureland all before the party started. Wow.

squadcaster-h526_1_12-12-2025_144849: 13:33

Mm-hmm. We didn't get to the tiki room that closed early because there was gonna be a Moana meet and greet there. but we were able to do that on a different day. we did pretty good that night in Adventureland. we don't have to think about doing that part of the park on our next full park day. We can focus on other areas. Um, so then from there, my plan. That I always give to clients and do for myself is go find your spot on Main Street. this was another scenario that I immediately texted my clients that were going to the party and said, get there way earlier than you think you need to get there. It was packed like

ryan_2_12-12-2025_144849: 14:08

Huh.

squadcaster-h526_1_12-12-2025_144849: 14:08

Street was fool the parade, the first parade was at eight 30 and we got there around 7 35. and we were not at the curb

ryan_2_12-12-2025_144849: 14:18

Wow.

squadcaster-h526_1_12-12-2025_144849: 14:19

We were probably three rows back, but fortunately the group sitting in front of us, were all together and they were all adults, so they did stay sitting during the parade. which worked out for us because my kids had a great view, I always say, go there and get your spot. we put our stuff out, we put out the triple stroller, so clearly no one's coming to take that area. then I walked down to like the ice cream shop and bring Bre snacks for everybody and we just kind of hang out there. Um, it was actually really funny, Luca. he was four on this trip and he was just, done. We had had a pool

ryan_2_12-12-2025_144849: 14:53

Yeah.

squadcaster-h526_1_12-12-2025_144849: 14:54

done, and he is passed out in the stroller. And I'm like, wake up. he had been talking about seeing the parade and he kept saying, not now. Not now, not yet. I literally, like, I drag him out of the stroller and he is on me half asleep, but the parade is coming. he did pep up and really enjoyed the parade. the Christmas parade is one of my favorites, the little reindeer. They are my favorite things. And if you've never seen a video of them, I'll have to post it because they are my favorite. Of any Disney, anything, they're just the cutest little things. after that, I feel like the kids wanted to do some rides, but we didn't, you know, they were like, we wanna keep going. we watched the parade. we were not planning on staying for the fireworks because they didn't start till 10

ryan_2_12-12-2025_144849: 15:39

Mm-hmm.

squadcaster-h526_1_12-12-2025_144849: 15:40

just late. walked towards Tomorrowland and I feel like we were gonna try to do a couple things and then go up to fantasy land and do some stuff. But we got over to Tomorrowland. Everyone needed, you know, the 15th bathroom break of the day. There was a couple cookie stops. ended up doing the cookie stops, and then my youngest Mia wandered into the Disney Junior dance party, her thing in there for a while. Um, and then we, we exited and As we boarded the monorail, the fireworks started going off so we could see them from the monorail, which was pretty cool because there was no loud booms.

ryan_2_12-12-2025_144849: 16:14

you mentioned the crowds, and I realize this is a completely subjective question and you have a lot of bias. Is the Christmas party worth it?

squadcaster-h526_1_12-12-2025_144849: 16:26

That's a hard one. I have been reading a lot of scrutiny about the party this year, thinking that like people saying it's very crowded. Um, and it did feel. Crowded. I had clients go this week, and that was the feedback I got from them as well, was that it was crowded, and I think part of it is tempering your expectations.

ryan_2_12-12-2025_144849: 16:46

Mm-hmm.

squadcaster-h526_1_12-12-2025_144849: 16:46

you cannot do entertainment and rides and get the cookies and do the meet and greets. You really have to pick one thing. That being said, it's definitely not something we do every year. It is not worth the cost to do every year.

ryan_2_12-12-2025_144849: 17:02

even though you go at Christmas time every year, you don't think your family needs to go to the party every year.

squadcaster-h526_1_12-12-2025_144849: 17:09

absolutely not. We probably haven't gone for three years. at least three years, maybe four.'cause the last time we went, Luca was pretty young and again, was asleep in the stroller. This year we decided to go and it was part of like a, a Christmas gift for my in-laws was to get to go to the party.

ryan_2_12-12-2025_144849: 17:24

Very nice. I like that. I like that.

squadcaster-h526_1_12-12-2025_144849: 17:27

love the parade. So every couple years, I do need to see the parade, but it is not an every year experience at all.

ryan_2_12-12-2025_144849: 17:35

what were new experiences for your family on this trip? were there things that people hadn't experienced before? Was there something that sticks out with that?

squadcaster-h526_1_12-12-2025_144849: 17:43

Yeah. a couple of things and I'll start first with the new experiences for the kids. this is always really exciting. Luca is a whole. Foot taller

ryan_2_12-12-2025_144849: 17:53

Right.

squadcaster-h526_1_12-12-2025_144849: 17:54

than the last time we went. we had measured the kids. I have these very cute growth charts that Disney gives us that you can measure, the kids on and then it corresponds to the rides they can go on. So my kids had been eyeing that up for weeks. Mia, this was her first time on Alien, swirling saucers

ryan_2_12-12-2025_144849: 18:10

Fun.

squadcaster-h526_1_12-12-2025_144849: 18:10

have gone on it over and over again. That was really exciting for her. Luca, he really went for it on this trip. He went on Flight of Passage for the first time. and my

ryan_2_12-12-2025_144849: 18:23

Ooh.

squadcaster-h526_1_12-12-2025_144849: 18:24

she refused flight of passage, so she was still pretty nervous. We had watched a couple of point of view videos, if you've been on Flight of Passage, you have to sit on your own individual Banshee, which is kind of like a bike situation. Luca went for it. I was so proud of him. I don't know if he saw any of the ride at all, but it was so cool to have him try it because it is an amazing ride. they also went on Pirates of the Caribbean. I always thought they'd be scared and they were very nervous. But let me tell you, we entered the gift shop and they wanted everything, pirate,

ryan_2_12-12-2025_144849: 18:54

Well, of course.

squadcaster-h526_1_12-12-2025_144849: 18:55

one of the things Luca picked out as one of his, purchases was a pirate hat and it was really cute. they loved that ride. That was, their first time doing that ride. he also is really into Star Wars right now, so this was his first time doing Star Tours and his first time doing Rise of the Resistance. He loved them both.

ryan_2_12-12-2025_144849: 19:15

Wow.

squadcaster-h526_1_12-12-2025_144849: 19:16

it was cool. So

ryan_2_12-12-2025_144849: 19:17

it was a completely different trip for him in particular.

squadcaster-h526_1_12-12-2025_144849: 19:20

Yeah. Luca had a, he had a big trip lot of sleeping in the stroller for that guy, but he is like a kid that he's either like. He has nothing and he's asleep, or he is 110% go, go,

ryan_2_12-12-2025_144849: 19:31

Yeah.

squadcaster-h526_1_12-12-2025_144849: 19:32

is no in the middle for Luca. Ellie, you know, she's still pretty timid on rides, but they loved Tiana. I have to post my picture from Tiana because Luca's face is just pure joy. His hands are in the air. It is the cutest thing. I sat in the front row with Eliana and I kept telling my father-in-law who was behind me, like, I'm pretty sure second row gets the most wet. not. That was so false. was bending over, Ellie, I think I texted you about this. I was bending over Ellie as we went down the drop We got some drops of water on us. the boat leveled out and a wave came over me like a full deluge. I felt like I just got outta the pool. my hair was dripping,

ryan_2_12-12-2025_144849: 20:15

Oh wow.

squadcaster-h526_1_12-12-2025_144849: 20:17

wet on this ride. the kids thought it was hilarious. Ellie was completely dry'cause I was literally on top of her. But, What an experience happens every once in a while there. a lot of the restaurants we'd done before, the only one that was new was Ohana in the morning, which my kids loved. It was Lilo Stitch, Mickey and Pluto. we had really great restaurant experiences the whole time.

ryan_2_12-12-2025_144849: 20:41

did you end up going to the new restaurant at the tower side of Polynesian?

squadcaster-h526_1_12-12-2025_144849: 20:45

Yeah, so Y Lulu Bar and Grill, we walked over to the Island Tower, which is the new

ryan_2_12-12-2025_144849: 20:51

Mm-hmm.

squadcaster-h526_1_12-12-2025_144849: 20:52

the Polynesian. It's a another Disney Vacation Club Tower. We just chose to still stay in the longhouses and not at the new tower. I looked around at the restaurant, it looks beautiful. It actually started accepting reservations while we were there because it had been more crowded. Or more popular than what they had anticipated in the past few months. But I got takeout from there. I got this chicken teriyaki bowl, and it was phenomenal. I mean, it was so good. Their menu looked amazing. We definitely planned on eating there a couple other days, and it just didn't happen. I will say I was really surprised by how close the tower was. For some reason, looking at maps, I had pictured a different orientation of the building and so I had pictured it being further. But once you get to like that last longhouse on the Polynesian, the former property, the tower is right there. Like you get to that last longhouse at the Polynesian and you're behind the new cove pool.

ryan_2_12-12-2025_144849: 21:49

Okay.

squadcaster-h526_1_12-12-2025_144849: 21:50

I loved the new cove pool. We spent some time there. That's where like the Moana splash pad is, the pool. There is zero entry as well, and it was really quiet. really liked that space. Beautiful views of the castle. A really lovely space over there. So I did really like it. We walked into the tower. there's not a lot going on in the lobby, no gift shops, nothing like that. the Y Lulu Bar and grows the only restaurant there. So it's not really like a quick service. you can get items to go, but it's more of a sit down place. but yeah, we did really love that. I mean, I love all the food at the Poly, so I'm not gonna complain about any of that. We got many, many doll whips on this trip. My kids were pumped. I think that was Mia's biggest takeaway. Doll whip doll. Whip doll whip. She was obsessed with

ryan_2_12-12-2025_144849: 22:37

Well, you know, that's not, that's not a bad way to spend your Disney vacation.

squadcaster-h526_1_12-12-2025_144849: 22:41

Right. The other new restaurant we tried was docking base seven in Hollywood Studios. We had never eaten there and it was really good. I was really happy. You kind of got on me for not getting a rental wrap,

ryan_2_12-12-2025_144849: 22:53

well, I understand with kids I get it.

squadcaster-h526_1_12-12-2025_144849: 22:56

it was really good. It does get crowded, but it was a really good restaurant. most of the restaurants we ate at are where we always eat.

ryan_2_12-12-2025_144849: 23:01

Sure.

squadcaster-h526_1_12-12-2025_144849: 23:02

love Connections Cafe and Epcot, we had good food the whole trip. My in-laws, eat very well and they just kept saying how impressed they were with the food throughout the entire trip. I know sometimes Disney kind of gets a little, people think like, oh, they don't have good food there. But everything we had was delicious.

ryan_2_12-12-2025_144849: 23:19

So you are a Disney Pro. But what were some challenges or issues that you faced on this trip? I,

squadcaster-h526_1_12-12-2025_144849: 23:25

biggest challenge we faced was that we have three little children. ages six, four, and two at the time of the strip. And you know, we are Disney Pros. We know like that touring plan is in my head. I write it down so everyone else has an idea what we're doing, but it's not something I even have to think about. we know the parks like the back of our hand. was still a challenging trip. You just have to have so much

ryan_2_12-12-2025_144849: 23:49

Yeah.

squadcaster-h526_1_12-12-2025_144849: 23:51

with the kids and they weren't doing anything wrong. They were, acting completely appropriately. It's just that it's just a lot to take care of them. thing that we did that was incredibly helpful was we did a massive Amazon Fresh order to our resort. it was a huge help. first of all, it saved us a ton of money, like a ton

ryan_2_12-12-2025_144849: 24:08

Yes, absolutely. Well, especially'cause you basically had one and a half resort days,

squadcaster-h526_1_12-12-2025_144849: 24:13

we had a lot of resort time. all of our breakfasts were part of that Amazon order, so I like to do things like LV vitas or yogurts for the kids, and then we do protein bars, perfect bars and fruits, whatever, any combination of that. It's really helpful to be able to do that in the room while everyone is getting ready. I can only imagine how much more stressful it would've been to either send someone over for a mobile pickup at Captain Cook's, or get everyone ready even earlier

ryan_2_12-12-2025_144849: 24:41

Yeah.

squadcaster-h526_1_12-12-2025_144849: 24:41

get over to Captain Cook's, wait for the food, eat, all that kind of stuff. The other thing that helped a lot was with that Amazon order. I got more snacks than you could ever imagine so that we could just keep feeding the kids snacks in the

ryan_2_12-12-2025_144849: 24:53

Yep.

squadcaster-h526_1_12-12-2025_144849: 24:53

which was super helpful. that's why they're cranky or acting up, right? It's a new environment, they're tired, they're hungry, you know, So if I can just give them a lot of snacks, that's helpful. it is overwhelming and it is overstimulating and it is hard with kids. So, yeah, just really pack your patience and I think this one was harder than our last one because the last time we did a big trip, Mia was like nine months old, so she really couldn't do anything. I was wearing her most of the trip, and now it really was like supervising three little ones on the move. they're in the stroller, they're out of the stroller, all that kind of stuff.

ryan_2_12-12-2025_144849: 25:28

Are there any visiting Walt Disney World during the holidays, tips that we haven't talked about

squadcaster-h526_1_12-12-2025_144849: 25:35

I think one thing to keep in mind is that you're not gonna see it all, and on any Disney trip, you're not gonna see everything. So you do have to prioritize that. I remember there was something going on at Animal Kingdom when we were there, and I really wanted to see the Mary Menagerie, which are like these really cute puppets, animal puppets that come out that are big and they're controlled by the cast members and they are just really fun to interact with. times that they were coming out conflicted with, I think like the Finding Nemo show, like we were kind of in a pick one or the other. so just realizing you're not going to be able to do everything. you're gonna go into the trip and be like, oh, Epcot has all these storytellers and the candlelight processional

ryan_2_12-12-2025_144849: 26:18

Right.

squadcaster-h526_1_12-12-2025_144849: 26:19

and meet Santa and meet Santa Goofy. pick what you wanna do because you're just not gonna get to all of it. I always like to say, I don't think the Christmas trip is the first Disney trip you take because you that there is so many extra things to do. and, and just obviously going into it with that plan, there are certain areas that are always a must do for us at the holidays seeing magic and dumb Hollywood studios is also my favorite. I love the decorations over there. at the end of the week it does start to get more crowded. So just just knowing you're not gonna get to everything,

ryan_2_12-12-2025_144849: 26:53

I really like that tip of maybe the holidays isn't the first trip because I think Disney, your first time is overwhelming anyway. And so adding kind of the Christmas overlay makes it that much worse.

squadcaster-h526_1_12-12-2025_144849: 27:08

Yeah.

ryan_2_12-12-2025_144849: 27:08

worse isn't the right word, but you know what I mean?

squadcaster-h526_1_12-12-2025_144849: 27:11

It just another logistic to

ryan_2_12-12-2025_144849: 27:13

Yeah.

squadcaster-h526_1_12-12-2025_144849: 27:14

we utilized early entry, most of our days where we were there early, got a couple of things done, and then we're able to take breaks in the middle of the day, which was helpful for us. We also planned a lot of resort time. I think that downtime is really when you create a lot of memories.

ryan_2_12-12-2025_144849: 27:31

Yeah.

squadcaster-h526_1_12-12-2025_144849: 27:32

instead of like that very scheduled time, there was a couple times where we came back to the resort and there was a dance party going on at the Polynesian or a movie night. my kids just really love time like that. just build in some downtime. Be patient in the parks.

ryan_2_12-12-2025_144849: 27:47

So as we wrap up, what is the plan for family travel? Do you have anything else coming up on the horizon?

squadcaster-h526_1_12-12-2025_144849: 27:55

The only thing currently on our calendar for 2026 is a big family beach trip, but to a local beach. So our in-laws have rented a big, what they're calling a compound, a really big house, in Rehoboth, which is like two and a half hours from us. we're going, his parents are going, my husband's sister and her family and his brother and and his wife. and that's gonna be, you know, a very chill, relaxing week as we kind of gear up till 2027. Ryan can attest multiple times during this trip. I said, I'm not coming back here with my children for one and a half to two years.

ryan_2_12-12-2025_144849: 28:32

We will see. I don't believe that. I think in the heat of the moment. That might have been said, but we'll see if that actually, plays out, Julie.

squadcaster-h526_1_12-12-2025_144849: 28:41

I will phrase, not going back there with the kids for like a full trip for two years.

ryan_2_12-12-2025_144849: 28:48

Okay. All right. All right.

squadcaster-h526_1_12-12-2025_144849: 28:50

see doing a short trip, but also in 2027, so much will be opened that they're working on right now.

ryan_2_12-12-2025_144849: 28:58

The world is full of wonder and your next adventure is waiting at Wonder and Beyond Travel. We work with you to create a one of a kind journey, taking the stress off your plate so you can focus on the joy of exploring and the memories that will stay with you forever. If you're ready to start planning or you just want to dream a little bigger, head on over to Wonder and beyond travel.com. We'd love to help you get started. We look forward to talking to you next week on All Things Travel, when we celebrate the end of 2025 by recapping our top episodes of the year.