Walt Disney World’s Best Summertime Activities

• Take a break from the theme parks and spend a day by one of Disney’s fantastic resort pools. What better way to cool off in the summer heat.
  
• Shop till you drop in the air conditioned shops and restaurants at Downtown Disney. Pick up all your souvenirs at the newly remodeled World of Disney, the largest Disney store anywhere.
• Splish splash the day away at one of Disney’s unique water parks. Typhoon Lagoon is a beauty with a pool boasting some of the tallest simulated waves in the world. Or if you’re a daredevil at heart head to Blizzard Beach with its wild, rushing water and death-defying slides.
  
• Snag a bass on a fishing excursion. Pontoon boats with experienced guides depart from the resort marinas to fish the waters of Bay Lake, the Seven Seas Lagoon, Lake Buena Vista, and the Sassagoula River. No fishing license is required and it’s strictly catch and release.
  
• Hit the water at the Contemporary Resort where Sammy Duval Water Sports offers parasailing, water-ski, tubing, and personal watercraft action. It’s the kick of a lifetime!
  
• Catch a wave at Typhoon Lagoon with Cocoa Beach Surfing School. Learn to surf in the super wave pool before park opening hours on Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, and Friday.
  
• Take a spin on one of Disney’s waterways. With 850 acres of lakes, 130 feet of shoreline, 66 miles of canals, and over 500 watercraft, boating is a major pastime at Walt Disney World. Most resorts as well as Downtown Disney have their own marina with a variety of boats available for hire including Boston Whaler Montauks, pontoon boats, sailboats, Sea Raycers, even a luxury yacht.
• Cool off in the mountains of the Himalayans. Expedition Everest, the Animal Kingdom’s newest attraction, involves out-of-control railcars that race forward and backward, sending Disney's Animal Kingdom guests swooping into the unknown to brave twists, turns and drops inside and outside a mighty mountain. It all leads to an unforgettable encounter with the yeti.
  
  
  Cara Goldsbury is the author of The Luxury Guide to Walt Disney World Resort. For more information visit her online at www.wdwluxuryguide.com.

Windsor Hills Resort Video 2

Windsor Hills Resort Video 1

Yakitori House

Resembling the teahouse of the Imperial Summer Palace, this small eatery offers a menu of teriyaki chicken and beef, and a handful of other beef, chicken, and seafood items. The food is reasonably good though a little on the blah side, and portions are smaller than at many other Disney restaurants. There's seating both indoors and out, but no matter where you dine, you'll be overlooking tranquil Japanese gardens and a gentle waterfall

Cuisine: Japanese
Hours: 11am-park closing
Location: Japan Pavilion, World Showcase, In Epcot
Reservations: No Advance Reservations
Phone: 407/939-3463

Kid Friendly Restaurants At Walt Disney World

Walt Disney World is, naturally, a very child-friendly place and you
will find that children are welcome at most of the restaurants at
the resort, particularly if they are well behaved.

There are, however, some restaurants which are particularly good
choices for families with children. This list is for parents with
children of any age is geared towards kids under 10. You know your
own children best so use this list as a guideline when planning your
WDW vacation.

*A Note For Parents of Picky Eaters*: Most WDW restaurants can
accommodate even the fussiest eaters. Meals can be prepared without
sauces if your child prefers them that way and spaghetti and peanut
butter and jelly sandwiches, while not on the menu, are often
available if you just ask. Buffet-style restaurants are also good
bets for picky eaters as they are able to take just the things they
like in amounts as large as they would like. A number of the buffets
have special "kids" buffets, too.

MAGIC KINGDOM- Magic Kingdom Restaurants

Casey's Corner - The main draw here is hot dogs. They come in a
variety of styles (chili, cheese, foot long, etc.) and desserts and
beverages are also offered.

The Crystal Palace - Located at the castle, end of Main Street, on
your left, just off the pathway to Adventureland, this restaurant
offers three buffet-style character meals per day. The Characters-In-
Residence are Pooh, Tigger, Piglet and Eeyore.

Pecos Bill Tall Tale Inn and Cafe - This large fast-food spot is
located in Frontierland, very close to Splash Mountain. It offers
Burgers, hot dogs and other standard fast-food fare.

Liberty Tree Tavern - A character dinner featuring assorted
characters in Revolutionary War-era dress is offered here every
evening. Dinner is served family style and special kid-friendly
items like macaroni and cheese are offered.

Cinderella's Royal Table - is located on the second floor of
Cinderella Castle. Cinderella, herself, is usually on hand to greet
guests. The Once-Upon-A-Breakfast is offered every morning. Food is
pre-plated but is all-you-care-to-eat. Characters on hand usually
include Cinderella, Snow White and others.

Pinocchio's Village Haus - Another fast-food spot, this restaurant
is located in Fantasyland to the right of the entrance to It's A
Small World.

Lumiere's Kitchen - This fast-food spot operates seasonally. It is
good bet for "Kid's Meals" and also offers selections for adults. It
is located between Pooh's Adventure's and Snow White's Scary
Adventures in Fantasyland.

Cosmic Ray's Starlight Cafe - One of the largest fast-food spots at
the Magic Kingdom Cosmic Ray's offers spit-roasted chicken, burgers,
salads, soups and more. It is located across the path from the Grand
Prix Raceway in Tomorrowland.

DISNEY WORLD TRIVIA

When Disney’s Magic Kingdom opened its doors on October 1, 1971, adult admission cost just $3.50, a seven-ride attraction ticket book cost $4.75 and an 11-ride attraction ticket book cost only $5.75.

Approximately 10,000 guests attended the grand opening of Disney’s Magic Kingdom on October 1, 1971.

At 189 feet tall, Cinderella Castle is Disney's Magic Kingdom's tallest structure. Space Mountain is the Magic Kingdom's second tallest structure at 183 feet tall.

It’s A Small World and the Carousel of Progress both debuted at the 1964-65 New York World’s Fair.

From 1971 to 1982, Disney's Magic Kingdom offered ticket books that categorized attractions based on an "A" to "E" scale. E tickets were used for the eight most popular Magic Kingdom attractions: 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea, Country Bear Jamboree, Hall of Presidents, Haunted Mansion, It's a Small World, Jungle Cruise, Pirates of the Caribbean and Space Mountain.

The Omnimover vehicles used for The Haunted Mansion are nicknamed “Doom Buggies.”

"Chief Nammie ” is the headhunter who shows up near the end of the Jungle Cruise in Adventureland.

At 199.5 feet tall, Expedition Everest is the tallest artificial mountain at Walt Disney World Resort.

William Windsor Jr. was the first guest to enter Disney's Magic KIngom when the theme park first opened its doors on October 1, 1971.

The cover of Life magazine's October 15, 1971, cover depicts approximately 1,500 Disney characters and employees posing in front of Cinderella Castle.

Epcot's Spaceship Earth rises 180 feet and weighs approximately 16 million pounds.

The 14-story Tree of Life at Disney's Animal Kingdom boasts approximately 300 animal carvings.

Cinderella's Golden Carrousel was originally built in 1917 and once stood at Olympic Park in Maplewood, New Jersey.

Disney's Hollywood Studios features a replica of world-famous Mann's Chinese Theater.

Swiss Family Treehouse in Adventureland weighs 200 tons and rises 60 feet.

The six trains at Big Thunder Mountain Railroad are named I.B. Hearty, I.M. Brave, I.M. Fearless, U.B. Bold, U.R. Daring and U.R. Courageous.

The Walt Disney World Railroad is an authentic 1928 steam-powered train.

Each space capsule at Mission: Space is equipped with motion sickness bags.

At 30,500 acres, Walt Disney World Resort is approximately the same size as San Francisco, California.

Disney's Magic Kingdom draws an estimated 16.2 million guests annually, followed by Epcot (9.9 million), Disney's Hollywood Studios (8.6 million) and Disney's Animal Kingdom (8.2 million).

Rock 'n' Roller Coaster - Starring Aerosmith at Disney's Hollywood Studios launches you at a speed of 0 to 60 miles per hour in 2.8 seconds.

Intergalactic lounge singer Sonny Eclipse entertains diners daily at Cosmic Ray's Starlight Cafe in Tomorrowland.

Golf legend Jack Nicklaus captured the first championship at the inaugural 1971 Walt Disney World Open Invitational.

The Atlanta Braves spend Spring Training at Disney's Wide World of Sports Complex, which features a 7,500-seat, state-of-the-art ballpark.

Before Disney closed its Central Florida animation studio at Disney-MGM Studios in 2003, several animated films were worked on there such as Mulan (1998), Lilo & Stitch (2002) and Brother Bear (2003), among others.

Disney's Animal Kingdom, Disney World's largest theme park, opened on Earth Day - April 22, 1998.

The now-defunct River Country opened at Fort Wilderness in 1976 as Disney World's first water park.

Epcot is the only Disney World theme park that boasts two entrances (one being accessible via Disney's Boardwalk).

Mickey's PhilharMagic in Fantasyland boasts the world's largest seamless projection screen.

The theme and characters for Splash Mountain were inspired by the 1946 Disney movie, Song of the South.

President Richard Nixon gave his famous "I am not a crook" speech during at convention at Disney's Contemporary Resort in 1973.

According to legend, a total of 999 ghosts inhabit the Haunted Mansion.

WEDway People Mover was the original name for the Tomorrowland Transit Authority.

Surfing instruction can be arranged at the Surf Pool at Disney's Typhoon Lagoon.

Despite an intense "Save the Toad" campaign, Mr. Toad's Wild Ride was replaced by The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh in 1998.

One of the Magic Kingdom's original attractions, 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea closed in 1994 and has been partially replaced by a Winnie the Pooh playground and Ariel's Grotto, a Disney character meet and greet area.

The fountain at Epcot Innoventions Plaza can reputedly shoot water up to 150 feet in the air.

The 5.7-million-gallon tank at The Seas with Nemo & Friends is home to approximately 3,000 fish and other sea creatures.

Epcot's France Pavilion contains a 103-foot-tall replica of the Eiffel Tower.

The Earth Globe that provides the centerpiece for Epcot's "Illuminations: Reflections of Earth," weighs 350,000 pounds.

Disney creates Google Earth map of Disney World

BURBANK, Calif. (AP) - Tourists overwhelmed by the mind-boggling size of Walt Disney World in Orlando, Fla., will now be able to plan their tour with the help of a 3D Google Earth map created by The Walt Disney Co.

The map of the four theme parks and 22 hotels at Disney World shows souvenir shacks, merry-go-round horses and even benches for resting.

Google Earth, an interactive 3D mapping program, allows to create travelogues by embedding photos, videos and commentary about locations they highlight.

Disney called its entry the largest corporate initiative on Google Earth.

About 100,000 shots from eight photographers went into 1,500 three-dimensional images of a variety of structures at Disney World, the company said Thursday.

Disney's Google Earth entry also contains links to blogs and YouTube videos and information on everything from the minimum rider height for certain attractions to menus at different restaurants.

Nearly nine in 10 park guests plan their vacations online, Disney said.

"Guests and travel planners can now explore our world with just a few clicks of a mouse, and they can book vacations while being immersed in what the destination has to offer," resorts Chairman Jay Rasulo said in a statement.

---

On the Net:

Walt Disney World Resort in 3D, http://www.disneyworld.com/3dparks

Fan at Facebook

You love Windsor Hills? now you can become a fan at facebook!

Be A Fan!