Cunard, a cruise line famed for its “queens,” published a book in the 1930’s celebrating the wonders of the Queen Mary.  Known as the Book of Comparisons, it illustrated different statistics and features of the ship by comparing them to well-known landmarks and concepts, affording the public a true appreciation of the size and complexity of this enormous ocean liner.

Disney Cruise Line has taken a page from this book with their own version featured on the walls of Disney Magic.  While guests might find it hard to imagine, for instance, just how long 964 feet truly is, a glance at these illustrated “Seaworthy Facts” helps put it all in perspective!

While the term “Hidden Mickey” has come to include almost all incorporations of a Mickey head, the best examples remain those which feature a subtle integration of the iconic shape rather than used as a purely decorative add-on.

 

We look for the clever arrangement of functional parts, the artful inclusion of two small ears in a mural, the meticulous placement of circular elements.  A great Hidden Mickey is not an addition but, rather, a cohesive part of the whole and should require a bit of searching before it’s discovered.

 

One of the loveliest representatives of this charming genre is tucked into the exuberant colors and shapes of Dale Chihuly’s beautiful chandelier, Festa Venezia, which graces the lobby of Disney Magic.

One of the most enjoyable experiences onboard a Disney Cruise Line vessel is certainly a visit to Palo, the wonderful specialty restaurant.  Exclusively for adult guests, this lovely venue serves Northern Italian dishes seasoned with flair and friendliness.  It’s an opportunity to dress up and spend several hours lingering over a great meal.

 

Featuring spectacular ocean views from Deck 10, aft on both Disney Magic and Disney Wonder, this location was originally slated for the children’s areas until the designers realized that the magnificent vistas would be wasted on most kids!  Those traveling on Disney Dream and Disney Fantasy will find the same great dining on Deck 12, aft.

 

The serene atmosphere is enhanced by Italian arias singing softly in the background and the sparkle of Venetian glass and masks from the Carnevale.  But the Palo experience is about the food and the service.  The attentive and knowledgeable servers manage to be dignified and gracious, as befits the more formal surroundings, while maintaining the warmth and friendliness we have come to expect from Disney cast members.  It’s a charming combination that provides the perfect showcase for Palo’s elegant, yet approachable, menu.

Review: For me, Palo is always one of the highlights of a Disney Cruise and I had the opportunity to book the three different seatings during my most recent voyage: dinner, brunch, and tea.

In fact, because this was a long transatlantic voyage with a smaller number of passengers onboard, I was able to enjoy dinner on several evenings!  I have never had more personalized and exceptional service than I experienced during this trip, thanks to the outstanding Mirko, whose professionalism and kindness made every meal memorable.  I can only hope that our readers will be fortunate enough to be seated at one of Mirko’s tables when they cruise on Disney Magic.

Those who appreciate a fine dining experience and enjoy the upscale ingredients and magnificent presentation might agree that the portion sizes sometimes leave us wishing for a bit more.  Palo always seems to get it just right – beautiful food beautifully presented with enough on the plate to make everyone happy!

There has been discussion about a certain lack of seasoning in some of the dishes and I think it’s a valid point – my penne arrabbiata, for example, while delicious, did not have the expected spicy punch the name implies.  However, experienced Disney diners have come to understand that the company is acutely aware of its demographic and preparations tend to reflect the preferences of this target audience, often at the cost of authenticity.

Dinner is a consistent favorite but I was also pleasantly surprised by Brunch.  After being settled at their table, guests are invited to join the server for a visit to the buffet where dozens of menu items are explained in detail.  They are escorted past an extraordinary selection of food laid out on trays and platters; then, an additional array of “entrée” items are displayed which are prepared to order.  The Brunch reservation is a bit harder to come by since it’s not offered on all cruise days.

Tea was another matter entirely.  A little background:

Tea was introduced to western civilization hundreds of years ago and enjoying the beverage with a light repast, sometime between the midday meal and the evening meal, became the fashion.  This “afternoon tea” reflects the custom we know today – tea served in elegant china with charming accoutrements and small sandwiches and sweets.

“High tea” is a term used for many years in the U.K.  It is a workingman’s supper; a rustic and hearty evening meal which generally features bread and butter and leftover meats from the main meal of the day which is served at lunchtime to fortify the hardworking men facing a long afternoon of labor.  In some households, high tea constituted the main meal similar to our “dinner” but is most often synonymous with the meal taken after the heaviest meal of the day.  It is referred to as “high” tea because it is eaten at the high table or dining table rather than the low tea tables where afternoon tea is typically laid out.  High Tea is the antithesis of the dainty, fussy little tidbits and delicate tableware that define Afternoon Tea.  At some point, Americans decided that the term “high” must mean refined and they consistently misuse it in this context.

While the average person might be forgiven for getting the terms confused, it’s a bit harder to overlook the error when it’s made by those in the food-service industry who should be better educated about the terminology of their profession.

Interestingly, the “high tea” served at Palo wasn’t far off the mark; clunky, chipped teapots and cups, clumsy sandwiches tossed on a plate, and rushed, perfunctory service; a less-than-stellar effort from a venue which otherwise delivers.  In fact, I never actually got to sample the meal on offer because my teapot had a crack in it which caused tea to leak all over the table onto the floor and I was unable to get the attention of the woman serving the guests in my area.  After a half-dozen attempts, I left the restaurant; she never even noticed my departure. While the restaurant manager could not have been more gracious in his efforts to make it right, it was an unacceptable experience.

I was also interested to see the tea selections listed on the menu.  It’s always surprising that restaurants make such a point to be accurate in their descriptions of so many other items – wines, proteins, even olive oils; but pay so little attention to tea.  Palo’s tea offerings, which featured a mix of teas and tisanes, included an English Breakfast blend, a Darjeeling, and, amazingly, an “orange pekoe.”  Orange pekoe is not a specific tea flavor, region, or blend, it’s a grading category.  The term is used for designating a whole-leaf tea as opposed to a broken-leaf grade.  I looked at a couple of teas before choosing and I would guess that all of the teas available are actually orange pekoe.  I know I’m making a fuss about details that most patrons would find unimportant, but if a restaurant is going to position itself as a knowledgeable purveyor, then it needs to get things right.  Calling one tea jasmine and another orange pekoe is somewhat like listing coffees as “Kona,” “Arabica,” and “medium grind.”

Palo’s management team should seriously consider discontinuing their tea service until they can bring it up to the standard of dinner and brunch.  As it currently stands, it’s an embarrassment.

I would strongly recommend that cruisers make reservations at the earliest opportunity for both dinner and brunch, if available, and pass on “high tea!”

Depending upon the guest’s stateroom category and Castaway Club status, reservations can be made from 75 to 120 days in advance.  There are also some additional openings that can be booked onboard although those wishing to secure one of these reservations should go immediately to the designated area as soon as they embark.

 

Patrons must be 18 or older and the dress code requires dress pants and shirt or jacket for men and a dress or pantsuit for women.

 

Currently, there is an additional charge of $20.00 for both dinner and brunch on all ships.  Tea seems to have an upcharge of $10.00 on Disney Magic and Disney Wonder, and $15.00 on Disney Dream, but these prices do change often and the actual cost appears to be dependent upon which Disney website you’re looking at.

Questions about gratuities at Palo arise often since only a small percentage of the upcharge goes into a pool that is split amongst the servers.  The majority of the extra fee is applied to food costs. While gratuities are added to any beverage charges, the total of a few dollars seems disproportionate to services rendered.  There is an enormous range of opinion on the subject of tipping so I can only offer my personal take on the topic:  if I were having this caliber of meal at any other restaurant, it would be well over $100 per person, and I tip accordingly, generally $20 to $30 per person for dinner, leaving cash with the receipt so that I know it will go directly to the individual who has provided such wonderful service.

Dark rides; few experiences have greater power to transport us.  We enter and we are whisked away to another place; another time.  In Adventureland at the Magic Kingdom, we find one of the most well-loved of all the dark rides – Pirates of the Caribbean.

Even before we enter, we are entranced by the architectural details of the building.  There are beautiful elements everywhere – grillwork and tiles, arches, scrolls, and turrets, and wonderful lighting.

The atmospheric queue, with its twisting pathways, caves and caches, only hints at the “treasures” waiting beyond.

We climb into seaworthy vessels and head out on our adventure.  The darkness intensifies the senses.

We feel the cold sea wind blowing; the ghostly voices cause a shiver of anxiety about what may lie ahead.

Then, suddenly, we are in the midst of a battle with muzzle flash and splashing cannonballs which seem to miss our fragile boats by the smallest of margins.  Around the bend and we sail into an amazing nighttime scene.  There’s music and mischief, commerce and cavorting, grime and gold as the pillaging crew makes its way through the town.

Disney likes to point out the fact that the attraction inspired the movies of the same name, which in turn inspired enhancements to the original ride.  Amongst its dozens of audioanimatronic figures, Pirates of the Caribbean now features several encounters with a strikingly realistic Captain Jack Sparrow.

There’s also a spooky image of Davy Jones that emerges from a curtain of water at the beginning of the voyage.

To complete the adventure, we have the perfect song, one that will play happily in our heads each time we relive our voyage to the Caribbean – Yo Ho!!

 

Pirates of the Caribbean

Magic Kingdom, Adventureland

Approximately 9 minutes

Guests must transfer from wheelchair and ECV to ride vehicle

No flash photography allowed

FastPass available

Handheld captioning available

Park admission required

 

 

It’s a rite of passage for many smaller Disney guests – discovering that they are finally tall enough for the attraction of their dreams.  For every adult who’s terrified of Disney’s mountains, there are three fearless young children begging to be allowed boarding privileges.  They’ve stood and watched sadly as older brothers and sisters happily stepped into ride queues while they were left behind; victims of the dreaded “baby swap.”  Or worse still, they might be forced to walk off with one parent to do allegedly “fun things” while the others went in a different direction to enjoy all the really cool stuff.  Finally, their day has come; they are able to “hit the mark” and board that highly-anticipated ride!

Many of the most exciting rides have specific height requirements.  These guidelines help ensure that all passengers are safe; tall enough to be protected by the headrests, belts and other safety features built into the ride vehicles.

Typically, there will be two checkpoints at an attraction and children must not be able to walk under the bar.  Although shoes are allowed, this regulation is very strictly enforced and cast members do not make exceptions for “almost.”

We’ve included a link to Walt Disney World’s most recent official listing of height requirements for specific attractions:

 

ATTRACTION HEIGHT CHART

 

Joining the ranks of the Big Kids – one of the many reasons families return to Disney Destinations year after year!

 

For the men who shop, or the women who shop for the men who would prefer a root canal treatment, Disney’s Grand Floridian Resort and Spa features one of the few shops devoted to the Disney male – Commander Porter’s.

The shelves are filled with golf apparel and accessories, crisp, button-down shirts, and Grand Floridian logowear.  Elegant Hawaiian shirts, swimwear, and tastefully subdued Disney ties tempt shoppers.  There is casual clothing with labels bearing the names of Ralph and Tommy, well-known fragrance lines, cigars, lighters, and other manly merchandise.  Commander Porter’s, open from 9:00 a.m. to 10 p.m. daily, is found on the second floor overlooking the main lobby.

Water is one of the key elements in Native American culture and it is charmingly represented at Disney’s Wilderness Lodge in the form of Silver Creek.  From its source inside the lobby, the bubbling stream travels under the wooden bridge and outside, flowing over pebbled beds as it makes its way towards the rocky outcropping.

There it becomes a waterfall that cascades over the rocks before seeming to flow into Silver Creek Springs pool.  Finally, it gurgles past the wildflowers and butterflies, seeking the freedom of beautiful Bay Lake.

In keeping with the theme of the majestic National Parks, Disney’s Wilderness Lodge offers a unique feature for the entertainment of visitors.  On the hour, from early morning until about 10:00 p.m., Fire Rock Geyser erupts, forcing a column of water more than 120 feet in the air to catch the light and delight guests.

With a nod to its inspiration, the iconic Old Faithful, Fire Rock appears peaceful, gently steaming, until the clock strikes the hour and hissing and bubbling, a column of water bursts up towards the sky.

There is much talk about the depth of theming at Disney’s Wilderness Lodge, but the attention to this single element, the water path, is astonishing.  It serves no purpose other than to add interest and beauty to the property, yet it represents an extraordinary effort in terms of planning and execution.  The frothing hot spring in the lobby with its arched bridge; the stream beds, plantings, and the elaborate rock work underpinning the falls; the infrastructure that results in a regularly-scheduled display; this enormous undertaking simply to please a few of the more observant guests.  It is precisely this type of endeavor, so creative and imaginative, that draws us back to Disney again and again!

 

Classic \ˈkla-sik\  serving as a standard of excellence;  of recognized value;  traditional, enduring

There are the thrill rides.  There are attractions that showcase the latest and greatest technologies.  There are those that exploit modern themes and the newest stories and characters.

And then, there are the classics.  They may not utilize the most up-to-date equipment, advanced programming, or state-of-the-art special effects.  It doesn’t matter.  They are the classics; the quintessence of the Disney experience.  Using old-time tricks and familiar illusions, the Haunted Mansion continues to amaze and delight us.  It’s a Small World still compels us to board little boats and float past hundreds of dolls while listening to a repetitive tune.  Children will always clamor for Dumbo the Flying Elephant, adults will forever get teary in the Hall of Presidents, and they all line up to sit in twirling teacups and laugh together.

Yet none is more clearly touched by Walt’s hand than the Carousel of Progress.  It’s a simple concept – guests are seated in a theater that revolves around a central stage as they follow nearly 100 years of innovation.  Through a series of cozy kitchen scenes and folksy chats, the audience can see the evolution of both technology and, more subtly, American culture, from the late 1900’s until the end of the 20^th century.

The clothing changes, as do the “latest” appliances, and even the vocabulary, but the core message remains the same:  mankind’s infinite capacity for inventiveness and resourcefulness, and the timeless values of family and country; philosophies that were dear to Walt’s heart.  In fact, he was deeply involved in the project right from the start when it was developed for the New York World’s Fair in 1964 and 1965.  Progressland’s Carousel Theater, sponsored by General Electric, was actually an offshoot of a concept known as Edison Square, which Walt had conceived, but never built, for Disneyland in the 1950’s.

It was a huge hit at the Fair, and although the original structure was demolished, the audioanimatronic figures and the systems were packed up and moved to Disneyland when the Fair closed.  While Walt did not live long enough to see it open, it ran for six years at its new home in Tomorrowland.  On the upper level of the theater, guests could view a beautifully-detailed model of Progress City, a preview of the real city he had planned to build in Florida – EPCOT.  Today, visitors can see a section of that model displayed along the route of the TTA PeopleMover in Walt Disney World.

After its Disneyland closure in 1973, once again, the theater was left behind, although this time repurposed for America Sings and later, Innoventions, and the figures and systems made the trek to their new home in the Magic Kingdom.  Renamed Walt Disney’s Carousel of Progress in 1994, the attraction underwent renovations which included an updated final scene.

Still featuring the original control systems and audioanimatronic figures, Walt Disney’s Carousel of Progress is a somewhat fragile treasure, and only open seasonally during busier periods.  Nonetheless, it holds the record for the most performances of any show in the history of American theater.

Although the fourth, “modern day” scene is sorely in need of some serious reimagining, the attraction remains a touchstone for hundreds of thousands of visitors.  Indeed, sitting in that theater, it’s easy to imagine that a great, big, beautiful tomorrow is just a dream away.

 

Walt Disney’s Carousel of Progress

Magic Kingdom

21 minutes

Open seasonally

Wheelchair and ECV accessible

Park admission required

 

Perhaps even more iconic than its enormous 55-foot counterparts in the main lobby, the character totem welcomes shoppers to the Wilderness Lodge Mercantile.  The store features merchandise with a decidedly woodsy flair.  Look for characters in their best “ranger” attire as well as outdoor-themed clothing and gift items.

It’s certainly one of the most attractive and inviting resort shops, and really shines during the holiday season when the fireplace is crackling and the signature red and black buffalo plaid lends a colorful continuity to the displays.  Even the shop windows are highly-themed and imaginative.

There are coonskin caps for all budding Davy Crocketts and “Fish Fear Me” t-shirts for the sportsmen in the family.  The presence of the adjacent Villas at Wilderness Lodge signals an expanded selection of grocery items as a convenience for those staying in accommodations with full kitchens.

The Lodge’s mascot is Humphrey the Bear  and bears are a recurring theme throughout the resort.  Guests will find Humphrey holding up his friends from the base of the character totem, as well as carved and plush versions on the shelves.

While hours may vary with the season, the Wilderness Lodge Mercantile is typically open from 7:30 a.m. to 11:00 p.m.

It’s difficult to decide if the most amazing “Reflections of China” are found in the movie of that name shown inside this pavilion, or  are best seen in the glowing colors of nature and the exuberant exteriors of the buildings.