In the past five months, I have had to cancel five trips to Disney. Each time it was absolutely necessary, though obviously a bummer. Since I am waiting to book another trip right now (though we are hopefully going sometime before the end of the year) I decided to share my dream Disney trips! Some of these we will likely do soon, some of these I will probably never do. There is no harm in having a little travel whimsy to get excited about! Here is my Disney Vacation Dream Bucket List! What is on your list? Share with me in the comments!
Walt Disney World Resort
Resort Stays
Starting my list off humbly is the cabins at Fort Wilderness Resort. This resort is filled with outdoor activities complete with Circle D Ranch! We actually were planning on staying at the cabins for a few nights this month but ended up staying home. I hope we can make this trip a reality soon as the cabins are such a great (and socially distanced) option right now! Note you can also camp at Fort Wilderness if that’s more your thing.
Staying at any resort “Club Level”. Several resorts in Walt Disney World and Disneyland typically offer club level options. With the club level stay, you have access to an area or room in the resort that is stocked with goodies and beverages throughout the day. This has always sounded like a fun experience to me, and having constant tasty food at my fingertips would be amazing!
Somewhere else completely doable that I would love to stay at is the Port Orleans resorts. These are moderate level resorts that have both the Port Orleans Riverside and Port Orleans French Quarter resort options. Each resort is themed in that classic New Orleans aesthetic. I LOVE New Orleans and know I would thoroughly enjoy a NOLA style Disney resort. Plus, they do a “Beignet Dash” where you get a beignet at the end of the run, what’s not to love?
Food Experiences
The top of my food dream list is Victoria and Albert’s located in the Grand Floridian Resort. This is an award-winning dining experience, and probably the most prestigious restaurant in Orlando. This is not a quick meal to grab between parks, this is a sit-down multi-course event. It’s not cheap, and reservations can be tough to get, but it sounds absolutely amazing. There is a Chef’s table option where you dine while viewing your food being made and chatting with the chef. This might not be for everyone, but I would do it in a heartbeat! What a one of a kind experience!
Another experience that is high on my list is the new Japan pavilion restaurant, Takumi-Tei in Epcot. This is another sit-down dining experience where you have the option of the multi-course Chef’s table. The reviews coming out of this restaurant are stellar, and for anyone who remotely likes Japanese food (um hello, YES please!) this is a must-try! We had actually made a reservation for Takumi-Tei for our May trip this year that got canceled, but believe me we will definitely be booking again in the future!
Backstage Tours
There are plenty of tours to choose from at the Walt Disney World Resort. My top two that I hope to do are the Wild Africa Trek and the Keys to the Kingdom tours.
The Wild Africa Trek lets you get behind the scenes at Disney’s Animal Kingdom. You get to tour the animal enclosures that the Safari ride drives through, cross rope bridges, and eat an unforgettable meal on safari. This tour gets nothing but rave reviews from anyone who experiences it. The Safari ride is one of my favorite attractions at WDW, and I would love to see more backstage!
For a more classic Disney tour, the Keys to the Kingdom gives you a peek behind the curtains in the Magic Kingdom. You tour the famed underground tunnel system, learn more about Walt, and get plenty of facts and tidbits from your tour guide. Being a Disney geek, this is a tour that I know would fascinate me! Learning about Disney history makes me so excited, and getting to see a little behind the scenes would add to my love of the parks!
Disneyland Resort
Resort Stays
The California park doesn’t offer as many resorts as Florida, but it does offer some pretty spectacular options. I’ve already expressed on the blog my love for the Disneyland hotel, but do you know they have Signature Suites? These are highly themed, spectacular, HUGE suites that are themed to different areas and attractions in Disneyland. There is a Big Thunder Mountain suite, Adventureland suite, and Fairytale suite just to name a few. I would pretty much take any of them, but the Adventureland one looks pretty neat. Heck, even just touring them would be an experience! Do yourself a favor and google these, you will not be disappointed!
On a more practical note, I would also love to stay at the Grand Californian Resort. I know my husband would love the aesthetic (it has a wooded lodge feel), and I already know I love the lobby (it’s a great place to rest your feet after a long day). Once we make it back to my first true love, Disneyland, I am sure we will be able to stay at this gorgeous jewel of a resort!
Club 33
Chaulk this up to one of my “probably never going to happen” dreams, but eating in the oh so famous Club 33 would sure be something! The original Club 33 is located in New Orleans Square in Disneyland. It was first created as a VIP lounge for Walt’s most special guests. Now you can eat and tour the club with a VERY exclusive membership (and membership fee). The waiting list to even become a member is years long, and that’s if you can cough up that fee. It sounds a bit ridiculous, but if I had the opportunity to visit I would JUMP at the chance! What a special part of Disney and specifically Walt’s history! Disney nerd *swoon* =)
Tour
Disneyland also offers tours, and the one I would LOVE to do is the Walk in Walt’s Footsteps tour. This goes back to being a Disney geek, but I would be so into touring the original park and learning all about the man behind the magic!
International Disney Parks
Of course, I would love to visit ALL of the Disney parks around the world! But, my top two parks I absolutely want to visit are Tokyo DisneySea and Disneyland Paris!
The reason Disneyland Paris is so intriguing to me is the aesthetic. From everything I’ve seen online, the castle, the Alice in Wonderland maze, it just looks so gorgeous! Plus, major bonus points for the dragon sleeping underneath the castle, how freaking cool! This one is a tough sell with the husband (why go to Paris to see Disney?), but he knows how special a visit would be for me, and I’m sure we will get there eventually 😉
Hands down every Disney blogger/ vlogger that I follow has said that Tokyo DisneySea is a masterpiece. The park is visually breathtaking, the attractions are all unique, and apparently their snack game is on point. Even with all of my research, I still cannot grasp the amazingness that is DisneySea. I am absolutely dying to go there and get the full experience, and I know this is a bucket list trip we will check off!
Adventures By Disney
Adventures by Disney (or ABD as they are called) are specialty curated trips designed and run by Disney. They offer adventures all over the world from the USA to Japan. Each trip is led by experienced adventure guides who expertly lead your group through your trip. These are not cheap trips, but from everything I have heard, they are 100% worth it!
I honestly want to do ANY of the adventures, but the most likely one I will do is the Disneyland Resort and Southern California trip. I know, not very exotic, but hear me out! It’s one of the cheapest experiences, so I will likely be able to do it someday. It goes backstage at the Disneyland Resort, and tours the Walt Disney and Jim Henson studios! Pretty freaking awesome! I know once I do one ABD, I will absolutely want to do another. I just feel like a good place to get my feet wet is the most accessible Southern California tour.
Bonus: Disney Cruise
Going on a Disney cruise has taken a back seat to my dream list lately. I’m sure in a few years I will be rearing to go on another one. For now, I do LOVE Disney cruise line, I am just not ready to think about cruising just yet!
There you have it, my Disney Vacation Dream Bucket List! Now go and make your own list and let me know what Disney experiences I have to try!
For more awesome experiences at Walt Disney World, check out “12 Unique Experiences You Can Have at Walt Disney World“!
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Such a bummer that you’ve had to cancel so many trips! Hope you can go soon!
Now I want to try those signature sweets! So cute! Thanks!
Your post just reminded me again that it is time to visit Disneyland! When I was child my family and I went to Disneyland in Paris and i still remember how amazing it was! I think the castle there is one of the most beautiful ones. But i really want to visit Disney World in Orlando. Hopefully will be able to go there soon!
I’m in Kenya but you’ve made me more inspired to work harder and visit Disney world. I’m already visuaizing myself there with my children.