I recently took a little adventure to the wonderful world of Disney in Orlando, Florida during my Spring Break. On our first day, we did not have park tickets so we decided to go resort hopping. I had heard of going resort hopping from one of my friends who was a cast member for Disney World through their college program. Resort hopping is when you choose a handful of Disney resorts and spend your day exploring them.
Resort hopping is a process, it is smart to think of which resorts you want to visit beforehand. The week before, I sat down, researched the resorts and what each had to offer us. After our research, we decided to hop between Port Orleans: French Quarter, Art Of Animation, Disney’s Animal Kingdom Lodge. Our last stop was supposed to be Disney’s Polynesian Resort but due to 24 hours with no sleep and a long line to get to the Monorail, we had to skip it.
Our plane landed at Orlando’s airport at 8:30AM, from there we took Disney’s Magical Express service to the All Star Movie Resort where we were staying during our four day stay in Orlando. By 10:30AM, we were on our merry way to Disney’s Port Orleans: French Quarter. The key to resort hopping is taking a bus from your resort to one of Disney’s parks then taking a bus to a resort of your choice.
Stop #1: Port Orleans: French Quarter
Port Orleans: French Quarter has always been my favorite resort. The atmosphere is full of fun, New Orleans culture, and Disney magic. We arrived in between meal times, though their food court which is called Sassagoula, is open 6AM to 12AM. We enjoyed some lovely beignets which were just as good as New Orleans’s very own Cafè Du Monde. Of course a snack of beignets isn’t complete without chocolate milk. After enjoying our Port Orleans treat, we explored the grounds and had a spontaneous photoshoot.
Stop #2: Art Of Animation
Disney’s Art Of Animation resort opened in May of 2012. Art of Animation is made of resorts based off of Little Mermaid, Lion King, Cars, and Finding Nemo. We ate lunch at the resort’s food court’s quick service, which I was not surprised at how good it was. Average quick service food and Disney quick service food are two very different things. We got the meat ball sub which came with on site made chips and a small salad. Disney salad’s are actually great. The quick service side salads are one of my favorite things to eat at Disney and the salads are nice when you are eating on a budget. After eating lunch, we explored all the themed courtyards and pools. I was pleasantly surprised to find that the Cars area was my favorite. The Cars area feels like you have walked through the screen and into Radiator Springs. Life size versions of the Cars characters are all in their respective areas of Radiator Springs. The pool area is set up like the Cozy Cone Motel from the movie. What completes the experience of the Cars area of Art Of Animation, is when you are walking down the “road” as the Cars soundtrack plays.
Stop #3: Animal Kingdom Lodge
Our resort hopping experience ended with Animal Kingdom Lodge. Animal Kingdom Lodge has always been on my Disney bucket list to visit. The architecture is incredible, absolutely incredible and full of culture. I think one of the most unique amenities that Animal Kingdom Lodge offers their guest is the close encounters with wildlife. Lucky guests can have rooms with balconies with exclusive encounters with the animals. We enjoyed walking around, seeing the animals, and just seeing how detailed the decor of the Animal Kingdom decor.
Disney World is 40 square miles, the size as San Francisco. Disney World is like a small city. Disney’s property is expansive and magical. It was a joy to experience more of the Disney magic past just going to the parks.
Disney Resort Hopping Suggestions:
-Disney’s Coronado Springs
-Disney’s Grand Floridian
-Port Orleans: Riverside
-Disney’s Wilderness Lodge
-Disney’s Polynesian Resort
Do you have any fun Disney trip tips or ideas? Let us know at @HCUAlabama on Twitter!