It's giveaway time! Today, Disney Magic Mommy is giving away a perfect sized park bag and a copy of my new book, How to Manage Food Allergies at Disney World: And Other Important Vacation Planning Tips to Save Money and Have Fun, Not Stress!

This book isn't just for those with food allergies or dietary restrictions, but chances are good you know someone who suffers from them and is apprehensive about going to Disney. Maybe you are concerned yourself about how to manage something. Maybe you just want to be prepared, and know where the first aid stations are, what the best age for Disney is, prepping for your trip, the differences in restaurants and resorts. (Did you know there are over 200 places to eat on Disney World property?) plus more. You won't find specific info about rides and the best places to stay or eat. You will find there's no fluff, it's all just practical been there done that, there's how to navigate these situations, for both those with and those without dietary restrictions.

Bonus! It's NOT huge so it's NOT overwhelming! Something important to anyone! Written in an easy to read way, even the littles can understand this book.

You know me...I think there's NEVER a bad time to start planning your next trip. The information in this book is evergreen, meaning that if you don't go until next year or the year after, it's not going to be dated. 

You'll find the practical advice just as useful now as later. And even better? It's a small book, thin and easy to pack in your bag to reference as you head down to Orlando! 
​

What will you win? One reader is going to win a copy of the book, and a sling bag like this! Bag is subject to Amazon availability (which is where your prize will ship from) but if this one isn't in stock, it will be one very similar. 

​

I'm so excited for you to enter! There are multiple ways. Winner will be a random draw. The winner will be contacted by email, so please be sure your email is correct! Winner will have one week to send me their mailing address, or prize will be forfeited, and a new winner selected. 

​USA Residents only, BUT if you are from outside of the USA, keep reading! You'll have a chance to get the book FREE!

 
I have to thank my 8 year old, who took this awesome picture! I'm wearing my fun "I'm done adulting. Let's go to Disney" shirt I was gifted at Christmas by my brother and sister in law. 

And now...here's where you will enter! Contest goes through August 12th. Didn't win? Aren't un the US? As a gift for you, ONE DAY ONLY you can get the ebook FREE!  That day will be August 16th. I'll remind you on the facebook!

This is my way to say thank you for being a Disney Magic Mommy reader. Reviews are appreciated, as each review left helps others find a book to help take the overwhelm out of planning!
​

Best of luck to you all!! 

 

In the first part of our series, I gave a fried overview of Disney World, Dollywood, and Hershey Park. 

Today is a more in depth look at the entry method, fastpass type services, and staffing along with maps. Maps? Yep. Trust me on this. It's needed info.

Entry Method

The differences between Disney, Dollywood, and Hershey Park are pretty tremendous. At Disney, we are used to the security. You'll often have your bag checked, especially if you've left your phone, camera, or an umbrella in it. You'll also find security walking all around. That wasn't the case at Dollywood or Hershey Park. You walked through the metal detector and off you went. I wasn't the only one confused. While there was a very short section for them to check bags, I didn't see anyone's bags being checked at Dollywood or Hershey Park. Was this due to lack of staff or lack of concern? I wasn't sure. 

Once entering, all three parks have guest services and ticket windows right near by. Perfect for standby tickets or  questions. This part was the same. 

Fastpass Type Services

Each park has a type of Fastpass system, though the name varies. While as of this moment, Disney World's is temporarily suspended, my favorite thing has always been getting those passes included in the cost of my ticket. I've always known at least I get to skip the line on three rides, more if I was coordinated and took advantage of leftover passes that day. 

Dollywood has a paid service with two options. And it sounds a bit like what Disney Paris is going to be doing. Dollywood has Timesaver and Timesaver Unlimited. Timesaver gets to skip the line 8 times on chosen rides. Unlimited means any time, all day, any ride that accepts the pass. Prices are hefty though! $49 and $64, pre tax. Just like at Disney, some shows can even be reserved with this pass. While there, I didn't feel like it wold be of benifit for our family. Really, the rides were not long unless you wanted a coaster. 

 Hershey Park uses something called Fast Track, and like Dollywood there are two options, one standard and one unlimited. However, the price, much steeper, also varies as to what day you go. Prices start at $49-130 for Fast Track, and $50-180 for Fast Track Unlimited. Is it needed? Not really, again unless you just want the coasters, or the only one family ride that's Disneyesque, called Cupfusion. That ride had a very slow load time because there were very few ride vehicles. Almost every other ride was near walk on, in July. 


Staff

While it might not be totally fair to compare staffing as there is an obvious shortage, Disney by far still has the most staff. Dollywood, the second most but even still they struggled. At Hershey Park I counted one extremely young security officer, and one extremely old one. IF you had a question? Out of luck! There was no one to ask at Hershey Park. In fact, almost every single ride was operated by one person, and of an incredibly young age. Most of the employees were high schoolers. They were working their hardest, but it was very strange. It was similar at Dollywood, and imagine my surprise when the young man, likely just a year older than my oldest, said, "let me get my supervisor," and there, if the other kid was a year older than him I'd be surprised, he was. All polite, but severely understaffed and young. So be kind to these kids trying to make sure you have a great trip. 

The contract was quite severe to Disney, because even now, Disney is staffed, less, yes, but still well staffed. Help is there when you need it, and only adults are operating the ride you or your child is riding. 

Maps

Maps? Yep. Disney still has paper maps. Dollywood still has paper maps. Hershey Park? No maps. There were a few maps that were in the park and you can use your phone, but it's so, so hard to pull up everything on your phone and look for what you might want to go on. I'll talk more about the app next time! 

So who is in the lead? 

So far, Disney wins on staffing. Disney and Dollywood are tied on maps. While I enjoy walking in through security without really being checked...it also makes me a bit nervous. Point for Disney. Fastpass type system? Yeah...I don't want to pay that much extra for my family. Disney wins this too. 

But what about the rides, games and the apps? Actually...there were some great things at Dollywood and Hershey Park...  Coming soon, we'll talk more about that! 

While the continuation of our multipart series on Who would win: Disney World, Dollywood, or Hershey Park is on the way, I wanted to stop and share what's been keeping me so busy. 

My book is finally finished, edited, beta read, reedited, formatted, and artwork completed. It's my hope that this book has something for everyone. 

The book is split into two parts. The first half is for those who need dietary considerations at Disney World. Anyone who might need to know ahead of time what to ask, how to order, what to watch out for. 

The second half are those tips and tricks for saving you wish were all in one place along with a lot of practical advice.

This book was designed to be easy to slip into your bag for vacation, or passed around before hand. It's NOT overwhelming! It's actually going to be the thing that lets you enjoy your vacation with a minimum of stress. 

I'd love to hear what you think if you buy my book. Reviews are always appreciated, so that small books like this, have a chance to show up in Amazon's algorithm, to help those who need it to find it. 

Want to buy a copy? Click here or the picture at the top! 

Thank you for your support over the years! There will be a special giveaway coming soon to promote my new book!