A favorite souvenir for children is the building of a lightsaber. You can build your lightsaber at many different locations throughout Walt Disney World, including at Disney Springs, so no park ticket? No problem! Remember, you can do a lot of Disney, without a park ticket!

This multi step process can take as little, or as much time as you'd like. On busier days, or if you get an over zealous cast member helping, they'll rush you along and you'll be done incredibly fast. Prices do change, but the more elaborate the lightsaber, the more it costs. There are different stations: 
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Here are some close ups of the parts. These parts are interchangeable, so if you get more than one lightsaber, you can change the look later, mixing the pieces. 
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As you can see, there is a LOT of customization that can be done. There are guides if you wish to copy an existing Jedi or Sith lightsaber, but I personally think it's more fun to create you own! Does your family have any of these? 
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​Recently a young reader wrote with her school media librarian to tell me they had used some of my posts for a research project she was working on. This girl, Mia, is such a Disney fan, at school she is known as Mia Mouse! She had found this website while working on her project, and discovered many, many other great resources on it, including links of vintage Disney pictures. Since we all love Disney, and especially early Disney, I wanted to thank her and share these great links with you as well. 

Thank you Mia Mouse, and good luck on your project! 

Disney has had a LOT of price changes in the last few weeks. The Disney Rapid Refill Mugs are not excluded.  Is it still worth it to buy one? 

The price of the rapid Refills Mugs in 2017 was $17.99 for the length of your stay. 2018, it's $18.99, 2019 it has gone up to $19.99 plus resort tax. That's just a dollar and tax more, but... is it worth it? 

That depends. 

​Lets start off with a review about what the Rapid Refill Mug is. 

Disney offers a really nice perk to those staying on Property. A souvenir mug that's not only solid quality but will stand up to many times in the dishwasher and many tumbles onto the floor without any fading, cracks or marks. We have a ton of these mugs and they get used more than any other cup in the house for hot or cold beverages. With the exception of, surprisingly, the 2019 mugs, none of them from 2014, 2015, or 2017 show wear.

Anyone staying at an on property resort can buy one of these refillable mugs, but those who purchased the Disney Dining Plan get to have the mug included at no extra cost. If you want to learn more about the Disney Dining Plan, click right here to read my post about it. 


What is this mug? 

The refillable Disney mug lets you fill up your mug as often as you want, with whatever you want in the food court area of your resort, or any other for the length of your stay. There is a RFID chip in the bottom of it, that allows the owner to fill it up. There is a small time delay between fill ups. If you tried to use a different cup, say a regular sports bottle without the RFID chip in it, the machine won't dispense the beverage.


What can you fill it up with? 

Disney has Coke products, and you'll generally find the same things on tap that you would most any fast food place, Sprite, Coke, Diet Coke, Hi-C, lemonade, root beer, etc. You can also get tea from their tea machine, which usually has four different kinds available, sweetened, unsweetened, white citrus or green. If you like hot drinks, it's all you can drink hot tea, hot coffee or hot chocolate. You will not find juice or milk available to fill in the mug. There are also mug wash spots near the drink dispensers to rinse your cups so if you want to fill your mug with orange soda, the last few drops from your morning coffee won't make it taste strange.


How much does this cost? 


The mug, and it's unlimited refills costs $19.99 for the length of your stay.


Where can I fill this up at? 

At your resort, or any other Disney resort if you feel like carrying it around. You cannot fill it up within the Parks though. If you want to fill it up in the morning and drink it at the bus stop, be prepared to carry it with you until you get back to your room. Since parks no longer have lids or straws available when you buy a drink, it might actually be worth it. 


How does this work? 

After you have selected the color mug that you want, (usually available are red, green, blue, yellow, purple and pink) take it to the cashier and he or she will activate it. Go over to the drink station and follow the instructions on the digital pad. (Basically setting the cup down, waiting a few seconds, then pushing the button to dispense the beverage choice) 


Why is this right for me? 

This might be right for you if

1. You are getting it for free on the Disney Dining Plan
2. You prefer to drink something other than water several times a day
3. You want to take home a mug as a souvenir of your trip
4. You plan to hang around your resort for at least a few hours each day to make use of the mug

Why should I skip this? 

You might not want to buy the mug if

1. You prefer to drink water
2. You aren’t going to be at a Disney resort but for a day or two
3. You don't want the hassle of walking to the food court each time you want a refill
   
   
   

Can I have an example of the savings if I bought this? 

If the average person bought only three drinks a day, let's say (current prices, and subject to change) a morning coffee ($3.29), an afternoon soda ($3.99) and an evening tea ($3.29), based on food court prices it would come to $10.57. On a 3 day stay that equals $31.71. The mug is more than paid for, and it's cheaper to have the drinks, plus the mug to take home as a run reminder of your vacation. Chances are good, you'll fill your mug more than three times a day, too. 

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I'm on the fence as to if I should get this. 

In our opinion, it's completely worth it for the mug since just three drinks in it a day and it's paid for by day three, sooner if you drink more, but I know there are people who don't drink anything other than water, so you'll need to figure out what works best for you. There is always the option of just buying one or two mugs for a family, if some are soda/tea/coffee drinkers and some are not, and sharing.

Since our family does buy the mugs, but also likes to save HUNDREDS with this super easy trick, we consider our drink savings covered. 


What about you? Have you ever gotten the Refillable Mugs before? Do you like them or is it not a good buy for your family?  

There is so much that is interesting about this attraction at Disney. Before Disney purchased the carousel in 1967, it had already given thrills to millions or riders since it was created in 1917. Imagineers promptly went to work, making sure that no two horses were the same. Real gold and silver were used in the paint, and eighteen scenes from Cinderella were added. 

If you have ever watched the carousel spinning, you may have only noticed the riders or the horses. Up at the top, the quickly rotating images of Cinderella's story delight, and today we have them for you to see, and not just as they turn quickly, but to pause, and take in the details. Except for the castle! Of course...it turned out blurry since the ride was spinning so quickly!  

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This last trip I was fortunate enough to get some AMAZING shots of characters roaming around. I also missed a few because I was so busy enjoying the moment, I forgot to capture it, or look around at things! 

It's amazing how almost NO ONE noticed Peter Pan strolling along, or the Evil Stepsisters arguing over what horse to ride, of Mary, strolling down the street. This was in June, not during off season! Always, always keep that camera out! 
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​Have you captured any magical moments everyone else seemed to have missed? I'd love to see!