August 14, 2010
If you are considering planning a vacation to Disneyland please contact us for a FREE quote on our free services! Between Disneyland Park and Disney’s California Adventure there is plenty to see and do to keep the whole family happy!
You can stay at one of Disneyland’s three on-site Hotels or at one the Good Neighbor Resort’s located close by. If you choose to stay on-site at Disneyland you get some great Resort benefits such as:
World of Color FASTPASS
Package Delivery
Charging Privileges
Disney Character Wake-Up Calls
Close To The Magic
Check out this interactive version of Disneyland’s World of Color! It looks pretty amazing!
Also Disney’s FASTPASS tickets for World of Color will be available each morning at the Grizzly River Run FASTPASS terminals, providing Guests with a specific show time. As with other FASTPASS attractions, a limited number of passes will be available each day for World of Color, and when all of the day’s passes have been distributed, the terminals will revert to distributing Disney’s FASTPASS tickets for Grizzly River Run.
For a FREE quote on our free services choose us and let us add some Magic to your next Disneyland Vacation!
August 14, 2010
Disney’s California Food & Wine Festival Celebrates Sixth Anniversary with Six Weeks of Culinary Delights
Annual Festival Will Run April 29-June 12, 2011, at Disney California Adventure Park
ANAHEIM, Calif. — Disney’s California Food & Wine Festival will celebrate its sixth anniversary in 2011 with six weeks of culinary experiences for guests of all ages, April 29-June 12 at Disney California Adventure park and select locations across the Disneyland Resort.
Chefs, winemakers and guest speakers will focus on cultures, tastes and traditions with hundreds of tantalizing demonstrations, along with outstanding wine and spirits seminars. Guests will also feast on delicious food, wine and beer available throughout Disney California Adventure park.
Look for celebrity chefs, Disney chefs and culinary masters to present their gastronomic talents in a full menu of complimentary demonstrations and signature paid events. In years past, the signature events have included Sweet Sundays, “Taste Wine Like an Expert” classes, and Taste Food-Wine-Life, a night that celebrates the essence of the festival with a mosaic of food, wine and live entertainment.
Disney’s California Food & Wine Festival includes experiences for anyone who appreciates the art of food, wine and beer.
· Many of the popular live culinary demonstrations and autograph sessions feature celebrity chefs. The 2010 lineup included chefs Guy Fieri, Cat Cora, Robert Irvine and Jeffrey Saad.
· At the spectacular ticketed events, food and wine aficionados collect cooking tips from chefs, mingle with noted winemakers and celebrate the flavors presented by culinary masters.
* Guests sample from the delicious tapas menu at the Taste of California Marketplace.
· Some Festival events held in Disney California Adventure may require park admission, which is not included in the event price.
· As the date gets closer, look for details at www.disneyland.com/foodandwine.
August 14, 2010
New dining in Italy at Epcot's World Showcase
LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. — Patina Restaurant Group has opened a new casual pizzeria, called Via Napoli, adjacent to Tutto Italia Ristorante, its restaurant in the Italy pavilion in Epcot World Showcase at Walt Disney World Resort in Lake Buena Vista, Fla. This becomes the first authentic Italian pizzeria to ever open in the park.
Restaurateur and longtime Patina Restaurant Group CEO Nick Valenti created the Via Napoli concept, based upon his travels in Southern Italy and his time developing and overseeing the successful Naples 45 Ristorante e Pizzeria in New York which was awarded the coveted certification of “La Vera Pizza Napoletana.” While in Naples, Valenti spent time studying the art of dough, crust, sauce and oven temperatures at the famous pizzerias Da Michele and Trianon. At Da Ettore, he discovered the art of pagnotiello, a folded round of pizza dough filled with mozzarella, ham and mushrooms.
“I have always loved the beauty of a simple Neapolitan pizza,” Valenti says. “It’s a perfect food, something beloved by both Italians and Americans. At Via Napoli we will make pizza the traditional Neapolitan way: with a textured, soft and charred crust. I look forward to bringing it to Walt Disney World, where it should be a welcome addition to guests visiting Epcot.”
Via Napoli features a selection of classical Neapolitan pizzas, ranging from pizza bianca, quattro stagioni, piccante, ortolano and a traditional margherita. Famed Pizzaiolo Charlie Restivo serves as executive chef at Via Napoli, where he crafts the pies using simple and delicious Italian ingredients such as San Marzano tomatoes, Caputo flour, handmade fresh mozzarella, Parma Cotto, crumbled sausage and water calibrated specifically to the pH found in Naples.
“We’re excited to be working with the Patina Restaurant Group once again on this significant expansion project,” said Dan Cockerell, vice president of Epcot. “Via Napoli will certainly enhance the guest experience and the architectural landscape of World Showcase just in time for our 15th annual Epcot Food & Wine Festival.”
A unique feature at Via Napoli is the wood-burning ovens, which are named after the three active volcanoes in Italy – Mount Etna, Mount Vesuvius and Stromboli. Each oven is sculpted with the “face of the volcano” — reflecting the gods whose mythology surrounds each volcano’s history.
The architecture and design of the new pizzeria is based on a mix of traditional Italian styles, with the Florentine architect Stefano Nardini (of Magris & Partners) working in conjunction with Rick Swisher Architect to build it.
For more information about all the fabulous dining in the World Showcase at Epcot please contact us at info@travelwiththemagic.com
August 14, 2010
Day 27 is to check for Dead Links and this is what we are using http://w-shadow.com/blog/2007/08/05/broken-link-checker-for-wordpress/
1. If you’ve used a dead link finder on your blog before, what were the results? What tool did you use to do this? Did you find it useful?
I have not ever used something like this before and I do not usually add plug in to my blog so it made me nervous and I did not add it. Since my blog is really just a page on my site and I did not want to mess up my site. So I used this instead http://validator.w3.org/checklink/checklink?uri=www.travelwiththemagic.com&summary=on&hide_type=all&depth=&check=Check
2. How will you manage dead links on your blog going forward?
The only things that came up were links that go the my Disney Web Content pages. The rest of the site was fine and I will use this link to check the site again.
August 14, 2010
This was something I did not feel comfortable doing. I have only been posting information about Disney and deals on this blog but it was pretty generic stuff nothing to personal at all. So I am skipping this….
August 12, 2010
The Swan & Dolphin Food and Wine Classic will be held October 8th & 9th 2010.
Tickets to the Walt Disney World Swan and Dolphin Food & Wine Classic are available as part of a hotel package or individually. Seating for the seminars is limited and reservations are suggested.
* One and two night packages are available starting at $169* per night and include a beverage seminar for two plus unlimited food and beverage samplings at the Food & Wine Classic (food and beverage stations will be different each evening)
* Advance purchase event-only tickets are available for $50 and include one seminar and unlimited food and beverage samples on the causeway
* Food and wine samplings also can be purchased a la carte on the day of event. Tickets are $2 each or 25 tickets for $45; or you may purchase a bracelet for $50 which allows you unlimited food and beverage samples
* Entertainment will include Pieces of a Dream, The Latin Jazz All Stars and The Groovemasters
They will be offering the following Educational Seminars:
- WINE BLENDING SEMINAR
- RIESLING RENDEZVOUS
- MODERN MIXOLOGY
- ALL THINGS SAKE
- BEER, PLEASE!
- BUBBLES
For seminar reservations only, please call 407-934-1609 or contact us at Travel with the Magic we are happy to help!
August 12, 2010
Cinderella Castle
What makes Disney World special to you?
I remember my first visit to Disney World, we were staying at the Contemporary Resort. My grandmother and I went and I was hooked! I took some special Art classes and we got a behind the scenes tour as well it just stayed with me after all these years. I have always been close with my grandmother and I am very grateful for so many of the things that she has done for me in my life but this trip always stood out for me. When I started taking my own family to Disney it became even more special to me and I love that my children look forward to being there. Here are some pictures from that first stay and a few others. I love the feeling I get when I walk up Main St and see the Cinderellas castle at the start of trip. There are certain resorts, restaurants, and attractions that are special to my family and that are must “dos” on each stay and it all started with my 1st stay.
So tell me what makes Disney special to you?
August 12, 2010
Have you written a question post in the past? How was the response?
I have never written a question post in the past.
Have you seen a question post on another blog that got you involved or drew your interest? What about the post got you interested?
Yes but I did not end up posting because it was something I really did not agree with and I didn’t want to be mean.
I think I will post a question today on the blog and see if I get any responses.
August 12, 2010
Did this exercise inspire you to try anything new with your own blog?
I went thru a travel agent magazine and looked at articles, they layout, colors used in ads, pics, frames and articles. I love reading this magazine and I get some really good ideas and tips about cruising and selling cruises from it. It doesn’t focus on just Disney but they do have info about Disney from time to time. I think that best practices about selling, organizing and other things can translate to what I do so I just take it and make it
What magazine did you choose to analyze?
I choose Vacation Agent Magazine.
August 10, 2010
Have you written a post in the past that has encouraged readers to do something other than just comment on your blog?
Sure. I don’t post as much as I want to but lots of the posts are but the latest Disney deals and how we offer services 
We have quote and contact forms attached to many of the posts as well. I try to make it as easy as possible for people to contact us if they have any questions. I try and post topics with pictures and links to sites that will help someone with there planning.
How has this task changed the way you look at making your blog more interactive?
I read thru the article from Problogger and there are some great tips in it and I posted a link to it so that others can check it out!
I also read some great ideas and posts on the SITSgirls forums about ways to interact more. Maybe ask people to post there fav tips, pics, or what makes them feel the Disney magic!
Calls to Action – 12 Tips To SNAP Readers Out of Passivity
