Archive from July 2007

4:26 PM - Wanna help the webmaster out? (posted by Allen )
Okay, you may have noticed a new banner ad appearing at the top of each page on this site. This is a special promotion with a Disney marketing company for the Disney Movie Rewards. If you aren't familiar with them, take a moment to click that link and check it out. If it looks interesting, you can sign up. Basically, it's a point system where you earn points every time you buy a Disney movie, and you can earn points watching Disney movies at the theater.

If you sign up using my link, I get credit for it. So check it out if you want.

4:22 PM - Disney World planning software: Mouse Manager? (posted by Allen )
Anyone heard about this?

http://www.mousemanager.com

It's a software package for planning and organizing a Disney World vacation.

6:29 PM - Hidden Mickeys - A Field Guide to Disneyland's/Walt Disney World's Best Kept Secrets (posted by Allen )
Okay, here's something cool that I shrugged off a few months ago. Steven M. Barrett, the guy who wrote the "Hassel-Free Walt Disney World Vacation" book that I found fun, also put out a Walt Disney World Hidden Mickey book awhile ago. Well, that book is now in it's third edition (as of June 2007) and he's added a brand new Disneyland version (also just released).

These books are kinda interesting -- they are about four inches wide and ten or so inches tall, so they'd fit in a pocket (but stick out) -- not a typical book form factor. You can take them with you in to the parks. Instead of being, like I assumed, just some index of Hidden Mickeys, they are actually scavenger hunts. There is a section for each park, or the hotels, or other areas of the resorts and these give a list of "Clues" with a point value.

The clue may be something telling you to go somewhere and look up, and a 1 point "clue" means it's easy while a 5 point clue means it's more difficult to spot. The clues are in order of a touring plan, too, starting from the important "show up early" to steps along the way to take you through most of the parks, hitting various rides, and even telling when you should get a FastPass or grab lunch. Very cool.

If the clues aren't enough, there are hints in another section for each clue -- and they are much more specific. Instead of "look up" you get "look at the stroller and wheelchair rental sign," for instance.

The Disneyland book features over 170 Hidden Mickeys at Disneyland, Disney's California Adventure, Downtown Disney and the hotel areas. The Walt Disney World book is much larger and has over 700 from the theme parks, water parks, restaurants, and many other places. Very very cool.

Check them out -- or visit the author's website:

http://www.hiddenmickeysguide.com

These books are published by The Intrepid Traveler and you should be able to find them at local bookstores or online at places like Amazon. (Nope, not links here to a "store" I get commission on; I'm just passing this info along, and not trying to make any money on it.)