Past. Present. Future. Fun.
We freeze ourselves while trying to board the Polar Express, but it’s all worth it to see those sculpted Tom Hanks figures! And we get to check out the shows at ‘Christmas at Gaylord Palms’, including a HASHTAG LIT Christmas Tree Lighting! Be sure to like and subscribe for more Orlando fun!
Disclosure: Gaylord Palms hosted us for this event, but these opinions are our own!
We end our time at IAAPA by just walking the show floor and looking for the weirdest things we can find. Like finding a third hand, getting a riddle from the Temple Guardian, and seeing things we probably shouldn’t have seen.
We continue IAAPA week by checking out all of the food options at IAAPA, of which there are definitely not way less than we thought, and everything doesn’t go completely wrong.
We start off our IAAPA experience right by seeing some new announcements about new rides and coasters coming soon. And of course, we get the Dippin Dots. You gotta get the Dippin Dots.
A great way to get introduced to these beautiful properties is one of the many event weekends they have going on throughout the year. The aforementioned Race Weekends are a great option for runDisney races; they really give you extra fun for your races, with all sorts of great amenities to enjoy. They also have Florida Resident rates, breakfast included packages, and more. Last night we were invited to experience a taste of their Food and Wine Weekends. These weekend menu options extend the “Magical Dining” menus that happen all over Orlando in September, with proceeds going to various charities, and are a perfect complement to the Epcot International Food & Wine Festival.
The Food and Wine Weekends offer special tasting menus at 3 of the restaurants throughout the Hilton Bonnet Creek and Waldorf Astoria. The best part (for me and many of my friends) is that they also offer full vegan menu options at each of these locations.
A couple of weeks ago, I enjoyed the vegan Magical Dining menu at Zeta Asia, and it was truly amazing. I was very happy Amanda made that reservation because I didn’t know it existed and I’m still thinking about the menu items we had (I am officially in love with the vegan Bao Buns and the Bibimbap)!
You can find ALL of the Food and Wine Weekends menu options, including Peacock Alley’s “Bar du Chocolat and Champagne tasting” and the Myth Bar’s “Pop Culture” with house made fresh fruit popsicles, organic ice pops, and “poptails” for the adults, in this guide from Hilton Bonnet Creek.
Last night, we were treated to the vegan Cauliflower Salad from La Luce, the Vegetable Fricassee from Bull & Bear, and the Impossible Bibimbap from Zeta Asia. These were all wonderful choices, and honestly, I was full after the first option, and absolutely stuffed by the 3rd. I somehow made room for the two vegan desserts we were offered, a dark chocolate and passion fruit dessert from Bull & Bear, and the special request dessert available in the hotels when you request a vegan dessert: fresh fruit sauce over a coconut tart, with fresh berries and whipped non-dairy cream. They were both SO wonderful, it definitely didn’t feel like a thrown-together vegan option, which is often the case with desserts. Check out photos in the gallery below from the evening and some of the hotel properties. Just click to enlarge any photo:
We were also treated to a vegan cocktail, since the one they were serving that night had sheep’s milk in it. We were given a modified “Bee’s Knees” with agave instead of honey. It was very floral and lovely. You can order this at Peacock Alley any time! You can watch the bartender create this drink for us, as well as chefs creating the amazing nitrogen-cooled chocolate pictured above, any time on my Food and Wine Weekends Instagram story highlight.
I hope I’ve tempted you a bit to head over to the Waldorf Astoria Orlando or Hilton Bonnet Creek and experience their Food and Wine Weekends for yourselves. It really is a wonderful experience, and such a nice, relaxing, crowd-and-line-free way to enjoy some culinary delights. I was hosted for our tasting experience, but I truly do love these properties and think they are such a nice getaway from the hustle and bustle of the nearby Disney hotels. Did I mention the lazy river?
If you’ve never been, enjoying a Food and Wine Weekends tasting menu is a great way to get over and explore the properties before staying the night (but staying the night is also a great way to end your Food and Wine Weekends evening!).
Have you stayed at either of these properties, or enjoyed their Food and Wine Weekends, or their stellar dining options?
Disclosure: As mentioned, I was hosted by Hilton for this tasting event, but my thoughts and opinions are, as always, my own.
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As I’m sure you’ve heard and seen by now, Gran Destino Tower at Disney’s Coronado Springs is now open. We shared video and photos over on our social channels and Christian and I discussed our thoughts on the highlights of this amazing new resort in our latest resort video. But there is something else you must see before you visit or check-in to Gran Destino Tower…
Salvador Dalí first met Walt Disney at a Warner Brothers studio party in 1945. He had come to Hollywood to work on a dream sequence in Alfred Hitchcock’s Spellbound. The pair struck up what may seem to some as an unlikely friendship, but in reality made perfect sense. Disney had already been pushing the boundaries of art and animation for years. Pink elephants on parade from Dumbo, and the frightening forest scene from Snow White to name a few. Of course, Fantasia itself was a lesson in taking feature animation to a higher plane. So a common bond of creative envelope-pushing, combined with boundless self-promotion, naturally brought these two men together. The next logical step was to collaborate on a project combining Dalí’s surreal vision and Walt Disney’s gift for animation.
Here is an excerpt from Salvador-Dali.org about the origin of the Destino project:
On January 14, 1946, Salvador Dalí signed a contract with Walt Disney to make a short animated film entitled Destino. To work on the project, the painter installed himself in the Disney Studios in Burbank, California, where he set about drafting the screenplay and creating a series of drawings and oil paintings. The main characters, a dancer and a baseball player who is also the god Chronos, develop Dalí’s original concept, which revolves around the importance of time when we are waiting for destiny to enter into our lives. The song chosen for the soundtrack of the film, ‘Destino’, by the Mexican Armando Domínguez, was a major inspiration for Dalí in the development of his work.
The short, intended as part of a package film, was to have a running time of between 6 and 8 minutes, but only 15 seconds were made and it was not until 2003 that Disney resumed and completed the project on the basis of Dalí’s first ideas and original sketches.
Despite having 135 storyboards and 22 paintings from Dalí’s eight months in the studio, the project was abandoned when the Disney Studios could not continue funding it. The project was shelved and forgotten until Roy E. Disney, Walt’s nephew, discovered the artwork while working on Fantasia 2000. He secretly sent the project to be completed in France by a team of animators and a director, Dominique Monféry, who attempted and succeeded in continuing the story that Dalí and Disney (and Imagineer John Hench, who is credited as a writer as well) set out to tell. It was released in 2003, and nominated for an Oscar that year for Best Animated Short. If you haven’t seen it before, here it is below in its (2003) entirety:
If you happen to own the Fantasia/Fantasia 2000 Blu-Ray + DVD Movie Collection set, there’s a bonus. Destino is actually on the Fantasia 2000 disc! Also included is an 82-minute documentary, Dalí & Disney: A Date with Destino. There you’ll hear more about the collaboration between these two artistic geniuses.
Additionally, the always-impressive Taschen has published a few books on his elaborate dinner parties. Taschen Diners de Gala and the Wines de Gala, if you want to delve deeper. And of course, The Dali Museum in St. Petersburg, Florida is an amazing place to explore Dalí ‘s life and work. It’s also not too far from Walt Disney World, if you want to extend a vacation and see something new.
Getting back to Gran Destino Tower, when you first approach the tower from either the parking lot or the Lago Dorado side, the inspiration of Destino is more than apparent. The shapes and designs throughout the resort come straight from the art in the short. Dahlia, and her morphing into a bell shape in the film, is directly represented in the lamps in guest rooms, and the designs in the Dahlia lounge on the 16th floor. The Dahlia lounge in particular is entirely inspired by the film, with Dahlia’s hair represented in waves on the ceiling, the dandelion images in a painting on the wall, and the seed heads floating away and becoming the light fixtures on the ceiling.
So before you head to this gorgeous new resort, watch the 6 minute short, and then see how many representations you can see as you explore and discover. Whether Surrealist art is your thing or not, the artistic vision and creativity is undeniably impressive. Gran Destino is enjoyable and breathtaking even without viewing Destino, but seeing it and the inspiration, is, in my opinion, worth your time. I’m sure Disney history buffs, animation and art fans will agree. Kudos to the Disney team for transforming art into function and honoring the work of Salvador Dalí as well as Walt Disney. I’m so excited that Destino has been brought to life for all to see and enjoy in a new way.
Have you visited Gran Destino Tower at Disney’s Coronado Springs Resort? What was your favorite part of this newest area of Walt Disney World?
*Disclosure: some links above are affiliate links.
Today was the grand opening of the brand new Island H2O Live! water park at Margaritaville Resort Orlando, and they invited me down to check it out, so let’s see what they have to offer!
For more info, and to book tickets, visit: https://www.islandh2olive.com/
This video was filmed on June 21st, at Island H2O Live!, for their grand opening. Check it out below!
Roving reviewer and videographer Christian recently visited SEA LIFE Aquarium Orlando to experience their newest sensation – Mermaids! Every Friday through Sunday starting May 31 through June 23, visitors can come face to fin with real-life mermaids as they dive into the ocean habitats alongside rays, sharks and all their fishy friends.
Mermaid dive times:
Check out Christian’s video of the Mermaids at SEA LIFE Aquarium Orlando and get your tickets today!
Thanks to SEA LIFE Orlando for having us out to share the Mermaids with you!
SEA LIFE Orlando is celebrating the summer with a brand new event – there are mermaids at the aquarium! Join us as we check it out.
More info about the Mermaids event, including dates and times: https://www.visitsealife.com/orlando/…
This vlog was filmed on June 1st, 2019, at SEA LIFE Orlando, for the opening celebration of the new event, Mermaids at the Aquarium. Check it out below!
Busch Gardens Tampa Bay’s fabulous summer-long event, Summer Nights begins this weekend! This means extended park hours every night through August 11th and fireworks every Friday through Sunday. Be sure to take advantage of the limited-time Memorial Day Sale to get the best deals of the season.
Starting next Friday, May 31, the thrills go late and the fun lasts longer at Busch Gardens® Tampa Bay with the return of Summer Nights.
Music, entertainment and more create a vibrant nightlife atmosphere surrounding Florida’s best thrill rides. In addition to fan-favorite coasters, thrill seekers can now take on Tigris, Florida’s tallest launch coaster, in an exciting new way after dark. The triple-launch coaster takes thrills to new heights as riders face a 150’ upward surge, dramatic heartline roll and top speeds exceeding 60 miles per hour through the night sky.
Park guests can also enjoy special-edition menu items that feature a new twist on traditional summer fare.
Classic popcorn gets a makeover with an infusion of buffalo ranch and white cheddar flavors.
Summer tastes sweeter with a churro sundae or a fireworks ice cream slushy.
The grilled cheese of childhood memories is transformed as a mac and cheese melt, also available with lobster.
Grown-up indulgences include colorful handcrafted cocktails and pop-tails (new frozen treats with alcohol) in addition to the continued free beer offer as a part of the park’s 60th anniversary celebration.
Now through June 2, guests can enjoy limited-time offers for the best value of the summer season.
Busch Gardens Single Day Ticket – SAVE UP TO 60%!
Price: $49, must visit by June 23
Add Adventure Island for only $10 more
Busch Gardens Fun Card – SAVE OVER 30%!
Price: $65
blockout dates apply
Busch Gardens, Adventure Island & 4-Park Annual Passes
5% off Bronze
10% off Silver
20% off Gold
For more details on limited-time offers, visit BuschGardensTampa.com; Restrictions apply. Be the first to know about new events, special deals and future announcements by following Busch Gardens Tampa Bay’s blog and social media channels on Facebook,Twitter and Instagram.
