The excitement is building for the 2022 Special Olympics USA Games taking place June 5-12 at ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex. Yesterday, Walt Disney World Resort announced that thousands of athletes, families, and fans in attendance for the games will be treated to legendary entertainment- sprinkled with a little magic- with an exciting Opening Ceremony produced by Disney Live Entertainment.

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Theme parks, amusement parks, attractions, call them whatever you want. The thrills, the sounds, the excitement that comes with spending the day at Orlando’s most famous theme parks is the ultimate Orlando get away. If you are planning on spending your vacation in Orlando, you not only want the best prices on discount tickets, exciting adventures, and fantastic shows, but need the basics to “Know Before You Go” !!

Being in the business for nearly thirty years, I often tell customers who come into our store front at 8000 International Drive a few tips on how to make the most of their Orlando vacation without falling into the typical tourist traps that so many complain about.  Here are some of the fundamentals to get you started, then it’s all up to you to enjoy!!

1. Do Your Research

This is probably the best recommendation that will save you a lot of hassle. Go online and investigate the information on each park on the web. This is where you’ll find opening times and information—like height restrictions—about the rides. If you have kids, knowing in advance what rides you child can and can’t go on will save you a lot of time and energy.

Looking for the best deals is an absolute must!! Know Before You Go, takes pride in the fact that we are one of the most competitive of all the re-sellers with Discount Disney World, Universal Orlando, and SeaWorld tickets!  If you’re looking, checkout our site and compare for yourself – our prices are guaranteed.

2. When to Go to Avoid the Crowds

The absolute best times to avoid visiting the parks are Saturdays and Mondays. Saturdays are the busiest day of the week at a park. Mondays are often the second busiest and busier than Sundays since many visitors believe Sundays are the busiest. The least crowded days to visit are Tuesdays and Wednesdays. Holidays can also be surprisingly good days to visit because people expect it’ll be overly crowded, but sometimes that’s not true.

3. What you need to bring with you

I suggest packing extra clothes for everyone in your party. Accidents happen, rides can be extra-wet, and temperatures can be sizzling. Packing a change of clothes can help keep everyone comfortable and happy. I also recommend bringing your own rain ponchos, because they cost a fortune at the park. Understanding the cost of the lockers at the park will help you minimize the amount of stuff you need to carry. But one thing you shouldn’t be without is sunscreen. If one member of your party gets severe sunburn, your entire vacation can be ruined.

A stroller is indispensable if you have small kids. Even if your child is past strollers on your usual outings, amusement parks are long days with lots of walking. A stroller will help if little legs get tired and patience gets stretched a little thin. It will save a lot of money in the long run. Remember to do the same with wheelchairs.

Next to not forgetting your tickets, the most important thing to remember to bring to the theme parks would be your camera to capture all the magical moments!

The idea is to make the most out of your vacation. You have the power to make it the best one ever!

Know Before Your Go is committed to keep every visitor informed as to the best tips and ratings that will make you vacation special!! Great planning is the key!

Enjoy your vacation !

– Milo Chater 

Customer Experience Specialist – Know Before You Go, Inc.

Disney World Orlando Seven Dwarfs Mine Train is one of latest attractions at the Disney World’s Fantasy Land is on the track and ready to roll.  Fantasy Land, Disney’s largest expansion in history is going to be the last stop for Disney’s Seven Dwarf’s Mine Train. Named after the 1937 Disney animated film classic, “Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs”, it is anticipated to be a family-friendly and completely immersive experience, where guests journey into the Dwarf’s mine “where a million diamonds shine”.

Imagineers, Ben VanBeusekon and Mary MacEachin, explain the work going into the ride cars for the family-friendly ride, with this new video. “We’ve actually combed the movie, looked up the ride cars continually to kind of come up with the most detailed drawing we could get with all the little bolt heads, the lanterns, the way the wood is carved, the way the grain is shaped.” The pair says the cars are painted layer by layer to give them an authentic old feeling and that each car has its own look. Check out this video explaining Disney’s World’s Seven Dwarf’s Mine Train.

“Sometimes we have to work forward and backwards,” MacEachin said. “Make it look new and then make it look it old. This way we kind of know where the hit spots on the car are — where it banged into and how they must have dumped something over into it.” To this point, some of the cars will look older and more used than others.

“The authenticity in a ride car is absolutely crucial in the storytelling,” VanBeusekon said. “In order to immerse the guests into the story and actually have them believe that they are in the mine train with Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, it has to be right down to the detail.”

Disney world Orlando says the roller coaster will feature a first-of-its kind ride system with a train of carriages that sway back and forth, responding to every twist and turn of the track. Disney officials say its intensity will be between that of sister Magic Kingdom coasters Barnstormer and Big Thunder Mountain Railroad, but it is being promoted as family-friendly, not as a thrill ride.

Guests can find the new coaster behind Cinderella Castle and on the right, after they enter the Castle Courtyard gates leading into the Enchanted Forest. As guests cross a stone bridge they are led through a picturesque forest, where The Seven Dwarfs’ cottage sits in the distance. After journeying through the interactive queue with entertaining activities with the mining theme, guests will continue to the mine train coaster. Be ready for surprises, just like in the classic film!

Disney’s New Fantasyland has opened in stages beginning in 2012 with the addition of the Dueling Dumbo rides and Storybook Circus section followed by themed sections for “The Little Mermaid” and “Beauty and the Beast” and last fall’s opening of the Princess Fairytale Hall in what used to be Snow White’s Scary Adventures, which closed in May 2013. Disney had previously said the mine car would be done in spring 2014, but today’s video does not make mention of a target opening date.

The expansion at the Magic Kingdom has been the park’s largest ever, and ticket prices for the park are now at a premium over Walt Disney World’s other three parks. Be sure to buy your Disney world tickets in advance at www.knowbeforeUgo.com or call us at 1-800-749-1993  You can also visit us at our world famous Welcome Center  located at 8000 International Drive,Orlando, Florida.

We hope you enjoy this ride, we sure did !

– Milo Chater

Customer Experience Specialist – Know Before You Go, Inc.

Not to be outdone in the great theme park renovation war, Disney World has finally kicked off the largest expansion ever in Disney’s Animal Kingdom. Walt Disney Imagineering in partnership with “AVATAR” creator James Cameron and Lightstorm Entertainment are designing the parks new AVATAR-inspired land, entitled Disney World’s Avatar Land.

Disney World released the following images and video of Disney executives and Imagineers with blue, bigger-than-life shovels. Na’vi, the character from “Avatar” the movie is towering over the rest of the group, including Tom Staggs, chairman of Walt Disney Parks and Resorts.

The picture was taken within Disney’s Animal Kingdom area known as Camp
Minnie-Mickey, where attractions have recently been closed. “The Festival of the Lion
King” show is also getting a new auditorium in the park’s Africa section later this year.

This spectacular new world will be unlike anything ever experienced at a Disney Park.
“Pandora” was the beautiful realm that held so many of us in awe when the movie was
released. Now guests will experience the wonders of “Pandora when they “fly with the
banshees” and discover a lush natural environment. Mountains that float, swirling animal
images and interactive plants that glow at night are combined to showcase Discovery
River. The park will introduce more nighttime entertainment as well, including live
performers on Discovery Island and a new nighttime version of the Kilimanjaro Safaris.
“With AVATAR, we are adding spectacular new world and an exciting set of attractions
unlike any our guests have experienced. The expansion now under way will make the park
a true full-day, must-see experience,” said Tom Staggs, chairman of Walt Disney Parks
and Resorts.

“Pandora” is being designed as a full day and nighttime expanse of Animal Kingdom and
is co-designed and imagined by James Cameron himself. The goal is to have the new
area open in 2017, which would be between the planned release dates of Avatar 2 and
Avatar 3 in December 2016 and 2017.
Here are some of the new attractions coming two rides for the new land:
● An amazing water ride which could be compared to the indoor ride “Pirates of
Caribbean” or the outside Jungle Cruise experience.
● And a airborne simulator ride which will let guest “discover what it feels like to
soar into the sky riding a Banshee.”
● A night-time journey through a brilliantly lit jungle.
● If you remember the “Mother Tree” in the movie, then you will love the
transformation outside Avatar Land, where the Tree of Life will be transformed
using electronics and light projections during a new nighttime magnificent experience.

KnowbeforeUgo.com is committed to keep you informed of all theme park news! With
25 years of experience and some of the lowest prices in the industry you can’t go wrong
when purchasing Discount Disney World Tickets!

 SeaWorld Orlando is where guests will be amazed and thrilled at the unique entertainment that abounds. With the park's opening of  Ice Breaker, it has continued to impress park goers young and old alike.  Experience live shows, special events, fantastic sea life, and more.