Without a doubt, the last year has been a huge learning experience, but I wouldn’t of had it any other way. Along the way, we shared a little over 300 articles covering a vast range of Disney World news, tips, and history. However, a few articles stood out as the most popular of the year.
Of course, we’re a little late in posting this article, considering that we’re already 14 days into 2018, but we thought we’d do a little bit of a throwback post to take a closer look at how the years top posts unfolded. Before we dive into it, I just want to take a moment and say thatks for supporting us over the last year. The site has grown more that I ever expected and continues to amaze me day after day. If this is your first time reading here or if you’re a reader of every post we put out, we truly appreciate you being here and taking the time out of your day to spend a few minutes here with us.
Moving over to the top articles of the year, we’ll start out with an unfortunate situation turned memorable for many guests of the Swan and Dolphin Resort. During this years closings in preparation for the hurricane, Disney really made the most of a bad situation providing activities for guests that aren’t normally available at resorts and provided entertainment for guests stuck in their resorts. However, one other resort made the most of the unfortunate situation with a celebrity many of us may recognize. Kristen Bell, who was shooting a movie in south Florida as the hurricane rolled in, made a last minute relocation to Orlando to the Swan property (part of the Marriot International group) near Epcot. While she was staying there waiting out the store, she made a special effort to play Bingo with a group of seniors staying at the resort during the storm as well. Along the way, we covered a bit of additional news detailing the items given to guests to get ready for the storm.
The next post on the list brings us to one of my favorite articles based on one of my favorite simple experiences in all of Walt Disney World. A few months back, during our July trip to the parks, we made a special effort to stay until the park officially closed to experience “The Kiss Goodnight.” While that particular short show was excellent and the perfect end to any night at Magic Kingdom, the experience surrounding the show vastly outdid the words of the narration in nearly every way. As the park closes and guests make their way out, the night takes on an entirely different feel. While the park is innately the same in design, the hustle and bustle of the day fades away and there’s a simple elegance of the lands that comes to life in a unique way. The lands are emptied, the music becomes much more pronounced and the atmosphere changes for the better. It’s an incredible experience and while I’m shocked that this post topped our articles for the year, I would certainly say it was a highlight of my year.
In a somewhat shocking portion of our top posts, the list changes directions and goes towards our trip planning tips. As one of many food related posts (we know we do a lot of food posts lol) we shared a closer look at 5 excellent entrees under $15 at Walt Disney World. While we love dining at Walt Disney World in nearly any form, it’s always great to catch a great meal at a fair price. It’s no surprise that Disney dining can be quite high, so here’s what we came up with to try and save you a little money along the way.
Im happy to say that our last article in this top 4 breakdown takes the site back to it’s roots with a little bit of Disney history and in particular Disney’s extinct River Country waterpark. The park closed in 2001 and unfortunately I was 5 years old at the time so I never got to see it first hand. For years, I’ve been fascinated by the park and it’s origins, and wish more that just about anything that Disney would rebuild it in a self contained format (rather that the original lake conjunction design). Of course, it would never be quite the same due to the inevitable dangers of the lake itself and the nature surrounding the aquatic scenario, but it would be neat to see how Disney could bring the concept back to life in an entirely new way.
Sadly, River Country faced a number of safety and economical concerns, but it still holds a special place in the hearts of so many guests who experienced it over the years. It certainly wasn’t an ideal waterpark but one that created so many fond memories for guests of all ages and paved the way for the Disney waterparks we have today!
That about covers our list, but there were many others quite close in the rankings! Do you have a favorite post that we shared this year? Be sure to tell us about it the comments. Have a tip or suggestion for something we should cover next? Be sure to share that with us as well and we’ll get to it as soon as we can! Thanks again for reading and have a great rest of the weekend
A few short years ago, I was sitting in a college apartment trying to figure out what was "next" and came up with this idea to share my accumulated knowledge of the Disney Parks and Resorts with others. The end goal was to help others make the most of their Disney experience and it's been quite the journey!
