Alise’s quick mother-daughter trip to Disney World - PREP 373

Alise and her 7-year-old daughter, Rosemary, flew from Virginia to Orlando for a quick mother-daughter trip to Walt Disney World. She shares with Shannon about navigating the parks with celiac disease and all the gluten-free goodies they were able to enjoy. Listen to hear what they thought of All Star Sports, going to Mickey’s Not So Scary Halloween Party on a travel day, and how planning makes it easier to pivot.

Post trip starts at 29 minutes.

In this article

The Basics

Alise and her 7 year old daughter flew from their home to spend a few days together at Disney. They stayed at All-Star Sports from August 22-25.

While they’ve been to Disney World before this was not only their first Mother-Daughter trip, but it was also their first trip since Alise’s daughter was diagnosed with Celiac’s Disease. They are excited to be able to try all of the gluten-free treats.

Alise’s daughter has Celiac Disease, which is an autoimmune disease that means she needs to completely eliminate gluten from her diet.

They chose to go at this time of year because it is the week before Alise’s daughter starts school. Alise wanted to go to enjoy the restaurants with her daughter and take advantage of some deals.

On this trip they maximized their time by utilizing Genie+, attending the Not So Scary Halloween Party, and pivoting as needed!

Arrival Day (August 22)

Alise and her family typically drive, but flew for the first time this trip. They wanted to fly because it’s a shorter trip and their theme was maximizing their time.

They flew Spirit there and Frontier on the way back because it was the best schedule and cost. They paid for two checked bags, which was cheaper than a carry-on, but at the last minute she also added a carry-on for both flights because she was worried her purse would be considered a carry-on. She ended up not needing to do this because they weren’t checking.

Their flight there was so easy, especially with TSA pre-check. Alise says this is absolutely essential and makes things so much easier.

They arrived at 1:15 p.m. and were on Away We Go by 1:30 p.m. While they were on their way to All-Star Sports they got the text that their room was ready. They were in their room by 2 p.m.

This is their first time staying in a Value Resort. They are in a preferred room and are excited about staying at All-Star Sports. Alise hoped for a room that wasn’t facing a pool.

They ended up in the football section on the ground floor at 7116, which was an ideal location. At home they live in a 3rd floor walk-up and hope for a ground-floor room for a vacation from the stairs.

They were just off the pool, but it was very quiet. It was opposite the football field and an easy walk to transportation.

When they arrived to their room, they got unpacked and changed before calling a Minnie Van to head to Mickey’s Not So Scary Halloween party!

By 3 p.m. they were in a Minnie Van and a minute or two after 4 p.m. they were getting their wristbands for the party. This was their first party. Alise’s daughter is getting older and she hoped she could handle staying up later.

The line to get into Magic Kingdom was hot, but it moved quickly. Once they had their wristbands, they went to the Cheshire Cafe for some drinks. Alise’s daughter loved the Queen of Hearts slushie.

They just sat down and relaxed. Alise brought a reusable straw with her in case there was gluten in the straws. However, she was getting slushies and milkshakes, so washing it out was becoming difficult.

Alise asked some cast members about it and said that every restaurant owned by Disney all had gluten-free straws.

Alise had purchased Genie+ that morning and began stacking lightning lanes for later in the day. She said it was well worth it this evening. The park was a bit chaotic.

They had lightning lanes for it’s a small world, Peter Pan’s Flight, Enchanted Tales with Belle, and to meet Ariel.

it’s a small world was down so they went over to Peter Pan’s Flight and Enchanted Tales with Belle. It had a 45 minute standby wait and this was their first time doing this experience.

Alise and her daughter loved Enchanted Tales with Belle. They met Ariel next and then Alise grabbed a lightning lane for Journey of the Little Mermaid – Under the Sea. Alise’s daughter loves the Prince Charming Regal Carrousel so they rode that next before stopping for some water.

They took their water break around 6 p.m. and then went to get in line for Minnie, Donald, and Daisy. They waited in the sun and were thankful for their umbrella.

They were let inside, met the characters, and were out shortly after 7 p.m. They went to get a snack after that. Alise did a lot of research and tried to find out from Disney what treats were gluten free.

They got sweet potato fries and they both loved them. At this point it was around 7:30 p.m. They tried the Candy Creme Milkshake from Pecos Bills. It was the worst thing they had the whole time.

They saw the Cadaver Dans and then planned to see the first parade. They made their way to Main Street to do a little shopping before waiting to find a spot for the parade.

When they got there, it was still relatively quiet and not a lot of people were waiting. So they decided to get a snack and see Mickey while they waited.

They saw Mickey and when they got back out, their spot was still there! They didn’t get into their spot until 8:45 p.m. for the 9:15 p.m. parade.

They saw Powerhouse Max from a distance because they go to the other side. They were so impressed with the Headless Horseman!

Alise and her daughter loved the parade. The performers were incredible. She especially loved the pirates and the gravediggers.

When Oogy Boogy came through, Alise told her daughter he was coming and he must have heard. He came over and shook their hands. It was magical.

After the parade they went to Frontierland to avoid the fireworks. Alise’s daughter is sensitive to the sounds.

They waited in line to see Jasmine but as they were waiting it switched out to Aladdin and Abu, so they left to get some food at Pecos Bills.

Alise had some really great cast member experiences at Pecos Bills. They felt very well taken care of.

At this point of the night, they had started to run out of steam. They went to the Haunted Mansion and waited about 15 minutes at 11 p.m. before doing some trick or treating.

After getting some candy, they got a second wind! They did the Carousel before riding it’s a small world. They had a whole boat to themselves.

They had a wonderful time and got back to the resort around 1 a.m. It was a wonderful time and Alise loved the party.

Epcot (August 23)

After their late night, they slept in until 9:50 a.m. and they were in a Minnie Van at 10:05 a.m. They arrived for their 10:30 a.m. reservation at Cape May Cafe.

Alise says it was okay but not her favorite. Buffets aren’t her favorite and they were in the very back near the kitchen, which was dark and hidden.

After breakfast they weren’t ready to go into Epcot so they took a lovely Skyliner ride and then got a bus back to All-Star Sports via the All-Star Music bus.

When they finally got back to the resort they did some shopping and swimming. They did some pivoting, canceled their dinner reservation for that evening, and went to Epcot via the bus at 3:40 p.m.

They had a lightning lane for Frozen Ever After at 5:15 p.m. It wasn’t able to be moved and Alise was feeling trapped by the lightning lanes.

Alise’s daughter loves Spaceship Earth so they did that first while it started drizzling. When they got off they got Mickey Bars.

They went to Brew-Wing Lab and Alise got a pickle milkshake. They tried a few of the wings there as well. They also got fries from the Fry Basket.

After taking their time, they got to Frozen Ever After around 6 p.m. The line was still fairly long and the drop was scary. They both got wet and it scared her daughter.

Her daughter was so upset and just wanted to see characters. However, the characters were all gone! So they got her face painted and then they played the bongos in Refreshment Outpost.

They were getting tired and went into the Japan store. They got on the skyliner after that to go to the Riviera. They didn’t do the things they’d planned on, but they had a good day.

They took a Riviera and got a Minnie Van from there back to All-Star Sports. When they got back they went to the arcade and went swimming. They got some more food, which was just a wonderful experience.

Animal Kingdom (August 24)

Alise and her daughter love this park. They are so excited to do it together. This isn’t Alise’s husband’s favorite, so she’s excited to explore it with her daughter.

Alise didn’t originally get Genie+. They got on the bus around 9:05 a.m. and went immediately to the Kilimanjaro Safari. However, both the Safari and the trails were closed.

There were very large crowds back there as well. Alise immediately purchased Genie+ to get a Safari lightning lane. It was switched to an anytime lightning lane.

The Safari was very important to Alise and her daughter which is why they got a lightning lane. After that, Alise got her daughter’s face painted. She wanted to be a cheetah at Animal Kingdom.

They went to Creature Comforts for gluten-free donuts! It was wonderful for Alise’s daughter.

At this point Alise’s daughter wanted to go to Dinoland because it won’t be there much longer. They played a lot of games!

Their next stop was the 11 a.m. Finding Nemo show. It was just beautiful. By 12:15 p.m. they were at Nomad Lounge. They got the gluten free churros and it was fantastic. They were also able to watch the Flotillas. They had a great time.

After their food, they went to the Safari and got on around 2 p.m. It was very hot and the animals were not as active or out as much.

They got some cold drinks and then saw Kevin! Then they went to the bird show for the last show of the day.

They had a lightning lane to meet Minnie and Mickey after that. It was nice to have the lightning lane and avoid the wait.

They did some shopping and got some cute things before getting on the bus around 4:45 p.m. and got back to their resort around 5 p.m.

When they got back to the resort, they went to the arcade and went swimming again. It was a great day. While they were there, they made a friend from the United Kingdom! They played together in the pool and now they are penpals!

Departure (August 25)

They planned to go to French Quarter for gluten-free beignets and that was still really important to Alise’s daughter. They were packed up and at the French Quarter by 7:45 a.m.

They got a Minnie Van again and had some really great drivers. Their favorite was Sam!

The gluten free beignets were incredible. They both really enjoyed them and being at French Quarter.

Away We Go picked them up from French Quarter. They arrived at MCO Alise was really grateful to have TSA pre-check. It was very busy.

They were back home by 2:30 p.m.

Alise used the bounce-back offer to book their next trip! They will be back in May with Alise’s husband too and they will stay at All-Start Movies.

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