Disney Week Part III - Behind the Magic

When you think of Disney what's the first thing that comes to mind? The characters of course! Mickey, Minnie, Cinderella, Snow White, Pooh, Tigger, Donald, Goofy… the list could stretch into one gigantic blog post on its own. But if you have no connection to any of the characters, you may not find yourself enamored by the Disney brand.


Unless you're this lady...

... who promptly fainted after this picture was taken. But that's a whole nutha story.

Anyhoo, in recent years Raven, Hannah Montana, High School Musical and Camp Rock have brought in a huge pre-teen demographic. But still, if you're a bit older or maybe you're a parent who's not thrilled by the idea of having your kids become a walking billboard you may shy away from this aspect of Disney as well.

So what's the point of visiting Disney if you're not fanatical over Mickey or if you're a parent who shies away from heavy commercialism?

The point is...there is a lot more to these parks than the characters. When I was growing up, Disney was all about "the magic" -- Fantasia, Peter Pan, Cinderella, Sleeping Beauty. None of which appealed to me (or many other African American children) then or now. And those are the images that probably stand out in the mind of many adults when it comes to Disney.

What isn't so obvious is that the educational aspects of the parks are absolutely phenomenal. And it's something that our mom blogger group pointed out to the execs during our fantabulous weekend at Disney World. You could actually spend an entire week at DW and not see one mouse or duck unless you actively stalked one and tackled it for a photo op. Ahem...
So, local schools, community groups, and even parents who homeschool could greatly benefit from a trip that not only gets the kids out of the house, but also aids in their science and technology, social studies, geography, and natural world lessons.

The wealth of educational resources at the parks are really amazing. Obviously they're not the first thing to come to mind when one thinks of a Disney vacation, but it's an incredible selling point. I know the next time I go to the parks, I'll be planning a few educational days in with the standard wait-in-line-take-a-ride exercise. Because let's face it ... after a few 30-minute waits for a 5-minute thrill ... it's pretty much nap time.

Now all the remains is for the Disney marketing whizzes to begin putting together some nice packages that can help families really capitalize on these amazing educational resources. But never fear. Thanks to your trusty Mama Bloggers...


the Disney crew has heard and hopefully taken heed. No need for applause. Mama Bloggers are always happy to help. Thank you very much. (Cash only...no checks please.)