Family, travel, mom blog | Theme Park Mom (Leigh Caldwell)

The final building block of the Disney Dream was hoisted into place today at the German shipyard where Disney Cruise Line’s newest ship is being built.

The ship was built in 80 blocks that were then put together. This last one was a 260-ton portion of the ship’s bow, complete with the signature Disney Cruise Line golden filigree.

Now the attention shifts to inside the cruise ship, where all of the interiors need to be completed in time for the first cruise on the Disney Dream in January 2011.

“With the steel construction process complete, we’re now looking forward to exciting new milestones such as the installation of AquaDuck, the first water coaster at sea,” said Disney Cruise Line President Karl Holz. “Each day, the ship gets closer to its Maiden Voyage, and it is clear that the Disney Dream is destined to be one of the most spectacular ships afloat.”

The Disney Dream will sail alternating three- and four-night cruises to the Bahamas and Disney’s private island, Castaway Cay. During summer 2011, the ship will sail four- and five-night itineraries with two stops at Castaway Cay.

You can already book a Disney cruise on the Disney Dream, before it even leaves the shipyard. I recommend contacting the travel agents at Enchanted Destinations to book your Disney cruise. They are experts on the ships and itineraries, and they know how to get you the vacation of your dreams at the very best price available.

Have you thought about trying a cruise, but you don’t want to commit to a long one? Disney Cruise Lines is offering a 2-day cruise from Los Angeles next year, and it might be a great opportunity to give cruising a try.

The Disney Wonder is moving to the West Coast next winter to offer cruises to the Mexican Riviera and to Alaska. In between its arrival in L.A. and the first Mexican Riviera cruise, Disney Cruise Lines has decided to offer a 2-night “cruise to nowhere” January 21-23, 2011.

What’s a “cruise to nowhere?” Just what it sounds like! You get two nights on board the Disney Wonder, but it won’t be stopping in port anywhere. It’s a great chance to check out all the activities available on the ship.

It’s also a great price. Inside cabins start at $438.86 for TWO adults. That’s less than $250 each. And it includes the taxes and government fees.

Disney is calling this cruise a “weekend getaway,” and I think it would be a great little trip for anyone close to Los Angeles. You could try cruising for the first time, try Disney Cruise Line for the first time, or at these prices, try a more luxurious cabin than you would normally book.

You can book this Disney cruise through Enchanted Destinations.

Disney’s Animal Kingdom is one of my favorite parks for younger children because of all of the animal sightings and the great shows. Here are a couple of rides that the preschool set will enjoy:

Kilimanjaro Safaris: Climb into an off-road vehicle for this safari through 100 acres of savannah in Animal Kingdom’s Africa area. You and your child could see giraffes, elephants, flamingos, rhinos, antelope and maybe even a lion or two. This attraction is best experienced in the morning, when the animals are more active and easily seen.

Triceratop Spin: Little ones will enjoy making their dino go up and down on this circular ride in the DinoLand U.S.A. area of Animal Kingdom. This gentle ride is similar to Dumbo the Flying Elephant in the Magic Kingdom.

Wildlife Express Train: What child doesn’t love a train? This one runs every 5-7 minutes and takes you between the Harambe, Africa area and Rafiki’s Planet Watch. You can get off the train at Rafiki’s Planet Watch to take part in some educational activities and learn about animal conservation.

This post is part of “Under 5 Friday,” a series of posts with my best tips for taking young children to Walt Disney World.

Are you planning your first trip to Walt Disney World? One of the best ways to be sure you are getting the most out of your vacation (and your time and money) is to use a a travel agent who specializes in Disney vacations, like the folks at Enchanted Destinations.

Yes, it is the first week of the new year.

And yes, we are all just getting back to our routines after the holidays.

But it’s time to start planning your Disney travel for this year and beyond.

No, I’m not kidding.

The early bird gets the worm, or in this case, the best selection of resort rooms or cruise cabins. And for the least amount of money.

“The people who get in on any promotion early are going to pay the lowest price,” says Celeste Koutavas, an agent with Disney-only travel agency Enchanted Destinations.

Celeste tells me it’s a simple case of supply and demand. The lower-cost options (the less expensive categories of Disney Cruise Line cabins or Walt Disney World and Disneyland resort rooms) often fill up the most quickly. In addition, as resorts or cruises fill up, the prices rise.

So what if you book early and then Disney releases a bigger, better deal for your vacation than the one your originally got? The agents at Enchanted Destinations say they monitor the new deals for their customers and re-book a vacation if there’s a better deal to be had.

So if all this talk of saving money isn’t enough to have you flipping the pages of the calendar just yet, here are my top three reasons why you should book your Disney vacations right away:

1. More Harmony in the Workplace: Scheduling vacations early leads to less fighting with co-workers over who gets the most popular weeks off.
2. Less School Burnout at Home: Your kids will have something to look forward to when the novelty of being back to school in the new year wears off by the end of this week.
3. More (or Less) Diet Angst, More or Less: You will be able to calculate exactly how many days you can slack on your New Year’s diet before you will need to go on your vacation diet.