Hi Brent,
Welcome to planDisney! How wonderful of you to plan this special birthday visit to the Walt Disney World® Resort for your wife! The trip itself will be enough of a present, but I can certainly share additional ideas.
First, if you have not yet booked a
Disney Resorts Collection hotel, I highly recommend staying in one. A few of our favorites include Disney's Contemporary Resort, Disney's Grand Floridian Resort & Spa, and Disney's Polynesian Village Resort - all have access to
Walt Disney World® Monorail Transportation. Be sure to have
theme park tickets as well.
To mark a special occasion, I always suggest making an
advanced dining reservation. My family loves dining at
California Grill. Sunset is such a perfect time to dine, so check availability. Consider also
The Holidays at Walt Disney World Resort - I recommend visiting the
EPCOT International Festival of the Holidays Presented by AdventHealth and getting a
Candlelight Processional Dining Package so that you can enjoy a lovely meal and get tickets to the Candlelight Processional show. Be sure to check out the
celebrity narrators for this year before making your dining reservation.
I also love to do a special experience from the
Enchanting Extras Collection. So, take a look at the possibilities and see if there is one your wife might like. Consider Up Close with Rhinos or Caring for Giants. We found both of these to be informative, fun, and budget-friendly. Or, if you want a more in-depth experience, consider Savor the Savanna or Wild Africa Trek. Also consider one of the fireworks dessert parties at Magic Kingdom. To mark the occasion, you could add a
Capture Your Moment Photo Session as well. We did one at Magic Kingdom and it was such a lovely family photo, we used it for a holiday card that year! Or, if you want to have digital access to all of your Disney PhotoPass® Service photos, just add
Memory Maker.
Brent, I hope these suggestions give you a few ideas to consider. You are thoughtful to have planned the trip for your wife's birthday, so trust me when I say the trip is special enough! Dinner and/or a special experience would be a lovely addition. We have celebrated my husband's birthday at Disney and the girls absolutely love picking up a special celebration button from the front desk of our resort hotel for him to wear. Most of all, if Princess Tiana gave awards, you would be a contender for reminding us to
never, ever lose sight of what's really important!
Magic and memories,
Donyell