Disney World Magic Kingdom, 1977, I was six going on seven that year. In fact, Disney’s Magic Kingdom was a surprise birthday present for me from my two great-aunts. That Summer I was daddy’s little girl and I can remember wanting to hold his hand everywhere we walked and I wanted to sit next to him on all the rides we went on. I honestly don’t remember much from that trip. I remember we stayed at a hotel. I remember going on the ride It’s A Small World.

I remember standing in the very front at the electric parade and getting to see everything. Every once in a while my mom would ask me if I was okay from behind me, and after that, my mind draws a blank when it comes to Magic Kingdom. I know we also went to SeaWorld. I recently got to see silent home videos from SeaWorld, it reminded me of watching the show with Batman and all of them.

47 years later, Disney World Magic Kingdom, 2024 I returned to Disney’s Magic Kingdom with my husband who has never been to Disney. We went on as many rides as we could. We did A LOT of walking. We ate at The Beast’s Castle. We did go on the ride It’s a Small World for nostalgia’s sake. That is a seriously slow ride and I almost cried thinking about my dad. I don’t know that I can say I had a favorite ride at Disney. I can tell you I very much enjoyed the Hall of Presidents and I thought the Philhar-Magic was cute.

We stayed at the Port Orleans French Quarter resort and we also used the Disney dining package. Often we shared a “quick service meal” as we don’t eat much between the two of us, such as the foot-long hot dog and fries at Casey’s on Main Street. We did the Beast’s Castle dinner and I enjoyed seeing the beast, but the food was not particularly to my liking and the level of service was not what we had experienced in the past at up-scale restaurants. A highlight of the day was to see the fireworks show in the Magic Kingdom. They were cool to see.

So would I go back to Disney? Not for a very long time. It was ok, but Disney is seriously overpriced on everything, which is one of the reasons why my husband and I shared the food we bought. I wanted to buy T-shirts for my grandkids until I saw the prices and decided not to do that as well. I did compromise though and I bought a Mickey Mouse for the grandkids to share when they come over to my house. We did buy a mug and Christmas ornament to add to our collection, but even those were overpriced. Here’s the thing, I’ve had the chance to visit places like Ireland, Italy, and France, so after you’ve been to other Countries Disney World can’t compare (sorry). I think Disney would probably be more fun with my grandkids in a couple of years, but I will need to make sure I have A LOT of money saved by then.

Kathleen Smith is the author of Miscarriages: My Journey From Heartache to Healing, and other books. Blogs about a variety of things. Her podcast is Kathleen’s Korner and she is the CEO of BearsWithApps. OH, let’s not forget her YouTube channel