Disney Without Kids

Traveling to Disney and experiencing the resort with a child is an incredible experience.  You get to see the "magic" through their perspective.  Seeing a child's face light up when they see Cinderella's castle for the first time or get a hug from their favorite character is truly an amazing thing.  But we all know with that joy comes a lot of work and stress taking a child to Disney.  Every now and then, it's nice to get away and experience Disney as adults-only.  Ryan and I are fortunate enough to have amazing family that will occasionally watch our dear Carter over night, so we can get away just the two of us.  Going to Disney as just adults is a totally different thing; dare I say, even relaxing?  If you have to wait in line a little extra longer, no big deal.  If your restaurant reservation is delayed, no problem! If it starts pouring like crazy, no worries, just grab a seat at the pub in the England Pavilion at Epcot (or is that just us?)! 

Most of the time when Ryan and I go to Disney by ourselves, we go to Epcot.  The World Showcase is a ton of fun, maybe even more so when you don't have a child with you! It is so much fun to eat and drink your way "around the world." Typically when we go to Epcot just the two of us we get there around noon (with no nap times to worry about, we can show up later) and head for whichever ride we have a Fastpass for (Soarin' or Test Track).  As much as I love the toddler-friendly rides, it's fun to ride on the faster/more exhilarating rides.  Ryan and I also love the Land ride at Epcot and make sure we go on that too.  Once we've done a few rides, it's time to get what we really came for...the food and drinks! 

When we are at Epcot without Carter, the biggest decision we face all day is which direction to start in- Mexico or Canada? Our absolute favorite nation's pavilion is France, so sometimes we like to get there in the beginning or sometimes we want to save it for last or sometimes we'll do both! Is there anything better than sitting in the shade in the France Pavilion, watching the people go by, and drinking a class of Veuve Cliquot? I think not! 

    

Enjoying a lovely, relaxing glass of champagne at Epcot

Our favorite places to stop along the way in the World Showcase at Epcot are:

• England- Rose & Crown pub (cider)
• France- ice cream shop (some of the best ever, try the lemon mereinge or the pistachio), wine store (champagne!), and Impressions de France (video highlighting the splendor of France;  it's super old but I still love it)
• Japan- Mitsukoshi store (especially where they have the Mikimoto pearls!)
• America- beer cart (more cider) and when they have festivals going on they have the best bbq
• Italy- wine store (prosecco), Via Napoli (Via Napoli Review)
• Germany- wine store (reisling) and I love visiting the Christmas shop
• Mexico- going inside the pyramid (especially on a blistering hot day, it's always dark and cool inside), the tequila cave (jalapeno margarita), and San Angel Inn (my 2nd favorite Epcot restaurant)

Ryan and me enjoying an adult-beverage in "England"

I know we left out a few other countries, but we tend to skip over those ones, unless there's a festival going on with the food/beverage carts out front.  Epcot is even more fun as an adult when there is the Flower & Garden festival or the Food & Wine (will write about our trip in September 2015).  With all the lovely adult beverages to drink, please don't forget to drink plenty of water along the way!  

Ryan and his best friend, Justin, enjoying the Flower/Garden festival at Epcot

I focused mostly on Epcot for an adults-only trip, but we've had a blast just the two of us at all the other parks too.  There are so many different and fun things about going to Disney as adults, but I think the absolute best part for me is being able to skip bag check! Since we don't have a stroller or diaper bag, we usually just put our phones and wallets in our pockets and enjoy the bag-less ease!