I’ve been VIP many times before in different arenas.  My uncle, being a bishop, gives me VIP status in certain church circles.  My husband, working most of his career in the music business, included me in many VIP events in that world.  Being backstage at a Will Smith concert is nice–don’t get me wrong–but I think that I’ve been spoiled forever by Disney VIP (sorry Will, but Mickey is The Man).   I’ve done Disney World the easy way (off-season and short lines) and the hard way (during Spring Break when the park was at such capacity that they shut it down and lines were 2 hours long), but I’ve never done Disney World VIP-style until now.  And I must say, it’s going to be very hard to go back to being a normal park-goer after the experience I just had!

My pass to VIP-dom.  I’m officially press!

Believe me, I was working; we were gone from about 7:30 a.m. until 11:30 p.m. everyday and moving fast the entire time, but there was plenty of fun and Disney magic in everything we did.

Let’s start with the people that I was so fortunate to be with during this fabulous experience.  Taking us on this whirlwind journey was Laura Spencer, Social Media Manager for Disney World.  She was our fearless (and hilarious) leader.  I met Laura at Blogalicious ‘09, but didn’t know just how wonderfully kooky she was until now.  Laura ran a tight ship, but provided plenty of laughter along the way; she loves her job and it shows.  Heather Murry and Darcie Maranich, both on the 2008 Disney World Moms Panel, were also on hand to share their wealth of Disney World knowledge.

Heather, Laura & Darcie

Besides myself, there were 7 other bloggers invited to Disney World (pictured below from left to right):

Lucinda Anderson Hughs, FrugalSocialite.com

Deveter Brown, Blackplanet.com

Angela Cooper, Hangingwithmrsacooper.blogspot.com

Onica Cupido, Blasianbabynotes.blogspot.com

Me: Sherrelle Kirkland-Andrews, Funkidivagirl.com

Lorraine Robertson, Askwifey.com

Tara Jefferson, Theyoungmommylife.com

Lashanda Henry, Blackparenting.blogspot.com

Lorraine is the only person that I knew before the trip, but by the end, I had made new friends.  We were the social media bunch; there was traditional media represented as well and we spent much of our time as one big group.   Here’s a group shot of almost everyone:

The magic started upon entering Animal Kingdom Lodge; I had been there before, but didn’t get to spend much time in the lobby.  The decor is incredible, the art work authentic and the animals outside were so fun to look at (I love animals).  African drummers can be found at numerous times of the day providing further ambience to the whole African safari-like experience.  We ate breakfast one day at one of the restaurants on site, Boma, and it was just as incredible as the dinner that I had there before.

And talking about meals…we had some incredible working lunches and dinners.  Well, we had to eat right?–And Disney made sure that we experienced some of the best they had to offer.  Our first dinner at Contemporary’s California Grill, one of Disney’s signature restaurants, set the tone for our VIP treatment.  Delicious food, special pumpkin cocktails and an incredible view of the sunset over Cinderella’s castle–well I can see why people come to this restaurant to celebrate anniversaries and other special occasions.

Lunch at Contemporary’s The Wave was so delicious, especially the appetizers that just kept streaming out: Five-Spice Chicken Lettuce Wraps, Lump Crab Cake, Pear and Midnight Moon Cheese Salad, Black Bean Chili with a Jalapeno Corn Muffin, Pepper-seared Tuna and Chicken-filled Summer Rolls; we barely had room for our entrees!  My Organic Beer Flight was a nice way to sample all 3 beers on the menu.  The staff was so attentive and gracious at The Wave; my parting gift of a Tinker Bell cup (with a green glowing Tink) made the experience that much more magical.

Breakfast at Pizzafari was one of my favorite meal because of the french toast served; cinnamon and sugar-coated deep-fried goodness with sliced bananas and syrup….OH MY!  It was so good that I only had one piece; I was afraid of eating anymore or else I wouldn’t ever stop.  I know some of the Disney World restaurant recipes are online and I have to find this one in order to make it at home; my family will love it.

Dinner at Cat Cora’s new restaurant Kouzzina very was good (I had a delicious appetizer of goat cheese grilled in a grape leaf) and the drinks were good too.  Laura had one of the fancy glowing martinis while everyone else yelled “Opa!” and slammed down ouzo (not me; I was too chicken).  Lorraine didn’t exactly like the taste of ouzo.

During dinner, cast member Brad talked to us about Disney’s new promotion for 2010: “Give a Day, Get a Disney Day.” Starting January 1st Disney is giving away 1 million park tickets to anyone who signs up to do community service through Hands on Network.  It’s a great way for a family (ages 6 & up) to give back to the community and earn a Disney park ticket as a reward.

As wonderful as our meals were at Disney World, that’s all the sitting we did because the rest of the time we were in and out of the parks (via the backstage secret VIP entrance…shhh!) experiencing so much of the World.  Vinnie, our wonderful driver, made sure we made it to each destination on time and in total comfort.

We toured several of Disney World’s properties to have a look at different accommodation choices: the new Bay Lake Tower at Contemporary Resort (very hip and modern, like a W Hotel), Kidani Village at Animal Kingdom Villas, All Star Music Resort Family Suites and Saratoga Springs Treehouse Villas.  The Treehouse Villas were my favorite because they were just so different; the 3 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms and full kitchen would be perfect for a large family or an extended family enjoying a vacation together.

We had a special VIP experience in each Disney World theme park.  Our first stop was Disney’s Hollywood Studios where after viewing the show, we took a behind-the-scenes tour of The American Idol Experience.  Michael, our cast member guide, explained the whole audition process and showed us the Coke Lounge and producer offices.  Here I am, ready to make someone’s dreams come true:

Our time at Magic Kingdom began in newly updated Hall of Presidents; Disney imagineer Diego Parras talked to us about the incredible work that goes into making the Disney magic.  Disney has a patent on the audio-animatronic system and Hall of Presidents is a good place to see that magic in action; while the whole show was impressive, the figure and gestures of newly added President Obama was so very life-like.  Diego confirmed that it was the most technologically advanced of all the presidents represented.

Speaking about the whole imagineer experience, Diego explained how it is the mission of the Disney to create stories for guests to immerse themselves; therefore, imagineers have to immerse themselves as well.   For example, while creating Expedition Everest they went to Nepal and while creating Mission to Space they worked with Nasa.  Most of all, he said to be an imagineer you have to think outside the box and act like a kid.  Sounds like a ideal job description to me!

We were also in Magic Kingdom to enjoy Mickey’s Not-So-Scary-Halloween Party, a ticketed event independent of regular admission.  Guests were dressed in costumes, trick-or-treating was available at various candy stops and Halloween decorations were everywhere.

We took a quick ride on Pirates of the Caribbean–a perfect ride for a Halloween party–and then enjoyed the highlights of the night: Happy HalloWishes Fireworks and Mickey’s Boo-to-You Halloween Parade, which we got to experience VIP-style on the top of the train station.   Hot chocolate and dessert buffet selections in hand, we saw 2 awesome shows from the perfect vantage point.  The parade starts with a run by a headless horseman–truly magical, but hard to catch on film.

Our dessert party at the train station.

The castle was as beautiful as ever all lit up and made for perfect photo-opps.  That’s me in the first photo and Laura and Jawn Murray in the next photo.

So, how about this for VIP treatment at Epcot: being whisked right off our private bus and ushered into fantastic seats at a Boyz II Men concert.  Seats so good that it was an easy catch of the roses tossed our way.

Boyz II Men looked and sounded great, but our interaction didn’t stop there at the concert; we met up with them later at a VIP dessert reception.  That’s Lucinda eating fruit like a good girl, while I ate cheesecake.

Me & Lorraine

Animal Kingdom wasn’t left out of our tour of Disney World; we had a private Kilimanjaro Safari aided by the commentary of cast member Ric.  Before the safari we saw where many of the animals lived backstage and learned about the conservation efforts of Animal Kingdom such as how the safari trucks run on propane and cast members park their cars to ride bikes throughout the grounds.  As we viewed the animals Ric was a wealth of knowledge and answered all of our questions; we were so fortunate to have his expertise at our disposal.  First thing in the morning is the best time to catch the animals awake and they didn’t disappoint; they posed for photos graciously.  I think the lioness was waiting for a movie deal, she was so picturesque, and the rhino got so close to our truck that I’m not sure if that was a welcoming sign or a scare tactic.

Disney World made sure that we had many different wonderful and magical experiences, but the main reason we were there was for the debut of Princess Tiana, Disney’s newest and first African American princess and star of The Princess and the Frog.  The excitement started with this bag left in our rooms the night before the big media event:

Princess Tiana made her debut in Magic Kingdom with a processional and official welcoming ceremony.  Besides our crew, there were several media outlets present to cover this exciting event.

I was professionally taking photos and video of the ceremony, but I was positively giddy with excitement (maybe that’s why the camera is so shaky)!

I have more photos (of when I got to meet Princess Tiana!) and video, but that will be my next post.

I truly enjoyed doing Disney World VIP-style!  Not only did I get to be present for a historical Disney event with the debut of Princess Tiana, I got to have many other amazing Disney experiences and met some wonderful new friends as well.  Two more things made this trip fabulous.  First, when I asked Laura if we could stop our fast moving train for a refreshing Dole Whip, not only did she oblige, but she treated the whole crew!  I love her for that!  It’s my favorite snack in all of Disney World and no trip is complete to me without indulging.

And lastly, I left Disney World on a very high note.  Lorraine and I managed to squeeze in a ride on Expedition Everest right before we left for the airport (no VIP this time, but luckily there were no lines because we were really pushing our luck).

It was her first time riding and as you will see, she loved it.

And that’s how you say good-bye to Disney World, with screams of joy and lots of laughter!  Woo-hoo!

*Continue reading about my trip to Disney World in the blog post Princess Tiana Has Arrived.

*Full Disclosure: I was invited to Disney World as “media” for the debut of Princess Tiana.  My entire trip was paid for by Disney (hotel accommodations, flight, transfers and meals).