Magic of the Mouse: Our Walt Disney World Family Vacation

Travel Photography - Florida | Toronto Real Life Family Photographer

Nothing like a pandemic to give you the “time” you need to finally getting around to sharing your Disney vacation photos from last Fall.

Everything we did B.C. (Before Covid) seems so luxurious: The trips. The airplanes. The restaurants. Integrating with a SEA OF HUMANITY. I’m grateful just to recognize that these things that seemed normal are, in fact, things to be treasured.

We took an extended-family vacation to Florida last October. First stop: WALT DISNEY WORLD (that’s the one in Florida), and I’ll admit: I was wary that it could live up to my childhood memories. I was fortunate to have visited WDW a handful of times as a kid while we vacationed with my snowbird grandparents over March Breaks. And while I knew that some of my favourite rides had long since been retired (hello, Mr. Toad’s Wild Ride!), I still wasn’t sure that the magic would still be there as an adult. Lots of things are less fun than you remember as kids and I was pretty sure this would be one of them.

WRONG.

If there’s something for sure in this world it’s that Walt Disney and everyone in his unfathomable empire are web-spinners of pure happiness; shoots of disbelief, wonder, magic and splendour springing out of every single part of your visit from the time you step into the Disney grounds.

You forget there is a world outside. Which, right now, sounds absolutely amazing.

We stayed at the Port Orleans, Riverside Resort and spent four days in the parks: Magic Kingdom, Animal Kingdom, Hollywood Studios and Epcot. And while we went into this with a “this is our one trip so let’s make the most of it” attitude….we emerged with a “what will we do the next time we come?” dream in our minds.

A dream for now. But oh, to dream of a place more fantastical than the magical world of Disney, I cannot imagine.

Photographed on digital (Fuji X-T3) and film: Canon Rebel 2000, Holga and Olympus Stylus using Kodak Ektar, Kodak Ultramax, Lomo 100 // film and developing from Downtown Camera