Your Guide to the New Fantasyland Expansion in Magic Kingdom, Part One.

New Fantasyland is the largest expansion in Magic Kingdom history, and it is now open!  Two weeks ago, my family visited Magic Kingdom to explore this expansion ourselves, and I'm excited to share some tips for how to navigate this "whole new world" on your next trip to Walt Disney World. 

New Fantasyland is broken into several sections: Belle's Village, Beast's Castle, Ariel's Grotto, and Storybook Circus.  Today, I'm going to tackle the first section.

When you enter New Fantasyland, you are immediately transported to Belle's Village.  Allmost an exact replica of the town in Disney's Beauty and the Beast, the village is impeccably themed.  Our first stop was Gaston's Tavern, decorated with dozens of antlers (of course).  Here, we enjoyed cinnamon rolls as big as our heads and a cup of LeFou's Breu (frozen apple juice with a hint of toasted marshmallow, topped with a passionfruit-mango foam).  If you follow a touring plan and arrive at just the right time, you may even meet Gaston himself!  I would absolutely recommend a stop at Gaston's Tavern, but get there by mid-morning to avoid long waits.

Next, it's off to Maurice's Cottage for Enchanted Tales with Belle, an elaborate meet-and-greet inside Belle's childhood home.  True to Disney, the cottage is unbelievably detailed.  You can read some blueprints for Maurice's next big invention or explore Belle's outdoor reading nook.  There's even a growth chart on the wall that tracks Belle's height as she grew.  Every ten minutes or so, groups of about 40-50 people are ushered deeper into the cottage where they are transported back to the day when Belle and the Beast fell in love.  As a surprise for Belle, volunteers become part of the retelling of this "tale as old as time".

After a brief rehearsal, guests are ushered into the drawing room to meet Belle and perform the play with her.  At the end of the performance, every child (whether they participated in the play or not) has the opportunity to meet Belle and pose for a picture with her.  Throughout the whole experience, countless magical touches add to the ambience.  

My daughter and I really enjoyed Enchanted Tales with Belle, and lovers of Beauty and the Beast should definitely experience this once.  That being said, I can't imagine that we will make Enchanted Tales a priority again.  To push as many guests through as possible, the meet-and-greet portion of the experience is quite rushed (Belle does not sign autographs).  Furthermore, this is an extremely low-capacity attraction and the experience itself takes about 25 minutes, so waits are long all day.  While lines will be shortest first thing in the morning, Enchanted Tales with Belle will eat up a significant part of that first hour (which is the best time to experience lots of other attractions).  Therefore, I recommend trying to visit this attraction in the late afternoon (right before dinner) OR last thing before you leave the park at night.

Next time, I'll discuss the second section of New Fantasyland: Beast's Castle.  Stay tuned!!

Meredith McCutcheon

Disney Specialist, Ginger's Getaways