Kalyna at Pure Magic Vacations

15/06/2024

June 15, 2012 Cars Land opened at Disney California Adventure at Disneyland Resort in California.

This is one of my most favourite themed areas at the US theme parks. From the great rides like “Radiator Springs Racers” to the amazing food at the “Cozy Cone Motel” and “Flo’s V8 Cafe” I could spend hours here.

(When I tell you I spend everyday thinking about this bacon mac and cheese 🤤)

Make sure you’re on the street before sunset to watch all the neon lights turn on for the evening. It’s a fun moment that guests join in to enjoy.

What’s your favourite thing about Cars Land?

12/06/2024

Today we celebrate King Kamehameha Day!

On December 22, 1871, Kamehameha V declared June 11 as a holiday in memory of his grandfather Kamehameha I. Government offices and banks were closed, many businesses were not open or opened for a half day.

The first Kamehameha Day celebration was low key and held on the plains of Kalaokahua (an area between what is now downtown Honolulu and Makiki). Tents and booths were set up and the day included horse races, bike races, foot races and other activities. According to the Hawaiian Gazette, “The last and most laughable event of the day was the wheelbarrow race.”

10/06/2024

EPCOT has undergone a lot of changes over the last few years and today, the final construction walls have come down with the opening of CommuniCore Hall.

I cannot wait to see this new space!

08/06/2024

Disney’s new island, Lookout Cay at Lighthouse Point in the Bahamas has officially welcomed its first guests and Pure Magic Vacation agents were among them. How beautiful does this island paradise look?

07/06/2024

Well, I’ve officially received the best review ever 🥹😭❤️

After celebrating Nana’s 90th Birthday in May, I asked her on the way home “What was the best/your favourite part of the trip?” and this was her response.

The family was worried about how Nana would handle the long park days, all the walking, and the heat. But on the contrary, she felt more alive than she had in a long time.

Yeah, I was crying in the airport at 6am when she said this. It was truly the best answer I could have gotten.

04/06/2024

The new tower at Disney’s Polynesian Resort looks GORGEOUS!! How much would you love to stay here?

03/06/2024

“When you believe in a thing, believe in it all the way, implicitly and unquestionable.”
- Walt Disney

📣 I’m so excited to share that I am now dedicating my full time and energy into my travel business.

I have so many ideas and exciting things planned that I can’t wait to spend the summer working on them.

I’m also excited to be serving you, my clients, more fully.

Thank you to everyone who has helped me get here.

03/06/2024

🚨SPOILER ALERT🚨 Watch the full ride POV of Tiana’s Bayou Adventure✨💚: http://di.sn/6187eS90b

18/05/2024

Did you hear the news?! So excited that the newly reimagined Splash Mountain = Tiana’s Bayou Adventure, is opening June 28!

Is it time to plan a summer Walt Disney World vacation? 🤔

16/05/2024

Our last couple of days at Walt Disney World were great! I hopped in to Hollywood Studios for lunch then we had a rest day at the resort but a storm blew in so we just enjoyed some quiet time in our rooms.

Our last park day was Magic Kingdom (had to end the way we started). We went into the park at the end of the day for dinner at The Crystal Palace. This was my second time here this trip and the food was just as good and the character interactions were even better! We had a great time and everyone there was excited to celebrate Nana’s 90th Birthday.

After dinner we did a few rides in Fantasyland: It’s A Small World, The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh, and Under the Sea - Journey of the Little Mermaid. Nana was singing and dancing along to the music on these rides and waving to the characters 🥹❤️

After that we headed to Main Street USA for the fireworks. We got there early so that we could get a spot at the Railway train station - we were looking for a spot for Nana to watch that was level so she didn’t have to turn her neck up for a long time. She was so excited to see Tinkerbell fly across the sky again!

Our last evening was very special. This trip has been everything I needed!

14/05/2024

For the second part of my vacation I’ve switched to a new Resort (Disney’s Port Orleans - French Quarter) and my family has come to join for my Nana’s 90th birthday/Mother’s Day celebration trip.

We spent our first park day in EPCOT (it was very busy as I expected. This park tends to be busier on weekends plus it was Mother’s Day). Nana loves gardens so we wanted her to experience the International Flower and Garden Festival.

We checked out the topiaries and beautiful flower displays around the park, and indulged in a whole bunch of festival food! Nana loved the displays and thought they were beautiful (she asked for her photo at some of them 🥹❤️).

We also did the Tea Garden tour in the United Kingdom Pavilion. It’s a 20-25 min guided tour around the garden behind The Tea Caddy shop. We learned about the Twinnings company and their various teas and explored some of the plants and production process. It was very cool, and a free tour done during the festival. Be sure to go early in the day to reserve your time. You can also walk around the garden on your own and do a self guided tour.

Outside of the food and flowers, we also did some shopping! We bought some festival exclusive items and general Disney items.

It was a fun day and so special to be able to bring my Nana to this festival and to Walt Disney World again. Disney is for all ages and the pace and experience of the trip can be customized to your party’s needs and preferences!

12/05/2024

Our “final” park day (for this half of the trip anyway) was spent at Magic Kingdom. Had to end the way we began.

We did the 7am Virtual Queue for Tron - Lightcycle/Run and got boarding group 69. We were called around 1:45pm and were on and off the ride in under an hour. This is my absolute favourite ride at Walt Disney World. It’s so fun!

It was another hot day so we really took our time and spent a lot of time sitting and enjoying the sights and sounds of the park.

We also went to the Enchanted Tiki Room attraction which is one I haven’t done in over a decade. I tend to stick to my favourite rides and shows and don’t try new things, but we made a point to do that this trip, including taking the Walt Disney World Railway.

For dinner we decided to head out of the park and take the monorail over to Disney’s Polynesian Resort for their quick service dining. It was a nice change of cuisine, a break from the park, and it didn’t require a reservation.

We went back into the park for dessert - soft serve ice cream from Storybook Treats and to watch the “Happily Ever After” fireworks from behind the castle in Fantasyland (one of my favourite places to watch from!)

Last attraction of the night was Pirates of the Caribbean and then it was back to our resort to pack for checkout day.

11/05/2024

The EPCOT International Flower and Garden Festival happens in the spring every year at Walt Disney World. And it’s one of my favourite festivals here.

We spent the day trying different festival booth food and looking at the incredible topiaries. It’s been record breaking hot temperatures here this week so we took things slow and stopped every few minutes to sit in the shade or air conditioning.

My favourite topiaries have been:
🦌 Bambi and friends
👑 Princess Tiana
✨ Characters from Wish
🌷 the gardens in the Canada pavillion
🧸 Winnie the Pooh and friends
💐 the Heritage Garden
🥀 Beauty and the Beast characters

My favourite festival food:
🥐 Croissant at Fromage de Chèvre, Herbes et ail Rôtie (from Fleur de Lys in the France Pavilion)
🥨 Toasted Pretzel Bread (from Bauernmarkt: Farmer’s Market in the Germany Pavilion)
🍌 Bananas Foster Bread Pudding (from Magnolia Terrace in the American Pavilion)
🌸 Frozen Dessert Violet Lemonade (from the Pineapple Promenade)

What made this day SO special though was the magical moment we experienced when we first arrived. We got breakfast and sat in Celebration Garden and out of nowhere Pluto came and snuck up on us! He was playing hide-and-seek and then wanted our breakfast because we had bacon. It was so funny, so cute, and lots of fun! It was truly the perfect Disney moment.

10/05/2024

Day 3 was a bit of a different day for us. We had a late start with a brunch dining reservation at Boma - Flavours of Africa, located at Animal Kingdom Lodge.

This is one of my favourite hotels on property and I’ll take any excuse to visit. Boma is also one of my favourite restaurants on property and easily has one of the best breakfast buffets with a huge selection of both African inspired and American dishes. We had a beautiful time there with some unexpected interactions with various people around the resort.

From there we headed to Disney’s Animal Kingdom for the afternoon. We did the Kilimanjaro Safari twice as there was no line either time. And we did the Gorilla Falls walking trail and saw so many playful gorillas.

It was a recording breaking hot day so we took a lot of breaks and time in the shade at any indoor building we could find. Pro tip: bring a reusable water bottle into the parks and fill your bottle for free at any quick service dining location that has fountain drinks. And/or you can ask for a free ice water at any quick service dining location.

After Disney’s Animal Kingdom we went over to Disney Springs (we took the bus to Saratoga Springs Resort and walked over to Disney Springs using their walking path). We did a little bit of shopping then grabbed some dinner and snacks for the evening.

I ended the night with a quick dip in the pool then watched a movie before bed.

08/05/2024

Turns out, when you park hop it feels like you’ve been here longer than you have (not in a bad way). Yesterday was only our second park day but it feels like we’ve been here for four days.

I started my day by going to Disney’s Typhoon Lagoon water park. It’s very beachy themed here so I loved getting a “beach day” while at Walt Disney World. I spent time in the Surf Pool which is a giant wave pool. Then floated down the Castaway Creek lazy river. I lounged on the white sand beach before grabbing some lunch and heading out. I couldn’t get over how warm the water was. If you’re visiting the parks between May - Oct I highly recommend adding on the “Water Parks and more” option to your vacation package.

After a trip back to the hotel to clean up and get changed, we headed to Disney’s Hollywood Studios for the evening. Shopping, dinner, Mickey & Minnie’s Runaway Railway, and Fantasmic! was how we spent the night. It was an easy, perfect (and hot!) evening.

07/05/2024

Back at the Most Magical Place on Earth for a week.

Our first day included a morning at Magic Kingdom, lunch at Torguta Tavern, and taking the Main Street Trolley for the first time.

From there we Park Hopped over to EPCOT to enjoy the International Flower and Garden Festival. I got my favourite drink: Frozen Dessert Violet Lemonade, and we checked out a bunch of beautiful topiaries. We also took some time to enjoy the World Celebration Gardens, a quiet area to sit and relax in the shade.

After that we took the monorail back to Magic Kingdom for dinner with Winnie the Pooh and friends from the Hundred Acre Woods at The Crystal Palace. The food was delicious and the company was great! That was followed by watching the “Happily Ever After” fireworks from Fantasyland. And we ended the night with a few rides.

05/05/2024

30/04/2024

Today, April 29th, we celebrate the anniversary of the founding of Make-A-Wish, which makes this the perfect day to announce that I am raising $500 towards the Trees of Joy in ’s fundraising campaign.

The Make-A-Wish foundation is an international organization that grants wishes for children with critical illnesses.

In Canada, over 37,000 wishes have been granted since it’s inception in 1983.

It would mean the world to me if you would consider donating to our campaign via my fundraising page: https://makeawishca.donordrive.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=donorDrive.participant&participantID=32912

Let’s make more wishes come true! ✨

22/04/2024

Happy Anniversary to Disney’s Animal Kingdom!

On this day in 1998 the fourth theme park opened at Walt Disney World and this is the largest park on property.

One of the most beautiful aspects of this theme park is all the animals. On top of that there are rides, stage shows, diverse food, and beautiful design throughout the park.

27/03/2024

One thing I’ve found is that a lot of people don’t know what they can book with me, so I’m here to correct that!

While I have the most experience travelling to Walt Disney World in Orlando, FL, that’s not the only place I focus on.

Interest in going to Hawai’i? On a cruise? Or need a hotel stay? I’ve got you covered!

I’m here to guide solo travellers, adults, and families on their dream vacation.

26/03/2024

Something epic is coming 😏 …

18/03/2024

The EPCOT International Flower & Garden Festival is one of my favourite festivals at the theme park. 🌸

From the delicious food to the stunning garden displays, there's beauty around every corner.

17/03/2024

Ready to set sail next summer? Disney Cruise Line has released their 2025 itineraries! Let's get planning.

Check out Disney Cruise Line's new summer 2025 trips to bucket-list destinations around the world!

12/03/2024

Day 7 (Jan. 27, 2024) - Last Day/Travel Home

The final day of my birthday trip back in January was actually one of my favourite days.

We checked out of our room, dropped our bags at Bell Services, and headed over to Disney’s Polynesian Resort for breakfast at ‘Ohana. This is a family style character dining with classic Disney breakfast foods like scrambled eggs, ham, sausage, and potatoes. Plus you get to meet Mickey Mouse, Pluto, Lilo, and Stitch - all in their tropical outfits.

After that we hopped on the monorail to the Grand Floridian to take a stroll around. No trip is complete for me without a visit to their lobby. We had some time before our flight home and didn’t know what to do but then we decided:

From Disney’s Grand Floridian Resort & Spa we got back on the monorail and continued to Magic Kingdom to catch the bus back to our resort. [Tip: the monorail is outside of the park gates so you can use this transportation to get to and from the resorts and buses in the area].

Once we got back to our resort, we grabbed some things from our bags and caught the Skyliner over the Disney’s Caribbean Beach Resort where we picked up some Joffery’s. We walked over to one of the beaches (just for lounging, not for swimming!) and sat in the sun for an hour having our drinks, eating some cookies, and enjoying the beautiful sights, sounds, and environment.

It was the PERFECT end to a great vacation and I will cherish that day forever.

Our flight was a bit bumpy but we were treated to the beautiful sight of a bright full moon beside our wing the whole journey home.

26/02/2024

BIG NEWS!! 🚨🚨

2025 Walt Disney World packages (hotel and theme park tickets) will be available for booking starting TOMORROW!

This is months earlier than expected so contact me today to join my list and start planning your magical vacation for next year.

Walt Disney World Resort hotel rooms and theme park tickets for dates from January to October 2025 will be available to book beginning February 27, 2024!

And new for 2025 guests staying at a Disney Resort hotel can enjoy admission to a Disney Water Park on their check-in day - included with their stay.

Click the link below for more information and to get your 2025 Disney trip booked.

https://puremagicvacations.ca/Request-a-Quote

17/02/2024

I’m a day behind but the last park day of our trip in January was also my birthday! And it was the Best Day Ever.

Day 6 (Jan. 26, 2024) - Magic Kingdom

There’s no other theme park that I would choose to spend my birthday in. It was the perfect day. We had the most beautiful weather, and it was a simple, easeful day - exactly how I wanted it.

We had a great lunch at Steakhouse 71 (located at Disney’s Contemporary Resort, which is just a short 10 min walk from Magic Kingdom). I knew from the moment I booked this trip that this would be my birthday meal/special way to celebrate and doing my Advance Dining Reservations secured that for me.

The rest of the day we took our time wandering the park and seeing where the magic took us. We experienced the Country Bear Jamboree for the first time - which also happened to be the last day it was open before closing down to be remodelled. We had no wait for Pirates of the Caribbean and we wandered around all the lands taking in the sights and sounds.

The night ended in the most magical way when we watched the Happily Ever After fireworks from behind Cinderella Castle. This location is like being in a dome of fireworks and it is my second favourite place to watch from.

I couldn’t have asked for a better birthday.

16/02/2024

I’m still reliving the beautiful week that was my birthday at Walt Disney World.

Day 5 (Jan. 25, 2024) - EPCOT

There are so many things I love about this theme park: Journey of Water, Inspired by Moana is one of my favourite attractions at Walt Disney World, I could spend hours in here.

I also love the festivals this park has and Festival of the Arts is my favourite. We spent the day trying all the festival food (mostly snacks and desserts lol). And enjoyed the artist booths and the paint by number mural.

One of the highlights and “must dos” on this trip was to see the new World Celebration area where the Walt Disney statue and bench are. I 100% cried seeing it for the first time. This area is so beautiful in the day and night with lots of greenery and added seating. (And it was so nice to walk through this area without construction walls - it saved so much time).

To end the night we watched the new fireworks show Luminous The Symphony of Us. This is by far my favourite EPCOT fireworks show, I really enjoyed it!

14/02/2024

Combining Day 3 & Day 4 here (Jan. 23 & 24) - Rest Day & Disney’s Hollywood Studios.

On the Tuesday of our trip we took a rest day and had a wonderful breakfast at Disney’s Animal Kingdom Lodge at their restaurant, Boma. They’re breakfast buffet is one of my favourites on property. We walked outside and saw the most beautiful giraffe so close to us!

That evening we headed to Disney Springs and I experienced Gideon’s Bakehouse for the first time AND had my first Dolr Whip ever (it was cherry flavour and it was amazing).

The next day we headed to Disney’s Hollywood Studios but not before another wonderful breakfast at Ale & Compass located at Disney’s Yacht Club.

I was spoiled that day with a birthday treat and the weather was beautiful, perfect for a day in the theme parks. We ended Day 4 the only way you can at Disney’s Hollywood Studios: watching the nighttime spectacular, Fantasmic!