Hi! We’re back from the “happiest place on earth” and it’s only understandable that we’re all a bit sad. Not only is Disney World so much fun, but it brings my family close together. We are LITERALLY close together in a small hotel room every night, but then we spend the day creating all these special family memories. My daughter woke up for school on Tuesday morning in tears. She missed Disney World so much. It made me sad, but it also warmed my heart to know that she enjoyed her time with her family.
Speaking of tears, I’m sure there were some flowing from the PARENTS’ eyes when they saw the line in Epcot to meet Frozen‘s Elsa and Anna. It was almost four hours long! You can meet them in Epcot’s Norway pavilion. It’s right across from Akershus Royal Banquet Hall. They are set up in the back of the gift shop and you can see a side view from an opening. There was a mini-line for that side view too! I waited patiently for our turn to sneak a peek of the girls from Arendelle. I think the wait helped me convince Annabel that this was “Soooo coooool! Look! It’s Anna and Elsa!! I’ll take a picture for you!!” I was desperately trying to avoid the “But can we meet them?”conversation, because now that line was “five hours long” according to the lovely Grandpa standing next to us.
(Tip: The Frozen girls are in the meet-and-greet area everyday from 9 AM to 6 PM. I would suggest you head straight there when Epcot opens and hopefully your wait will be under an hour. Another option is to book an early 8 AM breakfast at Norway’s Akershus Royal Banquet Hall so someone from your group can stand in line at 8:45 AM before the gates open.)
Annabel was fine with the side look because I quickly distracted her with the Frozen stuff. “Look! They have Elsa dresses!” Well, they DID have Elsa dresses, but there were all the same size: Extra Small. Boo. There were no more Elsa T-shirts or barbie dolls either. There were no Olaf plushes. We moved through the rest of the toy section where I saw Moms grabbing some plush Anna and Elsa topsy-turvy dolls. I remember having one of those as a kid! Mine was Little Red Riding Hood and the Big Bad Wolf when you flipped it upside down. The Anna/Elsa ones were starting to go like hot cakes, so I told Annabel that could be her one Frozen treat. Daniel found a Norwegian viking helmet, so he was all good. We waited in another line to pay for the treats and then off we went. I gave knowing looks to the poor parents still standing in the heat with their little girls. I said a little “thank you” to the Frozen Gods that I avoided that..for today.
(Tip: I also noticed they did not have any Elsa or Anna dresses left in Magic Kingdom’s Bibbidy Bobbidi Boutique. I was told that some days they have them, but they sell out so quickly. If you can find a dress in a store in your hometown, BUY IT. You can always bring it with you to the boutique and your little one can put it on there before the princess hair and makeup session.)
The Norway Pavilion also has a display of Norwegian items and photos that inspired Frozen and you can see them in the Stave Church. It was neat to walk through and see the real-life church and mountainside village that gave the Disney animators the idea to create the Arendelle setting. I think we are all a little more Frozen–obsessed now, if that’s even possible.
Update on 3/21: It’s been announced that Anna and Elsa will soon move from Epcot to Disney’s Magic Kingdom! Starting Sunday, April 20th, they’ll join some of their fellow Disney Royals at Princess Fairytale Hall, where the Disney FastPass+ service will be available! Yay!