Well, not so much where do you eat, but what do you do when your first choices are all booked up?  Several times in the last week and even over the last couple of years, as the Disney Dining program has become more popular, people we talk to are having more and more difficulty getting any dining reservations.

There are a couple ways to "get around" this issue.

1. Book at newer restaurants: With the recent openings of Kouzzina by Cat Cora and Sanaa at Animal Kingdom Lodge, fewer people are aware of the new offerings.  Both of these restaurants (and new Disney dining options, as a rule) have more seating available than most of the other Disney Dining opportunities.
2. Pick "off-the-beaten-path"options: Many restaurants, while fantastic, do not get the attention they deserve.  A couple of these that often have Advanced Dining Reservations when others don't are Cape May and Chefs de France.  Both offer under-appreciated food and service!

So, the next time you get frustrated with getting your ADR's, be sure to check out the newer options on property, as well as some of those under-appreciated opportunities!

Many guests wonder about going to the beach while in the Orlando area.  Although Orlando is in the middle of the state of Florida, it's only about an hour to get to the Atlantic Ocean, but there are many options available.

Likely the closest and most easily accessible beach from Disney is Cocoa Beach.  Just a quick trip east on the 528 toll road will get you on the beach.  Since it is a toll road and a highway, you can travel quickly to the beach, as long as you're willing to spend the dough to get there.

Many Orlando locals travel to New Smyrna Beach.  It's probably closer to the north-east part of town (as opposed to the south-west part where Disney's located), but still a beautiful beach, nonetheless.  However, this one requires a trip east on State Road 44 (often a two-lane road), off I-4 (AKA world's largest parking lot).  Many readers may also recognize New Smyrna Beach as the shark bite capital of the world.  Great location and beach, just be ready to take a longer drive and stay out of the water at dawn and dusk.

Finally, there's the world-famous Daytona Beach.  With lots of history and activities, this is a very popular beach with Disney travelers.  Just remember that the second/third weekend of February includes speed weeks with the famous Daytona 500 race, shortly thereafter followed by Daytona's Bike Week.  Daytona will also be rather crowded for the July 4th weekend, due to the Coke Zero (used to be the Pepsi) 400 race.  Late October will also be very busy, due to Biketoberfest.  It's a very easy drive, about 1-1/2 hours east on I-4 from Disney World.  I-4 will actually end in Daytona Beach, right at the famous Daytona Speedway.  Also note, avoid I-4 during normal rush hours, morning and evening.

Whichever beach you choose, you'll have a wonderful time visiting some of Florida's most beautiful and famous beaches.

How do I get to Sea World from Disney World?

Lots of people have been asking recently, how to get to Sea World from Disney World.

Really, there are only about three ways to get to Sea World from Disney World:

1. A taxi -- if you're just making the one trip there and back, this will probably be your best bet as far as price is concerned.
2. Rent a car -- You can rent a car right on Disney property at the Alamo Center at the Walt Disney World Car Care Center.
3. Town Car service -- this one will be a bit more expensive than a taxi, but you will receive much better service.  We recommend www.transportation2disney.com for Town Car service. (We have no affiliation with this company, just the one we like to use).

We get questions about how to get "off-property" quite often and the answer differs for where you want to go outside of the Walt Disney World Resort.  Be sure to check lots of options before deciding how to get where you want to go in the Orlando area.

Many Disney guests do not realize that Alamo car rental provides a rental location right at the Walt Disney World Resort.  Many times, guests do not want to rent a car for their entire vacation.  If you rent one from one of the other major car rental companies at the airport, though, you will have to pick it up when you arrive and drop it off when you return home.  You could also take the Disney airport shuttle on the day you want to use the car and pick it up, but this could waste tons of valuable time, during your vacation (that always seems too short, anyway).

From your resort, all you have to do is press the "Car Rental" button on your room phone and they'll come pick you up!

This gives you the opportunity to rent a car for just a single day of your vacation to visit other Orlando area attractions, experience other parts of Orlando and central Florida, maybe take a day trip to the beach, and so on.

Today's Monday Mouse Mail question comes from one of our comments on one of our Star Wars Weekends posts. Where do I get Star Wars Christmas ornaments?

One of our favorite places to get just about anything is eBay, of course!

Additionally, we also like to check the Star Wars Shop, but the selection this year amounts to stockings and nutcrackers.

Of course, there's also the old stand-by, Amazon.

So, there should be plenty of places to find Star Wars ornaments, online. Good luck and let us know your secret stores.

Am I able to use my cell phone or access the internet during my Disney Cruise?

We get this question quite often and since we just got back from a Disney Cruise, thought this would be an appropriate Monday Mouse Mail question to answer.

Disney does offer wireless internet services during your cruise, as well as an internet cafe on the third deck.  You will have to purchase minutes for your internet usage, whether you access at the cafe or from your laptop.  Disney offers several packages, including a per minute plan priced at .75 cents per minute.  Packages start at $27.50 for 50 minutes and move up to $75 for 250 minutes.

You can also use your cell phone during your entire cruise, while aboard the ship.  However, as Disney warns, check with your cell phone service provider for additional roaming charges that may apply.  Fortunately, we did check with our provider, T-Mobile, and we were instructed that phone usage would cost $4.99 per minute.  They further informed us that data phones, such as our BlackBerry Curves, experience these charges just while being on and begin at the cruise terminal.  Imagine our surprise at this tidbit of information.  Had we left our phones on during our short 3-night cruise, without even using the phone, we would have been charged nearly $36,000 by T-Mobile for the duration of the cruise!!!  So, shut your phone off as soon as you enter the cruise terminal or you could be paying a lot more for your Disney cruise than you were expecting!

In last week's Monday Mouse Mail, we talked about all the special events Disney World has coming up in the next few months.  Today's question relates to these special events.

How early can we get into the Magic Kingdom for Mickey's Very Merry Christmas?

Although all the special events start at 7PM and run until midnight, you can actually get into Magic Kingdom at 4PM on the day of the event with the special tickets.  This is a great way to beat the special event crowd to the park!  Most of the day crowds are winding down and on their way out, most special event guests do not arrive until 7PM, so you have three hours of opportunity to ride the most popular rides without much of a wait!

When are the special events at Disney World, this year?

Since we are in the middle of the special event season, we thought this an appropriate question to answer in today's Monday Mouse Mail.

Currently, Disney World is hosting it's annual Mickey's Not So Scary Halloween Party.  Mickey's Very Merry Christmas Party will start on November 10th.  Each event has premium event dates that include a premium ticket price.

Mickey's Not So Scary Halloween Party Dates (Remaining Dates, Only)

October 7, 9, 10, 13, 16, 19, 21, 23, 24, 26, 28, and 30 (October 31st is SOLD OUT)

Premium Dates
October 10, 16, 23, 1 24, 26, 30, 31

Premium date ticket prices
$55.95+tax/adult, $49.95+tax/child (ages 3-9) -- these are also the ticket prices for "day of" ticket purchases on non-premium dates.

Non-Premium Dates
October 2, 5, 7, 13, 19, 21, 28

Advanced Purchase Price for Non-Premium Dates
$48.95+tax/adult, $42.95+tax/child

Disney also offers discounted advance purchase tickets to Annual Passholders and Disney Vacation Club Members for $45.95+tax/adult and $39.95+tax/child.

The ticket price structure for Mickey's Very Merry Christmas Party exactly mirrors the pricing for Mickey's Not-So-Scary Halloween Party.

Mickey's Very Merry Christmas Party Dates:

November 10, 11, 14, 16, 20, 21, 30
December 2, 4, 5, 7, 9, 11, 12, 14, 16, 18, 19

Be sure to visit our travel partner, DestinationsInFlorida.com, for purchasing your tickets to these special Disney World events!

Today, we're starting an interesting new feature called Monday Mouse Mail.  Every Monday we will be answering a question we've received about Disney World, Universal Studios, Sea World, or the general Orlando area.  We get a lot of questions throughout the week and we thought we should share some of the questions and answers with our readers.  Also, if you have any questions you'd like answered in the Monday Mouse Mail edition, emal us at questions @ guide2disney.com.

This week our question relates to distance.  Many guests wonder about the distance from one park to another.  Orlando has many theme parks and although they are mostly within one area of Orlando, they are still spread out over that area.  Here are the gritty details, according to Google maps:

• Disney World to Sea World - 13.2 miles and about 22 minutes travel time
• Disney World to Universal Studios - 16.9 miles and about 26 minutes travel time
• Sea World to Universal Studios - 5.6 miles and about 14 minutes travel time

Obviously, these travel times do not factor in traffic, which can increase the travel time usually by no more than 15-20 minutes.  Of course, the Walt Disney World Resort maintains internal transporation options for guests, including bus, monorail, and boats.  However, if you need to travel off-property to one of these other theme parks, you will need to arrange for your own transportation or have a rental car.

We hope you enjoyed our first edition of the Monday Mouse Mail and look forward to receiving your questions for next week.  Also, please note, we keep all information private at all times, including your name, email address, etc.  Your question will be kept anonymous, as well, unless you specifically ask to be named.