Some of my fondest vacation memories from my childhood are early evening games of mini-golf with my parents and sister.  None of us were particularly good, but just having fun as a family in the cooler evening hours is something that will stick with me for a long time.  In our original home of Ottawa Canada we had a few min-golf courses around town but they were really low quality, not even consisting of the common windmill obstacle.  The ones I really remember were in Florida, we would spot them as we drove in from the airport.  My dad would somehow make a mental note of where they were and we would try a new one almost every night.  The theming of these courses was just so beyond what we were used to it just added to the enjoyment of the experience.

On those days back when my sister and I were kids we never stayed on Disney Property but instead would be at a Howard Johnson in Kissimmee.  Due to this once we were done with the parks for the day we usually headed back to the hotel to do something near there.  I don’t know exactly when the Disney Mini-Golf courses first opened, but I first tried these courses out in 1997 when I took a trip after high school graduation.

Fantasia Gardens is located near the Swan and Dolphin Resort.  Unfortunately there is no directly transportation to the mini-golf course so you have to get creative if you don’t have a car.  Once you get to the area there are actually two separate courses here, Fantasia and the Fairway.  Fantasia as you can probably guess since we are at Disney has each hole designed around the Fantasia movie.

Each hole throughout the course slowly gets a little more difficult, but nothing too crazy.  They are all very reasonable for even the most casual of player of almost all ages.

Some of the holes have simple obstacles in the middle of a curing green, where others have some very interesting water hazards like the below.

Towards the end of the course you do get to finally see the Sorcerer’s Apprentice.

But be careful as you walk beneath the broomsticks with their buckets, if you don’t walk quick enough you may get a little shower of water.

The second course as I mentioned above is called the Fairway.  This is the more difficult of the two  courses.

Each hole is set up to imitate a regular golf course.  As you can see from the pictures above there are no rails along the side of the course, there are sands traps, and other water hazards.  But just take your time and have fun.

After you finish playing your course and turn in your golf club there is an arcade available near the entrance/exit.  There are sometimes long waits to play these courses.  I’ve gone a few times and been told that wait is over an hour to start.  The arcade is a great way to pass the time, but it’s not a big place and only has a few games inside.  As you can see there is also a penny machine crammed into one of the corners.

There are three designs here which have moved all around the property.  The images include Sorcerer’s Apprentice Mickey, Cinderella’s Step Mother and Sisters, and the White Rabbit from Alice in Wonderland.

I have played these courses a few times  and they can be challenging, but still fun to play.  Some younger children may find the Fairway course a little too hard, but as my mom always said it’s not weather you win or lose but how you play the game.  It’s all about having fun and making memories!

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