Bert's Big Adventure kids head to Disney World for annual trip

ATLANTA - Thirteen amazing children are enjoying a free vacation at the most magical place on earth... Walt Disney World! 

Bert's Big Adventure (BBA) held its annual send-off party Thursday for a five-day, all-expenses-paid trip to Orlando. Every year, the non-profit sends children with chronic and terminal illnesses on the vacation. 

Watch video from the 2017 send-off party

"We are so excited to be taking these amazing kids and their families on this year's Bert's Big Adventure trip," said BBA founder and host of "The Bert Show," Bert Weiss. 

The big sendoff was extra special this year because BBA is celebrating its 15th anniversary. As part of the celebration, children were surprised with special gifts at the Renaissance Concourse Hotel next to Atlanta's airport. It was a fun morning filled with music, Disney characters and a live broadcast of "The Bert Show."

There are always surprises at the big send-off party, and this year was no different. Some of the surprises included a Disney cruise donated by Wishdrawals, a Batman-themed room makeover donated by Dentistry for Children and Family Orthodontics, a player-for-a-day with the Georgia Swarm Lacrosse team and a gymnast-for-a-day with the UGA Gymdogs and Team IMPACT. 

The children, along with their families, boarded a chartered flight courtesy of ExpressJet after the send-off party and headed for Disney shortly before noon on Thursday. 

Once they arrived, the families checked in at Disney's BoardWalk Inn Resort and quickly headed to the GM Track at Epcot where they were greeted by special guests. The incredible day ended with firewokrs on their own private patio. 

Bert’s Big Adventure was founded by Bert Weiss and Stacey Weiss. It was established in 2002. To qualify for BBA, a child must be between the ages of 5-12, live in “The Bert Show” radio listening area, prove financial need and have never been to Walt Disney World.  Learn more here