Solo trip worth it?

[ajblbv]

Looking for solo experiences, have been reading a bunch of threads but can't seem to wrap my head around the idea of doing a whole trip solo. What do you guys enjoy most about it? What do you like least?

Thanks for the input :dance3:

[skiingfast]

I would say the worse thing is sitting by untalkative strangers on a ride and not have anyone to share the experience with.

Best thing maybe how quickly you can move around. There are a lot of spots to watch a parade or fireworks for just 1. When you don't have anyone else to deal with you truly get to do whatever you want.

[GATORinaZ28]

I went solo this past May and I think that the best part of it was the fact that I was on my own schedule and not trying to fit the wants of everyone into a day at the parks. If I got tired of one park and wanted to check out another park, I just moved over. Also the cost of meals was great compared to our usual family of 5 trips...lol

I think for me the worst part was I missed my family. Seeing other families there having fun made me miss mine.

Overall, I will do it again!

Hope this helps. :)

[budcollector]

i just made my 6th solo trip and to me thats the best and only way to see Disney...
the best part of soloing is you can do what YOU want to do and when You want to do it.
you can also see and do more.
look at it this way,
these are words you'll not hear when you go solo

" i don't want to do that lets do this " or can't we do something else i don't like that "

:banana::banana::banana::banana:

[nurse.darcy]

Solo trips. . .let me see. How excited can I make you. It helps if you have been there before and have meet a few CMs. After several trips there are quite a few that I know. I have usually planned my solo trips around some kind of DISmeet or when other DISsers that I want to meet are going to be there. I have a meal with them, enjoy rides with other DISsers and then do stuff that I love doing. I eat table service meals at the bars so I can chat up the CMs and just basically have the time of my life. Give it a try. Do a short trip at first and plan around some other DISsers trips so that you can meet up for a meal or a ride. Its awesome.

[mytripsandraces]

I agree with the previous posters. It's so nice to be on your own schedule and ride whatever you want to ride, rest when you want to rest, eat when/where you want to eat . . .

Plus, it's so much easier to find a spot to watch the parades!

Downsides are that you're not sharing the experience with anyone and, if you're a grazer, like I am, you can't really eat all of the food you want, because the meals are too big.

[Amysita]

Worth every sacrifice you make to save up the money to go. Only one con...the occasional negative / rude person you may run into @ Disney...but that's a con whether you're solo or with a group.

[Golden_Eagle426]

I did a solo trip earlier this year. The major pro was the fact that I could do whatever I wanted, whenever I wanted.

The only "negative" thing, at least on my particular trip, was that character interactions seemed a lot more awkward then those that I would usually have while with other people.

[ClareH37]

I'm a newbie solo'er, having just experienced my first solo trip in early May, but already having booked my next trip for 2011 :woohoo:

For me, the worst part was flying, I hate flying, and having to do a transatlantic (I'm from the UK) flight by myself, then through immigration, was something I wasn't looking forward to. The flight was still horrible, made worse by a detour around the 'ash' cloud which added another couple of hours onto the flight, but immigration was fine.

I loved every minute of my solo trip, from waking up and deciding on the spur of the moment to head over to MK for the opening ceremony (something I'd never done before), even though I'd planned before hand some of that went out the window!, also taking time out and eating TS solo, I had a mix of meals, some with Disboard friends/people I hadn't met before, and some solo, I had great meals/service wherever I went and I'm going to venture out to different restaurants next time.

I didn't encounter any rude or negative people this trip (which was a first!), I even stood in line for character photos by myself and didn't feel at all awkward, but I think I was on such a 'high' that nothing could have made me feel awkward :goodvibes

[GaRain]

Just went solo this past March (see trip report link in my signature). This was my 2nd solo trip to the world and I had a GREAT time!
So many benefits such as going where you want, when you want. No breakdowns, no arguments, no discussions of who has to potty and who needs to eat.
Many times you actually can skip ahead in lines - when they ask for single riders. I got to ride Soarin' twice in a row because of a single seat open!
You get to meet people and talk to CM's - I just think it is great all around.

Of course, by the last day, I am sad to leave, but really happy to see my family again!
I say go for it! :woohoo:

[Missytara]

I miss my solo trips and am actually looking forward to my first solo trip in a while this year. I really need it!;)

[Disney_Jill]

I just went on my first solo trip for 5 days and LOVED it!! I finally got to do everything I wanted to do. I saw all the movies at Epcot, skipped the rides I didn't feel like going on or only rode them once, which was enough. I got to do some of the things in Innovations I always wanted to do (Piggy Bank adventure). I just really took everything in.
I really enjoyed my time alone. See, I am never alone. I teach all day, have 3 kids, 2 dogs, and 2 cats. I am always running someone somewhere or doing something for someone else. This was my time just for me. I did miss the kids a few times, but we just went twice this year. Plus, when I saw kids having meltdowns or families fussing over what to do next, I was relieved it wasn't me.
I say go for it! :thumbsup2

[GATORinaZ28]

Plus, when I saw kids having meltdowns or families fussing over what to do next, I was relieved it wasn't me.

I had a similar experience when I was in Animal Kingdom. A young couple was ahead of me and the husband/boyfriend or whatever was looking around in awe and I could tell he was really excited. The wife/girlfriend got mad at him and started griping at him for walking too fast for her. She went off on him for about 5 minutes, but he didn't care, he was excited...lol

Solo traveling has no walking speed limit. :)

[j9000]

Solo traveling has no walking speed limit. :)

this sums up every argument for solo travel,

there is a great quote by Lemmy Killminster -
"the greatest ability a man can have is the ability to be alone and not be bothered by it"

and its true, IF you are able to travel and do stuff by yourself, then the world is your oyster.

[disney_mommy]

I went on my first solo trip this past March and I can't wait for my next one! I had a blast. I was worried that I would end up sitting alone in my room watching TV, but I was barely in the room at all. There was so much I wanted to do. Things that I hadn't done yet because my family didn't want to try them, or things I'd already done but wanted to do again but my family didn't want to. I got to go to my 2 favorite restaurants, even though my family is sick of them. I rode the monorail just to check out the resorts which nobobody ever wanted to do on our family trips. I shopped till I dropped, which my son would have protested (loudly) against. I stayed up late and rode the rides in the dark, when I would usually have been back in the room with my family. I ate when and where I wanted without having to check with anyone else. I decided which lines were too long to wait in and which were worth the long wait.

I can't say this enough - go for it!

[Ress76]

I have not done a whole solo trip, yet, but I have done solo days in a family trip. The best thing was only thinking about yourself-what YOU wanted todo, where YOU wanted to go, what YOU wanted to eat, what YOU wanted to see. I went to Epcot and explored the WS, and took a ton of pictures. I never get that chance because we're in a hurry to get somewhere else or get to the next movie, or get to the next bathroom.

The drawback, if there was one, was not having someone to share the exploring with. That said, not having to do 15 things I didn't want to do, far, FAR more than made up for that!

[budcollector]

Cost of Vacation - $1300
Food & Souviners - $600
Being Able To Do What You Want,
When You Want - $ Priceless


:banana::banana::banana::banana:

[GaSleepingBeautyFan]

I adored my solo trip. I'm always having to do something that someone else needs me to do and I'm never alone.

I like to plan my trips around something fun. My first solo trip was during F&G Festival. My next solo trip is to see alot of the christmas stuff.

I was able to do whatever I wanted (rode HM 7 times in a row!), ate ice cream for breakfast, stayed out late, met some wonderful people and ate at restaurants the family was never interested in.

I did miss the family a couple of times but I called home once a day to check up and it helped alot.

I'm really looking forward to my next solo trip.

[Claudia Kellenberger]

Right now, today, I am 180 days out from my 12th annual solo WDW trip.
THAT should tell you a lot! Each year is even more wonderful than the last.
This year, my DH is coming with me for just the first day and a half, then the next 6 days are solo for me. Perfect !! It becomes a true vacation, when you go solo because you just don't have to worry about making others happy.
You can do whatever you want, any time you want. Have FUN !

[FredQc]

I did several solo trips to various places, including a 7-day one at WDW. Though I really liked it, I can imagine that solo trips are not for everyone. It depends of you and I believe that you should think about other tourism activities you do by yourself to get a better idea about how a solo trip is suited for you.

As many people have said, increasing freedom is the most important advantage to a solo trip. You don't have to negociate what you do with other. Some negociation always implicitly (and sometimes explicitly) occur with others. And in a place as large and diverse as WDW, there is a lot of negociation to do, so going alone is obviously great on this point.

One tip: I always carry a piece of paper and a small pen with me. As I wait for my meal at a TS restaurant, I write a description of what I did and what I saw. So being alone into a sit down restaurant is less annoying.

[Stephanator]

I didn't have a whole solo trip, but some solo days on my last WDW vacation and loved it. :yay:

Pros:
*Doing whatever you like. Eating, drinking, shopping, listening to bands, watching a show, people watching, picture taking, character meets, resort hopping, trail walking, etc...
*Meeting people. I'm not talking life-long friends, but it was genuinely interesting to talk to people (both adults & kids) in line for rides, at restaurants and various cast members. It was also refreshing to see that most people really want to be helpful and nice. I must have asked 30 people to take my picture and every one said yes.

Cons:
*Thinking "Oh wow, _____ would've really liked to see this."
*No one else to carry your backpack. ;)

[ExpatDisneyLover]

I haven't done a solo trip to WDW but had my first solo trip to Disneyland Paris in March. I loved it!

What I liked - being able to spend as much time as I wanted taking photos, looking at details, riding my favorites again and again etc. Doing what you want when you want is NICE!:wizard:

I also felt very safe at Disney - that was a plus for a woman on her own.

What I didn't like - I had planned only counter service meals and didn't eat very well. I actually forgot to eat on a couple of occasions. I am going to try to remedy that on my next trip next week by booking a couple of table service restaurants. Eating alone feels a bit strange since I am not having a conversation - so I would write in my planning journal - notes on the day for my trip report.

I really enjoy seeing other people enjoy things - so when friends and family are not there I don't get to see them enjoy the experience. But I will say I got a kick out of watching other people enjoy things - especially small kids - they can't help but squeal and get happy when Mickey appears etc.:goodvibes

[mecllap]

I LOVE going solo (also love taking along DD and DGS) -- most of the pros have been covered (being able to get one last minute spot up close for parades and fireworks is great). Hard to think of any cons -- about the only thing is having someone to help unload and reload the car! (But when that becomes a real issue, I'll just get better at using bell services).

I got used to eating in restaurants alone when I traveled for work, so don't mind doing that (I do often read, or write in my journal, or plan what's next, but sometimes I just sit and relax and enjoy being there).

Someone who goes to Disney primarily to take the kids or someone else, and doesn't love the imagination, visuals, characters, experiences, etc. themselves, would probably not like a solo trip -- but then, it wouldn't occur to them to do one.

[karmutt]

I've just booked my second solo trip.

Pros - What everyone else has already said; you get to do whatever you want, whenever you want. I can spend 30 minutes looking at the bats at AK and no one tries to drag me away. Also, single rider lines. It sucks that they don't have as many as they do at Disneyland and California Adventure (which I'm only an hour away from and do solo quite often), but at least there are a few. I'm going to Islands of Adventure this time and I believe they have quite a few there, so that should be cool.

Cons - I love the water parks, but some of the slides are family or two or three person only. As an introvert (hence the solo trips), I find it awkward to ask if I can squeeze in. On the plus side, there's a single rider line (or was last time I was there) for the ski lift at Blizzard Beach. I also don't like to fly and somehow feel more secure when I'm flying with someone else. And then there's the cost. It'd be nice to share it with someone, but only if they didn't actually come along.