Does Soarin make anyone else feel regretful for vacationing at Disney World?

[Sammie]

Not at all, we do both. Disney and nonDisney vacations.

 

[Keurigirl]

In all honesty, your son won't be disappointed by Disneyland if you decide to do there instead of Disneyworld. I wouldn't give him an option, just go. It's much smaller, but almost all the same rides are there, minus Animal Kingdom and Epcot and RRC. It's very walkable and very fun!

 

[Scrappy_Tink]

I was born and raised in CA, so except for the hang-glider, I've already been there, done that. . But yeah, sometimes me and DH think we need to experience something different....in addition to, not to replace, Disney. WDW is our Happy Place. we are expanding...we bought points at Vero Beach, and plan on using DVC points In Hawaii in 2014. Does that count?

 

[Magic_Kingdom]

Soaring has never made me feel like that, I love going to Disney World too much! Going to Disney World is really expensive for my family, we're not one of those families that can go every year, it's a lot of saving and we can only do it maybe every 2 years or sometimes 3 years so going there feels like a real treat, we tried Spain last year and although it was nice, it felt like there was nothing to do because when we have a Disney vacation, we are normally up and out for 10 in the morning up untill 11 at night, so I feel really stuck for things to do anywhere else Think Disney is just my happy place!

I just look at The World Showcase in Epcot as my tour around the world!

 

[Colleen27]

Not at all, because I don't want to do most of those places with a preschooler! The only thing it really makes me think about at this stage of our lives is how much I'd like to get to Disneyland one of these days.

We do take other trips, though; not cross country right now but around the Great Lakes and East Coast, and we'll get to those sights in Soarin' when the time is right (like when I don't have to worry about a stroller, diaper bag, and the endurance limits of a 3yo!).

 

[poeticdiabetic]

Disney World is awesome! We went there for three years straight (from 2006-2008.) But when the crash happened at the end of 2008 (and my eldest son turned 10, which made our dining plan bill skyrocket), we decided to go on a cheap vacation to Florida. We went to US/IOA (before Harry Potter, when you could get a 7-day ticket for $99.) We stayed at a cheap hotel, ate at the restaurants and hung out. And we had a great time!

Before 2006, our family haven't had a real vacation since we had kids. To us, WDW WAS vacation. But the crash kinda freed us from WDW and we were kind of like the OP: We wanted to take our kids and see more of the world.

So you know where we started? Disney! Not Disney World, but a Disney Cruise! I wanted to take our kids to another country and see something other than a theme park. But we were also nervous that our kids (or wife) may not like cruising. I knew they liked Disney, so I thought that a Disney cruise would be a good next step.

We went on a 4-night cruise. And absolutely LOVED IT! More than I thought or ever could imagine! To tell you the truth, we like character interaction and you get more on the boat than you do at the parks. You get more food, more entertainment, more characters, more pictures, etc. Plus, you get to go somewhere!

I mean, the only bad thing that I could think of was that the boat stopped in Nassau (which was horrible, IMO.)

So the next year, we went on a Carnival Cruise (cheaper and went to Mexico.) We had a lot of fun, but the cruise itself wasn't as exciting as Disney's. But the destinations were much better and we did some things that I thought we would never do (from exciting things like swimming in an underground river to the mundane, cool things like hanging at a huge grocery store, talking to locals in broken spanish in Cozumel.) Fun, fun, fun!

Now, we are so ready to return to WDW! We miss it now! But that's because we did other things that allowed us time to miss it!

 

[princesskayla]

Nope.

If there were a way in the real world to soar above all the places I soar above in Soarin', maybe. Or a way to visit an 18th century pirate ship, maybe. Or a way to visit a genuinely haunted mansion and be guaranteed to see 999 ghosts, maybe. Or a way to ride a paddle wheel steamboat the same day I ride a runaway mine car the same day I visit ancient Greece the same day I orbit the earth the same day I safely almost fall to my death in a haunted hotel elevator, maybe.

I get my fill of the real world all day every day. I love WDW because it's NOT the real world, because I can do things there that I CAN'T do in the real world.

Amen!

I love DisneyWorld and would be super happy to go there every vacation I have left. My husband does not feel that way - we compromise by taking Disney cruises and several mini-vacations during the year (Las Vegas, Fairbanks, Georgia, New Mexico) Then I get one "big" vacation to DL or WDW before our cruises. However, I really think WDW is like a gateway drug - once you get hooked, you end up addicted to Disney cruises, DVC, Aulani, ABD, the international Disneyland's...

Now to convince my hubby we need to see Disneyland Paris in 2013 before our Med cruise. Oh yeah, and I also gotta work on obtaining a second job to finance my Disney obsession.

 

[Aroth28]

OMG, This thread is EPIC!!!! This winter after much discussion (mostly heated) with my wife over vacations for 2012 we changed our mindset. Of course she wanted WDW and I wanted Hawaii. So the tie breaker was our 7 yo son. My wife asked him (thinking she would get the winning vote LOL) and he said that he wanted to see the Soarin' places for real. We looked at each other and had a wow moment!

So after months of planning it is set. We are flying into LV and renting an SUV for 17 days. Driving up through Death Valley (camping out here for a night), staying in a tiny motel in Big Pine,CA. Then though Yosemite up to Lake Tahoe across and up to North Ca, down through Sacremento, on to the Napa Valley, SF Bay area, Pacific Coast Hwy to Monterrey Bay, down to Anaheim and DL for 2 days, LA to SD and up through the Mohave to LV again.

2670 miles! We are also big fans of A&E'e Storage Wars so we are visiting each of the main buyer's shops in CA as well

I honestly can't wait, we have even named the trip: "Soarin : for real!"

 

[tofubeast]

No, it does not make me regret my WDW vacation. BUT, it does make me sad that I no longer live in California.

That said, I wish they would do a Soarin' over Florida or the East Coast or something.

 

[Dorisk3]

If Soarin makes you feel regretful for not seeing those things in real life,then you should do see those things in real life, problem solved. A kid will always say Disney when asked about vacation, but thankfully as adults, we have some choices too.

 

[TDC Nala]

I lived in California for five years and have been to nearly everyplace depicted in Soarin' before the ride even opened, so Soarin' doesn't affect me that way...the World Showcase does, but now I've been to seven of the 10 non-US countries represented. If you really want to go someplace else, you need to get out there and do it. (I still go to WDW a few times a year)

 

[PinkBudgie]

Come on out to California then! You can visit DLR and see other things so you can still get your Disney fix. I always try to look for our car on the Golden Gate Bridge. I've never seen it there, but who knows- we COULD have been driving across at the time. What bothers me about Soarin is they show Disneyland at Christmas. So when you watch in the summer it doesn't feel right because suddenly I don't feel like I'm really there. Also the decorations look so old compared to how they do it now. I don't know why they chose Christmas time.

 

[vicb]

Not bashing regular WDW vacationers, I've taken my family 5 times.... however, we have taken our kids other places and they have enjoyed them. We don't have the money to vacation world-wide but our country is large and varied and we have tried to give a taste of it to our kids as they've grown up.

Our California trip was to San Diego area, non-DL. We did however mix in Lego Land and Sea World. If you ask my kids the highlight of that trip they will tell you hands down it was the seal beach (Children's Pool) in La Jolla where they saw newborn baby seals! It was so unique they asked to return another day to stand there and watch the seals! Seeing the Pandas at the SD Zoo was pretty cool too.

If you do a Florida WDW vacation again how about combining it with Space Coast? My DS always had expressed a desire to visit the Kennedy Space Center so we visited during the final years of the shuttle program and were rewarded with seeing 2 shuttles on the launch towers, really cool !

We have also done Maine coast, Boston (whale watch!), NC (Biltmore Estate and hiking), San Antonio, Chicago, Toronto, Marco Island (jet skiing tour in the mangrove swamps), Everglades, Phoenix/Sedona, Las Vegas (extended family trip not of my choosing), Niagara Falls ....

One trip we had planned but never took... Colorado.

You could still do your WDW vacations and add in a more affordable driving trip to some destination near your home state.

So get out there and see the USA!!

 

[SDSorority]

After riding Soarin' both DH and I thought "I wish we were there in real life and not here on this ride." We've taken 2 major vacations together - both were to Disney World and both were in the last 18 months. We have decided no more Disney for us until at least ALL of the new Fantasyland expansion is done (including the mine ride). I love Disney World, but we need more experiences in our lives. When I asked DS where he wanted to go next he said Disney World. I couldn't even get him to agree to DL. We've created a monster!

Maybe a Disney Adventure or a Disney Cruise.

This is why we're going to Canada in September (yep... ABD/Epcot inspired, but not Disney). Then we're going to Disney in 2013. Then we're going to Norway in 2014 (yep... Epcot inspired, but not Disney), and back to WDW in 2015. We like to go every other year, but EACH year is a trip inspired by Disney.

 

[WillieBearsMom]

My friends keep telling me I need to vacation someplace else every now and then... my reply is that my kids are only little once, and as long as they love Disney World and it is still magical to them, then that is where we will continue to go. They love it and so do their their daddy and I. Also, my kids each have food allergies, so Disney World is the easiest place that I can take them and be sure they are being well taken care of at any restaurant we choose!

We still go to the beach each summer, and the mountains each fall, so we do have some variety in our lives.

 

[vicb]

This is why we're going to Canada in September (yep... ABD/Epcot inspired, but not Disney). Then we're going to Disney in 2013. Then we're going to Norway in 2014 (yep... Epcot inspired, but not Disney), and back to WDW in 2015. We like to go every other year, but EACH year is a trip inspired by Disney.

Norway! I'm so jealous! You should take a cruise to see the fjords!

 

[perdidobay]

In a way, yes, I would rather be vacationing in other places, but it is complicated why we are not at this time.

To start, I live in Memphis TN, and have been to several places seen in Soarin'. I and my family have vacationed In San Francisco, spent a week in the Lake Tahoe area, vacationed in Yosemite, Napa Valley and a few other places in that area of California. I would love to go back to all of them in the future.

We have vacationed for a week in Alaska, a week in Washington State, many week long trips to Colorado, New Mexico, Arizona and Montana. I have taken 12 cruises, and would love to cruise again, but it's been about two years since we've cruised. We've gone twice to Ireland. We would love to see more of the world.

Apart from a trip to Vegas last year (part business trip for DH), all our vacations have been to WDW in the past 2 years. Our DD and DSIL moved to Clermont Fl 3 years ago and she gave birth to our first grandchild prematurely one year ago. He was in NICU for 2 months.
When we think about a trip to somewhere out west or overseas, we get excited but then think we'd rather use precious vacation time to see our grandchild! I have been able to see him several times over the past year, as I stayed with him while DD and DSIL took a cruise, but my DH has not. We got to see him for 3 days after Thanksgiving, but other than that, the only time we see him is when we go to Orlando as they do not like to come back to Memphis.
We own DVC and so usually stay at WDW while there, and we may spend a few days each trip at DD's house, we make sure to spend time with my DD and her family while we are there. We put them on our reservations so they can come to our resort and hang out.
She is expecting another baby in August, so WDW will probably be our only vacation for the next few years until DH retires (hopefully in 4 years).

*DH does have to make a speech at a conference in Las Vegas in May, so we are turning it into a short vacation.*

 

[MrsLS]

No, thats why we bought DVC because we want to go every year. But then again, we go away 2 more times a year to other places and I've been to a lot of places, including CA, so no, it doesn't make me feel regretful. We go on vacation where we want to go to so I'm never regretful for what we are doing because we want to do it. If you feel regretful for doing something, then you shouldn't do it and go elsewhere. No one is forcing anyone to go to DW

 

[mama2ethan04]

My friends keep telling me I need to vacation someplace else every now and then... my reply is that my kids are only little once, and as long as they love Disney World and it is still magical to them, then that is where we will continue to go. They love it and so do their their daddy and I. Also, my kids each have food allergies, so Disney World is the easiest place that I can take them and be sure they are being well taken care of at any restaurant we choose!

We still go to the beach each summer, and the mountains each fall, so we do have some variety in our lives.

This! We do Disney in the winter and the beach in the summer.

 

[DisneyFive]

As others have said, our kids are at the right age for Disney and it is the best overall package for us at this time.

However, I'm also looking forward to when they are old enough for us to camp out and around Yellowstone, the Black Hills, Bad Lands, etc.. but they are still a little young for that.

...plus, I love Disney too.

Dan