Inspired by best tips; What tips have you recieved that were pointless?

[rt2dz]

I'm inspired by the thread of what are the best tips you have ever gotten... What I want to know, is what are the WORST tips/advice you have recieved.

For example, be at the parks at opening. Good tip, but when waking preschoolers before they are ready, it totally backfires; the kids are just cranky.

Also, after being told over and over to take a mid afternoon break, we tried it. That too was a disaster. The kids didn't want to leave yet, and that is when the whining started. Then after we get back to the hotel, they didn't want to go back because they were having fun. More whining. When we didn't try and leave the parks for afternoon breaks, all day no whining. I'm sure it works wonderfully for some (or it wouldn't come up so often), but for us it was a nightmare.

 

[my3princes]

I agree, no afternoon breaks for us. Kids have always napped in the stroller.

 

[mousefansmom]

I agree, no afternoon breaks for us. Kids have always napped in the stroller.

Mine too, and it gave us some "quiet time" in the parks while they napped. We usually tried to sneak in a meal during naptime so we could talk and relax ourselves!

Mousefansmom

 

[dyna]

Many won't agree with me but the most usless tip is those resort mugs for free refills.

We drive take our own drinks for the resort got an almost unlimited supply in the room take a drink out put another in cooler and NO WALKING down to the food court everytime we want a drink I'd run myself to death doing that. Ice for the cooler that has to be reiced twice daily is right there in the building we in on same floor.

backpack tips another one never would use a backpack at the parks.

I think each one of us has to do our homework try things out and see what works and doesn't work for us some things we know we wouldn't do other things just got to try.

 

[missypie]

WOW! Getting to the park before it opens is one of the very best tips you can pass on to anyone. Taking an afternoon break is a great one, too. However, it is up to the recipient of the tip to decide whether it will work for their family. Obviously it didn't work for yours.

Same with the refillable mugs. Our family would not have benefitted from them, but I knew that, so we didn't buy them.

A lady whose kids are in school with mine KEPT telling us that we just HAD to swim with the sharks at whatever water park offers that. According to her, it's the best thing to do at all of WDW. But I hate water parks and we didn't go to either of them. Of course, in a few days, we'll see her at some school function and she'll ask me if we swam with the sharks...so much for HER best tip.

The most pointless tips are the inaccurate ones. A neighbor of ours insists that if you are with an infant, they let you go to the front of the line and stay on the ride as many times as you want. She swears that they did that. I surmise that they went during a very un-busy time and used baby swap, but her "tip" to everyone is totally inaccurate.

 

[etwinchester]

backpack tips another one never would use a backpack at the parks.

I ALWAYS take a backpack to me with parks. It is VERY small, but holds the camera, some snacks, wallet, sunglasses (when on wet rides), keys (if needed), park maps and passes.

I use ours for Disney, Knoebels, Wildwood (on boardwalk), going to parades & fairs, the pool, etc...

Wouldn't leave home without it when on vacation.

 

[tlbwriter]

To me, the tip about buying souvenirs for your kids before you even get to WDW is useless. Those are souvenirs of a trip to Wal-Mart, not WDW! I can't imagine my daughter falling in love with something she sees in the store and being satisfied with "Sorry, honey, we can't get that, but Mommy has some Mickey Mouse pencils back at the hotel for you."

 

[GingerbreadCoffin]

I think the cruddiest advice I have gotten is "Don't take your kids until they are old enough to enjoy it".
We started making regular trips when our oldest DS was about 1. I have yet to regret it.

Another bad one,"Epcot is only for adults".
Epcot has become one of our favorite parks.My kids love it.

 

[etwinchester]

To me, the tip about buying souvenirs for your kids before you even get to WDW is useless. Those are souvenirs of a trip to Wal-Mart, not WDW! I can't imagine my daughter falling in love with something she sees in the store and being satisfied with "Sorry, honey, we can't get that, but Mommy has some Mickey Mouse pencils back at the hotel for you."

I TOTALLY agree. Buying it directly from WDW would make it more magical or memorable to a child. Even for myself, I'd rather purchase something at WDW. It would mean a lot more to me and whenever I used it, I would think of our vacation.

 

[stahshee]

To me, the tip about buying souvenirs for your kids before you even get to WDW is useless. Those are souvenirs of a trip to Wal-Mart, not WDW! I can't imagine my daughter falling in love with something she sees in the store and being satisfied with "Sorry, honey, we can't get that, but Mommy has some Mickey Mouse pencils back at the hotel for you."

I totaly agree with you!

 

[disneyjunkie]

[/QUOTE]

To me, the tip about buying souvenirs for your kids before you even get to WDW is useless. Those are souvenirs of a trip to Wal-Mart, not WDW! I can't imagine my daughter falling in love with something she sees in the store and being satisfied with "Sorry, honey, we can't get that, but Mommy has some Mickey Mouse pencils back at the hotel for you."

I have to agree with you about that one.

OK, here are a few that came to mind as I was reading this thread.

1. ( I don't think this one is valid now.) Don't purchase tickets for each day of your trip. If you're planning a 7-night trip only get a 5-day hopper. That way you can save money, and rest.

That advice was awful for my son and I. Yes it was nice to take it easy a few mornings and we had a blast at Blizzard Beach. However, by 5:00pm we were ready to hit a major park but couldn't because I didn't want to waste a day on our hopper pass.

I'll never go back to WDW without park admission for each day of our trip.

2. Take snacks/food with you to save money. I can't tell how much money wasted following this tip. Who wants to eat cereal in the room, when you can have Mickey waffles in the food court?? Why bother carrying chips into the park? My son still brought a bag of chips from the cart in Liberty Square. ($2.50 )

3. Buy a double cheeseburger and one plain bun. My son almost died when he realized why I'd done that. I've never seen my sister and BIL laugh so hard. They kept asking how can I spend so much money for the trip, then cheap out when it's time to eat.

Oh, and my son refused to order burgers the rest of the trip. He'd only order chicken fingers, which I hate.

 

[bigmac5]

I love this thread. Please tell me more. It is our first visit.

 

[kelleigh1]

The buying "souvenirs" before you go to Disney really doesn't work. If you check the tags on anything you buy at WDW, it says Walt Disney World on it. And if you bought it at the Disney Store, it says "Disney Store". You can't really get away with it.

 

[MELSMICE]

These are actually funny.

I agree that's the souvenir one is a totally useless tip. I wouldn't dream of buying a "souvenir" before the trip for my kids. Plus, that's just something extra to pack. The fun of a souvenir is picking it out yourself & bringing it home.

I think the backpack tip is useless also. I never wanted to carry around a backpack in the parks. Too cumbersome. I don't see the reason to carry all that around.

I have gotten some really good tips though!

 

[dtsaos]

To me, the tip about buying souvenirs for your kids before you even get to WDW is useless. Those are souvenirs of a trip to Wal-Mart, not WDW! I can't imagine my daughter falling in love with something she sees in the store and being satisfied with "Sorry, honey, we can't get that, but Mommy has some Mickey Mouse pencils back at the hotel for you."

I totally agree.

 

[mexican-mouseketeers]

I think the cruddiest advice I have gotten is "Don't take your kids until they are old enough to enjoy it".
We started making regular trips when our oldest DS was about 1. I have yet to regret it.

OMG this is the advice that I got today......from my almost 3 yo DD whose birthday we are planning to celebrate at WDW.

I made a paper chain to count the days and we are less than 2 weeks away from our trip, and today, while we were in the car running errands, she said "I want to go to Disney when I have grown a lot taller" (of course she has no idea about having to be x inches tall to ride some rides). I said "but we are going in a few days" and she said, "but I am small, wait until I am older"

Well, I guess she will have to sacrifice herself while she is still young, lol.

Julie

 

[the kabuki]

Brita water bottles with the built in filter. They were bulky and didn't work that great.

 

[missypie]

I just thought of one: "Buy glowsticks in advance and bring them to the parks to save money."

I bought a huge package of glow sticks (to turn into glow necklaces) from eBay. I surprised my kids with them right before we went to Illuminations. I got them out before every nighttime event. BUT OF COURSE, they aren't selling mere glowsticks before Illuminations or Fantasmic...they are selling very very cool light up spinning toys that make glow sticks look like the dark ages.

It was actually very sweet and kind of heart breaking that none of my kids asked for one of the cool light up toys because I had given them glow sticks, but I could tell by the looks in their eyes that they really wanted one.

 

[Whosemom]

You hit my favorite - go back to the room in the afternoon???? that's just insane!

And i battle with my dh on the walmart souvees. Although last time we drove down and I pulled out a treat of some sort at the crossing of each state line. When we crossed into FL, I handed out disney store tees, and they are still special.

And the refillable cups - gag! Biggest detriment to healthfulness on the entire disney property. milk, juice? nope not included. Water? when I can have free pop? no way!!! LOL

Heres one - if you have to miss something with little kids, skip MGM. That's my guys favorite place!

 

[Amyg]

And the refillable cups - gag! Biggest detriment to healthfulness on the entire disney property. milk, juice? nope not included. Water? when I can have free pop? no way!!! LOL

I totally agree! Me and DH drink water and son drinks either water, milk or juice. Soda would totally make me thirstier, ick and so unhealthy to drink that much anyway.