We're going back! But they're teens now...

[Ellester]

I am currently blessed with 3 teens! Our kids will be 19, 16, 13, and 9 our next trip this Dec/Jan. Last trip they were 16, 13, 10, & 6. My teens do NOT want to sleep in when we are at Disney. They fully understand the significance of rope drop and how many more rides they can fit in if we do them. They also love FantasyLand just as much as the thrill rides. My one boy actually is not a huge thrill ride fan, he would take Pirates or Peter Pan over Everest any day. I would definitely plan on AK and a Flights of Passage FP for the day you are camping and can get that 60 day window. Those FP’s are like gold right now and reports are they are usually gone by mid morning on the first day they are available. My kids (partularly my 13yo son) love to help with the planning. I get their feedback on what rides we should try to get FastPasses for and where they want to eat. None of mine are looking like they will “grow out” of Disney. My 19yo college student daughter would have been so upset if we had gone without her. Mine also love to shop, Disney Springs for an afternoon/evening is a must do for them. We usually say we will spring for one or two souvenirs, or give them a dollar amount and if they want anything else it is on them to bring their own money for it.

I loved taking my kids when they were little, but it is also so much fun traveling with them now that they are older. Their personalities are maturing, but they are still kids in so many ways! And they can cut up their own food, go to the bathroom alone, carry their own bags, etc! Enjoy the planning and the trip!!!!

 

[caribbeandream]

One thing we found that we really enjoyed on our family trips as our son got older was the freedom (for us!) that came from allowing him to go off on his own.

YES! When we went to DL last year for Spring Break it was so nice to take a break in the middle of the afternoon while my son did single rider line on Goofy's Sky School over and over again.

 

[floydfamily4]

I am currently blessed with 3 teens! Our kids will be 19, 16, 13, and 9 our next trip this Dec/Jan. Last trip they were 16, 13, 10, & 6. My teens do NOT want to sleep in when we are at Disney. They fully understand the significance of rope drop and how many more rides they can fit in if we do them. They also love FantasyLand just as much as the thrill rides. My one boy actually is not a huge thrill ride fan, he would take Pirates or Peter Pan over Everest any day. I would definitely plan on AK and a Flights of Passage FP for the day you are camping and can get that 60 day window. Those FP’s are like gold right now and reports are they are usually gone by mid morning on the first day they are available. My kids (partularly my 13yo son) love to help with the planning. I get their feedback on what rides we should try to get FastPasses for and where they want to eat. None of mine are looking like they will “grow out” of Disney. My 19yo college student daughter would have been so upset if we had gone without her. Mine also love to shop, Disney Springs for an afternoon/evening is a must do for them. We usually say we will spring for one or two souvenirs, or give them a dollar amount and if they want anything else it is on them to bring their own money for it.

I loved taking my kids when they were little, but it is also so much fun traveling with them now that they are older. Their personalities are maturing, but they are still kids in so many ways! And they can cut up their own food, go to the bathroom alone, carry their own bags, etc! Enjoy the planning and the trip!!!!

Thank you for taking the time to reply! Y'all are awesome. I must admit that I am pretty excited to not have to cut up food and take them to the bathroom!

 

[ChimCher-ee]

I just went with DD13 in August, and as PPs have mentioned, two things made it a great success.

Sleep in. I shifted our days forward by about three-four hours. I'm a rope drop person, and DD currently is NOT. We would agree the night before what time we would be ready to leave the next day (usually it was 10 or 11) and while it made me twitch a little, we got out the door with no nagging or bad attitudes.

Pool days turned out to be the breaks that made the rest of the trip shine. We were there for 10 days, and we spent two of them just lounging poolside. Played Uno. Slept. Ate food court takeout. Slept some more. Went back to the room and...well...slept. But I gained some serious credibility in DD's eyes--she never thought it possible for her ol' mom to "just chill." (Of course, she didn't know me when I was a teen!)

Relax--you'll make some great memories with them as they discover new things to love as young adults!

(For what it's worth, the memory that still makes me teary from this trip, this age, is our second time on Flight of Passage, when I watched the joy come over my daughter's face as we turned and swooped... I'll never forget it.)

 

[webcreatrix]

Our first trip was for my son's 4th birthday. My son is now 12, daughter is 14. We've gone a LOT. Almost every year. Their interests have definitely changed. They kind of hate Fantasyland. We did do the "new" rides last year - Little Mermaid, Beauty & the Beast show, Be Our Guest dinner. They loved all of that. Otherwise, they're all about the thrill rides. They love the mountains at MK, Everest and Dinosaur at AK, and RnR coaster and ToT at Hollywood. They also like dining and shopping and pool/down time for texting friends. We didn't have a WDW trip planned this year, but I had work travel in California, so we did 3 days at Disneyland. My 12 year old son did rides in Fantasyland to humor me, but otherwise rode California Screaming and the Guardians ride (formerly ToT) over and over again.

I'm hoping to go back to WDW next year. It will definitely be a different trip. We will go early, laze around the pool, back to the parks late. More down time and shopping and dining for sure. We might even skip Fantasyland, though it will break my heart. The magic is still there, but trips will definitely be different. My daughter's #1 is shopping at Basin, for example. My son is all about Rock N Roller Coaster. They also love visiting the countries in EPCOT now. Daughter had henna in Morocco last trip and the store in Japan is a huge hit.

 

[webcreatrix]

Another thought - a year or two ago they totally rebelled at sleeping together, so we stayed in Windsor Hills. They each had their own rooms and tvs, bathrooms, space, etc. At Disneyland, we had one hotel room and there was less complaining about sharing space/bed. They are maturing. A little...

 

[webcreatrix]

One more thought - my 14 year old daughter had just come out of ankle surgery and a boot for our WDW trip last year. This year, she still wasn't 100% at Disneyland. There were times she chose to stay in the room and join us later, so if you feel comfortable with it, don't be afraid to give them a little independence and split up. If we go next year, I will be at rope drop, but they don't have to be. They have been so many times, they know their way around the parks. I will see how they feel about it, but I feel comfortable letting them stay in the hotel while we go to the parks or even just splitting up in the parks.

 

[Jumba17]

I also have b/g twins, turning 14 next month. We were there May '16 when my kids were 12 1/2, and had not been there since they were 5. So, very similar to your situation. Disney with tweens/teens will be VERY different than your previous trip! I am an early bird, as WERE my children, so I planned lots of rope drop days. Just say no. FP's were already planned this way, so we stuck with the schedule, but it made for crabby mornings for all.

Fun parts were them remembering certain rides or places, like Chef Mickey's, the monorail, etc. And making new favorites because of course they were all about the thrill rides. We did the gift cards too, great for their own spending $$.

We are going back over the holidays this year, and I am planning late starts/late evenings for everyone's sanity. Also, less rigid planning over all, which is difficult for this super-planner!

Hope you have a great trip!

 

[disneyworldsk]

Other things too, like when they were little they enjoyed downtown disney. now that they're teens , and boys, they're not into the shopping, so maybe disney springs to grab good pizza but no shopping for them like they used to. They don't like to shop in the parks anymore either of course. so two teen boys and dh, i try my best to sneak into the stores in the parks when they're on thrill rides that i don't go on. And the phones. Ok, the phones. When they were little, no phones, but now.... I am lucky because the teen boys aren't into social media or texting (stereotyping yes, because my dd is 20 and I know it is very different with the girls). But they use the phone a lot for things in the parks I don't like: pokemon go (last year's craze), youtube, checking sports stuff). So I set limits. Hi, Hello, teen boy of mine: no checking phones while walking! My limits on phones are for long lines, long bus rides. Not while walking, not while on a ride, etc. And no more character dining (sigh) for two teen boys either. I got one adr for trattoria bon voyage and I haven't told them yet because they will be mad about that one! But I am prepared: it's for me and dh, they do not have to go, they are big enough to go off on their own and do not have to go if they don't want to. Dessert party, yes, mvmcp, yes. No rivers of light either for them, I saw it in the summer, not for my teens, they will be very bored. Doing mini golf. And possibly the sea racers on the lagoon if time. Boy mom, teen boy mom: and yes, I miss my dd who is in college now with me who enjoyed all of those things even as a teen....
it's just a different type of perspective with teens.

 

[DisHmsklMom]

As teens, my kids were way into playing Sorcerers of the Magic Kingdom. https://disneyworld.disney.go.com/attractions/magic-kingdom/sorcerers/
We gave them a bit of freedom after they got the hang of it, they stayed together and played it in each land. My husband and I often found a nice shaded spot to sit and enjoy a coffee or soda while they played.

 

[floydfamily4]

I totally forgot about this! I think they will enjoy doing that - without DH and I!

 

[floydfamily4]

I also have b/g twins, turning 14 next month. We were there May '16 when my kids were 12 1/2, and had not been there since they were 5. So, very similar to your situation. Disney with tweens/teens will be VERY different than your previous trip! I am an early bird, as WERE my children, so I planned lots of rope drop days. Just say no. FP's were already planned this way, so we stuck with the schedule, but it made for crabby mornings for all.

Fun parts were them remembering certain rides or places, like Chef Mickey's, the monorail, etc. And making new favorites because of course they were all about the thrill rides. We did the gift cards too, great for their own spending $$.

We are going back over the holidays this year, and I am planning late starts/late evenings for everyone's sanity. Also, less rigid planning over all, which is difficult for this super-planner!

Hope you have a great trip!

We are staying off site primarily so we will need to head to the parks together. I definitely think we will go later when we do DHS because I want to go to the dessert party and get seats for the Star Wars fireworks/light show. We could also probably do Epcot late and Animal Kingdom late but keep our early mornings for MK. I will have to see once we can start securing FP's. My kids have to be up really early for school (5:30a) so I don't think we'll have too much trouble since it will be the week after school ends. Hopefully they will not have fallen into summer mode yet. I am loving this advice. Thank you!

 

[disneyworldsk]

And when they were young no hw to care about. As teens, they have to either do it on the plane or bring it with them because no time when we return back home, there's just too much. So first time bringing laptop for one of them for work. yuck.

 

[floydfamily4]

And when they were young no hw to care about. As teens, they have to either do it on the plane or bring it with them because no time when we return back home, there's just too much. So first time bringing laptop for one of them for work. yuck.

I know! Now that they are teens I just can't pull them from school and not think about the work they will have to do. I'm hoping that there will still be lots of kids in school when we go May 18th so the crowds won't be ridiculous.