What is your park goal? Or is the park your goal?

[Accident]

I always see threads about how someone is going to do everything and lots of people saying doing it all is never going to happen and even with a lifetime of being there every day, you still can't get it all done. We all know the big let down on most trips, especially the casual every once and awhile visitor or first time once in a lifetime visitor (so they think until they get home ) is how their plan falls apart and they start to get frustrated in both cost and that it wasn't going perfect how they planned it..

I started to think about this differently after I moved to the area. In the past there was a plan, we were doing whatever list of parks, and then we were going to to whatever attractions and entertainment in the parks. We had backup plans, rain plans, plans on how to replan if needed.... We may not be back so we better see it all.

What hit me somewhere between 2014 when I decided to seriously look at living here and actually moving early 2016 is that we picked the wrong goal. The park was the goal. We had to do it all, it was that parks day... Anything short of everything in that park was a fail..

Now that I live here, it's a little easier to see what I was doing wrong and the park should never be the goal. Some locals say things like, it's ok if I don't do that, I can come back tomorrow. Even this is the same thing if you can't come back tomorrow. When you start to make the park the place where your goals are located and not the goal itself disney starts to change...

Everytime I decide to go to the parks I have a different goal in mind and it varies.. certain rides can be the goal but that's a rather boring goal for everything there is at disney. Rides for me is what I feel like doing when achieving my goals for that trip to the parks. Sure I'll get some fastpasses, go on other rides but the goal is what i'm there for so it's ok if the line is too long or getting in it has a problem..

My goals have ranged from try snacks or food we never tried before, see the marching band (yes WDW has a marching band also). Catch the afternoon parade and see the fireworks.. Ride only rides you never rode or haven't done in a long time (or just 1 or 2). Window shop in all the stores (foudn some stores I never even noticed was in the parks). Get your hair cut on main street (yes there is a barber on main street). Only ride things you can get a fastpass for (and wow you can get almost anything same day)

Being a local sometimes it's very hyper focuses to the short amount of time you have to be there.. Walk around f&w for dinner and don't spend more than $50. Go to the opening night of AK at night and get a nice dinner, see the tree and show, ride what you can with the crowds if possible.

What I find in the end, that I have really started to notice little details that I've walked past hundreds of times and just discovering it now. (And also everything they need to fix unfortunately).

Does anyone else view the parks in this way as the location where your goals are accomplished and not the goal itself? What are some of your park goals?

PS - someone really needs to explain to me how being at disney isn't special enough? what is with these add ons and parties and extras that cost more than a villa per day some people are putting on? No wonder everyone is frustrated at prices.

 

[hallen4]

My family has the goal of trying or seeing something that we haven't done before each time. When we go in December we are going to try SOTMK since none of us have done that before. Last time it was the Halloween Party. I love being away from reality and in Disney enough to not worry much anymore. I have scaled our planning way back too. Makes for a more relaxed trip.

 

[BudgieMama]

I go for whole trip goals, and have a list of things I want to do over the course. For this year's trip, it included riding ToT (I chickened out last time), visiting the Tiki Room (we missed it by accident previously, and I love parrots!), and meeting Donald in all four parks. Over the course of the two weeks we were there, I did everything I wanted to (and a lot more). It works as the right balance for me!

 

[Karin1984]

Im not sure I get your post. To me you are mainly describing the perks of living close and getting an AP.

For people who live far away and/or don't have the option to go every (other) year or more times a year, I think it is important to make it worth the money and time you invest in it. Because, as you write: you dont know if/when you can come back. Then it's harder to have mindset 'who cares if the lines are long, we are at Disney'.

I have an AP at Disneyland Paris, there my goals are re-visiting the rides and shows I love, get my favorite snacks. If I get to do/see something new, great! If not, I can always go back. The train/plane and hotels are not that expensive it's easy to get enough out of every trip even when it's just a day trip. I go with a very rough plan and see what happens.

During my 2 visits to WDW (2012 and 2015, about 11-12 days each) and my visit to DL (2014, 5 days) I carefully planned everything as these trips were expensive in time and money. I would be mad if I spent most of my time in queues for rides or restaurants. Being there was special, but not special enough to sit back and just wait and see what happens. There is so much to see and do, you can't do it all, so you start with the highlights,you don't start with all the details.

I love the Halloween parties and I would seriously think about adding EMM as a splurge if I went back to WDW as it gives me the opportunity to go on rides that arent worth standing in line for, but which I do like/love and get fp for other rides. These add ons are there for people who can and want to spend their time/money to things they think are important. Club Villain would be on my list as well.

 

[Eoywin]

My goal is to have fun and make memories

 

[jeepnjudy]

My family's goal is to ALWAYS ride all the roller coasters at least once in the front seat but that's because we are coaster junkies!

 

[P800aul]

My goal is to have fun and make memories

Phew I thought I was missing something that's exactly it, we are lucky enough to have a place in Spain (we're from the UK) so spend a lot of time there with our two children. Disney is different unlike Spain at Disney we spend ever waking hour together, we eat together, we play together, Disney ever day for 13 days and the memories are discussed or brought up most weeks in our house.

So family, fun and memories just so happens it's at Disney

Regards

Paul

 

[kelmcg]

We always go in with a plan, but we know we won't follow it 100%. My boys are now 14 & 16, when they were much younger they found an area at EPCoT where there could play some games, one had to do with a piggy bank and the other one had to do with pushing around a garbage/recycle truck. I was BORED out of my mind but they were having a blast! I always try to remember that if the kids are having fun with what they are doing then it's a great trip, they won't even know that they missed a ride or show or character!!
On our last trip the boys were 12 & 14 and they really enjoyed SOTMK. So we designated an afternoon to just playing SOTMK. DH and I went and grabbed Dole Whips and found some rocking chairs to sit on in Frontierland while the boys went around the park playing SOTMK and having a blast!!

 

[Klayfish]

I'm pretty simplistic in that like a few others have said, our goal is to have fun. We truthfully don't often set specific goals. I guess you could call it a goal that in this last trip we wanted to see a few shows we had previously skipped, such as the Tiki Room and Flights of Wonder. Beyond that, we're more roll-with-the-flow kind of people.

 

[TiggerBouncy]

We used to be "have to do it all" people. Since we got DVC, our plans have changed. Our goal now is to come home with less stress than we left. Whether we visit a park, hit a water park, Downtown Disney, or swim at the resort pool doesn't really matter. We are at Disney World, and all we need to do to have met our goal is not think about work and the real world for a few days.

 

[ELSA711]

WDW itself is the draw for us, not the rides, etc. The entire ambience of the vacation = parks, resorts, dining, shows and music!
We do like to try something new each time we go, but we don't really make it a goal. Just being there is our goal, each and every year!

 

[caliope]

My goal is to have fun and make memories

This is my primary goal too. We go on a variety of vacations every year. But regardless of where we are, we truly just want to enjoy being together. We choose Disney as one of our destinations because it's fun for all of us and every visit is a little different.

 

[loves to dive]

My goal is to have fun and make memories

This pretty much says it all.

 

[3cmom]

We each set our own top 3 things we want to Accomplish each visit. For instance, for our December trip, my youngest son's top 3 are the MVMCP, to ride 7 Dwarfs, and Early Morning Magic at HS.
My Top 3 are to see all of the gingerbread houses, see on the Santa stories in Epcot, and to see the Christmas Trees at Wilderness Lodge and AKL.

We have a dream or goal within the next 2-3 years of moving to Orlando as well. We are a family that eats out only on Friday nights. That's the one night I take off from the kitchen. So, we were discussing how when we moved to Orlando where would we start eating Friday night. Now we have a list of places we want to start at. Even though we have been to them before the thought of having them closer to exciting! We miss the parks and the entire world that WDW encompasses when we aren't there. I cried the first time we went as a family and we had to leave because I didn't know when we would be back. We went back the next year

 

[EmmyKay]

Eoywin has the best answer!!! I am a super planner, but my top goal for every single day of our trip is to have fun. Cramming in every single ride and attraction is not worth having cranky kids. I set a reasonable pace for my family, build in breaks, and have a smart plan to avoid long lines (because waiting on long lines is not fun). If we miss something, that's OK as long as we have fun!

 

[Praying Colonel]

Before each trip, DW and I talk about each attraction in each park and decide if we want to do it at all. If we want to do it, we then ask ourselves how many times. Then we set a plan to accomplish that.

There are many attractions we'll probably never do because we just don't have an interest in them (sorry, Boneyard). There are also attractions we've done but have no interest in doing them again (Ellen, I'm looking at you.) And even if we don't hit everything on our plan, that's OK. We're a lot less commando than we used to be. I guess the goal is just to be there.

 

[Tomh]

The first time we visited in 2008, it was that "once in a lifetime" trip, and we did try to get everything in. We failed, miserably lol. We got to see a lot, but we also had to do a lot of running around to get to it all, and ended up missing as much as we saw.

Like many, we wound up returning the next year . . . and the following year . . . and the year after that, and every year since.

Over the years, our touring style has changed significantly. Our days are not fully planned out any more. We have our FP+ set up for the morning, usually with the first one starting at 9:30 or 10:00 so we can enjoy that first hour or so in the park with low crowds. We will use that time to hit up a few rides before the lines build up, then we use our 3 FP+, followed by lunch, and the afternoon is just wandering the park, doing what ever comes to mind. We may hop on a ride if the line is short, get another FP, catch a parade, play sorcerers of the magic kingdom, or the pirates game in Adventureland, we may shop, or sit down and play checkers.

It is a decidedly different approach, and as the OP stated, gives way to noticing a lot more of the details which seem to slip by when you are so busy rushing to get that next ride in.

 

[DrunkJam]

We tend to start with where we want to eat (because we have a lot of issues to deal with.) Then, around that, we have some ride goals, maybe just two or three in a day.
Mostly we like to BE THERE, and see the things we have seen on TV, or know from wdw history.
We don't really care about newest or latest or biggest thrill.
DS says the thing is to meet the characters, so, we try to do that (at meals mostly, as he can't really queue, and you can't escape that for characters, either with FP or DAS)

 

[gatorlisa]

I rarely have a goal when I go. It's really just to enjoy being off work and at Disney. Every now and then there is something that drives the decision to go in the first place, but that makes for one "must do" for the entire trip...pretty easy to accomplish. For example, in 2010, it was to see the Candlelight Processional for the first time, with a favorite musician narrating (and see the parks decorated for Christmas in general). Mission accomplished. In 2012, it was to see the Osbourne Lights for the first (and what turned out to be only) time. Next week's trip was scheduled pretty much to watch the MSEP for one last time. When we go, we ride what we can and try to get multiple rides of our favorites in, but there's really no set plan or goal in that regard. I don't think we've ever left disappointed.

 

[tizzant]

I find it really offensive that you guys go (until they get back HEEHEEHEE) under your breaths at people who really, sincerely may only ever be able to go once. Most people don't have deep wallets. And I've seen that sentiment everywhere.

Our once-in-a-lifetime goal is just to enjoy ourselves. We don't have to see everything or meet everyone. Just to have fun. And I kinda feel like that's all it should be.