What would you do differently?

[mshanson3121]

What did you learn from your first trip, that you would do differently next time around?



I think every now and then of the things we'd do differently, and especially with the children older, I know one thing we'd do is sleep in later, and then stay later. We definitely wouldn't kill ourselves to do RD each day. It just made it feel like we were constantly rushing. In all honesty, I could see us mostly just hanging out at the house/pool, relaxing until afternoon, then heading into the parks for supper and enjoying the evening hours.

I would love to be able to go at a different (cooler, less crowded) time of year than our end of June trip, but as long as DH is teaching, our only options are Christmas break or summer break. (Is Christmas really that bad? lol)

I would buy less food! We ordered from GardenGrocers.com and wasted so much. I had no idea how badly the Florida heat can really kill your appetite.

I would fly. Don't get me wrong, the road trip part of it actually went amazingly well, kids did great, we didn't get lost, got to see some beautiful scenery, made memories, had lots of laughs etc... BUT... we didn't enjoy the driving like we might have if we were just on a "road trip" vacation, with time to kill and stop and enjoy things. And that was frustrating - we'd drive by all these neat things and want to stop, but were unable to do. Because we were on a deadline of "get to Disney". Then, when it came time to drive home, we were too exhausted. Would I ever drive 6000 km again on a vacation? Definitely. But, not combined with Disney.

I'd skip the MSEP. Honestly, it was "okay". I enjoy our local night time Santa Claus parade every bit as much. I would have rather gone on some rides. I really regretted not seeing the afternoon parade however, and that would definitely become a must-do, no matter how hot it was.

I'd spend more time at Epcot.

I'd do a water park.

I'd skip DinoLand at Animal Kingdom. Seriously - skip it. It's just a glorified carnival. I can get that back home.

Wouldn't stay as long. We were in Florida for 11 nights. It was too long. We were all getting tired and homesick by the end. I really can't see us staying longer than a week next time.

 

[allwritemel]

For me, I'd change some things from this time ... there were a couple of issues the third time but with 4 years between the holidays you kind of forget.

I would DEFINITELY either SKIP Animal Kingdom (which would be sad) or get a face mask like the doctors wear because I spent most of the day trying not to breathe and throwing up in the bushes when I did thanks to all the coconut! NOT fun! That's so ironic when you think that I do NOT have a sense of smell but coconut gets me every time - even when I don't have a clue it's there. i walked into a shop the other day and there was this weird looking thing shaped like a round hut with a pointed roof ... I instantly started heaving - it was coconut and it was completely sealed up ... bizarre!

I would take LUCOZADE with me (Garden Grocer MAY be able to get the cans but they were unsure ...) - or find a way to see if I can get Lucozade from Publix (I can't find a contact page on the internet that works OR a phone number for the place that works!) The heat made my sugar levels drop severely and I ended up virtually living on hot dogs - i have a rare condition which makes eating certain foods incredibly difficult ... I love them but I got sick to death of them! What I HAVE found recently is glucose powder and I'm going to experiment to see if that works in place of lucozade which would be very heavy to carry with me (in my defence, I was told that someone would deliver the stuff to our hotel and they didn't, leaving me up the creek without a paddle ... Alternatively, I would go straight to Michael's opposite the Florida Mall which had a great solution!

The other thing I would TRY to do (which may be beyond my control, as it was this time) is to book earlier because we couldn't get into a single restaurant which posed MAJOR problems for me. Most of the problems I experienced this time were due to things which had nothing to do with Disney itself but if I'm to ever go again - as some people know, I did have plans for August but was let down badly - I would plan it VERY differently!

PERSONALLY, I would always plan on staying on site ... this is a personal preference and many disagree with me. If we had been going in August we'd have stayed at the Carribbean ... or the All Star Music. Now I don't care where we stay on site - but I love the advantage of being able to stay late (get there late and relax, or even having the option of easily getting back to the room for a rest).

The first time we went we did Typhoon Lagoon ... I can cheerfully live without that ... but I'm really keen to do the Crazy Golf course ...

 

[Marionnette]

Before getting into the negatives, I want to say that I had an awesome trip and there were so many more pluses than there were minuses. Having said that, here's my list:

• I wouldn't resort hop so much. I just got back from an 8-night stay that involved 3 resorts. Too much changing and I felt like I was living out of my suitcase the whole time. Lack of DVC availability for the entire stay contributed to the need. I still had fun and I would still choose to resort hop instead of doing a shorter trip if I had no other options, but I will plan ahead in order to avoid this in the future.
• I would make fewer ADRs. I hated the idea of having to drop what I was doing or rush to finish something in order to avoid missing an ADR and then be penalized. I especially regret rushing to get to Trattoria al Forno for an ADR when I was not particularly hungry. FWIW, the eggplant rollatini is horrible!
• MNSSHP wasn't all that. The parade, castle show and the fireworks were awesome. The crowds were insane (we went on a night that ended up being sold out). I don't think that I will spend the money to do it again any time soon.

 

[seshat0120]

I would take LUCOZADE with me (Garden Grocer MAY be able to get the cans but they were unsure ...) - or find a way to see if I can get Lucozade from Publix (I can't find a contact page on the internet that works OR a phone number for the place that works!)

I was curious what Lucozade was so I looked it up. I'm not sure this is a product you'll find very easily in the US. From what I could see, the American equivalent of it would be Gatorade or Powerade. You should check to see if either of those would work. I know Powerade was available in the POR food court and, I'd assume, it's available throughout WDW.

 

[momof2n2]

We've been so often that I think we've polished our what-to-do/what-not-to-do list pretty well. The only thing we have really changed over the years is not to buy the crappy merchandise. Seriously, so much of it is so poorly made. We usually hit up the Clermont Walmart or Target and get the kids some "Florida 201X" shirt with some characters on it. They aren't made much better, but for $6 each I can live with that.

 

[Masonmj84]

Based on our collective experiences from several trips, these are things we like to do but we realize that these are very personal preferences and not for everyone (for example, I have relatives who would disagree with me on virtually all of these points and they still seem to really enjoy their trips).

1. Fly in, stay on property, and use Magical Express

2. Split stay at deluxe resorts that are close to whichever park we are visiting (but we also like the moderate resorts - this choice is very budget dependent, depending on our financial circumstances at the time)

3. Do the parks from about RD to 1 pm, with at least 3 days at MK, 2 days at EP, and 1 at each of HS and AK, while mostly focusing on favorites and making good use of FP+ (this allows us to visit all our favorite attractions without much waiting, while still allowing for a lot of resort time in the afternoons)

4. Do at least one day at each water park (unless our trip is during the winter)

5. Have at least one table service meal (preferably dinner) per day

6. Set a firm budget for merchandise (none of it temps me but the kids get wide-eyed over it, so we usually tell them something like $20 each, while advising them to choose carefully)

7. Don't go with other families if there is any expectation that people will stick together (I'm way too OCD about all of the above points)

8. No cooking, no cleaning, no driving, no parking (for me, this is one of the things that sets Disney World apart from a lot of other vacations)

 

[Dominion]

We went on a big (10 people) family vacation 2 years ago and are going back in 2 weeks with just 3 adults and 2 kids (8 and 5, they were 6 and 3 last time). I'm making the following changes:

Fewer ADRs so that we have more flexibility. Having to stick to the schedule no matter what was a little stressful last time. That said, the 10 of us wanted to eat together and that is hard without an ADR, so it was kind of worth it. This time we are doing 3 dinners and 1 lunch ADR and leaving the other times open. Also, the ADRs we are planning are convenient to where we are going to be at that time of day - dinners at our resort for example. It takes a lot of time to get around Disney and I find that stressful as well.

Take a day "off" in the middle of the trip to rest. Last time we went to the parks for 7 straight days. Exhausting! This time, we are doing 2 park days, 1 resort (hopefully pool) day which includes a brunch character meal and a nice dinner with kids in childcare and then 3 more park days at the end.

We are flying instead of driving 12 hours to get there. Which also forces us to pack lighter. Brought way too much stuff last time!

 

[Ambear]

Completely skip dhs. I love tower of terror, but it's just not worth it to spend any time on the bus and bag check to ride that one good ride. The rest of the place is worth nothing to me. This will probably not change much in the future since I've never found the love for people in robes with psychic power things and bright sticks in space.

 

[phillymummer]

I have already told my husband that if he gets cranky and tired he can go back to the resort alone . On our last two trips, he has been the one to breakdown first and we all left. Not this time! My daughter and I have much more stamina than him when it comes to amusements parks and this time I won't leave early.

 

[HadesTX]

Completely skip dhs. I love tower of terror, but it's just not worth it to spend any time on the bus and bag check to ride that one good ride. The rest of the place is worth nothing to me. This will probably not change much in the future since I've never found the love for people in robes with psychic power things and bright sticks in space.

If it wasn't for the Osborne Lights, I'd skip DHS too. I've never seen them though, so I'll give up half a day for that. DH will make me go again once Star Wars Land is done. No way I will ever get out of that.

I might even skip Animal Kingdom this time. I love EE, but the rest of the park isn't really all that great to us.

 

[princessmocha]

Last time we made way too many ADRs. We had the Deluxe Dining Plan and while all the food was wonderful (for the most part) it felt like we were running from one ADR to the next. We were also with a really big group and while we are all going again, we may just meet up for dinner and then do our own thing. We've been several times and we know what we like so we will just stick to our plan for that. My DD and I also like to spend way more time in the parks than the rest of the family, so we will probably just encourage DH and DS to head back to the resort and we will keep going and going and going!

 

[fbarker]

Completely skip dhs. I love tower of terror, but it's just not worth it to spend any time on the bus and bag check to ride that one good ride. The rest of the place is worth nothing to me. This will probably not change much in the future since I've never found the love for people in robes with psychic power things and bright sticks in space.

I know everyone has their own opinions and while DHS has its challenges its more than TOT. There is RnRC, TSM, Muppets 3D, Movie Ride and just the nice ambiance of the park. Its still worth going to.

 

[mshanson3121]

I know everyone has their own opinions and while DHS has its challenges its more than TOT. There is RnRC, TSM, Muppets 3D, Movie Ride and just the nice ambiance of the park. Its still worth going to.

We LOVED DHS, seriously loved it. And we didn't even get everything done. We easily could have spent a second day there, and we spent 10 hours there as it was - and that was without doing the TOT and RnRC. It was definitely DH's favorite park, he really enjoyed it. It felt a little more "grown up" than the other parks, which was kind of a nice reprieve. The kids loved all the Frozen stuff, the shows and of course LOVED doing the JTA. They also loved the Honey I Shrunk the Kids playground. DH loves Star Wars, so he (we) really enjoyed the ride, and if anything can convince him to go back to DW, it'll be the addition of Star Wars Land.

 

[Ambear]

I know everyone has their own opinions and while DHS has its challenges its more than TOT. There is RnRC, TSM, Muppets 3D, Movie Ride and just the nice ambiance of the park. Its still worth going to.

See I find the ambiance the worst part of that park. Concrete and pavement everywhere and most of it ugly huge buildings. And the worst layout evar. There's more than tot, but it's the only thing I miss riding. The rest I've been on enough (and it's all meh) that it's just not worth the time.

But yea like you said, everyone has their own opinions.

 

[aprincessatlast]

It has been a few years but we are planning one now and doing some things different from our past visits.

We are going near the end of December which is something we said we would never do because of crowds.
Reasons being we want to go when it is cooler and less humid. We love late nights at Disney! It always closed at 10 when we would go. Most importantly everyone has the time off.

Making more ADR's. We skipped them last time for the reason many mentioned here (hating the schedule), we actually kind of missed eating around the resort in the 'fun' restaurants.

Staying for a shorter length as the 10 day wdw trips are behind us. They get you with the cheaper ticket but in the end, I pay more with food etc or I go cheap because I am trying to stretch the budget longer. Which in turn causes me to enjoy it less.

Would love to return to the water parks as they truly made it feel like a vacation but I don't think that will work in December.

Have a general touring plan. We did not get much done a few years ago when fastpass+ rolled out for our trip. We were used to winging or taking it as it comes and changing things up. Now we are keeping the days shorter and I am making a plan. Another reason I want to go in December as I feel forced to do it plus the family won't give much grief as they know we are traveling in high season.

In all WDW has changed so much since we started going about 10 years ago as a family. We have to change with it or stop going. (which we did for about 4 yrs) I have read on here since after that first visit and 2 things remain the same. Disney world is always changing and people will always complain on these boards about the same things (Disney changin). New set of people but the same old complaints. BTDT though so I understand. lol

 

[DCLbrideSept2009]

We have taken quite a few trips with kids (we have 4), with only 3 of the 4 kids, just DH and me, as well as with MIL, FIL, BIL, SIL and niece. Going in a few weeks with parents, aunt and uncle (no kids - F&W festival). Thinking back to last summer's trip with in-laws (10 of us total renting a 5-bedroom house off-site)... next time w/extended family we will do our own plans and if anyone wants to join us, great... if not, that's great too. Even though our kids have been multiple times so we didn't feel like we were missing out on too much, everyone was disappointed we didn't do EPCOT at all, among other things. So next time (probably next summer) we will just plan our own thing and others can join us or not, whatever they want.

 

[Iowamomof4]

Great thread! We did our first trip to WDW last month and there are just a few things I'd do differently.

1. Spend more time at Epcot
2. Do QS dining plan instead of regular - only do one ADR (felt like we were always leaving the fun stuff behind to go eat at restaurants that only half our party enjoyed)
3. Stay at ONE resort for the entire trip
4. FLY instead of drive (20+ hours of driving, not including stops, no thanks!)
5. Break up our park days, don't go to the same park two days in a row (in general)

 

[Mambo Junkie]

I've been a lot but with fp+ I felt like a first timer.
Next time we are doing a lot less ADRs (2 dinners and 2 lunches for a 5 day ticket) a lot less fps (only one day of fp planning (princess day), we'll snag a TSMM and hopefully a new Maelstrom as it will just be opening next time we go. The rest we're going to do on the fly.
Also, staying offsite for 6 days, only 3 onsite. We want to go other places, like US and Sea World. In fact, we bought season passes to US this time and it's been a lot of years since we bought US season passes. DH and I plan to go back September 2016 without kids and grandkids and we'll probably only do 1 day at WDW, for the F&W.
Factors include too much planning (we're wing it kind of people), getting less accomplished due to longer lines (which led to spending more time in the parks = less time to go to other places or enjoy the resort), cost and overall we just didn't have as much fun being on a schedule.

 

[Sparkly]

Not leave Universal halfway through the day because it was too hot! What a waste.
Nor would I worry so much about getting sick meaning I spent half the time in the bathroom washing my hands to the point of them getting sore!

Other then that, our March trip was almost perfect really. I hope our November trip goes as well! 34 days to go!!!

 

[momof2n2]

See I find the ambiance the worst part of that park. Concrete and pavement everywhere and most of it ugly huge buildings. And the worst layout evar. There's more than tot, but it's the only thing I miss riding. The rest I've been on enough (and it's all meh) that it's just not worth the time.

But yea like you said, everyone has their own opinions.

More than once I've referred to DHS as a concrete jungle.