14 yr old DS, and 11 year DD. Need help!

[ContemporaryGirl]

This June will be our second trip to Disney!! We'll be staying at the Contemporary 14th floor, and are very excited!!! It has been 5 years since our last trip. Then my son was 9 and our daughter 6. They were the perfect age for Disney!! Didnt have to worry about a thing! But now, our son is 14 and daughter 11 years old. Our daughter will be no problem. But I'm kind of worried about our son, he's at that age that he may not be compatible with what our daughters intrests...........being as "mature" as he thinks he is!!! Has anyone had any experience with a 14 year old boy? What were they intrested in?

Silly question I know, but when you plan for so long, and pay that much, you really want everyone to be happy, and make it memorable for all!

 

[stacy6552]

Id bet the only thing your son wont be interested in that your daugher will be is the shows, if that. USe the show times to split up and take your older son on the thrill rides your daughter might not be up for.

 

[sha_lyn]

13 DS love MGM, Epcot and Disney quest ... however he had much rather be down the road at Univeral.

 

[catwho]

One thing that I have noticed is that Disney seems ageless. There are activities that some younger kids find boring (like hall of presidents and American adventure) but rarely have I seen older kids roll their eyes too much at doing the "little kid stuff" My brother and I are seperated by 5 years. When we went to Disney when I was 14 I was way more mature than his 9 yo. Yet I still enjoyed riding all the same rides, wearing "goofy" hats, and carrying a balloon around on my wrist. LOL!! Don't be shocked if you find that Disney's Magic makes former rivals into loving siblings!

If you do find that their interests pull them in different directions (say she doesn't want to do Kali but he does) then consider donig something different with her while your dh and ds go do Kali and arrange to meet at a certain spot by a certain time afterwards.

 

[Snoozan]

I'm sure he'll have a great time. I'm taking my almost 18yo DS back in February-per his request. He's been about 6 times and "gets the magic". His older brother isn't quite as thrilled with WDW, but each kid is different. You'll want to try to get to Disney Quest-great place for teen boys! I bet your DH and the rest of your family would enjoy this too. I know at 40 yrs young, I enjoyed the place immensely.

 

[ContemporaryGirl]

Thanks, everybody for your thoughtful replies!! Your right, there is that 'Magic' to consider!!! And that is a wonderful idea, to split up for a while if need be!! Thanks again for the thoughts and ideas, to help us make sure this is special for everyone!!

 

[dougsmom98]

My nephews, 13 and 14, just went to Disney for the first time ever. It's a hard age. They really want to be there, but in many ways are scared to death that people will know that they want to be there. It's an image thing. Basically my nephews did everything. They didn't care for the shows but we had them tag along anyway. If we went to a park twice, they got to veto certain rides or shows or the party split up based on interests. One thing my nephews really enjoyed was going back to the park at night. Teenages like to go out at night, it's a cool thing to do. So, if the park hours allow, go back at night because I think you'll find your son will enjoy it and so will you.

 

[ContemporaryGirl]

Thanks Dougsmom98!

I think you hit it right on the head when you said that they wanted to be there, but didnt want anyone to know they wanted to be there!! That's exactly what I think he's going through right now. when we went 5 years ago, he loved it, and it's all he's talked about for the last 4 years. So when I finally new we could afford it again, I planned the trip right away........................and was really disapointed when he just seemed "ok" with the idea of going! What a change just that short time made...........it's true when they say they grow up in a blink of an eye!!

The nighttime is a great idea!

Thanks again for your thoughtfullness!

 

[catwho]

(slapping myself on the forehead) Don't know why I didn't hink of this before, but if your ds is concerned that he won't have any fun at WDW, have him post over at the teen board. I'm sure all those Disney-fied teens will convince him what a great time it is.

 

[winniedapooh]

Just back with almost 14 you DS, 12 yo DD, 10 yo DS, 7 yo DS, and 5 yo DD. We had a blast and as one poster put it Disney seems to be ageless. I think if we took them every year it may be different, but oldest DS really did not mind doing stuff that fearless 5 you DD liked, aka the Barnstormer. She loved big rides too so we all went on those. Have a blast and enjoy.

Faith, trust, and pixie dust to you!

 

[USA Here I Come]

Last time we went my brother was ten and I was fourteen, so about the same ages as your kids but opposite sexes. If your daughter is 11 then she is most likely big enough to ride most thrill rides (my brother was at ten) that your son will want to ride. You could split up for stuff like shows say if you are at mgm you and your daughter could go see beauty and the beast whilst your husband and son watch Indiana Jones stunts spectacular. I think you son will be quite surprised at alot of the stuff he will find intresting:

Magic Kingdom:
Alien Encounter
Space mountain
Buzz lightyear's space ranger spin
Splash Mountain
Goofy's Barnstormer
Thunder mountain railroad
Pirates of the carrabien
The haunted mansion

Epcot:
Body Wars
Fitness Fairground
Horizens
Test Track
Honey I shrunk The Audience
Innoventions
The Living Seas
Spaceship Earth

He will probably enjoy most of the world showcase depending on how mature he is

MGM Studios:
Tower Of Terror
Star Tours
Rock n Roller coaster
Indianna Jones
Muppet Vision 3D
Backlot Tour
Fantasmic
Who want to be a millionaire

Animal Kingdom:
Its Tough To Be A Bug
Festival Of The Lion King
Countdown To Extinction
Kilomanjaro Safaris
Kali River Rapids
Maharajah Jungle Trek


Make sure you involve your son in the planning and when you are there let him choose some of the restaruants you dine in my particular favourites are:

50's prime time cafe
Rain forest cafe
Sci-Fi dine-in

Also for a treat let him visit Disney quest.

Remember to let him go off by himself sometimes or let him decide what attractions you do next.

Make sure you do all the parades/fireworks.

A non-Disney teen wont like loads of disney all at once so go to universal, IOA or seaworld on some days and if you have time why not do boggy creek airboat rides?

Make sure he checks out teen dis too!!

Hope this helps!!!!!!

 

[Deb & Bill]

We have a 9 yr old son. We went at Christmas time and also brought our 15 yr old niece with us. She became my husband's good roller coaster buddy when our son and I didn't want to go with him (I get sick on coasters). We'd run off and get the fast passes for the other ride while they did the coaster a few times.

Most of the time she had a great time doing everything with us. She even had a great time with our son as did he with her. We'd take her again any time.

We did have the family radios that we used from time to time if we split up or the kids split off from us.