After your 1st trip....what did you do differently?

[awdsmama]

We had a blast on our trip in March (DS7 first trip, my 1st with a kid)....

Next time though....

We WILL do the Fantasmic Dessert Package

I WILL make time to eat where I want sometimes too so I can sample the yummies I have read about on here. It's so easy to bring snacks in then forget "hey I was going to try ... today".

With the exception of Cars Land since that will be new....i won't be quite so ruled by "we need to go here, there,everywhere" if he wants to ride Go Go Gadget Coaster 10 times in a row...fine. I finally gave in the last day or two haha!


How about you - after your first trip what did you do differently on subsequent trips?

 

[KalamityJane]

We are totally seeing Fantasmic as well! Missed it last year. Definitely going to try for better spots for WOC, we were way back and couldn't see a darn thing.

We also want to see Aladdin (yeah, we pretty much missed all the shows!). I want to eat at more places in Disney - we have 2 character meals scheduled so far.

 

[Eddygirl]

We just got back from or second trip. Some things we did differently:

*We bought a longer PH's! We spent twice as many days in the parks as last time.

*I budgeted in money for eating in the parks. It was nice to not cringe too much when buying 4 Mickey ice cream bars for $20.

*i researched the menus in the parks so I knew where to find the special "Disney" food. This also allowed me to budget. I also read a lot of food reviews. I knew what would be good and what we should not waste money on.

*We ate at the BB one day. No regrets!

* I did gift bags for the kids on our arrival. I shopped the Disney store online as well as Target etc. Disney everything from t-shirts, flip flops, and beach towels to shower gel and plushies. I figured the kids could use the stuff throughout our trip instead of a shopping spree at the end. This proved to work for us. The kids were so surprised and thrilled and the need to buy everything in the parks was diminished.

*We took way less photos. Sounds weird... But we spent more time enjoying everything with out worrying about catching everything with the camera. I got to SEE the fireworks this time with my eyes, not through the viewfinder on the camcorder!

* We had a list of 'must-do's. Things the kids or we did not want to miss. The rest we just let unfold. Yes we rode BTMRR 7 times in a row!!!

* I researched some tips, tricks and secrets. It was very fun! We took the time to listen to the telegraph at the train station and a lot of other magical little things we missed last time. My DS got to pilot the Mark Twain!!!

* We each took part in a DL tour. DD and I the Happiest Haunts. DS and DH did Discover The Magic. Again... ZERO regrets! Highly recommend!

* We were generally more relaxed. There were still things we did not get to do, but it did not stress me out. We had fun doing what we did!

* We have already started to save for our next trip! The last trip was supposed to be a one time thing. Once in a lifetime... Cross it off the list. Ya right! Lol!!

 

[Geemo]

From my many (35+) years of training and work, I always planned everything OUT FOR EVERY MINUTE!

Now I'm retired (have been for 10yrs) and planing isn't important to me any more.

Last January I took two of my teenage grand kids DGS (18), DGD (15).
They aren't planner's. We had 5 day hoppers.

I gave the kids a list of my must do's for the trip before we left.
If it was a deal breaker for them, they could stay home....
1. Aladdin
2. parade at night
3. WOC
4. Tower of Terror

This was basically my very first trip without an itinerary for every minute of each day. I didn't know what time or where we'd be after we arrive at the hotel.

It was the BEST trip ever!!! So PERFECT that the three of us are doing it again for my 60th birthday in January/February.

This time my other D-DIL, DGS (10) and DGD (8) will be joining us. We'll be a Disney Family of 6 experiencing the magic...

We will have memories for sure.... I can hardly wait!!

Geemo

 

[majermom]

My husbands a HUGE planner but when we decided to do DL again (there 12/2010) to see the new California Adventure attractions as well as DL park I immediately tensed up. Not because of him but me! I was so surprised that he wanted to go back so soon and feel pressured that it's only going to be for 4 days. I would love to take the advice and just put my camera away but I don't think I can... just want a redo I guess because I got a BAD case of Pink Eye the last time we were here and although I was determinded not to let it ruin our trip, it did bother me for the last 4 days of that vacation. CANNOT WAIT TO GO BACK THIS THANKSGIVING!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I just hope I can relax and enjoy it even if we don't get to do everything.

 

[Escape2Disney]

The biggest thing I learned was where to pinch pennies and where to spend. I don't want to spend all of my money on water, small meals and snacks, so I order those from the grocery store. We splurge on at least one meal in the parks a day (most of the time it's a sit-down restaurant) and the rest comes from the room.

I also learned that I was constantly stressed when buying special things in the parks. Now I give each of us a daily budget for non-food items. Ironically we still get quite a bit but come home with money left over.

I'm only 5'1", so I've learned to splurge on the fantasmic dessert seating so I can actually see the show. We don't tend to like fireworks, so we skip them unless we can see them from our fantasmic seats. Aladdin is a must, so it's worth the wait.

Character meals are wonderful time savers! We get to see a ton of characters and no longer feel the need to wait in endless lines in the park. As a matter of fact, we're going to 3 different character meals this year because they are so fun!

Unless we are going to an early character meal or trying to get to a popular ride, we don't use an alarm clock. We get there when we get there. I know many people will contradict this, but for us it makes for a much nicer day. We also take mid-day breaks. We're much nicer people if we're well rested!

Finally, I now realize that we'll always go back, so there's no reason to go commando! The purpose of our trip has changed from getting on every ride to enjoying the company of family and friends. Sure, we try to do most everything (we're there for 6 days at a time afterall), but if we don't, we can put those thing on a list for the next trip.

 

[Bungle]

We no longer do an itinerary. We did the first two times and it wasn't fun at all. I think it just isn't in our nature to do DL like that. Now we make a list of what each of us would really like to experience and just go by that. Now we just take our time and really enjoy our time in the parks.

Also I really learned that its better for my boys to have their own money. When they have a set amount they aren't asking for things or just spending frivolously. Plus it seriously cuts down on the volume of stuffed animals we have to cram into the suitcases on the way home.

 

[StyledSugar]

Our must do's this trip:

We will see Aladdin. For whatever reason, we seem to miss this every trip.

We will eat at BB. Had ressies on our trip when my daughter was younger and we made the mistake of having a large lunch and were still stuffed by dinner so we skipped it.

We will also be doing the Fantasmic! dessert package this time. We're going during Christmas and want to guarantee a good viewing spot.

Also, because we are going during Christmas we will make sure we don't stress about not getting on every single ride. We are going to just enjoy the park and not worry about every little thing.

We will try a different character meal. We are creatures of habit and always end up doing the same thing over and over because we like it. Well this time we are going to try one or two different character meals.

 

[lurpee]

We are totally seeing Fantasmic as well! Missed it last year. Definitely going to try for better spots for WOC, we were way back and couldn't see a darn thing.

We also want to see Aladdin (yeah, we pretty much missed all the shows!). I want to eat at more places in Disney - we have 2 character meals scheduled so far.

You and I sound similar. This will be my fifth visit to DL--the first trip was for two days when I was 17 with my church youth group, the next two times were day trips from San Diego and my last trip was three and a half days and I thought I had a clue but realized I didn't.

I have never seen Fantasmic, WOC or Aladdin. I have never had any character interaction, never eaten in a sit down restaurant and never done any of Main St. So, we're doing all that this time! But because I don't want to be the Disney Nazi, we are going to be there for 10 days. We also have two character meals purchased but not reserved yet.

 

[awdsmama]

I'm only 5'1", so I've learned to splurge on the fantasmic dessert seating so I can actually see the show. We don't tend to like fireworks, so we skip them unless we can see them from our fantasmic seats. Aladdin is a must, so it's worth the wait.

Character meals are wonderful time savers! We get to see a ton of characters and no longer feel the need to wait in endless lines in the park. As a matter of fact, we're going to 3 different character meals this year because they are so fun!

Escape: Exact opposite here lol I am 6'1 so for me I want to do Fantasmic dessert because sitting on the concrete was NOT comfortable haha!

And I totallly agree about the character meals! We did Minnie and Friends at the Plaza Inn and it was wonderful! My son got to fill up most of his autograph book (and finished in the park but still have some more to get on future trips) and spend more time with the characters than he could have in the park. Next time we'll do Storytellers!

 

[lalasmama]

My DD has special needs... so for our second trip, I'm going to make a point to remember that she's not a mini version of me. In other words, we're keeping a schedule!

Otherwise, I'm trying to make it a general "yes day," which I was bad at last time.

Oh, and I'm getting a sweatshirt, even if it is $60! I did the Leap Day t-shirt, and I still get a silly grin every time I wear it (like today!). How wonderful to have that same feeling when throwing on a sweatshirt!

 

[MychaelP]

I agree with:
Put the camera away after half the day is over. You miss to much and it seems to add to anxiety.
Limit to one snack, like a Dole Whip or a Vegetable Skewer at Bengal BBQ (ask for extra hot sauce). Bring the rest with you and then have a nice Dinner meal. Eat by 4pm or near 8pm for less crowds. The dinner meals actually are comparable to normal restaurants in price.
Take time to go sit somewhere and look around you, the other day we found shade near the first aid area and noticed all the cast members walking by there. We received many tips there and learned about things like the tapping sound at the N.O. Train Station is Disney's opening speech!
Last tip... enjoy... even sitting is enjoyable as ducks walk by and people watching for awhile when rest is needed

 

[madmaxx]

We just got back from or second trip. Some things we did differently:

*We bought a longer PH's! We spent twice as many days in the parks as last time.

*I budgeted in money for eating in the parks. It was nice to not cringe too much when buying 4 Mickey ice cream bars for $20.

*i researched the menus in the parks so I knew where to find the special "Disney" food. This also allowed me to budget. I also read a lot of food reviews. I knew what would be good and what we should not waste money on.

• We took way less photos. Sounds weird... But we spent more time enjoying everything with out worrying about catching everything with the camera. I got to SEE the fireworks this time with my eyes, not through the viewfinder on the camcorder!

We did the same things our second time around: we gave in to to parks and didn't sweat food costs as much, and we budgeted more. Letting go of this stress was a huge relief. Also spending more time watching, looking, and enjoying (versus taking photos and video) meant more time experiencing.

We actually didn't spend much more on our second trip either, mostly as we stopped buying water (fountains and refills at meals), and we mixed and matched starters, main courses, and desserts (instead of buying one of each for each family member). The leftover food budget went into a painting from the Main Street bank gallery

For our next trip we're learning more about the menus, so that we can find the food we're craving without as much work, and so we don't settle on whatever food happens to be closest.

 

[Eddygirl]

We did the same things our second time around: we gave in to to parks and didn't sweat food costs as much, and we budgeted more. Letting go of this stress was a huge relief. Also spending more time watching, looking, and enjoying (versus taking photos and video) meant more time experiencing.

We actually didn't spend much more on our second trip either, mostly as we stopped buying water (fountains and refills at meals), and we mixed and matched starters, main courses, and desserts (instead of buying one of each for each family member). The leftover food budget went into a painting from the Main Street bank gallery

For our next trip we're learning more about the menus, so that we can find the food we're craving without as much work, and so we don't settle on whatever food happens to be closest.

I forgot about the water!! That was a huge difference for us this time. I bought collapsible water bottles from a hiking store and we refilled at the fountains. Sometimes we used lemonade mix or iced t. I figure we saved enough on water it PAID for our lunch at the BB!!!!

I do not think we spent a heck of a lot more this time either. We came home with money! This will be put into the Disney account to get the ball rolling on saving for the next trip!

 

[smiles33]

What a great thread! I love reading the replies as we're planning our second family trip next April. I am taking notes as I read along. Thanks to the OP for posting and all the PP for sharing your experiences.

 

[DorkyDisneyMom]

I think the thing that I remember most changing was saying yes to a favorite ride even if there was a line.

I hate lines. What I really hate more is skipping rides because of a line. We thought oh we'll get back to that later. Sometimes you do and most of the time we don't. So if it's a favorite and important I'd rather ride it with a line than skip it.

I won't do over an hour line but anything under that is OK.

I remind myself how disappointed I was on my second trip when I skipped Peter Pan. I love that ride and it holds a special place in my heart. So I was heartbroken to have missed it just because the line was long.

When I rode it in WDW for my next trip I cried. I'm such a sap. It brought back all the special memories. So from then on we never skipped based on line if it's a favorite.

I also have a great memory from that WDW trip. It was on Expedition Everest. We went with a bunch of friends. We were going to skip but I changed everyone's mind. We waited and I will never forget being so scared and having to hold my friends hand. It was awesome and funny and scary! It was also one of my favorite memories of the trip. If we would have skipped it because of the line I would have missed it.

 

[Watchtower]

We used to live in Ca when I was a kid, so we went to DLand about 3 times before I was 9yo. We would drive 8 hours to Anaheim and stay at the HoJo across the street (I can remember seeing the Matterhorn from the hotel). We would only stay in the park for 1 day, and leave before dinner because the food in the park was too expensive for my penny-pinching bio-dad to justify.
While I was in college in 1998, I went with a group of friends and we SPLURGED! We stayed at the DLH, and had 5-day tickets. They weren't called "park hoppers" back then 'cause DCA was still just a ripped up parking lot with a big pit dug out where GRR would eventually be. It was the best trip EVER! My next trip wasn't until 2 years ago during Halloween Time. Again, I went with a group of people to cut down on costs and justify staying at the DLH with 4 days in the parks. Because of these last two trips, I will NEVER spend less than 3 days in the parks (4 or more is better). I will ALWAYS try to scrape up the money to stay onsite so that I never have to leave Disney's "bubble of happiness". I've been saving for two years, plus an entire tax return, for my partner and I to go by ourselves in just 16 more days. We're staying 3 nights at the Paradise Pier (cheapest onsite option) with 4 days in the parks. This will be my first time as an adult going without a whole group of people, and my first time planning the entire trip on my own! Doing all the research has been a blast! And I have these boards to thank for a lot of it!