Border Dilemma - Keeping the Secret

[SweetAlex]

I'm hoping someone else has attempted this and has some suggestions/advice for us. We live just outside Vancouver, Canada and booked our March Disney trip last night! Hubby and I are SO excited. We went to Disney on our honeymoon 13 years ago and finally took the kids there over 2 years ago, when my littlest was only 3. Now she'll be 6 and it will be SO much more fun.

We want to surprise our kids. They have no idea about the trip and ideally, we want to be able to hold off on the surprise until we hit the airport... in Seattle. Our dilemma? Crossing the border and answering the custom officers questions without giving it away. Is it possible?!

My only idea is to hand a note to the Customs Agent with our passports. The note will read something like: "Dear Customs Officer, we are surprising our little ones with a trip to Disneyland and would love to be able to keep the secret until we reach the airport. Our itinerary is attached. We'll return on March 23...". Think this will work? I do have visions of the Guard immediately thinking the note is a threat or something and arresting us... lol. Any other ideas?

 

[Shegardens]

Why not call the border and let them know your situation so there are no surprises in case you have to tell them sooner. Could you hook them up with a movie and headphones while crossing the border so they don't hear?

 

[smitch425]

Why not call the border and let them know your situation so there are no surprises in case you have to tell them sooner. Could you hook them up with a movie and headphones while crossing the border so they don't hear?

Headphones was going to be my suggestion as well. If you can't do a movie, perhaps a small mp3 player or, if she has one, a handheld gaming system could distract her.

 

[rmgreenesq]

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My only idea is to hand a note to the Customs Agent with our passports. The note will read something like: "Dear Customs Officer, we are surprising our little ones with a trip to Disneyland and would love to be able to keep the secret until we reach the airport. Our itinerary is attached. We'll return on March 23...". Think this will work? I do have visions of the Guard immediately thinking the note is a threat or something and arresting us... lol. Any other ideas?

As a former resident of Langley, BC, and regular border crosser, I think if you pick the right border crossing point at the right time, I think the note will work. hand over the note on top of the passports and ask the officer to read the note. You also might want to try leaning your head out of the car to answer the questions.

One other thing to consider: how old and observant are your children? I now live 10 miles south of Disneyland. On my daughter's 8th birthday, we arranged with her school to have a Disney ditch day. We packed the kid in the car to take her to school as normal. Instead of turning south for the five minute drive to school, we turned north. Twenty minutes later as we were approaching the corner of Katella Ave. and Harbor Boulevard my daughter was still in her own little world in the back seat. She finally figured out that we were not going to school when we pulled onto Disneyland Drive.

Your children might tune out the conversation with the Customs Officer altogether as 'adult talk'.

Rick

 

[Rubygoose]

I think the note is a good idea, but I wouldn't write a long note, just something short and in big, bold letters saying "Going to Disneyland. Shh! Kids don't know!" Do you think your daughter would catch on if you just told the officer that you're going to Anaheim? Would she connect that to Disneyland?

When we flew from Vancouver to Disneyland in the fall, we saw a family there with a little girl and my kids (2 and 5) were wearing their Disney shirts and they started talking to her. We found out it was her birthday, and her dad said to me "She doesn't know where we're going. It's a surprise." And then my daughter says to her "We're going to Disneyland. Where are you going?" So the little girl asks her Dad "Are we going to Disneyland?" I felt so bad that my kids ruined their surprise!

 

[Happy 2 B Me]

When our daughter was 4 years old we traveled from washington state to Vancouver Canada. We of course were stopped at the border. Husband and I showed ID at that time -- over 24 years ago and so before 9-11. Daughter had her birth cert but bless the border guard he looked inside the car and asked our daughter who WE were. Bless her heart she said Mommy and Daddy. LOL we got to pass with no other tests LOL. But what a great way of making sure one of us was not taking a child out of country without the other parent knowing. Just wanted to share.

Hope all goes good and the kids are super surprised

 

[jory29]

I am concerned about using headphones to block out sound. The reason I say this is because when one year when we were crossing the border into the USA, the border guard specifically asked my daughter 'where are you going? I answered for her (she was around 6 at the time, and shy) 'We're going to Disneyland' then she looked at me and said 'I asked *her* and I'd like her to answer.' Clearly they were just making sure that she was our daughter and that our kids knew where we were taking them on the flight and it was obviously asked, for my daughters protection. I have concerns about writing a note as well. Is it possible to send 1 adult forward to the station first to quietly mention to the border guard that you guys are keeping it a secret... then at that point you could all step forward to the station to show passports? I'm not convinced myself its worth it to keep it a secret for that long as some kids prefer a little bit of advance warning.

 

[ellafly]

my friends did this at the truck stop border coming from Langley, the note worked fine. i wouldn't put headphones on the kids, sometimes the guards like to talk to them. good luck!

 

[Freesia123]

Where do the kids think they're going? You could always just say 'on vacation' as you give them your passports with the itinerary on top. Write in big letters the kids don't know! If they think youre going yo Bellis Fair this obviously wont work.


If both of their legal parents aren't in the car you can not surprise them. You will get pulled in if the kids don't know where they are going and are alone with only one parent. (This happened to me even with a notarized letter because it smelled fishy) we missed our flight because of the four hours it took my husband to get to Blaine.
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