Boyfriend's First Trip to WDW!! Need Help!!

[PHLtoMCO]

This October my boyfriend is coming to WDW for 8 days with myself and 8 of my family members for his first ever visit to the world!! (Bless him) He has no idea how fun it can be for adults, despite my efforts in trying to explain it to him. We are going to be there for F&W so drinking/eating "around the world" is definitely going to happen. I'm sure we will hit Jellyrolls/ESPN as well. I was also thinking of booking parasailing for the both of us. We also booked MNSSHP the night of my daughter's birthday.

We will have plenty of in-park time, but any suggestions on what else I can do with him outside of the normal park experiences? We don't want to leave Disney property and we are staying at Bay Lake Towers just to give you an idea on location!

A little bit about him/his likes:

Definitely a guy's guy
Into extreme sports/outdoor activities/pool
A fitness model- frequents the gym twice a day (will be only once in Disney!)
Eats A LOT!! (Meat & Potatoes type of guy)

TIA!!

 

[com_op_2000]

sports: golf, fishing, RPDE, marathon, bowling, ESPN Club, WWS/ESPN Zone, etc
shopping: DTD, area outlet malls, large scale malls
drinking: Jellyrolls, Raglan Road, monorail tour of resorts, walking tour of resorts in the Boardwalk area
movies: DTD 24 screen theater some with meals served by waiters
night clubbing: Jellyrolls, Atlantic Dance, Raglan Road, Citywalk
resort tours: monorail tour of resorts, Boardwalk around the lake tour of resorts, AKL/AKV

 

[PHLtoMCO]

sports: golf, fishing, RPDE, marathon, bowling, ESPN Club, WWS/ESPN Zone, etc
shopping: DTD, area outlet malls, large scale malls
drinking: Jellyrolls, Raglan Road, monorail tour of resorts, walking tour of resorts in the Boardwalk area
movies: DTD 24 screen theater some with meals served by waiters
night clubbing: Jellyrolls, Atlantic Dance, Raglan Road, Citywalk
resort tours: monorail tour of resorts, Boardwalk around the lake tour of resorts, AKL/AKV

Golf is a great idea. Didn't even think of that! He and my sister's fiancée love gold so maybe I'll book a tee time for them.

Thank you!!!

 

[snarlingcoyote]

Just a note for his gym needs: I haven't stayed at BLT yet (planning that for next September's trip) but all the deluxe resorts have decent workout rooms. I only do the cardio, but they all seem to have nice weights as well. It's usually pretty quiet with very little company or competition for the machines. (I can't think why. I mean, it's not like you get a lot of exercise during the course of a day at WDW! )

 

[spiceycat]

anyone in your party a DVC member - if so he can take the boat to VWL and get a much better gym.

the one at CR is old, inside, and to me rather boring.

blt does not have one - so you must use CR - or VWL.

boy why leave the area - he can go monorail bar hopping, renting a boat, skiing, parasailing, archery (fw), horseback riding (fw), fishing, jogging.

here a link
http://www.wdwinfo.com/recreation/index.htm

there is also an activity hall (at the others it is called a community hall) - and it has stuff to do - okay mainly for the kids - but it does have some games. also DVD

now he can't swim in the lake - but with BLT 1 pool and CR 2 pools - think he will be okay.

if he wants to do the FW stuff there is a boat that goes to it and WL.

 

[PHLtoMCO]

Just a note for his gym needs: I haven't stayed at BLT yet (planning that for next September's trip) but all the deluxe resorts have decent workout rooms. I only do the cardio, but they all seem to have nice weights as well. It's usually pretty quiet with very little company or competition for the machines. (I can't think why. I mean, it's not like you get a lot of exercise during the course of a day at WDW! )

Thank you so much for the response! He does mostly free weights but he will make due with whatever is available! I'm training for the Glass Slipper Challenge in Feb so I should really be running while there and doing some weight training too!

Thanks again!

 

[PHLtoMCO]

anyone in your party a DVC member - if so he can take the boat to VWL and get a much better gym.

the one at CR is old, inside, and to me rather boring.

blt does not have one - so you must use CR - or VWL.

boy why leave the area - he can go monorail bar hopping, renting a boat, skiing, parasailing, archery (fw), horseback riding (fw), fishing, jogging.

here a link
http://www.wdwinfo.com/recreation/index.htm

there is also an activity hall (at the others it is called a community hall) - and it has stuff to do - okay mainly for the kids - but it does have some games. also DVD

now he can't swim in the lake - but with BLT 1 pool and CR 2 pools - think he will be okay.

if he wants to do the FW stuff there is a boat that goes to it and WL.

Horse back riding?? We have both said we wanted to do that at some point! I had no idea we could do that on property! Thank you for sharing the link. Checking it out right now!

 

[JessM]

I took my BF to Disney for his first time this past December. We spent one night at Jellyrolls but the rest in the parks. He had a great time. You may be surprised how much he will enjoy the world without a bunch of special activities. Remember, he hasn't been to WDW yet and hasn't experienced the rides and attractions.

I was really surprised that after just about every ride or show my BF would say "that was really cool", even after PP and Hall of Presidents. He was being serious too! Haha I can tell when he's just saying it vs meaning it. We did almost all the attractions from "kiddie" rides to the thrill rides. My BF loved SM and TSM so we made sure do those multiple times.

I hope you guys have a great time!

 

[PHLtoMCO]

I took my BF to Disney for his first time this past December. We spent one night at Jellyrolls but the rest in the parks. He had a great time. You may be surprised how much he will enjoy the world without a bunch of special activities. Remember, he hasn't been to WDW yet and hasn't experienced the rides and attractions.

I was really surprised that after just about every ride or show my BF would say "that was really cool", even after PP and Hall of Presidents. He was being serious too! Haha I can tell when he's just saying it vs meaning it. We did almost all the attractions from "kiddie" rides to the thrill rides. My BF loved SM and TSM so we made sure do those multiple times.

I hope you guys have a great time!

This made me feel a lot better thanks! These extra activities can definitely add up and with the cost of an 8 day trip already, it can get very expensive! I know he's going to love Jellyrolls for sure so we are definitely planning on doing that 1-2x. I think he's going to be very impressed with illuminations and Epcot in general. He's an eater so we booked the dining plan. He loves pools so I'm hoping the weather is nice so we can lounge by one of the pools at our resort with some cocktails! I'll definitely need to take him to the Poly for wishes on the beach with a Lapu Lapu as well!

Thanks again

 

[com_op_2000]

Make sure you build in some down-time. Even though this is his first trip, you can over do it and make him NOT want to come back.
An afternoon at the resort pool can be a blessing, after a morning running around a park.

 

[wiigirl]

Make sure you build in some down-time. Even though this is his first trip, you can over do it and make him NOT want to come back.
An afternoon at the resort pool can be a blessing, after a morning running around a park.

 

[DCTooTall]

You may also want to consider what your first park will be.

Depending on his current opinion of Disney (Is he excited to go and see Disney? Is he looking forward to anything in particular? Or is he going mostly to spend time with you and the family and make you happy?), How you approach the parks, and his first experiences, can sometimes help set the stage on if it's a once-in-a-lifetime thing for him, or if he'll look forward to many future trips tothe parks.


The reason I say that.... A lot of guys see the Disney Advertising campaigns, complete with kids running up to princesses and people in animal costumes, as well as the "magic" and Fairy Tales focus, and can get the idea that Disney is a very Kid or girly place. If you then take them to the Magic Kingdom as their first stop, With the princesses and fairy tales and castle, it can pretty much set in stone the idea that Disney is for kids.

Taking them first to a more "adult" park like EPCOT however, Can help ease them into all that Disney has to offer. You have the drinks, and the food, and the countries galore.... and then you also have the characters and princesses and other bits of Disney magic in attractions like Spaceship Earth, Soarin, Test Track, Mission space, etc. Going to the more "adult" park first can help give them the comfort level within Disney to relax, and see behind the princess and fairy tail exterior to see much more of what Disney brings to the table.

They may then find themselves enjoying the Magic Kingdom much more since they will already be exposed to some aspects of Disney Storytelling in a more mature environment. Or... at the very least, even if they still don't like the Magic Kingdom, at least they know that there are completely different experiences at the resort and they aren't stuck doing the "kiddy" fantasy stuff the entire trip.

 

[PHLtoMCO]

You may also want to consider what your first park will be.

Depending on his current opinion of Disney (Is he excited to go and see Disney? Is he looking forward to anything in particular? Or is he going mostly to spend time with you and the family and make you happy?), How you approach the parks, and his first experiences, can sometimes help set the stage on if it's a once-in-a-lifetime thing for him, or if he'll look forward to many future trips tothe parks.


The reason I say that.... A lot of guys see the Disney Advertising campaigns, complete with kids running up to princesses and people in animal costumes, as well as the "magic" and Fairy Tales focus, and can get the idea that Disney is a very Kid or girly place. If you then take them to the Magic Kingdom as their first stop, With the princesses and fairy tales and castle, it can pretty much set in stone the idea that Disney is for kids.

Taking them first to a more "adult" park like EPCOT however, Can help ease them into all that Disney has to offer. You have the drinks, and the food, and the countries galore.... and then you also have the characters and princesses and other bits of Disney magic in attractions like Spaceship Earth, Soarin, Test Track, Mission space, etc. Going to the more "adult" park first can help give them the comfort level within Disney to relax, and see behind the princess and fairy tail exterior to see much more of what Disney brings to the table.

They may then find themselves enjoying the Magic Kingdom much more since they will already be exposed to some aspects of Disney Storytelling in a more mature environment. Or... at the very least, even if they still don't like the Magic Kingdom, at least they know that there are completely different experiences at the resort and they aren't stuck doing the "kiddy" fantasy stuff the entire trip.

You're spot on here! He sees the advertising, commercials, etc.. And he thinks its a place just for kids! And you said it exactly- he is looking forward to spending time with me and my family- he just wishes it was in a different venue! I thought about starting at Epcot to ease him in so we'll see if that plays out. I looked into some of the prices of the "extras" such as parasailing, wake boarding, etc... very expensive so I've decided I'll book one extra experience and if he wants to do more once we get there, it's all him!

My goal isn't to turn him into the next annual Passholder or DVC member- hoping he just appreciates it enough to want to return as my daughter and I like to go at least once a year!

Thanks for the reply

 

[PHLtoMCO]

Make sure you build in some down-time. Even though this is his first trip, you can over do it and make him NOT want to come back.
An afternoon at the resort pool can be a blessing, after a morning running around a park.

Absolutely! I'm looking forward to some pool time myself!

 

[elisabeth1106]

Cirque!

 

[PHLtoMCO]

Cirque!

Ooooo! How did I not think of this! He would LOVE that!!

Thank you!