Complaint? Disney is to stressful and complicated

[sethschroeder]

I have noticed quite a few shots lately on this boards about Disney being to stressful and that other vacations are more relaxing. I just got to thinking what is the real reason behind this?

 

[ajwolfe]

I love our Disney vacations, but I always joke that I need another vacation afterwards. I don't find them stressful, but I can't say they are relaxing. We go hard when we are there (because we want to!) so early mornings and late nights walking miles around amusement parks don't equate to a relaxing vacation to me. Don't get me wrong, I wouldn't change a thing about our trips, but that's why we intermingle in other trips in between. So we do get that chance to unwind, sleep in and take it easier.

 

[asmit4]

I love our Disney vacations, but I always joke that I need another vacation afterwards. I don't find them stressful, but I can't say they are relaxing. We go hard when we are there (because we want to!) so early mornings and late nights walking miles around amusement parks don't equate to a relaxing vacation to me. Don't get me wrong, I wouldn't change a thing about our trips, but that's why we intermingle in other trips in between. So we do get that chance to unwind, sleep in and take it easier.

THIS!

Our true vacations are in Mexico at an adults only all inclusive. Our disney trips are 'for the kids' and we LOVE them but they are not 'vacations' to us.

 

[Nancyg56]

I think people can choose to have a stressful vacation, a busy vacation, an exhausting vacation or a relaxing vacation. I know people who love to rocket through the parks every day, from RD to close, and others who meander from place to place,taking in whatever occurs. For me, Disney is not stressful or exhausting, but my family rolls that way.

It is very easy to fall into the "do it all, minute by minute plan, no room for deviation" mindset, and if that works for you, it's okay. I worry that a lot of people tend to believe that if they do not plan to the max, they will not get their "vacation's worth'" and that is my idea of stressful.

 

[amg35]

We go YEARS between trips (to Disney), so we take long ones. This next one is 9 nights.
I don't find our trips stressful because of that reason. We have plenty of time to see everything (probably more than once), and plenty of time to relax, eat, drink, etc. Just being the two of us this time probably plays a role in lower stress levesl also.

My ADR's are made, just have to wait to book fast pass, but we've adjusted and picked our parks for each day, so I'm okay (now) with that aspect also.

 

[JubileenaBingBing]

I am a true 'type A' personality...that's why I love WDW. I love the planning and the running around (w/ a little down type worked in for drinking around the world at EPCOT built in). But I have absolutely no love for 'relaxing' vacations. Just sitting on the beach or going to the mountains for a few days makes me so bored I want to rip my hair out, lol. That's why when my husband wants to do a 'relaxing' vacation, we do a Disney Cruise. Relaxing for him, lots of stuff for me to see and do.

 

[moriaw76]

I've never felt stressed at Disney. Actually the complete opposite. We go hardcore. Open to close everyday but it has always been about being together with zero interruptions. Nothing outside of the Disney property matters. We usually go in with a plan but once we are there if we stick with the plan great, if not that's fine too. I have never walked away with regret of not getting to do something.

 

[Moonwolf]

I find planning half the fun about a Disney trip. That's just my personality type. I love researching and finding out about a place before going. It helps build the anticipation for me.

 

[Texas Barbie]

Here now and we have had a great week. Sitting across from pirates....it's a walk on. Some people take this so seriously they forget to have fun!

 

[MichiganDVC]

I guess I prefer to have too many things to do and perhaps over-schedule myself than to have not enough things to do and be bored.

For example, I'm going to Hawaii in July for a friend's wedding. Oahu (Aulani) for two nights, North Shore for one night, then to Maui for the remaining 7 nights. I'm afraid I'll be bored on Maui for 7 days. Yes, we're getting a Jeep and plan to take day trips and we have a beautiful ocean front villa in Kaanapali, but how many days can you sit at the beach?

Of course I'll have a great time. But seriously, nothing beats the options of things to do during a WDW trip. Not my fault if someone tries to "do it all" and gets overwhelmed.

 

[FlightlessDuck]

My family doesn't find it stressful, but I can see how others could:


People making dining reservations 90 days in advance.
People making FastPass reservations 60 days in advance.
Misinformation from the Internet and/or customer service.
The sheer number of lodging options.
The lack of lodging options for larger families.
The multitude of transportation options within the resort (bus, monorail, ferry).
People not doing enough research.
People not understanding the differences regarding park hoppers vs. multiple day tickets vs multiple tickets.

 

[d1gitman]

My observation is that the stress comes from the person, not the vacation.

 

[MamaCrystal]

After starting to plan our vacation, I actually gave up on it for a few weeks because I was so disappointed in the attitude towards planning. The sheer amount of information required to make informed decisions about when to go, which resort to choose, and layout of the parks to make ADR's is overwhelming. Once I started reading about people waking up first thing in the morning on the 180 day mark to make ADR's, I had had enough. I found myself wondering, would Walt really want people obsessing and stressing over their family vacation as much as people appeared to be?

However, once I had researched enough to feel confident in decisions (like we aren't missing out because of my lack of knowledge), and now that the majority of our ADR's are made, I'm getting really excited for our trip Now that the initial research is done, all future trips should be more enjoyable too.

 

[dixiegirl]

My observation is that the stress comes from the person, not the vacation.

THIS EXACTLY!!!!

 

[JanaDee]

The poll is seriously skewed, because all the negatives are divided up into different choices, while the positive is one choice by itself.

So just looking at the numbers, more people think it is too stressful and complicated than not.

Ok, it was that way when I first started to type.

 

[kmv]

Being at Disney is not stressful. It is fun, happy, amazing...PLANNING for Disney BEFORE you even arrive, that is what stressful about it.

 

[cygnusx1jg]

Disney is only as stressful as YOU make it to be.

If you think no planning goes into vacations to New York, LA, Las Vegas, Hawaii, Europe, etc. then you don't vacation much.

Calm down---it's vacation! And if indeed the planning of or the taking of any vacation was indeed stressful, I wouldn't take that vacation again.

 

[Planogirl]

I wouldn't expect people who come here to find it particularly stressful. Most people here know how to plan a Disney trip.

I made the comment that trips to other locations tend to be less stressful. I don't expect WDW to be particularly relaxing but that's a matter of perspective. Huge crowds tend to get to me after a while and I need days away from that. But everyone is different.

 

[kay1864]

I'm afraid I'll be bored on Maui for 7 days. Yes, we're getting a Jeep and plan to take day trips and we have a beautiful ocean front villa in Kaanapali, but how many days can you sit at the beach?

If you haven't been before, Maui is the island with the most to do/visit:
- Sunrise over Haleakala
- Road to Hana
- Iao Valley
- Northwest shore
- Lahaina
- Shopping in Kihei and in Kahului

I highly recommend the guidebook Maui Revealed. I'd been to Maui 4 times and thought I knew the island inside and out. This book showed me sights (our own private waterfall and whirlpool off the highway!) I was unaware of.

 

[Gumbo4x4]

I'm also not a "sit on the beach" kind of person, so I enjoy the non-stop activities. I do believe they've made it more difficult to just go with he flow, however. If I have to choose where I want to eat months in advance, I'll just skip it. I can bring a sandwich with me or hit restaurant row on 192 and eat wherever and whenever I want.