Complaint? Disney is to stressful and complicated

[gina2000]

I have always loved planning but I've also loved getting up in the morning and throwing the plan out the window. Or going to a park, seeing a crowd and turning right around and heading somewhere else. Canceling a dinner reservation and making another the morning of a dinner. It won't be so easy anymore.

I enjoy planning but I want more flexibility than the current structure seems to afford me.

 

[justhat]

Define "valid". There is so much to do at Walt Disney World that doesn't involved riding the E-Tickets eight times in a row or dining in the most popular restaurant at the most popular time ... if you don't find the remaining options "valid", you might have your expectations set too high. Edit: To be fair, Hollywood Studios can be tough to be spontaneous in. That said ... I get that many people don't want to have to plan on their vacations. I understand that entirely. But let me see if I can explain it in a way that makes sense. Would you go to the airport this weekend and expect to be able to book a flight to a popular destination at some exact time? I think most people would understand that no, you're not going to do this. Most people understand that a popular restaurant in Times Square probably won't have a table for a walk-up customer. You might try, but you're expecting to hear a No. This is reasonable. So why do people think they can go to the Number 1 Vacation Destination in the Entire Freakin' World (tm) ... with NO plans made in advance, and be able to do all of the popular stuff? There is some weird entitlement mentality going on here that I really don't understand. You can be spontaneous at Walt Disney World. I do it every trip. But you can only be SO spontaneous if you want to do the same things THOUSANDS of other people want to do. I booked an ADR for Be Our Guest to make sure we can eat there. If my wife decides she wants to go to a different park, or maybe eat somewhere else instead, I'll gladly eat the $10 for the reservation (I'll call and cancel, of course), so that we can have that spontaneity. But if she DOES want to go to the most popular restaurant, it's covered. I'd rather put in the time now to prevent a possible disappointment, because it gives us flexibility.

How many people do you have? We have 6. So if we decide we don't want to eat somewhere then that is $60 down the drain. And try walking up to any sit down restaurant with 6 people. We even eat at off times cause our kids go to bed early.

And going to bed early presents a challenge in that we can't just wait and go on rides later in the day, cause we are eating dinner by 5 and kids in bed by 8. We are rope drop people, always have been, so we have gotten in stuff then, but now we had to prebook fastpasses that we may or may not need, then to change them for our whole group will be near impossible as I can hardly do it now, 50 days out.

I am not remotely saying not to plan for a vacation. Of course we do, and like I said, years of APs with ADRs planned and the like. But it used to be far more flexible was than it is now. I used to be able to decide what to ride that day. Now I have to decide 2 months in advance. And with small kids that can be challenging. Our last DL trip in November my now 4yo got scared on a ride she has done many times before (Alice in wonderland) and then decided she didn't want to rode a bunch of stuff she has loved in the past. Since they use regular FP, it meant we could just not get a FP for certain rides and change our plans. Getting FP 2 months out means I have to guess. That same kid is now 40". So do I get her a FP for BTMRR? On the past my older kids got to see the ride first to decide if they wanted to ride. Well if I wait till we are there, 4yo may not get a FP with the rest of the family if she decides to ride but if age decides not to, may not he able to get a Dumbo FP for the same time.

 

[PlutoFan10]

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.

I agree!

 

[Melany502]

I Just sitting on the beach or going to the mountains for a few days m.

THIS!! We go to Cape Cod every year and we are going for 10 days in July and I am just not looking forward to sitting on the beach. Gotta hit up the library... :-/

 

[Don Disney]

YES! The vacation itself isn't full of stress-- it's the advance legwork and research that MUST be done.

Yes...and yes.

 

[practicallyperfect77]

I struggle a little with this question. I love planning and researching but the fact we don't know when the rules are going to change stresses me out. My next trip is with my sisnand her family. It will be a one and done. I know my niece and nephews well (I see them a couple times a week), but it's hard to know what time they'll need naps and want to eat and such. Making plans 180 days in advance completely overwhelms my sister, but I feel in order to give the kiddos the most magical time some plans need to be set up in advance so I've done the best I can. And keeping fingers crossed kiddos will go along with said plan b/c I really don't want $60 charged for no show ADRs.

 

[kathy884]

OK -- I do plan my one or two Disney days a year, but it's so easy and fun. I just pick a park. I subscribe to touringplans.com. I download their park adult highlights touring plan, add an attraction or two, take out three or four attractions we don't want to do, hit optimize, and there it is, a super easy to follow plan that minimizes time standing in lines. And then I print out a few plans and we for the most part follow it, but will deviate for things that might come up (touring musicians, a castle show that we happen upon, etc.) Easy, mindless, relaxing, fun // With FP, if I can I'll just get some for the longest waits I have at the time I was doing the attraction anyway. If they aren't available then, no big deal. Pre FP+ usually only did one or two fastpasses a day anyway.

We stay offsite. We don't do ADRs. We don't do the Disney special tours / activities. But we do do a park day or two.

 

[Grimlock34a]

I think the real problem here is one of expectation and the attitude going in especially if the plans fall apart. YOU choose to be upset or stressed if you can't the ADR or FP you want. YOU can choose to stress out if family don't want to follow YOUR plan (which you can choose to include in your planning or let them figure it out on their own).

You can just show up at the parks and roll with the punches. But don't be upset if you can't just walk up to an attraction or restaurant and get in right away. Disney gives the tools for planning. Use or don't but to have a great vacation is for YOU to have a great attitude and have fun.

 

[justhat]

I think other factors play into the stress too. For me, meals are a big thing because I absolutely don't want to eat counter service twice a day, and not every single day at all. I have a nut allergy and I have a kid with dairy/soy/nut allergies. The table service places make life way easier with food allergies as the options are far more varied than at the counter service places and they can change/create meals that work.

And then rides, when you have varied age kids, it makes it harder to plan on the fly with the new system. And rider swap used to allow us to take our kids on a 2nd time with the other parent but now they have reduced the number of people allowed on the 2nd time so I can't take all my kids, so then either my husband or I get to experience it with them, but not both.

 

[Nancyg56]

I think the real problem here is one of expectation and the attitude going in especially if the plans fall apart. YOU choose to be upset or stressed if you can't the ADR or FP you want. YOU can choose to stress out if family don't want to follow YOUR plan (which you can choose to include in your planning or let them figure it out on their own). You can just show up at the parks and roll with the punches. But don't be upset if you can't just walk up to an attraction or restaurant and get in right away. Disney gives the tools for planning. Use or don't but to have a great vacation is for YOU to have a great attitude and have fun.

A lot of people do this, and never even know what they did not do. They are too busy enjoying what they are doing. Now I understand that for the most part, DIsney needs a basic plan, at least for me it does, but once I get there I am prepared to toss the plan right out the window if it is not working for my family. In October, my FP will be booked, and I will have meals, but because of the rules place on cancelations, I will book fewer. I always canceled if we needed to make changes, but the window is too long for that so I will compensate. There is no way I am going to use meals as a stress inducer. If we have FP booked and my friend wants to do something else, so what? Attractions do not trump my family or friends.

I know that DIsney planning is different today than it was last year, and I can adjust. But I am not going to get into a tizzy over a vacation. I knew folks who did that, directed their families like a platoon in boot camp, and had one member running all over the parks to gain those FP, all the while criss crossing just like Tour Guide Mike instructed. No parades....best attraction times. No character lines....that is what character lunches were for. Never mind that Marie was not there....you met Mickey, be happy. So Disney has always been stressful for those who thrive on stress. THe changes we have seen have been going on and folks adjust to them, or not. But the stress? That is a choice.

 

[RMulieri]

It is not a vacation for me..It is loads of fun ,and we have enjoyed our trips but in no way is it relaxing..As I get older I want both fun and relaxation..Both DH and I get very little vacation time from work.We plan each and every minute and hour of our days for our jobs.The last thing we want to do is have to plan each and every second of our vacation too ..I was ok with rope drop, I was ok with having to plan some of our dining.We loved using park hoppers and used them all the time ..Now a WDW trip for us is plan,plan, plan..Plan your dining, PLAN what park what day ( we never had to do this and I HATE this part of it .Before it was an on the fly decision -whichever bus pulled up is where we went ), Plan your rides in advance..
I accept that vacation does require some planning,but I do not want to have to decide 6 months in advance where I want to eat, what I want to eat ,what parks and what rides at what times... after experiencing other Orlando destinations that require almost no planning ( some is still involved) .It was nice to not have to do that and still have fun and a great time.We will still do Disney, it is just not our primary or first choice.

 

[sethschroeder]

Update
126 - Not stressful
132 - Stressful in some combination

 

[evilqueenmindy]

I'm the planning nerd of our our group, and I like making all the plans before we get there because it eliminates the group standing in the hub at MK doing the "well, what do you want to do?" *four people shrug and the kid answers with EITHER "get ice cream" or "buy a toy" depending on which of these needs has most recently been filled.* I like having a plan, and the more I can plan before we arrive, the more I don't have to think about when I am there. I understand things can go sideways, and Im capable of improvising or going with the flow, but I like making 3 FP selections before arriving, I like knowing well get on space mountain without waiting today, whether we accidentally sleep in and miss rope drop, or if we get stuck in disney bus purgatory.

 

[mommycrawford]

My daughter gets ill during our trip every year....usually just for one evening, but last year it was several days.

Although she felt awful, she looks back on the trip as a favorite, as we did some different things...calm things, like going to the movies!

It is fun to do everything, but also fun to not be part of the madness when you have been to Disney multiple times!

What I HATE on any Disney trip is all the parents I hear, not laughing with, but berating their children, and demanding that they have fun, when they are hot and tired, and just want to swim in the pool!

Yes...I am, at the moment, tired of trying to decipher the new system and plan it out, and budgeting to pay for it,...but I love it there, and it is visually very beautiful, and a break in a place like that is something I am looking forward to.

 

[morethananyonex]

Oops wrong thread

 

[PA Disneymania]

It's vacation - away from the stresses of the workplace. It is as busy as you want it to be. When traveling with the kids we hustled, up early, out late in order to get everything done. Now that it's just DH and myself we still get up early and stay out late, but we take time to enjoy the scenery, smell the roses so to speak.
I enjoy travel and prefer an active vacation - heavy sightseeing in other countries or our own beautiful country - so WDW is more relaxing to me than that. Since we go for a couple of days every other year or so, I know what I didn't get to do this time, I can do the next time. Whereas, foreign travel means cramming as much in as possible because I likely will not get back.
Again, don't stress the vacation. Even if your kids are small and you want to get so much done, they will go back - maybe not next year, but they will return.
Happy vacationing, everyone.

 

[nooneshome]

Disney is too complicated the first two or three trips. That is why we go several times. Our plans are basically this, get there at RD and do our must dos and get as much done before lunch. Have a relaxing lunch and then wander around and do whatever we can.

 

[DisneyFive]

While I voted "FP+ forces me to plan", that's not exactly how I feel.

Our Disney vacations, even with FP+, aren't stressful. It's just that after our first experience with FP+ last year, I got tired of having my face in a smartphone managing our FP+ times. I also didn't so much like the aspect of booking so far in advance. It tends to lock in your schedule so much.

Definitely good and bad to the new system

Dan

 

[JeremyGNJ]

So this poll shows:

Of the people who are obsessive enough about Disney World to log onto this forum and answers polls from random strangers...about 50% of them find vacation planning stressful.

 

[sethschroeder]

So this poll shows:

Of the people who are obsessive enough about Disney World to log onto this forum and answers polls from random strangers...about 50% of them find vacation planning stressful.

Yup and it would seem from the responses that quite a few of them have no issue with it being that way...

I think we need stress sometimes to have a good time after all there is a good portion of people who are addicted to being stressed.
http://www.foxnews.com/health/2014/02/09/overcoming-addiction-to-stress/