Considering canceling and could use some reality checks/advice

[Lisa LSR]

Family vacations are about making memories. Even if it’s crowded, it can’t keep you from having those memorable family moments. The trip will be what you make of it.

This is exactly the reality check I needed Plus a dose of perspective about what's really important here. Thanks!

 

[KrazeeK120]

She said this was "to just go in, walk around, eat somewhere." I hope this picture I'm trying to attach will show.

The photo you posted is the entrance to FOP.

 

[disneydreamer1980]

Just sayin, no one, while lying on their death bed, will ever say “I wish I would’ve stayed in school for that week instead of going on a family vacation”. And no one would ever remember anything they did that week in school, but I bet they’d remember a dream trip they took with family. Experiences in life are the most important thing, and if a kid is doing well in school there’s absolutely no reason why they cant take a week off for a family trip. And spending quality time with family is just as important for a kid as school.

 

[Lisa LSR]

Just sayin, no one, while lying on their death bed, will ever say “I wish I would’ve stayed in school for that week instead of going on a family vacation”. And no one would ever remember anything they did that week in school, but I bet they’d remember a dream trip they took with family. Experiences in life are the most important thing, and if a kid is doing well in school there’s absolutely no reason why they cant take a week off for a family trip. And spending quality time with family is just as important for a kid as school.

I couldn't agree with you more on all counts! Which is why I wish they'd allow for some flexibility. I know many school systems across the country do. The only time we really have is the summer. In fact, the proposed calendar they just released for our school system actually took away the full week for Thanksgiving. Many parents have complained, but if it remains as it is, I'll already be pulling my kids out of school for two days the week of Thanksgiving. Hopefully they will change that.

While my daughter will love her Disney vacation, she would definitely not be feeling the magic if she had to take every one of her exams because she missed too many school days! Lol. Being exempt is a big deal to her.

 

[Lisa LSR]

The photo you posted is the entrance to FOP.

Ah, ok. That's more understandable. Thanks!

 

[disneydreamer1980]

I couldn't agree with you more on all counts! Which is why I wish they'd allow for some flexibility. I know many school systems across the country do. The only time we really have is the summer. In fact, the proposed calendar they just released for our school system actually took away the full week for Thanksgiving. Many parents have complained, but if it remains as it is, I'll already be pulling my kids out of school for two days the week of Thanksgiving. Hopefully they will change that.

While my daughter will love her Disney vacation, she would definitely not be feeling the magic if she had to take every one of her exams because she missed too many school days! Lol. Being exempt is a big deal to her.

Sorry, I was addressing that to the “pesky teachers” post

 

[Lisa LSR]

Sorry, I was addressing that to the “pesky teachers” post

That's ok. I still agree

 

[SaintsManiac]

Hi everyone! I have a current one week reservation to stay at CSR the week of Thanksgiving, with my husband, 14 yr old daughter and 11 year old son. We have been on a tight budget for the past few years, paying down debt. Before that, we took two wonderful trips to WDW, in November, two years in a row.

This is a dream trip, and sort of long-awaited reward for reaching our financial goals. Maybe that's why I'm worried about it so much. I have been reading threads about how terrible the crowds were last Thanksgiving. I mean, like 4 hour lines just to walk around the the Avatar lands, and even a stand-by line for Carousel of Progress! At first, I was like "no biggie" because I'm a huge planner. I will make all my fpasses and ADR in time, etc. I am even considering purchasing Touring Plans for extra help.

I expect crowds. I know it can be bad. But now I'm afraid that being shoulder to shoulder with a sea of humanity is going to suck all the magic and fun out of our trip. I'm afraid kids will be cranky and fussing, husband will be regretful about the money spent, and I'll just feel like it's all my fault (bc that's what moms and trip-planners do, right).

I got up early this am and started looking at other family vacation options (a Grand Canyon trip is one we've also wanted to do). It doesn't seem nearly as exciting, but then again, the deserts of Arizona are pretty wide open spaces...

What would you do?

I was at AK the day before Thanksgiving. There were NOT any 4 hour lines just to walk around Pandora. The FP line wasn't even visible from the entrance. We even found a quiet spot in Pandora to sit at night and enjoy it. That day was the busiest day we experienced and we were never "shoulder to shoulder" with anyone.

ETA: Just saw that post that it was stand by for FoP. Got it

 

[Robo]

Someone actually posted a the "wait time" sign for that week, so I guess it happened at some point ?

She said this was "to just go in, walk around, eat somewhere." I hope this picture I'm trying to attach will show.

The photo you posted is the entrance to FOP.

Ah, ok. That's more understandable. Thanks!

This is why law enforcement staffers (and DISboard veterans) know that "eyewitness reports" are not necessarily to be taken at face value.
It can take quite a bit of Q&A to burrow down to "the facts."

Some info in posts can just be careless reporting, while others are based on misunderstanding of what an individual observed.

If something seems "outlandish and extraordinary," it likely might be just a misunderstanding.

 

[1911]

having been to the grand canyon several times, for us it has been nothing more than a few hour side trip. unless you plan on going down inside the canyon and doing some hiking or rafting through it on the river,I can't see making a whole week out of it. Just my opinion.

 

[Betty_Baylor99]

As someone who visited the Grand Canyon during Memorial Day weekend, let me just say that even though it is “wide open spaces” there, it can definitely get very much crowded there to the point you cannot find lodging within an hour radius (we had to stay in Flagstaff an hour away as every hotel room and AirBnB was booked solid) and have long waits for the bus, dining, etc. If I were you, I’d keep the WDW plans. There is more “to do” so that even though there will be a lot of people, they are spread out over four parks, many rides, many restaurant/dining options, etc. It will be busy but with proper planning of ADR and FP, IMHO it really is doable

 

[KrazeeK120]

having been to the grand canyon several times, for us it has been nothing more than a few hour side trip. unless you plan on going down inside the canyon and doing some hiking or rafting through it on the river,I can't see making a whole week out of it. Just my opinion.

Yeah, I agree. I’ve only been there once, and we spent maybe a couple of hours. I don’t really think you could make much more than a day out of it unless you’re doing the activities described above. Even then, I think you’d be hard pressed to find enough stuff to do for a whole week, and it’s not close to any major cities or anything.

We actually took a day and went to the canyon on a trip to Las Vegas. It’s about a 4 hour drive from Vegas. I was shocked at the nothingness out there. Where I’m from in Illinois, you’re always within 10 miles of SOMEWHERE. Not so out in the desert!

 

[rinnythepooh]

Hi everyone! I have a current one week reservation to stay at CSR the week of Thanksgiving, with my husband, 14 yr old daughter and 11 year old son. We have been on a tight budget for the past few years, paying down debt. Before that, we took two wonderful trips to WDW, in November, two years in a row.

This is a dream trip, and sort of long-awaited reward for reaching our financial goals. Maybe that's why I'm worried about it so much. I have been reading threads about how terrible the crowds were last Thanksgiving. I mean, like 4 hour lines just to walk around the the Avatar lands, and even a stand-by line for Carousel of Progress! At first, I was like "no biggie" because I'm a huge planner. I will make all my fpasses and ADR in time, etc. I am even considering purchasing Touring Plans for extra help.

I expect crowds. I know it can be bad. But now I'm afraid that being shoulder to shoulder with a sea of humanity is going to suck all the magic and fun out of our trip. I'm afraid kids will be cranky and fussing, husband will be regretful about the money spent, and I'll just feel like it's all my fault (bc that's what moms and trip-planners do, right).

I got up early this am and started looking at other family vacation options (a Grand Canyon trip is one we've also wanted to do). It doesn't seem nearly as exciting, but then again, the deserts of Arizona are pretty wide open spaces...

What would you do?

We live in Arizona. I think the Grand canyon at TG can have some bad winter weather. Check weather history before changing. Weather there is drastically different than the dessert areas of Phoenix and Tuscon. I would do WDW the week after TG or second week in Dec if there is any possible way to swing it with school.

 

[Conno]

Hey, I'm a teacher, so I'm not knocking my school system. I just wish they'd take into consideration grades, performance and lack of previous absences and allow for a little flexibility sometimes. Family time is important too.

I don't disagree. I would be happy that my district was that strict though. Some parents would abuse flexibility to the detriment of their children's grades (Not that I am implying you would or have!). Schools in the UK have started fining parents £120 (around $167) per unauthorised absence (£60 per parent) unrelated to health concerns/family emergency. It sounds like you still have flexibility in that respect at least!

 

[cel_disney]

OP - I actually picked the town we live in based on its school absense policy so I totally understand your frustration!! It stinks! This is an unfortunate school administration decision / approach.

Let me preface this by saying we are a Disney family thru and thru and prefer the Disney experience. You CAN have a fantastic time even when it’s crowded. You might use single rider or maybe do early mornings and shut down the parks at night but power nap during the day. Or you might decide certain rides are not worth the wait. But you CAN have a wonderful time!! And I would do it in a heartbeat!!

Now - all that said...given your kids ages, you might also consider replacing your Disney trip with a universal trip. A stay at Lowes Royal Pacific or Hard Rock will give you express pass and early entry - you will spend minimal time in line. If the weather is nice you can head to Volcano Bay which is amazing (our favorite water park) and also go to Seaworld. If you have Harry Potter or Coaster Fans in the Family - this coupled with the less crowds might be something to consider. I wouldn’t expect it to cost less than Disney and I don’t find the night time entertainment to be as good. But I do think that with Express Pass it’s going to be easier to manage the crowds.

 

[Davey Jones II]

O.P., if you are concerned that you won't get value for your money, I would consider staying at a value resort. If you slash your hotel costs, it's a lot easier to get your money's worth. All Star Sports is a nice themed resort and is usually the least expensive place on property.

 

[PPFlight75]

We have gone the last couple of Thanksgiving weeks and have had a great time. We do not do parks on Thanksgiving Day but that is because my DH want to just relax on that day, but we do the parks all the other days. We have had a wonderful time. We always do RD and when it starts feeling a bit too crowded for us we just head back to our resort to nap, swim, or just relax. When then head out later for dinner or another park. We have never felt it was too crowded for long periods of time. It does kinda get crowded in the afternoons but that is when we usually head out. We use FP or RD for things that get busy like FOP and then use our FPs for our must dos. I didn't find this last Thanksgiving any more crowded the other years.

 

[ABE4DISNEY]

Arizona is my other happy place, so your question is actually a WIN-WIN situation in my mind.

However, if you did choose Arizona, you should go on your spring break rather than Thanksgiving, but only if that break is in later March or into April. (Of course, due to the weather near the Grand Canyon.)
Also, you can easily make Arizona a week long vacation if you include the cities of Flagstaff, Page, Tucson, and Phoenix. Actually that really isn't even enough time to explore that beautiful state!

Have fun planning!

 

[Mom2m&k]

We went in December before Christmas this past year and we were really surprised how crowded it was. Luckily we have been to WDW before and will go again so we just adjusted our plans. We made consessions and stood in line s longer then we normally would for things we really wanted to do and skipped other things. We had a fantastic time and learned December wasn’t the right time of year for us. Go and have a fantastic time!

 

[DisneyWishes14]

I agree with the PP's who posted about the Grand Canyon. I've been there a few times in all seasons and late November would not be my choice of month to visit. Plus, unless you are renting a car and exploring other "close-by" areas (in quotes because nothing is close by!), it's not worth a week-long trip, IMHO.

We've visited WDW numerous times in different seasons including very heavy crowd trips. Even on those trips, we managed to have a really good time. We had to adjust our touring and go in knowing that standby lines would be very long. If you go in with a good touring plan, your 3 pre-booked FP+'s under your belt and some plans for alternative, out-of-the park time, I think you will have a great trip! I also agree with the PP who suggested perhaps booking a value instead of a mod if that would take some pressure off and make you feel a little better?