DH just doesn't understand!

[pawsitivemom]

He thinks this is a *vacation*....I think of it as more of a "trip" . He figures he will be sleeping in, lounging and just "taking it easy" for the 5.5 days we are at WDW. He looks at my planning folio and just shakes his head! He thinks I'm NUTS doing all this planning and getting ideas.

He just doesn't understand!

I guesse I'll just have to wait until we are there so I can say "I told ya' so"

 

[poohandwendy]

LOL, why not just let him sleep in if he wants while you and the kids go off and have fun?

 

[cardaway]

LOL, why not just let him sleep in if he wants while you and the kids go off and have fun?

What she said.

I don't get it either. Why go to WDW where you have to pay full price if you just want to sleep in and relax? Go somewhere without tickets and entrance fees if you want to relax and do nothing.

 

[Disney1fan2002]

Too funny! We always say we need to take a week after we get back to rest. We need a vacation form our vacation when we go to WDW.

 

[ericamanda01]

Our first trip was a surprize from my inlaws and we only had two weeks notice. Well being the type A personality that I am I went into a freakish planning mode. DH thought I was nuts. He had no idea what WDW would be like. He kept telling me, because I had never been to DL or WDW and he had been to DL, that is could be that much different. I still laugh about that sometimes. But on our second trip he learned and spoke up about what he wanted to do.

 

[RUDisney]

We consider WDW a vacation. We stay onsite and don't do the commando park tours. We feel well rested and energized by the end of our vacation. We don't miss a thing while we're there.

Now, when I was younger, and went with my commando parents... that was a trip and we needed to recover from it when we got home. But, then again, we spent 2 days in the car going there and 2 days coming home. That could also have added to that tired feeling.

My DH has already said that he wants to take it easy when we go to Universal in March. No problem for me because whenever he gets tired at WDW, he goes back to the room and the kids and I stay and have fun.

Don't fret it. You'll both have a nice trip/vacation.

 

[Galahad]

What she said.

I don't get it either. Why go to WDW where you have to pay full price if you just want to sleep in and relax? Go somewhere without tickets and entrance fees if you want to relax and do nothing.

We go to Disney to "relax" and often take a trip there and never go to the parks.

 

[mommaU4]

We go to Disney to "relax" and often take a trip there and never go to the parks.

What do you do?

This is a serious question by the way not a sarcastic one.
My Grandma is giving us a week from her timeshares but so far we have had a hard time finding a place. They are all booked. I know the Orlando area has tons so it might be easier to find one there.
Of course since we just went in Nov/Dec there is no way we'd do the parks again which would really bum out the kids. What else is there to do that doesn't cost an arm and a leg?

BTW, sorry OP I know this is

 

[Galahad]

What do you do?

Well, I'm sure it wouldn't work for many. First off, DW and I are 50. We only have one child left at home and he is 16. DW and I would be satisfied drinking wine and staring at each other in the hot tub for a week. We often go to DTD and we go to some of our favorite WDW restaurants. We spend a lot of time at the pool.

Exceptions to the "don't go to the parks" thing would be that if DS really wants to, he will go to a park without us. We will sometimes go to the water parks (which I wasn't including in the "don't go to the parks" statement because for us it's just like going down to the pool - just a really big one).

We did the WDW warrior stuff years ago and swore a few years ago that we would never go to WDW again with an agenda. We work our tail off most of the year. We're not about to do that the few days off we get.

We are DVC members, so usually (but not always) we stay at a DVC resort. You can stay at OKW, with the intention of having a relaxing few days and never leave OKW and do just fine, IMO.

None of this would work with small children I'm guessing.

 

[pawsitivemom]

We consider WDW a vacation. We stay onsite and don't do the commando park tours. We feel well rested and energized by the end of our vacation. We don't miss a thing while we're there.

Now, when I was younger, and went with my commando parents... that was a trip and we needed to recover from it when we got home. But, then again, we spent 2 days in the car going there and 2 days coming home. That could also have added to that tired feeling.

My DH has already said that he wants to take it easy when we go to Universal in March. No problem for me because whenever he gets tired at WDW, he goes back to the room and the kids and I stay and have fun.

Don't fret it. You'll both have a nice trip/vacation.

I'm sure we will have a great time....but, unlike many here, this is a only twice in a lifetime thing for us....we are taking ODS now and YDS in 4-6yrs! I don't care if I see *everything* because I know I won't but, I have learned how *much* there is and I want my family to be informed...KWIM.

We have been saving for 2 yrs for this, are saving $$ by driving (from Windsor ON...20ish hrs) and I just want to make the most of my time there.

I can't wait....and...I do plan on at least 1/2 day just "roaming" or vegging!

 

[cardaway]

We go to Disney to "relax" and often take a trip there and never go to the parks.

I was thinking of folks who buy tickets to the main four parks ahead of time which is what most people do when they buy a package.

 

[mommaU4]

Well, I'm sure it wouldn't work for many. First off, DW and I are 50. We only have one child left at home and he is 16. DW and I would be satisfied drinking wine and staring at each other in the hot tub for a week. We often go to DTD and we go to some of our favorite WDW restaurants. We spend a lot of time at the pool.

Exceptions to the "don't go to the parks" thing would be that if DS really wants to, he will go to a park without us. We will sometimes go to the water parks (which I wasn't including in the "don't go to the parks" statement because for us it's just like going down to the pool - just a really big one).

We did the WDW warrior stuff years ago and swore a few years ago that we would never go to WDW again with an agenda. We work our tail off most of the year. We're not about to do that the few days off we get.

We are DVC members, so usually (but not always) we stay at a DVC resort. You can stay at OKW, with the intention of having a relaxing few days and never leave OKW and do just fine, IMO.

None of this would work with small children I'm guessing.

You know I have to say that this actually sounds really relaxing and something that would be right up my alley if it was just my DH and I .
Maybe we'll have to do that someday, especially the hot tub part. I was sooooo tired after out last trip. Fun, but exhausting. Anyways thanks for the reply.

And to the OP: Hope you have a great trip. We also drove when we went. From northern MI about a 24 hour drive. We broke it up into 2 days and it still saved us a ton of money over flying. And we only go once every few years so when we went it was crammed with things for us to do because I knew we wouldn't have the luxury of going back to the parks anytime soon. Have fun!!

 

[Nancy]

My husband doesn't like to get up and go either. We will meet in the parks when he gets around to it. The girls and I laugh about the commercial for the Disney cruse line with the Dad sleeping all over the boat and the Mom and kids doing everything...that would be us.

 

[poohandwendy]

I'm sure we will have a great time....but, unlike many here, this is a only twice in a lifetime thing for us....we are taking ODS now and YDS in 4-6yrs! I don't care if I see *everything* because I know I won't but, I have learned how *much* there is and I want my family to be informed...KWIM.

We have been saving for 2 yrs for this, are saving $$ by driving (from Windsor ON...20ish hrs) and I just want to make the most of my time there.

I can't wait....and...I do plan on at least 1/2 day just "roaming" or vegging!

It is definitely a good idea to be informed. One bit of advice that I think is helpful for 'first-timers', especially those who think they will only take one or two trips in their lifetime, write down your 'must-see' list and let everything else just be a bonus. WDW is really overwhelming the first time and it can be stressful on everyone if you do not pace yourself.

Try to take the 'we spent alot of money getting here and want to get our moneys worth' out of your thought process and you really will enjoy it more. If you get tired/cranky, go back to your room for an hour or two and relax. You are better off missing a few hours of the park hours than spending the rest of the day miserable. (actually, I wouldn't do ANY WDW park from morning til fireworks without a few hours of rest during the day...I don't necessarily mean a nap, just getting out of the parks. Ie:sun/crowds/heat/rain)

You probably already know these things, just wanted to mention what I think made our best trips more fun.

Have fun planning, it really is a magical place.

 

[JuneCleaver]

I am definitely in the "relax" category. I figure I look at my watch 50-51 weeks a year and live by routine/commitments. On vacation, I want to do what I want when I feel like it. I plan...then don't follow the plan at all.

June

 

[Galahad]

I was thinking of folks who buy tickets to the main four parks ahead of time which is what most people do when they buy a package.

Sorry - missed the package part.

We used to have AP's but dropped them a few years ago when our interest in the parks waned a bit.

 

[S. C.]

I am definitely in the "relax" category. I figure I look at my watch 50-51 weeks a year and live by routine/commitments. On vacation, I want to do what I want when I feel like it. I plan...then don't follow the plan at all.

June

Same here.

We are all nite people so we sleep in, get the parks around 11am and stay till the parks close. Disney at nite is great

If we got up early we would be to tired to enjoy ourselves.

 

[urglewurgle]

Too funny! We always say we need to take a week after we get back to rest. We need a vacation form our vacation when we go to WDW.

that's certinally true! i have NEVER been so exhausted! lol... i think it's all the excitement (and the walking!) that does it... oh, and all the fresh air!

 

[cardaway]

Sorry - missed the package part.

I didn't ever mention a package, but I think it's safe to assume the question centers around why buy tickets or packages if you don't want to take full advantage of them.

We used to have AP's but dropped them a few years ago when our interest in the parks waned a bit.

AP's are a totally different animal. Usually you reach a point where they have already paid for themselves vs. stardard tickets and anything beyond that is gravy. We went that route in Dec2003/Oct 2004 and loved it.

 

[janette]

My DH does very little park time on our WDW vacations. We are DVC members and usually have an AP so he can come and go at his leisure. We kid that if there was a by the hour ticket it would be perfect for him. The AP allows him to go into the parks without feeling like he's losing a day and he'll join us for part of the day sometimes. It is rare that he spends more than a couple of hours in a park.

I'd just plan to do early mornings without your DH and let him meet you when he arrives, he might miss somethings but if you all wait for him to be ready to go you'll all miss out. You don't mention your kids ages but what I found on our first trip was that it worked great for different ages & interests to leave one kid with DH while doing the park with the other one. One time I did the late night park opening with the older one and early park opening with the other. Not everyone enjoys the parks the same but everyone can have a great vacation.