Disney has ruined me!

[Disney Anna]

Because now I can't travel anywhere else.

I recently posted about my trying to book a trip somewhere, besides Disney World, for DH and myself. I looked into Europe, Yosemite, Grand Canyon, and D.C. to name a few places.

I was shocked at a) how difficult it was to figure out things; and b) how expensive it was. I mean, I can book a 6-night trip, mod resort, this Spring for less than $1,200 (room and tix , and deduct $200 gift card). Plus, I have a free SW voucher and our other flight will cost approx. $250. The whole trip will be less than $2,000 - for a week, to the East Coast from California.

It was nowhere near this easy or inexpensive to book the other places.

Have any of you found the same to be true?

The big savings is really with the rooms. I can't believe how expensive hotel rooms are.

 

[LadyZolt]

As much as I love Disney, I have recently gone on a cruise (after doing two Disney Wonder 4-day cruises) to South America and it was fabulous! What I enjoyed about it was: The ship is quite relaxed, yet there are always things to do. Visiting a new place every few days, and going through the Panama Canal, was a blast. You see stuff you never see in the U.S. It gives you a new perspective. Yet I didn't have to over-plan anything because I would just get back on the cruise ship after I toured a location.

You could do a search and see what cruise lines leave from your neck of the woods, and where they go. Chances are you can find affordable ones that will take you somewhere new and you can do it on a budget you can afford. Just something to think about. But I still love Disney, too!

-Dorothy (LadyZolt)

 

[portocall]

I know Disney is easy and I love it, but it can be fun doing the legwork to go other places too, and be economical. On our to do list in the next 10 or so years is Disney, Grand Canyon, WashingtonDC/NYC, and a cruise. The cruises are easy to figure out as the PP said, the Grand Canyon on the other hand isn't, but I am having fun trying. Trip Advisor is a godsend as is requesting each states travel info, they have some real gem suggestions that aren't too pricey. We don't fly as the airline fares along keep us grounded and we like to find interesting places we would never go otherwise when we stop for the night in small towns. The Museum of the Arkansas Grand Prairie in Stuttgart Arkansas was amazing and the kids still talk about it, but it was NEVER on my to do list...

In the meantime, you gotta love Disney and they rely on making it so easy, and it really is such a great vacation, but if you really want to hit someplace new, have some fun with it!

 

[Michelle67]

We went on a short Caribbean cruise several years ago, and it was so cool. I'd love to do it again. If you have flexibility to be able to do it on short notice, you can get into a cruise very cheaply when it gets close to sailing and they want to fill up the cabins.

 

[RNMOM]

I found the same problem trying to plan vacations to other places. By the time I figure out the hotel, transporation and all that and on top of that we don't know any of the restaurants or anything else about it but what is printed in guidebooks I gave up. It seems to be more expensive in the long run to go elsewhere. Who'd have thought that was true?

 

[Vexorg]

My parents cruise all the time (always on Princess) and I've been on a couple. I've been meaning to go on another one, but it never seems to work out, more often due to not being able to get off work than anything else. Then again, I have only been to WDW once (about three weeks ago) and DLR twice (and the first time was one day when I was nine years old,) so I'm not quite as much a Disney junkie as some people here. I'll have to see what my schedule permits, since I often end up planning vacations on relatively short notice, rarely more than a couple of months in advance.

As for the Grand Canyon, I made it there in 2006, and I felt like it was more of a "cross it off the list" type place than a "make a vacation out of it" destination. Yellowstone, on the other hand, is definitely a place I'd like to get back to at some point (and unlike a lot of places, is within semi-reasonable driving distance of here.)

 

[Northstar]

I like doing both kinds of planning.

With other places, that are less documented on the Internet (usually because fewer people go there!), I go back to leaving more opportunity for serendipity. I just give up my inner control freak and accept that this is going to be more of an adventure. And then sometimes amazing stuff happens, and we get a glorious surprise that's all the better because we couldn't plan it... and sometimes bad stuff happens, and we end up coping and have a good story for future years about how we bonded in adversity!

 

[Shmily1]

I tried to go to Universal one time. I couldn't do it. I tried to get excited about it, but just felt in my heart the "magic" wouldn't be there and I didn't want to cheat on my man Mickey!!

 

[CathrynRose]

I tried to go to Vegas once. I got too overwhelmed with everything.

 

[welovedisneyx4]

I know what you mean. We want to take a trip out west this summer or next and I don't know where to start w/ the planning.

Also, when we went to DC a couple of years ago, there wasn't alot to go on. We had real issues w/ finding food near our hotel and the 10.00/day parking fee for DW is better than the 15-20.00/day fee for parking in the hotel garage!! I have since found a bit of info to help w/ DC, but just nothing like Disney!!

 

[Planogirl]

Planning for the first time to anywhere is much like planning a trip to WDW. It's strange and unknown and you have to do your research.

I think it would be awfully dull to never expand your horizons though. There's so much out there, both good and bad, and I personally think it's fun to see it all.

 

[Todd&Copper]

If you weren't such a Disney-phile, I bet planning a WDW vacation would seem awfully intimidating as well.

Deals and packages are out there for other places, you just have to look further than the DIS Boards to find the.

I know I personally would not be happy just going to the same place over and over and over on every vacation just b/c it was a little easier to book or seemingly cheaper. I know it is not necessarily a popular opinion here, but Disney does get boring after a while. There are only so many times you can go on Haunted Mansion, EE, Pirates or Toy Story Mania before it becomes dull.

 

[adkkev]

Planning for the first time to anywhere is much like planning a trip to WDW. It's strange and unknown and you have to do your research.

I think it would be awfully dull to never expand your horizons though. There's so much out there, both good and bad, and I personally think it's fun to see it all.

If you weren't such a Disney-phile, I bet planning a WDW vacation would seem awfully intimidating as well.

Deals and packages are out there for other places, you just have to look further than the DIS Boards to find the.

I know I personally would not be happy just going to the same place over and over and over on every vacation just b/c it was a little easier to book or seemingly cheaper. I know it is not necessarily a popular opinion here, but Disney does get boring after a while. There are only so many times you can go on Haunted Mansion, EE, Pirates or Toy Story Mania before it becomes dull.

well said.

 

[CathrynRose]

Disney does get boring after a while. There are only so many times you can go on Haunted Mansion, EE, Pirates or Toy Story Mania before it becomes dull.

Say's who?

 

[klmall]

As much as I love Disney, I felt it would really cheat our DS to not show him the rest of the country. We took a 3 week car trip of the west when he was 14. We have also taken him to the Bahamas and Hawaii. DH and DS have gotten tired of Disney and I have also decided to take a break after 11 trips.

My advice to those who have any nagging doubt about "what might I be missing?" is to go ahead and plan a trip to a national park like Glacier where the glaciers will NOT be present in 20 years or to Yellowstone or to the Grand Canyon in the fall or springtime. Take a car trip to the Smokies or to the Rockies and see our country at its finest.

Yes, sometimes it will be expensive but you don't have to choose the best hotels. There are nice Hampton Inns or Days Inns everywhere and kids love pools at any hotel! We always packed picnic lunches when we traveled and only ate dinners out in restaurants with our son on our trips to keep costs down. Breakfast was often a quick drive-through or cereal and milk from the cooler. We even packed a folding cooler on a plane.

Don't get me wrong - I am a die-hard DIsney fan but Disney is not all kids should travel to see. I can't remember where I read this but someone surveyed American children a few years ago and found that of those who had traveled beyond their home state the majority had gone to Florida and only to Florida!

 

[JessR]

taking a cruise will be even better.

 

[allison443]

I think it would be awfully dull to never expand your horizons though. There's so much out there, both good and bad, and I personally think it's fun to see it all.

I agree..
I had one friend who said she didn't need to go to Europe because she'd been to Epcot. Yes, she was serious.

ETA, I'm not criticizing people who go to WDW exclusively or frequently! Not at all! Just criticizing my friend.

 

[hercamore]

We just had a trip to NYC last month. 4 days trip cost way more than a weeks time in Orlando. HOtel was $200/nite for a budget hotel in NYC and that was a bargain for that city. First time I've ever spent that much on a hotel room.

However, we had a great time in NYC and are hoping to go back again this Nov. or Dec.

For our next vacation, we are torn between NYC and ORlando tho because DD is military and Disney has just come out with some big military discounts for this year.

 

[Pakey]

We vacation quite a bit, at least once a year to somewhere on another continent, and no trip has ever been as frustrating to plan as the trips to WDW. Most places do not require you to know where you are going to eat every meal a half of a year before you go, you don't have to plan what venue you are visiting on what day. I've even managed to get through the Louvre and the Uffizi without touring plans.

 

[klmall]

We vacation quite a bit, at least once a year to somewhere on another continent, and no trip has ever been as frustrating to plan as the trips to WDW. Most places do not require you to know where you are going to eat every meal a half of a year before you go, you don't have to plan what venue you are visiting on what day. I've even managed to get through the Louvre and the Uffizi without touring plans.

I totally agree! Fewer plans have to cast in stone ahead and once there, these new places are so absorbing you can sometimes just go with the flow as they say!