Disney Newbs...Completely clueless!

[SweetPeas9825]

Hi, first post! Yesterday we booked our first Disney trip ever for early October. The kids have never even been on a plane. We are cruise people, we've been on 10 cruises. I never thought the day would come that I would go to Disney World. But, alas, my daughter has been begging so we said lets give it a try for our family vacay this year! Now i'm absolutely clueless, I have no idea what parks/attractions/shows to do. When I tell you that we know very little about Disney im not exaggerating! But I plan to do lots of research here! All we know is that we must see the princesses

So, i'd love your opinions. We will be there for 5 nights. The first day we plan to just hang around the hotel and swim since we get in during later afternoon. We plan to do the parks 4 days. Which parks would you recommend? Which would you skip? We have 3 kids. My daughter will be almost 6, my son will be 4 & a half and my baby will be 9 months. There not huge into thrill rides. Also, stroller question. Should we do a double and a single? Or a double and my ergo carrier? Thanks for any help/insight at all! This all seems overwhelming but fun!

 

[Alesia]

I'm going to be completely honest with you: this is absolutely not the place you want to come for information. Not yet anyway. Planning your first trip can be really confusing when you are faced with the level of planning (and obsession) you'll find here.

My best advice is to get yourself a copy of The easy Guide to Your First Walt Disney World Visit. Then, once you have read it, come back here with specific questions.

The people here mean well, but many of them will fly at you with, "You have to do ____" or "Your trip will be a disaster if you don't ____." It gets overwhelming quickly.

 

[SweetPeas9825]

Awesome, ill order that today! Thanks Alesia

 

[jaysmom4285]

Another excellent and very comprehensive WDW guidebook is The Unofficial Guide to Disney World, available in most any bookstore. I agree with the previous poster that it would be better for you to consult this or any number of other WDW guidebooks to familiarize yourself more with the parks and attractions and get a feel for what would interest your family. After you have some of that sorted out, this is a good place to ask more specific questions.

 

[Alesia]

As for your specific questions:

What parks you should go to really just depends on what your family likes. Some people love Epcot, some people hate it. DHS is my daughter's favorite park, other people struggle to spend an entire day there. A guidebook is really helpful for getting a feel for what each park has to offer.

As for the stroller question - again, that's a personal choice. My daughter was perfectly capable of walking all day by the time she was 3 or 4. Other kids aren't. It's just a matter of what you think will work best for your family.

 

[Jadyreen1282]

I'm going to be completely honest with you: this is absolutely not the place you want to come for information. Not yet anyway. Planning your first trip can be really confusing when you are faced with the level of planning (and obsession) you'll find here.

My best advice is to get yourself a copy of The easy Guide to Your First Walt Disney World Visit. Then, once you have read it, come back here with specific questions.

The people here mean well, but many of them will fly at you with, "You have to do ____" or "Your trip will be a disaster if you don't ____." It gets overwhelming quickly.

OH come on. We would not confuse her... Much. Take the advice above. Disney planning can be highly subjective.

 

[Squggl3]

I think you can get great advice here! I would recommend Birnbaum's Official Guide to Walt Disney World and The Complete Walt Disney World. (there is also a Birnbaum's guide for kids) Read them cover to cover! Look at maps of the parks to familiarize yourself with the layout of the parks. Once you have an idea of things you think you might like come here an ask us about them. We are always up for answering and helping Newbies! I do agree that it can be overwhelming here! a lot of us are fanatics, and we all have our own opinions. My Best Suggestion for you is DON'T plan TOO MUCH! a lot of people try to cram everything into one trip, its not possible! Have your children pick a couple must dos and pick a couple for yourself. There is a lot of re-planning when taking a trip to Disney, so remember to leave free time so that you can just enjoy it!

 

[memakwed]

I agree hit your library and check out those Disney books especially the ones with kids in mind. We started taking the kiddo at the age of 5. We focus on MK, AK, and HS. Every trip (which is now at about every 18 months) we add more and more EPCOT. Everyone's scare level and tastes are different so read those books and you'll now which shows and rides are best for your kiddos. Take the trip in stride at 4 days you won't conquer it all. Take the time to plan ahead and just enjoy there will always be another trip. As for the stroller bring or rent the double and bring your carrier. Even if both aren't in it at the same time it's a great place to put those things that accumulate during the day, drinks, souveniers ect.

 

[IceSkatingPrincess]

A lot of people will probably disagree on me with this (I just don't like the park), but I'd skip hollywood studios in order to have two magic kingdom days. It's big on thrill rides anyway.

I'd try to book a character meal outside the parks your first night to really get into the Disney mood, and/or to warm the kids up to fur characters depending on which one you go to. 1900 Park Fare at the Grand Floridian has cinderella, the prince, and the tremaines; and Chef Mickeys has the classic guys, but the food is kinda eh.

Where will you be staying?

 

[pooh4evr]

check out- your first visit .net

 

[SweetPeas9825]

Thanks all!

iceskatingprincess- Pop Century. I hope that is a decent choice? As long as there is a pool my kids should be happy

 

[Alli76]

Your ADR (advance dining reservation ) date is probably coming up pretty soon or you may already be there. 180 days in advance. You will want to focus on making your reservations if you are would like to do sit down or charactar meals.

 

[Rosebud123]

Buy a copy of Unofficial Guide! Best book out there, bar none IMHO, of course!

Read that and read all the cheat sheets on easywdw.com. Good luck!

 

[Mikie]

I totally agree about getting good baseline info elsewhere and then coming here to iron out any specific questions. I like **************.net also.

For stroller, my kids were done with strollers in everyday life by age 4, but we didn't do tons of daily walking at home and they needed a stroller at least some of the time at Disney. I prefer a carrier for an infant, but unless you usually wear your baby for HOURS straight at home, you'll also want a stroller as an option for baby.

With 4 park days and your kids' ages, I'd either do all parks one day each or 2 days at Magic Kingdom and decide which other park to skip (once you've read up on the others and start to get a feel for what's there). Epcot is a very large and diverse park that you won't finish in one day, so you should definitely read a bit to see which parts you want to check out and which you'll skip.

At those ages, I personally definitely recommend at least one character meal, which you'll need a reservation for. There are many to choose from depending on favorite characters, but it's a good way to sit in the A/C, get a rest off your feet and eat while you wait your turn to meet characters vs standing in lines to meet them around the park.

 

[SweetPeas9825]

Thanks Alli! I will look into that right now!

 

[IceSkatingPrincess]

Thanks all!

iceskatingprincess- Pop Century. I hope that is a decent choice? As long as there is a pool my kids should be happy

It's my go to value resort. There are multiple pools so no worries! Just no hot tub.

 

[SweetPeas9825]

Character meal.. check! Do you guys recommend Mickeys Halloween parade?

 

[Mikie]

Character meal.. check! Do you guys recommend Mickeys Halloween parade?

The Halloween parade is shown during the Not So Scary Halloween Party, which is a (hefty) additional charge for being in the MK from 7pm-midnight for special Halloween events. Personally, I think you have MORE than enough to do on a first visit without tackng that on, and I believe it's too late a night for your little ones. However, an October trip does mean carefully choosing what day you want to visit MK because of the different park hours and crowds that go along with that party.

The Festival of Fantasy parade is available during regular park times and it is awesome! A wonderful way to still get your parade fix.

 

[SweetPeas9825]

Thanks Mikie!

 

[Chuckers]

The first and most important bit of advice I will give is "DON'T STRESS!"

Go in knowing the following:

1. You probably won't be able to do EVERYTHING you want to do in one trip. THIS IS OKAY..
2. While you can plan out everything, something is bound to screw up a plan or two... roll with it.. again DON'T STRESS!
3. Take what everyone on here says at face value, including me. Remember only you know your family and how they react to things. Only you know if you think you should build in some down time for the little ones or if they can go commando all day long.
4. Cast Members are there to help.. if you're overwhelmed by choices or confused by closures or whatever, talk to a cast member.
5. Don't over plan.. it's very easy to do this.. VERY easy. Since you haven't been there before, you won't understand the time it takes to get places.. from one park to another, from the hotel to a park, heck, even just from one side of the park to the other. I once planned breakfast at AK, Lunch at Epcot, and Dinner at HS... while it was possible to do this, it ended up being a very tiring day..
6. Most importantly, Don't Stress! You're there to have a good time and Disney can be (and is for millions of people) the happiest place on Earth. Enjoy yourself and discover the magic at your own pace!