Disney v. other destinations?

[OlderMan]

FWIW, this is what I've done and hope to do again:

Day 1: Fly to Las Vegas

Day 2: Las Vegas--to adapt to time change from East Coast

Day 3: Drive into SW Utah and hit high spots at Zion NP and Bryce Canyon NP. Overnight in Kanab, Utah.

Day 4: Drive from Kanab to North Rim of Grand Canyon. Tour North Rim and return to Kanab.

Day 5: Drive to Page, Arizona (Glen Canyon Dam/Lake Powell)

Day 6: Half/Full day trip on Lake Powell to Rainbow Bridge.

Day 7: Drive to South Rim of Grand Canyon

Day 8: Tour South Rim

Day 9: Return to Las Vegas, stopping at Hoover/Boulder Dam. Take tour of Dam.

Day 10: Relax and decompress in Las Vegas

Day 11: Return home

Granted, it is a LOT of driving, but can also be a once in a lifetime trip.

Just remember that you will probably encounter more foreign tourists than US residents, so please don't be "Ugly Americans!" (I saw my share of them on my trip.)

Just MHO....

 

[leahjade]

Try to spend some time in Sedona if you can - it's one of the most beautiful places one earth and only 2 hours from the Grand Canyon. Your kids will love the Slippery Rock State Park which has a natural water slide.
And there are few guard rails at the Grand Canyon so you will need to watch your young children. I saw lots of crazy people hanging over the edge taking pictures and kids running on the rim trail - after reading "Over the Edge- Death in the Grand Canyon" - I discovered that many have died falling over the edge!

 

[Amy&Dan]

How about the Grand Canyon and then take a nice drive up to Disneyland.

We did San Diego & Disneyland last spring and it was a fun trip. It was a break from our favorite Disney World, but still a taste of it. We LOVED Disneyland.

Happy travels,

Lives4Disney

That is exactly what I would suggest. Fly to CA, see San Diego, spend a couple of days at DL (its worth it, and a unique experience from WDW but will give you a Disney fix). Then rent a car and see the Grand Canyon and Las Vegas. Being from back east, the road trip will be very fun and a new experience.

 

[kacaju]

We took our 6 year old to the Grand Canyon (plus the 13 and 10 year olds!!)
You have to judge for yourself if you think the 5 year old is mature enough to listen to you and not run ahead. We LOVED the Grand Canyon, but there are plenty of spots that are open and can be dangerous.
If you do go and follow Olderman's plans pleas etake the time to include Antelope canyon while you are at Page.

 

[DISNEYNY]

I live 10 minutes from Niagara Falls and I would agree with other posters that it is more of a long weekend trip. There is also more to do on the Canadian side as others have stated. It is very beautiful and I know I take it for granted because I live so close, but I would go for the Grand Canyon...always wanted to go there, but haven't made it yet.

 

[michelle1]

We also live very close to Niagara Falls so have been many times but usually just for a night or two. I agree with the OP that it is better for just a short trip but you could combine it with Toronto and make it longer. Seeing the falls is beautiful (and free) but everything else is overpriced....we figured a week at Disney would cost us less than a week in Niagara Falls in the summer! Plus, with the US and Canadian dollar being so close it is not a bargain to come to Canada anymore. I would love to see the Grand Canyon and like the idea of driving from there to DL!

 

[Praying Colonel]

I just returned from a business trip to Newport, RI. DW and I lived there for for 3 months after we were married in 1988, back when I was in the Navy. I'd forgotten how beautiful it was, and we're going to go back in a couple of years as part of a fall trip through New England.

Seeing Newport in its glory reinforced that as much fun as we have at WDW, there are many other places we want to see. And Disney's going to make that decision to go elsewhere easier if they continue to whittle away at what we perceive to be the value of a WDW vacation by increasing prices here, reducing guest benefits there, etc.