Disney Withdrawl: How do you cope?

[daannzzz]

I take a lot of video while on any trip, usually 6-10 hours at WDW. I love editing the video. Editing has always been interesting to me in regular Hollywood movies so whne I return home the editing process is a great way to wind down. it can take many weeks sometime to put the final product together the way I want it. Then I have it to watch in the future.
It also helps to have another trip in the works. I generally am going to WDW every other year and Disneyland once or twice a year. Watching video of the past trips and planing the next one or helping someone else plan theirs, always keeps it in my life.

 

[fanofdisney]

Post on the DIS boards, get on all the Disney planning sites and read about it, surf ebay for Disney stuff, listen to Live 365 park hopper radio, look at your old pictures from Disney, go to the Disney store if you have one, I could go on....

 

[Viki]

I can relate to this one. I am starting to think I have an issue!!

I just got back from a GREAT week in WDW on August 20th and I was fine with being home, until real life kicked in - kids back at school, homework, soccer, piano, golf, laundry, cooking, school meetings, bills, gas prices, blah blah blah........

Now I NEED that trip to look forward to - it's my escape.

My husband agreed to a spring break trip, but that isn't until the end of March.

I listen to Live365 Intercot - I love that! I feel like I am at WDW. I go on the disneywebsite and check out the resorts & take their live tours, too! I know others have mentioned that. OK, we must have issues.

Anyway - WHAT can I do to PLAN for my March trip? What am I missing?? I have the books, Disney DVD, Passporter, what else is there?? HELP!

How do you all "PLAN" for a trip that is so far in the future?? What do you do to start planning for such a faraway trip?? I need ideas!!

Lives4Disney

Each of the trips we take is different. For example, our trip in December has us hosting adult friends who have never been before (and one of whom is disney resistent), so I set myself the goal of planning a trip which offers my friends all the disney park highlights, while emphasizing adult activities, and all the while highlighting the disney magic. Not an easy challenge, but fun and - here's the thing - TIME CONSUMING - which is a good thing. It's mostly all planned out now, but I still tweak if here and there.

The there's our upcoming 20th anniversary AKL trip for just me and my DP. That's a whole 'nother kettle of fish. We'll tread very lightly through the parks, preferring to emphasize the lodge, with occassional trips to Victoria and Alberts and Epcot.

And then there's next year's "OKW for Xmas" long weekend that I just conceived of last week. That will be altogether different again.

Specializing each of these trips is where I derive a lot of pleasure.

 

[vettechick99]

When I leave Disney after my vacation, I'm usually glad to leave. As much as I love being there, it's nice to get away from the crowds and be back home. That usually lasts me about 3 months. But THEN I get the bug again and it won't go away until I can plan another trip. Once I've gotten the go-ahead to plan another one, I'm great again! So I surf the DIS, check out mouseplanet.com, make my ressies, listen to Disney music on Live365....

By the time we actually go, I'm bouncing off the walls with excitement!

 

[kelmac284]

I live in CA so we go to DLR pretty much once a year. WE have only been to WDW once back in May of 02 when the kids were babies. We hadn't planned on going back to DW till 07 when I felt the kids would be old enough to go on pretty much everything but my mom couldn't wait so in 03 we decided to plan for 05.

I booked our timeshare last June of 04 and started getting airfare and such this past Jan. It has been fun getting our tickets, and MNSHP tickets and I can't believe it is FINALLY next month that we are going.

The sad part is we have NO plans to go back to DW in the future. I know we will eventually but at this point we don't.

Originally we were going to buy annual passes so we could go again in 06 but with the new tickets it is SO much cheaper and other things came up.

We have a trip to New York and New England planned for 07 and Europe in 08 and then dh and I our renewing our vows in 09 on our 10th anniv and plan a "2nd" honeyoom. Probably a cruise somewhere. So THE earliest we would probably go back to DW would be 10!! ACK!!! That is 5 years from now. Oh well I guess you never know what could happen.

WE do go to DLR every year though and were just there this past July for the 50th. We already have our next trip planned for Nov 06 and no matter what we will go every year sometime to DL.

I do already anticipate some major withdrawal after DW next month. When we went to DLR this past July we had been in November so it had only been 8 months and of course we are going to DW next month so again only 3 months but after this we have to wait a year!

We get by though by going to the disney store, buying the movies, going to movies at the theater, listening to our cd's and just anything and everything that reminds of us disney.

Coming here and to mousplanet and WDWMAGIC helps also.

Sorry for the novel LOL just felt like sharing!

 

[Viki]

Oh, Kelly, your post makes me so sad!

I don't think anyone needs an "excuse" to go to WDW as many times as they'd like, but I DO have one, all of my immediate family lives in the Orlando area, so if want to see Mom, Dad, DS, DBL, and my new niece, I HAVE to go. What a burden!

We DO travel to other locales. This year we took in Boston when I was there for a conference and we made day trips to Baltimore (Camden Yards) and New York City ("Pillowman" and "Who's Afraid of Virginia Wolf?"). But, still, it's true, we make visits to WDW a top priority.

 

[Noah122898]

We just got home 8/31 from a great trip and I can't even bring myself to write my trip report. I just returned to the DISBOARDS yesterday because I couldn't stand to hear about all the happy people just starting their trips. We go every year but because my Mom is seriously ill I can't plan too far in advanced, so I'm kind of stuck in limbo for now. Hope I get over this soon!!

 

[Alice42]

It's funny, because I was just thinking today that I want to start planning another trip. I am at the 4 month-post WDW mark and am starting to feel the withdrawal. We just moved, so I don't think now is the time to bring up my feelings with DH, but I know that I won't be able to hold out much longer without starting the planning process. I am hoping that we are able to go again either next spring (I absolutely LOVE May at WDW) or next October (too far away). I wanted to travel to other places and see other parts of the country, but no place compares with Disney. I know you all understand.
Until then, I will be looking at our Disney pictures and watching the movies

 

[kelmac284]

LOL Vicki, yeah I guess I sound pretty hard up eh? No what I meant was usually disney is a top priority for us and we never had the money to take any other trips except DL up until now. When we went to DW in 02 that was only cuz it was right after 9/11 and airfare was super cheap and hubby is in the army so we stayed at Shades of Green (which actually was contemporary cuz it was closed then) so we got REALLY cheap deals.

Living in CA if you go off season you can get airline tickets for 60 or 70 bucks per person round trip on southwest and we don't stay on property so we can do DLR pretty cheap.

We FINALLY are at a point in our lives where we can afford to do something OTHER than DL so we have those other trips planned. Don't even know at this point if they WILL happen but that is our plans.

DW is not cheap by any stretch either and that is why it is a treat for us to go.

I wish we lived closer and could go more often but we have to settle for DL. I am just glad I live in CA where I CAN go there at least once a year.

Anyway I just thought that was funny and didn't want you thinking I was braggin about all my fancy trips. They are dream trips that hopefully we will be able to take!!

 

[LoriLea]

Disney Withdrawal .....
For the first 11 months I tried to figure out a way to convince DH that we needed to go again! We reminisced about our wonderful meals, looked at our photo album and I counted the pictures that the kids were smiling in (all of them) and pointed these out to my DH, counted the pictures that DH was smiling in (again - all of them). He had to admit that we had a great vacation!
I have my 3 favourite pictures of the kids from our vacation on my filing cabinet at work and sometimes I just turn around and look at them.
My daughter's year end dance recital was a Disney theme. She tapped to the Tikki Room, did a jazz dance to Mickey's Mambo and did acro to Aladdin.
And I have not stopped reading the boards.
Now that I have finally convinced him - about 5 weeks ago, I can start planning and although we are not going until Aug 2006 - it is less than a year away.
I think the next 11 months will go pretty fast!

 

[Harambe]

Hang in there, everyone! We'll all see Mickey soon.

And I forgot to mentin the neat Disney Mahjongg I bought (on sale!). And the kids love to play Haunted Mansion Clue, Monsters, inc. Life, Disney Sorry, and other games. That helps to keep the magic around!

 

[WeLoveThePoly]

I know how you feel. Last time we went was in October 2004 and we aren't returning until October 2006. It hurts to know that if we were going this year we'd be leaving 6 weeks from Saturday. Ouch!

I already made my 2006 reservations so that helps ..... a little.

To help with the withdrawal - we watch LOTS of Disney movies .... look at our trip pictures and watch the videos .... watch the WDW planning videos .... visit the DIS alot ..... visit other websites with Disney sights and sounds ..... go to the Disney Store. Nothing totally relieves the withdrawal but it helps.

One fun thing we decided to do - when we get to 11 months away from our trip we are going to do a monthly "World Showcase" dinner - 11 months=11 countries. In November we'll go out to eat at a local Mexican restaurant ..... December will be a Norwegian restaurant (if we can find one!) ..... January will be a local Chinese restaurant ..... and so on until we are down to 1 month to go and we'll go to a great steakhouses (ala Le Cellier!).

DD also wants to do a monthly Disney movie night which includes a cake with the number of months left to go iced on it. There will be more of me going to Disney next time I think!

Hang in there .....

Debbie

 

[kilee]

I am having serious withdrawl lately. Let me tell you--- I'm not coping well. So, I'm not one to answer. I know I keep reworking numbers to see if there is not someway I could fit a trip in this fall. It won't happen. My dining room is gutted and we HAVE TO replace the windows before it gets cold and get it insulated. So, as much as I'd love to, I just know it won't happen.

Tenatively, we are looking into going in January. I really think I'll feel much better once I have the airfare and lodging booked and paid for. I just have to wait and see how much the windows come to, then get the holidays paid for. I've already put the word out, we're cutting back this year. Trying to make the January trip a sure bet.

 

[isyt]

I am begginning to think I have a problem. We went for 3 weeks in July and now I leave 4 weeks from today for the MNSSHP (really excited) but we usually go in early December and I am so sad because I am not seeing the xmas decorations! A SW ding fare came out for $90rt for a weekend in dec. and dh is being resonable. He knows I also want to go when they soft open EE. So I guess I have to pick and dh promised a trip by ourselves maybe for EE. I do spend my days searching for airfare or great deals. Maybe I am not the best person to talk too about withdrawel, I don't cope very well!!!

 

[sPaRkLeSpAz]

I sing songs and watch old home movies from Disney World!

 

[WeemanMom]

I do one enitre 12x12 scrapbook album with lots of refill pages. Takes me at about 6-9 months (I have kids). Putting together the pages is a nice way to prance through the memories. Then, I have the scrapbook to look through often until I start planning the next trip.

 

[TDC Nala]

I'm never not planning another trip.

 

[Viki]

Anyway I just thought that was funny and didn't want you thinking I was braggin about all my fancy trips. They are dream trips that hopefully we will be able to take!!

I absolutely did NOT think you were bragging! Except maybe over your relative mental health that you can even bring yourself to plan so many non-Disney trips. I CAN do 'em, but I have to spread 'em out and alternate: dis, non-dis, dis, non-dis.