Dreaming Disney. Planning our first trip with our little princess.

[lilmape]

Hello!

I am so excited to begin my first trip report. This is not our first trip to Disney, but my first time documenting the planning.

The characters:

My DH (Jason): My DH is a 30 year old kid at heart. He is an amazing husband and an incredible father. Jason works very hard for our family and the community (sheriff's deputy). Prior to our honeymoon my husband had rarely traveled. He completely fell under the Disney magic but is not as big of a fanatic as I. This will be his 3rd trip to DW.

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Me (Tiffany): I am a 31 year old school psychologist and complete Disney fanatic. This will be my 5th trip. I went to Disney with my parents at the age of 4 and then again with the high school band (and my mom) in high school. I would get teary eyed each time we saw something I remembered from our first trip. DH and I went for our honeymoon and again in 2011 for a last pre-kids trip. Once I get the idea or longing to go to Disney I can't let go.

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DD: Our sweet baby girl Kaitlyn will be taking her first trip to meet Mickey! She is currently 20 months and I can't wait to see her experience the magic. I know she is young but will be closer to 2.5 when we travel. She loves music, books, blocks, animals, and giving hugs. She is super independent and very inquisitive.


My mom: I shan't add her age because she would be upset with me, but my mom is a mature lady who loves to travel. She doesn't get to travel much as my dad it a bit of a workaholic. Mom loves her 4 granddaughters, shopping, and showing others kindness. As much as we butt heads, she is an amazing mom who would do anything for you. Suchaloving heart. I am so very excited that she is joining us. Mom's last trip was when I was 1999 when we went with my high school band. It was a very hectic trip. Prior to that she went when I was 4 to MK. She has never been to a TS restaurant and has dreamed of exploring Epcot.



1.) I'm currently considering when to go. It will definitely be when Christmas lights are up. School vacations are not a worry because my contract allows me 20 vacation days a year (I work all summer). I'm pretty flexible but want to see all the Christmas decor. Kaitlyn will love it!

2.) We also have no idea where we want to stay. We did POFQ on the honeymoon (loved it) and Wilderness Lodge on the last trip (loved it too!). I have stayed in AS music also. Kaitlyn is sensitive to noise and activity at Nap and bed time so I think I want to avoid the busyness of values unless you folks have recommendations. I've seen the family suites and like the idea of having a room she could nap in but it depends on available discounts... And rooms available when we get to book.

3.) how many days and touring schedules. This will be a totally new trip and I know our touring style etc will change.


I hope you follow along and PLEASE offer suggestions as we go. I am so excited to plan Kaitlyn's first disney vacation!

 

[iheartwalt]

How exciting! DS was 2.5 for his first trip (last year) and it was such a great age. It has been a year and he still talks about Disney World literally every day.
We did 10 days and that worked well for us. The time it took to leave the park, get settled down for nap, him to take a two hour nap, wake up and get in a good mood, and then get back to the park was about 4 hours. Having that longer visit was nice since we were missing out on so much park time for naps.
Also a huge life saver for us was having these http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B000I7NX5E/ref=mp_s_a_1_1?qid=1390021194&sr=8-1&pi=SY200_QL40 ear protectors. They were obviously great for fireworks (and wearing them he even managed a nap on the airplane) but a lot of rides are actually pretty loud so these seemed to just cut that down a little and put him at ease.
Have a wonderful trip!

 

[feistygalkmc]

I downloaded some toddler centric touring plans from WDW prep school, there is one for each park. I kind of adapted them to what we wanted to do, there were some things I removed and replaced with others. I recently found that site and I really recommend it when traveling with children. This is my 5th trip but first with a toddler or any kids for that matter. So it does change the way we will prep for our trip. There are A LOT more factors & things to consider. It is definitely new for me. I usually don't plan so much but with kids travelling it can just be overwhelming. She also has a podcast that is helpful as well. Here is the link to her site for the toddler plans.

Prep School toddler plans

 

[feistygalkmc]

Oh I just thought of something I read here on disboards that is a great tip, especially for those that love books! Our DD loves the Disney board books you can find at Dollar tree and Target dollar spot. Instead of the autograph book you can take the board books with the Disney princesses or Mickey & friends and have the characters autograph the book with a sharpie. It will make a great keepsake as well.

 

[AprilRenee]

Joining in. We're planning to go the month after you and my son is 21 months now. So he'll be taking his first trip at a similar age as K.

 

[lilmape]

Thank you folks for advice or joining in. I forgot to subscribe to my thread so I was unaware that I had received some replies.

I get really stressed over planning and I will until I book and then until I know if discounts will come out. So, we are currently debating weeks. We are looking at arrivals of 11/8, 11/13, or 11/30. I have read that Epcot's decor does not go up until after Thanksgiving.

Also we can't decide between a value or moderate. I know if free dining comes out we need to be in moderate for free regular dining (which we prefer). Kaitlyn does well with sit down meals. It has been a LONG time since I stayed value and then we were never in the room. We will obviously need room time this vacation for naps. What is the noise like?
We stayed moderate in 2007 (POFQ) and Delux (WL) in 2011. That only happened with a really good room only discount. Please share your thoughs and experiences. It helps

So many decisions!

 

[lilmape]

So excited! I had some kohls cash to dispose of and decided to look at sale/clearance for Disney themed shirts for vacation. I found 3. After kohls cash, 30% off, and free shipping I paid $3!

 

[AprilRenee]

Cute shirts!!

We're staying at Pop for our trip. We LOVE it there and I just couldn't justify paying for a nicer hotel when I was worried we just wouldn't like it as much. We definitely want the regular dining plan though so we'll just pay for the upgrade if free dining comes out. It will be about $190 for us to upgrade our dining plan ($14 per adult per night. So $38 each night for 5 nights). It will be almost $100 more a night to upgrade to a moderate. So it's still a savings to pay for the upgrade rather than the nicer hotel.

 

[lilmape]

Big news! My mom has decided to join us on our adventure! I am so beyond excited to have my mom there when my little one first experiences Disney magic

 

[amazingact21]

Followed your link from your signature and am subscribing.

Your daughter is so adorable! And I think at 2.5 she'll really get to enjoy to the attractions and shows. You're never too young for Disney!

 

[courtthib]

Joining in! I also LOVE Disney at Christmas time--nothing quite like it! I did the Disney College Program from May 2011-January 2012 and my roommate and I went see the Osbourne Spectacle of Lights at least twice a week Can't wait to read more of your plans!

 

[lilmape]

Thank you for joining in! I'm new to writing a report but I'm excited to document and get feedback. I'm even more excited to write about the trip when we get back!

 

[lilmape]

Snowpocalypse here in Ohio. Ice and snow again... We stopped at the store on the way home from church and, I kid you not, the bread shelves were nearly bare. I needed supplies for dinner... I could understand if we were going to get like 2 feet of snow, but 4-8 inches and the end of the world is coming.... It's not like in the southern states where they are not as accustomed to dealing with this type of winter weather...Anyway...


I'm struggling. Do you park hop with a 2.5 year old? Here is my thought process... My mom really wants to explore Epcot this trip as she has never had the opportunity. I think she will love visiting each country and exploring. Before she committed to going I figured we would be fine with base tickets, but I had only figured in one day at Epcot. I also know that we will not do a full day at Hollywood studios. We probably won't go there until afternoon one day and do a late lunch and see the lights. I know we won't do a full day at AK either because they close early. I believe Kaitlyn will love AK because she ADORES animals but it really doesn't take long to see everything. I guess it will help when touring calendars come out for that time, but I would love to spend 1.5 days in Epcot to give mom more time. I am also only planning on 5 park days and 1 rest/ deluxe resort Christmas decor viewing. I want this to be a relaxing, fun trip. My mom ask has bad knees and will need to rest. So I don't want to over do it...


Did I mention we decided on days? We hope to arrive 11/29 and stay until 12/6. I know our first day we will probably head to DTD or a resort to eat a nice dinner. I don't know... It also depends on our arrival time. If its early enough perhaps we should add a park day. Planning is so overwhelming and exciting! :

 

[oldfastpassxpert]

We used to park hop because of dining reservations. Looking back, it was a hassle. Also, avoiding the extra magic in the evening as the park was packed. i used to plan around meals and extra magic, now I avoid both.

We are not doing the meal plan this May, but do have reservations at one of our favs, and be our guest. I'm really looking forward to using the PAP and the watermarks this trip. My fav time to go to Disney is early Dec. I love the Xmas party, and the lights. Hollywood was pretty amazing.

Since we've been there almost every year since 08, I'm looking to do less planning because I think we've finally seen "everything"...

Once my daughter was old enough to walk the park without a stroller was the best!