First Family Trip Planners Thread for WDW Newbies!

[WishnDreamer]

Hello all!
I am currently planning my first family trip to WDW. I went once as a child with a relative I visited who lived in Florida. I have always dreamed of going back and we are finally taking our children. I have joined a great group here that is going during the same month I am and gotten tons of information from posts here on the Dis boards as well as others.
But I thought it would be so much fun if there was a thread for those of us doing the happy dance because we are planning our first ever family trip this year or even next so we could share our planning experiences and excitement.

Anyone else interested?

Questions of the Day So Far

1.Who are you going to Disney with? When are you going and how did you choose your dates?

2. Has anyone made ADR's yet? Did you get what you wanted? What did you pick?
If you haven't made your ADRs yet, what are you planning & when is your 180 day mark?

3. What resort or hotel are you staying at? How did you decide on it & what are you most looking forward to there?
If you have not yet chosen, are you looking at offsite or on? What are your choices narrowed down to, if any?

4. If you are staying onsite, will you do online checkin?

5. Are you keeping your trip a surprise?

6. How will you get to Walt Disney World and how do you plan to get around once you're there?

7. What is your favorite classic & new Disney movie?

8. Do you have any little extras planned for your trip? Bippity Boppity? Pirates? etc?

Are you celebrating anything special while you are at Disney World?

9. Which character is each of your family members (including) yourself most excited to meet at Disney World? How long are willing to wait to meet them?

10. What websites or other resources have you found helpful during your planning?

11. What are the top 3 tips you've learned during planning so far?

12. Are you planning to see Main Street Electrical Parade, Wishes, Illuminations, Fantasmic? Which 1 are you most looking forward to?

13. Are you planning to see Celebrate a Dream Come True Parade, Move it Shake it parade, Dream Along with Mickey castle show, Pixar Pal's Countdown to Fun, or Mickey's Jammin Jungle Parade?

14. Arrival day plans

15. Which attractions are you looking most forward to at each park?

16. What are your plans for souvenir money?

17. What kind of bag, if any, are you taking to the parks?

18. What are you planning to take to the park each day?

19. Are you purchasing any photopass products? How will you document your trip afterward?

20. What counter service restaurant do you think you will eat at?

21. Are you visiting all 4 theme parks? How many days each? Order them by favorite for us (if you can).

22.Will you visit Downtown Disney? Boardwalk? Either waterpark or both? How 'bout minigolf?

23. What's been your favorite part of planning?

24. Do you have any special goodbye planned?


Fellow First Time Planners
March/April 2012
Eeyorenpooh29 offsite

April 2012
HalloweenNut Poly

May2012
WishnDreamer AKL Jambo
Loafer74
andieb0602 CSR
charliesmom86 CSR
wallawallakids POFQ
Kapsali Marriot Grande Vista

May/June 2012
Salann CR
Jmangum100 offsite

June 2012
MissouriPrincess AKL Kidani
Jayce
cmoran81 CBR
jennifur25 Asmo
emksmama SoG

Aug 2012
Elmck
mom2ohc AoA

Sept 2012
Ckwats CBR
Artemis4 Windham Bonnet Creek
WendyWonderland POR

Sept/Oct 2012
FaerieDust36
Nene0182
Ncneighbor POR

October 2012
mymickeyfans POR
Legendteri WorldQuest

Nov 2012
uscgmouse Silver Lake Resort
SevsOnlyGirl ASMo

Dec 2012
GroomerGal POFQ
Princess Bette FW

Jan 2013
Morningstar2807 AOA

Feb 2013
LucyBC80 POFQ

March 2013
Cheyandrew7
KarenOR

March/April 2013
audio101803 A0A

Undecided
Ravyn

**If you would like to be added right away, please pm me the month & year of your visit & where you are staying. I kind of start going crosseyed looking through the posts to add people and I hate to miss anyone.

 

[cheyandrew7]

I've been planning our first trip for 3 years now we have been putting it off cuz something happends. So now we are planning on going march 2013

 

[WishnDreamer]

I can empathize. I tried to save for years. Something always came up for us too. Finally, I took what we had a made nonrefundable reservation by renting points thru dvc rental store and planned to use our "extra" checks the rest of the year to pay for tickets, dining, airline, and souvenirs. I would not advise that for anyone but it worked for us because once I've committed to something I do it. (I hate to be in debt so I wouldn't go the credit card route.)

I think our kids are the perfect age for it now though, both to enjoy & remember--7 & 8. Our trip is May 4-12.

 

[ckwats]

Hey,

Taking the family for the 1st time in Sept. Kids are 5 year old boy and 3 year old girl. I went to Disney a lot when I was little. The family would always drive down from OH. Then we moved to Fl and went a lot as a young adult. I have not been to Disney since 2001 or 02. I went with now Husband.

I am so excited to take the kids. I want it to be perfect.. LOL My parents and sister and brother are also coming. I am making my ADR's on Tue. I hope I can get what I want.

Great thread. I spend way to much time online looking at Disney things.

 

[WishnDreamer]

Hey,

Taking the family for the 1st time in Sept. Kids are 5 year old boy and 3 year old girl. I went to Disney a lot when I was little. The family would always drive down from OH. Then we moved to Fl and went a lot as a young adult. I have not been to Disney since 2001 or 02. I went with now Husband.

I am so excited to take the kids. I want it to be perfect.. LOL My parents and sister and brother are also coming. I am making my ADR's on Tue. I hope I can get what I want.

Great thread. I spend way to much time online looking at Disney things.

Me too with the being online and wanting it to be perfect! Driving my husband crazy with the planning! My mom is coming as well. Couldn't talk my dad or sister into it.

What would you think of a Question of the day? If we get more to join us it could be fun. Even if we don't, it could!

 

[Elmck]

This is my first trip since 1995. It is DD 9's first trip. Would love ideas and tips!! We are going Aug 2012. So far I have hotel booked and paid. The dining plan is paid. Now I am working on tickets. We are having a Bday party on Apr 6 for DD and telling her about the trip then.

 

[WishnDreamer]

This is my first trip since 1995. It is DD 9's first trip. Would love ideas and tips!! We are going Aug 2012. So far I have hotel booked and paid. The dining plan is paid. Now I am working on tickets. We are having a Bday party on Apr 6 for DD and telling her about the trip then.

Ooh, that is really exciting! Do you have anything special planned to tell her?
We told our kids at Christmas. I wrapped a stack of about 8 Disney-themed gifts each with a clue. It started out with 1 big clue, "Each gift in this pile is a present but also a clue of an ever bigger surprise that is awaiting you." I started with the least obvious down to the most which was the customized maps & Dvd. Other gifts were Disney sunglasses, "this place is so bright you'll have to wear shades," Disney pj's, autograph pens, & Disney swimsuits. Also, mini m&m tubes filled with pennies & quarters for pressed pennies. Boy they thought they hit the jackpot! And others. My daughter figured it out. Son didn't til the end. Then I gave them a countdown chain to stop the "when are we going" questions. And the planning really took off.
What a great birthday present!

 

[Mrs D]

Just wanted to pop in and say Hi! I'm planning another trip back with the family (I also like to take solo/adult only trips). This will be the kids 4th trip to WDW the first being in 2008.

If I can help answer any questions, please feel free to ask. I have been there done that!

Have fun planning!

 

[jmangum100]

We are planning our first family WDW trip for the first week in June. It will be me, DH, DS (10), DD (7), and DS (3). I am so excited. Probably more so than everyone else haha. I have been hooked to Disboards everyday. Keep the wonderful ideas coming!!

 

[WishnDreamer]

We are planning our first family WDW trip for the first week in June. It will be me, DH, DS (10), DD (7), and DS (3). I am so excited. Probably more so than everyone else haha. I have been hooked to Disboards everyday. Keep the wonderful ideas coming!!

Hahaha! Me too! My mom & husband both say I am more excited than my kids. I warned them both I am going to be a big kid while we are there. In fact, I was just at Walmart the other day with my mom & said "hey if I buy 1 of these mini M&M tubes won't you fill it with pennies & quarters so I can have souvenir pressed pennies too?" She rolled her eyes but said "I'll even buy the m&m's."

In my kids' defense, they are excited about Disney but it's also their first flight and they are more excited about that. Once that's out of the way, I know there will be even more excitement about Disney!

 

[WishnDreamer]

Well, we seem to have a few interested first-timers or a first-timers in a long timers like me so I am going to post a couple questions. A couple because my first one has already been answered by most everyone, including me.

1. Who are you going to Disney with?

2. When are you going and how did you choose your dates?

Happy planning!

 

[WishnDreamer]

1. Who are you going to Disney with?

2. When are you going and how did you choose your dates?

For us, it is myself, DH, DD8, DS7, and my mom. Tried to talk DD, DSister & her hubby into it, but they just couldn't be talked into it. Imagine!

We are going May 4-12, 2012. I originally chose May from reading a couple guidebooks due to lowish crowds and not so horrible weather and then found your first visit dot net and chose the week there. He recommends last week November, first couple weeks December which would be great to see the holiday decorations and especially World Showcase Santas and celebrate my birthday but I wanted our first trip to be regular WDW. I don't know if we'll ever make it back. If we do it'll be 1 of those weeks.

 

[artemis4]

1. Who are you going to Disney with?

2. When are you going and how did you choose your dates?

Happy planning!

I'm planning our first trip as well. DH went decades ago, and he loved it. He always wanted to take our family. I finally told him that if it was important to him, I'd plan it for this year. So, here we go! I'm a huge planner, I like good food and accommodations, plus I'm pretty frugal, so I'm going for the best trip I can get for the best price I can get. I enjoy the challenge!

We are taking our four kids (14, 12, 10 and 5 at the time of travel) along with a friend our our daughters (the two oldest kids). We will have extra room in the car and the hotel, so we figured we'd share the fun.

We are going in Sept 2012. We enjoy vacationing in September. We homeschool and are self-employed, so we can travel whenever. Many places are less expensive and less crowded in September, so it is win-win in our opinion.

 

[FaerieDust36]

Hello. I am planning my family's first vacation at WDW. Myself, DH, and DS who will be 11 at time of trip will be going.

My husband and I both went with our families as teenagers (20 years ago) I have been waiting for a long time to be able to take our son. We are going Sept. 29-Oct. 6 because DS has fall break from school at that time.

 

[nene0182]

We are planning our first trip ever for all 3 of us. My husband went on many trip when he was younger but none to WDW. All of my vacations growing up were spent visiting family that lived all over the country (my parents were military) and I did not want my son to grow up not having any real family vacations. My husband & I got married May 2010 and bought a house April 2011, so with nothing on the agenda for this year, we decided to take our first family vacation. We looked at cruises, a trip to Hawaii, ect. But, decided on Disney since it's the last year my son will be considered a "kid" Plus my MIL sent us enough money for Christmas to pay for a plane ticket or "whatever" and we decided we should go to WDW since she lives an hour from there.


1. Who are you going to Disney with? It will be me, my husband and my son (9) My MIL will also come and visit us a few days we are there

2. When are you going and how did you choose your dates? We are going 9/29-10/6 We wanted to go when it was still warm but not super hot. We had originally planned to go 10/13-10/20 but when FD come out, we decided to move the trip up a few weeks.

 

[MissouriPrincess]

We are planning our first family trip. I have been once with my parents when I was 15, but my DH or kids have never been.

We are going with my parents, and it will also be DH, DD14, DD2, and me. We rented points, and we are staying in a two-bedroom suite at Kidani.

We chose June 5 as our arrival because I am a teacher, and we needed to go during summer break. I wanted to build in a cushion since last winter we had the great blizzard. This winter was so mild that we've only had two snow days. We could've gone earlier!

Oh well. ADRs are done, and park days are selected. My DD14 is less than enthusiastic, but I hope she will love it when she gets there.

We are all nervous about the heat/humidity, but we plan to use the "leave for nap" plan. I'd love to hear about anything else people think we should know!

 

[WishnDreamer]

We are planning our first family trip. I have been once with my parents when I was 15, but my DH or kids have never been.

We are going with my parents, and it will also be DH, DD14, DD2, and me. We rented points, and we are staying in a two-bedroom suite at Kidani.

We chose June 5 as our arrival because I am a teacher, and we needed to go during summer break. I wanted to build in a cushion since last winter we had the great blizzard. This winter was so mild that we've only had two snow days. We could've gone earlier!

Oh well. ADRs are done, and park days are selected. My DD14 is less than enthusiastic, but I hope she will love it when she gets there.

We are all nervous about the heat/humidity, but we plan to use the "leave for nap" plan. I'd love to hear about anything else people think we should know!

Sounds similar to my situation. I went around age 12 but my hubby & kids haven't been. We also rented points-at Jambo! Our ADRs are also done & parks picked.
You have a younger one so leaving for a nap makes sense. I think I planned that for 2 days. Originally I was going to do it more but then I opted for more 3/4 days to get out of dodge right after an early dinner, other than 2 times we wanted to see nighttime shows. With 7 & 8 year olds I think we can keep going and the more I thought about traveling back & forth, the more I didn't like it. However, if they were younger, I'd definitely do it more.
I can't say I know everything from experience but I have researched so much from books and online I feel like I've already been! LOL. Now I just have to see how it all plays out at the parks.
I just thought it would be nice to "get together" with others who are planning there first trip and if anyone hears anything useful to other first time planners as they plan their own trips, SHARE!

 

[eeyorenpooh29]

We are leaving for Disney next Saturday! Our first family trip! We are driving from KY to FL. There will be myself, DH, our 3 boys (9, 7, 5) and my MIL. We are doing 1 day at MK, 1 at AK, 2 at Seaworld, 1 day trip to Tampa, then the rest will be relaxing by the pool, and exploring Orlando. We have our rental home, and DW ticket paid for. Right now, I am trying to decipher our budget for gas and eats for the week. It kinda makes me nervous. I have posted on the board before, but there are so many other posts, mine has little response. I need TIPS! Our kids each have their own souvenir money, and my husband and I have set a $200 budget on our souvenirs. We have breakfast scheduled at Chef Mickeys, but other than that, we will have 1 meal out each day, then eat back at our house, and carry snacks in the park. Anyone care to share some tips, or experiences...this is our 1st family Disney trip, and I want it to be very special!

 

[jayce]

Hi! I am planning my family's (me, DH, DS) first trip as well. I went, once, when I was in second grade, but I can hardly remember it. My DH has never been. Our DS (almost 6) started asking if we could go several months back, I started looking into it, and we just decided to pull the trigger and go right after he gets out of school for the summer. Going in June isn't my first choice, due to crowds and heat, but it was our only real option.

We are the type to do several long getaway weekends over a year, here and there, instead of a full week vacation each year, so this will really be a treat for all of us.

 

[WishnDreamer]

We are planning our first trip ever for all 3 of us. My husband went on many trip when he was younger but none to WDW. All of my vacations growing up were spent visiting family that lived all over the country (my parents were military) and I did not want my son to grow up not having any real family vacations. My husband & I got married May 2010 and bought a house April 2011, so with nothing on the agenda for this year, we decided to take our first family vacation. We looked at cruises, a trip to Hawaii, ect. But, decided on Disney since it's the last year my son will be considered a "kid" Plus my MIL sent us enough money for Christmas to pay for a plane ticket or "whatever" and we decided we should go to WDW since she lives an hour from there.


1. Who are you going to Disney with? It will be me, my husband and my son (9) My MIL will also come and visit us a few days we are there

2. When are you going and how did you choose your dates? We are going 9/29-10/6 We wanted to go when it was still warm but not super hot. We had originally planned to go 10/13-10/20 but when FD come out, we decided to move the trip up a few weeks.

Hahaha! I know what you mean about not taking family vacations except to go visit relatives. I am planning 2 other future vacations (to NYC & DC) right now - on Pinterest boards because we didn't travel much either except to go see family, which was nice. But I, too, want my kiddos to see other things. I guess that's why I want this vaca to be perfect because it will probably be our only one to DW because there are so many other places I'd like them to go and Disney is quite expensive.
I know you will have a great time. Who couldn't in the happiest place on earth?
Glad you joined us!