Going to Disney World a childhood rite of passage?

[2Pirates2Princesses]

In the theme parks attractions and strategies forum there is a thread where someone questioned if we consider Disney the only place where we can make magical memories with our families. This got me thinking about something I heard on one of those Travel channel specials about WDW. I think it was one of the WDW behind the scenes episodes where one of the featured Disney experts (I believe she was one of the authors of one of the popular guidebooks) described a visit to WDW as a childhood rite of passage. As much as I like Disney and want to take my kids there, I certainly don't consider going there as a rite of passage, but that is JMHO. I think more of things like a child's first day of school, their first sleepover, learning to ride a bike, or going to the prom, etc. I am sure Disney's marketing would like us to believe that going to Disney World is a rite of passage Does anyone think going to Disney World could be considered a "rite of passage" for children and families?

 

[Aliceacc]

Absolutely not.

For starters, a trip to Disney presupposes that your family has both the income and the desire to go there.

In addition, all three of my kids have been there, but were different ages at the time. Their experiences were different as a result.

Of course, if you're trying to sell a guide book, then selling the idea of Disney as a Rite of Passage may get more books sold...

 

[Jynxed]

Not a right of passage, I would not give it that much power. I don't feel as though people who simply can not afford Disney should feel like their children will not grow up correctly without it.

As an adult however, I did dream of the day my future children were old enough to do Disney. But that is because when I was younger I had so much fun with my family there and to me it is magical, I want to share that magic with him.

We also went other places that I hope to share with him too. I want him to see as much of this world through his own eyes as I can make possible.

 

[tlbwriter]

No, but if I made my money off of Disney (like, say, if I was the author of a popular guidebook) I would probably say something like that!

 

[2Pirates2Princesses]

No, but if I made my money off of Disney (like, say, if I was the author of a popular guidebook) I would probably say something like that!

 

[MSSANDRA]

I think we tend to forget that so many people in our county struggle just to feed their children and that going to WDW will never even enter into the picture.But then again, I suppose that things like a bike and a prom are also not things that will be part of their lives either. That said, I did put a lot of thought into my boys first trips to WDW and they are VERY special to me.

 

[okeydokey]

Not at all. I grew up in the NE and very few people I knew went to Disney when I was a kid. My family vacations were not elaborate when I was growing up and we would never have been able to afford such a trip. Even now, many of the folks I know in New England have never been.

My kids' first trip was also my first trip when I was in my late 30s.

 

[ThreeBeans]

Since Disney is a financial impossibility for many, if not most, people in the US, I should say certainly not.

 

[tweedlemom]

My first WDW trip was when I was 18 on my HS senior trip. My parents couldn't afford the vacation and I don't think my childhood is any less special because of this fact.

 

[Magpie]

I think we tend to forget that so many people in our county struggle just to feed their children and that going to WDW will never even enter into the picture.But then again, I suppose that things like a bike and a prom are also not things that will be part of their lives either. That said, I did put a lot of thought into my boys first trips to WDW and they are VERY special to me.

Not at all. In my town there are places that repair donated bikes for low-income kids. We also have charities that send them up to Northern towns. When my children outgrew their bikes (which we'd bought for just ten dollars each at the secondhand sports shop), we gave them to our neighbours, because we knew they'd be flying to Iqualuit soon. There's a LOT of bikes being handed around like that.

As for proms, there's been several features on the news lately aimed at letting low-income girls know where they can go to get free prom dresses - a number of charities also look after this.

No one's going to let a kid miss out on a real rite of passage, just because they can't afford it.

Disney's wonderful, but I was 34 the first time I got to visit. And in some way, I think the wait just made it all that much more magical. I earned it! My kids are a little more blase about it - I think they take these kinds of trips for granted.

 

[RMulieri]

Defintiely NOT ..Not everyone can afford to go to Disney ,and those that can not are not somehow disadvantaged,worse off or ruined for life because they didn't go to Disney.Disney is a magical place ,but not the ONLY magical place or the only place to make memories.Some of my FONDEST family memories of childhood were sunday outings to the park with my parents.

 

[smitch425]

Just the other day the kids and I were in the drive-thru at McDonald's. I handed the 35ish year old cashier my Disney Visa and she said "Oh this is so cute. I've never been there." As we waited to move up to the next window for our food, my daughter asked "how come that lady has never gone to Disney World, Mom?". Well...needless to say, we spent our 10 minute trip home discussing the fact that there are a lot of people in the world that are not as fortunate as we are. I could tell that the kids felt really sad for that woman. It breaks my heart that some people live their whole life without a trip to the World. Not because I think of it as a rite of passage, bit just a magical place that I wish everyone could experience at leat once.

 

[NEVERENOUGHWDW]

I guess it is a rite of passage for my family.

The first time my Mom took me it was the 2nd year it was opened and we had another single Mom and her child with us. It was so magical to us that we continued to go back almost yearly in the 70's and now one way or another I'm there 2-3 times yearly.
As children came into my life "Auntie" was the one that took them on their 1st trip and sometimes 2nd, 3rd & 4th.
I was married there, I had a surprise party for my husband's 4oth in Disney and in December celebrated a 50th wedding anniversary.

It started as a trip with my Mom because it was heavily marketed in the tri-state area. It ended up being a rite of passage.

I also have to say going to the Nutcracker yearly, apple picking and beach houses are also family rites of passage.

 

[GinnyEmma]

No, but if I made my money off of Disney (like, say, if I was the author of a popular guidebook) I would probably say something like that!

well said!

And, no, not right of passage.

 

[Magpie]

Just the other day the kids and I were in the drive-thru at McDonald's. I handed the 35ish year old cashier my Disney Visa and she said "Oh this is so cute. I've never been there." As we waited to move up to the next window for our food, my daughter asked "how come that lady has never gone to Disney World, Mom?". Well...needless to say, we spent our 10 minute trip home discussing the fact that there are a lot of people in the world that are not as fortunate as we are. I could tell that the kids felt really sad for that woman. It breaks my heart that some people live their whole life without a trip to the World. Not because I think of it as a rite of passage, bit just a magical place that I wish everyone could experience at leat once.

I think it's always a good idea to teach your children to appreciate their good fortune. And there's certainly nothing wrong with wishing everyone could be as lucky. But you might point out that Disney isn't a top priority for everyone.

I have a friend who works as a clerk in a bookstore. She has nothing against Disney, but she'd rather save her dollars for a trip to Europe every few years. I don't see any reason to pity her, just because she hasn't been to WDW. She's in Belgium right now celebrating her 25th anniversary, instead!

And I have another friend living on disability who would probably hate it. We joke about sticking the clinically depressed woman in a wheelchair and dragging her around the parks, in a semi-comatose state, so we can get priority access to the rides. To quote her just now, "Disney isn't in my list of top ten things I'd like to do in my life." But she also points out that she can be bribed with a portable DVD player and 300 dollars worth of new books.

 

[smitch425]

I think it's always a good idea to teach your children to appreciate their good fortune. And there's certainly nothing wrong with wishing everyone could be as lucky. But you might point out that Disney isn't a top priority for everyone.

I have a friend who works as a clerk in a bookstore. She has nothing against Disney, but she'd rather save her dollars for a trip to Europe every few years. I don't see any reason to pity her, just because she hasn't been to WDW. She's in Belgium right now celebrating her 25th anniversary, instead!

And I have another friend living on disability who would probably hate it. We joke about sticking the clinically depressed woman in a wheelchair and dragging her around the parks, in a semi-comatose state, so we can get priority access to the rides. To quote her just now, "Disney isn't in my list of top ten things I'd like to do in my life." But she also points out that she can be bribed with a portable DVD player and 300 dollars worth of new books.

LOL! Oh no worries...my kids know that not everyone wants to go there. My dad has zero interest in ever going. My kids just didn't understand why someone who WANTED to go had never gone. The drive-thru woman's tone of voice when she said she had never been sounded as though it was an unfilled dream. That's what I meant when I said my heart breaks for people that had not been.

 

[Magpie]

LOL! Oh no worries...my kids know that not everyone wants to go there. My dad has zero interest in ever going. My kids just didn't understand why someone who WANTED to go had never gone. The drive-thru woman's tone of voice when she said she had never been sounded as though it was an unfilled dream. That's what I meant when I said my heart breaks for people that had not been.

That is sad... I hope she finds a way to get there, and when she does it'll be all the more special.

Ever since I was nine, whenever people asked, I'd say my life goal was getting to go to Walt Disney World. Even as a kid, I figured it'd be something I'd do when I was a very old lady. I couldn't see any way to do it soon, but I was sure I'd get there eventually.

I was so shocked when my husband said we could now afford a trip. I almost wasn't sure I wanted to go, I'd been looking forward to it for SO long. :lol:

 

[EKW]

Yes, it is. Don't confuse adults with children. When I was a child it wasn't a rite of passage. I read about the opening of WDW in My Weekly Reader when I was in third grade...and wished my family would go even though we didn't do family vacations. Nobody I new had ever gone to Disney. I grew up in the 60's and 70's- times have changed.

For today's kids, it is a rite of passage. Talk with any group of children...they don't give status points for going to the Smithsonian or Mt. Rushmore. Disney is different. There is a divide between the "haves" and "have nots". I was amazed that this existed even when I worked in a wealthy school district. We had kids who regularly popped over to Europe to ski, and to the Carribean to hang at beaches, and to South America to explore ancient ruins. None of those experiences had the cache of a trip to Disney! What is even more amazing is that the kids where I work now...where many schools qualify for Title I resources...feel the same way. They may qualify for free and reduced lunch, but they've either been to Disney or want to go.

Times change. While Disney wasn't a rite-of-passage during our childhoods, it is for our children!

 

[crisi]

Oh, of course it is. Just like taking a European Tour during college is a right of passage. Or getting a car on your sixteenth birthday with a big bow on it is a right of passage. Or your deb ball.

What? You didn't get a deb ball? Neither did I.

For some families I'm sure it is a right of passage. After all, if you were an Australian Aboriginal, walkabout would be a right of passage. Rights of passage are very cultural. I'm not going to give my son a Bar Mitzvah since we aren't Jewish. Nor is my daughter getting a Quinceañera since we aren't Hispanic.

 

[wasnotafan]

No.