Help! My teen feels he is 'over Disney!'

[Harmony]

My son, who will be 17 in a few months, feels that if we go to Disney again...he can skip it.

First off, we would never go on vacation w/o one of the kids so that's out of the question but at the same time, I don't want to "force" him to go and then have him "sulk" while there.

When asked why he didn't want to go, he said that 'it's boring and he's seen it all. Plus, he can't imagine spending 2wks with just us!' (this is the child that I gave birth to W/O painkillers! Ugh!)

What can I say or do to help him change his mind about Disney?

Thanks!

 

[DarkSideMoon]

first off, i would reccomend something unique ike a segway tour or something like that to lure him.

second, is it really fair to you and your family to not go to disney because your son thinks he is too old?

 

[Patio]

Is it possible for him to bring a friend along? My DD, 16, brought a friend on our last trip in July and they had a blast.

 

[Harley-Mouse]

Did you ever go on the keys to the kingdom tour? You have to 16 to go aand thay have all diffrent tours. he will get to see all the cool magic of disney. How about a day at universal. I am 32 and love disney have all my live and havent missed a trip yet go once a year and twice this year. And you can tell your DS that this is from a guy that rides a harley davidson. Disney Is cool!!

 

[Harmony]

second, is it really fair to you and your family to not go to disney because your son thinks he is too old?

Oh, we will still go...I just want him to be as excited about the trip as he used to be...ya know, when he was younger. The Segway tour and the Kingdom tour sound interesting....maybe that will be enough to keep him from complaining. LOL

And no, I don't want him to bring a friend 'cause he will be a senior next year and after that...I figure he won't go with us once he is in college.

So basically, DH and I are seeing the next family vacation as the vacation before he is on his own and 'out of the house.' KWIM?

Once he is in college...*if* he does go on vacation with us, he'll probably bring a friend or girlfriend. After that, he will probably marry, then it will be 'his family' and once the kids...well, you get the idea.

I guess maybe I'm being too sentimental with the next family vacation 'cause I can't believe that he will be graduating soon and "on his own" and an "adult." Waaahhhh!

Thanks for the ideas...keep 'em coming!

 

[wendypooh]

I know how you feel. My 2 older DS's are 19 and 17. Last year we took a "family" trip, my 2 older sons are now in college..... my middle one started yesterday, and he too is 17. We did a split stay between US/IOA and Disney......... they LOVED US/IOA, and on our Disney part, they would come with us for a few hours and for some meals, then they went back to the hotel to the pool, or to DTD, other parks etc... they have cell phone's so we weren't too concerned............. perhaps you could do a split stay, I bet he'd enjoy US/IOA... OR give him a little "freedom" and he may be more inclined to go....... I'd also think about bringing a friend...... and let them "explore" on thier own...... if you feel comfortable with that of course.

I know, it's a hard age to get them too want to be with the "family"........ but for us, I've found it really works out good if they have a little "alone" time, away from Mom and Dad!

Hopefully, he'll change his mind and want to go and have fun!!!!!

 

[Laurajean1014]

The friend idea is a good one. The tour is good too. How about spending time at Hard Rock Hotel or Universal. It's more "teen friendly." Or a few days at Daytona Beach?

 

[*Fantasia*]

How about doing the Disney cruise? There's enough things to do there for teenagers. They have their own Teenager club (just like clubs for children.. only this is for teenagers only) and Castaway Cay has a beach for teenagers only (they also have family beach and adult beach only). I think if you son hangs in the Teenager club, he will eventually end up being friends with the others. You should try the cruise... and I think your son will enjoy that and still the family can still spend some time together.

 

[Acklander]

At 17 you probably don't have many "family" vacations left, so why not shake things up a bit and do something different before he leaves the nest. If Disney is really important to the rest of the family, maybe let him bring a friend along so he isn't with you 24/7 or do the Disney cruise? As kids grow, they more more input into what happens in their life. Have you asked him what places he might like to visit?

 

[mickeysaver]

Personally, I never, with the exception of my Dad's honeymoon trip with my now ex-stepmother, was allowed to not go on vacation with my Dad. Whatever trips my family planned up until I was in college, I was a part of. I would have never suggested being left at home......even though, I did find the yearly trips to Pigeon Forge to be a bit boring, I never even entertained the idea of not going. I was thrilled when my Dad and now ex-stepmom took me to SW and Epcot for my spring break trip when I was an 18 year old high school senior. I had plenty to keep me entertained....even if I was stuck with my parents. Tell him that he is lucky to have the opportunity to go....and that not going is not an option. I think that with some creative planning, you can find some things to pull him out of his shell. Teenagers.....man, I would love an all expense paid trip to WDW. They have no clue. Good luck. Maggie

 

[Feralpeg]

I would suggest a day at Universal Islands of Adventure. Most teenagers love it.

 

[PooohBear]

I wouldn't bring him again (without freedom and a friend) unless you want to have a "sour" trip ! my DS will be 17 soon and we tried everything to get him excited about going on our trip a couple months back..... *Hard Rock* *Universal & IOA*..... nothing worked !! we even brought along the golf clubs and he and DH spent a day golfing (he likes to golf). Teens will be teens, you can't force a family vacation on them unless they want to go, you'll just be spoiling the vacation for all of you, trust me !!

 

[lauran cameron]

I'm 17 and I'm excited as ever to go to WDW...we just got back and I'm ready to go again! I've went through the friend phase and the indepenent phase when I was about 14. I brought a friend and had independence for 2 trips and after that I realized that it doesn't matter how many times I have seen WDW, I can't explain it really but right after you think "oh, I've seen it all I'm over it." You go through withdrawl and all of a sudden YOURE BACK! And here I am back and in action!

 

[DisFlan]

Our son did the same thing. All of a sudden, he couldn't have cared less about going. So we stopped going to WDW for a few years. Then during his junior year in college, he calls and says, "Mom, I've signed up for WDW's College Program!"

He just needed some space and time to outgrow the "outgrowing Disney" phase. He loved the College Program. He met his wife there (a fellow Disney nut), and they're both planning on careers at Disney.


DisFlan

 

[civileng68]

My son, who will be 17 in a few months, feels that if we go to Disney again...he can skip it.

First off, we would never go on vacation w/o one of the kids so that's out of the question but at the same time, I don't want to "force" him to go and then have him "sulk" while there.

When asked why he didn't want to go, he said that 'it's boring and he's seen it all. Plus, he can't imagine spending 2wks with just us!' (this is the child that I gave birth to W/O painkillers! Ugh!)

What can I say or do to help him change his mind about Disney?

Thanks!

HURRY! GRAB YOUR SPOUSE! IT'S TIME TO HAVE ANOTHER CHILD!!!!!!

 

[DarkSideMoon]

I would suggest a day at Universal Islands of Adventure. Most teenagers love it.

just as bait..... lol, i actually want to half a day IOA the day we get down to florida next trip.

 

[disneylizzy]

Our son did the same thing. All of a sudden, he couldn't have cared less about going. So we stopped going to WDW for a few years. Then during his junior year in college, he calls and says, "Mom, I've signed up for WDW's College Program!"

He just needed some space and time to outgrow the "outgrowing Disney" phase. He loved the College Program. He met his wife there (a fellow Disney nut), and they're both planning on careers at Disney.


DisFlan

Ahh, you raised that boy right!

Have 2 teens and a DS20 - 2 weeks is a long time. I think the cruise idea is great. At WDW, don't forget the water mice rentals. They are an absolute blast and are now a must-do for 3 DS's. Sometimes they just can't bring themselves to be "excited" about a vacation, but they really want to go. Got to maintain the coolness.

If you do rent the watermice, go to WL or CR as opposed to the Epcot resorts because you will have a greater area to play around in.

 

[Martha7]

Can you threaten to leave him with the Grandparents? If they're like my in-laws, they have a really slow dial-up Internet connection, which absolutely drives my 15 year old crazy! Fortunately, my older DS still loves WDW, even if one year he insisted on bringing his video recorder to tape the tourists with "mullets" in EPCOT! We've never done the friend thing, since it's already so expensive for just the four of us to go, and I knew he'd take off with the friend and only see us for meals! My DH and DS's love IOA! As a matter of fact, I guess I did promise that we'd go there during our next trip. Rats! I hate to go there without staying in one of their hotels, so that we can enjoy the front of the line access! Oh well, back to the drawing board...Let us know what you decide to do!

 

[powellrj]

we went throught the samething with our oldest. He didn't want to go, but we made him go with us. Once he got there, there was no way he was going to the parks. DH and I talked it over and decided we didn't want him to ruin the rest of our trip so we let him stay at the hotel. He had a great time sleeping in, hanging out at the pool. He did go to Universal, IOA and gatorland(why he likes that one I have no clue), but that was the last time we could get him to go with us. He signed up for summer school just so he wouldn't have to go back to Orlando. He is in Germany now, and everytime he comes back to the states we offer to plan an Orlando vacation and tell him we will pay for it, but he always says no. He said his time is too short to waste it in Orlando.

Our middle son is starting to show anti-disney signs. This year we only did MGM and Epcot for the Disney part of the trip. Next time he said he just wants to do another on-site Universal trip but with NO Disney days. We went to MNNSHP last year and thought it would be fun, but no, its lame, he wanted to go to the Universal one.

As for the extra tours, they would rather die than do something as different and fun as those would be. What if someone sees me???????

 

[Laugh O. Grams]

At 17 you probably don't have many "family" vacations left, so why not shake things up a bit and do something different before he leaves the nest. If Disney is really important to the rest of the family, maybe let him bring a friend along so he isn't with you 24/7 or do the Disney cruise? As kids grow, they more more input into what happens in their life. Have you asked him what places he might like to visit?

I agree 100%!! Why does it have to be Disney? Do you really want to have to convince him to go and then, have him mope around once you get there? At 17, he should have a voice in what you plan and maybe he'd like to go elsewhere for what could possibly be his last high school family trip. If he can't come up with anything, then go see the Mouse.