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

[Pop Daddy]

leave him in the woods for a pack of wolfes to rasie him

 

[unixadm]

Others have suggested bringing a friend....I definitely think that is a great idea. I went to Disney at 16 with friends only and had a blast. How about doing a captain or family plan for boats and bikes? He could ride the Raycer boats on his own, get a Pontoon boat, etc. At 17, I would have loved to ride boats around.

If you trust him, then you could give him a day to do his own thing with a friend. Find out what he would like to do down there and planaround that for a day.

 

[TR Denise]

My son was the same way. The first time he didnt want to go he was 15 so we sent him to a swim camp and had fun with out him (his swimming really improved from the camp so it was a good idea). The next year he had 2 track meets during spring break so no DS again this time he stayed with friends on the team. The next year we were going as a family after his high school graduation so we made him go. He was grouchy most of the trip (not that we let it spoil our fun) at the end he finally started to have fun. He says now he was so stupid. My DS is now 24 and in the army reserves he asked us in January of this year if he could go with us on our April trip it was supposed to be just DH and I but since he hadnt been down in such a long time we flew him down for 4 days. We all had a great time my DS had the most fun. We are planning a family reunion next year and he cant wait hopefully he wont be deployed then. So just remember boys are to cool for awhile then they are fun again.

 

[Traveliz]

(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!

I would use the above quote liberally with him - I love it! There are lots of things he can do there that are age appropriate as others have suggested.

Liz

 

[sPaRkLeSpAz]

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

lol!
I'm 17 and LOVE Disney. He might not show excitement, but when ya'll go, on certain rides, I'm sure he'll get excited- and show it.

 

[goofie4goofy]

Tell im he better take advantage of this opportunity!

In a few short years, he will have to start paying for his own trip to WDW...

We all know what that means........$$ and more $$$

 

[Kathkazoo]

I took my 17 year old DS and 15 year old DD to WDW last June. This was also our family trip before the "Senior Year". The thing that saved us was allowing him the freedom to go to Disney Quest in DTD by himself two seperate times. He took the cell phone and we had specific "check in with mom times". My DD and I would hit the parks and then meet up with him for dinner. He loved the freedom and I knew he was safe. He happily went with us to the parks the other days.

 

[experiment626mom]

My dsd pulled this two weeks before we were suppose to leave. So we left him home. I would do it again in a second. Last time we all went on a trip that he didn't want to do, he made life miserable.

If he can stay with someone, leave him home.

 

[CalGal]

I was lucky with my DS. At 14, he didn't want to go on any vacations and was bored with Disney. He thought he'd done DL too often, and WDW was too far and too hot in the summer. He reluctantly agreed to go to DL this summer to meet some cousins, but he clearly would have preferred to stay home I suggested the bring a friend idea, which he thought about and ultimately dismissed.

One thing that may have helped is that I bought a digital camcorder before the trip. I told my DS that I'd buy one if he would be excited about the trip. He played along, and acted thrilled about the trip as payment for the camcorder. Once there and with his cell phone, I gave him a little more freedom to do some things on his own, and didn't push him to ride attractions more than once that he had gotten bored with. He got into some of things that were a little different for the 50th, and it didn't hurt that we managed to get into Club 33.

We ended up having so much fun! At the end of the trip, he agreed that we should upgrade our passes to APs and go back at least once more within the year. We now have reservations for Dec!

Perhaps your son will grow out of this phase quickly. Good luck!

 

[Harmony]

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

Actually, we have three BOYS!

The soon to be 17y/o, 10y/o (who still enjoys WDW alot) and a 2y/o, who LOVES Disney and can spend quite a long while looking through our vacation photo album and naming all the characters he took pictures with! *sigh* Oh why can't they just stay so cute?!

 

[purplern]

My son did the same thing. I tried to find things to do that he would like. I told him this was his siters first trip and he better not pout and ruin the whole trip for her. I told him I would send him to day care. Once we got there he had more fun than he would tell you he did. We stopped to listen to the storyteller and La Bafona made him laugh, and the characters at the meals pulled him into the fun!

 

[Kellyh123]

My son is 16 and he is the same way. Bringing a friend is also not an option for us as this is our time as a family. I always buy him a ticket to Disney Quest so that he can do that one day. I also let him leave the parks when he has had enough. He goes back to the resort and watches tv plays in their arcades gets his own food whatever HE wants to do. We would never go on vacation without him even though he says he wants that. Deep down I know he would be hurt. I also let each child pick a special restaurant and that is also something he looks forward to. There are still moments on the trip that he enjoys and I hang on to those. My daughter who is 19 never went through this. She still loves going as much as me. Go figure

 

[Epcot83]

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!

The best way would probably be letting him go on all the thrill rides, Splash Mountain, Thunder Mountain, Space Mountain, that sorta stuff. And take him to see the new stunt show at MGM, and let him ride TOT. And next year they will be opening a new roller coaster in AK. But what ever you do dont let him like Universal Studios, I hate that place, they bash Disney, and copy off of them. But any ways, just let him see the "action" side of WDW, dont take him on SW or Pooh Bear, leave that stuff to your youngins.

 

[disnut8]

I wouldn't worry about it too much. Been there, done that. Took the son when he was 18 and then 19. Both times I threw out one offsite day. The first time he wanted Universal (IOA had just opened up so we just did the Studios). After that day, he said he preferred Disney way over Universal. The second time, we did Kennedy Space Center which he said was "OK".

Fast forward to the past two years. He's now married with a stepdaughter. The place he wanted to take his then girlfriend for a special trip? Disney World. The place we all went to for a Christmas family reunion last year? Disney World. The place he and my daughter-in-law are planning to go for their tenth anniversary? Disney World.

It could be a temporary thing.

 

[PatriciaH]

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.

Sounds good to me What about a cruise? Mexico, The Caribbean, Europe? Some of these are cheaper than WDW.

 

[MamaLema]

maybe it's time to give Universal a try

 

[snowbunny]

I don't think you should be hurt or surprised by his attitude - or feel you have to change his mind about Disney. He's a typical 17-year-old boy, probably, just a few years from being a legal adult, chafing under parental control, and almost ready for college.

Whether you go to WDW again this vacation, take him with you or not, I can't advise you. My advice is to relax and not worry that he doesn't love Disney anymore. If you've raised him right, in the scheme of things, everlasting love for WDW is not a big deal.

 

[PatsGirl]

My son is nearly 16 and normally jumps at any vacation idea if, and it's a big if, it doesn't interfere with his life Often when I book vacations, it seems to coincide with a sports camp or football practice that a coach just throws into the mix without batting an eye, and it becomes a problem.

For the past three years, I have taken separate vacations with my kids alternating them. Usually gives me two or three "kid" vacations and then one for adults only each year. Because mine are 8 years apart this has worked exceptionally well. I do let them each bring a friend if the friend can afford to join us. Being a single mom just doesn't allow for extra $$ to bring someone else's child to WDW, lol.

Heading off the Rhode Island next week and my son doesn't want to go with us -- great, that's $$ saved this trip. He can enjoy DGM and DGF for a few days. I don't think twice when he says he doesn't want to go. I know there's always one around the corner that he'll enjoy with me/us.

Brenda

 

[grinningghost]

Teens are so weird.

My DD16 had no interest whatsoever in going to Disneyland this past March. So, she stayed home with Grandma and DH and I went.

But now, she's totally into going to WDW in July. That just shows you how fast they can change their minds.

And when she was 14 on our last WDW trip, she and her friend spent most of their time in the hotel room watching Lifetime movies.

I gave birth to her, but she did NOT inherit the Disney gene.

 

[jswalker1981]

I know that a few years ago I was tired of disney, but one day I was watching a disney show on the travel channel, and they mentioned hidden mickeys, and ever since, I've been a disney nut! So maybe doing a tour would be good, and maybe the hidden mickey book would do well too. I know that it is neat to look for hidden mickeys as you become more aware of the details that are at disney. There are also some scavenger hunts on the internet that are fun for a day.