How can we mix things up?

[PlutoTheDog89]

We just wrapped up our year as AP holders. A quick breakdown of each trip:

Easter '17: A lot of fun. It was an impromptu trip and our first Easter vacation in Disney. Loved it.

Halloween '17: Went with our extended family. It was their first trip and our first Halloween trip. A lot of showing them around and geared heavily toward their two little ones. Did the Halloween Party and loved it. But - it was very stressful.

Christmas '17: Family friends joined us. They kind of soured the trip. Nothing we did or planned seemed to suit them, even though I made sure to include them in the plans all along. Kind of ruined our trip, so we banked heavily on Easter '18.

Pro Bowl: My sister and I went for Pro Bowl. Did the Pro Bowl practices, Disney Springs, and MK at night.

Okay, that brings me to...

Easter '18: Was really looking forward to this trip. it was our redemption trip as a family after our Xmas trip was kind of ruined. We purposely planned a more relaxing vacation. We stayed at YC and booked FP+s in the mornings, then afternoons by the pool. It was hot, but not overwhelming.

Now, we had a good time. However, my dad has had enough. He's sick of "doing the same thing over and over again". Despite having all 3 FP+s remaining on Sunday, I made the call to leave. I felt that "we've been on these rides hundreds of times. We're going back to 30-degree weather. Let's enjoy the sun and pool."

I can't tell whether it was the fact that we wanted to soak up every last minute of sun, or that the parks were getting a bit stale to us.

We have a trip booked for Christmas. We go every year for Xmas and are still looking forward to it. I think Toy Story Land will add some excitement and something new. We've talked about doing a tour and trying new restaurants.

Any other ideas to spice things up and change it up a bit to avoid Disney becoming stale? I do think we'll take a break in 2019, so Xmas 2018 will be our last trip for a few years.

 

[BrianL]

What I recommend is going to check out Disneyland or a different Disney Park. Disneyland is similar enough to be comfortable, but different enough to feel fresh. There are some unique things that are only there, and even some of the stuff that sounds the same, really isn't. You'd have new places to eat, new shows to see. It's a different kind of feel, and I think you'd have fun.

 

[Lovetherodent]

I get that. I love Disney but couldn't do a full week every single year. I'm taking 2 trips this year. One was a spring break trip with my girls (22 and 24) the other will be a holiday trip with the h. I'm trying REALLY hard to make the holiday trip about decorations and shows rather than rides. And I'm trying to allow for more sleeping in (for me, that'd be 7-7:30, lol) because I normally RD.

To really mix it up, however, I'd suggest a year off.

 

[PlutoTheDog89]

[QUOTE="To really mix it up, however, I'd suggest a year off.[/QUOTE]

The thing is... I'm not quite sure WHAT we'd do outside of Disney for Christmas (the idea of staying home in cold NY is horrible)... and we actually got an UNREAL price on this Christmas trip. We've been framing this trip as "the last trip before our hiatus"... I think if we were to cancel it, we'd hate not having done more this past trip. I know, that sounds contradictory.

 

[glassslippergirl]

I agree with @BrianL. It's time to mix it up. Have you considered taking a holiday cruise, maybe with a day or so stop at WDW to see Toy Story Land.

If you do go to WDW, have you, in your previous holiday trips, really focused on the holiday offerings, like the Candlelight Processional, the Holiday Story Tellers, the Voices of Liberty holiday show, the life-sized gingerbread house at GF? If not, you can make a whole trip out of these things, and it would be different. Also, and I can;t stress this enough, take a tour-- any tour that catches your fancy.

You could throw in things that you can't do at home in December like renting a boat from a hotel marina, parasailing, renting a cabana at a water park, etc.

I understand not wanting to be in the cold (I do not like cold weather), but WDW isn't the only place worth visiting in Florida. Maybe consider a Florida trip with a little WDW thrown in-- go to a beach, go deep sea fishing, snorkel on a reef, go to the Florida Keys, see and be seen on South Beach, swim with dolphins, see the Everglades, ride an airboat.

 

[sponica]

If you go often, find different things to do (split stays to see more resorts), do more resort dining, play mini golf?

Or do a Disney cruise, they have some 7 day Bahamanian itineraries out of NY, so you wouldn't even have to travel that much.

 

[PrincessNelly]

My first thought was to give Disneyland a try or a disney cruise!

 

[Lovetherodent]

="To really mix it up, however, I'd suggest a year off.

The thing is... I'm not quite sure WHAT we'd do outside of Disney for Christmas (the idea of staying home in cold NY is horrible)... and we actually got an UNREAL price on this Christmas trip. We've been framing this trip as "the last trip before our hiatus"... I think if we were to cancel it, we'd hate not having done more this past trip. I know, that sounds contradictory.

A holiday cruise is nice. And warm.

 

[rwdavis2]

Go to Universal? Our family loves a trip to Universal for a few days. We stay at the Hard Rock. Great hotel with excellent service.

We only go to WDW every 4 years or so. That keeps it from getting boring.

 

[Mome Rath]

The thing is... I'm not quite sure WHAT we'd do outside of Disney for Christmas (the idea of staying home in cold NY is horrible)... and we actually got an UNREAL price on this Christmas trip. We've been framing this trip as "the last trip before our hiatus"... I think if we were to cancel it, we'd hate not having done more this past trip. I know, that sounds contradictory.

I think that if this is your tradition, and you know you are doing a hiatus, then I'd go and enjoy Disney. You have Toystory Land to look forward to, and I'd do as you say and pick a tour, or pick different resort experiences that you haven't done. Eat someplace special.

 

[KittyKitty]

What I recommend is going to check out Disneyland or a different Disney Park. Disneyland is similar enough to be comfortable, but different enough to feel fresh.

It was so fun getting lost at DisneyLand!

 

[nkereina]

I agree on Universal - we've been doing Universal after our WDW stays for a while now and I honestly don't know which one I look more forward to now. I also find the deluxe resorts at Universal to be better than many of the WDW resorts.

Another thing you might try, which we are trying this Fall, is to change up your touring style. If you are rope drop people, try sleeping in and going to the parks mid-day. Don't book ADRs and check day-of to see what restaurants are open and book something on the fly. You'll likely be eating at places you may not have otherwise considered. Another option is to do a water park, but weather could be iffy in December. Or stay at a resort you may not know much about. I also think doing a tour is a good idea. We're planning to do a dinner show as well (Spirit of Aloha or Hoop De Doo) just for something different. Another idea, if you don't already, is to stop for character meets and/or watch the in-park shows you may not normally stop for.

 

[WorldWalker18]

This will be our first trip without kids, kinda sad, kinda glad. We plan on focusing on signature dining and behind-the-scene tours. Just hope I don’t turn into mush seeing all those kiddos running around.

 

[BrianL]

It was so fun getting lost at DisneyLand!

I know, right? When I first went it felt like the "bizarro" version of the park. I would think I know exactly where I am but then, wait, why is Big Thunder on the opposite side of the river? Finding restrooms and stuff was fun too because I know where they all are at WDW, though I've gotten better with DL at this point.

 

[michbaron]

I was also going to say maybe add some universal days or beach days down in Miami or something, but I will add our biggest Disney rule is we don’t go with anyone but our family, we’ve done smaller trips with cousins and friends and I would never waste a Disney trip by going with anyone else, we have two kids and they can really hang and we have our favorites and do great as our family and whenever we go with other people it changes the dynamic and we are only willing to do that on less expensive vacations

 

[jliucci]

I second a cruise! we love mixing up our vacations between Disney & cruising. If you dont want to stray to far from "Disney" why not try the Disney Cruise line.

 

[bryanb]

It was so fun getting lost at DisneyLand!

I know, right? When I first went it felt like the "bizarro" version of the park. I would think I know exactly where I am but then, wait, why is Big Thunder on the opposite side of the river? Finding restrooms and stuff was fun too because I know where they all are at WDW, though I've gotten better with DL at this point.

I grew up going to Disneyland and worked there for a while, so I had the complete opposite experience of "bizarro" park. It's fascinating and disorienting at the same time. And just when I got used to the MK by the end of the night, I stepped out the park to see this dark, beautifully blank lake in front, as if somehow Disney California Adventure had magically vanished into a pool of water. It was beautiful and bizarre.

Disney parks fans should absolutely go see the original Walt Disney's Magic Kingdom! Highly recommended.

 

[Ksquared]

We try to go every other year to Disney. And to mix things up, we generally try to stay someplace different (onsite vs. offsite vs renting a house). We also try to book 1 new restaurant or a restaurant we have not been in awhile on each trip. We also go mini golfing at least once and there are 4 courses so we alternate that too. You could plan a day offsite at Universal, the beach, Sea World, Water Park, or even Bush Gardens in Tampa just to change things up a bit. If you've never done the luau, then book it. Do a tour, change resorts. Even the smallest thing can make your trip different and new.

 

[mindeola]

Try new things every day. Even when you have been a ton, there is always something new to do. Maybe tours? Behind the Seeds is affordable and really good. Wild Africa Trek is worth every extravagant penny! Try new to you dining. Participate in resort activities. Slow down and take in the details.

 

[Mrs~Incredible]

Who’s in your travel group?