How Is This Possible??

[Dancind]

We have a 3 1/2 hour flight to Orlando, and always go Southwest. Our flight originates in another city, so maybe 3-4 times now, we have not been able to sit together. Every single time this has happened, I have wound up sitting next to someone just like your friend above. I've tried my best to give them a quick lesson without overwhelming them. But I can't believe people would commit to spending so much money without a clue as to what they're getting into. Diana

 

[WDWguruDH]

DW and I have been going to WDW several times a year for a while now. People at work don't understand how we can go that often - their experience with Disney is Disneyland (we are in Utah). I always explain it as: WDW is 47 square miles, that makes it the size of San Francisco and twice the size of Manhattan. It has 4 theme parks, 3 water parks, Downtown Disney and 20 plus resorts. Most everyone I tell this too, are amazed.

 

[CoolDisneyCat]

I was talking about staying at the BC and how close it is to Epcot. A co-worker asked " Doesn't the noise from the rides keep you awake?"

I went into the whole 47 sqaure miles, etc. He was amazed. He thought it was like 6 Flags! Isn't it grand everyone has us to educate them!?

 

[thepoohbear]

Yup! I've spoken to many people who think "Disney" is the MK. We brought a relative and when we kept trying to explain what our visit woud be like we used the term "staying right on Disney property." He was sure we were staying in the MK.
Many of the people who can't understand why we go each year also don't understand that WDW is Walt Disney WORLD and the world is huge with many parts waiting to be explored!

 

[MiaSRN62]

The first time we drove down to Disney back in 1976, I think, we were going to sleep in the back end of our station wagon because we didn't know they had any hotels there! I thought it was like our local fair, where you drive right up to the fair, and park in the field next to the rides!

Cruella....this just cracked me up !

For our honeymoon in '86, DH & I did the combined Big Red Boat cruise/WDW trip. You had to stay off-property at that time. We knew little about WDW,

Sueg....we also vacationed in WDW in 1986 and stayed off-site. I think it was the Days Inn in LBV (which has been renamed now I believe ?). I knew nothing of WDW and my husband had only been down once previously at age 8. We came back from our honeymoon knowing it would be a place we would be vacationing with our children (once we decided to have them).
I haven't come across anyone who had known so little about WDW as your friend, but I have come across several people who have thought that WDW is pretty much just the MK and think they can do it in a day. Even I knew more than this on my first trip & I wasn't a Disney nut or anything back then...lol.

 

[FredS]

Originally posted by Sammie
It is very possible and actually quite normal. As my friends say often, to many people knowing everything about Disney is not everyone's life ambition.

Actually those that go with some knowledge of what to expect are in the minority.

I wouldn't consider it normal to spend what a Disney vacation typically costs and not bother getting a clue. "Knowing everything about Disney" would be impossible, but I think anyone, in this day and age, and with the ease of learning about WDW, who doesn't bother to spend a couple of hours investigating on the internet or buying a cheap travel book about Disney, is just, well, stupid.

Learing about Fastpass, early surprise morning schedule, character locations, and some basic knowledge of where and what attractions are in the parks will make a HUGE difference in the enjoyment level of a trip.

My current favorite? People who decide to stay outside the park through one of the cheapie timeshare deals. Every single family I know that has done this has regretted it later. My own sister decided to save a few bucks by doing this for part of their recent trip and ended up paying more (due to the shuttle service being sadly inadequate and having to pay taxis), got the ultimate pushy sales tour that wouldn't end (taking up the better part of one vacation day), and the accommodations were new but cheap. I TRIED to tell her, but..........

 

[Scrufsmom]

Last Wednesday at a seminar I had my coworker complaining about how she needed to get away from the stress and overload of work. Although, she couldn't think of a "getaway weekend" with her husband and surely Disney doesn't offer anything. What! was my exclaimation.......I acutally had to move my chair away from her because she practically insulted me and hurt my feelings. I couldn't believe that someone could actually say that Disney doesnt' offer anything. Hold me back was all I could think of and poof! my mouth was a waterhole for Disney and DVC. I had the entire table in awe with how much knowledge I had of the Disney Vacation. Personally, I was there to hear someone else speak about my profession, but suddenly I was the speaker.

Who knows how many I reached about the DVC and Disney, but there could be some newbies attending this board soon.

 

[speedway66]

We went to WDW several times before staying on-site. I hated each of those vacations and couldn't understand why everybody was so hyped about Disney. Then came the first on-site trip- can't remember if DW and I @ the Caribbean Beach or all 4 of us @ Fort Wilderness Trailer Home came first, but it changed my whole outlook. I am now a Disney-addict.

Anyway, a neighborhood family decided to take a WDW vacation a few years ago and came to us for some pointers. We told them "STAY IN A WDW RESORT". Well, they shopped around and sure enough went the opposite direction and stayed downtown (at the Grosvenor). Then they came back and said they didn't like the trip. When we pointed out that they didn't follow the one piece of advice we gave them, they argued that they were in a WDW resort (their travel agent told them so). Fine...whatever.

A lot of people where I work know of my Disney-addiction and come to me for Disney Trip info. Again, I tell them to stay on-site. If they can't afford to stay on-site, then I tell them don't go this year. Save some more money and stay on-site next year. Without dwelling on parks and attractions and food and money, I can honestly say that I have never had a complaint from anyone who has followed that one simple piece of advice.

Jim

 

[JackieMD]

I had a co-worker who asked me for some advice as she was planning a trip for her and her husband. She is from CA and was familure with Disneyland.

When I asked her where she wanted to stay she said "The Disnsy Hotel."

I asked "Which one?" And received a puzzled look. I explained that any one of the WDW resorts could probably swallow the "Disney Hotel" and not even notice.

After going to the website and showing here the list of resorts she said she had to do some reading.

 

[Lyndarella]

Where we live, very few people have been to WDW, and I suspect many of them have never even heard of Florida....I have been helping a co-worker plan a trip to WDW, and she is still calling it Disneyland....

 

[speedway66]

As a PS to my earlier post, my own father won't even try WDW. In his mind, WDW is only the Magic Kingdom, and the MK is only an amusement park. Every time I mention we're going back, he says "Better you than me".

In my own mind, I can see the look on his face as we pulled up to the Wilderness Lodge, I can see his mouth drop open as we enter the lobby. I know he would be impressed once he got there, but I know I'll never get him there.

So, we'll just have to spend our points on ourselves. He's happy in his world, and when a CM at check-in says "Welcome Home", we're happy in ours.....

Jim

 

[Jen D]

Plenty of people I know don't seem to know much about Disney except the MK. People look at me funny when we go for a week and say "but what do you DO there for a week?"

Disney is somewhat unfashionable with plenty of the people I know. Sometimes when I say we've gone to Disney, I get "little (so-and-so) isn't really aware of Disneyworld yet and hasn't asked to go THANK GOD." I also heard someone say recently she'd consider herself a success as a parent if she managed to get her children through childhood without a trip to Disney. This reaction is rather silly and knee-jerk, but it is worth remembering that one person's paradise might be another person's hell.

I do think it is bizarre someone would spend thousands of dollars without opening a guidebook. But its pretty common. Some people just aren't planners.

 

[FredS]

A co-worker just returned. I had only given him some basic info (use fastpass, stay on-site) because he "didn't want to have to think too much about it". (This is one of the types who just didn't understand that we scheduled our next trip just six months after our last.) He said that they had a wonderful time, but probably wouldn't return for 3 or 4 years since they had "been there, done that" Another co-worker started asking him about his impression of various activities and rides that she had experienced and enjoyed. MUCH more often than not he had to say "What is that?" or "I guess we didn't have time to do that" to her questions.

I probably shouldn't have, but that was when I said, "Yep, that's why we're going back next month, because there is so much to do that it is impossible to do everything you want in just one trip." Under the circumstances, he couldn't argue with me!

 

[speedway66]

Nice way to handle that co-worker. Tactful, but you made your point.

I guess that's why we hang around these boards. There are so many people out there who don't understand, it's just nice to converse with people who do...

Jim

 

[Johnnie Fedora]

What others hear when DVCers talk about WDW:

Blah, Blah, Blah, Magic Kingdom, Blah, Blah, Blah, Blah, Epcot, Blah, Animal Kingdom, Blah, Blah, Fast Pass, Blah, SpectroMagic, Blah, Blah, Cindi's Table, Blah, Blah, Fantasmic, Blah, Blah, Sand Castle Club, Blah, Flik's Adventure, Blah, Main Street Confectionary, Blah, Blah, Blah, Ohana's, Blah, Blah, WLV Studio, Blah, Annual Pass, Blah, Premium Annual Pass, Blah, Olivia's, Blah, Blah, Boardwalk, Blah, Blah, SAB, Blah, Blah, Illuminations Cruise, Blah, Monorail, Blah, Blah, Boat to MK from WL, Blah, Blah, Pin Trading, Blah, Blah, Downtown Disney, Blah, Blah, Points, Blah, Home Resort, Blah 11 month window.

 

[panfan]

I totally agree !!! I feel like thats all people hear too!!!

 

[WDWalways]

Originally posted by thepoohbear
Yup! I've spoken to many people who think "Disney" is the MK.

It doesn't help that those Kissimmee commercials (don't know if they're shown all over but they play them here in NY all the time) they say on the commercial you are minutes away from Walt Disney World (showing the Castle) and EPCOT as if they are the only 2 parks #1 and #2 that EPCOT is not a part of Disney - everytime I see this commercial I scream at the t.v. that EPCOT is IN Walt Disney World and that's the Magic Kingdom!!!

We can be so silly!!

 

[tigger2esq]

I have been returning to WDW AT LEAST annually since 1996 (with DH) and everytime I go and tell my boss I am taking a vacation--he says "where" and when I say "Disney World" his reaction is "AGAIN???" LOL! No matter what I say he doesnt "get it" even though he has been there a few times with his family (and has stayed at the Grand Floridian!) I suppose its becuase DH and I dont have kids YET and he cannot fathom what there is to do in WDW without kids (never mind all of the WONDERFUL restaurants etc.. the BIG joke these days seems to be "Whats going to happen if this new baby we are expecting any day isnt a fan of Disney" SHOCK! Blasphemy! I just laugh and tell everyone that she will either 1) learn to appreciate Disney, or 2) spend lots of time at Grandma's while Mom and Dad head to Florida.. LOL!