how long of a stay

[barkley]

since we come from the west coast we don't feel it's worth basicly 2 entire days dedicated to air travel (and at least most of one day recovering/adjusting to the time change) to go for less than 2 weeks. we've done shorter, but these were tagged onto disney cruises (first one 5 days at wdw, second 6).

the last time we went we bought the non expiring hoppers for the max number of days-so on our next trip we won't have to pay for as much on park entrance (the added benefit being ds was young enuf to qualify under the lower pricing and disney honors that rate despite him being older when we return).

i like having the extra time to realy enjoy the resorts and all the non-park things to do. the next time we go (probably in a couple of years) i'de like to do 21 days with a chunk dedicated to universal, and more time to explore the different resorts.

that's why i love being a dvc member, i can bank one years points to the next and borrow from the following-then take a huge trip that does'nt break the bank

 

[Va-bear]

We're going from a sat to a sat (7 nites.) We will only do 3 park days - that's for both budget reasons and sanity reason. We really like being ON one day off another. Thats' why we always have to stay at a place w/ a really nice pool, since the majority of our non-park days are spent in the pool. We also check out downtown disney , boardwalk (this will be the first time...), and other "sites' at a nice relaxed pace - without having to pay for a weeks worth of tickets. It works well for us - as we actually go home relaxed AND rested!

Nice thing is, to qualify for FREE dining we only had to buy one day tickets. Then we can buy 10 day NON-expiring for the other days and our next TWO trips to Disney will be covered (ticket-wise...) at today's cost! We don't pay for Hoppers - we just plan enough ahead w/ books, etc. to go to the least crowded park on any given day. Just another way for us to save.

Oh, to win the lottery and get 10 day Hoopers/waterpark/non expiring tickets for eveyone on the DIS boards !!

 

[lisaross]

also celebrating husbands 40th birthday so we are doing 8 nights!

I have 7 day park/hopper tickets plan on hitting the parks each day except arrival and departure day! BUT i'd like to enjoy the resort as well, so we won't be going opening till closing probably do 1/2 - 3/4 days at the parks!

Planning on MK 2or 3 days - 1 3/4 and two 1/2
Epcot 2 days one 3/4 day one 1/2 day
The rest 1 dAY PROBABLY


good luck -

I guess if we went more often we'd probably do less days............


lisa

Our First Family Trip -- August 2006......................

 

[crisi]

It depends on the trip and the circumstances. If this will be your ONLY Disney trip, go for as long as you can. If you are a regular Disney guest, a lot of regulars will be there for a weekend. If you have small kids, you have (IMO), two choices, the short whirlwind (focus on the MK, skip parks, do a character meal, get some photos, come back in three years), or the lengthy trip with naps and short days. If you are fitting four people in a small hotel room, you may want a shorter trip than if you have four people in a condo offsite somewhere.

We usually go for seven nights and - except for the day we leave - spend some of each day in the parks. When my husband and his brother went, it was just for four days, two adults don't really need to ride Dumbo. Now that the kids have been many times, seven days is actually a little long - or rather - we've done everything we want to do after about five and can use the last two to revisit favorites.

 

[ainmama2001]

we try to stay for a NICE RELAXED vacation, at least 7 nights. This year, we're doing a whirlwind of 4.

 

[Desnik]

Our trips usually are between 7-10 days. We use to drive from NY so we wanted to stay for awhile after that long drive! Now that DH will fly, we will take shorter, more frequent trips. We are DVC'ers and have AP's so this allows us to go twice a year from now on and we will probably stick to 6 days. On our last trip we stood for 9 days and I had actually thought that was enough for our family with 2 kids ages 8 and 3.

 

[cdndislvr]

It takes us about 8 hours flying time to get to WDW so we usually like to take as much time as possible. Our shortest trip was 18 nights, the longest two months and this Dec/Jan we are going for 23 nights. We buy AP's and take our time enjoying not only the parks but the resort (CSR is our fav) and have tons of relaxation time as well. No matter how many days you spend at WDW take the time to relax and remove yourself from the pressure of seeing and doing everything! We have always been fortunate to spend many days at WDW and I am still discovering new things about WDW I've never seen or done before - just means I have to go back for more......

 

[spoiltrotten12]

2 weeks...Sometimes 3

 

[mytwotinks]

2 weeks...Sometimes 3

Do U.K. workers generally get more vacation days than we do over here in the U.S.? I have noticed that lots of the U.K. visitors take a 3 or 4 week vacation every year! I am very lucky to get as much vacation as I need (sahm) and my dh has a very flexible schedule (fireman) and can get quite a bit of time off at once, but a lot of our friends are strictly limitted to 5 days vacation a year.

back on topic! Our first trip was 11 nights and was perfect! I went back with my sister and our girls for an 8 night trip. Not quite long enough, but also worn out from doing it all without daddy's help. We are going in Sept and we just couldn't justify taking my dd out of school for much longer so we are just doing 8 nights. I really vote for as long as you can though! I love being able to relax while we are there and not feel like it is "now or never".

 

[4lilpoohs]

In December we are going for 14 nights/15days

 

[isla bonita]

We go down twice a year and stay off site in our rental home. Sept-oct we stay 10 nights, Feb we stay 16 nights. Still it is not enough.

 

[justplaingoofy]

I think it depends how often you go....

if you go every year I personally think 7 days is great.

If you don't make it every year 10 days.

 

[Mrs Doubtfire]

Shortest has been 7 days - coming from the UK we normally stay 14 days or even 21 (upcoming holiday). Unfortunately we can't afford to stay on site for this length of time but still have a great holiday!

 

[emh1129]

We are planning our first family trip and we're planning to stay 10 nights. We want to make sure that we don't feel rushed and can take our time and follow the pace our 2 and 4 year old set..

 

[dougsmom98]

Usually we stay 7 nights. The first and last days are travel days. We usually do 5 days in the parks. We stay offsite in a rental home. We have decided that if we take a trip next year, we will still do 7 nights but spend fewer days in the parks and spend more time relaxing. Now that we have been several times, I don't feel the need to go, go, go.

 

[mrsfascinating]

We usally go from anywhere from 8-11 nights. It all depends when we go and how many other trips we have planned that year. It also helps we are DVC members so we don't have the huge output of the hotel charges since we always stay in a 1 br at the boardwalk. We like to take it easy we get to the parks when we get there come back around 2 for a swim ,nap at 3 , dinner after and back to where ever. We went one time for a week and felt so rushed with our lazy schedule that we said never again. Whatever you decide the biggest thing is to do what you can afford others may not agree ,but Disney is not worth going into debt over.

 

[HollisterSweetie]

9 nights/10 days

 

[asa'smom]

We usually plan a trip for every other year.
9 night-10 days

 

[laceemouse]

Generally one week. We go every 12 to 18 months. Dh never takes off two weeks at a time, too long to miss work. He gets 3 or 4 weeks a year, but we like to spread them out and also love going to other places besides WDW (we are not extreme fanatics!)

 

[DisneyDotty]

This time we'll be staying at WDW 13 nights, with a 10-day park hopper. Just can't get enough of the Mouse!