Need suggestions for making trip for "newbies" fun

[disneyvoice]

We are super excited that our oldest son and his girlfriend (will most likely be his fiancé soon) are able to join us for a few days on our upcoming trip. Our son has only been to WDW once when he was really little and doesn't remember it. His girlfriend went once last year but had a bad experience - she went with someone who loves WDW and wanted to make sure they did Disney the "right" way even if the other girls wanted to do something different.

We are big WDW fans, in fact we are building a house near WDW so we can go all the time. Because we go so often, we don't care what we do, we just want to make sure our son and his girlfriend have a fun time. We bought them both APs so they can go back again when they visit us in the future. I asked but they didn't have any specific requests except that his girlfriend said she likes the Studios the best so she wants to go there. They both said they were fine with whatever FPs we wanted to get and wherever we thought we should eat.

I don't want to do anything more than schedule some FPs and make a few ADRs since his girlfriend's first trip was overscheduled. We are fine if they want to go off on their own. I got ADRs for 50's Prime Time and Hoop Dee Doo since those seem like fun with a group. I was able to get FPs for all the really popular rides except FoP and 7DMT. If they are up for rope drop I thought we could try to do those then. But if they want to sleep in, that is just fine.

Any suggestions for how to help newbies enjoy their trip without making them feel overscheduled? I don't want to overwhelm them with our WDW excitement and scare them away.

 

[glassslippergirl]

I like your plan. If they don’t want to RD, another option for 7DMT and FOP is to get in line minutes before the rides close. The line may be long you’re not using time that could be spent doing something else in the park.

If they are over 21, an afternoon or two in World Showcase may be enjoyable.

Would the two of them enjoy a spa service?

That’s all I’ve got. Enjoy!

 

[alex9179]

You've got a good plan. A lot depends on how active they are in the morning vs evening. If you could get a feel for when they'd LIKE to wake up and get around, then you'll have a better idea of when to suggest some things and could luck into some last minute FPs, too.

Do they enjoy an adult beverage? One of the things I think will be fun with my first-timer cousin is stopping in at the lounges for a drink and some snacks instead of meals. No crazy waiting area or wait times and freedom from a bunch of ADRs (you've already addressed that). For my early rising cousin, we're touring right off the bat. The rest of the day we're "winging" it. Confession, I pretty much know what we're doing but there aren't any obligations. It will seem spontaneous and will be flexible. She'll be ready for bed fairly early and January is the perfect season since the parks close early.

Hit fun rides. Don't travel a lot. I just read a trip report where the Diser's friend was over the walking and they were on the move ALL DAY without the Diser realizing what he was doing. Don't talk about what you wish you could fit into their trip while touring...at least until after they talk about how much fun they had with you Really, you know what you're doing. I worried, too, but I've known my cousin my entire life. We aren't close due to where we live but, I listen to people and know some of the biggies like when she's up, what she likes to drink, food hang-ups that she's willing to test, cold/heat tolerance, when sleep will be calling. You can get some of that info about the GF and you all know it about your son.

I really think that it all boils down to enjoying who you're with over what you're doing. You sound like the former! It will be fun because you know how to navigate WDW.

 

[DisneyWishes14]

I like your plan. My DS10 and DH don't do well when I over schedule so my plans are, typically, very similar to yours - 3 FP+ a day plus 1 TS. The rest is gravy. I would suggest scheduling your FP+'s to start around 10:30/11:00 am. This leaves flexibility in the morning to sleep in or, if people are up, to get to other rides a little earlier. You can always pick up more FP+ as the day goes on if they are in the mood. I think this will work well especially as it doesn't seem they are interested in the hard-to-get FP+. There are so many things you can do on the fly if the mood strikes - walk around WS in the evening, do a monorail tour, go to DS, go to the pool. My DH loves going to the lounges (Nomad is a favorite) just to take a break and have a drink and some app's. I really wouldn't over plan, but maybe have some suggestions in your back pocket of things you can do on the fly that don't require a lot of planning or a lot of reservations.