Never been to a Disney Park Before

[kc5grw]

Everytime we arrive we always get goose pimples, goose bumps, chill bumps, whatever you want to call them. Anybody else get these ?

Yup, happens every time once you see the big entry arches.

 

[TheFlame]

Wow, what an exciting time for your family! I too am very jealous of any first-timer!
You should not try to plan out everyday to the minute(listen to me, I am so retarded, I still do this! ) but you have to make a plan of action or you will freak out when you get there!

I have bought alot of Disney planning books but my very favorite is The Unofficial Guide to WDW. I have also bought the Passporter and Birnbaum's guide but did not care for these books as well as the Unofficial Guide. The Passporter was my least favorite, but the maps are great. Amazon is the best place for Disney books usually with no shipping and always no tax!

You can print your own maps on Disney's website and they will send them to you in a beautiful envelope that looks like a treasure map... Go to plan my vacation and build an itinerary.

I am so happy for your family! Have a wonderful year planning your trip!

 

[aLitlGoofy]

I second the Birnbaum's Guide suggestion. It is packed full of info with ideas for all ages.

 

[bord1niowa]

The entryway is a big one for us but looking down mainstreet and seeing that castle....get me a tissue. Nothing says "you're home" better.

 

[tazdeb]

Ok, we all know the first time is special and not to over plan ,just soak in the magic.......now for a reality check.......BRING LOTS OF MONEY........You are already doing the smart thing by staying at the best place on property. Just by eating breakfast in your trailer you will save $300 a week. But be prepared for some sticker shock. Most first timers I know were amazed at how much everything cost. It does seem that everytime you turn around in WDW $20 flies out of your pocket. There are so many little things your kids will want to buy like these lighted twirly things for the parades/ snow globes/ pirate swords/pictures...etc...Everytime you get off a ride there is a store you must walk out through. My wife and I put a stop to some of this by giving our 2 daughters a budget of $25 a day. I know you are thinking that this is alot, but.....they had to decide what to spend it on and got to keep, take home what was left. With the cost of an average souviner being $15 they had to decide if they wanted the first thing they saw in the morning or wait for something else like a tee shirt later. Trust me this is the best $300 you will spend and doing it this way will save you money in the long run. It also amazed me what smart money managers they became when it came time to spend THEIR money. Doing this really ended the 'can I have that" syndrome. My other main suggestion would be to spend 4 days in the parks (get a park Hopper) and spend the rest in the fort by the pool, fishing in the streams, seeing the free movies/campfire/singalong etc....FW is the best campground we have ever been to and being in WDW just makes it better. Weve been there camping 8 times ( our kid are just 11yrs old) and once you go you will be hooked, just get your budget ready....TAZ

 

[VACAMPER]

Wow! Am i a bad mother? I only gave my daughters $50.00 for the whole trip and they had to earn that or have b-day money. I'm not going to let them read this or they will try to convince you to adopt them.

 

[PolynesianPixie]

Everytime we arrive we always get goose pimples, goose bumps, chill bumps, whatever you want to call them. Anybody else get these ?

Don't forget Teary-eyed! When you first step on Main ST~ there is nothing like it!!!!!!


I love all the attention to detail. Everywhere you look, things are just....perfect!

 

[WeCampDisney]

Wow! Driving under the big WDW arch is like a high,just so exciting! Then, pulling slowly down the winding drive past the fort Wilderness sign, and then, there it is! the grand entrance to our beloved Fort Wilderness Resort and Campground. "Honey, Ya'll wake up, we're home! Magical, YES! Can it get any better? Maybe so. Riding in the bow of the boat , you pass by the contemporary, under the mono-rail, turning right and then, oh my, the Magic Kingdom, dead ahead! It's almost 7:00pm, Mickey's Very Merry Christmas Party is about to begin. We walk onto Main Street USA, man that giant Christmas tree is just awesome! Then as we round the tree, the sight down the street just stops us in our tracks. Old fashioned garland strung across the street, the decorated Mickey lamp posts, the castle at the end of the street, people everywhere in their holiday attire, the snow falling all down the street. Now that is Disney magic at its best! You're feeling it, aren't you? I can't wait for Dec 6 to get here when we pull up to the Fort Wilderness entrance gate to begin our 8 days of a magical vacation.

 

[chief19spixi]

I always get all teary eyed when the wishes fireworks go off..thank goodness its dark and no one can see me!

 

[Kimbere]

Welcome! You are in a great place for lots of wonderful advice! I would highly recommend getting Tour Guide Mike www.tourguidemike.com for your trip planning. We used this service for our first trip, which was over Easter break this year. Being that you will be going at the busiest time of the year, next year, his "what parks on what day" plan will be invaluable. The longest we waited for any ride, all week, was an hour for Splash Mountian...and that was because we were fastpassed on another ride already. I also purchased the Unofficial Guide to Disney 2008 and there was lots of great info there as well. But, since I had TGM I didn't need to use it much.

 

[Ayeroller]

I prefer the The Unofficial Guide To Disney and you can get most of the books at your local library. And the magic is real, we just got back from a great a week at the fort and by friday I was not looking forward to another 8 hours traipsing throught he park for the P and P party. We walked through the gate and the little kid inside wakes up and you don't know were to go first. Have good trip and remember its fun don't try to hard