Never been to World without kids! Give me your best tips please!

[qv09vvp]

First time just the 2 of us only trip. All chicks have left the nest and are in college. We are literally relearning how to be just the two of us again. I need your best tips - we leave in 18 days & I'm so used to juggling everyone's priorities I find myself wondering if we are going to be ok.

 

[Jetku]

Enjoy the lounges (and trader sams)! You can get great food and drink in a relaxing atmosphere by going to signature restaurant lounges.

 

[godders]

Do whatever you like!!! Enjoy an evening at the World Showcase or some of the lovely deluxe resorts?

Also check out the adult and solo trip board because there are plenty of suggestions on there.

This trip will probably be very different so be aware. My Mum and Dad went with just my brother last November (I did a solo trip in the Sept) and my Mum personally didn't enjoy it as much because she didn't have my Disney enthusiasm around her plus she was only allowed on IASW once lol

 

[qv09vvp]

yeah...my hubby is the best but he NEVER weighs in on what he likes... he is just a pleaser. so this might be harder than I thought..

 

[Nohal]

The first time we went without kids was like a whole different experience. Which I absolutely loved. Never had to worry about going someplace where there was stuff the kids would eat. Didn't have to get 4 peoples order and go get the food. So much easier to do with just 2. Went on the rides DH & I wanted to do didn't need to consult with 2 others. Didn't have to take extra stuff for 4 only 2. It was just such a relaxing trip with just DH & I. We spent time in the pavilions in World Showcase which we couldn't do with kids as they were bored. Spent time visiting other resorts. Went back to the hotel some days just to relax and nap didn't have to go to the pool because of the kids. I remember the first time without kids DH said he missed the kids, and awful mother that I am said I don't.

 

[godders]

yeah...my hubby is the best but he NEVER weighs in on what he likes... he is just a pleaser. so this might be harder than I thought..

Aw no! Have you asked him if there is anything specfic he would like to do? If he likes golf could you get him a tee time while you get your nails done perhaps? Or do you like mini golf? The course by the Swan is a bit challenging so that is a lot of fun for adults

 

[SarahInMN]

We are childfree by choice, my husband grew up going to Disney, and I went twice when I was a kid. He was used to commando style park days (his mom would take them on "death marches" to do everything - and yes their entire family refers to them as "death marches").

We take things at a much more leisurely place. We love wandering through all the shops and gardens: there are beautiful gardens/ponds at Japan, Canada, China for example.

Bars and lounges are our thing as other's have suggested: Lapu Lapus at Tambu lounge, dinner/snacks at the CrewCup, and adult slushies in France. Explore downtown disney/disney springs - go to the bars at the restaurants and order an app.

We also look at other resort menus and hop to resorts to try the restaurants (we know/stay at deluxe resorts or DVC so we haven't spent much time at the mods or values). We have also played "bus roulette" - we take the first bus we see at the pickup site and go explore that resort.

The FP+ system works great for us: we don't have to get up for rope drop (except EMH at MK) and can ride what we want, when we want. Admittedly, we are DVC owners so we go regularly (less pressure to do everything because we'll be back).

Mini golf is on our list but we have never quite made it to mini golf.

 

[mom2rb]

Don't plan too much to do. DH and I had a nice relaxing trip last December. It isn't that hard to get a table for two, so we didn't have many problems.

 

[PatsGirl]

Two words: Monorail Crawl. Although I am also empty nest for the first time in nearly 3 decades, I've managed to pull a few of these off even with the kids in tow (well, in Disney daycare LOL). End it with a great dinner at the Boardwalk or DTD, or better yet at a fine dining venue if you can hold your own This next trip with be a mother/daughter trip with the baby who just left for college a few weeks ago, just 18 so no crawl for us haha.

 

[SarahInMN]

Two words: Monorail Crawl.

This.

 

[jerseygal]

Enjoy "feeling like kids again", doing exactly what the two of you want to do, try to leave any worries behind temporarily, enjoy some GREAT food and drink, and take time to enjoy some relaxing, resort time too! HAVE A BLAST knowing that you deserve this!

 

[disnut8]

First time just the 2 of us only trip. All chicks have left the nest and are in college. We are literally relearning how to be just the two of us again. I need your best tips - we leave in 18 days & I'm so used to juggling everyone's priorities I find myself wondering if we are going to be ok.

You will be fine. What we found ourselves doing the first couple of times (we just have the one son) was feeling "guilty" because we would remember having fun with him on this and that and that and this. We finally realized that he would ALWAYS be part of any Disney trip, in our hearts. Then he got married and had kids and all of us went on Disney trips together but when it's just my husband and I, we go now and relish in knowing that we can be with our kids (all of them -in-law or grand) each and every time. Every time I board a Disney bus, I remember our soon-to-be daughter-in-law (she was proposed to right before we arrived) remarking on how easy the transportation was. When we hear the Jedi Training Academy starting up, we chuckle because our grandson, at the age of five, was the smallest one there and the trainer called him a Hobbit. Husband now likes the nachos in Mexico because of our son introducing him to the flavors. When we see the Haunted Mansion, we glance towards the fruit wagon spot down a ways because we had to do something with the granddaughter because she wouldn't ride. And while we do all these things, we go and have new adventures and then text the kids (all of them) that we thought about them that day.

 

[Disneyliscious]

I will be taking my first all adult trip in a few weeks as well. I do feel guilty for leaving my boys (14 and 22) behind but I have never taken a trip anywhere without my kids before so this is kind of like "me" time. Just had my first grand daughter born last week so I know a whole new era of family trips are coming in the future. I plan on taking them when she turns 3 as I think she'll be old enough to enjoy the Princesses by then.

 

[ness0905]

We went for our ten year and we found ourselves enjoying pool time at night without having to keep an eye on our 5 and 7 year old. Sleeping in because we could relax through the parks. We played the game at the end of mission space for like an hour when our kids would have been ready way before that. We also did some things we never had like Ellen's energy adventure and hall of presidents. Just enjoy there is so much to do but in a very different way.

 

[eeyoreland]

I agree with all the comments about relaxing, taking it slow, and enjoying the "new" experience. I'll just share what happened to me the first time DH and I went alone. DD was a sophomore in college. We had gone with her yearly for about 10 or so years. DH and I checked into BC and then started walking over to Epcot. As we approached, I started crying! It just didn't seem right to be there without DD. Now that we're basically empty nesters, DH likes to remind me that "I still have him" so I thought oh boy if he sees me cry, he won't like it. I pulled it together, but worried that was how the whole trip would be. Fortunately, it was just that one time and the rest of our trip we had so much fun doing what we wanted to do when we wanted to do it. That was two years ago and we went again this past January as a family. DH and I will go alone again next March. The experience is a good one with and without DD. Since it's just the one DD, what we did for fun was send her a package every day we were there. I got flat rate boxes and printed labels before we left and found stuff every day we knew she would like. Some days we included things for her and her college roommate. It was fun putting the packages together for her every day.

 

[helenm29]

Funny...my husband and I are doing the same thing. We went to Disney world for our honeymoon 27 years ago and haven't been back by ourselves since then. This is our first trip alone together and we are doing EVERYTHING! we leave in EXACTLY 14 days...Food and Wine fest, lots of special meals, lots of fast passes my kids wouldn't want to do, some drinking etc. I'm a little worried that I won't know what to talk about that doesn't involve kids? anyway, have a wonderful time!

 

[jmkjr72]

Go enjoy yourself and be the kids for a change
I did my first adult onky trip in may and it was nice we ate where we wanted and did enjoy a couple adu k t beverages

 

[gzmtlock]

yeah...my hubby is the best but he NEVER weighs in on what he likes... he is just a pleaser. so this might be harder than I thought..

What if you decided together to make a game out of taking turns choosing what to do next/where to eat next and so on? If you've always been the planner, it might be hard for him to transition quickly to helping make decisions. But maybe if you had a rough plan for the day, that left multiple options open, then the fun could be finding out what the other one wants to do.

DH and I enjoy bringing a bottle of Grand Marnier and having a nightcap on the balcony every evening just before bed. We only do this on vacations, so it feels extra-special. We also enjoy spending an hour or two most afternoons at one of the quiet pools, reading magazines and relaxing. And we definitely eat better - TS and signature restaurants are a big part of what we enjoy together.

There are things we do less. DH loves thrill rides, I can't stand them. When the kids/grandkids are with us, he rides with them. When it's just the two of us, he still rides his favorites, but not as many times. We don't do characters (although I do when I go solo).

It is a heck of a transition when the last one goes off to college - but for us it's been great! Give yourselves some time to relax into it and enjoy!

 

[eeyoreland]

Maybe us Disers need to start an empty nest group .

 

[Pmlocke]

Get ready for the best vacation you have ever experienced in the World. My wife and I both felt the same way several years ago when we embarked on our first trip to the World without kids or grandkids. Our fourth day into the vacation, laying poolside in the afternoon relaxing in the sun and recharging for an evening in the parks my wife turned to me and stated "best vacation ever". No more were we fighting crowds because we could no go in the off season. No more "I want this, or I want that". You will see and experience the World in ways you never dreamed. You can take your time and really look at things, if the wait time fro a ride is too long, keep on walking. You really don't have to spend an hour in line-there are plenty of other things to do. My advice for you is get ready to visit the world unlike any other time you have been there.