Question for recent WDW first-timers...

[#1MusicMom]

Question for any WDW first-timers who have traveled within the last year or so. After you returned home from your first trip to WDW, what were some of your “I wish we would have...” thoughts.

I am attempting to plan our family’s first trip to WDW and I need all the advice I can get.

By the way, I thoroughly enjoy reading everyone’s messages!

 

[GarrettJD]

Welcome to the DIS, MusicMom! I hope you enjoy it here. We took our very first trip last year, and the people on these boards were a great help.


There were a few, but not many. The biggest one was "I wish we took breaks at the hotel more often." We were really running out of steam the last two days because we were dumb enough to skip the afternoon breaks.

Believe me.... if you can, take a break in the early afternoon for a couple of hours EVERY DAY, without exception. It's tempting to skip it when you're having fun, but believe me, you'll see more and have more fun if you're well rested.

Other than that, our trip was fantastic. I had planned literally for years, and while we didn't use any particular touring plans (I read almost every guidebook) I had a general idea of what we wanted to see and we went from there. It seemed to work well.

We had a few other smaller "I Wishes" that we're rectifying on our next trip. We missed Fantasmic due to a combination of rain and exhaustion. We didn't spend enough time strolling World Showcase and taking in the little details. We wish that we would have spent more time in Disney-MGM Studios (for some it's a 1 day park, but we could easily spend 2.) These are all priorities for us in June.

If you have any questions or need help with anything, post away! There are a lot of helpful experts here... I'm not quite an "expert" expert yet, but I'm getting there

 

[Musky]

Excellent question. It's actually been 2 1/2 years since our first trip, but I think our experiences are still valid. What we wish we had done differently:

1. Spent less time looking at/taking pictures of the attractions and more time watching our kids' faces as they discovered the magic for the first time.

2. Built a little more time for rest into our schedule.

3. Not believed the guide books that say you can do MGM in a day. We arrived at opening, stayed until closing, and only saw about 2/3 of the park. We haven't been to the AK yet, but I suspect the same is true of the guide books that say you can do it in half a day. I just don't see how that would be possible.

4. Not succumbed to pressure from other people to stay onsite. I know everyone else will tell you you have to stay onsite, but we felt like it was a waste of money. JMO.

Other than that, no regrets, and it was a great trip. Hope yours is great, too, and if you're looking for advice, you've come to the right place!

Musky

 

[Musky]

That's so funny - me and GarrettJD were posting at the same time and we said the same thing about MGM and getting more rest. Great minds think alike!


Musky

 

[kaylajr]

Well i have been a few times but i wanted to jump in here and say
WELCOME

before my first trp i didn't know about the boards and we wnt uneducated and while we had a good time we missed SOOO much

before our 2nd trip i had discover the wonderful helpful world of this group here at DIS and the trip was SO much better and now as i plan the 3rd for this fall i am useing the knowledge here to make it super spectacular

feel free to post often and ask away if we don't know the answer right away it always seems like someone know how to find out the answer

i agree take some rests

realize that in 1 weeek there in NO WAY to possibly see it ALL
that's why we keep going back

but most of all HAVE FUN

and planning is part of the fun

 

[poohtown]

we went in January. I'll post some 'glad I' along with the 'wish I'.

Glad I:

- glad I took a light sweater for the chilly nights.

- glad I took alot of pictures, including some of things people wouldn't normally take.

- glad I saved every receipt, brochure, etc - made some beautiful scrapbooks when I came home.

- glad we took breaks (since we park hopped, we would go ee to one park, leave and have a nice sit-down lunch or back to the hotel for a swim or nap, then off to a different park)

- glad I finally let everyone slow down and enjoy instead of rushing to do everything.

- glad dd8 and I took advantage of MK ee while dh and dd15 slept in (we were able to do all the rides she wanted like Peter Pan, Poohs Honey Tree, etc. before 11 am. - later when dh and dd joined us those rides had 20 - 45 minute waits.)

- glad I bought autograph books and penny press book - make great souvenirs.

- glad I bought a little castle for me and my fuzzy dice for the car - keeps me in the mood.

- glad we saw Fantasmic

Wish I had:

- brought a heavier sweater and mittens for one of the nights - it was downright freezing and dd8 was crying.

- wish I took more 'off the beaten path' pictures - some of those are my favorites. Like the close ups off parts of the buildings or rides.

- wish I bought a Mr. Potato Head!!!!!!!!!

- wish I knew beforehand how much dd8 would get into pin trading so I could have pre-purchesed some less expensive traders.

- wish I let my dh and kids hold the video camera more - they have such a different view on things. It's so interesting to see what they are interested in and my husband zooms in on the funniest things. (for example - the montage of closeups of the characters eyes, ears, etc.).

- wish I had gone further away from the castle for the fireworks show. I had a tree in my way and didn't really have the best view.

have fun!!!!!!

 

[Eyore4Ever149]

Hi There!

Welcome! Okay heres mine I went for the first time on my honeymoon....

I wish we hadn't skipped Animal Kingdom (its waaay more than just a zoo)

I wish I had learned about the DIS before, as well as how to save money before first trip, www.mousesavers.com is a great place to check out too, www.tourguidemike.com too.

I wish I brought more socks, and more than 1 pair of sneakers.

I wish I had a back up camera- our digital was stolen before we got to enjoy anything.

I wish I had taken advantage of more of the activities available at our resort (carribean beach resort-CBR)

I wish we had rented a car to avoid waiting for the bus and getting to other resort restaurants.

I wish we took mid day breaks.

I wish we did the "swim with the fish/sharks" at Typhoon Lagoon.

I wish we had made at least 1 priority seating-PS at a character meal.

I wish we made more time for shopping at DTD, we always went at the very end of the day and most of the stores were closing by then.

Wish I had more pictures and I wish I purchased the ones they take of you on Main Street at Magic Kingdom- MK, I know they are expensive, but I dont have anything like them. Sometimes the ride pictures are worth it.

Im glad we had Disney Florist send food/gift baskets filled with snacks and stuff to the room and DH had my favorite flowers (sprinkled in fairie dust) sent to the room, made the room feel so cheerful the whole time we were there.

Im glad we made plans to eat at California Grille and viewed Wishes (fireworks at Magic Kingdom)

I wish we had used our fastpasses more.

I wish we could go for more time- like at least 10 days.

Well, Im off in just a few days to try and do alot of the things I wish I had done differently!

 

[oogieboogie]

First time we went on Thanksgiving week. Bad mistake when you're uneducated!

Not realizing how big/ how crowded it would be, and thinking we could get everything done in 5 days. What a load of crock!

We didn't get to do half the things we wanted to do. Everything was packed, and although we had fun, we just weren't satisfied. It made us more determined that we had to go back!

After that trip, I found the DIS, and what a difference these boards have made. Since that first trip in Nov 03, we've bought APs, gone in Feb, going again in May, got great room rates at a deluxe for cheaper than what we paid in Nov at a moderate (snicker....), and learned about vouchers, value season, etc.

We always thought Disney was way too expensive to go every year. Now we've found out, Disney is sometimes cheaper than spending a week at my in-laws in Illinois. It's actually cheaper on a day to day cost to go to Disney than going to Six Flags. Heck even the price of food is cheaper, and you get so much more at Disney.

 

[shellybaxter]

DH and I went on our first trip last November.

-I wish I'd known about room only rates, we bought an expensive package and didn't need all of the perks.

-I wish I'd gone for more days. We had six days, it wasn't enough.

-I wish I'd taken my 4 year old niece (taking care of that wish in just 4 days now)

-I wish I'd taken the boat ride from our resort POR to Downtown Disney.

-I wish I'd walked more before we left

-I'm glad we stayed onsite. I can't imagine leaving disney once I arrive there.

-I'm glad we stayed up late on Saturday night for the second Spectro parade (the first was too crowded and we were just going to skip the second and leave after Wishes. As we were leaving we realized we could just sit down on the edge of the sidewalk and only wait 20 mins or so, so we did - So Glad)

-I'm glad we made PS and ate at the resturants we wanted to , instead of worrying about the cost of the food. I think the resturants are a big part of the magic.

Have a GREAT trip


Shelly

 

[CharlesandCamilla]

Make PS's, especially for character dining. It sounds hokey until you try it.

Actually get in park shape. No that doesn't mean start working on getting good at eating Turkey legs. Start walking, breaking in the shoes you're going to wear.

Learn as much about the parks as you can before you go and plan accordingly. For me and my familly AK is done in a morning and MGM takes just over a day. (Yes I've got a plan for splitting up days and park hopping that will give us the right amount of time in MGM.) You might feel differently. But if you at least know what's there you won't be one of those famillies that spends a good portion of the trip huddled around the map asking each other "what's next?"

 

[laceemouse]

I agree with Shelly on the food part. Our first 2 or 3 trips we ate way too much counter service and got really sick of it. Now we have at least one PS at a nice sit-down place every day. It is so relaxing and you get real stuff like veggies. Just take it easy and realize that you could never see and do everything on one trip, no matter how long it is.

 

[Skywalker]

1. I wish I wouldn't have been too chicken to ride Terror of Terror and Mission Space. I really regret it now.

2. I wish we would have brought the kids to a character breakfast.

3. I wish we wouldn't have gone to Magic Kingdom on weekend days. It's obvious it would be busiest on those days but at the time we never even thought about it!

4. I wish I would have eaten in many different places instead of tending to stick to the same ones.

5. I wish I had known that purchased souvenirs would be sent back to our room for us. I let many pass by because I didn't want to lug things around.

6. I wish I had checked out some of the other resorts so I would have first-hand knowledge when it comes time to book again.

7. I wish we had taken MORE pictures and MORE video!

8. I wish I had made a list of all attractions with height requirements to avoid so that my children wouldn't be disappointed after spotting something and then walking up to it only to find they were a little too small.

I think that's it.

Hey, have a great trip!!!

 

[KaityBsMom]

We took our first trip as a family last September (my 3rd all together, but I hadn't been in years).

Let's see.... In retrospect, I wish we had:

- taken more pictures. I felt like I was taking sooo many (I fancy myself an amateur photographer ), but after getting back, I remember lots of stuff I missed.

- explored Fort Wilderness-- we were planning to go to the campfire singalong one night, but got rained out. I wish we had at least gone over there another day. Next time...

- made a 'cooler' autograph book for our DD. We bought the Disney one and she got tons of autographs. She still enjoys looking through the book and remembering the trip, but I wish I had made my own for her, with room for pictures, fancier pages, something.

- gone back to Epcot for another half day at least, to explore World Showcase more.

That's all I can think of right now. We were lucky that our trip went great and we got to do the majority of the things we were hoping to do.

Have fun planning your trip!

 

[CharlesandCamilla]

Purchases aren't sent to rooms anymore but to the shop at your resort instead. Still a great deal.

 

[decker96]

While it wasn't my first trip to WDW, it was my children's and it was the first time I was responsible for the planning. My biggest regret is that I didn't do more research. I only read one guidebook which was helpful, but not as great as the Unofficial Guide which I have since read. Plus, I didn't know about these boards yet which are SO helpful. I feel like we didn't "tour" well and ending up missing a lot. And we weren't there long enough, only three days! Our next trip I will be much better prepared! Although DH is only giving us one extra day, but four is better than three!

 

[manchurianbrownbear]

Hey #1MusicMom. Great to see Luverne represented on the DIS. I lived in Westbrook, MN my last two years of high school ('81 & '82).

Read the DIS religiously, you'll be amazed at how helpful it is to have a plan of attack based on DIS advice.

After you've made your plan, don't get too attached to it. Use it as a guideline and don't let your trip get ruined if you have to deviate a little. No matter how many days you're at WDW, you'll never do everything!

Also, after listening to everyone's advice, remember, you know your family better than any of us. On our first family WDW trip we had two kids, ages 8 & 5 at the time. I think the overwelming majority of DISers will tell you, as several on this thread already have, that you must take a break during the day. One of things I wish we had done differently on that trip is skipping the breaks. Our kids were way to wired to rest, they never fell asleep and we wasted two hours on breaks each of our first two days on that trip. We skipped the breaks the rest of trip and did just fine.

 

[wdwrookie]

I just got back from the week before Easter for the first time.

1. I wish we had not gone the week before Easter (which answers the "we wish we could have gone on --- more times" dilemma, the "wish we could have slept later some days" dilemma and the "wish it was less crowded and stressful" dilemma)!

2. I also wish we saw Fantasmic and Wishes from a distance.

3. I wish I could have gone to Sea World.

Other than that, we did and saw everything we wanted to see!

 

[BrotherBear]

My best advice is:

I wish I would have slowed down, and let my children set the pace more. WDW is WAY TOO BIG to see on one trip, unless your taking a month vacation! (lol) But if you can just enjoy the moment and see disney through your children's eyes, that is the most magical.

One night, as MK was closing, we found a park bench in front of the castle and sat down with a bag of popcorn and just watched the castle change colors. We were there for about 30 min, got completely rested and it was so fun to relax and let the crowds get out first.

 

[tassie42]

Hi! we went for the first time with our 3 kids in April. Hadn't been there in about 13 years.

I wish we had more days (had 5 but part of 2 were travel days)

I wish we had taken a full day to just shop relax and swim ( by the last day we were out of steam)

next time we won't try to do parks on travel days.

I wish I would have bought ph tickets instead of uph (those extra parks sound great but with limited days there is just no time!)

I wish i had found the dis before I booked my vacation. Next time I won't buy a package.

I wish I had taken more time to take pictures of the kids with the castle etc. in the background.

We did have a great time and saw almost all of what we had planned thanks to the UG and these helpful people on these boards!

 

[#1MusicMom]

Thanks for the great advice. Everyone's answers are well thought out!

We will be arriving on Nov. 20 and departing on Nov. 27. This trip is going to include my family (3 kids ages 4,6 & 8), my parents, my husband's parents, and a family friend. We have reservations at WL and have signed up for the silver package. Hopefully this isn't my first big mistake.

I must say that the most difficult part for me is allowing rest time everyday. I know we are going to need it though!

Planning this trip is so much fun. I think I eat, drink, and sleep Disney. My husband probably thinks I'm losing it.

I wish that I wasn't the one making the decisions for the entire group. I know my parents will be fine with almost anything, but my husband's parents are older and I worry about how they will keep up with the rest of us. They have already reserved those motorized scooters, but they are not at all active people. I guess they will do as much as they are able to do and the rest of us will just keep on going. (That is, until we drop!)

Well, thanks again for the great ideas!