Question for Repeat Disney Vacationers

[donnajz]

When people find out we're going to disney for the 9th time (this is the 4th year in a row), most people question why I want go keep going to the same place. They just don't understand our strong attraction/addiction to visiting Disney every year. Sometimes I get a little offended when I'm questioned as to why I don't want to vacation somewhere else.

Now, my real reason for this post. Just WHAT is it about Disney they makes you want to go back again and again and again and again and again....

 

[PDJPrinceCharming]

This being my 16th in September I thought i'd chime in with my thoughts. Walt Disney World to me represents the part of me that never wanted to grow up, the innocence, the magic that came with being a kid again. It is a place that I never wear a frown & I know i'll be completely happy the whole week away from all the drama & stress at home. I just want to get off that plane, get on the DME, check into Pop & just head out to my normal first night at DHS. I want to stand on Main Street at MK & just drink in all the atmosphere knowing my problems are thousands of miles away & right now for this very moment, dreams can & do come true. Knowing that all the bad things are far away & while i'm on property, everything goes perfect & the only thing that truly matters is having the most special & wonderful vacation imaginable.

 

[rainwatter]

I am somewhere inbetween. I just got back from my second trip, first as an adult, and am planning another one for March. I loved it so much, it made me feel safe, and silly. I could sing out whatever song I wanted and skip down the street with my daughter giggling, and no-one looking at me like I need to be institutionalized.

At the same time, I know that I need some balance, and so next year we will probably skip disney in leu of a trip to Europe.

 

[TDC Nala]

Don't know why you would need to explain your choices to anybody.

But I'd bet the folks who are asking like to go to the same beach every year or something like that.

Beaches bore me. WDW does not. I think I prefer the artificial world to the natural.

 

[P~I~N~K]

Its cheaper than Cancun.

 

[jimmalru80]

It's the magic, the feeling that our family can be together, the five of us, no complaints, no battles. No outside interference, no phone calls, time to bond. Time to look each other in the eye, realize that despite the miles, we are family. Time to do our favorite rides, eat at our favorite restaurants, talk, laugh and rest. Knowing we have the same interest, the same goals, the same love for each other. Bottom line, it's the only time of the year when our FIVE get to be with each other, in our favorite place on earth, doing what we love to do and being at peace. I love our time at WDW.

 

[skoba-nelson]

One of my reasons for going back often (for us, not often enough) is the comfort level of eating in a "different" restaurant with children. We've really enjoyed some good meals at WDW. If we ate at similiar restaurants at home could you imagine the looks we'd get with 2 young children in tow?

BTW I'm a bank teller and we have customers that go to Vegas every year, sometimes twice or three times. They also withdrawal more than we spent on our past 3 trips to WDW and say aloud "I hope I bring some back this time."

 

[Cee]

It's a feeling. It's hard to explain. I don't even need to go to the parks at this
point to get it. It's being there, in that "world" that transports me to a "zen"
place. That's a concept, eh? Zen at Disney. A good name for a new resort.
I'd be there in a heartbeat.

 

[WilsonFlyer]

This being my 16th in September I thought i'd chime in with my thoughts. Walt Disney World to me represents the part of me that never wanted to grow up, the innocence, the magic that came with being a kid again. It is a place that I never wear a frown & I know i'll be completely happy the whole week away from all the drama & stress at home. I just want to get off that plane, get on the DME, check into Pop & just head out to my normal first night at DHS. I want to stand on Main Street at MK & just drink in all the atmosphere knowing my problems are thousands of miles away & right now for this very moment, dreams can & do come true. Knowing that all the bad things are far away & while i'm on property, everything goes perfect & the only thing that truly matters is having the most special & wonderful vacation imaginable.

My wife and I cruised on RCL every year for about 10 years. Amazing how nobody ever seemed to have a problem with that but I digress. My wife had been to DW as a senior in HS while living in NJ. At 35, I had never been and quite frankly, had no desire to go and I mean absolutely NO desire to go.

We were not a family that watched "The Wonderful World of Disney" on Sunday nights (I'm 47 now). My daddy watched "The FBI" so I did too. I didn't even really know very much about Disney at 35, quite frankly, except to know who Mickey Mouse was.

Anyway, long story short, after my DW ragged me for 10 years to "let's go to DW JUST one time", I agreed, kicking and screaming. Figured I would let her "get it out of her system" so we could get back to normal vacations cruising again. (We did not have a child at the time.)

I'll never forget it. I still remember the first time, as a 36 YO male (a man's man, BTW), I walked into the entrance to the MK. Attempting to describe the feeling would be a futile attempt at describing a feeling I couldn't even begin to put into words. Remember that I didn't want to be there! I didn't want to be there AT ALL!

I was hooked. Immediately. I can't explain it but I was. The magic got me right then and there and I didn't even know what the magic was at the time but I knew I had it. I knew this was a place I wanted to come back to and come back to often.

Not having sense enough to actually keep up with it the first few years, I actually don't know how many times we've been now but it's somewhere around 15-18 at this point. We bought into DVC this year (we have a 3 YO DD now that LOVES Disney).

We haven't been on a cruise since I first set foot in the MK. I think my wife even resents this sometimes now. Sometimes I wonder if she regrets ragging me for so many years to just go with me one time. LOL

I'm sure as the years go on we'll probably take advantage of II trade-outs with DVC and eventually, we will visit other places through DVC but our vacation home will always be Disney now.

I'm not sure I even understand it myself but I do know that it's true. I think the poster above stated it so eloquently that I wouldn't even attempt to try to explain it better. The quote above is about as well articulated as I could imagine.

If you have one of these people (and I have had them too; haven't we all?), send'em to me. I can explain it. Better yet, challenge them to go once. I dare them. So would my wife.

I challenge any father in America to stand on Main Street USA while holding his daughter in his arms and watch and listen to the words and music while Wishes! goes off and not tear up. Any father that ever does that just once goes to the "git it" column immediately. I promise you that.

If you've never been, you'll never understand. If someone's been once, you'll never have to explain it to them.

-bob

 

[Mike©]

What keeps us going back after 29+ trips.

A. Convenience, hard to beat everything in one place with transportation included.

B. Scope. It's huge and has So much to do!

 

[wilde_oscar]

WDW is the largest vacation destination in the world. It takes a lot of time to see it all, and by the time you see it all it is time to find new stuff, and start to repeat.

 

[goofy4tink]

I'm headed down, in Sept, for my 18th trip since '99. I have another one booked in Dec and then one over April vacation for my dd and me. Why?? Because it's one of the few places that we can all enjoy. We tried the cottage at the beach...dh got bored after 2 days and went back to the office and returned for the next weekend...that got old fast.
Dh isn't nearly as crazy about WDW as dd, 14, and I are, so he goes every other year or so. But, he has fun when he does go.
I have had people just roll their eyes and say..'You're going to WDW again....that's unreal!'. Yet, those same people head to the same lake house or beach cottage year after year. Not sure why WDW is considered a one time only destination.

 

[bangzoom6877]

Don't know why you would need to explain your choices to anybody.

But I'd bet the folks who are asking like to go to the same beach every year or something like that.

Beaches bore me. WDW does not. I think I prefer the artificial world to the natural.

I am the same way!! I do love cruises, and went every year for several years. There was always something to do, and it felt so far from reality. I love being away from reality! I don't know if I could spend a week on the beach either. I'm very fair-skinned, and burn easily, and if I lie in the sun too long, even with sunblock, I start to feel sick. So I can't see lying on the beach for 7 days. However for some reason I can be in the heat at a hot theme park and it does not bother me! Maybe because I am inside at attractions sometimes and it is like a break, but it is so much fun to me! I love the fantasy part of Disney, even though I haven't been there in 14 years! This upcoming trip is going to be the first of many I am sure, with our boys.

DH and I talk about doing Disney every other year and a cruise in the years between!! We already talk about going back in 2 years, and we don't leave for a couple of weeks for this trip! Next time we plan to go back with my parents, sister and her kids too!

 

[litlpixie2]

Don't know why you would need to explain your choices to anybody.

But I'd bet the folks who are asking like to go to the same beach every year or something like that.

Beaches bore me. WDW does not. I think I prefer the artificial world to the natural.

Right....I get enough reality at work and home!!

 

[GoofyFairie]

Disney is nothing but happiness and magic. "baggage" is left behind and there are no worries when you are there. There is enough entertainment for every member of your family. Nothing can replace the opportunity to bond with your family that Disney provides.

 

[BusyMomto3]

Time to do our favorite rides, eat at our favorite restaurants, talk, laugh and rest.

I'm not so sure about the resting part
I feel the magic too.............I'm 7 years old again EVERY time I walk down Main St. It's almost hard to explain, and people who have never been there just don't get it! I feel sorry for those who were never taken there as a child. I made it a priority for my kids, and we have done without some things during the year to make sure we can go back time and time again!

 

[eliza61]

When people find out we're going to disney for the 9th time (this is the 4th year in a row), most people question why I want go keep going to the same place. They just don't understand our strong attraction/addiction to visiting Disney every year. Sometimes I get a little offended when I'm questioned as to why I don't want to vacation somewhere else.

Now, my real reason for this post. Just WHAT is it about Disney they makes you want to go back again and again and again and again and again....

I always laugh when I get this question because I live in NJ, people here flock to the Jersey shore every year like salmon returning to spawn and yet they always say to me "You're going to disney again"

Quite simply, it is some of the best vacations my family & I ever had. We can do as much or as little as we want. I do occasionally go some where else (this year it's ocean city, Md) but rarely go more than 18 months without a visit.

 

[xbonnie38]

We keep going because we can be kids again . And also because when you add up what you spend on other vacations , hotels , sightseeing, food, drinks, shows ...etc. The Disney Value really is worth the money and everything is right there. And you know that there will never be garbage laying around the ground, the majority of people you meet CM's and the General public are SMILING, and you are treated like A GUEST not A VACATIONER>

And if your kids are grown up like mine is, You Find enjoyment in seeing the little smiles on other peoples children as you see them see the Castle the first time or they see their favorite character and its just amazing to them.

I tell everyone because I to get this question why we keep going back.

If You HAVE NEVER EXPERIENCED THE MAGIC Your missing out, and once you have Experienced the Magic Nothing else Compares!

 

[moonpie85]

Because going to Disney is a week off from Life. Nothing is real there, we're all kids and it's all about imagination and fun.

 

[disnut8]

I've been about 50 times and since we are close, we go for every three day weekend and Thanksgiving so that's why the number is so high. But - every time we go, we see or do something different. We still haven't run out of things we haven't done. Sure, we do the same things almost every trip but we just went to Rafiki's Planet Watch for the first. On another trip, we saw Mickey's Philharmagic, Monster, Inc. and Stitch's Great Escape all for the first time. We still haven't seen Festival of the Lion King (I know, people love it, not sure we would) or Finding Nemo:The Musical. Haven't been inside the stave church in Norway yet.

When I was growing up, we went to the same beach and the same campground for the same week every year. We went to the ocean on the same days and then bay side on the same days. We went into the smaller town's boardwalk on the same night and ate at the same restaurant. We went to Ocean City's boardwalk on the same night. We even ate the same food at the campground on the same nights. We even parked in the same parking space!