Resort hopping with grandma/grandpa

[Disneybiginner]

Imo, there really might not be a lot for kids that age at Epcot. I think Animal Kingdom or HS, Toy Story Land would be more appealing.

thank you for your suggestions. Even though the new toy story land is very appealing, which was not open when we took last trip in Jan, but this trip is a family reunion trip, we want to spend more time with other family members who are not able to go to parks. the whole family will go to Epcot check out F&W and MNSSHP for more fun. Our Epcot tickets are after 5, so hopefully kids won’t be hot and miserable!

 

[rwdavis2]

Honestly, all the resort touring is going to get boring especially for kids. What's the difference between hopping and walking around resorts vs. doing it in the parks?

 

[Disneybiginner]

Honestly, all the resort touring is going to get boring especially for kids. What's the difference between hopping and walking around resorts vs. doing it in the parks?

Since this is a family reunion trip, we want to spend more time with the family members that we don’t get chance to see often, some of them are not able to go to the parks for different reasons. We just figured if we go to the resort, do a low pace hopping, spend more time with grandparents and other family members, instead of none stop busy park day and my kids might totally ignore grandparents if all they care about is rides and characters.

 

[rwdavis2]

Since this is a family reunion trip, we want to spend more time with the family members that we don’t get chance to see often, some of them are not able to go to the parks for different reasons. We just figured if we go to the resort, do a low pace hopping, spend more time with grandparents and other family members, instead of none stop busy park day and my kids might totally ignore grandparents if all they care about is rides and characters.

Understood. Very true about the kids ignoring the grandparents.

 

[bigbabyblues]

We spent one day touring resorts and that was enough for my kids. It was Thanksgiving Day, and the resorts were all decorated for Christmas, so there was quite a bit to see.

For a trip like you are talking about, I would plan on playing mini golf, going to Disney Springs, visiting the Boardwalk to rent a surrey bike, trying out all of the different boats, the monorail loop, etc., not spending 3 days touring resorts.

 

[Nancyg56]

Since this is a family reunion trip, we want to spend more time with the family members that we don’t get chance to see often, some of them are not able to go to the parks for different reasons. We just figured if we go to the resort, do a low pace hopping, spend more time with grandparents and other family members, instead of none stop busy park day and my kids might totally ignore grandparents if all they care about is rides and characters.

One thing we did with our DGD when she was younger was to focus on things that held her attention that we could talk about. For instance, if you want to use resort hopping as a means to spend time with the Grands, plan an activity that the kids could participate in. Hidden mickeys are fun and you can involve the entire family. BUy a book in advance of the trip and look through to see some of the Hidden Mickeys scattered throughout each resort.

I also think that the Agent P, or whatever it is called now in EPcot is a really interactive way to involve the family. We had so much fun searching the clues in the WC. Even my DH got in on the action.

Even though you are spreading the touring out, it can be very boring (my DH would hate what you are planning) so keep in mind the travel time, etc, is part of what you are going to do. It can also be more tiring than other activities, becasue you are really on the move more than it seems.

 

[Disneybiginner]

We spent one day touring resorts and that was enough for my kids. It was Thanksgiving Day, and the resorts were all decorated for Christmas, so there was quite a bit to see.

For a trip like you are talking about, I would plan on playing mini golf, going to Disney Springs, visiting the Boardwalk to rent a surrey bike, trying out all of the different boats, the monorail loop, etc., not spending 3 days touring resorts.

Thank you for your suggestions. We have planned a mini golf round on the Saturday to kick off the trip. It will be our whole family tournament! Since we stay at DS area resort, we will be there for meals for sure during the whole 10 day trip. Now I think about touring the resort, it’s actually only come down to a few hours/day. Cookie decorations at AKL and meal at Sanaa, fishing/pony riding at FW, and we also find opening for hoop dee doo on one day, that will be fun experience for us.

 

[Disneybiginner]

One thing we did with our DGD when she was younger was to focus on things that held her attention that we could talk about. For instance, if you want to use resort hopping as a means to spend time with the Grands, plan an activity that the kids could participate in. Hidden mickeys are fun and you can involve the entire family. BUy a book in advance of the trip and look through to see some of the Hidden Mickeys scattered throughout each resort.

I also think that the Agent P, or whatever it is called now in EPcot is a really interactive way to involve the family. We had so much fun searching the clues in the WC. Even my DH got in on the action.

Even though you are spreading the touring out, it can be very boring (my DH would hate what you are planning) so keep in mind the travel time, etc, is part of what you are going to do. It can also be more tiring than other activities, becasue you are really on the move more than it seems.

Thank you so much for the advice. We were bummed that we didn’t get chance to play agent P last time we were at Epcot. Kids were busy Checking out the characters and festival of art things. We will do that this trip for sure.

 

[Deb & Bill]

thank you for your suggestions. Even though the new toy story land is very appealing, which was not open when we took last trip in Jan, but this trip is a family reunion trip, we want to spend more time with other family members who are not able to go to parks. the whole family will go to Epcot check out F&W and MNSSHP for more fun. Our Epcot tickets are after 5, so hopefully kids won’t be hot and miserable!

You are going to hit the crowds with after 5 Epcot tickets. The locals usually show up for the evening hours. Lines will probably be longer after 5 than earlier in the day.

 

[_19disnA]

Honestly, all the resort touring is going to get boring especially for kids.

I agree, even as an adult I would never plan for 3 days of just walking around the resorts, can't imagine small children having any interest in that.

While probably too late for this trip, perhaps those are things you should have discussed when deciding where to hold the family reunion. Disney is probably not the best choice for the gathering if theme parks aren't your main interest. Those involved in planning the next reunion should be open with each other about what everyone is trying to accomplish, how many days there will be of group activities vs. time spent on your own. For a large group, it will be a challenge to have everyone wanting to do the same thing for multiple days, so the planning needs to take that into consideration.