Single mom of one planning

[Cass86]

Hi everyone! I guess I'll tell you a bit about us first. I am turning 28 soon, and my son is turning 8 not long after. We live on the East coast of Canada. I have never ever been to Disney World (or out of Canada) so I am planning on saving up to take my son in September 2017 for probably. We would both be celebrating our birthdays there...mine is first week of Sept, his is first week of Oct. Is there such a thing as a too long stay at Disney? Not sure when we'd ever get to go back so want to make it somewhere between 9-14 days. I am low income so figure that gives me plenty of time to save. Who knows, might even be able to go sooner. I am planning to stay in a value resort (probably Art of Animation or Pop Century, depending when the time comes). I have done so much reading and pinteresting...even though it's not happening for years I am really anal about being prepared and knowing whatever I can. Side effect of my anxiety maybe, I like to be as in control as I can haha.

Anyway... just figured I'd jump in now to read, lurk, chat and so on.
Has anyone else ever traveled as a single parent with one child? Is it appropriate to make him come to the bathroom with me even though he's older? I'm nervous about letting him go alone in such a huge busy place.

Sorry for ramblyness and thanks for reading. I figure for somewhere requiring such intense planning for a first timer, there's nothing wrong with gathering information now so I have ideas when it's time to start making official plans in a couple years!

 

[DisneyObsessed87]

Hi and welcome!

I took my son two years ago (he was 5 turning 6) as a single parent. It was an amazing trip. It was so special to be able to experiance WDW one-on-one with him. It is definitely something I will always treasure. As for worrying about your son using the restroom alone, personally I think by that point he will be older and you won't have to worry as much. I would let my son (now 8) go alone but be waiting outside for him.

Hope this helps! The Dis is a great place to learn all the Disney ropes.

 

[Cass86]

It was so special to be able to experiance WDW one-on-one with him

That is something I am really looking forward to. His dad is always the fun parent because he has a car and a good job. So it'll be fantastic to be able to do something like this with him, especially since it will be both our first times.

 

[set1208]

I was 28 and my dd was 4 when we went, just the two of us. We did it again when she turned 10 and next month I'm going alone with my DS8.

Going solo to disney is my favorite thing to do. We get a lot of one on one time (I have four kids and a DH). My son is at that age where he hates to go into the ladies room so he waits just outside the door and I hurry. When he goes, I wait for him. He's usually pretty quick. Your son will be 11 by then so I'm guessing he will be okay.

I always get the dining plan ahead of time even if it's not the best value. It's nice to not have to worry about running out of money.

We never rent cars. I just rely on Disney transportation and it saves us a lot of money. There is so much to do that we have no need to head off property.

If you can swing it, stay as long as you can. Why not? My first solo trip was also our very first trips so my DD and I stayed a week. My other solo trips were long weekends. I wish it could be longer but I can't leave my other kids with my DH too long. We own our own business and the hours are chaotic so we rely on friends and family a lot when I'm away.

What makes it feasible for us is that we can book ahead of time and make payments when it's convenient for us. Our income is feast or famine so it's nice to have the flexibility and time to pay it down.

To save $ on airfare, I opted for a flight that has a layover instead of direct. By doing that, I saved $80 each. It adds a couple of hours to our travel time but the savings was a huge help.

 

[stasijane]

There is nothing wrong with planning early and saving. Its a good motivator. Also, my first trip with with my DD10 at the time, most of my trips are either solo or with her. I feel safe letting her go to the restroom alone I imagine by time you go your son will be old enough that it isn't an issue but that's something only you as the parent can decide.

I also like the longer trips I feel you get more out of your money that way. There are so many ways to save and to help keep cost down while there such as bringing your own snacks as well as many other things.

 

[Altoqueenkelly]

Ive gone to WDW twice as a single mom

First trip was when my daughter was 2 so my best friend tagged along, second trip was an add on from my best friends wedding when my daughter was 4 (in Miami, couldn't resist the four hour drive ) and was planning on this upcoming trip to be mother/daughter but now my boyfriend of five years is joining us and my daughter is 7!

Its a GREAT place to vacation as a single mom

 

[Happyjen27]

Congrats on planning!! I love this part!

I am always so nervous about the bathroom too!! I usually make my 7 year old go in with me, he's small for his age and so I don't get looks or anything. There are family bathrooms around, but by 2014 your son will be 10 and he probably won't be keen on using the bathroom with you in the room. By age 10 I would be fine to wait outside the bathroom.

One thing I will advise against is meeting up somewhere after bathroom stops, because there are often 2 exits for bathrooms, and it would be terrible to walk out of the wrong one and not find the meet up place. So, I would stick with waiting outside the door. That way if he goes out the wrong exit, he'll see you're not there and will turn around and go out the right exit.

One other thing I would do is having him start a Disney saving jar so he can save up for his souvenirs.

 

[MandiC]

I'd say since he will be turning 11 he won't even want to go in the girls bathroom
I will add that he will be cheaper if you go when he is 9 turning 10 rather than 10 turning 11. Once they are 10 they are adult pricing. Just something to think about. That would mean going a year earlier so a year less saving, if you can't swing it you can't but I'd price out what it would cost going with child pricing vs adult pricing. I'm not sure what the difference amounts to but we decided on the timing of our trip because our oldest turned 10 last month and we wanted to bring them before they went to adult pricing. It is also why we are planning on going back next winter, because our second daughter will turn 10 in April 2016.
September seems like a very nice time of year to go. It is starting to cool off and crowd levels are pretty low. Many times they also offer free dining when you stay at a Disney resort during that time frame too. For these reasons we are thinking of early October ourselves.
As far as length of the trip, I think it'd be easy to spend 2 weeks at Disney. For us, we were a little bummed that with the length of our trip ( 8 days but two of those were travel days, we flew in at 1pm and out at 3pm but we really couldn't *do* much on those days) we couldn't see anything but Disney. My girls wanted to go see the ocean and do SeaWorld but we just didn't have time.
I'd price out a trip now, and factor in that by 2017 prices will be slightly higher (they do go up a little each year) and see how much you would need to save a month vs how much you can save a month to see what kind of timeline you are looking at. I think it'd be a really fun vacation for the two of you

 

[lost*in*cyberspace]

11 years old is much too old to be using a restroom for the opposite sex.

Don't forget that you will have the expense of getting passports.

 

[Cass86]

Thanks all.

We live on the far East coast of Canada so from where we'd be flying out of there is no direct flights. But it's also more expensive to fly from Canada, but with no car it's the only option.

I plan to get the dining plan for the same reason, just to not have to think about it and have it all paid already.

For the bathroom thing I realize 9-10 is a bit old but we live in a pretty small place and I'm just thinking I'd be super nervous sending him anywhere alone in such an enormous and busy place. Perhaps it's my anxiety that makes me worry more, but it's just what I do haha.

I didn't know once they turn 10 they are 'adult' pricing wise, thanks for mentioning that. I am on a fixed income so can only save so much, but I may be starting a part time job soon so that would enable me to save more and get there quicker! So fingers crossed for that. And yes, I know we need passports but they aren't that much. Figure I'll get mine sometime next year and then get his a bit later. Plenty of time to get them and they aren't that expensive so I'm not too worried.

Glad to hear September is a good time! I want to enjoy some Florida weather when we go, but not be swelteringly hot like it seems to be in July-August from what I've read. I am hoping we will be able to do Discovery Cove one day while we are there, but all depends on if I am able to save enough. We decided that I am going to find a jar, and any time either of us has a toonie (Canadian $2 coin) we are going to put it in the jar. That could be our spending money by the time the day comes. I did hear about the ability to book and make payments, so I figure I'll do that when I have about half saved or so.

He is off to his fathers weekend so I am researching dining options outside of character dining. If I finish that before he gets back I'll move on to each park. I'm a planner so I'm enjoying sorting through everything though it does get a bit overwhelming but it's exciting! I'm just so happy that it's even a possibility now! I might cry when I meet some of the characters haha.

 

[MandiC]

Just remember that by 2017 the parks may be very different. Animal Kingdom will have a new land and I have heard about Hollywood Studios adding a lot more Star Wars attractions soon It is good to start thinking about though, and of course fun