So do you do this much work...

[Dallas_Lady]

... for all your vacations? I'm looking at my planning file for our trip to WDW and it's crazy the amount of detail I go into to plan a Disney trip. I don't do nearly this much work for our other trips. Maybe I should? I blame the DISboards

 

[bratmomma]

I absolutely do NOT do as much for other trips.

I think Disney is such a magical place with so many "hidden" or little-known features that you could miss out on, if you aren't careful. When we went to Disney in 05 we really thought it was our "once in a lifetime" trip with our two DS's. Now we have added a DD to the mix and this trip was a gift from MIL. This is like our second chance to do what we might've missed the last time and I don't want to let anything slip through our fingers! I want to make the most of our time there, while still taking things slow enough to enjoy it.

Happy planning!

 

[mousebymarriage]

I definately Don't do this much work for any other trip but, Disney. We plan for months, we watch the DVD's, go on the boards, read the books, make list after list and have endless Disney discussions. I swear you would think we have never been before but we have been tons of times. I think the planning is part of the excitement!

 

[stmize]

what other trips. I thought Disney was all there was.

 

[disykat]

I think I do, actually. Heck, even when we go to my parents house we stay in a motel and I have to reserve a room several months in advance in order to find a budget oriented room.

I think the internet has everyone planning ahead. It's next to impossible to just get in the car and go. When I've done that, I've regretted it. We've had to drive to multiple hotels looking for openings, ended up in smoking rooms, etc.

Although I did the obsessive planning (and was glad I did!) when we went to WDW, I could probably have a great trip just making hotel reservations and going. When I go someplace else, where the entertainment isn't all laid right out in front of me, I find I really have to research options ahead of time or we get there and all look at each other like "what do we do now?"

Every trip we take, I keep a file folder. I work out driving distances, make a list of things to do and places we might want to eat at each place we stop, make hotel reservations,etc. It's not as detailed as I did for Disney, but it's actually more work IMO. Planning the Disney stuff was recreational for me and didn't seem like work.

 

[cuppycake]

I'm am a pretty obsessive planner (but then, I'm type A, and first born and all of that jazz).

However, I do not go this over the top except for Disney and cruising.

Like a PP said...there are just so many LITTLE things that can make your vacation extra special!! It's fun, even if you go often, to learn about the things that you never even knew existed!!

Enjoy being a part of the nutzo club

 

[msmayor]

I did FAR more planning for our baseball trip 5 years ago.

We visited 5 different ballparks, plus a side trip to Louisville KY to go to the Louisville Slugger Bat Factory. We had to coordinate game schedules, allow at least one extra day in each city to allow for the possibility of a rainout, plan a driving route that made the most sense without a lot of backtracking, find a decent hotel in each city to allow for easy access to the ballpark and anything else we wanted to do (Chicago was the trickiest: we had to go to the suburbs to save $$ AND find one an easy walk to mass transit so we could avoid driving downtown).

Then there was the actual ticket purchases, all made on different days (each MLB team releases their single game tickets on their own schedule) after studying the stadium layouts and trying to decide where we wanted to sit.

MapQuest directions from hotel to hotel...this was before GPS became so popular.

Oh, and writing to every home team we were visiting to see if there were any 'freebies' they could send us (and they did!)

I had a 2" binder for that one

 

[mcglaughlins]

Oh my gosh, we went to Disney last year for our first ever trip and I spent sooo much time planning the trip, almost to an obsessive point! I have never done so much planning before for any other trip. Then we decided to go down this December and once again I'm on these boards planning my days away!

 

[Gina35]

I swear you would think we have never been before but we have been tons of times. I think the planning is part of the excitement!

My thoughts exactly!! We've been to DW tons of times as well; and before each trip, I'm on these boards like I've never been there before....but, as you said, planning IS part of the excitement!!

 

[smylie1]

We *tried* to skip Disney this year, so I thought I'd put alot of effort into planning our trip to Daytona beach. My thoughts were that I wouldn't miss planning for Disney if I planned something else. Didn't work! There just wasn't that much to decide. We've now decided to go to DW in Nov. Just couldn't skip a year!

 

[lisaann1170]

Sadly, I do this for ALL vacations! Actually, that's a happy thing. Planning the trip stretches my enjoyment from the date we book right through the vacation itself.

We've gone on a few cruises, and I plan for the ports just as obsessively. It's quite a pleasure!

 

[JUJU814]

I have decided I'm just not happy if I'm not planning a trip! (particularly disney!)

I'm trying to plan our last minute, "low key" trip to Disney next month..and it's very very very hard for me not to "overplan" I *think* I just nailed our adr's. I even managed to get hubby a meal at Sci fi and got us all into T Rex. Not bad for 40 days notice huh? (seems as if everything is booked for the end of august!)

I promised I wouldn't go into tour plans for the parks this time. he made me promise. I just decided which parks we'll do on which days. Princesses are a priority so I'll be sure to be at toon town at rope drop one on day, and ariels grotto when it opens on another day. Lego store is a priority. Pluto is a priority. The pool is a priority. The rest, we will play as we go, getting to the parks when they open for sure and making our "mini game plan" the night before.

I put a ton of work into trip planning. I'm the only one that thinks of the details.

15 years ago was the first Disney trip I really "planned" to the letter and all the tips I learned in the Walt Disney World with children book were such a HUGE help that I'm sold on at least some planning and think people that don't plan at all are nuts! To each his own I guess. I just know that I get cranky in the heat and crowds, so having a little bit of a clue and insider tips and a general "plan" goes a LONG way for me!

Julie

 

[gymboqueenkaylee]

I actually do just as much work for our small vacations to places like Myrtle Beach and Gatlinburg as I do for Disney. I love knowing every single detail.

 

[3boymthr]

I don't usually do this much planning, but I have actually done MORE planning. But that trip was 28 days, not 7 and involved many, many more locations (28 states) and thus many, many, many more reservations and the logistics of 28 days worth of food and clothing and maps and tickets and.... All on the same budget as our 7 day WDW trip .

 

[katyjeka]

Disney is the only vacation that I plan meals months in advance. Of course, planning is a lot of fun.

 

[sk!mom]

Yes, I do. WDW is actually the easiest to plan now since we've been often.

 

[jockey]

I love to plan, it really gets me excited!

 

[MickeyMom2Boys]

We just went on our first camping trip (just 2 nights) and with all the stuff we had with us I warned my hubby "This is not Disney World - I am no where near as organized or prepared for this trip, so be prepared to find that I have forgotten things - possibly even necsessities". Speaking of necessities - i even had to run into the house at the last minute and drag the suitcase out to the van - I was so focused on all the camping gear I almost forgot the clothes!

All in all it went pretty well, but let me tell you I felt so lost as we were packign things up at the last minute and loading the van! Getting out of the house for 2 weeks at Disney was no where near as hectic and stressful as getting out for this 2 night trip! And it was all due to the time I spent planning!

 

[Colleen27]

Yes, absolutely. We're thinking about a quick trip to Chicago to catch the Harry Potter exhibit at MoSI, and I've already got my spreadsheet, Word doc and links in full swing. The only trips I don't put a lot of time into are things like going up north; we stay on our land or in a friend's cabin, there are no tickets or dining reservations to arrange, and we just splash in the lake for a weekend, so those are very low-planning trips.

 

[PHXscuba]

Other than trips to my mother's house, which I can prepare for with my eyes closed, I probably overplan every trip. As a PP said, I'm not truly happy unless I'm planning some trip!

We went to San Diego with our kids last fall and I think my folder was way more complicated than for our next Disney trip. Way more lodging options to consider, finding deals or coupons for each attraction we wanted to visit (I think I had a whole spreadsheet just for different combinations of Legoland deals), eating choices, opening and closing times for each attraction.

I think our DLR trip this fall has generated much less paperwork. DH insisted we stay at the DLH just this once -- lodging done. Only two parks to go to, in walking distance. One set of tickets to buy.

I am already planning next year's family cruise, and looking ahead to a WDW trip for 2011. Gotta have something to look forward to!

PHXscuba