Sure signs of not planning

[Makayna]

The things that have been mentioned on this thread could have all been prevented by planning. With 20 minutes of planning you could learn what times to go to avoid crowds, that Universal and Disney are two separate parks, and that if you want to guarantee being able to eat at TS restaurants you should make ADRs(which are the main 3 things that have been talked about). This thread was meant to be funny, I think some people need to learn not to be so sensitive.

Oh, I totally get that! I re-read my post, and yeah, it was a bit snarky and I'm sorry about that. I totally get that this thread was meant in good humor (and I hadn't heard anything bad about Stitch's ride until today, so good to know ). But I just wanted to offer another viewpoint to those who do Disney frequently and don't know what it's like to be a first-time visitor to the parks and not have any idea what they're doing. And secondly, I think it'd take more than 20 minutes of planning to know some of those things. In fact, I'm STILL not sure I know the best ways to avoid crowds (but then again, we're going in late October/early November and mostly on weekdays, so I *hope* we won't have to deal with too many crowds, but then again, I could be wrong and end up being one of those people who gets made fun of on this board).

I guess my thing is, it's cool to list things out that are "sure signs of not planning" but when people start telling stories about people who got confused and mistook Hollywood Studios for Universal Studios or vice versa, that's where I get a little sensitive. I mean, come on... that's an easy mistake! I know that I'd personally never make that mistake, but I mean, there are so many parks and so much information to take in that it gets very, very, very overwhelming to a new WDW'er. I was just offering that perspective.

 

[darnheather]

@Maykayna Here is the crowd estimate for 2013. Took me 30 seconds to Google.

 

[DisneyDiva8401]

Growing up going to Disney makes it pretty second nature to us. Mom watched it go from 1 park, 2 parks, 3 parks, etc so we kind of "grew" with it, but I see how some people really have no idea how massive it is. That is why if I hear of a friend planning a trip, I try to give them some advice without overwhelming them. I think I may have scared some people away!!! The majority of our planning consists of what parks which day, do adr's accordingly (which is very few, we do t to TS much) and what ride to hit at rope drop

 

[Disneylover99]

We booked our first Disney trip two weeks in advance. I called a friend who had just returned from Disney and in twenty minutes she gave me the best advice.

She taught me about fast pass and how it works. I then studied the four parks and made a list of the FP rides in each park. It was the best trip ever!!!! We never arrived at rd or had any ADR's but just knowing about and understanding how to best utilize FP made all the difference in the world!

 

[msmileyface]

I love the planning- it's part of the fun! But some people don't. To each their own I'm plagued by over-planning and anxiety in daily life, so it's really fun when it pays off big time in Disney.

 

[Zuzu03]

Growing up going to Disney makes it pretty second nature to us. Mom watched it go from 1 park, 2 parks, 3 parks, etc so we kind of "grew" with it, but I see how some people really have no idea how massive it is. That is why if I hear of a friend planning a trip, I try to give them some advice without overwhelming them. I think I may have scared some people away!!! The majority of our planning consists of what parks which day, do adr's accordingly (which is very few, we do t to TS much) and what ride to hit at rope drop

Exactly the same with us! When I think of how easy it used to be with only MK and 2 resorts! hahahah! I agree, people who haven't been yet have no clue how big it is!

My DD who grew up Disney is going without me for the first time in 2 weeks, taking her DBF who has never been. I looked at her Birnbaum's 2013 book and just the resort page with all the pricing options is overwhelming! DBF keeps saying "Why do we have to know where we're going and what we want to eat?" We try to assure him that we're not crazy, that in June he'll be thankful DD has planned it all out for them!

 

[darnheather]

We booked our first Disney trip two weeks in advance. I called a friend who had just returned from Disney and in twenty minutes she gave me the best advice.

She taught me about fast pass and how it works. I then studied the four parks and made a list of the FP rides in each park. It was the best trip ever!!!! We never arrived at rd or had any ADR's but just knowing about and understanding how to best utilize FP made all the difference in the world!

Yeah, that's the kind of planning I understand. What is being made fun of in this thread is people who DO zero planning to the point they don't know there is more than one park or that there will be long lines and huge crowds.

The kind of planning I don't understand is timing everything to the last minute. I've got our ADR's, which parks we will go each day, and a list of must ride/must see at each (with a note on what has fast pass). Other than that it's all good.

 

[Makayna]

@Maykayna Here is the crowd estimate for 2013. Took me 30 seconds to Google.

OK, think in terms of someone who's never been to Disney before. If you know WHAT to research, then you'll be fine. But how do I know that I need to make ADR's 6 months in advance? At my local amusement park, they don't even TAKE reservations?! (again, try thinking from the perspective of someone who's never been to the parks.) How would I know that the crowd levels are going to be higher than at my local amusement park? Their "local amusement parks" may be the only basis for comparison, so they really have NO IDEA what to even look for!

If you don't KNOW these things, it's hard to know what to search for. Does that make sense?

 

[MeeskaMomma]

.... people don't actually do that though, right?? *slightly scared*

Ummm....let's go with no

To be fair it was our first visit. We like knowing what to expect

 

[GS for life]

Planning is part of the fun for us, but we mainly stick to ADRs rather than specific touring plans. I live near a theme park, and we all know it is busy once school is out. If you are going to Disney, you should expect that too. We don't plan tons of stuff and have been known to ditch the parks on a hot August day for the pool, but you should have a general idea of how many parks there are and that Harry Potter does not live there.

Sent from my iPad using DISBoards

 

[TaylorsDad]

You decide to go to Cinderella's castle for breakfast without an ADR.

LOL,

We did this around 8 years ago on our first visit except it was Dinner. I didn't even know how lucky we were when we were seated immediately. Next trip we discovered the Disboards and learned how to plan to maximize our time in WDW.

 

[Mama Mouse]

I actually overheard this while waiting for rope drop:
"Okay kids, when the gates open look for a map"

I don't think this necessarily indicates a lack of planning. I planned PLENTY and said this to my son every time we entered a park because he liked grabbing one and being able to "help" navigate. He also saved them and grabbed show times guides too. And though I don't need maps to navigate the parks at all, I did use them once in the world showcase when I wasn't sure where the nearest bathroom was.

 

[DisneyDiva8401]

The main thing I want people to know going into it is that you WILL have to wait in lines, there WILL be a lot of people and it isn't cheap. For people who want a relaxing, play by ear vacation, Disney may not be for them. And as my Dad says, we don't go to Disney to save money and relax....

 

[Makayna]

I actually overheard this while waiting for rope drop:
"Okay kids, when the gates open look for a map"

So... what's wrong with that?!

 

[Mama Mouse]

Ageed. Dh and I are planners by nature and have an idea of what we want to do at each park each day, but we are not tied to a schedule. We don't do ts and adrs for this reason. Have not made a rope drop yet.

We would be the ones getting a map on the way in.

Last trip, the 4 kids were ages 7 to 15. Half way into the trip one afternoon we could not budge them from naps to go back out to a park.. they were exhausted!

We plan but allow for flexibility, otherwise it wouldn't be a relaxing vacation for us.

This is us.

For our trip last month we had a grand total of 1 ADR.

I had an idea of what parks we wanted to try each day. And we knew what attractions we absolutely *had* to do in each park. We planned to do rope drop and head straight for the attractions that fill up fast. Beyond that, we just sat back and enjoyed.

Heck, I even switched our first day from EPCOT to MK even though MK was not recommended that day. Because DS was ready to try his first ever roller coaster and wanted it to be Space Mountain. And beyond that, he really just wanted to be in MK. So we went there. Was it crowded? You bet. But we still had a blast.

Planning is good but I MUST Have room for flexibility and spontaneity or I'll be a very unhappy camper.

 

[Mama Mouse]

You try to sell your mom the idea that scheduled bathroom breaks are a necessity.

That's the type of micromanaging that would absolutely ruin a trip for me. I've been on a trip like that. The hotter and more stressed we got, the more someone in our group tried to micromanage stuff like this. And got really, REALLY pushy about it. In short, it made many of us absolutely miserable and we spent a lot of time just wanting to get away from her.

 

[Gumbo4x4]

Probably because I have been so many times, I have always done what I wanted to do and those that I couldn't become part of the list for next time. I do strongly feel that for most people, the idea that one has to "plan" to go to a theme park is foreign at best. It just isn't a natural thing to do. They have seen the promotional spots on TV, and nothing about that tells them that they have to plan 180 days ahead. It comes as a surprise to them. Do their homework? Why should they think that they have to do homework to visit a theme park. It's just veterans that feel superior to them because we know.

Agreed, and I would add that one of the reasons 180 day ADRs seems so foreign for most folks is the idea of a "nice sit down meal" at a theme park is pretty unusual in and of itself.

 

[LucyBC80]

That's the type of micromanaging that would absolutely ruin a trip for me. I've been on a trip like that. The hotter and more stressed we got, the more someone in our group tried to micromanage stuff like this. And got really, REALLY pushy about it. In short, it made many of us absolutely miserable and we spent a lot of time just wanting to get away from her.

Let me clarify that I said that in jest to my mom and she looked at me like I had grown another head. I'd never attempt to plan breaks, when you need to stop for a few minutes or maybe even half an hour, you stop and that's it. Anyone trying to do that will just alienate their party and make everyone else miserable.

 

[Mama Mouse]

Let me clarify that I said that in jest to my mom and she looked at me like I had grown another head. I'd never attempt to plan breaks, when you need to stop for a few minutes or maybe even half an hour, you stop and that's it. Anyone trying to do that will just alienate their party and make everyone else miserable.

I sort of wondered if you were being tongue in cheek. I'm so glad you were!

The ironic part of my story is, during that trip, things got very snipey between me and the person trying to micromanage my every move. (ANd my then 7 year old's moves.) Then when I was planning this trip, she mentioned so many times how very much fun we had together and that she wished so bad she could come!

I love her dearly so when she started showing signs of actually thinking about doing it, I kindly told her we'd rather just keep it just us this time around.

 

[CuppieCake04]

only part of our 2 week vacation that I have planned was the resort and our dinners. The rest we will play completely by ear. Only a couple of days are going to be park specific based on our ADR's but the rest are mostly dinners at resorts so we will decide the night before what park we are going to next day...

I just know we are riding space mountain for sure and often...lol