Taking four adult (?) women on their first trip ever to Disney World

[PrincessHeather'sMom]

I'm planning a "girls getaway" for November and four of the women going have never been to Disney World. I have been to Disney numerous times and feel I might take things for granted. They're so excited about this trip and say they can't wait to "be like a kid again", etc. I'm trying to plan special things for this trip. Breakfast at Cinderella's Royal Table, Hoop Dee Doo, Illuminations, Wishes - what am I missing that they shouldn't miss? They're talking about riding rides, "but nothing that spins", and they want to meet certain characters. The rooms have been booked, etc. The trip was planned because of F&W.

 

[loves to dive]

My only advice would be to try not to over plan, you know best laid plans and all. With F&W going on you may find they want to spend a little bit of each day at Epcot so PHs might come in handy. WDW can be very overwhelming, a fact those of us who have been there many times tend to forget so try to go slow and just enjoy the place.

 

[com_op_2000]

Some of things outside the parks, depending on what you are into:
sports: golf, mini-golf, fishing, marathon, bowling, ESPN Club, WWS/ESPN Zone, etc
shopping: DTD, area outlet malls, large scale malls
drinking: Jellyrolls, Raglan Road, monorail tour of resorts, walking tour of resorts in the Boardwalk area
movies: DTD 24 screen theater some with meals served by waiters
night clubbing: Jellyrolls, Atlantic Dance, Raglan Road, Citywalk
resort tours: monorail tour of resorts, Boardwalk around the lake tour of resorts, horse drawn tour of FWC, AKL/AKV
offsite: Gaylord Palms Resort, Citywalk, swamp tour
eating: Formal GF 5* Chef's Table @ V&As

One of my best tips for a group of people going to the WDW, go to the parks for two days, take a day off, go to the parks for two days, take a day, etc. This way you force some downtime in the schedule. Another tip, go the parks in the morning, take a break in the afternoon, and then come back to the parks in the evening.

 

[Sagginit]

I go with my mum and we love the chance to be a kid again. For us that means most of the rides in Fantasyland, even Dumbo and the Carousel. My mum actually doesn't do coasters so I save tons of time by doing just 1-2 each morning as single line. In fact MK is our favorite park and we start and end our trip there. I can't explain it but there is something magical to us about slowly wandering down main street in the afternoon on our way out and stopping for ice cream or a treat. I do pressed pennies and we always make time for a train ride around the park.

Definitely get PHs, we often do evenings in Epcot as we like to wander the world showcase and get dinner there. One of the fun things we did once (a bit childish) was in Epcot one morning we had FPs for the afternoon so after we did a 2-3 rides we went straight back to the world showcase and used the character schedule. Each character came out about 15-20 min after the other so I saw 4-5 in less than an hour by going country to country. I had a lot of time with time with them and Snow White even had some girl talk with me. Last time I went I waited for Aurora in Epcot and again we had some girl talk about our princes. I really think the characters add to the magic. I like character meals but seeing them in Epcot in their "natural environment" makes it that much more magical.

I think the other poster had the right idea with don't try everything. For us AK is a half day park. In MK we spend little time in Tomorrowland as we find it not as magical. We never go to water parks as its not my mothers things. And even though most adults like Disney Springs we found we don't enjoy it so we skipped it altogether on our last trip. I would try to sit down and talk over some of the options with your friends and outline a general agenda to them. Eliminate what doesn't appeal to them from the start and then use the time saved to do things in more detail as a lot of the magic is in the details. Adults tend to skip the kiddie things too (character meals, low thrill rides, shows) but this is a point of difference for WDW vs other theme parks.

 

[PrincessHeather'sMom]

Thank you for confirming some of my thoughts! I have been asking them questions about rides, whether they're interested in shows, fireworks, parades, meeting characters, etc. A lot of rides have been eliminated. Lol! And it's sounding like to me they would enjoy most of their time at Epcot. They're very interested in eating and drinking around the world (which I've done a few times). A couple of them want to meet characters, especially Mickey, which should be fairly easy to do. I like the idea of timing out the princesses. I'll have to look further into that. We'll spend our arrival day at Disney Springs and shopping and eating there and settling in at our resort. We're all in our late to mid forties, so we won't be going at a break-neck pace. I'm hoping to be done with each day by dinner time and relaxing back at the pool at our resort, unless we have plans to see fireworks that evening. Anyway, I'm sure they'll have a good time no matter what we do!

 

[Guyton dis lover]

Good Luck. I go with two adult women every time I go. Like the early post said do not over plan.

 

[Pea-n-Me]

Where are you staying? I think I would plan some down time at the resort as well as time at F&W. The World can be overwhelming, and if they're not used to that amount of walking, it can be tough physically, too, especially in the heat. I would do some of the things mentioned, but maybe just a couple. I remember our first trip and we were just blown away with the size of the World and how much there was to see and do. We later just had to try to do a little each trip, but also learned to take time to smell the roses. So that's what would guide me on this trip. It sounds like they're going to have a great time!

 

[PrincessHeather'sMom]

Where are you staying? I think I would plan some down time at the resort as well as time at F&W. The World can be overwhelming, and if they're not used to that amount of walking, it can be tough physically, too, especially in the heat. I would do some of the things mentioned, but maybe just a couple. I remember our first trip and we were just blown away with the size of the World and how much there was to see and do. We later just had to try to do a little each trip, but also learned to take time to smell the roses. So that's what would guide me on this trip. It sounds like they're going to have a great time!

We're staying at Port Orleans Riverside. I tend to go a leisurely pace on my own trips now, but I did warn them there would be A LOT of walking and to bring a couple pair of their most comfortable shoes. I think they get it. I hope they get it. Me being a Mom of three knows to bring everything from moleskin, Band-Aids and Advil, and everything else in between, and I still bring these things with me on all trips. I thought I might send them packing lists/tips soon. I've sent a link to this site, but I'm not sure anyone has looked at it. No one has mentioned it...

 

[Pea-n-Me]

We're staying at Port Orleans Riverside. I tend to go a leisurely pace on my own trips now, but I did warn them there would be A LOT of walking and to bring a couple pair of their most comfortable shoes. I think they get it. I hope they get it. Me being a Mom of three knows to bring everything from moleskin, Band-Aids and Advil, and everything else in between, and I still bring these things with me on all trips. I thought I might send them packing lists/tips soon. I've sent a link to this site, but I'm not sure anyone has looked at it. No one has mentioned it...

We are veterans and parents, too, and we still sometimes get blisters and surprisedly hot and tired. (Like last August! ) I'm just saying have fun, but adjust your expectations that they may not be able to do as much as you think in one trip, and there's a lot to be said for just relaxing around the resort, too! Then you plan your next trip together!

 

[Micca]

Please keep in mind that F&W isn't something you can do all in one big chunk. If the F&W is a priority you'll want to do several sessions of a few hours each. It's funny how the small portions of food can be so filling, and of course with the alcohol you'll want to remain in a state that allows you to return to your resort with dignity If your friends enjoy shopping you'll want to hit Disney Springs where there are more great restaurants and treats. If you think this is a group that you like to travel with in the future, I'd show them that there's plenty of time to chill on a WDW trip.

 

[bethannie203]

You girls are going to have so much fun! My DH is a Disney Vet and has been 20+ times. I have been twice as a kid and now twice in our 2 years of marriage, and we are planning a third trip in September. Since he knows all the "tricks and tips", like you probably do, it really helped me coming back as an adult (practically like my first time all over again). Your friends will appreciate that you know your way around!!

My husband and I love to ride the kiddie rides and feel like kids again! We tend to do these later at night, because during the day the wait times can be a bit long since families with small children are the primary riders. We have found we can "walk on" to most of the kiddie attractions at MK when we wait to ride them at night when most of the families with small children have already retired for the evening.

I would also suggest taking a day off in between a few days of parks. Even at a slow pace, WDW is a fun but tiring place! My DH (gotta love him) wants to be there at rope drop and practically the last ones out of the park at closing. I, however, enjoy taking a more leisurely approach and like to take some rest breaks to relax by the pool, go stroll around Disney Springs, etc. The best trip we have had (and he agrees with me), was when we took 2 days off in the middle of our trip to just enjoy our resort and relax. You need the time to recharge! Hope you have a wonderful trip!!

 

[DaisyDuck001]

You could include the Yehaa Bob show, Jellyrolls, Garden View Tea, and the campfire singalong at Ft. Wilderness. Maybe also show them your favorite themed areas at some of the resorts.

 

[hf2987]

Adding support on the do not over plan. Since you've been a few times, you'll easily be able to fill in any extra time, but it can get overwhelming if you start missing "planned" items.

 

[PrincessHeather'sMom]

Well Fastpasses have been made - I couldn't get the Frozen ride, but they won't know what they're missing, and I'll catch it another time I'm sure. I wasn't able to get reservations at the Castle, which I'm a little disappointed in. I've been a couple of times, and I thought it would make their day. Again, they won't know what they're missing. I have to keep telling myself that they're going to have a blast no matter what. I did get one character meal planned; breakfast the first morning at Chrystal Palace. One of the girls loves Eyeore. And I got a Fastpass for Fantasmic. I'm not sure how that works really, but I'll figure that out. I haven't seen Fantasmic in years. They're getting so excited as the time gets closer. The e-mails back and forth just crack me up. They want autograph books and pictures with characters and everything in between. Most importantly though, drinking and eating around the world. This trip is actually getting me a little more excited than usual too. To share such a magical place with newbies and seeing it all through them will be so much fun!