Too much surprise?

[mamamia]

bigis1970 & Camping Disney - thanks for the encouragement. I told my mom about it (only because she gets the job of watching my animals when we go away) and I know she will keep it a secret. I still never would have imagined myself doing something like this, it is a lot of fun having such a big secret. I have already booked a PS at Chef Mickey's.

 

[twinmomplus2]

We did this when our kids were 3 and almost 9. I thought all along that they probably knew. But, Did not let on. We had just moved into our new house less than a week before, So It was crazy to do it all. So That I think helped in the element of surprise Department! Auntie and Uncle came with us they came to the house after the kids were in bed. So they never saw them there, We had an airporter come at 4am, And woke the kids at 3am, They were clueless. In fact we had a devil of a time getting the almost 9 year old out of bed and moving. She did not believe us. After an hour of I am serious lets go!!!!!And the fact that Auntie and Uncle had thier luggage at the door. They believed us. It was a great thing to do and alot of fun for us keeping the secret.

 

[S. C.]

We are also going to suprise our GS with pal mickey after reading the thread on the attractions board about him.

 

[antmaril]

I think all these surprise trips are great. I wish I had thought of that when my son was little. It never occurred to me. I was always so excited when I was planning a trip, that I never thought of keeping it a surprise.

We are going at the end of June. My DH and DS (16) think we are staying at the Swan. However, we really have reservations at the Boardwalk Inn - Waterview Room. Also, they don't know that we are flying first class from Detroit to Orlando. I think it will be big fun at the airport when they announce that first class passengers can board and I'm going to jump up and say "That's us guys, let's go! LOL

 

[crisi]

I could never keep a secret, but I always thought it would be cool.

But, my kids don't handle transitions well. Particularly my daughter needs to be prepped for every change in routine. So its probably best that I can't keep a secret.

Besides, planning is half the fun. And they are getting old enough to help do some of the planning.

 

[disneyag]

I am updating my earlier post on this thread. I brought the kids home from their last day of school and told them I had good news and bad news. The bad news was that they couldn't sleep in in the morning and they had to take their baths right now. The good news was we were leaving for the airport in 2 hours and we'd be at the MK early the next morning.

LOTS of happiness, giggling, and mirth. They didn't really believe me until I showed them all the packed luggage in my bedroom. They kept telling me over and over how "cool" I was.

My kids are 6 (DD) and 9 (DS).

 

[miche61]

What a great surprise, disneyag! My kids love that kind of surprise.

Last time we went to WDW, we told the kids we were going, but not when. My DH picked up our then 3rd grader from school at lunch time with a note from me saying that she wouldn't be going back after lunch, that we had an airplane to catch. The teacher knew about it for a month and was great at keeping the secret. The other kids at school thought it was awesome too. In fact one day this year I picked up our DD from school early and one of her friends asked if we were going to Disney World AGAIN!

This time I asked if they wanted to know when we were going, they all decided they want to be surprised again. This helps in packing, so I don't have to do it secretly.

 

[KimR]

We just got back from our from our surprise trip, it was terrific! I'm in the process of posting a trip report. The first day/surprise is on the trip reports board if you'd like to read about it.

Kim

 

[paperboy]

I tried to give DH a suprise weekend getaway to WDW for this past Christmas. I had planned it in August and I had talked to his boss to make sure he could get off work..she said it was fine. I asked my mom what weekend would work best for her in Jan or Feb to watch the kids. I found a sitter for the dog..yup all I had to do was wait for christmas...everything was perfect...UNTIL

My DH was at work and IM'd me to tell me he had to go to Atlanta Ga that weekend. I just said I am sorry you can't go.tell them to get someone else. He said he didn't have a choice he had to go and he was going to suprise me with a ticket to take me with him.

I ended up having to tell him and trying to work it out that he didn't have to go to GA. In the end..it was better that I told him..he planned the entire weekend..switched the resort, had me make a couple of ps for character meals and we had a great time!

Maybe I can suprise him for his 30th in 3 years...but not with the whole trip..I might just suprise him with Gifts of a lifetime or something!

 

[melindaandrob]

Thanks to everyone for their comments and suggestions!
We have decided that a surprise would be handled well, now we're faced with How to surprise! Lots of time to think about it and keep my eyes open on the boards for inspiration!

 

[bratdeb]

I too have planned a suprise trip for our family. At first I kept it a secret from dh too, but that became unbearable. I had no one to share the excitement with. We don't go till the first week in Dec. I am hoping I can hide it from our 3 dd's till then.

 

[melindaandrob]

@bratdeb , how do you plan on surprising your dd's? How old are they?

Melinda ºoº

 

[zurgswife]

I've done it twice...Once to my Dh for his 40th bday he and 3 out of my 4 kids didn't know...I had told the oldest because I just had to tell someone....Then again this past march for Spring break we surprised the kids with a Cruise on the Wonder and 3 days at WDW...They thought we were staying home....they almost jumped out of there skins...We ended up telling them the night before. My oldest dd 11 couldn't understand why she couldn't go to the movies and spend the night with a friend the first night of break....she was spitting nails so we decided to tell them all....It actually made the last minute packing go really easy...

 

[BibbidiBobbidiBOO]

Part of the fun for my kids is the anticipation and planning. That said, we kept a quick weekend Dec. trip a secret until 1 week before. That went well, gave them enough time to savor it all. We kept the Character meal a secret until we were walking down Main Street to CP ! They enjoy anticipating the trips and talking about it with friends. They are planner's like me !

 

[melindaandrob]

@zurgswife, I have to ask seeing the number of trips you have taken in your signature. How do you keep trips fresh? Our first trip had a huge awe factor, the second trip was great but....different somehow.

 

[BibbidiBobbidiBOO]

I'm not zurgswife, but have been many many many times(30 perhaps?) !
What has kept it fresh with our children is trying different resorts and different character meals and restaurants each time. The 12 year old has been 8 times and 8 yr old 6 times. We really only do 1 or 2 character meals each visit so we can save some for the next trip. We have SP's and will be going 3 more times in the next year. Going around holidays is another way to see things differently. Dec. is gorgeous in the parks ! For us, each trip seems to get better. We even went on some rides last week that we never or rarely go on-that was fun! With 4 parks and all the places to eat and things to see, one can never get weary. They change rides and character meals around too.

 

[tazz]

We are going on our 2nd ever trip in October. Kids will be 4, 14 & 15. We told them we're going to HIFI and we are for the first night. Then we're off to HRH Club for 6 nights and Yacht Conceirge for 7 nights. I'm know that this will be a huge surprise for the older 2. Other than where we're staying they are being included in the planning. I cannot wait for them to be surprised. I think the fun part about the trip is planning the little surprises while we're there like the Haloween Party and PS and various activities.

 

[zurgswife]

BibbidiBobbidiBoo....We just love Disney I guess....

Really though we started when the kids were fairly young. So, I think with every year they look at it through a different set of eyes.

We also make it a learning experience. About 5 years ago DH made what we call the "Epcot Book". It has a section on each country. Includes stickers, maps, statistics on the country, a place for a Epcot stamp. My kids love spending time in Epcot. They have learned if they talk to people from each country that they can learn quite a bit about that country. We now have an ongoing email communication with a lovely young woman from Morrocco. My DD can't wait to see her every trip. Now that the kids are older, they have also added sections on reports that they have written about specific countries during the school year.

We really just love playing together. My dh and I live fairly hectic lives at home and this is always a fun place for us. Besides we haven't seen everything and there is always something new too see.

And besides the CM from Morrocco we have ongoing relationships with a number of CM's it makes for a special trip every time. This past march we were able to set up a special Illuminations cruise that was a Murder Mystery. We were able to do it because of the management we had met during previous stays at the BWV. And had stayed in contact with. It is usually a goal to meet someone new that we can continue a relationship with....

Besides the trip that I surprised them they are usually having to listen to me count down everyday.....LOL...The next trip in Dec is for 2 weeks to celebrate my 40th birthday...There are 188 days left and my kids are sooooo sick of my talking about it already...LOL....But when it gets closer that will join in the fun....

Also, I think knowing that we will be returning and not having to do it ALL every trip adds to the FUN factor...

 

[BibbidiBobbidiBOO]

I agree, we just love it too. Always something new and my kids love to talk about it and plan it!
The Seasonal Pass was the best thing we bought. Made us view our last trip(last week) with new eyes. No longer did we feel pressured to get $50 worth of parks each day! In fact one day we went in MK for a mere 2 hours! Can't wait to do our next 3 trips before the year is up !
Being a Floridian and growing up going to MK is one of my fond childhood memories. We hope we are giving our kids the same.
MelindaandRob-Just plan on not doing it all each trip and trying something different each time. Look for some of the "hidden" or not as well known things. The magic is still there, we have found it each and everytime.

 

[gator287]

My husband and I decided to go on the DCL for our first anniversary. We went alone on DCL for our honeymoon, so we decided to take DH's son with us this time around. He was 12 at the time. We told him we were going to the beach, just not what beach. We pulled into the parking lot at the port and DS wanted to know where the hotel was. He still hadn't gotten it. We then told him the ship was his hotel. He still didn't believe us. Not until we boarded the ship did he think that he was going on the cruise. It was well worth the anticipation.
Suzy and ED