Vacation dilemma: to Disney or not to Disney?

[Neoshoegal]

Our dream vacation is taking a road trip through all 50 states of the US. Considering the amount of time this would take, this would be unlikely to happen until we retire. So with our 10th wedding anniversary coming up we decided to treat ourselves and do part of the road trip.

The plan is a 6 weeks trip, starting and ending in Chicago. Visiting places like Michigan, Mount Rushmore, Yellowstone, Monument Valley, Colorado, Oklahoma, Mississippi, ... It's not just about the places, but also about the people as we'd be visiting quite a few friends along the way.

Yesterday, I was browsing around and landed on the Disney Cruise Line website. The past 5 big holidays we've taken were to Disney World (including our 30th birthdays and 8th wedding anniversary). And I came across a bargain for a cruise going from Vancouver to LA which is the same week as we were planning to start our road trip. Immediately, my brain started buzzing and wondering if we could re-route the road trip.

New road trip would then be 5 weeks, taking in Disneyland California, San Francisco, Yosemite, Oregon, Washington as new destinations. And it would still include places from the original idea like Mount Rushmore, Yellowstone, Monument Valley, Colorado (and possibly Oklahoma) and Las Vegas.

On the plus side, this would mean
- we get a Disney fix
- get to go on cruise, which we love
- go to Disneyland California (haven't been)
- the start of our vacation is 5 days of pure relaxation after a stressful few months of work
- see other friends, including some really close ones we haven't seen in a while

On the minus side:
- it would be slightly more expensive (it nearly balances out, but still)
- wouldn't see friends who were already looking forward to our visit
- longer and non-direct flights
- wouldn't be able to tick as many states of the list
- it wouldn't be as authentic a road trip as we were originally envisaging, which I think is the biggest minus

So which one to go for????

 

[disneyholic family]

there is no 'correct' answer to your question - they are both great road trips...

if the cost of including the cruise and disneyland california isn't much more than the midwestern road trip, then i think i would go for that one (the one with the crusie)...just because it sounds like a bargain and you get a lot of bang for your buck...

you can always do the midwestern one next time...

by the way, i have the very same dream road trip - the entire US, visiting as many of the national parks as possible....

did you ever read the book by....what's his name.....the writer, who's an american expat living in the UK....i have to go find his name..
the first book i read of his was a long road trip of his in search of small town america....something with a B...brian...bryce? senility...

BRB..

 

[Neoshoegal]

Do you mean Bill Bryson's The Lost Continent? If so, I'm in the process of reading it actually!

 

[disneyholic family]

Do you mean Bill Bryson's The Lost Continent? If so, I'm in the process of reading it actually!

yes yes yes - that's the one!!! i read it about 5 or 6 years ago and enjoyed it immensely....
he really does capture it well - at least the america when he was driving around (i think he wrote that in the 80's or 90's)..

another great book by him - not travel - is the history of nearly everything...
something like that....really great book....he's a wonderful writer..

anyway, i would go with the cruise/DL and the western road trip...

that's not to say the the midwestern one wouldn't be great and if you choose that i'm sure you'll love it..
i'm a midwesterner (orginally from michigan) so i can say with confidence that the great lakes area is beautiful....
and if you do go to michigan, please be sure to venture to northern michigan (the northern part of the lower peninsula)....it's simply lovely there....
Mackinac Island, Charlevoix, Traverse City, Sleeping Bear Dunes National Park, etc etc....perhaps i'm biased, but i think it's a little bit of heaven there...
the upper peninsula is also beautiful.....just seeing the lakes is impressive...
to call them a "lake" simply does not give you the idea of what they are....
especially lake superior and lake michigan....they are a sight to behold..

but i'm not trying to change your mind.....if it were me, i think i'd go with the western road trip/cruise/disney option...

and save the midwest for the next time....

 

[Neoshoegal]

Michigan is actually the state I'd probably miss the most if we do the new road trip. We've been wanting to go to Traverse City for years! So that and the surrounding area was quite high on the list. And we would have gone over the Upper Peninsula on our way to Wisconsin.

 

[disneyholic family]

Michigan is actually the state I'd probably miss the most if we do the new road trip. We've been wanting to go to Traverse City for years! So that and the surrounding area was quite high on the list. And we would have gone over the Upper Peninsula on our way to Wisconsin.

well it's not going anywhere....it will still be there for your next trip..
but if you do it this time, you won't be disappointed...
it's a very different kind of trip however.....it would be one of those quiet, relaxing road trips...
the driving will be easier than in the west i would guess..

i have lots of friends who live up there....not just in the summer (which lots and lots do - in their summer cottages) but all year round...

a guy i went to high school with has a band in traverse city...
he's an attorney, but what he really loves is his music....it's called East Bay Blue...

anyway, i don't think you'd be disappointed.....it will just be very different..
the midwest and the west are different....
and you'll miss seeing the rocky mountains, which are spectacular...
but they're not going anywhere either.

my answer is - i don't know...they're both great trips...

by the way, when would this trip be? because keep in mind that the national parks (yosemite, yellowstone, etc) get VERY crowded in the summer. Very very very....with very long lines to get in....and it's possible that you have to make reservations...
at least that's what they used to do at great smokey national park (the park i used to hike in the most when i was younger)...
so if your trip is in the summer, you should check on that...

 

[Zeebs]

me, I would go with the trip without Disney Cruise. Visiting those people who really want to see you.

It would still be a fabulous trip. You can do Disney "anytime" it will always be there, people might not be.

Kirsten
Sitting in the UK still waiting on news of friends in Christchurch New Zealand)

 

[Zeebs]

We did a trip starting in LA driving up to Vancouver through Big Sur, San Fran, Lake Tahoe, Oregon with the kids in 2009 it was a great trip, we had a fantastic time. We flew back from Seattle to LA and finished off with some days at Disneyland.

Like you we would love to tour all of America among alot of other countries. We want to get a big campervan pack the kids up and go. School, money putting a big dent in my dreams. lol

Kirsten