Vacation/Holiday 'over planners' anonymouse ;)

[Teris]

Come on all you 'over planners',, stand up and be counted!

We deserve the utmost respect for devoting all our free time to planning, and researching every minute detail of the vacations we take our families on.

I don't want to worry about where the best restaurents are,, I want to know before I get there!

I don't want to wander up to the car rental place without a ressie for the correct size car I need.

I don't want to stress out about not having planned ahead of time, activities and kewl places to visit! I want to know what there is to see and do BEFORE I get where I am going,, rather than find out on the last day of vacation!

Come on, who's with me?

The Official Vacation Over Planners Society starts here!

or,, OVOPS for short,, I am a VOP and proud of it

 

[wdwpluto]

oh, me, me! dh says obsessively compulsively planning vacations is my hobby!

 

[LittleMissMickey]

Ashley Andrews, official member of the OVOPS. I like the ring to that. Yes, count me in!

Ashley

 

[mom2boys]

Add me to the list.. I feel like the weight of my entire family's vacation fun rests on my shoulder. DH doesn't think about the daily details until the week before the trip.

 

[MagicalMom]

Hi! I'm Lisa & I'm an over planner! I have no other option. If I don't do it, no one else will! Then what would happen? Where would we sleep at night? What would we eat. Without me, my family would just show up in Florida & go hotel to hotel looking for rooms! they owe their entire vacation enjoyment to me, the over planner!

 

[LittleMissMickey]

Alright, DBF says I'm nuts, but do you plan what you are going to wear the night before so you can just get up and go? Do you love having ressies because at least then you KNOW? Yup, that's me.

DBF is very lucky when we go to the World, though. He doesn't even have to carry a wallet! He just throws everything in the purse and runs around like a little kid! He is very lucky I love him!

By having a plan, we ensure that everything that WANTS to get done, DOES get done. We should be so proud of the things we do for our PITS. (Partners in Travels.)

Tell me some quirky travel planning things that you do!

Ashley

 

[mommytotwo]

I definetly belong to this group. I plan everything and it bugs my husband cause if things don't go my way, I get bummed about it. I on the other hand is the one who plans vacations, parties, and other things way ahead of time, and it does pay off.
For our recent vacation, since I had looked things up on the internet and such, we had saved money, and we knew about things that we would never know of if I had not done my planning and research.

 

[WDWLVR]

I'm definately a planner, not sure if I'm an over planner. Planning gives me great enjoyment and I always keep a notebook of our plans. For things like our most recent trip (which was a road trip) I also put togehter a trip book. This included not only maps, but our hotel reservations, and locations of some food chains we wanted to try on the road (Sonic, Chick-fil-a, etc.).

I also do a spreadsheet for our days listing the major things (park hours, ps if we have any, etc.).

Ok - maybe I do over plan I really am flexible with the plan and DH helps me a lot with it!

 

[wdwpluto]

Originally posted by LittleMissMickey
Alright, DBF says I'm nuts, but do you plan what you are going to wear the night before so you can just get up and go?

Yep, that's me! Clothes are all laid out and ready to go the night before.

DH teases me, but in the end, he knows that we have a better vacation for all my compulsive planning

 

[katerkat]

Hee - hi Lori!

I'm such an over-planner, and it totally doesn't work with DH being in the military. Last vacation, I couldn't book the hotel until less than two weeks out. So, I have obsessively planned potential vacations. How bad is that?

 

[Mercy]

Over-planner here.

I think the internet has really fed my obsession. I am an information kind of gal, I like info and like to do research. The internet has made it so easy to do that.

My obsession started back in 1998 when I was planning a trip to Myrtle Beach and I realized I could get/find so much information about MB on the internet! The next year we went to WDW and I found these boards.... and well the rest is history!

 

[jwsqrdplus2]

Another overplanner here. I do not plan down to the minute, but I too have a spread sheet for each day that includes park hours, any specific attractions we want to see and PSs. I don't lay clothes out the night before because when I pack at home and unpack at the hotel, I organize all the clothes by outfits, so I can just grab one and go! I am normally a morning shower person, but at WDW, I shower at night. Then I wash my face and brush my teeth in the morning. In the time that it takes DH to shower in the morning, I will be dressed and ready and I have both DDs ready and eating breakfast. After breakfast we slather on the sunscreen and go. Is that too much planning?!?

 

[Annette_VA]

My name is Annette & I'm a plan-a-holic!

This trip we're going w/ dh's co-worker & his wife. DH totally understands my planning obsession. The co-worker just doesn't get it. He's suggested a 12 step program.

 

[KIRSTIN'S MOMMY]

Count me in too!!! It's driving my entire family crazy!!! I've been planning this trip for over 2 years, and I think they're tired of hearing about it, lol! I've taken a few trips while planning this one, so I have had 2 going at once, which is also fun.....Oh my goodness.....

 

[Dopey Sharon]

I'm only an overplanner when it comes to WDW trips. When we go other places, we "wing it". My DD took my Unofficial Guide to her boyfriend's last night. They are planning on going away, in three weeks, but don't know if they're going to WDW, DL or Vegas! THREE WEEKS away and they don't have anything planned! I could never do that.

 

[Alicnwondrln]

Count me in as well
I am a ridiculous over planner and it drives my DH crazy !!
But I agree with so much of what has already been posted. I wanna whats great before I go I dont wanna waste time

 

[Teris]

They are planning on going away, in three weeks, but don't know if they're going to WDW, DL or Vegas! THREE WEEKS away and they don't have anything planned! I could never do that.

OMG Dopey Sharon,, I couldn't do that either! I would have insomnia from the stress of not planning anything by that time!

I have never done the spreadsheet thing,,but what a great idea!
(makes mental note to get a spread sheet)


My family are already tired of the trip, before we leave, because of my talking about it constantly,,lol.

But I get the pleasure of watching their reactions to the wonders I have planned for them The problem is they think these 'wonderous' things happen by serendipty,, pah, as if!

I love the "PIT" label,,we now have 'VOPs' and the 'PITs' that love them

 

[MelessaG]

I'm an overplanner too! We decided back in January to do another WDW this coming late Nov/early Dec and as soon as Amazon.com sent me a copy of this year's PassPorter, I had reservations made, and tentative spreadsheets filled out for our itinerary. Obviously, no PS's yet, but I do have a list and the dates I need to call for each one.
DH is just now starting to think about the trip, and everything he mentions-I already have planned and recorded on the spreadsheet or one of my other lists. It's too funny.

 

[Belle0101]

Hi, my name is Michelle and I'm the newest member of OVOPS.

Disney or not, some things you just have to plan out!

Brings to mind a Disney trip with my cousin's family. She just wanted to "wing it". Had she ever been to Disney? No. I told her and told her and told her that you cannot "wing a trip" to Disney involving 6 people ... in 2002 ... in December ... and during the week between Christmas and New Year's! There is no winging it then. I'm sure you can guess the outcome of that trip - my worst trip anywhere ever.

It seems the more money we're going to be spending the more I plan. For Disney I plan out quite a bit but for a trips closer to home and that are less expensive I tend to plan less.

 

[Teris]

When I hear someone say they are planning to go to WDW and 'wing it',, I can literally feel all the blood draining from my head down to my toes,, especially if it's someone's first time.