What have I forgotten to plan?

[Born 2B a Princess]

There are so many details to take care of...

I've made the reservations, paid for the package in full, figured out which park to do which day, looked at maps, read books, and made lists of tips. I need to put together a trip notebook with all of the information (reservation #s, fastpass info, reviews/ratings on specific rides, transportation info, parades, fireworks, etc.).....

What have I forgotten? I am having a hard time getting familiar with the transportation system so that will be my next undertaking.

Am I the only one who wakes up in the middle of the night, afraid that I'm forgetting to plan something important??? LOL

 

[amykathleen2005]

to relax.

 

[Born 2B a Princess]

LOL! Easier said than done...this is our first trip and I want so badly for it to go well and for everyone to have a really great time. I do have a habit of overplanning...it drives DH crazy! I really should relax....

I'll work on that!

 

[Anything Disney!]

Well, it is nice to see that I'm not the only over achiever! I plan everything right down to the finite detail, then throw it all out the window when I find that you just need to remember to be flexible. If your expectations are too high, that can cause stress and that kills any relaxtion planned and can cause grumpies. Familiarize yourself with the basics and make sure your meals are reserved and then schedule any tours around the days planned for each park. Then you can lay awake at night like the grown ups that are too excited to sleep!

 

[becalubob]

I'm taking my dd5 for her first trip in June. I actually had a DREAM last night that I forgot to pack our "special shirts" for each day, that we overslept and where very, very late for our Akershus ADR and they wouldn't take us in. I woke up so relieved I was dreaming.

 

[Aaronbox]

In order to get the most out of your trip to Disney parks, make (or get) a touring plan. The right plan can save you hours of standing in lines. If you want to see the most attractions and not waste all your time standing in long lines, getting to the right attraction at the right time of day is key. The main sponsor of this site has plans, and I know from personal experience that the Unofficial Guidebook to WDW has excellent plans. Ideally, having a plan will also save you time and frustration trying to figure out what to do next (in the middle of potential crowd near chaos). It'll relieve any anxiety that you might be leaving something out that you'd really like to see.

 

[JohnnyB2]

Your all set! Remember to charge the battery in camera or camcoder, get film and have a great trip!

 

[Born 2B a Princess]

Overachievers unite!!

 

[Born 2B a Princess]

Aaronbox -- thanks for the input....I've printed off the touring plans from the Unofficial Guide and was going to look into some others, as well. Thank you!

JohnnyB2 -- thanks for the reminder about charging batteries. I'm trying to convince DH that we should get a new camera for a combined Mother's Day/Father's Day gift. I'm not getting very far yet, but I'm going to keep trying!

 

[rockstargeisha]

If you're using Disney transportation to and from the airport, make sure Disney has your flight information so there will be a bus waiting for you when you get to the airport.

Otherwise, if you're using a rental car make sure to double check your rental reservations before you leave and have confirmation numbers and your driver's license (note the expiration date).

Also, check the "extra magic hours" dates for each of the parks during your stay and plan which park you'll visit each day accordingly.

Most of all though, have fun and remember it's a vacation and should be as stress free as possible.

 

[Ears]

Obsessive planning often leads to disappointment.

Don't forget that Disney is designed for you to keep coming back wanting more and feeling like you just couldn't see everything the first time.

When you get into the frantic stage of "did I plan well enough?" before your trip, remember this:

What would I do if _______ happened during the trip?

Insert things like "forgot the camera", "didn't pack a jacket", etc. What would you do? I bet you would go buy one, look at your map (or get one there), ask someone who could help get you on the right bus/cab, etc.

You'll be fine. Sometimes too much information can cause us to focus and worry about what can go wrong instead of having fun. It's Disney, you'll be fine.

 

[themudd4]

Here is what I do to plan my trip:
DIS
Decide on a date
DIS
Call and book my trip
DIS
Grab an updated Passporter
DIS
Make my ADR's
DIS
DIS
DIS
DIS
Pack everything I may want/need
DIS
DIS
Finally get to go!!
Come home
BACK on DIS

Seriously though...planning is stressful if you let it be! For me it is part of the fun. Wanna know what's hard...planning and paying for a trip without anyone in your family knowing what your doing. I'm surprising my family with a mini trip in Oct. KEEPING THE SECRET IS HARD!

 

[Hope73]

I love to plan a trip. I even make up a little spreadsheet wit our trip info on it. I have foudn thsi to be helpful. I list days, res number parade times and who has emh. My husband told me I was being overplanned then thanked me for being so planned when we got there.

 

[poohtink]

Instead of notebook why not try an index card for each park. An index card for reservations. Index cards at staples now go through the printer only writing it out once and you can give everyone in your party one and they know what is going on each day and they fit perfectly in a wallet or a fanny pack. That way you have it on your computer and if someone needs an idea you have and you can use it for your future trips to Disney. We are doing a magical gathering and everyone is getting an itinery on an index card. Don't forget that the maps will have times and places that are the most up to date. Don't go on reviews alone they are not all their cracked up to be. I know most people love test track and hate the one with Ellen. We live in the country and test track was no better than going over a back road we wait in line for 1 1/2 hours and were never so disappointed in a ride. Some times us over planners get too crazy and forget to have a good time ourselves. You have planned enough now reap the rewards and enjoy yourself. Have a great trip. I can't wait for June and November.

 

[lazidazi07]

I am in the same funk too! I have dreams where I've forgotten this or that, you know, those hazy dreams where you're trying to get somewhere and you just can't! Hang in there! As far as transportation, If you havent already found it, www.ourlaughingplace.com ( click transportation wizard) tells you estimated times of arrival using the Disney Transportation System. It kept me occupied for a while!

 

[M 'n C]

by reservations does that include dining reservations?? Have you scheduled your bathroom breaks yet?? Those really are the 2 most important things to plan

J/k - I love to plan my disney vacations and planning bathroom breaks was the one thing my bf was afraid I would do to him. I think you have your bases covered. I would just sit back and relax. If you really like to plan things out or like to make things pretty you could make a word document with each day mapped out "high level" I had a lot of fun with mine. I would do Disney clip art and put the day, park, and any dining reservations with the times and if there was anything in particular we wanted to do.

 

[bellebud]

i think the most important thing is like another poster said... knowing which ride to go to at which time of day. our first trip to wdw w/ the kids (4 years ago), we wandered from one end of magic kingdom to the other, hardly rode anything because we wouldn't wait on a line longer than 20 minutes, and had a horrible day. i thought i had everything well planned. but i had only planned which parks for which days and meal ressies. i had no touring plan. For our next trip, i knew (and researched what i didn't know) which rides to hit first thing in the morning, which to grab a fast pass for, which ones could wait till later in the day, etc.

We never wait more than 10 minutes for any ride now, and we go on everything multiple times each trip. we also go during busy times (easter week, 4th of july week, columbus day weekend). I've never used an actual tour plan from a book, but i'm sure they're great.

here's a quick example... for magic kingdom days, we'll get there for morning extra magic hour and do all of fantasyland, adventureland and frontierland. then around 10am-ish (remember, we're going during busy times - we've been to MK when it opened at 7am and done all those lands multiple times by 10am - we walked on splash mountain 5x's in a row before it got a line of a 15 minute wait). But even if it opened at 9am, you'll have at least gone on everything in those lands once by 11am... then we head over to tomorrowland and grab a fast pass (we usually grab a buzz fast pass, but you'd probably want a space mountain fast pass - i think your kids were older), then eat something and do carousel of progress, tta (both are usually walk-ons), watch a show somewhere, shop or pin trade till our fast pass time comes. and remember you can grab another fast pass before your time comes for your first one. it tells you on the fast pass when you can get another one. so grab another one, ride your first fast pass ride, then while waiting for the next fast pass ride, do other stuff (mickey's toon town, swiss family tree house, tom sawyer's island, small world - all stuff you usually don't have to wait in line too long for... don't do these during precious morning hours - save them for waiting between fast pass times).

you'll have done everything 'important' by early afternoon, and can 'relax' the rest of the day (eating, shopping, pin trading, doing shows, fast passing, doing rides w/ short waits, really checking out everything in the park you'd miss if you were rushing through it. sometimes we'd have early lunch ressies
(11:30am), be done w/ everything by then, eat, and leave the park for swimming (just as the crowds were swarming in)... we felt very satisfied that we had done everything we wanted. we'd then come back later for parades, etc.

hope that helps! you can't overplan a disney trip... just keep in mind your plans can change and just be flexible.

enjoy your trip!