What have you done to make your trips extra special?

[kowalchicky]

Looking for cute little idea's to make our next trip extra special. We have invited my BIL and his family to come with us....so this will be the cousins first time to Disney together....I've thought of making little goodie bags,my sister in law brought up T-shirts....any other idea's would be greatly appreciated.

 

[susykt4]

My kids LOVE Tinker Bell gifts. They get a little present under their pillow at night IF they are good and don't fight and don't whine too much during the day. It's a pain to lug several nights worth of gifts, but it works WELL!

Some fun things we've done are ride in the front of the monorail (I think only 4 people at a time,) DD7 likes getting sparkles in her hair at the MK barber s hop, both kids enjoyed the cookie baking class at the Land in Epcot, the Robot Race at Fantastic Plastics in one of the Innoventions buildings at Epcot is a BLAST! Plus you get to make and take home a FREE plastic robot. My kids like the KidCot masks at World Showcase. DS5 LOVES the jumping fountain outside the Imagination pavillion. If you happen to be staying at Pop they have a nightly parade in the food court (~5:30pm) my kids loved so much we had to do it three times.

We took the Family Magic Tour a few years ago and it was a blast! I'd totally recommend it for kids between ages 4 and 12. DS was 2 when we went and he HATED IT!!! He couldn't stand walking past all the rides. The rest of us loved it and DD got to sit next to Wendy and Peter Pan at Mickey's Philharmagic.

 

[Eeyore's Girl]

For a first timer's trip, personally, I would skip the extra tours and such. There's SO much to explore and be amazed with on that first trip just by being inside the parks. You've probably visited the parks enough to be a tour guide for the cousins, pointing out some of the magical details within the parks that a newbie might miss (hidden Mickeys, the topiaries, best spots for watching parades and night shows, character spotting, etc. etc. etc.).

I think the goody bags and t-shirts are fun ideas that won't be a distraction from enjoying your time in the parks. If the cousins are particularly young, maybe watching some Disney movies, getting them prepared for various characters, would be helpful (if not downright fun!).

Have fun, fun, fun!!

 

[grlpwrd]

All those little touches are nice.

I just want to add something I remember when I first started coming here ('98?'99?) Someone had posted that they take scented candles with them. Now I am not saying to light all the candles you have (lol), but have a few transportable one's in tins. Of course, be careful and mindful of the flame.

The scent will remind you of WDW when you light it at home. I do this and it helps ease the post-vacation anxiety.

 

[I believe]

My kids love the Character Meals and they are great opportunities to get some great pictures, good food and a nice break to refresh your group. Have fun!

 

[toy]

We drive down and I start buying new movies as they come out and hide them. I wrap them in Disney paper and hand out the movies when they are being good (one at a time). They each get to pick out a wrapped movie to watch on the road. They get so excited about the little Disney trip presents. I also make special bags with mickey/disney trinkets and put it in their carseats during one of the stops. "Wow, look what Tinkerbell left". The bag has things like notepads, the small pk of crayons from the party section in Walmart, dollar store toys... We made sure we stop by and pick up badges for the 1st time visitor at Town Hall. The cms' notice and make that child feel special I buy picture mats from Walmart before we leave town and drop it off with resort guest services with a sharpie and they have the characters sign it. It makes a nice keepsake. We have friends who take a white pillow case and a sharpie for signatures. I stopped by the fabric store and purchased disney material for pillow cases for the kids' travel pillows. I will iron their names on the pillow case too. I also sew a small back pack for them to carry their own water bottle and small treasures. I make them with the fabric containing the favorite character of each child. We try to find a reason to celebrate and order a cake for one of our sit down meals.

 

[DizzyFORDisney]

Hi there,

We went with my sisters familes a couple of years ago. I made all kinds of things to get ready for our trip. I made custom countdown chains, personalized Santa hats for all of the kids, squashed penny holders, a piggy bank dedicated to saving for the trip, etc. Here is a link to some of the fun things that we did.

http://www.plan-a-magical-vacation.com/disney-vacation-countdown.html

We also purchased little things for 'tinkerbell' gifts ahead of time. Some pins to trade (bought on Ebay), penny books, etc.

Have a blast!

 

[Perditamarie]

I love all of the ideas on these threads! Here are some more:

* if you do Tinkerbell gifts, sprinkle a little glitter around them for pixie dust

* provide stacks of 2 quarters and 1 penny for the penny press machines - these fit great in a mini m&m tube and kids love to search out the machines and collect all the different images -- there must be hundreds!

* provide disposable cameras to the kids to get their perspective of the trip

* make customized autograph books to collect signatures of their favorite characters. check out the Creative DISign board for some inspiration -- many talented folks there share their templates and will also customize for you. Character meals are great fun and very efficient for collecting autographs. There are also some passport books you can print out/make for extra World Showcase fun (also, do the Kidcot funstops as pp mentioned).

* you can also check out the Creative DISign board for t-shirt iron-ons - families in matching t-shirts end up having some really nice group photos.

* consider pin trading

* buy'em at the dollar store and pass out glow sunglasses/bracelets/necklaces/sticks to your crew on evening excursions.

* have everyone take pictures in the different hats at the countries around world showcase and all over WDW. I have never seen so many spectacular hats.

* take photos of the Beverly taste test at Club Cool in Epcot

* If you are going when MNSSHP, MVMCP or P&P parties are going on, consider attending

* take advantage of every photopass moment

Have a great trip and happy planning.

 

[ksumn1]

I think all the above ideas are great. I did much of the same for my DD's trip. Little gifts to open, bought matching tshirts, etc. I would get all the kids a goodie bag with a fat sharpie marker, an autograph book, a set of mouse ears, a disposable camera, and a few Disney dollars. I also made a little daily planner book for DD's. For example, Monday was MK day. 1st page was a color pic of the castle, next was a list of rides we would ride, a listing of our meals and ADR's, next was a Disney character or related coloring page, and last page was siticker. (characters for the MK, famous buildings for EPCOT, animal for Animal Kingdom) They absolutely loved it. Every night before bed, they would check their "schedule." It really helped out when I lost my copy of the ADR's and needed the numbers. I actually searched around and found the nametags and had someone have them engraved, and sent them to me. All the CM's really noticed them. Have a great trip!!

 

[sweetnsassy]

These ideas are great I'm definitely gonna try some of these for our trip in January! Thanks!!

 

[kowalchicky]

I have enjoyed reading all of these great idea's.
Thank you so much!

 

[kowalchicky]

I even thought about putting money on an arcade card for them. The children in our group range from 7 years old to 11 years old.
I've been pickingup Tinker Bell things at Target when I see them...I thought the princess stuff was to babyish...so I opted for Tinker bell to be the theme for the girls and pirates of the carribbean to be the theme for the boys...with a few extra goods ( arcade card,disney money,etc...) thrown in there....I just have to be careful because there are 5 children all together.....I don't want to be broke before I step foot on Disney property.

 

[Perditamarie]

Oh, here are a few more, especially since the kids are older:

* search for hidden mickeys- document w/digital camera...have a "prize" for the most found or just see how many your group can collect. I believe either the resort or parks may hand out a list, and there is a book as well.

* along the hidden mickey idea, have a bit of a scavenger hunt at each park, document w/ digital camera and have a prize. I want to say that once upon a time I have read on these boards that there is a book of scavenger hunts out there as well.

* check out the pool times...there are often games and contests at certain hours.

* there is also a community hall at SSR and most DVC, so there may be some fun activities for the kids during down time.

* The Lego store at DTD has a building area that is fantastic for lego therapy...the kids really love it and adults get a chance to relax. I haven't been yet, but the magic shop on the West side is supposed to be a "tricky" place to visit.

 

[disneyfansx5]

What great ideas! Thanks for sharing them. I look forward to using some of these on our next trip.

One thing we did was Santa brought all of our children disney dollars for Christmas. The children also received money from their grandparents for the trip. This was a great thing. The kids got to buy whatever they wanted as long as they had enough money. This kept down any fussing with us. It also taught them the value of a dollar.

 

[tweedlemom]

Every night of our trip we call the front desk and arrange a wake-up call even if we don't need it, just so the kids can "talk" to Mickey.

 

[libbylast]

Hi
I'm from uk and its gonna be our 1st trip in Nov 08.
I have been thinking of getting a 2008 disney calendar and mark the day we go and wrap this up for christmas to give to the kids this christmas together with the book about WDW. Do you think this is way too early to tell a 3 year old and a 8 year old that we are going next Nov.
Also where do you get disney dollars from?
Thanks Angie

 

[HappyLawyer]

i get the girls little visa gift cards with their names on them, it holds their spending money and they feel so special

 

[kowalchicky]

Hi
I'm from uk and its gonna be our 1st trip in Nov 08.
I have been thinking of getting a 2008 disney calendar and mark the day we go and wrap this up for christmas to give to the kids this christmas together with the book about WDW. Do you think this is way too early to tell a 3 year old and a 8 year old that we are going next Nov.
Also where do you get disney dollars from?
Thanks Angie

You can get Disney dollars from the Disney store.
I just found this quote believe...thought it might be helpful....

From mousesavers.com


Quote:
Disney Dollars are "cash equivalents." One Disney Dollar = one US dollar. They can be used at Disney Store locations in the US and at almost all locations in Walt Disney World Resort, Disneyland Resort and Disney Cruise Line. Disney Dollars can be purchased at any Disney Store or Disney theme park, or by letter from Walt Disney World Ticketing, PO Box 10140, Lake Buena Vista, FL 32830. You must pay in advance. Shipping is $10.00 for express delivery. Include shipping charges with the check.

These are all great idea's, keep them coming!

 

[disneyfan4u]

The last time we went to Epcot, we stopped at the Kid Cot fun stops for our DDs to do. When we went to the different countries to get the masks stamped, we had the CM write my childrens name in their native language.

 

[bubba]

I'm from uk and its gonna be our 1st trip in Nov 08.
I have been thinking of getting a 2008 disney calendar and mark the day we go and wrap this up for christmas to give to the kids this christmas together with the book about WDW. Do you think this is way too early to tell a 3 year old and a 8 year old that we are going next Nov.
Also where do you get disney dollars from?
Thanks Angie

We told our kids DS(7) and DS(3) at Christmas that we were going in May. They were excited Christmas Day and for a few days afterwards they talked about it all the time. Then other things cropped up - tobogganing and playing with friends - and the trip slipped to the back of their minds. They still brought it up once in a while, but not everyday. They were still so excited for the trip and for about a month before we left they chattered about it every day.
I guess it depends on the kids. If you think they'll stay wound up and drive you crazy the "Do we go to Disney today?" questions, perhaps putting the 'big reveal' off for a few months would be better. We're going in May 08 and are telling our kids (now 9 and 5) at Christmas. I can't wait !!
Have a really great trip !