What is Disney like with Tweens?

[robinbutterfly]

We have been 5 times since the kids were 3 years old. We have skipped this year and are going next year when the kids are 10 and 11.
Is it still fun going at this age? I am just worried for attitudes and everything is "not cool" etc. etc. Should we do Universal or somewhere else in addition to Disney? Would love to hear other people's experiences.

Thanks!

 

[poohfriend77]

I guess it depends on the kid. My DDs were 11 and (almost) 9 when we went in January. They still absolutely LOVE it! They are definitely less "princess crazy" but they did still want to meet some of the characters, especially ones they hadn't met before. They did all the big rides, and they love that they can do some things by themselves (with us nearby, of course... but I was thrilled to not have to do Primeval Whirl or teacups ).

Many families from our school go every year, so I don't think there is an "uncool" factor about it (maybe that's different in schools where trips are not so common). I'm sure not everyone loves it, and I'm sure there are some who prefer US. But if your kids have always loved WDW, I don't know why that would change just because they are a bit older.

 

[ajwolfe]

Just went in May with our 10 and 7 year old boys. My 10 year still was as in love with Disney as he was on his first trip. It does change a bit in that he isn't as in to the character meet and greets and such (but when he would do them he had fun). But he still enjoys the magic of it all, loves the shows and fireworks and has a blast on the rides. He was even the one that insisted on repeat rides of Peter Pan and Pooh.
I guess it depends a bit on if your kids are excited to go or not to begin with; which he always is.

 

[Aliceacc]

Sooo much fun!!!!

 

[mchllevns]

Really depends on the child...mine have been going regularly since they were 5 (and there's a big age gap between them)...DS now says he won't go in the heat of summer (but that wasn't until he was college age), but DD is almost 18 and there has never been a time when she's said she was bored, it was uncool, etc....

 

[Gumbo4x4]

At 10, I liked Universal (Hollywood) more than Disneyland. At 11, my daughter LOVED Disneworld. But MK was not her favorite. She liked MK & wants to go back when we next return to Disney, but she liked AK, Epcot, and both water parks better.

 

[ksinniger]

My 11 year old still loves WDW. I was concerned about her being bored at some thngs, and offered to have her split off with me or DH for things like Sorcerer's quests of searching otu hidden mickeys (we bought her the book before heading down). But most times, she didn't want to miss the rides - even Dumbo and Barnstormer!

One thing that I think worked was to let her pick out her own WDW guidebook. There were enough tidbits about just about every area and ride, that it got her excited on her own for things that she might have thought were "uncool" if she didn't know any background. So if your kids like to read, this may be one option.

 

[MandiC]

A little younger but I'd say it really just depends on the tween. My 9 year old *loved* the Sorcerer's of Magic Kingdom game when we were in MK, I wish I had 'planned' more time for it, but I planned it as an extra and she loved it

 

[MandiC]

as far as the rest of the trip, she was pretty happy with it. She definitely was not as into the princesses as her sister but there was enough to keep her interested and she loved the rides

 

[Julylady]

I have been taking my nieces since they were 2 years old. Now at 12 and 9, they are no longer into the princesses like they were when they were little. They still LOVE to go to the parks though. We try to do at least one new thing each trip and pick one that is age appropriate. For example, in April we did Splitsville for bowling as well as the Archery at Ft Wilderness. Both of them really like both activities.

Neither one wanted to do a character meal on our last trip. I guess they are too old for that. They also gave up Playhouse Disney years ago along with Dumbo.

In April, we let the 12 year old have charging priveleges for the first time. I think it was the highlight of her trip. She loved being able to go to a food cart by herself and bring back water/popcorn for the rest of us. 0f course, we were within sight of her the entire time.

So, my advice is to allow them the freedom to stop doing "baby" things and add more adult activities into the trip that they haven't been able to do in the past.

 

[EMode]

I guess it depends on the kid. My DDs were 11 and (almost) 9 when we went in January. They still absolutely LOVE it! They are definitely less "princess crazy" but they did still want to meet some of the characters, especially ones they hadn't met before. They did all the big rides, and they love that they can do some things by themselves (with us nearby, of course... but I was thrilled to not have to do Primeval Whirl or teacups ).

Many families from our school go every year, so I don't think there is an "uncool" factor about it (maybe that's different in schools where trips are not so common). I'm sure not everyone loves it, and I'm sure there are some who prefer US. But if your kids have always loved WDW, I don't know why that would change just because they are a bit older.

Boredom. Not that that applies to the OP's kids but as kids get older and just keep doing the same old thing, it can just be a case of them being bored and wanting to try something new and more exciting to them. My youngest is 10 and he had a great time last year when we were there, but he has decided that he wants to go to Universal because "he's done everything at Disney and Universal is sooooo cool".

OP, what do your kids say, are they excited or do they seem unenthusiastic about the trip?

OP, I don't think your kids will have any issues feeling too old, they may find things there that they weren't interested in when they were younger.

 

[MSSANDRA]

Our general plan has always been every other year, and we have a 22 year old now, so he did a couple tween year trips. NEVER heard the word board out of him. Even now he is a huge WDW fan because we raised him right. We spent less time in Fantasy Land during those years, but by the time we started taking our little guy, he was back fine with doing those rides with him. We always gave him a lot of input on things and he knew the parks well enough to decide things like where he wanted to eat.
The best part about a family vacation away from home is nobody knows him!!! Remind him of that and it is fine to wear those Micky Ears or ride Dumbo and none of his friends will ever know!!! He can escape worrying about being cool for the entire trip!

 

[North of Mouse]

We have been 5 times since the kids were 3 years old. We have skipped this year and are going next year when the kids are 10 and 11.
Is it still fun going at this age? I am just worried for attitudes and everything is "not cool" etc. etc. Should we do Universal or somewhere else in addition to Disney? Would love to hear other people's experiences.

Thanks!

Depends on the 'tweens'. Mine enjoyed it immensely and still do.

 

[JustCallMeMommy]

In my experience, tweens are GREAT! Among other things:

* They can from go robe drop to kiss goodnight, if mom and dad are up to it.
* They can ride stuff alone if mom and dad aren't up to it (I only want to ride Space Mountain twice - DD wants to ride it a thousand times).
* You don't have to wait in long lines for characters (except Stitch).
* They understand budgeting (kind of) their souvenir money.

 

[robinb]

My DD *loved* WDW at that age. She was just outgrowing the Princess phase but the characters were still cool.

One thing to be aware of is that both your kids are now "Disney Adults" which means adult pricing on tickets and meals. That being said, anyone can order off the kids menu at most WDW restaurants There are a few exceptions, which include buffets/shows/fixed price menus and some Epcot restaurants that are not owned by Disney. My 14-year old DD still occasionally orders from the kids menu at TS restaurants and she still loves uncrustables CS meals.

 

[kohlby]

My eldest was never into characters, so that part didn't change. Them being old enough to ride alone is a huge plus. Still waiting for our youngest to get old enough so we never have to ride teacups again. (I get dizzy easily). I find they spend more time exploring now - not just on rides but really taking it in and appreciating it more. Check out the card game in MK - mine love that - as well as the Agent P thing in Epcot. Also, be prepared for the favorite park to possibly change. Mine were actually Epcot kids all along, but more Future World. Then it changed to loving World Showcase and my eldest son getting more into Hollywood Studios

We skipped last year, and did US/IOA/Legoland last trip. They're all quite excited about Disney this year. (And Legoland again) They did like US/IOA, but with the exception of missing Harry Potter, are fine with doing something different. Going almost 2 years between trips mean different experiences.

You may also want to look into Youth Education Classes if you want something different. It will give you a better rate on tickets too!

For food, my eldest started to out eat me 2 years ago. We do a mix of kids and adult meals for our family. We've found it's cheaper to get one adult counter service meal and split it than two kids meals, so we are less likely to do a kids meal for our eldest anyway. There's no way a kid meal would come close to enough food for him anyway right now - I'm a bit nervous how much food he's going to go through on our next trip. The plan is to pack a LOT of extra snacks. I'm learning that 11 year old boys going through growth spurts can eat scary amounts of food.

 

[robinbutterfly]

Our general plan has always been every other year, and we have a 22 year old now, so he did a couple tween year trips. NEVER heard the word board out of him. Even now he is a huge WDW fan because we raised him right. We spent less time in Fantasy Land during those years, but by the time we started taking our little guy, he was back fine with doing those rides with him. We always gave him a lot of input on things and he knew the parks well enough to decide things like where he wanted to eat.
The best part about a family vacation away from home is nobody knows him!!! Remind him of that and it is fine to wear those Micky Ears or ride Dumbo and none of his friends will ever know!!! He can escape worrying about being cool for the entire trip!

HA! I love this! SO TRUE!!

 

[mm1971]

We have been 5 times since the kids were 3 years old. We have skipped this year and are going next year when the kids are 10 and 11.
Is it still fun going at this age? I am just worried for attitudes and everything is "not cool" etc. etc. Should we do Universal or somewhere else in addition to Disney? Would love to hear other people's experiences.

Thanks!

My kids LOVED it at all ages and still do. They are DS14 and DD11 and are excited about our upcoming August trip. They do want to head to US/IOA to see the new HP area, but that will be determined by the expected crowds. The best part is that they have a good idea of what they like to do. Let them be involved in the ADR, FP+ and planning.

If you are worried, ask them what they would prefer to do. Last year we did Discovery Cove and the dolphin swim. It was an AWESOME day! This year we will also be taking a "resort" day where the family is going bass fishing. As they get older, involve them more. The vacations are a little different, but just as fun.

 

[Stephaniesue]

The first trip we made the kids were 8 and 6. It was a surprise, and they had so much fun.

This time they are 11 and 9. We told them when we booked it, to make sure they wanted to go again. They looked at me like I had 3 heads. DUH MOM! Of course they wanted to go. I think this time will be a little different, maybe not meeting so many characters. They have shown more interest in the bigger rides.

However, DD and I MUST meet Merida, she's just awesome!

 

[starbound25]

agree with others that it depends on your kids.
my girls were 6, 9, &10 on our last trip and loved everything, including character meet and greets
we'll be going in Feb 2015 and the older two will be 10&11 they are both still super excited.
they really want to meet Anna and Elsa (lets hope I can get a FP!)

Like someone else said to remind them that none of their friends are there to see them do something the might think is "uncool" !

my oldest said a lot of kids at her school ask her why she still likes Disney World so much (sad that 11 year olds say that!) and she just says "cause its awesome" or "why shouldn't I?" They only ask her that when she wears her DW sweatshirt.

Now ask me when she's 13 ya never know!