What is the 1 thing you wish you knew before your 1st trip?

[npierce25]

Hello everyone!

My family consists of my self, the disney junkie, 30, my husband, the grump who is not looking forword to this, and DD, turning 4 on the trip, and we will be going to disney for 8 days (not including arrival and departure days). We are doing 5 nights at AKL witht the gift care promotion, and the rest of the days are still at AKL (40% PIN code), but we might switch to a mod to save some more money. It is the 1st trip for all of us!!!! DD and I are super excited, dh is indifferent. I have lots of ADR's all ready, ill list them in a little bit!

So my question for you is, what is the 1 thing you wish you would have knew prior to your 1st (or 50th) trip???

Thanks for the help!!!

Natalie

 

[selina4disney]

Before the first trip I wish I had known that skimming The Unofficial Guide on the three hour plane ride to Orlando does not constitute planning.

We missed all sorts of things we didn't know was there (like It's Tough to Be a Bug. Thought it was just a big tree.)

Now we have been back 11 more times (and have two more booked) and I plan for every trip as to what days to do what parks, making ADRs etc. We don't do commando touring anymore though, we are in our 50's and it's too much like work.

Seriously, this board is here to help you have a wonderful vacation...use the resource and ask all the questions you want. Almost anything you can ask, someone here will know the answer. This is one of the best planning resources on the web.

 

[skier_pete]

OK, this isn't really a case of didn't know about it...but didn't know how to utilize it fully the first time we went that it existed:
Understand and use the Fastpass system as best you can. Too many newbies find it "too complicated" but you can save massive amounts of time by using Fastpasses. It may seem silly to run halfway across the park to get tickets to come back later, but if it saves waiting in line for 30-90 minutes - it is totally worth it.

In fact, that is one of my three rules of WDW park planning:
1) Get to the park at opening whenever you can: you can get more stuff done in the first two hours than the rest of the day.
2) Fastpass, Fastpass, Fastpass! (See above)
3) Have a plan (or stragedy) but be flexible. Planning is all well and good, but don't be so regimented that you don't have fun!

Enjoy!

 

[flamingglobessigmund]

I wish I'd known about the Friendship Boat from FW to WS at Epcot. Would have allowed me to get all the way through WS.

Also, I wish I'd known I was going to develop a blister. Would have brought something for that.

Lastly, I wish I'd brought more than one pair of old shoes, to sacrifice to the Rain Gods.

 

[Pakey]

We are not planners but if my first trip was going to be during spring break time (as yours is), I would want a touring plan.

Personally, the one thing I wish I had known before our first trip was how large the meals at WDW are. We had way too many meal reservations and spent too much time getting from one restaurant to the next.

 

[geenerbell]

That you can use fastpasses past the time window printed on the pass.

 

[MEK]

This may sound silly, but I did a lot of planning ahead of time, so I knew exactly what I wanted to see and do.

But I wish someone had told me to visit the dollar store and buy disposable rain ponchos and to visit Walmart and buy a sprayer with a fan. Those items were essential for a hot summer trip and could have saved a bunch of $.

 

[PIRATEGIRL007]

I wish I would have known about the Dis.

But alot of what I learned here could be found in the Unofficial Guide so that would be a close second, I made the huge mistake of reading the 'Official Guide"-Birnbaums, it was all fluff and no real practical advise in there at all.

 

[gillep]

I had done a ton of planning before our trip and with awesome resources especially the dis and the unofficial guide. However, I wish I had known that you could walk from the Poly to the TTC, I wasted so much time getting on the monorail to get to epcot when I could have just walked to the TTC then gotten on the monorail to epcot!!!!

 

[Ms.Grumpy]

That you can get free ice water at CS, instead of having to buy bottles of water.

 

[christymarie]

LOL, I wish I had known that my 18mo would get nothing out of the trip and would not remember it. The trip was really about me having those moments but I was so stressed with whether or not he was getting the full experience that I forgot to enjoy it.

I wish now we had saved our money and gone when he was three even if it ment paying for him since he would have gotten a whole lot more out of it.

 

[Missytara]

How to really use the transportation to its fullest. I had a fair idea about buses and monorail, but didn't know much about the water transportation - or transferring buses to get to resorts, etc.

Each year, I learn some other way of using the transportation to enhance my experience.

 

[webbmom]

WOW I even learnd things on this and Ihave been severl times. This site is wonderful and the people are very helpful.

Bring extra batteries & a Poncho, I always keep extra change of clothes and shoes in the car especially if its susposed to rain.

 

[grecorj]

I wish I had made additional ADRs. My initial thought was, there is no way we can eat at 3 Table Service (i.e. sit down, full service) restaurants for every meal, so I only made 1 TS reservation per day of trip (either a breakfast or dinner). Silly me. I now make 3 TS reseervations per trip (and will cancel as appropriate during trip) -- this leaves you WAY more flexability in your touring, whereas before we were trying to fit our touring around our single ADR. We still will only eat one TS meal per day (for cost, time and amount of food, you'll probably only want 1 per day), but now we can choose on that day which it will be and which fits better with our plans.

 

[chocovrdmicears]

I *WISH* I knew that Disney does offer special rates/deals/promos and didn't have to pay full price for my package.. .

 

[Glencora]

I wish I had realized that it is impossible to go to WDW once without immediately making plans to go back!

 

[trivial]

I wish I had realized that 4 full days just wasn't enough. I see you're going for 8 days, so that doesn't really apply to you, so here's a second thing: I wish I had realized the value in taking mid-day breaks. I was fine without them, but my 5-months-pregnant wife could've used them; we pretty much went back to the resort after dinner each night. I'm willing to bet your daughter would appreciate them, if you've not planned for them already.

 

[ebtbmom]

This is pretty embarrasing, but on our first trip I didn't know what Downtown Disney was. I knew it was something like a shopping district, but I thought you needed a ticket to get in. We never went because I thought we didn't have tickets for it.

I felt really stupid when I got home and realized we could have gone!

 

[FluffedMojo]

I wish I knew that, at 5 years old, Disney would eventually become an obsession of mine...and 15 years or so later, I'd find this forum and upgrade to a certifiable addiction.

 

[scottishduffy]

How to eat solid food and how to crawl.

I believe my parents took me on my first trip when I was a couple months old!