What's Your Shortest Time...

[AmyBWV99]

Between deciding to go to WDW and leaving? Ours is 2 weeks. We had some friends who were going over spring break a few years ago and, at the last minute (last minute to us, anyway), invited us along. In those 2 weeks, we had to book airfare, a rental car and our room, which was no small feat. It was hectic and we had no plans (no ADRs,etc) but ended up being one of the best trips we've had.

Who else has a story?

 

[jag90]

Well we're only 2 hours away, so we are at a little different situation. We have decided and left within a couple hours before.

 

[a*lil*bit*goofy]

i believe it was 3 or 4 weeks for me. 4 weeks. yes. my friend and i went over labour day weekend, just before i started my last year of highschool. missed the first 2 days. (was a good student, got caught up immediately.)

we went in to the travel agent and said here we are. lets do either Dixie Landings or Port orleans. Let's fly from Ottawa. Let's get transfers. and then all i had to do was book the hoop de doo revue!

 

[BamaFan121s]

2 weeks before last T'giving. We weren't going to go at first b/c I'd just started a new job and couldn't get the whole week off. Then my mom called me one day at lunch and said, "Do you want to go to WDW for T'giving? I just don't think I could stand not going. We could leave Tues night and stay in a value resort." So I said, "OK." Within an hour we had rooms booked.

Coolest part was, we didn't tell my then 4yo DD. We told her we were going to watch a cousin play football a looooong way away. She believed us and all of a sudden we pulled through the gates and she got real quiet and said, "That's a Disney World sign." more silence, looking around, sees a bus, "That's a Disney world bus!" more silence, then, "Are...are....are we in Disney World?" What a surprise for her!

 

[rlovew]

We live about 2 hours and sometimes wake up and decide to go on a day trip. We have also woken up and called and decided to go to a hotel for that night but our first time doing that was last month.

 

[Sabbie]

*grins* We live two hours away also, so we make many random trips out of sheer boredom.. No hotel needed, or anything like that. Wake up at 6am, get to Orlando, park, run in and have some fun.. leave after the park closes, grab some energy drinks and snacks at Rest Areas.. drive home. We usually get home around 1am, when we hea dback.

It's pretty darn fun.

 

[Praise2Him]

Also 2 weeks (from yesterday!)

DS17 has a friend in Deltona (about an hour from Orlando). They went to NYFA film camp at WDW this summer and several of the group are getting together Oct. 13 - 14.

We have AP's, so DH said, "Sure, go ahead!" I called yesterday and was able to get an AP discount at AS Sports! I'm not making any ADR's since it's such a short trip (3 nights) and we were just there Sept. 6 - 13 on the dining plan.

We're crazy (about WDW!), but it's fun! It also helps that we homeschool, so we're flexible about when we can go!

 

[shelleyr25]

We just planned our recent Labor Day trip the begining of August. My kids had never been and I just woke up one Saturday and said "lets take them to Disney for Labor Day weekend".We were able to get some reasonable flights on JetBlue so dh said "okay!!".
It actually worked out great. There happened to be a coupon code so we saved a bunch of $ and we all had a blast without the waiting, waiting, waiting for the trip to arrive.

 

[kaddjr]

Oh how I would love to live close to Orlando! There are just a few minor things keeping me from moving there like snakes, gators, bugs, hurricanes, housing costs, high insurance for housing... If it weren't for those things, I'd move in a heartbeat!

Anyhow, the shortest time for us was approximately 5 weeks from day one of planning to day of departure. We wanted to stay at ASMu and there was availability when I first started checking around. I made the mistake of not booking it right then and there (we were going the week of July 4th), thinking it would be there a few days later when I had everything planned out in my head. Wrong! So we booked a room offsite and got tickets through TM. Then DH started complaining about not having the DP. So I ran the numbers (all values and mods sold out) and we ended up at WL for that week. It was one of our best trips! Our other two trips were planned no more than ten weeks out. I would love to swing a trip right after this coming New Year as part of our Christmas presents to the kids, but can't see that happening w/o going into debt. I won't do that, so our next trip will most likely be in late Dec 07/Jan 08.

 

[engle]

10 months!!! I am a PLANNER!! I would love to do a spontaneous trip someday....HOW fun!! No hotel, no park tix, no itinerary, no ADR's!!

I think I'll plan that!!

 

[phantom728]

I'd say about 2 weeks as well for was our shortest planning that required flights. In Aug 2003, we received an email from Universal about great military rates (hotel and free tickets) and decided to utilize Labor Day weekend for our travels. We lucked out and got great airfare, plus SeaWorld was having their Military Salute, so free tickets there as well.

It was a great spur of the moment trip and much needed as DH was only home for 6 weeks inbetween lengthy military schools. Sometimes these trips are the best

 

[goofy4tink]

6 days!!! I saw a terrific Southwest fare in Aug '05....my dd and I had no plans, so I surprised her with a trip to WDW. Booked it on a Sat. flew on Friday...it was very cool.

 

[Bob P]

In August of 2004, we (my wife and two teens plus our best friends and their three teens) were supposed to go to Captiva Island for a week beginning Saturday, August 21.

On Friday, August 13, Hurricane Charley wiped out Captiva. It took us about a day to realize that the trip was not going to happen. So we shifted into high gear, made hotel reservations and ADRs on Sunday, and left six days later. We didn't change our flights..we flew into Fort Myers, rented two cars (we were going to rent the cars anyway) and drove up to WDW.

Boy, was that a unique experience for us...we usually have our WDW trips planned at least a year in advance!

 

[DisneyFan06]

*grins* We live two hours away also, so we make many random trips out of sheer boredom.. No hotel needed, or anything like that. Wake up at 6am, get to Orlando, park, run in and have some fun.. leave after the park closes, grab some energy drinks and snacks at Rest Areas.. drive home. We usually get home around 1am, when we hea dback.

It's pretty darn fun.

An hour away for me! But we have the same belief as you. Leave at 6 am return at 1 am

 

[Deesknee]

3 days. I saw the airfares were really low once. Checked to see if we could get a hotel. Made reservations on Thursday, left on Saturday! Yah! It was awesome. Flew Jetblue, stayed at POR. even got a rental van for a decent price!

 

[Quinn222]

Add me to the two hours away crowd. It makes a spontaneous day trip pretty easy.

 

[B'rer Karen]

2 weeks here. In 2003 I had already gone in March (which was a somewhat spontaneous trip in and of itself) and had plans to go in Sept. and Oct. In late May a good friend of mine who lived in CT at the time called to say she, her husband and their 2 boys (one of whom is my godson) were going to WDW for a week in June. They were originally going to call me and ask if they could spend the night on their way down (I live in NC) as they hadn't seen me in awhile, hadn't seen my new home, and they could use a driving break. But then they realized "Hey, Karen has an AP. Maybe she'll want to go with us." So they called and asked and my first repsonse was yes but then I realized I had to check how much vacation time I had left and see what I could get off of work. I could only take 3 days off, but that was workable. They were able to book me a room at the Dolphin with their miltary discount so they took care of that. We drove so no airfare to work around. And we made just a couple of PS that we wanted. Luckily there were two of us to do the planning and she already had a headstart. It was such a different trip for me because I got to be with the kids (normally I'm at WDW solo or with other adults) and with 3 other trips that year, I really wasn't concerend about what I did and didn't do. It was just about being with my friends. And it really was an enjoyable trip. I would love to be spontaneous again, but generally it is my job that prevents that.

 

[mommyesq]

Two days from NY - a friend and her family were going - husband could not go so I agreed to go with her to help drive with her and her two kids..this was my first trip about 10 years ago and the rest is history....

 

[cranbiz]

Last trip to Disney, about 10 minutes from thought to go.

We are only 30 to 45 minutes away when we are at the FL house (soon to be the only house)

Living that close has it's advantages. If we have nothing going on it's "How about going to EPCOT for a beer and Illuminations?"

 

[Evil Queen]

My DS10 was just invited "officially" last night to go to 1 day at MK and 1 day at SeaWorld. It's been talked about for a couple of weeks. We just returned last week from our family vacation week there. But he was invited this time by his Grandma and Aunt.

They just pulled out of the driveway to go. So I was up this morning packing his stuff again.