When Did You Tell Your Kids and How?

[SpringSprite]

our first trip, I told them by putting putting a word scramble in a Disney box and wrapped it and put it under the Christmas tree. They had to unscramble the words "we are going to Disney". My son read it as "we are going to Denny's" and was jumping up and down. When I corrected him and said try again and they figured out Disney, then they were really jumping up and down.

this is SO funny!!!

 

[GaSleepingBeautyFan]

We always told them the month we were going and we never did anything special. I guess I just didn't have the imagination or energy for it. LOL

 

[Mama2girlz]

We arrive on October 14th our two girls have no idea. They know we are going but think it's still two years away.
Our plan is to "mail" a letter to the girls from the Princesses inviting them to come visit them. The letter will arrive the morning we else for the airport.

 

[jtowntoflorida]

Well, I almost got forced into telling my daughter tonight because our MBs arrived and she opened the box! Luckily, we have a known trip planned for December, and I told her that Disney must be sending bands out really early now!

But for anyone going and staying onsite...I think having your kids open the MB box would be a great way to reveal the trip. The timing is good (we're 26 days out) and it's an easy thing to do.

 

[Altoqueenkelly]

We have gone with my daughter twice so she knows all about WDW, she's actually been asking me lately when we are going back..... Lol.... We are planning on surprising her on wend sept 10 at about 4am! she is seven, so not very clock dependent.... I plan to tell her to get up for school as normal.... Have a big box of balloons waiting in the living room with Disney goodies and a shirt saying "I'm going to Disney".... We're even working on a little video to play with pictures of past trips and music while this is going on.... When the balloon fly out of the box there will be a letter saying surprise on it. We will then tell her to put on her shirt and get in the car (bags put in the car the night before) because we are going to go get on our plane and go to Disney today


I fully expect her to explode!

 

[blueiis99]

We have gone with my daughter twice so she knows all about WDW, she's actually been asking me lately when we are going back..... Lol.... We are planning on surprising her on wend sept 10 at about 4am! she is seven, so not very clock dependent.... I plan to tell her to get up for school as normal.... Have a big box of balloons waiting in the living room with Disney goodies and a shirt saying "I'm going to Disney".... We're even working on a little video to play with pictures of past trips and music while this is going on.... When the balloon fly out of the box there will be a letter saying surprise on it. We will then tell her to put on her shirt and get in the car (bags put in the car the night before) because we are going to go get on our plane and go to Disney today I fully expect her to explode!

I hope you get it on video. What a treasured memory that will become!!

 

[Frozen2014]

Thank you for all the responses. From other threads, I thought we were in the less common group of not telling our kids yet (e.g. with suggestions such as showing them a particular ride on YouTube), but it sounds like a lot of you wait until close to the date. I soooo can't wait to tell them and let them share the excitement..but probably in another 4 weeks or so.

 

[BrownHP800]

We plan on surprising our 13yr old son this year. Since he will not be able to wrestle this year because of a dislocated shoulder (twice). We are going the week before Christmas. It will be an early present for him. Since he is such a sports nut and we are huge Eagles fans, I was thinking of surprising him the day before we leave. I am going to say something like "Wouldn't it be neat to watch the Eagles/Cowboys game at ESPN club in Disney?" When he says yes I will be Like ok let's leave tomorrow. He won't believe me. I will then have him open up the magic bands then he gets 2nd surprise. He will notice 4 magic bands and I am sure will ask who that is for. His older brother who is in college is going with us. Might be our last family vacation with just the 4 of us. He will be very surprised. It's been a tough year for him and he deserves it.

 

[FiggyFan]

We are going in Nov this year, taking our 6yo GS. I plan on picking him up at his house at the time he should be getting on the school bus; asking him if he wants to play hookie for a couple of days and have go somewhere fun with Grandma & Grandpa. Bet he won't guess where we are going until we pull up to the airport.

 

[Altoqueenkelly]

We plan on surprising our 13yr old son this year. Since he will not be able to wrestle this year because of a dislocated shoulder (twice). We are going the week before Christmas. It will be an early present for him. Since he is such a sports nut and we are huge Eagles fans, I was thinking of surprising him the day before we leave. I am going to say something like "Wouldn't it be neat to watch the Eagles/Cowboys game at ESPN club in Disney?" When he says yes I will be Like ok let's leave tomorrow. He won't believe me. I will then have him open up the magic bands then he gets 2nd surprise. He will notice 4 magic bands and I am sure will ask who that is for. His older brother who is in college is going with us. Might be our last family vacation with just the 4 of us. He will be very surprised. It's been a tough year for him and he deserves it.

I love this

 

[marchingstar]

I love this thread! My partner and I are planning on kids, but none yet. These stories make my heart feel warm, both at the thought of bringing my kids one day, and because they remind me of my first trip to Disney (in my case it was Disneyland). This method could definitely be adapted for folks driving to WDW.

My parents told my siblings and I (at the time we were 8, 8, 6, and 2) that we were going on a road trip, which we did during most summer vacations. They told us that at each stop we could decide if we liked where we were and wanted to stay, or if we wanted to keep on driving. The trip from where I grew up to DL is a long drive (just shy of 3000 km), so there were many points where we stopped on the way. At each place my parents asked what we thought, and each time we said we wanted to keep driving to somewhere new (of course, this was their plan, but we thought it was an aimless road trip). Finally, driving into Anaheim, I saw a sign for DL and asked my dad about it. He nonchalantly said we were close, and asked if we wanted to spend a few days there. My siblings and I lost it, we were so excited. And because my parents had planned it, they got it all on tape. I've been to DL and WDW many times since, but I'll never forget the excitement of that first trip.

 

[practicallyperfect77]

What a great thread! I'm taking my niece and nephews at the end of Oct. we'll hit the beach too. Kids know we're going and I even told them the month, but they don't really have a concept of time. I am trying to think of a fun way of letting them know. I like the idea of having characters write them letters.

 

[AliceinMaryland]

The first time they knew we were planning a trip but a few weeks beforehand we stopped talking about it. Woke them up at 4am and said surprise we are leaving today and they kind of just slowly happily woke up. Meanwhile I was jumping up and down hollering! Not the reaction I was hoping for.

The second time was a trip planned in less than 2 months and they were a part of the process so no surprises.

This time I'm going to get them good! They know we are planning a trip but we've told them since May, that it won't be until next year(it's really in sept). I have 2 ideas. I've already planted the idea in their head that daddy may have a business trip in FL and that we might go with him. He doesn't really, but it's believable because he does on occasion go. We told them it's nowhere near Disney so don't get excited LOL. We were thinking of telling them somewhere between getting off the plane and ME but I'm not sure how magical I can make the announcement standing in a terminal with a bunch of other people around hustleing to their planes and bags. Idea 2 is to make a scavenger hunt around the house. I would give them the first clue and they have to hunt for the next one which will have a puzzle piece with it. After they find all the clues and puzzle pieces I'm going to have them put together the picture side of the puzzle(the other side will just be words). Probably a pic of something not too obviously disney related. Then we will tape it together good enough to have it stay together and flip it over. The other side will read something like "we're going to Disney in 3 days!!!".

 

[JosieMouse]

Told them the day I started planning. They have known for over 3 years. Didn't do it in a special way or anything.

 

[kimieko]

My husband and I are taking our nephew, 4, in September. We told him when we booked it last July! Next time I will tell him about 2 weeks out. I have had over a year of "auntie, are we going to Disney World tomorrow?" We have taken him to a couple of local amusement parks and he always gets out of the car and say " is this Disney World". I feel bad for torturing the poor kid for over a year! Thankfully we are now only 6 weeks out so I made him a countdown calendar so he can visually see how many more days.

 

[Frozen2014]

Such wonderful responses (OP here)

I should add that although we haven't told them, we wondered if our DS overheard us, since we'll openly talk about it when they are in the next room (but our rooms are open to each other). And dh has even slipped in his speech at the dinner table a few times, and quickly correctly himself. But then last week DS commented how his friend wasn't returning for second month of camp. I asked what they were doing and he said "I think they're travelling, and even going to Disney World. I hope we can go someday, but I know you said not for a few years until xx (his little sister) is a few years older". Can't wait to break the news!

 

[Mousemommy1]

We go every year, and they know even before we book. They help decide which resort we are staying at and meals (and now FP's). I booked for next year this past week and picked the kids up from work and they asked "did you get the CR for April?" (I did) and they were happy.

We surprised once a few years ago and they found out on Christmas morning for a Feb trip....it was kind of a less than expected reaction, but the video is hilarious!

 

[wcurry66]

My DD is adopted; her BB was not. We try to keep them together as much as possible. last November, we were brain storming on Christmas gifts she could get her brother. I suggested that we could take him on a family trip and asked her if she thought he'd like WDW (I'd already gotten approval from his dad).

We put the card in a box with hot sauces (he likes spicy food)

We spent a couple weeks working on a cards, maps, suggestions. DD was so focused on making a great gift for her brother, I'm not sure if it sunk in that she was going back (she went when she was 5.. she's almost 10 now).

On Christmas eve, we gave him the box. He was so disappointed at the hot sauces, that he missed the card. His sister gave it to him.. and ended up reading it because he was still bummed about the hot sauces.

He payed it cool, but he did tip his hand for about a second

 

[acmmommymouse]

My daughter and I took my granddaughter(5 at the time) for her first trip to WDW last Jan (2014). We had made a calendar for her and we gave it to her 100 days out when we told her about her trip. Each month of the calendar had a collage of pictures from a particular area of WDW...Each of the parks,Resorts, Christmas in the World for the month of December, pics of Disney transportation one month, including a plane from the airline she would be going on. Then we gave her enough Disney stickers to put one on each day as they would go by. She had so much fun with this. I think she loves that calendar more now after the trip. She loves looking at all of the pictures now that she really understands what they are having seen them now.
Oh, how I wish it were a year ago and we were planning it again....but we will be back!! She had so much fun. Such special memories. We were just with her for the day at a local theme park. After spending the entire day there she says, "This is the best day ever.......except for when we were in Walt Disney World".

 

[trk1983]

Ill be arriving to WDW on Wednesday. I booked 6 months ago and kids still dont know. I came to the realization that if I told them they would constantly be asking all kinds of questions about it. I prefer the element of surprise and love seeing reactions when people are suprised. Over the past few months ive been buying the kids clues. They know we are going on vacation they just dont know where to. Ive bought them binoculars, glow sticks, mr and mrs potato heads, vhs movies...yes we still use them in our house....all the disney vhs movies to watch one every weekend, just to prep them and give them something to look forward to. I realized that someone before arriving to WDW would spoil the surprise so the tuesday before we leave will be the big reveal. Were watching Toy Story...im telling the kids I have a surprise...ima blindfold them...put on their magic bands....and push play on the disney vacation planning video...then remove their blindfolds to reveal the surprise. When they ask when we leave Ima tell them...tonight 3am. Ive enjoyed the last 6 months. No questions from kids and anticipation has built up IM FREAKING EXCITED NOW!