When was your first visit to the World?

[d1gitman]

1984....my parents drove non-stop from NH to WDW. We stayed about 30min outside of Disney property at some el cheapo hotel. I remember driving through orange groves, taking an airboat ride, getting tons of t-shirts (muscle shirts) at vendors on the side of the road.

Epcot seemed so modern back then. Wish i had been back before the major changes started happening because i have vague memories of the attractions that are no longer.

 

[wdwrich]

It's wonderful hearing all about your first visits. Keep them coming!

 

[fitzperry]

October or November 1971, very shortly after it opened. Stayed at the CR. I was 4 and thought the monorail going through the building was the most amazing thing I'd ever seen. I was hooked. . . I also remember being convinced 20,000 Leagues was a real sub

Our second trip was 4 or 5 years later. We rented a big RV with my parents' best friends and planned to stay at Fort Wilderness but the RV broke down and we ended up borrowing an old station wagon from a relative in Ocala (think the Vista Cruiser from That 70's Show) and all 8 of us piled in. It must have been quite a sight. We ended up at a Howard Johnson's until the RV was repaired and we could move to FW. The best part was that in all the confusion no one noticed until checkout that we overstayed our reservation by a day! I remember loving River Country and Pirates on that trip.

 

[Pakey]

August 1977. I went with my first husband and his children. We stayed at CR.

I grew up going to Disneyland and my most vivid memory of WDW on that first visit was how the monorail went through the hotel. MK is a disappointment compared to DLR but I thought the CR with the monorail going through was pretty impressive.

 

[wdwrich]

I remember loving River Country and Pirates on that trip.

Yeah- I thought River Country was the bomb back then too. Do you remember the "Mickey Mouse Review" in MK? We almost skipped it because we thought it would be lame. Not! It was a great show.

 

[fitzperry]

Yeah- I thought River Country was the bomb back then too. Do you remember the "Mickey Mouse Review" in MK? We almost skipped it because we thought it would be lame. Not! It was a great show.

I don't remember that . . . I did love the Country Bears though

 

[jdrais]

Around February or March of 1980 my high school band got to march in one of the parades. Disney was having some sort of competition where bands were judged over various weekends. Disney still had the A - E tickets at the time. Each band member got a book of tickets for marching. EPCOT Center was just being built.
We stayed off site at a Days Inn.

My first time on a plane too, I led a sheltered life.

 

[Music City Mama]

Summer 1972

Ditto. Then once or twice every year after that for many years. After grad nite, I took a break for a few years, then a pretty long break between my honeymoon and having kids. Going once a year again now, but will go twice this year.

 

[DisneyMim]

It was in the early 1970's. The one and only time we stayed offsite. We drove from Ma, again the one and only time, and we had a real budget. I have been crazy about Micky forever, but I had to wait until I was an adult to go myself because my family never went. I never looked back. We were one of the first to buy into DVC in 1991 and have been down there too many times to count. I remember having dinner at the Crystal Palace which was a cafeteria style place and thinking it was so awesome!! As others said it was only the MK and the Poly, CR, Fort Wilderness and Disney Inn. I remember thinking I would never be able to go and stay onsite. I looked at those resorts as soo out of our reach. We've come a long way!!

Enjoy The Magic!!

 

[GovieMom]

Late October of 1973. Things I remember about the MK: A booklet of A thru E tickets. Having a cafeteria-style breakfast at the Crystal Palace. Mr. Toad's Wild Ride, and 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea. Being the only two people in the Tiki Birds room. Carousel of Progress was sponsored by Monsanto. And sharing the Skyway ride with a couple seated across from us who were celebrating their 10th anniversary.

 

[BlueStarryHat]

October 1992. I went with my mother and my sister's mother-in-law (who was my Mom's best friend) and two of my sister's sisters-in-law. MIL was petrified of flying so we all went by Amtrak from Philadelphia to Orlando-in coach! What a day and night *that* was. We had no plans...didn't know you needed them...there was no such thing as Fastpass anyway. We stayed at the Polynesian and I remember our first ride was 20,000 Leagues Under The Sea. Our first meal was at Tony's Town Square. What I remember chiefly about this trip was that 1) I was hooked forever, and 2) My sister's mother-in-law was an enormous PITA.

 

[knkmom]

My very first Disneyland trip was at Christmas in 1981. My family had moved from Kansas to So Cal earlier that year. We've been to DL many many times since but that first time will forever be my most memorable visit!! Our first (and only so far) trip to WDW was in June of 2009. We were celebrating our daughter's college graduation! It was an amazing time but it flew by way to quickly. We are going back in May 2015 when dh and I will be celebrating our 30th anniversary!!

 

[DVCismyhappyplace]

The summer of 1976 - right after the bicentennial. We rented trailer and stayed at Fort Wilderness. It was also my first time on an airplane. I was just about to turn 8. I remember taking the boat over from Fort Wilderness to Disney World and standing at the gates buying tickets (the book of A-E tickets). We went to the Hoop De Doo, River Country, and Discovery Island. I also remember seeing the show at the Diamond Horseshoe.

The Haunted Mansion was the first ever ride I was on in Disney World. "Santa" left my sister and I the Haunted Mansion board game for Christmas before we went. When we found out we were going to Disney, that's all the two of us talked about was going to the Haunted Mansion and riding a "Doom Buggy." To this day, more trips than I can possibly count, HM is still the first ride I go on every trip!

 

[monorailsilver]

June 1975.

My parents was friends with someone who had a brother or a brothers cousins best friends mothers son (you get the drift) who was working/building at WDW.

So that person was able to get us a room, 2 actually since my cousins came as well at the Polynesian & the then Golf Resort (my mom said that was a nice place to stay).

We had our room facing the castle so I assume we were in the now Hawaii building. I was 3 1/2 so my memory is sketchy. But I remember watching the fireworks from our room/bed & my mom shutting the curtain because it was bed time & I swear the fireworks were still going on. My sisters & dad & my cousin & her dad were all at the MK having fun & myself & my cousin had to go to bed & hung out with our moms...geesh...

 

[thehowells]

i was born sept 27 74, my parents say we went just before i turned 4 and my mom is a teacher, so that would likely be july/aug 78 pre-epcot

i have very vague memories of that trip, i remember 20,000 leagues, i remember getting a ear hat, and i remember my dad getting pulled over by the police because our rental car had expired tags
it was offsite for sure, i want to say in kississimee

so when we went in 2008, it was indeed seeing the park for the first time
we are 70 days away from our 6th trip from canada no less in 5.5 years

 

[DisneyAllyC]

i was born sept 27 74, my parents say we went just before i turned 4 and my mom is a teacher, so that would likely be july/aug 78 pre-epcot

i have very vague memories of that trip, i remember 20,000 leagues, i remember getting a ear hat, and i remember my dad getting pulled over by the police because our rental car had expired tags
it was offsite for sure, i want to say in kississimee

so when we went in 2008, it was indeed seeing the park for the first time
we are 70 days away from our 6th trip from canada no less in 5.5 years

I was 6. February 1998. I was afraid of everything except Its a Small World

 

[Luv Bunnies]

September 1991. DH and I had been married for 3 years and wanted to get some traveling in before having kids (first one came in 1995). We stayed at CBR for 9 nights. We did all 3 parks (no AK at the time), Typhoon Lagoon, Hoop de Doo and went out to Kennedy Space Center. Fun!

We didn't go again until December 2006 when our boys were 8 and 11. It's a cross-country fight for us so we waited until the kids were older. We spent 10 nights at Pop and flew home on Christmas Day. We also took them to Kennedy, which they loved.

Our next trip will be in 3 weeks! Our boys are now 18 and 14 (almost 15). We're staying 10 nights in a townhome at Windsor Hills, doing 7 park days and a few free days. My sister is joining us for 6 days and she's never been to WDW. Looking forward to it!!!!

 

[RnbwSktles]

I wish I was one of those people that could remember the dates when things happened! I forget everything.

My first visit was around 1990 (could've been 91). I remember telling my kindergarten teacher that I was going, but I don't know if I was going that school year or the next Basically, I was 5 or 6.

We stayed off site and all I remember about the hotel is paddle boating on a small lake and seeing an alligator. My parents told me a lot of British people were staying at the hotel and by the end I had picked up an accent (this still happens!)

My only memory of the parks is waiting with my mom and brother while my dad rode space mountain. I have a very vague memory of a character breakfast. I DO remember getting these awesome hats made at school that we could get character's autographs on. The rim popped up and was decorated, the rest was plain white for autographs. Mine was New Kids on the Block, and my brother's Ninja Turtles

I honestly don't know how many times I've been to WDW. I know I went during the 25th Anniversary when the castle was a pink cake! We stayed off site again at Buena Vista Suites. This may have been the trip my parents bought a time share and we started going down every spring break. Sometimes we visited parks, sometimes just Downtown Disney.

My last "full" visit to the world was in April 2009. In October 2009 my brother and I went to MK just for MNSSHP. In 2012 my brother, husband and I just went to MK for one day. The 2012 trip ended up being very special as my mother passed away about a month later. It was our last vacation as a family.

I'm really overdue for my visit in January! AND I'm finally staying on-property!

 

[AngiTN]

Spring 1980. Epcot was under construction
First visit to DL was Jan 1978

 

[wdwrich]

Wow- the memories are amazing!

I had one of the A-E ticket books from our 1979 trip kicking around for years until I lost track of it. Hopefully I'll find it sitting in an old shoe box some day.