Why do people plan?

[piccolopat]

Planning makes sense for families that have never been to the parks or have only been once or twice years ago. For many of us, we go every year or two, some even more frequently, and to me that removes the obsession for getting every "E" ticket, best restaurants and other experiences. Personally, I'm just glad not to be at work and can happily spend the day just wandering the parks and hitting anything with a short line. I'm also personally fine with a quick service meal if no table service restaurants have availability when I get hungry. My DH on the other hand likes the structure of a plan and wants to be sure he has a place to sit down and eat so for us ADRs are the way to go but as long as we have one, he doesn't really care where it is. Thankfully I like to plan.

 

[mindeola]

I plan so that we aren't standing around wondering what to do. I do this for any vacation. More so with Disney. Vacation is a lot of hard earned money. I do not want to have regrets or wasted time because of a lack of planning. I do not care if people do not plan, but please do not tell me you hated Disney and did not get to do anything when I suggested you make some FP and a few ADR's.

The exception to this is the beach trip we take every year. No plans. We totally and completely relax.

 

[Hikergirl]

Because chaos isn't the most efficient or effective way to spend precious and hard-earned leisure time.

Not planning doesn't always equal chaos.
It may for you (general you) but that has nothing to do with the lack of planning, it has everything to do with your personality.
For me, and my dh, enjoying our precious hard earned leisure time means just going with the flow.

 

[BeerMe]

 

[JimmyV]

Not planning doesn't always equal chaos.
It may for you (general you) but that has nothing to do with the lack of planning, it has everything to do with your personality.
For me, and my dh, enjoying our precious hard earned leisure time means just going with the flow.

Again, I think that there is a tendency to fail to separate the needs and wants of first-time guests (or people who have only gone a few times) from the needs and wants of habitual guests. Think for a moment what a visit would be like if a person who had never stepped foot on property tried to "go with the flow" as you and your husband do. I can't for the life of me imagine how overwhelming everything would be. Going with the flow is a great strategy for the well-seasoned guest. I think it can lead to disappointment for others. Unless, of course, they come in with very low expectations. It is easy to meet low expectations if one goes with the flow. The unspoken truth here is that we discuss all people as if they are monolithic when they are not. A first time guest who has one day alloted to Epcot and who has no interest in riding Soarin', Test Track, Frozen Ever After, and meeting A&E can easily meet those expectations by going with the flow. But a first time guest who has allocated one day to Epcot who wants to do all of those things had better plan. Going with the flow won't get them there. Or if it does, it will get them there at the expense of doing anything else that day. So unless we first get a handle on people's expectations, we can't fully understand whether making a plan is a necessary or unnecessary thing.

 

[Hikergirl]

Again, I think that there is a tendency to fail to separate the needs and wants of first-time guests (or people who have only gone a few times) from the needs and wants of habitual guests. Think for a moment what a visit would be like if a person who had never stepped foot on property tried to "go with the flow" as you and your husband do. I can't for the life of me imagine how overwhelming everything would be. Going with the flow is a great strategy for the well-seasoned guest. I think it can lead to disappointment for others. Unless, of course, they come in with very low expectations. It is easy to meet low expectations if one goes with the flow. The unspoken truth here is that we discuss all people as if they are monolithic when they are not. A first time guest who has one day alloted to Epcot and who has no interest in riding Soarin', Test Track, Frozen Ever After, and meeting A&E can easily meet those expectations by going with the flow. But a first time guest who has allocated one day to Epcot who wants to do all of those things had better plan. Going with the flow won't get them there. Or if it does, it will get them there at the expense of doing anything else that day. So unless we first get a handle on people's expectations, we can't fully understand whether making a plan is a necessary or unnecessary thing.

Well to be fair the OP didn't ask why do first time guests not plan, she asked why people not plan. And the bolded is correct, which goes right along with what I said. Its really dependent on one's personality, your post about chaos made it seem like you are absolutely sure that anyone who doesn't plan will end up with a chaotic time during their precious hard earned vacation. Of course some will but some won't, even first timers.

 

[Magpie]

It's hardwired.

I like to ask questions. I like to know things. I compulsively research anything that interests me, however mildly. Trivia makes my toes curl with happiness.

So, I'm hardly going to say, "Let's go to Disney World!", hop in the car, and drive south until I get to Florida, expecting to figure things out when I get there. I'd find all that "not knowing" insanely stressful. It wouldn't be fun for me at all. Heck, even when I took a day trip to Fun Town/Splash Town, I downloaded a park map and tried to pick a day when I thought it'd be less crowded.

That said, I won't predict woe and ruin for anyone who does prefer the freewheelin' seat-of-the-pants approach. Each to their own! My brain just doesn't work like that.

 

[JimmyV]

your post about chaos made it seem like you are absolutely sure that anyone who doesn't plan will end up with a chaotic time during their precious hard earned vacation.

You are losing me here. I was answering for myself. No one can possibly answer the question in a universal sense intending their answer to apply to "anyone" or everyone". Perhaps you read my post as intending to be universal?

 

[Hikergirl]

You are losing me here. I was answering for myself. No one can possibly answer the question in a universal sense intending their answer to apply to "anyone" or everyone". Perhaps you read my post as intending to be universal?

Yes I did, sorry.

 

[redsbe]

I plan simply because I have limited time in the parks (4-5 days) and only visit once every 2-3 years, so I have expectations to be able to experience the attractions and entertainment that I enjoy and look forward to. With the size of the parks, so many things to see and do, and most importantly the large number of park visitors most days of the year, some advance planning is necessary so that I can have the WDW experience (FPs, other kid attractions, show times, avoid non-recommended parks by crowd calendars). Once I have selected dates, and booked tickets/resort, the only real planning is booking my FPs at 60 days out. I do not plan detailed schedules for each park day, simply work around FP, plan on RD and perhaps evening EMHs, list of preferred counter service for lunch and dinner, and remain flexible during the day as weather, closures and crowds require change in plans.

Why are some people so critical of non-planners - well in many cases it is because are those people who complain afterwards how busy it was, they never got to see everything, spent hours in line, could not get on a ride or into an attraction, would never go to WDW again. Frankly if you feel no need to plan and can still have the experience you enjoy, more power to you.

 

[loves to dive]

There's a world of difference between planning and researching. By researching, you can decide how much you want to "plan".

This. I research just about everything from the workout DVD I plan on buying to the best price for gas. That is pretty much the extent of my planning though. When it comes to vacations, including WDW, I'll research for best prices, I'll look at reviews for hotels and dive operators, I'll look for new and different things to do and then go with whatever I feel like doing that day. I know I have options and what the options are. I rarely make ADRs more than a day in advance at WDW, usually it's day of. I rarely make FPs more than a week in advance, usually the night before and often I'm changing them on the go in the parks or cancelling them all together.

 

[disneylove16]

No one here is going on your vacation with you, so you do what's right for you. That said, this is a Disney forum, with useful information and helpful people. I think a good amount of people visit this website to plan their vacation. So that may be why it seems like the "to plan or not to plan" question seems so one sided. I don't think people are "stupid or bad" for not planning. I think a lot of posters just want to help others save time or money on their trip. Especially since that's why a lot of people visit this website.

 

[Pmlocke]

I'm sorry but I still don't understand the fear of, or better yet, stress over planning a disney vacation. My wife and I go every year, usually the end of February and beginning of March. We sit down and decide where we would like to dine each night and we also choose our resort and then we are done. Time it takes to do all of this "Planning" is usually 15 minutes. I then call the disney number and talk to a very nice person who takes my information concerning hotel rooms, park passes and dining reservations. The call usually last anywhere from 15 to 20 minutes. That's it. No drama, no sweating over the details, no frustration. In about 30 minutes my 8 day vacation is all planned. I am one of the lucky ones because this trip is always just my wife and my self. We are both in our 60's so we don't sweat the fast pass thing. We are there when crowds are usually smaller in size in comparison to summer vacations or holiday. When we walk pass a ride or attraction, if the wait is more than 15 minutes we just keep walking. I'm not saying this to cause anyone angry feelings or shouts of "oh yeah, well try telling that to my kids".. I am just trying to let you all know that there is a rainbow in your future. Just wait until you get to visit the parks without family, without children. It is a whole different vacation. I have visited many times with my children and grand children and I cherish those visits but nothing compares to just me and my wife enjoying the day at Disney, just the two of us. One of these days, you will too.

 

[cobright]

I think it is easy to internalize the criticisms of others. In polite conversation there are certain allowances that get made as a matter of grace to one's speaking partner.

Figures of speech, some generalizations, even basic approximations of facts are all things we all do during informal conversation. We hear them, and because we are having a polite and friendly conversation, we do our best to take what is said in the best possible light.

Say a pal is having a lousy streak finding a girlfriend and says, "Women just don't know what they want in a relationship." It's unspoken, but we all accept that what he or she means is "Lately, the women I have been meeting don't know..." We don't necessarily agree with our pal's conclusion here but we also don't take his statement to actually be an indictment of all women everywhere. If he says he was in line at the DMV for 5 hours when in reality it was more like 45 minutes, unless he's trying to establish an alibi, we allow it as a matter of dramatic license.

So when someone, relating their personal observations of people rolling into WDW without doing much prior planning speaks generally about those people as being clueless; we, as people who also do little planning for similar trips, are obliged to accept that this person is relating a specific experience as it appears to them, is not saying that everyone who does this is clueless, and is at worst simply wrong about the matter (something they are entitled to be) and not intentionally offensive.

 

[DisneyMom111]

It's hardwired.

I like to ask questions. I like to know things. I compulsively research anything that interests me, however mildly. Trivia makes my toes curl with happiness.

So, I'm hardly going to say, "Let's go to Disney World!", hop in the car, and drive south until I get to Florida, expecting to figure things out when I get there. I'd find all that "not knowing" insanely stressful. It wouldn't be fun for me at all. Heck, even when I took a day trip to Fun Town/Splash Town, I downloaded a park map and tried to pick a day when I thought it'd be less crowded.

That said, I won't predict woe and ruin for anyone who does prefer the freewheelin' seat-of-the-pants approach. Each to their own! My brain just doesn't work like that.

This is me to a tee! I 100% agree. I NEED to plan. It's just who I am. But I don't fault anyone who doesn't do it the way I do.

 

[Pmctn]

Everyone plans, the only thing in question is how much. I prefer more people not plan as much as me. It allows me to take advantage of their inefficiency and do more.

 

[lynch34]

WDW is way too expensive to waste time in lines if there's a better way.

 

[Barnabas T Bullion]

I'd just like to point out, if you're replying to the OP in any way, you have missed the point of his post.

Carry on.

 

[xlsm]

Planning means different things to different people. Just making the decision to go to WDW at all is a plan for some people. Having a detailed minute by minute itinerary is planning to others.

For me, for any trip to any location, understanding and knowing what I want to do, how things work once you're there, how to get from point A to point B are all basic planning points.

I think the problem lies in one major thing - complaining. When people don't have a basic knowledge of Disney parks by even just a quick look-see around the Disney websites (just talking a basic perusing, mind you, not the Disboards or blogs like EasyWDW or Kenny or PrepSchool), claiming they didn't know about dining reservations or FPs, when it's all there if you take the time to look, that's when frequent visitors get up in arms about "planning". It doesn't mean scheduling your life away, it's simply being aware in general of what to expect.

I never tell anyone (out loud, lol) that they're doing things the "wrong" way, because each person wants different things out of their trip. But doing some measure of "planning", however you define it, is a responsible thing to do in my opinion. Even if the only thing you know is what time the parade rolls by, if it's a priority for you.

 

[fbb]

I guess I don't 'have' to plan, but I don't know what the hell else I would do at work all day.