Why dont people plan?

[Araminta18]

To be fair, you can start booking your trip at a month out and still be able to get ADRs and fastpasses. I booked my first trip to DW almost exactly 30 days in advance earlier this year, and was able to get lunch at CRT, and a ppo ADR at BOG. We didn't get a FP for SDMT, but I didn't ever try for it after the first time, since I got the ppo ADR at BOG. So even if you don't book your trip a year in advance, or 180 days in advance, you can still get some of those hard to book things if you read and plan. I don't blame people for not booking months or years in advance, but I do blame them for not reading or even just looking around on the site--you're spending tons of money, do a bit of research!

 

[Mackenzie Click-Mickelson]

That's just a very naive person. Almost every theme park in America has a fast pass line.

Well Worlds of Fun (WOF) just got their "Fast Lane" in 2012. The ONLY reason WOF has it is because it's owned by Cedar Fair (since 1995) which launched Fast Lane to ALL of their parks in 2012. If Cedar Fair didn't own WOF then they more than likely wouldn't have a "Fast Lane" at all.

You're right. This is the reason why I'm in charge of our upcoming trip. I tried to sit down with MiL, FiL and DH and discuss the trip before our ADR date. They glazed over in about 10 minutes and just said "We trust you. Plan it". All FiL said was, "I don't want to stand in a lot of long lines". I started to go into FP and he just flapped his hand in the air! LOL

Yeah my husband and I (mostly me though) are in charge of all planning for our yearly trips we do with the in-laws. They are not planners and just go with the flow. The vast majority of the time they don't get worked up if they couldn't do this or couldn't do that. My husband likes to plan but not to the extent that I like to.

I'm not even discussing ANY real planning with my husband and in-laws for a bit (heck the ADRs at 180, FP+ at 60, etc is still a big overwhelming for me). I do plan on getting the 2016 vacation planning video as the in-laws haven't been in over 15 years (it will be 16 or 17 years by the time we go). We'll be booking our resort this September for September 2017 and I'll clue them in on a little bit of the planning.

I'm making us all go through and look and write down what rides/attractions/shows they must see, if time permits, and no (meaning no interest in)-though this will wait for around 3 or 4 months before the trip. I'm also having us go through ALL the dining options (though I've been through them all excluding Disney Springs and favorited the ones I think we'll be interested in) to come up with a list of options. I don't want to plan our trip around food but I do want to have a few ADRs just to alleviate some pressure on food options. That part of the planning will obviously need to be before 180 days. I don't think we'll want to go to BOG and some other high-demand places so it may not be necessary to plan at the exact 180 day mark but I would rather do that.

I know my in-laws will be more the whole "hey whatever you guys want to do or eat we'll be ok with" but that's not really going to work because if I'm the only one who wants to go on It's a Small World (which I have been on multiple times) then we can make better use of our time doing something different. If I'm the only one who wants to eat at a certain place then we can make better use of our time going somewhere else. We won't be doing our family any favors by waiting til we're actually in the park to figure out this stuff.

I have to be careful though not to overplan or make them feel like we're overplanned because to them that takes the fun out of things.

 

[whiporee]

I will add just because you CAN book dinner 180 days in advance, the normal person wouldn't think it's necessary to do so.

MG

When would a normal person plan to book a dinner? I can't get Hamilton tickets until January; my last attempt at Jimmy Buffett tickets were sold out six months before the show. I can't get into the Rainbow Room for New Year's Eve for three years. Things that are in demand tend to have a long wait.

And even if WDW shortened the window, it wouldn't help. There will always be someone who doesn't book early enough, no matter what the timeframe is. If it were 90 days, people would still consider that too far out. Like a PP said some people are frustrated that can't get same day or 24-hour reservations. And if they got rid of ADRs all together, you'd have lines outside restaurants starting at 9am.

The simple facts are that -- if you believe the TEA report -- more than 120,000 people move through the four park gates every day. That's the average. Those 120,000 people want to do the same things you do -- they want to see shows, ride rides, eat stuff. So when you're at Disney, that's the unfortunate way you have to think of it. There are too many people too assume casualness. So if there are specific things that anyone wants to do, it's not a reasonable expectation to think that those specific things are going to be available without some effort -- the competition to be entertained is too great.

That said, you can usually find a non-character meal with little advance notice. You can usually find a FP for anything other than the Mine Train (or the new Frozen ride) on the day of or the day before. And 90+ minute waits may suck, but they were the norm on a lot of rides when I was a kid, and still are at the amusement parks I've been to lately.

 

[21stamps]

Well Worlds of Fun (WOF) just got their "Fast Lane" in 2012. The ONLY reason WOF has it is because it's owned by Cedar Fair (since 1995) which launched Fast Lane to ALL of their parks in 2012. If Cedar Fair didn't own WOF then they more than likely wouldn't have a "Fast Lane" at all.

Yeah my husband and I (mostly me though) are in charge of all planning for our yearly trips we do with the in-laws. They are not planners and just go with the flow. The vast majority of the time they don't get worked up if they couldn't do this or couldn't do that. My husband likes to plan but not to the extent that I like to.

I'm not even discussing ANY real planning with my husband and in-laws for a bit (heck the ADRs at 180, FP+ at 60, etc is still a big overwhelming for me). I do plan on getting the 2016 vacation planning video as the in-laws haven't been in over 15 years (it will be 16 or 17 years by the time we go). We'll be booking our resort this September for September 2017 and I'll clue them in on a little bit of the planning.

I'm making us all go through and look and write down what rides/attractions/shows they must see, if time permits, and no (meaning no interest in)-though this will wait for around 3 or 4 months before the trip. I'm also having us go through ALL the dining options (though I've been through them all excluding Disney Springs and favorited the ones I think we'll be interested in) to come up with a list of options. I don't want to plan our trip around food but I do want to have a few ADRs just to alleviate some pressure on food options. That part of the planning will obviously need to be before 180 days. I don't think we'll want to go to BOG and some other high-demand places so it may not be necessary to plan at the exact 180 day mark but I would rather do that.

I know my in-laws will be more the whole "hey whatever you guys want to do or eat we'll be ok with" but that's not really going to work because if I'm the only one who wants to go on It's a Small World (which I have been on multiple times) then we can make better use of our time doing something different. If I'm the only one who wants to eat at a certain place then we can make better use of our time going somewhere else. We won't be doing our family any favors by waiting til we're actually in the park to figure out this stuff.

I have to be careful though not to overplan or make them feel like we're overplanned because to them that takes the fun out of things.

Six Flags parks have it as well.

Cedar Fair and Six Flags parks are "almost all amusement parks in America". In my opinion anyway. I don't know any other companies that are so dominant.

 

[fbarker]

This is actually a troubling sign to me about Disney....the fact that one needs to pre plan every aspect of a Disney vacation is something that is a creation really of the past decade and frankly, not an encouraging one.

When we first bought into DVC over 16 years ago, and going back to the trips we made from our honeymoon on 21 years ago....one could go to Disney and do SOME pre planning, but we could eat in the places we wanted to eat. We could change a reservation on the same day. when fast passes where introduced, you could walk up to a kiosk and get a reasonable hour. You could walk over to where a parade was and get a decent spot to watch. You could watch fireworks from just about any spot without needing a fastpass for a "premium" spot.

You could also decide at a spur of the moment to plan a 3 day trip, and be able to do the things tyou wanted to do....you could even...GASP...walk up to a restaurant and wait for a table.

The problem now is that a family who doesn't understand the things we understand, and doesn't do the massive amount of research necessary, walks into a buzzsaw of things they can access...It is easy for us to wag our finger and say they should have known better, but I have a great deal of sympathy for these folks, because i remember a better time when it wasn't like it is today

The reason for all this change and the need for planning is 20million visitors to the Magic Kingdom alone. That is significantly more people than 16years ago.

 

[Love Tink]

When would a normal person plan to book a dinner? I can't get Hamilton tickets until January; my last attempt at Jimmy Buffett tickets were sold out six months before the show. I can't get into the Rainbow Room for New Year's Eve for three years. Things that are in demand tend to have a long wait.

To answer your question, a normal person would plan to book a dinner the day of the dinner, or maybe the day before. A normal person would never assume they need to book any dinner six months in advance unless they were going to one of maybe 25 or 30 restaurants in the country. The ADR situation at WDW is what it is, but it is not normal.

It is also not normal to compare having a meal at a theme park with getting tickets for the most in-demand Broadway show in recent history. Most people do not think of concert or show tickets as the same as a theme park meal. That is the weird thinking that comes with being "into" Disney World, it isn't normal thinking.

 

[sturner324]

I'm thankful that my first trip to Disney was with my collage roommate who was a Disney pro (now cast member). I'm also thankful that I inherited my mother's gene of planning. Growing up we only ever went to Dollywood, but I remember my mom getting a map, making a list and planning out our day. Of course I took that planning instinct to a WHOLE new level and eventually took my mom to Disney. It's the circle of life.

I feel it is my duty to inform people on all things planning Disney if I hear they're taking a trip, haha. I just hate the idea of someone missing out or having a bad trip because of things they didn't know.

 

[mshanson3121]

Just got back from a great trip and was shocked to see how many people are clueless at Disneyworld. I dont mean that in a negative way. I just felt bad for people that they spent all this money and dont really know whats going on. Here's a couple examples...

1) SDMT - I saw this couple with their kids ask about the wait time. The CM said its 100 minute wait. The lady said ok where are the kiosk that I can get a fastpass for this ride. The CM said they have been gone for at least 30 days. Further more they debated on getting in line but their youngest daughter was too small. I went over to them and told them about rider swap. The lady was so happy.

2) I also heard a group behing me waiting in line talk about Be Our Guest. They said that looks like a cool place to eat. We should eat there tonight.

3) While at Epcot a couple was getting Fastpasses and asked the CM why Soarin wasnt showing up as an option.

Again I'm just wondering how this happens. There are so many resources out there. I feel that you have to plan to make the most of your trip.

Does anyone else see or hear of these things while at Disney?

This stuff may all seem common sense to you and most others on here, but you have to remember, the members on this board are by far in the vast minority of visitors to Disney, and most people are that clueless. A lot of people don't use travel agents, and don't know a site like this exists. A lot of people don't follow Disney period, they just decide to go on a vacation, book their tickets, room etc... and show up.

 

[melana]

I'l say this, if it hadn't been for this board before my first trip way back in 2009.. I would have been clueless about what to do. And really every trip since I have relied on everyone here and some other sites to help. But I have always been one to plan out my trips no matter where I go.

I have friends and co-workers who go and they always complain about not being able to do x, y or z when they get back. I always ask if they pre-planned and they usually say that pre-planning is for those fanactics who want everything scheduled. I just laugh and offer my assistence to help them plan before their next trip.

 

[MJ6987]

Really, the vast majority of people don't want to think a couple of months in advance where they will be on a given day, let alone what rides they might want to do at what time. That was the beauty of the old fast pass system I guess.

 

[Shanti]

Just got back from a great trip and was shocked to see how many people are clueless at Disneyworld. I dont mean that in a negative way. I just felt bad for people that they spent all this money and dont really know whats going on. Here's a couple examples...

1) SDMT - I saw this couple with their kids ask about the wait time. The CM said its 100 minute wait. The lady said ok where are the kiosk that I can get a fastpass for this ride. The CM said they have been gone for at least 30 days. Further more they debated on getting in line but their youngest daughter was too small. I went over to them and told them about rider swap. The lady was so happy.

2) I also heard a group behing me waiting in line talk about Be Our Guest. They said that looks like a cool place to eat. We should eat there tonight.

3) While at Epcot a couple was getting Fastpasses and asked the CM why Soarin wasnt showing up as an option.

Again I'm just wondering how this happens. There are so many resources out there. I feel that you have to plan to make the most of your trip.

Does anyone else see or hear of these things while at Disney?

Yes, a guest in front of me in the SDMT line asked her friend where the Matterhorn was. Be grateful for these guests- if every WDW patron planned like we do, the experience wouldn't be as nice for us, and we wouldn't get easy laughs in line.

But seriously, many people are on their first trip, and just don't know how important the planning is. It's counterintuitive actually, as a trip to an amusement park really shouldn't be hard to plan. It does take work to plan for Disney, but it's understandable for people not to expect that.

 

[Shanti]

How the heck to locals, AP'ers etc go to WDW any more? When I had AP's we would decide on a couple days notice to go, sometimes the night before. It wasn't a problem with the old FP system.

You can still do okay w/out FP if you do rope drop &/or EMH.

 

[Regan117]

This too - My parents and other siblings spent a day at the Magic Kingdom as they were on a trip to Florida. They were perfectly happy to go, ride Dumbo and the Tomorrowland cars, just walk around and see the place, eat at whatever restaurant had space and discover at their pace. Afterwards I asked them things like "Did you ride on Haunted Mansion?" "Was that there?" "How about going into Tomorrowland?" "No, we didn't go there." It was enough for them to say that they *did* Disney. Same with some of my extended relatives.

They've always been that way though. I think you have to allow for the non-planners altogether but wonder about the "partial" planners (like me the first time).

My first solo trip above actually had 2 purposes - 1 was to get a feel of how hectic the trip would be for my, now elderly, parents and the other was to fulfill a lifelong dream of staying in the Contemporary which my mother wouldn't do because she's deathly afraid of heights! (Ironically, 2 years later she'd be staying there and saying she could deal with it.) Once I got back I managed to plan out a pretty good itinerary that had us hitting things like Ohana, the Sci-fi dine-in and the Wishes Dessert Party (so they could sit down for the fireworks) plus having a better understanding of transportation for getting between the parks and such. They still remark about how much there was to see and do in that one trip and we STILL didn't do it all! (We didn't hit Epcot or AK but it was only a 3 day trip!)

I plan a lot, but I am still sort of like this. We are perfectly content just wandering around eating snacks and people watching. There are trips where I only ride a couple of things and I am ok with it. But I get to go a lot. If it were my once in a lifetime trip, I'd probably feel differently.

 

[js]

I can totally understand!!! I have a friend who is going in August of this summer and yes... they have been to WDW before a couple of times. I told them about the Welcome Show at Magic Kingdom and the Star Wars fireworks as a "must see"....she didn't know about those two events!!!!

I have friends that are bringing their son, dil and two grandchildren. The last time they went to Disney was with my dh and me in the 80s. She gave me her credit card and told me to just book their vacation for them. I wanted to book GFVs but they waited too long to give me the card and it was goine so I booked them BLTs two bedroom renting points.

I booked all their ADRs and FPs will be soon. I did send the mom of the kids a list of FP attractions and told her to choose although She hadnt gotten back to me. I never consulted with them about ADRs they just dont have a clue.

Our friend actually called us last weekend since they were out with their family to ask us where they were staying....OMG!!!

 

[Floridadreaming2016]

If I left the planning to my husband, we would eat all counter meals and go on whatever rides we could manage to wait for. He just wouldn't plan. It isn't in his DNA. My son asked to see my plan and then said "I like this. All planned out. I hate standing around wondering what next. " almost cried!

 

[ChloesDaddy]

This stuff may all seem common sense to you and most others on here, but you have to remember, the members on this board are by far in the vast minority of visitors to Disney, and most people are that clueless. A lot of people don't use travel agents, and don't know a site like this exists. A lot of people don't follow Disney period, they just decide to go on a vacation, book their tickets, room etc... and show up.

I'm going to start working this phrase into conversations at work. That is unless they've figured out they don't need me anymore while I've been on vacation for almost three weeks.

 

[MickeyMinnieMom]

I overhear things like that every trip. I don't really get it either, OP. Years ago, maybe. Now, there is SO MUCH info out there about how beneficial planning really is for a WDW trip. Lots of sources from guidebooks to websites to blogs to Twitter to Facebook.

I don't think that you have to be a Disney fanatic to just google "WDW trip" and realize some planning might be a good idea. No matter where I'm going, I research enough to know how much planning is really required.

All that said, I think that those who plan benefit from the fact that some just don't.

 

[Floridadreaming2016]

again...I think we tend on this board to put things in absolute categories....I dont think we are talking about folks with "no plan"....we are talking about folks who may be going for the first time and would behave like a reasonable person would...maybe making ADR's a few weeks in advance, maybe try to get their fast passes a few weeks out as well.....thats not having ANY plan, thats not understanding the unique nature of a what a Disney vacation has
become

Actually I know several friends who just pay and go. They don't read, plan. Nothing. Blows my mind for any vacation. We even get reservations at the Jersey Shore!

 

[Mackenzie Click-Mickelson]

Six Flags parks have it as well.

Cedar Fair and Six Flags parks are "almost all amusement parks in America". In my opinion anyway. I don't know any other companies that are so dominant.

Yeah I wasn't disputing that fact. I was just saying my local amusement park just got in 2012 and only because the company who owns it launched it to all their parks at one time. Basically I was assuming (and maybe that was wrong of me) that you were saying that WDW is no different than other parks that have a "go to the head of the line" type system because that system is fairly commonplace nowadays.

My point was if Cedar Fair didn't own WOF we likely wouldn't have a fast lane. The company chose to give us this sytem but it wasn't by actual demand. Basically for WOF you wouldn't assume it had a get ahead of the line system. I guess I was speaking about a specific place having a "go to the head of the line" system. Cedar Fair could have determined which parks have the market to buy their passes along with which parks actually need them based on attendance and average queue wait times. However, Cedar Fair decided to launch them to all their parks likely due to profits and logistically speaking easier to just implement it all at once.

 

[MickeyMinnieMom]

A lot of people don't follow Disney period, they just decide to go on a vacation, book their tickets, room etc... and show up.

I don't book ANY vacation this way. I always research enough to know what to expect. With some trips, not much of a consequence to not planning. For others there's more of a consequence. Why take the chance that comes with not researching at all? Seems odd to me, but I know it happens all the time!