"You can go to Disney without kids?"

[bboyneko]

Hi all, just joined the forum. Going to Disney January 7-10 2011 with my GF and 3 friends. It is an adults-only trip, I don't have kids and never will. Don't want them or like them much. My GF is the same way.

She is very reluctantly coming along since my friend works at Disney and got us sweet deals on the tickets. She loves other types of theme parks like Busch Gardens in Virginia, Kings Dominion in Virginia, and the Dells in Wisconsin.

I hope this trip converts her to understanding how WDW can be awesome for adults. Have not been in over 11 years myself. Never visited Animal Kingdom but I have been to the other parks.

We are staying at Pop Century. Looks kind of dumpy but its super cheap and because it is Marathon weekend just about all Disney hotels are fully booked.

 

[Judy in Texas]

We are staying at Pop Century. Looks kind of dumpy but its super cheap and because it is Marathon weekend just about all Disney hotels are fully booked.

Pop Century isn't dumpy. It's a fun-themed value resort. It's my resort of choice because by staying there, I can afford to go more often and it has dedicated bus service.

 

[maddhatir]

Hi all, just joined the forum. Going to Disney January 7-10 2011 with my GF and 3 friends. It is an adults-only trip, I don't have kids and never will. Don't want them or like them much. My GF is the same way.

She is very reluctantly coming along since my friend works at Disney and got us sweet deals on the tickets. She loves other types of theme parks like Busch Gardens in Virginia, Kings Dominion in Virginia, and the Dells in Wisconsin.

I hope this trip converts her to understanding how WDW can be awesome for adults. Have not been in over 11 years myself. Never visited Animal Kingdom but I have been to the other parks.

We are staying at Pop Century. Looks kind of dumpy but its super cheap and because it is Marathon weekend just about all Disney hotels are fully booked.

Pop Century is cute and clean. You will however find a lot of kids there! DH and I used to stay at the values and now have moved up to staying at DVCs- it is like night and day.

DH and I are child-free and have have been to Disney 17 times. This past trip was the first time we did EHM evening at the AK. It was beautiful! The crowds were really low. We walked right onto Kilimanjaro Safari. It was cute b/c there was a wedding party in front of us, about 20 adults all riding the safari and the bride was up front. They were all dressed up, ladies in their heels but they were having a blast! We later saw they were having their reception in Africa.

We were lucky that it was a full moon when we rode EE. It was so cool seeing the full moon as we were heading up the mountain and when we came out of the mountain backwards- I caught a glimpse of it. So cool!

The trails are great (and romantic ) during the day- but at night with the torches- it is like you are in your own world. Especially the trails around the Tree of Life. (The Maharajah Jungle Trek and the Pangani Forest Exploration Trail were not open at night and Kilimanjaro Safari closed early as did other rides) But there are plenty other little trails to find. I can't wait for our next trip to do it again. AK is like another world at night.

I think your GF will become a Disney freak in no time! It is not only about the rides, but the whole atmosphere of Disney.

 

[bboyneko]

yeah I expected that it would be full of kids. I figured we'd be away from the room most of the day and at restaurants, and by the time we got back hopefully they would be asleep. I understand Pop Century has the pool open 24 hours? But temperatures drop into the 50's in January in Florida so hopefully they won't be making too much noise.

My issue with kids is not really with them as much as with parents. They feel so entitled with their military-class super strollers and steamroll you out of the way, or allow their kids to run wild climbing on my chair etc. at restaurants...or allow them to scream or cry or bang things on a table while eating. basically a big FU to the rest of the people at the restaurant. They may have evolved the ability to tune out the monsters so that they may keep their sanity, but the rest of us have not.

I am hoping the kids will be so enthralled that they are at Disney that they will be mostly behaved and distracted. The other theme parks we go to have plenty of kids and there is never an issue.

We tend to enjoy the teenage crowd more since they are great people-watching. They are often trend victims or have all sorts of drama that is fun to watch at a distance.

My Disney employee friend got 50% off rooms at Animal Lodge, but there is not enough room for me and my GF and all other places seem fully booked for Marathon Weekend. Reading other threads here it seems it is not too crowded at the parks, and I hope the extended magic hours are more adult-oriented.

Looking forward to an adults only trip!

 

[maddhatir]

yeah I expected that it would be full of kids. I figured we'd be away from the room most of the day and at restaurants, and by the time we got back hopefully they would be asleep. I understand Pop Century has the pool open 24 hours? But temperatures drop into the 50's in January in Florida so hopefully they won't be making too much noise.

We never heard any "pool noise" when we were in our room. That should not be a problem. It is mostly the food court early in the morning that is pure insanity! Lucky for us we usually wandered in for our coffee around 10-10:30am. But you are going in January- the crowds should be low.

My issue with kids is not really with them as much as with parents. They feel so entitled with their military-class super strollers and steamroll you out of the way, or allow their kids to run wild climbing on my chair etc. at restaurants...or allow them to scream or cry or bang things on a table while eating. basically a big FU to the rest of the people at the restaurant. They may have evolved the ability to tune out the monsters so that they may keep their sanity, but the rest of us have not.

That seems to be the problem and I am realizing that now. I read some stories here on the Dis about rude guests and it seems like the kids are more well behaved than their parents. They are usually the ones throwing the tantrums, shouting and demanding things. LOL.

I am hoping the kids will be so enthralled that they are at Disney that they will be mostly behaved and distracted. The other theme parks we go to have plenty of kids and there is never an issue.

Hopefully YOU will be so enthralled you will not notice the kids! Believe it or not, in Oct- I noticed a lot of childless couples. Old and young in Disney. It might be b/c we are childless and I tend to pick them out.

 

[Verstehen]

My dad became so disenchanted by having to haul my sister and I around when we were younger that until recently he literally had no memory of any part of Disney except for Small World. It took a lot of convincing to jog his memory so that he now knows there's plenty of stuff for adults to do.

And now he's determined to go without his five and six year old stepkids. Go figure

 

[melissac]

My best friend and I have gone 2 times alone and had a blast. We toured commando style and had no one to whine or complain. We even pushed ourselves and did 4 parks on departure day and made it to the airport by 3p.m. It was great. We even took pictures in each park to verify it. I would like to go alone with my husband sometime and do the DxDP. It would be a slower pace but I think it would be so much fun.

 

[NJDiva]

I have a friend at work who is in her late 40's, single with no kids. She would LOVE to go to Disney World! Problem is, she cannot find anyone to go with. All of her friends are single, all about her age, and think Disney is for kids. She has told them over and over that it isn't, but they just don't want to hear it. We all know how not true that can be. I was talking to her about the Epcot Food and Wine festival, showed her the web page, she showed that to her friends, and they were still not convinced. She is so frustrated! I sort-of can't wait for the opportunity to go without the kids so I can do just what I want to do!! Don't get me wrong, I have loved going to the World with them, but I am looking forward to it being just me and my husband.

OMG are you serious??? And she's from Jersey?? ok we need an intervention here! she really needs to go and I think all the Jersey Dis-ers should hijack her and show her a good time!...nah I'm kidding but she should go and her friends would just have to miss out

 

[bboyneko]

This seems to be Disney's biggest marketing failing: Promoting Disney's adult side. It seems they hardly need any help attracting people to the park in general, but if they could appeal to childfree adults they would get even more money. Shutting down Pleasure Island can't help.

 

[maddhatir]

This seems to be Disney's biggest marketing failing: Promoting Disney's adult side. It seems they hardly need any help attracting people to the park in general, but if they could appeal to childfree adults they would get even more money. Shutting down Pleasure Island can't help.

Oh- get ready b/c a lot of people will say there is MORE money to be made by marketing to families. We can't win. People can't see how fun Disney can be without kids. Some get offended that you even suggest it!

If you go outside of this forum- you will find that out quickly.

 

[CruiseBoundnKY]

DH and I are going down for our 15th anniversary without the kids. Everyone seems to have the same reaction when I tell them we are going without them. Come on people...I love it too!!! It's not a crime.

Very excited

 

[stasijane]

I took my daughter this summer for our first trip and before we got home I was planning a kidless vacation! and its so close!!

 

[CapnZach]

I always tell people that Disney, seen through the right perspective, is a lot like Vegas, minus the sleaze. Non-stop entertainment, excellent dining, an entirely car-free vacation if you so choose, and beautiful environments to relax and enjoy. What's not to like?

 

[bboyneko]

I always tell people that Disney, seen through the right perspective, is a lot like Vegas, minus the sleaze. Non-stop entertainment, excellent dining, an entirely car-free vacation if you so choose, and beautiful environments to relax and enjoy. What's not to like?

Yeah I felt the same way, it feels like modern Vegas modeled itself after Disney World in many ways.

Vegas has much cheaper dining due to the recession and all the deals they are forced to offer. I ate at Sinatra while I was there for $45 a person (3 course meal) including wine, when normally the entrees alone are $50 or so. Just about every high-end restaurant there is offering ridiculous deals.

The recession did not seem to affect Disney at all, they offer no deals at their restaurants and can still charge $25 an entree or more.

 

[tomaszewski58]

So much fun to go without kids. The nightlife is amazing. The sun, the pools, and the parks