First Time
- Thread starter Roachie
- Start date
JudithM
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Dec 5, 1999
Hello! Welcome! We just got back from our umpteenth trip to WDW, but we had a first timer with us. Wear comfortable shoes. Wear suntan lotion all the time. Wear a sunhat. Drink LOTS of water - when you think you've had too much, have more! Remember that you & your daughter are on vacation & cannot see & do everything at every park. Look at the park brochures to see what attractions are "must do." You might want to go to your public library or a bookstore & get some WDW books. This will help you get a feel for what to expect, what is where, etc. Have fun! Enjoy planning!
Toby'sFriend
The thing about growing up with Fred and George is
- Joined
- Jan 9, 2001
Read read and read about the parks and attractions. Our first trip we kind of walked around in a daze because nothing looked the way I thought it would and nothing seemed to be where I thought it was going to be.....
Most importantly -- Drop the feeling that you have to be in the parks doing something from sun up till sun down. You'll exhaust yourself, your feet will hurt, and by the last days of your trip everybody will be grouchy. Take time to rest and relax!!!! It's amazing how much fun it is to let the kids free in the pool while the adults sit around and have a few drinks and talk or read a book....
About one month before your trip make sure everybody has comfortable shoes and start walking a mile or two every day....Disney is alot of walking and feet and legs will get very sore if they are not used to it. It can really ruin a vacation if you are in pain every single step you take.
If you're going in September - bring the ponchos. You'll probably some rain during your vacation. It's a great time to do the attractions because everybody heads indoors and the lines disappear!
Most importantly -- Drop the feeling that you have to be in the parks doing something from sun up till sun down. You'll exhaust yourself, your feet will hurt, and by the last days of your trip everybody will be grouchy. Take time to rest and relax!!!! It's amazing how much fun it is to let the kids free in the pool while the adults sit around and have a few drinks and talk or read a book....
About one month before your trip make sure everybody has comfortable shoes and start walking a mile or two every day....Disney is alot of walking and feet and legs will get very sore if they are not used to it. It can really ruin a vacation if you are in pain every single step you take.
If you're going in September - bring the ponchos. You'll probably some rain during your vacation. It's a great time to do the attractions because everybody heads indoors and the lines disappear!
I would suggest doing a character breakfast or meal..if you want your child to meet characters. My 8yr old ds and I made a few attempts to meet characters in the parks and after waiting in line for 10 minutes and having every other person behind us shove their children ahead of him we gave up. He just wasn't as aggressive as the other kids and I wasn't as aggressive as the other parent's - which I think is a good thing! We did happen to catch Mickey and Pluto walking down Main street one day but other than that the only characters we met were at the character breakfasts that we did. We did Donald's Breakfastosaurus on our first day and loved it so much that we did it again on our last day!
The pictures and memories that we have of these are priceless! My other advice is to let your child guide the touring have a general plan of what parks you'll do which days especially if you have to work around PS's. When we went, my carefully thought out itinerary went out the window! Ds wanted to go to Animal Kingdom nearly every morning to ride Dinosaur...so we did! Then we would got to the MK in the evenings after our hotel break! It worked great for us and he was more than willing to trek around finding attractions that I wanted to do too. I think out of a 7 day trip there were only 2 days that we didn't go to AK to ride Dinosaur - he loved this and his enjoyment was the main reason for us going! Besides, it's not fun to see "everything" in the parks if you have to drag your child around to do it! At least allow one day for your child to call all of the shots! You'll have a better time that way too !
The pictures and memories that we have of these are priceless! My other advice is to let your child guide the touring have a general plan of what parks you'll do which days especially if you have to work around PS's. When we went, my carefully thought out itinerary went out the window! Ds wanted to go to Animal Kingdom nearly every morning to ride Dinosaur...so we did! Then we would got to the MK in the evenings after our hotel break! It worked great for us and he was more than willing to trek around finding attractions that I wanted to do too. I think out of a 7 day trip there were only 2 days that we didn't go to AK to ride Dinosaur - he loved this and his enjoyment was the main reason for us going! Besides, it's not fun to see "everything" in the parks if you have to drag your child around to do it! At least allow one day for your child to call all of the shots! You'll have a better time that way too !
MiknMinMouse
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Aug 19, 2001
Get your daughter a copy of the Birnbaums (spelling?) WDW guide for kids. Even though he consider's himself an expert on WDW, I got one for my son last year and he loved it!!
ceecee
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Apr 6, 2001
I agree, get the Birnbaum's Disney for Kids by Kids and let her plan some of the things she'd like to do. I also read the books and make a kind of master plan, we don't always follow it, but it helps to know what you'd like to see, so you aaren't walking around in circles aimlessly. I even went so far as printing maps prior to getting there so I would have an idea here things were.
eeyore2001
Earning My Ears
- Joined
- Jul 9, 2001
Read the suggestions on the board, they're GREAT!!!
I always start out when the park opens. Do the big headliners first. Short lines, cooler weather.
Remember you're at a resort too and take advantage of the pool and amenities of your motel.
You're not going to be able to do everything, so I agree it's a good idea to get your daughter the book and then let her choose. Make a plan and review the park maps a bit, just to get used to where you might be going.
MOST IMPORTANT---Just remember to be there and just stop and take in the atmosphere. I remember the first time we went and I saw the castle, I was so excited. And I was 30 years old!!! One more thing---go with no expectations. I know we here are "Disney Fanatics" and it sometimes sounds too good to be true. This happened recently to me with Cirque du Soliel, it was built up so much that I was expecting too much and even though it was a WONDERFUL show, I was dissappointed, because I expected more. So make use of the suggestions, but don't expect to be "blown away". It's best to come to your own conclusions about Disney!!!
I always start out when the park opens. Do the big headliners first. Short lines, cooler weather.
Remember you're at a resort too and take advantage of the pool and amenities of your motel.
You're not going to be able to do everything, so I agree it's a good idea to get your daughter the book and then let her choose. Make a plan and review the park maps a bit, just to get used to where you might be going.
MOST IMPORTANT---Just remember to be there and just stop and take in the atmosphere. I remember the first time we went and I saw the castle, I was so excited. And I was 30 years old!!! One more thing---go with no expectations. I know we here are "Disney Fanatics" and it sometimes sounds too good to be true. This happened recently to me with Cirque du Soliel, it was built up so much that I was expecting too much and even though it was a WONDERFUL show, I was dissappointed, because I expected more. So make use of the suggestions, but don't expect to be "blown away". It's best to come to your own conclusions about Disney!!!
If you have the chance, one of the must do's is the e-ride night. DH, DS (6) and I went in May and it was one of the highlights of our trip. Being able to walk around MK with an absolute minimum of people around was wonderful, as was the "Kiss Goodnight", and being able to ride Buzz 5 times, SM 2, and BTMR and SplM too many times to count was awesome. It is definitely worth the extra $12 per person for this. Hopefully you are staying on site so you can take advantage of this. However, if you aren't staying on site go to Fantasmic, we did this the last night of our trip and it was the perfect ending for a perfect vacation. Have a great trip.
collecting autographs from the Disney characters it might be nice to take along a book to collect signatures from them as you pass them in the park. Also, I would definitely be sure and pack the camera and lots of film along with bringing the camcorder if you have one too.
If you want to bring some of your light snacks with you to tide you over until lunch or dinner in addition to the water bottles if you want to cut back on having to buy a lot of sodas and also in preventing dehydration.
When you are not visiting the parks, stop in at downtown Disney because they have a varied selection of great shops, restaurants, and Disney Quest if anyone is interested in interactive video games; a stroll along the boardwalk may be a fun time as well. If you are able, the Cirque du Soleil show is awesome to experience.
Also, in order to not become tired or run down too quickly while touring it is definitely helpful to stop every once in a while and partake in as many breaks as needed and then start back up whenever you feel like going again; either resting on a bench with a soda/water, going in airconditoned indoor attractions/shows, or eating a meal within a restaurant.
When you decide what parades you may want to attend, I would suggest taking note of the time right away and showing up rather early because if you wait until the last minute to arrive you may not be able to see much of anything due to lines tending to form very quickly along the routes for viewing.
Hope this helps; enjoy!
If you want to bring some of your light snacks with you to tide you over until lunch or dinner in addition to the water bottles if you want to cut back on having to buy a lot of sodas and also in preventing dehydration.
When you are not visiting the parks, stop in at downtown Disney because they have a varied selection of great shops, restaurants, and Disney Quest if anyone is interested in interactive video games; a stroll along the boardwalk may be a fun time as well. If you are able, the Cirque du Soleil show is awesome to experience.
Also, in order to not become tired or run down too quickly while touring it is definitely helpful to stop every once in a while and partake in as many breaks as needed and then start back up whenever you feel like going again; either resting on a bench with a soda/water, going in airconditoned indoor attractions/shows, or eating a meal within a restaurant.
When you decide what parades you may want to attend, I would suggest taking note of the time right away and showing up rather early because if you wait until the last minute to arrive you may not be able to see much of anything due to lines tending to form very quickly along the routes for viewing.
Hope this helps; enjoy!
Share this page
GET A DISNEY VACATION QUOTE
Dreams Unlimited Travel is committed to providing you with the very best vacation planning experience possible. Our Vacation Planners are experts and will share their honest advice to help you have a magical vacation.
Let us help you with your next Disney Vacation!
Dreams Unlimited Travel is committed to providing you with the very best vacation planning experience possible. Our Vacation Planners are experts and will share their honest advice to help you have a magical vacation.
Let us help you with your next Disney Vacation!
