Ideas how to surprise kids

lookame

DIS Veteran
Joined
Aug 21, 2011
With a Disneyworld trip! I have a soon to be 12 yr old son and a soon to be 4 yr old daughter. My son can have issues with things being sprung on him last minute (hes plan oriented so if something disrupts his routine hes thrown off.) I don't want to wait until the day of or the day before as my son is likely to react poorly. I was thinking we'd surprise them a few months before, espscially so my son can tell me what he wants to ride and what FP he'd like to do. My daughter being 4 is easier about things and if her brother is excited then thats her cue that she should be excited. This is her first trip so she probably wont know what Disney means but she knows "Mickey Mouse house." Anyway...my son has already had the scavenger hunt thing and so I want to do something different but having trouble what would be fun for both kids.
 
Last edited:
I would honestly never surprise my kids. They would not enjoy it. They love being part of planning and counting down. I know lots of kids would be excited by the surprise. It just wouldn't work for us. If I was surprising them, I would do it by giving them a countdown a month or so out so they had time to get use to it.
 
Since he likes to organize get him one of the many Disney planners and ask him to organize the trip and then get him involved in surprising his little sister.
 
my parents have surprised us in advance. on valentine's day a few years back, my parents set up a scavenger hunt around the house for us that ended with us finding disney bags with magic bands in them. the trip wasn't until spring break (a month or so later), so we were surprised yet still had time to plan/pack for ourselves.
 
I would recommend watching YouTube videos to get an idea. I have seen videos where parents give their kids a Disney book bag or just a regular gift box and fill it with Disney related items such as pajamas, shirts, mickey ears, etc. This will get them excited and save you $$ on Disney gear ahead of time. Other parents have created custom videos, sort of like a trailer, with the message "Smith Walt Disney World Vacation coming to you May 24, 2018." And finally, I've seen videos where parents hire an actor to dress up as the child's favorite character and they let them know they are going. Point is, there's lots of things you can do!
 
I would recommend watching YouTube videos to get an idea. I have seen videos where parents give their kids a Disney book bag or just a regular gift box and fill it with Disney related items such as pajamas, shirts, mickey ears, etc. This will get them excited and save you $$ on Disney gear ahead of time. Other parents have created custom videos, sort of like a trailer, with the message "Smith Walt Disney World Vacation coming to you May 24, 2018." And finally, I've seen videos where parents hire an actor to dress up as the child's favorite character and they let them know they are going. Point is, there's lots of things you can do!

Wow! If I was talented I'd love to do a video like you said that has our dates and such. Thatd be awesome!

Each kid has a selection of Disney gear I've been purchasing for the last couple of years (we had planned going two years ago, and then this year but each time a trip was planned is had to be cancelled for various reasons. This time is for reals...we have it booked and everything) he each have a book bag with items to keep them busy, a mat board for autographs and sharpies. They each have individual suitcases with shirts/outfits which are all Disney related. I dn't want it to be overwhelming so I thought maybe I'd set all the items up in the living room while the kids wait in the car before we go out to eat or something and hand them each a card while we're out which hints at a big surprise and it's revealed when they walk into the house. The other idea I had was some sort of calandar which each day has a wrapped card which they open one each day that spells out "we're going to..." and then pictures of what is planned each day. It's difficult finding a fun way to surprise them each when one is much older than the other. I'm also not sure he'll be as excited since it'll be his third time going...
 
Wow! If I was talented I'd love to do a video like you said that has our dates and such. Thatd be awesome!

Each kid has a selection of Disney gear I've been purchasing for the last couple of years (we had planned going two years ago, and then this year but each time a trip was planned is had to be cancelled for various reasons. This time is for reals...we have it booked and everything) he each have a book bag with items to keep them busy, a mat board for autographs and sharpies. They each have individual suitcases with shirts/outfits which are all Disney related. I dn't want it to be overwhelming so I thought maybe I'd set all the items up in the living room while the kids wait in the car before we go out to eat or something and hand them each a card while we're out which hints at a big surprise and it's revealed when they walk into the house. The other idea I had was some sort of calandar which each day has a wrapped card which they open one each day that spells out "we're going to..." and then pictures of what is planned each day. It's difficult finding a fun way to surprise them each when one is much older than the other. I'm also not sure he'll be as excited since it'll be his third time going...

You know your kids best! Sounds like great ideas. Listen, I'm 21 and have been going since forever and I am still stoked everytime I go. Good luck!
 


Wow! If I was talented I'd love to do a video like you said that has our dates and such. Thatd be awesome!

Each kid has a selection of Disney gear I've been purchasing for the last couple of years (we had planned going two years ago, and then this year but each time a trip was planned is had to be cancelled for various reasons. This time is for reals...we have it booked and everything) he each have a book bag with items to keep them busy, a mat board for autographs and sharpies. They each have individual suitcases with shirts/outfits which are all Disney related. I dn't want it to be overwhelming so I thought maybe I'd set all the items up in the living room while the kids wait in the car before we go out to eat or something and hand them each a card while we're out which hints at a big surprise and it's revealed when they walk into the house. The other idea I had was some sort of calandar which each day has a wrapped card which they open one each day that spells out "we're going to..." and then pictures of what is planned each day. It's difficult finding a fun way to surprise them each when one is much older than the other. I'm also not sure he'll be as excited since it'll be his third time going...

We did something similar to this, but for my daughter's 7th bday. We found a Minnie Mouse tsumtsum that was on a plush cupcake that we "mailed" to her with a bday card signed from Mickey and the gang. Then we wrapped a bunch of Disney related presents and put them inside all the pockets of the suitcase, which was also wrapped. We bought her an American Tourister suitcase because it had a tag that said "Official Luggage of Walt Disney World." The presents inside were things like a WDW shirt, bathing suit, autograph book, guidebook, park maps, photo album and frame, Disney planning DVD, sunglasses, a vintage Disney World Barbie, etc, a calendar with our dates circled, Disney GC, etc.

We didn't give any indication of a trip and wanted to see how many presents it would take to open for her to figure it out. She seemed like she might have had an idea as she was opening everything but didn't want to say anything. The last thing we gave her was a postcard a kind woman on here sent her from Disney World, signed by the characters with a message along the lines of, "We can't wait to see you on your first trip!" She read that, re-read it, whispered questioningly "we're going to Disney world?" Then started jumping up and down shouting it.

So maybe you could have everything set out, wrapped or not, and see how long it takes them to figure it out.
 
There are a few kids Travel Planning books - I think Birnbaum's has one and Passporter may as well. If he's a planner he may really like being involved.
 

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!





Top