OMG. Traveling with good friends who have no idea what WDW is like.

[KittyKitty]

We have been talking about traveling to WDW for years now. Finally its going to happen this next Oct. I am so excited to show them as much as I can in 1 week.They have never been there.

My friend said." I am so looking forward to just relaxing, getting up around 9, having a sit down lunch, lay around the pool. "
I said "there is lots to see there, so we might have to get up early(thinking FoP) to arrive at the parks"
She said." Are you talking about leaving in the morning at 6:30?" Me."At least one day"

I then realized this is going to be a different trip for me. We are staying on site, I'm staying another week after they leave, so Ill be able to do my normal touring.

But how do I schedule(I'm A type person) a week stay for newbies that have no clue?

Help me please.
Thank you.

 

[Robo]

how do I schedule(I'm A type person) a week stay for newbies that have no clue?

"Let's meet-up at 'Ohana at 7PM for supper."
(No, I'm not really kidding.)

Just schedule "meet-up" times that fit your schedule.
(In or out of the parks.)

Trying to spend full days with folks who "don't get it"
can be very taxing on both the Disney veterans and the uninitiated/unmotivated.

 

[sponica]

Honestly, don't try to cram it all in. First timers NEED to go at their own pace. I wouldn't trade my mistake filled first trip FOR ANYTHING in the world.

 

[Farro]

Your friend sounds like she wants an easy, relax at the pool, have some good lunches/dinners - let them!
Make some fast passes for early afternoon/late morning for everyone, let her know they are there for her/them, and then let them make the decision to join or not.

Agree with above, make definite plans for dinner (or something) otherwise go with the flow.

 

[tinkerbellybutton]

My husband comes from a large family. Last year his sister and her family (been to Disney a good bit) took one of his brothers and his family to Disney. They didn’t have a lot of time and my sister in law tried to cram as much in as possible so that the “newbies” could see as much as they could in the 4 days they had. The newbies came back saying they liked Disney, but it was exhausting and they aren’t sure if they will go back. I personally think they would have enjoyed a slower pace, knowing they couldn’t see and do it all, much more than rushing to try and get it all in. But I also can’t blame my sister in law for trying to help them see as much as possible.

I would let your friends sort of dictate the pace. You should all be upfront about what everyone expects from this trip. If they are not morning people, perhaps allow them to sleep in and meet y’all at the parks later in the day, and schedule FP around their timeline. Not everyone enjoys a vacation that is non stop. We have been to Disney a lot and we have settled into a very laid back touring style. We actually prefer it this way compared to our early years when we felt we needed to be in the parks from open till close, every single day. These days we think that kind of schedule sounds excruciating! Lol. Good luck!

 

[Ensusieasm]

We have been talking about traveling to WDW for years now. Finally its going to happen this next Oct. I am so excited to show them as much as I can in 1 week.They have never been there.

My friend said." I am so looking forward to just relaxing, getting up around 9, having a sit down lunch, lay around the pool. "
I said "there is lots to see there, so we might have to get up early(thinking FoP) to arrive at the parks"
She said." Are you talking about leaving in the morning at 6:30?" Me."At least one day"

I then realized this is going to be a different trip for me. We are staying on site, I'm staying another week after they leave, so Ill be able to do my normal touring.

But how do I schedule(I'm A type person) a week stay for newbies that have no clue?

Help me please.
Thank you.

Since you are staying onsite, no problem!
Make your Animal Kingdom Park day on day 5 or 6 of your stay with your friends. On your 60 day fastPass+ window grab FoP for everyone at 10am. Get Safari ride at 11:00, Get table service lunch at Yak&Yeti for noon. Get Lion King fast Pass for 1:30. Head back to the pool right after Lion King.
Just get your 3 fast passes a day and a sit down lunch everyday at the parks they want. Schedule a day off in the middle. They will see the highlights. They can’t possibly do it all in one trip anyway. Then on your week without them you can do everything your way.

 

[hes122]

Be realistic about your expectations and theirs. When I say that I mean, don't try to force them into your touring style every day and don't allow them to force you into theirs. Give them a suggested list of things they'll want to see at each park with a realistic POV of what doing those things entails (like getting up a dark o-thirty if you don't get a FP for FOP) and let them decide what is most important to them. If they want to lounge at the pool one day or in the afternoons- let them. You don't have to be together the entire trip- you can do your own thing while they're doing nothing (or sleeping).

 

[DisneyWishes14]

IMHO, especially since you are staying an extra week and will have the time to do your normal touring, I would make the week they are there with you about them and what they want to see and do. If the dream is to sleep late, lay by the pool and eat sit-down lunches, make that a priority. I would maybe delve a little deeper into what their top choices in attractions might be and then schedule those. Maybe plan late mornings with pool time followed by TS lunches and afternoon park touring. If they like nightlife, an evening at DS and/or on the Boardwalk or a monorail crawl might be fun. As PP suggested, put harder-to-get FP+ further into your trip. Pick your top 3 FP+ for each park, make a TS reservation and wing the rest. I tour frequently with 2 family members who are not park commandoes and it has forced me to slow down and enjoy some of the other things WDW has to offer and, honestly, it's been pretty fun.

 

[Pmlocke]

My wife and I have traveled with "newbies" as well and we found that our insistance that they have fun like we do was not going to work. We let them sleep in and meet up at the park. We allowed them to find their own form of magic and now they travel down every other year and they say it is all because of us. Not everyone needs to open and close the park. Leave them to their own travels and when you can, meet up for some together fun. Remember, they are on vacation as well.

 

[KenHutch]

I have some of the same issues. I am a retired Marine which means if your not a place 15 minutes early your late. The girls and I are Rope Drop to Close commandoes. My daughters mother and stepfather and 2 great aunt/uncles are the kind you are describing. They get up at 09:00 hit the pool and want to be at the park around 11:00. Then they freak out about the rides. This past trip I adjusted my planning. The girls and I still hit rope drop but I make no fast passes until 11:30 or so. For meals is a simple rule. I tell everyone the time if your with us I pay, if not good luck on finding a CS and your paying. There was very little arguing this past trip (except ofr why do I have to pay to eat).

 

[jerseygal]

"Let's meet-up at 'Ohana at 7PM for supper."
(No, I'm not really kidding.)

Just schedule "meet-up" times that fit your schedule.
(In or out of the parks.)

Trying to spend full days with folks who "don't get it"
can be very taxing on both the Disney veterans and the uninitiated/unmotivated.

Very true! We all have different vacation styles. It is very difficult, impossible to try to please everyone, so please yourself and your own family unit. Some families are early risers, want to head to park early, then perhaps have resort time in afternoon. Others want to sleep in late, head to parks later, then stay into evening. No right or wrong, each family unit has their own idea of "vacation". Enjoy a dinner together, enjoy a lunch in the parks, meetup for some attractions together hopefully by coordinating FP. And by all means, enjoy YOUR vacation!

 

[Gussie Granger 1969]

If I were in your shoes, I would just plan my days as a late arrival, it's still doable. But sounds like she wants to relax, let her. Go to the parks at night, sleep in, take it in from a different perspective.

 

[bpadair32]

Different people like different things. I don't think most of that is related to being newbies. I have no desire to get up at 6:30 when I am on vacation either. If I can't ride SDD or FoP, oh well, I will catch it next time or try to grab a FP+. I have been there a lot and you will very rarely see me RD anything.

 

[LVSWL]

From my experience, the best advice I can share is to be very clear about how Disney works...amount of time to parks, dinners, lunches, crowds and long lines if not making fastpasses. If your friends still would like to do as you said, then you have a choice. Plan to sleep in, pool time , nice lunch then fastpasses for parks with them, or follow your own schedule in the early part of the day and meet up for lunch and parks. That being said, my personal experience was that no matter how much I explained how the parks worked my guests said that they were up for anything since we were the "disney experts" and then spent the week complaining and arguing with us about why we were doing things a certain way. We also felt that it wasn't our first trip so we were fine no doing a comando Disney trip. They had wanted to go Easter week, so a good bit of planning was necessary with parks closing at capacity and lines very long. By mid week we were hurt and frustrated that they didn't just stay in the room or at the pool rather than show up and complain and gripe the whole day. It was by far the worst situation we ever encountered. Wishing you good luck.

 

[Micca]

I'd never do a lazy morning at the pool, nice lunch, then hit a park at my leisure. It'd be a nice change of pace, especially if I have a whole week to do the parks the way I want to. All you can do is to compare how much they'll see & do with your way vs the super-chill way. I'd start by illustrating how not fun standing in long lines in the heat is.

 

[ktlm]

We are doers, and the inlaws are sitters. What I learned from traveling with the in-laws- in general not just Disney: 1. If you attempt to slow down and go at their pace you will drive yourself crazy-- you will be sitting in the room or at the pool wishing you were doing 15 other things and stressing that you are not going to have time to do the things you want to do, that you could be doing instead of sitting and 2. If you push them to go at your pace, you could possibly kill them and they probably won't have much fun.

We learned after a couple of bad non-Disney trips that the way for everyone to have a great time is not to insist on constant togetherness. Schedule meals together - but not breakfast if they are not early risers. Outside of that, spend time together when it works for both of you. If they want to get up late or sit by the pool, then fine- let them do that-- but you go do what you want to do and have them meet you when they are ready to get to the parks. You can ride something again with them that you have already done, but they still want to do. If you want your fast passes together make those a little later so that they have time to get there and meet up with you. If they get tired of your pace in the park, let them go back to the resort and relax or go do things on their own.

After the first couple of trips with the in-laws we learned that lesson and now we can travel with them anywhere and have a great time. It is understood that everyone is allowed to do their own thing. We had a fantastic WDW trip with the in-laws, I would go there with them anytime. I scheduled ADRs for all of us to be together. Most days we did one a day- either lunch or dinner. Outside of that, it was play it by ear. They would typically go to the park in the morning with us (they are morning people), then we would do lunch and then more often than not, we would stay in the parks and they might go back to the resort to rest or relax at the pool. They would join up with us for dinner and sometimes would stay with us. Sometimes they would stay after lunch but quit right after dinner.

I would suggest having a discussion with them about doing it this way so that everyone has the freedom to enjoy themselves instead of worrying about staying together for everything whether they want to or not.

 

[ToyStory3]

We love WDW and are not rope droppers at all! We like to take it easy during the week. We get up and eat breakfast and head to the parks around 10. Or sometimes we stay and swim and go halfway through the day. Everyone always thinks that only the newbies do that but some people choose to. We know how much you can get done if you go early but when we are on vacation sleeping in is really important to us. I would be miserable if I had to get up early every day of vacation so let them tour their own way. Hope you all have a great time!

 

[Mackenzie Click-Mickelson]

Sounds like two entirely different vacation styles.

I'd talk with them about what they want to do and what their priorities are.

I would not book them FPs without discussing with them their priorities and what they hope to achieve from the trip. If they feel like they are going to be the type of people to be less scheduled and don't want to worry about ensuring they get to the ride during the time slot I would let other vacationers the ability to get FPs.

There's zero problem with how they want to vacation if they feel like the relax, pool, lunch thing is their vibe.

I would agree on meetups for a meal and some rides together (not necessarily FP ones if that won't work for them).

In a nutshell don't let their vacation style impact your enjoyment of WDW but do talk with them about expectations and priorities. There's no reason that you have to do everything together but that doesn't mean you or your friends can't compromise on things here and there.

I remember when we first started planning our Sep 2017 trip back in summer of 2015 mother-in-law and the one sister-in-law who was coming talked about the beach. I was upfront and honest and said there likely wouldn't be time for that because it was 5 days @ WDW and 3 days @ USO plus arrival day and departure day. Arrival day and departure day were the only times a beach side trip would have worked but I cautioned about getting worn down and tired from being out in the sun, heat, and beach for a prolonged period of time. They ended up understanding that. However, sister-in-law dropped out of the trip because she didn't think she would enjoy going to the parks that many days. I love the beach but going to Orlando for vacation means I'm there for the parks. A separate beach vacation would have been completely fine.

 

[KittyKitty]

I have some of the same issues. I am a retired Marine which means if your not a place 15 minutes early your late.

My Mother must have been a Marine..... I hear her say.... "if you are late, you are being disrespectful to ppl who are waiting..."

"Let's meet-up at 'Ohana at 7PM for supper."
(No, I'm not really kidding.)

Made me LOL! But good idea.

I would just plan my days as a late arrival,

I don't know how to do that! My brain is ready at 7am.

no matter how much I explained how the parks worked my guests said that they are were up for anything since we are the "disney experts" and then spent the week complaining and arguing with us about why we were doing things a certain way.

Yes, my friends say they are up for anything cause I go to WDW regularly.....

I'd start by illustrating how not fun standing in long lines in the heat is.

I'll take pics with me of Xmas crowds.

If you attempt to slow down and go at their pace you will drive yourself crazy

.YES!

If you push them to go at your pace, you could possibly kill them and they probably won't have much fun.

HA!!

Thank you everyone for reminding me this will be give and take. And I'll try to listen(not yell) when they want to relax and skip the FoP FP's........ Ha!

 

[Ensusieasm]

Thank you everyone for reminding me this will be give and take. And I'll try to listen(not yell) when they want to relax and skip the FoP FP's........ Ha!

No Reason to skip getting fast passes for FoP. They are even easier to get for later in the day. Just make Animal Kingdom your park for day 4, 5, or 6 of your trip.