11YO Boy Birthday?

[Cosmic Commando]

We're hopefully going down in November, and older son's birthday will be our last day in the parks. We're already planning on mostly letting him run the day to make it special, but is there anything else you guys would do/ have done with a boy about that age? Our budget is probably just south of a Wishes cruise... probably a TS meal cost equivalent is what we'd want to spend. It doesn't have to be a meal, though. We will be getting the birthday button.

We're already planning on doing T-Rex because my then-4YO is super into dinosaurs. Thought about trying to pass that off for the older one's birthday, but I don't think it would fly.

 

[carriebeth]

depends on the kid and what he happens to like. Boys at that age can vary quite a bit on what they enjoy and what they consider too "childish" for them etc. If into pirates there are the pirate adventure cruises. We have not done them before but will this year. Since the children go on their own, without parents, it can be a pretty "big kid" experience depening on what he is used to. Its about $50 each for it.

You could always do pirates league if you haven't done it before.

You could save going to Animal Kingdom and do that so you can do the new experiences, Pandora and Rivers of LIght on his special day

 

[ToTBellHop]

Sci Fi
Star Wars dessert and fireworks package
50s I would've still gotten a kick out of
Whispering Canyon
Nicer meal in Epcot if he's a mature 11
I would've thought Cali Grill late enough for Happily Ever After was cool
11 year old boys can enjoy the Poly Luau for a variety of reasons
Perhaps there is a backstage tour that matches his interests. I loved the Backstage Safari around that age (may have to be 12 for that). Or Wild Africa Trek
Let him use your MagicBand to go on ToT and RnRC twice lol...
Splitsville

 

[nickys]

We're hopefully going down in November, and older son's birthday will be our last day in the parks. We're already planning on mostly letting him run the day to make it special, but is there anything else you guys would do/ have done with a boy about that age? Our budget is probably just south of a Wishes cruise... probably a TS meal cost equivalent is what we'd want to spend. It doesn't have to be a meal, though. We will be getting the birthday button.

We're already planning on doing T-Rex because my then-4YO is super into dinosaurs. Thought about trying to pass that off for the older one's birthday, but I don't think it would fly.

Would he be interested in Sorcerer's of the Magic Kingdom? My DS was around that age when we tried it, and he loved it. We did 2 mornings of it. Even if you did a couple of hours or so, with plans for later, so you can be flexible depending on enthusiasm. It does involve zig zagging around and retracing steps so not something you can do as part of a touring plan. Best to devote specific time to it, and first thing would be ideal as everyone else will be riding, therefore not long queues at the portals.

 

[Cosmic Commando]

Would he be interested in Sorcerer's of the Magic Kingdom? My DS was around that age when we tried it, and he loved it. We did 2 mornings of it. Even if you did a couple of hours or so, with plans for later, so you can be flexible depending on enthusiasm. It does involve zig zagging around and retracing steps so not something you can do as part of a touring plan. Best to devote specific time to it, and first thing would be ideal as everyone else will be riding, therefore not long queues at the portals.

He already has the binder and a fairly complete set of cards.

 

[nickys]

He already has the binder and a fairly complete set of cards.

Well in that case, what about giving him a complete choice of itinerary for the morning? Park, rides, fastpasses, lunch. Or a water park, or whatever he would like to do.

 

[21stamps]

What about horseback riding and/or archery at Ft Wilderness? Renting a Whaler and exploring Seven Seas Lagoon and Bay Lake?

 

[Cosmic Commando]

What about horseback riding and/or archery at Ft Wilderness? Renting a Whaler and exploring Seven Seas Lagoon and Bay Lake?

He has an interesting relationship with animals. He squirms away when our cat (that we've had for longer than he's been alive) jumps up on the couch next to him; he says he wants to get a cat when he's older. We're going to see if we can get him to ride a horse on our dude ranch vacation we have booked for the spring of 2018. He needs time to work up to it.

It can be anywhere. We'll have a car, so technically it could even be off-property, although we would favor something on-property. Renting a boat is an interesting idea, and one that I hadn't thought of.

 

[ToTBellHop]

He has an interesting relationship with animals. He squirms away when our cat (that we've had for longer than he's been alive) jumps up on the couch next to him; he says he wants to get a cat when he's older. We're going to see if we can get him to ride a horse on our dude ranch vacation we have booked for the spring of 2018. He needs time to work up to it.

It can be anywhere. We'll have a car, so technically it could even be off-property, although we would favor something on-property. Renting a boat is an interesting idea, and one that I hadn't thought of.

Is he at all a daredevil? I begged my parents to let me parasail behind the Contemporary as a boy to no avail.

 

[Cosmic Commando]

Is he at all a daredevil? I begged my parents to let me parasail behind the Contemporary as a boy to no avail.

I'll save that for if I need to be "cool dad" if I ever get divorced (which will happen if I send my kids parasailing).
Wife and I just had a "disagreement" last night about whether 7YO daughter could ride Summit Plummet if we go to BB. Actually, the current 10YO is the opposite of a daredevil, so no parasailing for him. We told the kids about the trip a few days ago, and I've been sort of feeling him out... it doesn't seem like his tastes have changed much since our last trip two years ago. No ToT, no RnRC, iffy on Splash and BTMRR.

 

[awelpjourneys]

My son celebrated his 10th birthday last April while we were there--the last day of our trip. As we planned the trip, we let him choose the park (Epcot), the FP+ for the day, and his birthday meal (Via Napoli). He spent the week giving suggestions on birthday gifts from the shops, which we bought throughout the week and wrapped for him. When we went back to the resort for that afternoon, he went to the food court and picked a dessert for his "birthday cake" and we opened gifts. He's still talking about how great that day was.

 

[21stamps]

He has an interesting relationship with animals. He squirms away when our cat (that we've had for longer than he's been alive) jumps up on the couch next to him; he says he wants to get a cat when he's older. We're going to see if we can get him to ride a horse on our dude ranch vacation we have booked for the spring of 2018. He needs time to work up to it.

It can be anywhere. We'll have a car, so technically it could even be off-property, although we would favor something on-property. Renting a boat is an interesting idea, and one that I hadn't thought of.

It's fun to explore on Bay Lake and Seven Seas Lagoon.. and you can get up close to the Shoe Tree

Off property- what about Medieval Times? I loved it as a kid. Or the Orlando Eye? Maybe even Fun Spot? They have some great classic rides that aren't at all scary. You can buy tickets for only what you need.

 

[Cosmic Commando]

It's fun to explore on Bay Lake and Seven Seas Lagoon.. and you can get up close to the Shoe Tree

Off property- what about Medieval Times? I loved it as a kid. Or the Orlando Eye? Maybe even Fun Spot? They have some great classic rides that aren't at all scary. You can buy tickets for only what you need.

The Orlando Eye might be interesting. Bonus points for things the whole family can do. We're going to be at Ft. Wilderness, so renting a boat will actually be super easy and I'm tentatively firmly probably definitely going to do that.

 

[21stamps]

The Orlando Eye might be interesting. Bonus points for things the whole family can do. We're going to be at Ft. Wilderness, so renting a boat will actually be super easy and I'm tentatively firmly probably definitely going to do that.

The boat gets my vote. Riding around underneath the monorail..waving to the launches and Ferry passing by.. perfect birthday

This is where the "Pirates" get their shoes