I grew up in South Florida, spent 9 years on & off in Gainesville earning 2 degrees, then moved to NC. I went to the park a few times as a kid, but my favorite memory is a field trip including a behind the scenes tour and a nature tour. It was over 15 years between trips to the park from a one-day trip to MGM with my parents, brother, sister & girlfriend to a Labor day trip in 2013. We told our kids that we were moving to Florida at Port Orleans Riverside at the start of a Thanksgiving trip the next year. We've been passholders since we've moved, with 2016 being our most active year at the parks.
That field trip as a kid now shows me that I love the reality behind the functioning of the parks at least as much as the magic. I just had to take apart one of my magic bands to see what was inside. When I was googling one of the two main components I found that I could have skipped the destruction of my band and just read an online tear-down. It's an elegantly simple design inside.
Trips with my kids seem way more fun than when I was a kid. Maybe I'm more open to the magic now, more mature to handle the inevitable meltdowns, or paying my own way, not worrying about how much things cost. Our first trip, my mom spoiled my older daughter with an AK junior ranger outfit. My daughter made a small book with pictures of the animals she saw that trip and then presented it to her kindergarten class. My younger daughter, then 2, wouldn't walk nor ride in the stroller, so she rode on my shoulders the whole trip. My knee complained to me about it when we got back to NC, but it was worth it.
We have done a lot more trips to the parks with friends and extended family - one huge perk of being a passholder. We meet out of town friends there when they go down for their trips. My daughters love seeing friends from NC and making new friends with college buddy's kids. Showing little ones around Epcot kept my girls going on a rope-drop (for FEA) to park-close day there a year ago. It's great to see their joy in the parks and to make so many new family memories there.
That field trip as a kid now shows me that I love the reality behind the functioning of the parks at least as much as the magic. I just had to take apart one of my magic bands to see what was inside. When I was googling one of the two main components I found that I could have skipped the destruction of my band and just read an online tear-down. It's an elegantly simple design inside.
Trips with my kids seem way more fun than when I was a kid. Maybe I'm more open to the magic now, more mature to handle the inevitable meltdowns, or paying my own way, not worrying about how much things cost. Our first trip, my mom spoiled my older daughter with an AK junior ranger outfit. My daughter made a small book with pictures of the animals she saw that trip and then presented it to her kindergarten class. My younger daughter, then 2, wouldn't walk nor ride in the stroller, so she rode on my shoulders the whole trip. My knee complained to me about it when we got back to NC, but it was worth it.
We have done a lot more trips to the parks with friends and extended family - one huge perk of being a passholder. We meet out of town friends there when they go down for their trips. My daughters love seeing friends from NC and making new friends with college buddy's kids. Showing little ones around Epcot kept my girls going on a rope-drop (for FEA) to park-close day there a year ago. It's great to see their joy in the parks and to make so many new family memories there.
