How much do you plan for WDW vacation?

[k.hunter30]

How many meals do you make reservations for? Do you plan which park you'll visit every day that you're there? How much do you just do as you go?

A group of 8 of us are going to WDW for 7 days. While I LOVE to plan ahead, I usually only make 3 dining reservations per 7 days and then just wing it once we're there. This trip (using the Dining Plan) I've made 5 table reservations and, for the first four days, planned which park we'll visit. It seems like a lot of planning ahead to me... how much do you all like to do?

 

[chucknstuff]

I plan lunch and diner only. We then cancel the meals we decide not to use right before we leave. We always keep the character meals, and shows. this is so if we do want to eat at the other places. My family likes doing this so we can all pick a park and the meals. Doing it this way we all get involved with the planning of the trip.

 

[pinkrose]

Our trips are a combination of planned and "play it by ear". i do make dining reservations and plan to be at certain parks on certain days, but we do a lot of park hopping.

 

[Pumbas Nakasak]

I plan, revise and plan again. I have learned the hard way that it saves a lot of time and dissapointment. At the end of thr day its a plan not a contract and should something like a hurricane blow up, we can always amend adjust and adapt.:animwink:

One thing about planning is that it stops you living on burgers and hot dogs.

 

[TwoTigersMom]

I plan, revise and plan again. I have learned the hard way that it saves a lot of time and dissapointment. At the end of thr day its a plan not a contract and should something like a hurricane blow up, we can always amend adjust and adapt.:animwink:

One thing about planning is that it stops you living on burgers and hot dogs.

Good post, I totally agree. Actually I think most folks posting here are saying basically the same thing to some degree. I, too, am an obsessive planner. I've been planing our April trip for 3 years. I'm so obsessive about it that I have Excel spreadsheets for my ADR's, Week at a glance, and daily iteneraries. Now, don't get me wrong, I don't plan what ride to ride next, but our daily itenerary is a colorful, character filled paper with our ADR confimation #'s on it, also it has the times of the parades, firworks, etc. There is also a spot to fill in what each person is wearing that day (in case someone gets lost :lol: ) I usually put each person's "must do's" on it so we don't leave something off that one of the kids was really counting on. I can't remember where I found all these spreadsheets, someone had posted them years ago and I just adapted them to fit our needs.
Of course, in the past, we have strayed from the plan and done other things as well. It's just, this way we have some general idea of what we want to do.

 

[coltow]

Let's just say that my wife jokingly asks me if I scheduled bathroom breaks for her in there. And my Dad asked me the same question. :ROFLOL: .

LOL!! DH does this to me too.
We normally are at WDW for 8 days. We plan out 6 and leave 2 free days, 1 in the middle and 1 at the end. We use the free days to either stay at the pool for the day or visit other resorts and DTD. Occassionally we have used a free day to go back to a park. We do try to schedule 1 meal a day just so we have a reservation before we get there. We have changed and added more once we got there. We never plan our CS meals though, we just grab whatever whenever we are hungry.

 

[mgraef]

With ADRs more planning than I care to admit.

 

[Master Yoda]

I use to not plan at all. We might have a few things roughed out before we go like which parks we were going to hit etc but nothing else. We would make dinning reservations when we got to the parks.

But that was then......

Now that the parks are so much busier we have everything set up well before we leave. We know which parks we will be going to and ADR's are made for all of our table service dinning.

You can still fly by the seat of your pants to some degree but with a party your size I would reserve all the dining as soon as you can.

 

[phichi17]

We are going in April with a party of 8...the planning was not as much as you might think. The ADR's were the biggest part along with the rooms, but since everyone going is really flexible, the planning was really a joy. I litterally made two phonecalls to Disney and everything was covered!

 

[hokielutz]

The most planning I've done in the past was day dream about our daily experiences in the parks and actually making ADR's for 3 meals at restaurants that required resies.

This time I am trying my hand at planning everything down to the half hour. This doesn't mean that my planning will become the bible... but at least we can start the days with a plan and go from there. This might cure the daily indecisions we have about what park we should go to and at what time we should go during breakfast at 8AM

 

[Dwarful]

I think with the now super popular dining plan, reservations are pretty much needed for a party of more than 4. This will be especially true if you do during busy seasons. We are going in August and I have planned which days/which sit downs etc. For me like others, its a big part of the fun!

 

[Foolish Mortal]

I won't overplan, but like most people have mentioned since the dining plan started, I will make 1 sit down adr for each day of my trip. But I would have no problem changing one if plans were to change and something was open. I basically do whatever wherever I am.

 

[Pumbas Nakasak]

I, too, am an obsessive planner. I've been planing our April trip for 3 years. I'm so obsessive about it that I have Excel spreadsheets for my ADR's, .

I download the fonts and Jpeg logos for mine, this year I have added hyperlinks to the web site for each and to the menus on Deb Willis site. I also include the days we stay at the Hard Rock while we do Universal, and have a link to Bubba Gump and Jimmy Buffets sites too.

I really should get out more. :lookaroun :lol:

 

[k.hunter30]

I download the fonts and Jpeg logos for mine, this year I have added hyperlinks to the web site for each and to the menus on Deb Willis site. ...
I really should get out more. :lookaroun :lol:

Pumbas... you're my hero! LOL!

 

[jim1051]

We plan which park which day and dinner reservations accordingly, for each day. If the grand kids are along we do ADR for the princess/character breakfast too.

 

[oldshovelhead]

Ok

Wow...planning is (almost) the best part. I'm planning everything for months in advance. Daydreaming daily about every second of the trip...we never really stick to it all...but it keeps me going between trips to WDW. I always plan out the meals around the extended park hours. Of course that depends on where you will be staying. You can always cancel your reservations if you get distracted. If you go without any planning, you might not get into the places you really want to. They are booked far in advance now by everybody else on the DDP.

Planning can be fun so relax,enjoy yourself, and let the daydream begin...

 

[Master Yoda]

I download the fonts and Jpeg logos for mine, this year I have added hyperlinks to the web site for each and to the menus on Deb Willis site. I also include the days we stay at the Hard Rock while we do Universal, and have a link to Bubba Gump and Jimmy Buffets sites too.

I really should get out more. :lookaroun :lol:

You should give Google calendar a whirl. Makes sharing it pretty easy as well.

 

[maggiegrace1]

I plan to an extent..

I have ADR's for the meals I know fill up and I have an idea of what parks we will see on what day...

I usually just do the parks like I do every year....

We always do exactly what we want to do and never miss anything...

 

[Tim G]

I never do WDW vacvations... :lookaroun :lookaroun :lookaroun

 

[TwoTigersMom]

I never do WDW vacvations... :lookaroun :lookaroun :lookaroun

you stinker you just love rubbing our noses in it don'tcha? :lol:

 

[MJMcBride]

I even schedule bathroom breaks. :fork: