Is there anything better then check in day?

[need2go2wdw]

That is my absolute favorite part of my trips to WDW...I LOVE arriving to our WDW resort as early as possible, grabbing a counter service lunch (Mara is our favorite as the AK is usually where we stay), then taking a mid-day swim before heading to WL for dinner at WCC or the Poly for dinner at Ohana...it's just the most amazing feeling to sit in the water and look around at eveyone having fun and think to myself, "This is only my first day! I'm not leaving anytime soon, this is just the beginning!!!"...

I often think during the day when I'm not there about the pool area, and just how many people are chillin' in their favorite resort pool after just being "welcomed home" and I SO wish it were me! I just got back from 3 trips to WDW over the last 6 weeks, and none of them were in any way long enough, they were like 3 to 4 day trips spread out with various friends/family, but even though I was just there, I still wish I were back...just checking in, heading to the pool, having lunch, showering and heading to a fabulous dinner before a wonderful week at the parks!!! Any one else love this part of their trip as much as I do???

 

[need2go2wdw]

check in day is a little different for us (we live 2 1/2 hours north of wdw) so we head out (overly excited of course) of the driveway around 4am "check in" at the resort around 630-7am just in time to grab a running bite to eat and be at the park for rope drop. we breath your excited sigh of relief for our first morning that we actually wake up in the resort. but we too share your feeling of it being new, shiny, and that it's the beginning of our trip...and we have only 28 days 12 hours and 29 more minutes before we pull out of the driveway for our next trip (yeah).

WOW!!! 4AM??? I give you mad props for that! We live 3 hours away and I think my DH and DD, as much as they love WDW as much as I do, would FLIP out if I told them they would be in the car that early! I give you a lot of credit and wish my family could do the same!!

 

[Mikester71]

We usually get up at 5am on the Friday morning of our Spring Break trips and hit the road at 6am for our long 22 hour, day and a half drive down (usually stop in Adel, GA for the night before departing around 8am on Saturday morning) to our home away from home, Pop Century. So of course when we finally pull in to the Pop Century resort around 1 or 2pm the next day, we are all just as much relieved to be down with the driving part for a while as we are excited to finally be down in WDW!!!! No better feeling in the WORLD!!!!! 131 days until we get to do it all again!!!!:sohappy:

 

[bradybig]

can't wait

I agree----We are going to Port Orleans Riverside on 11/13. We will be leaving from our Pasadena, MD home at 3am and driving straight through. Even though I will be really tired by the time we get there, the adrenaline boost as we get closer will see me through. The waiting to leave is terrible.

 

[CuriousDeGeo]

I love check in day, few things can beat that feeling. That being said, for me the two week period before my actual trip is usually the best part. I still have the initial check in and entire trip ahead of me. I can start packing. I can finalize where I'm going to be eating and what I'll be riding. I love going to bed at night at thinking how close my trip is. The anticipation is sometimes the best part of it all!!

 

[foreverbelle]

I love the whole waiting for it, I love getting on that plane, knowing that in less than three hours I will be down there. Its one of the greatest feelings in the world at that moment. I love walking into whichever resort we decided to hit up that trip for the first time and thinking yes I am home. I love knowing that we can hit our room, drop our stuff and then hit the road again which is usually to DTD to grab lunch at Earl's before hitting up a park.

I don't know what it is about it but its just its so wonderful.

So I agree there is no greater feeling than check in day.

 

[tink65]

I agree! I love check in day! We always stay at Pop Century and when we turn into the resort, pass security check in, then make that final turn and I see that huge Pop Century sign I just get so excited! If our room isn't ready after checking in we usually have lunch at the food court and wait for our pager to go off to let us know everything is ready! Just knowing that our magical vacation is just beginning is so exciting! Can't wait til next September when we head "home" again!:sohappy:

 

[tuppence]

I agree too. Check in day (no matter what time of year, what resort, etc) is like Christmas morning. Hard to put the feelings into words.

 

[need2go2wdw]

I'm so glad to hear other people agree that the feeling of check-in day is just too hard to describe!!!

 

[SweetPea]

I was excited before I read this, but ya'll have gotten me even more excited now just thinking about it. DH and I head down January 12 for our first KID FREE trip in 10 years. We can't wait!!!:sohappy:

 

[Iteachwood]

first day

Boy we are all HOOKED! We have been to disneyworld every year from R.I since how honeymoon in 1985! First day there..arriving at resort..STILL an AWSUM experience. Every year we say " maybe we'll try someplace else this year. BUT always end up back at disney. Its all about the anticipation. The planning, the countdown,the shopping for clothes..the dining reservations...the saving of money ( quarters,disney dollars,reward points) then comes that arrival day and its so exciting. Do I sound like a kid here? Im 57! Im more into disney now than ever. Like I said we are all hooked!:ROFLOL::sohappy::animwink:

 

[pixiesteno]

Our most recent trip I found that we had allotted too many days travel and found ourselves in Florida a whole day early!!! I know, how could you over estimate - it was the first trip with the RV and we made a lot better travel time than I had anticipated. So a 7:30 am phone call to central booking added a day to our trip. We finished the drive in and we were completely set up in our campsite before 11 am for 10 whole days!!! What an awesome time we had.

 

[disneykidathart]

Sweet pea We'll be there same time

We'll be down 1/11 to the 17th. Staying at Pop. Can't wait. It's only our 2nd time there ever. I was so excited the first time and now more so as I know what a great time it is!

 

[KaliSplash]

Check in day is a VERY GOOD THING, as Martha Stewart would say.

 

[LuvMyLatte]

Check in day

I always tell the kids "We're home". A check in day just renews my spirit and my outlook on things.

 

[mickey2008.1]

While check in day can be great, it can also be the worst, as we found out last december when they lost our reservation. Let me tell you, sitting around for 6 hours trying to convince them you have a reservation even when its in your hand can be very frustrating. Its not the best way to start a trip. So i hope this year goes much easier. I just want to show and hear the words, "welcome back home", instead of "we dont have you in our system."

 

[need2go2wdw]

While check in day can be great, it can also be the worst, as we found out last december when they lost our reservation. Let me tell you, sitting around for 6 hours trying to convince them you have a reservation even when its in your hand can be very frustrating. Its not the best way to start a trip. So i hope this year goes much easier. I just want to show and hear the words, "welcome back home", instead of "we dont have you in our system."

!!! Yikes!!! You even had your reservation info in your hand?? Wow, talk about a nightmare NO ONE wants to have happen to them on check in day!!! So sorry for the mess you went through! I'm sure this year will be wonderful and you'll be greeted with the awesome "welcome home" that you missed out on last year!

 

[disney4life2008]

I agree!! I always take the first flight out of Chicago to get to Disney as earliest as possible. Like you, I love the check in process. I enjoy walking around knowing that it is only day 1 and I have a week to enjoy. My first day usually results in heading towards the food court for lunch and a dip in the pool. Then heading to the MK for the fireworks and parade.

 

[poohbear6103]

I LOVE check in day!! I think what’s just as great is how the excitement starts the night before when I feel like that old WDW commercial “I’m too excited to sleep” Then when once you check in and you know you still have a week or two (depending) ahead of you, that’s the best! Then you see people doing what my husband and I call “the walk of shame”. That is when the people who are checking out that day are dragging their luggage to the lobby with their heads down. Even though I know that sooner or later that walk is in my future, I can’t help but walk with my head held high at that point knowing that my trip has just started

 

[diddy_mouse]

Love check-in day!

I am usually a little too chipper when I talk to the CM at check in. This can be blamed on the fact that DH and I have been up since some ungodly hour in the morning to catch our flight, so giddy delirium tends to set in. On our past trip I did Online Check-In and still had that friendly experience when we approached the counter. Also, nothing better than being told your room is ready!

 

[NYwdwfan]

Going to bed the first night and waking up at WDW is pretty exciting too! Waking up knowing that we are on vacation and at WDW. Heading to Main Steet Bakery for our first breakfast:slurp:

My favorite too - I leave the curtains open so the sun wakes me up and my first thought is always, "I'm really here - checking in yesterday wasn't a dream!!!" It's the other 358 days of the year I wake up in my own bed and the being at Disney part was just a dream.