Taking a clueless newby.

[Huglife]

I'm taking my boyfriend to WDW for Christmas/his Birthday in December. We're in our 30's. He went to DL as a child and has never been to WDW. He's super excited but totally clueless and wants no part in planning aside from pointing at restaurant menus he finds appealing. The other day I was talking about how I was happy there was uber so we didn't have to rely on Disney transportation if we wanted to have wine with dinner. He laughed and said "Can't we just walk to everything?". I had to show him a map and explain how it was the size of a city. When I talked about SSE being my favorite ride he said "I thought EPCOT was in the big golf ball".

Does anyone have any suggestions or experience taking a clueless adult?

 

[WWWD]

Do things you know he'll enjoy, don't run him ragged to show him everything. Make him want to come back to experience more of what WDW has to offer. If you try to cram in as much as possible during the trip, he'll come back exhausted and probably not wanting to return for some time. Just hit some of the must dos and he'll have a blast.

 

[Matt_Black]

Well, what are his general interests? If he's a car guy, he'll want to ride Test Track and play around in the little area afterwards maybe.

As a man, though, here's my short list of things guys will probably like.

Magic Kingdom
Splash Mountain
Space Mountain
Big Thunder Mountain

Epcot
Test Track
Mission Space
Drinking Around World Showcase

DHS
Indiana Jones Epic Stunt Spectacular
Aerosmith Rock 'n Roller Coaster
Tower of Terror
Star Tours
Lights, Motor, ACTION!

DAK
Dinosaur!
Expedition Everest

 

[epcotisbest]

I'm taking my boyfriend to WDW for Christmas/his Birthday in December. We're in our 30's. He went to DL as a child and has never been to WDW. He's super excited but totally clueless and wants no part in planning aside from pointing at restaurant menus he finds appealing. The other day I was talking about how I was happy there was uber so we didn't have to rely on Disney transportation if we wanted to have wine with dinner. He laughed and said "Can't we just walk to everything?". I had to show him a map and explain how it was the size of a city. When I talked about SSE being my favorite ride he said "I thought EPCOT was in the big golf ball".

Does anyone have any suggestions or experience taking a clueless adult?

I think you could get him a copy of the unofficial guide then ask him to read it, if not for him, for you. That way he will have a better understanding of WDW and that should then help you both have a better trip.
If he really is super excited like you say, he will want to learn more, again, if only for you.
If he insists on remaining clueless, leave him home.
Now, when you say Christmas, do you mean the weeks leading up to Christmas or actual Christmas week? I would never take a newcomer Christmas week. If you do, it might be his first and last visit.

 

[Cowboy Steve]

I'm taking my boyfriend to WDW for Christmas/his Birthday in December. We're in our 30's. He went to DL as a child and has never been to WDW. He's super excited but totally clueless and wants no part in planning aside from pointing at restaurant menus he finds appealing. The other day I was talking about how I was happy there was uber so we didn't have to rely on Disney transportation if we wanted to have wine with dinner. He laughed and said "Can't we just walk to everything?". I had to show him a map and explain how it was the size of a city. When I talked about SSE being my favorite ride he said "I thought EPCOT was in the big golf ball".

Does anyone have any suggestions or experience taking a clueless adult?

Ya know... some things you just have to experience to truly appreciate. We took my fiance a few years back - she had not been there since she was a young girl in the 70's... and she was like a little kid again lol! He is going to have a blast!

I would add to Matt's list above:

HS
Toy Story Midway Mania

EPCOT
Living with the Land (Been fascinated with this since I went in 1983 - even do my own hydroponics now)
Soarin'

 

[Huglife]

I think you could get him a copy of the unofficial guide then ask him to read it, if not for him, for you. That way he will have a better understanding of WDW and that should then help you both have a better trip.
If he really is super excited like you say, he will want to learn more, again, if only for you.
If he insists on remaining clueless, leave him home.
Now, when you say Christmas, do you mean the weeks leading up to Christmas or actual Christmas week? I would never take a newcomer Christmas week. If you do, it might be his first and last visit.

We're going December 11th-17th. Hopefully crowds won't be all that bad. I tried to get him to read "The Hidden Magic of Walt Disney World" because I really enjoyed it but he wants everything to be a total surprise.

 

[Cowboy Steve]

We're going December 11th-17th. Hopefully crowds won't be all that bad. I tried to get him to read "The Hidden Magic of Walt Disney World" because I really enjoyed it but he wants everything to be a total surprise.

We have been going the week after Thanksgiving and the crowds aren't bad (by Disney standards). We have gone the first full week in December, and that was good as well. You probably won't have any problems with your dates!

If he wants to go in clueless and be surprised - let him! It will be fun for you watching him transform into a 10 year old boy again... lol! But I'll bet dollars to donuts if you go back again he will want in on the planning...

 

[Weather_Lady]

He's happy to go and wants no part in the planning? Sounds like a keeper to me!!! It's the best of both worlds: you get to show off your mad Disney skills and plan the trip around what you think is best without him objecting, and he gets to have a good time and relax.

DH and I have been to WDW several times, and thankfully, my laid-back hubby is still content to sit back and let OCD me do the planning, albeit with his input, and incorporating his handful of "must-dos" into the master plan. (The first trip was very eye-opening for him, though: I remember him sayings things like, "You know, hon, I'm glad you got that Anna & Elsa Fastpass -- that saved us like three hours in line. I wonder why all those other people in standby didn't bother to get Fastpasses for it - I'm sure they don't run out of them." or, "Do you think we should sleep in instead of rushing to a park? If we get there mid-morning, we'll probably beat the rush and lines will be shorter, right?" or, "Downtown Disney is that shopping street in the front part of the Magic Kingdom, so we should be able to get from Dumbo to Raglan Road in ten minutes, wouldn't you say?")

 

[wdwfan4ver]

As a man, though, here's my short list of things guys will probably like.

Lights, Motor, ACTION!

Can't happen. That attraction is permanently closed and the area it is in is going to be teared down.

 

[Matt_Black]

Oh, forgot. Thanks.

 

[ninjaprincesst]

Well, what are his general interests? If he's a car guy, he'll want to ride Test Track and play around in the little area afterwards maybe.

As a man, though, here's my short list of things guys will probably like.

Magic Kingdom
Splash Mountain
Space Mountain
Big Thunder Mountain

Epcot
Test Track
Mission Space
Drinking Around World Showcase

DHS
Indiana Jones Epic Stunt Spectacular
Aerosmith Rock 'n Roller Coaster
Tower of Terror
Lights, Motor, ACTION!

Remember no more Lights, Motor , Action! It's gone for Star Wars.

DAK
Dinosaur!
Expedition Everest

Well, what are his general interests? If he's a car guy, he'll want to ride Test Track and play around in the little area afterwards maybe.

As a man, though, here's my short list of things guys will probably like.

Magic Kingdom
Splash Mountain
Space Mountain
Big Thunder Mountain

Epcot
Test Track
Mission Space
Drinking Around World Showcase

DHS
Indiana Jones Epic Stunt Spectacular
Aerosmith Rock 'n Roller Coaster
Tower of Terror
Star Tours
Lights, Motor, ACTION!

DAK
Dinosaur!
Expedition Everest

 

[Noellikechristmas]

Do all the planning and let him enjoy it. I'm taking a few newbies with me and I've just done all the planning. I like using all my information to take them on a well planned trip..all they need to do is show up to the airport and I handle the rest. It may be a little work for me, but I enjoy knowing they had a good time without having to do all the research and 'prep' work.

 

[Huglife]

I'm sure he'll be baffled on Tuesday when I set the alarm for 4:30 am to make ADRs.

 

[WDWDarling]

I took my DH to WDW this past August for the first time and he was the same way - excited to go but didn't realize all the planning that goes into it and was content to let me do my thing. Like @Weather_Lady experienced, he was amazed when we used our 7DMT FP+ and waited 10 minutes while the posted wait time was 70!

As others have mentioned, if he's not really into planning, I would maybe throw out a few things you know he might like and see his reaction. My DH loves pizza and tiramisu so I booked an ADR at Via Napoli on our EPCOT day and he loved it so much we ate there again the next day and it was at the top of his "Must Do" list this year.

Your dates won't be quite as crowded as Christmas week but I would still prepare him for crowds. Either way though Christmas at Disney is beautiful and I hope you both have an amazing time!

 

[JIMINYCR]

He might not want to plan, because hes thinking thats boring, but have you shown him one of the trip dvd's, viewed some of the ride throughs or park walk through you tube videos? They can give a newbie a better idea of how things are set up at WDW and not be a boring thing to do. Watching the ride throughs especially can help him decide which attractions he might want to target the most.