Who Took You to WDW for the first time?

[MickeyMinnieMom]

To WDW... It was kind of a team effort. I was 20yrs old. My mom had saved money from babysitting, I saved money from working over summers, and my mom had been given the gift of airline tickets to a destination of her choice as part of an award for extensive volunteering she had done. We stayed at CBR for a week and had a blast. Loved it.

My very first Disney trip at all was to DL when I was 14 — family trip. I had been in love with the idea of going to DL for as long as I could remember. My mom had told me about watching Walt on TV with her Dad as he talked about DL. I had a View Master with a DL reel and used to look at it every night before bed.

 

[Disney4family]

My parents drove us down during our "February Break" up here on LI. It was 1972.

I took my husband for his first trip to a Disney park when we were on our honeymoon in France in 1997. We spent a day in Disneyland Paris and had a blast!

 

[DisneyDoctor]

My grandma and my mom in 1999. I rode Splash Mountain with my grandma, who is now deceased, and had the best time. As you can imagine, Splash Mountain holds an extremely dear spot in my heart. I'll never take that ride, or WDW, for granted. It has given me so much joy and nostalgia.

 

[Raineman]

I went in March of 1990 with my grandmother. We spent spring break staying with my great aunt in St. Pete, and we took a 3-day bus trip to WDW. Went to MK, Epcot and MGM. She passed away 7 years ago, and every time I go to WDW, I see something that reminds me of our trip there, and it feels like she’s there with me.

 

[irwalt2]

August 1972, me(8), my brother (10) and my Grandparents. My Grandparents had gone down to look for a retirement home and took the 2 of us on a vacation before doing some house hunting. My wife and I went for the first time in April 1990 and went back for our honeymoon in October 1991.

 

[donaldtoo]

My DWifey, for our honeymoon in December of ‘88...!!!!!!!

 

[Figments Friend]

That would have been my Mom, in 1979 / 1980.
Can't recall the exact year...

I was 7 or 8 years old, and I only remember two things about the trip -
The flight down on Eastern Airlines ( first time on a airplane ), and seeing 'The Mickey Mouse Revue'.
Everything else was a blur...and I have no real recollections of my experience.

-

 

[eliza61nyc]

My parents. Unfortunately the trip was a disaster. we were singularly unimpressed with the Magic Kingdom, outside of maybe Haunted Mansion we thought the rides were dumb. Although my siblings and I were tween-agers so probably not as gracious as we should have been.

Did not fall in love with it until 2000 when my late husband and I took our kids.

 

[Goofyernmost]

My parents. Unfortunately the trip was a disaster. we were singularly unimpressed with the Magic Kingdom, outside of maybe Haunted Mansion we thought the rides were dumb. Although my siblings and I were tween-agers so probably not as gracious as we should have been.

Did not fall in love with it until 2000 when my late husband and I took our kids.

Tween-agers? That explains it all.

 

[75disney]

My parents took us for the first time in May 1975. I was 2. My dad grew up watching the Mickey Mouse Club with his family on television and his dad always wanted to take them to DL, but he died suddenly when my dad was 12. My dad made it a goal to take his family to Disney sometime. So he worked side jobs in addition to his full time job so we could go to WDW. Once we went, we were hooked. My family went back every year after that, and my dad continued to work side jobs every year for that special vacation time. We joke he is Chevy Chase on his pilgrimage to Wally World. I really respect my father for being a true family man.

 

[Shouldigo12]

Myself! Like you, I had always wanted to go as a kid but financially we couldn't afford it, although we were supposed to go when I was ten. When my grandfather died he had left behind some money and told us he wanted us to use that money for a vacation to DW (with "us" being my grandmother, mom, dad, brothers, and me) so we could all have one last vacation together. My grandmother took that money and went on several cruises by herself. Yes, I am still sore about that. But when I entered high school, I decided that if I wanted to go so badly I could work and pay for the trip myself. My mom wouldn't let me get a job until my senior year so i could stay focused on school, but when I finally did get a job I saved every penny I could and by my next birthday I was able to afford my dream trip! I took my mom along, because she's an awesome special woman who deserved a vacation more than anyone I know. She was already planning out next trip by day 2. XD

 

[Nottamus]

My "FIRST" trip was with my wife in 2014. No other trip mattered.

 

[DisneyDoctor]

My "FIRST" trip was with my wife in 2014. No other trip mattered.

Why did no other trips matter?

 

[larryz]

Me, but I credit my Dad for taking us to Six Flags over Texas when it was the only Six Flags park. That, plus the brainwashing from the weekly Disney TV shows, gave me the impetus and ambition to visit the Disney parks.

My first was Disneyland, on New Year's Day 1974. Then I did WDW in 1979.

 

[Nottamus]

Why did no other trips matter?

shhhh....have to whisper this one....one trip with an ex in 1998

keep it a secret.

 

[DisneyDoctor]

shhhh....have to whisper this one....one trip with an ex in 1998

keep it a secret.

 

[ppet]

My DW and I took each other and our two kids. Growing up on a small farm my family never had the time or money for vacations. Dairies are 24/7 operations. My wife and I decided we were taking our kids and in 2000 it happened. We've been multiple times since and it's become my kids favorite place to vacation. In fact My DS and new DDIL are there for their Honeymoon this week.

 

[Susan Savia]

My husband and I took our 1 year old daughter in 1984 for our first trip and have gone nearly every year since.

 

[zurgandfriend]

For WDW it was very undramatic, my DW and I went on vacation circa 1993.

Now for Disneyland, much like the Griswolds, my father drove the family, mom, my 4 sisters and myself, cross country via route 66 circa 1959 to visit relatives and to see DL, Knott’s Berry farm, Marine Land etc.

 

[Phonedave]

I want to say the first time was 1985, so I was a sophomore in High School

Prior to this, the only vacations we ever too was driving to Canada for 2 weeks and staying in a cabin on a lake my grandparents owned. Lots of fun at the time given the lens of nostalgia, but no TV, no tub/shower (that's why you have a lake), a wood stove for heat, and 30 miles to the nearest grocery store, it was far from a resort vacation.

The grocery store where I worked (and my family shopped) had some deal with I believe People's Airline (remember them). If you saved your grocery receipts, once you hit a certain amount you could get a round trip ticket to FL for something like $80, so that's what my parents did.

Me, my brother, and my parents went to Florida - not to WDW, but to Florida. We stayed in a rented townhouse in Kissimmee,. We did two days at WDW (one for each of the parks at the time), a day a Sea World, a day at the space center, and maybe something else that slips my mind now. I still remember WDW. It was fun. I would not say mind blowing, but a good time.

Jump ahead 4 or 5 years to maybe 1990, and my grandfather offered to take the family to WDW again. However now I was in college, and way to cool to go to WDW, so I stayed home.

Jump to 1999/2000. I am now married and have my first kid, and my then wife (now ex) wants to go to WDW. I was not sure about the money. We had just renovated our house, had a bunch of bills, money was tight and WDW was expensive. We did it on the cheap - Pop Century, no extras, brought some food with us, etc. I was sold by the second day. It was expensive, but the level of service and quality was worth it (not any longer, but I digress). I have been going on a regular basis ever since. 2 or 3 more times with my ex-wife, loads of times while I was divorced, and maybe 10 times since I have been remarried.