Would You Rather Be..........

[gnuts0306]

Planning your very FIRST WDW trip or be a trip planning VETERAN?

I was just thinking how different it is to plan a trip after being at WDW so many times, and how I would have felt planning it for the first time.....which I didnt really get to do, because by the first time I planned my own trip I had already been to WDW many times where my parents planned the trip.....

Its so exciting going to Disney either way, but I see so many first timers on here getting all anxious about what way to go about ADRs and things like that and I ALMOST miss it....

But I think I would say I would much rather be a trip planning VETERAN.....when that 180 day mark comes Im all set LOL.....

What would you be?

 

[Tim_4]

I think your description is pretty much how I feel. I enjoy knowing what I'm doing when I plan a trip but I think the low-budget bumps and bruises that came with planning those first couple of college trips away from the parents is what makes the experienced planning (that I can now kind of afford lol) that much more enjoyable.

 

[beckyj3266]

I am planning my 11th visit to WDW & I am so glad that I am a veteran planner. It makes it so much easier knowing more about the parks and how to make the best of my time there. I get to experience some of the excitement of 1st time planning by helping other people I know plan their first trip. I get a taste of first time planning and they get some of my tips on what would be the best plan for their personalities and interests. Its a win/win situation!

 

[DeaverTex]

Ask me after I've been a few times.

 

[mrsdanalind]

planning ahead

Planning your very FIRST WDW trip or be a trip planning VETERAN?

I was just thinking how different it is to plan a trip after being at WDW so many times, and how I would have felt planning it for the first time.....which I didnt really get to do, because by the first time I planned my own trip I had already been to WDW many times where my parents planned the trip.....

Its so exciting going to Disney either way, but I see so many first timers on here getting all anxious about what way to go about ADRs and things like that and I ALMOST miss it....

But I think I would say I would much rather be a trip planning VETERAN.....when that 180 day mark comes Im all set LOL.....

What would you be?

We (my daughter) and I are planning pros. We have lists and lists of lists:ROFLOL: We start about 6 months before figuring out where we want to eat, and then checking menus, because we have found that the menus changed on us. We also debate over which restaurant we want for our first meal, and we have a tradition of Yak and Yeties for our last meal, but we have to book it according to when we get there and when we need to leave the parks for our bus back to air port... I love being a trip planning veteran, gets me all hyped for the vacation. :xmas:

 

[CaptainShortty]

When it comes to planning I love being a veteran but I really wish I could have the experience of being in the parks for the first time. I've been going since I has a couple months old so I don't remember experiencing them for the first time. THAT I would like to be a newbie at.

 

[isman250]

I would love to just have the surprise and get that feeling of magic the first time, everytime.

 

[liloohana]

I love being a pro (wondering why ANYONE would wait in line 2 hours for Peter Pan!!), but riding HM last week I was thinking how magical it would be to be seeing it for the first time. When you bring your children for their first few trips, you get to relive the wonder and amazement of everything Disney. And even though I am still in complete awe of the intricacy of Disney, seeing it for the first time again would be magical!!:ROFLOL:

 

[Walt Disney1955]

There is a certain charm and magic about being there the "first time". But I still get goosebumps when I enter the Magic Kingdom. I still treat the rides as if it's my first time too. It isn't my choice but just the attention to detail forces you to see things you never did before. Plus knowing the ins and outs of the park helps you when you want to save time.

I've never been to WDW and NOT had a special feeling about it so in many ways the frequency that I attend the park seems like a first time

 

[gnuts0306]

There is a certain charm and magic about being there the "first time". But I still get goosebumps when I enter the Magic Kingdom. I still treat the rides as if it's my first time too. It isn't my choice but just the attention to detail forces you to see things you never did before. Plus knowing the ins and outs of the park helps you when you want to save time.

I've never been to WDW and NOT had a special feeling about it so in many ways the frequency that I attend the park seems like a first time

VERY WELL SAID.....I still get that same first time feeling when we hit our first park each vacation too....but the planning does help save time to fit in more of that magic lol

 

[coachwnh]

planning ahead for your next trip is great, but being able to change on the fly while you are at WDW is what makes being a WDW trip vet even better. just knowing when to come to the parks, when to leave, where it will be crowded and what times that will be, how to work the fastpasses, knowing what lines are too long and when those attractions will be walk ons. I think that is what being a WDW vet helps the most. Sure the planning is fun, but knowing what to do when you are actually there to maximize your vacation is the best. My oh my did we learn after our first trip years back. My wife vowed, "never again" will we go unprepared. This place can be overwhelming!! Friends of ours said after their first trip last winter, "if its the happiest place on Earth, why do so many parents and kids have meltdowns?" So true, and also very funny. So being able to plan, but also knowing how to change the plans once there is the best part of going so many times.

 

[sksowell]

It's fun planning as a veteran. Our last trip involved a family member who had never been to Disney World. This increased our enjoyment in the planning process and it was amazing to see things through a first time visitors eyes.

 

[Susan Savia]

I love being a veteran when planning WDW trips. Knowing when to do it, how to do it and where to do it certainly makes things easier. Knowing how to navagate the parks to get to a location in the quickest time, etc.

 

[cynic710]

i truely enjoy planning as a veteran, but i get the added bonus of planning for 2 27 year old newbies..by far the best experience yet!

 

[quirkle]

:sohappy:

planning ahead for your next trip is great, but being able to change on the fly while you are at WDW is what makes being a WDW trip vet even better. just knowing when to come to the parks, when to leave, where it will be crowded and what times that will be, how to work the fastpasses, knowing what lines are too long and when those attractions will be walk ons. I think that is what being a WDW vet helps the most. Sure the planning is fun, but knowing what to do when you are actually there to maximize your vacation is the best. My oh my did we learn after our first trip years back. My wife vowed, "never again" will we go unprepared. This place can be overwhelming!! Friends of ours said after their first trip last winter, "if its the happiest place on Earth, why do so many parents and kids have meltdowns?" So true, and also very funny. So being able to plan, but also knowing how to change the plans once there is the best part of going so many times.

:sohappy: Well said!

I brought my husband as a Disney virgin at the age of 24 - how fun to see him get it and fall deeply in love with my first true love (MK - not him LOL)

Then bringing each one of my girls for their first times - one of my happiest memories is bringing my eldest when she was 2 and having breakfast at CRT. Snow White lifted her onto her lap and my daughter melted. What was even funnier was that my sister and I bounded up the stairs and I forgot about my daughter since we were as giddy as little kids.

What I try to do it keep one or two things undone on our trips so that the next time we go our kids are experiencing new things.

As an adult my expertise helps keep us one step ahead of the crowds while still allowing my children to make the decisions as to what to do next - that way I am raising little mini-experts! On the last trip when my youngest was 3 she walked by SSE and asked how long the line was - I told her 45 minutes and she said - Geesh - lets skip it until the line dies down.:lol:

 

[gnuts0306]

As an adult my expertise helps keep us one step ahead of the crowds while still allowing my children to make the decisions as to what to do next - that way I am raising little mini-experts! On the last trip when my youngest was 3 she walked by SSE and asked how long the line was - I told her 45 minutes and she said - Geesh - lets skip it until the line dies down.:lol:

LOVE that lol....My daughter is 6 and this will be her 3rd trip and shes becoming quite the planner herself!

 

[enchanted_belle]

I'm planning my 19th trip to WDW... and yet, it's my first one that I'm truly planning. Every other trip, I've been one of the "kids" on it, even when I was 19 or 20, so while I helped pick out what to do and where to eat, I've enver been the one truly putting in the input.

This trip coming up, I haven't been inside a theme park in 3, almost 4, years.. there's a lot that I can see for the first time. And I'm taking people with me who haven't gone, or haven't been since they were really little, and it's exciting to think about that moment when they look at the castle and finally understand everything I've been talking to them about.

So, while I have an idea of what I want us to do when, putting it all together is really going to be the best part for me.

 

[BigRedDad]

The only planning I do is when I am going and where I am staying. After that, it is just a bunch of ideas of what to do. No planning what so ever. This is what has me a little crazy on my next trip. The dumb dining plan having to dictate where I will be. I hope I planned them well enough to be where I will be when they come up. If not, I will skip the meal.

 

[WDWisAMAZING]

I agree that it is a different feeling when you're planning your first trip to WDW. But the excitement is still there when you are planning as a WDW veteran. You know more about the parks and what to do and what not to do.

 

[Matt and Kelly]

When it comes to planning I love being a veteran but I really wish I could have the experience of being in the parks for the first time.

This is how I feel as well. I haven't been on a bunch of trips but enough to know how to prepare. Having the ADR's booked well in advnace and knowing the lay of the land is a definite advantage.

That said, it would be so great to be able to walk through the gates and see everything for the first time.