More and more lately I hear people despair (rather than rejoice) over their upcoming Walt Disney World vacation – especially if they’re planning their first trip.  “It’s overwhelming! There’s too much to plan!  We don’t how to choose a place to stay, where to eat, what to ride!”  I’m totally sympathetic – it IS overwhelming.  With dozens (hundreds?) of planning websites offering advice, not to mention Pinterest, Facebook, rumors, false information, a bajillion details to worry about – I can see why it might seem a lot easier (and cheaper!) to just head to the beach!

Part of the problem, caused by information overload, is spending too much time worrying about what you don’t know and what to do with the overwhelming, often contradictory, information you DO know.  This will cause a bad case of…

Overthinking Your Disney World Vacation

For todays Friday Five, I’d like to offer (yet again) more sage (I have reached a pretty ripe old age, I think I qualify for “sage”) advice.  Today’s words of wisdom, according to me (because I’m guilty of several) – five ways to avoid the frustration brought about by the aforementioned overthinking.  Here you go:

1.  Yes, you have to plan, but perhaps not as much as you think.  You should book at least a couple of ADRs (Advance Dining Reservations) in advance.  Six months ahead of your vacation for the most popular restaurants/character dining experiences.  If you have the opportunity to book FastPasses, you should do that (especially during Spring Break, summer, and the holiday season) – plan to ride what you think you’ll enjoy!  Try to avoid the mindset of “It’s SO expensive, I must plan to get my money’s worth!”  Be mindful of height requirements, but other than that, take the reviews and ratings of others with a grain of salt.  I loathe Stitch’s Great Escape, but plenty of people love it.  (Joseph’s not a fan of It’s a Small World, but he’ll always take one for the team.)

2.  When you overthink, you often cause undue pressure – you imagine exactly how your day(s) in Magic Kingdom will be, how everything will happen just as it appears on TV, how you and your children will be blissfully happy, how you’ll see and do everything you watched on YouTube.  This creates unrealistic expectations and leads to disappointment.  When things don’t meet your expectations, your vacation enjoyment is diminished.  It’s best to be open-minded – everyone’s experience is different!  Because we are individuals, what we each find joy in will be unique.  Your 5-year-old may care much less about rides and attractions than they do about the pool at your resort – such was the case with our Megan back in 1996.

3. Under-promise and Over-deliver.  Where your kids are concerned, share vacation details in broad generalizations.  Do NOT promise that they will ride certain rides or meet certain characters.  Even if you have FastPasses booked for Anna and Elsa, Seven Dwarfs Mine Train, talking Mickey Mouse, or Splash Mountain – unforeseen factors can spring up at any minute.  Rides break down, crazy summer storms (complete with hail!) spring up, the Florida heat takes a toll, meltdowns (of all types) occur.  You WILL see and do some incredible, magical things – that’s what you should focus on.  Last year, we were in Magic Kingdom when some computer glitch caused many rides to be down at once – we could hear people talking about how they’d promised their family they would ride The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh on their ONE day at Magic Kingdom.  This computer problem was RUINING their vacation.  Do not be those people.

4.  Over-planning often costs you magical moments.  Does that sound wrong?  Think about it – you’ve thought out every moment, every contingency, every possible situation – You’ve brought matching tee-shirts, snacks, rain ponchos, Band-Aids, antacid, sunscreen, toys, games, stickers, and so on.  You’ve scheduled meals, rides, attractions, and even photo opportunities – trust me, I know what this is like!  I’m a reformed compulsive over-planner.  Most of our happiest vacation memories happened during the UN-planned moments.  Build in time to waste, time to wander, time to experience some things on the spur of the moment – you won’t be disappointed!

5.  Use a Travel Agent.  There are excellent Disney travel experts out there and there is absolutely NO cost to you for taking advantage of their expertise.  You can still plan as much (or as little) as you want to, but having someone “in the know” about what resorts and restaurants are really like, what their previous clients’ actual, recent experiences were, what room locations at each resort will best meet your family’s needs, where money savings opportunities exist, and so on, is a tremendous help to avoid overthinking.  I am not a travel agent, but I’ve used one before (and I’m friends with a great one, if you need a recommendation).  As much as I love to plan, it helped having someone to answer my questions, book things for me when I didn’t have time to waste waiting on hold, and help me stay within my budget.

Are you guilty of overthinking a Disney vacation?  Feel free to confess, you’re among friends here.