Tag Archives: Disney Vacation Tips

Evolution of Disney Vacations

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IMG_2141If you’re a lifelong Disney fan, you may have a good many Disney vacation memories to smile about.  You’ll also maybe have seen the way you vacation at your favorite Disney resort change over time.  Today I’m here to share our family’s experience…how our vacation style has changed over the years.  Perhaps you’ll be able to relate to one (or more) of the stages of the…

Evolution of Disney Vacations

The BK Stage (Before Kids) – We were young, broke and just married.  We didn’t know what we didn’t know, but were crazy about everything – the attractions, shows, atmosphere, the details…the magic that hooked us and made us want to keep coming back!  No plans, no dining reservations, no FastPasses (they had not yet been invented), but we were blissfully happy and felt so fortunate to have had the experience.

The Stroller Phase – I realize looking back that taking kids in strollers with one in diapers must have been challenging (and involved packing a LOT of stuff!), but I don’t remember that part.  I remember taking our time, seeing and doing what we could while fitting in naps and pool-time at our resort.  The child-swap option for attractions worked well for us and we loved the three o’clock parade.RM-Magic-Kingdom-Parade-Watching-1996IMG_2139

The Character Phase – Meet-and-greets, autographs, character dining – we couldn’t seem to get enough!  During this phase, we seemed to care the most (compared to any other time) about where and when we could find our favorite characters.  Megan was a shy little girl and felt the most comfortable with characters that didn’t talk because it meant that she didn’t have to talk either.  Her happiness meeting Donald, Minnie, Mickey and the rest of the gang stands out in my memory especially for this reason.IMG_1948 IMG_2128 IMG_1942

The Family Motto Phase – This will be different for every family – based on your family’s touring style.  This is the stage when you are free to go, go, go!  No strollers, no naps, everyone’s tall enough to ride everything.  We really liked this phase!  The Green Family coat of arms is made up of three gold stags on a blue shield with the motto:  Virtus Semper Viridis – we convinced our kids that this meant “We’ll rest when we’re dead” and during the post-stroller, post-character phases, we rose early and hit as many attractions as we possibly could before seeing a nighttime spectacular – after which we’d return to our room, collapse, rise and repeat.  IMG_0990 DSCN2522The motto really means “Virtue is always flourishing” but nobody needed to know that, did they.  We felt our five or six days at Walt Disney World was time so precious (and expensive) that to relax at our resort was unproductive.  Right or wrong, that’s how we felt and boy, could we get stuff done!  We’re still especially guilty of living by the (made up) motto when we visit ports on Disney Cruise Line – we make the most of every minute and return to the ship exhausted.In line at Disney

The Empty Nest Phase – Sounds sad and lonely, but it’s anything but.  We can invite our Disney-loving offspring to join us on some trips and sometimes not!  Yes, we’re back to vacationing without kids, only this time we know what we’re doing.  We know exactly when we want to go (and aren’t vacationing around school and sports), we know where we want to stay, how we want to tour, where we want to eat, and now we know how to relax!  Best of all worlds!  We’re really making the most of this phase because in the next one, God willing, we’ll be back to the stroller phase again as grandparents… which actually sounds pretty good to us.Epcot-International-Food-and-Wine-Festival

How about you?  How have your family’s Disney vacations evolved over the years?  Which phase are you in now?

At Disney World – Do NOT be THAT Mom!

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Vacations cause stress.  Seems in direct opposition to what’s actually supposed to occur when you have time off from work and school to escape for some fun and relaxation, but there you have it.  There are a lot of moving parts to a vacation – a lot can go wrong…and therein lies the problem.  In theory, we’re supposed to be happy, carefree, and fully enjoying the experience purchased by our investment of time and hard-earned money.  HA!  Right.  If you’re a mom, that’s a nice thought, but virtually impossible to pull off.  Why?  Why do we make this so hard on ourselves?  Why do we make it even worse by going on vacation and letting things get to us and make us less than our best (to put it nicely).  Not that I’d know from experience or anything.IMG_2475

If you’ve ever had an episode on vacation, ever lost your cool, ever blown up or melted down, ever wished you’d just stayed home where you could be your own worst enemy in the peace (and privacy) of your own home, this post is for you!  These tips may or may not be derived from my own experience as a mom – I can neither confirm nor deny any allegations.LADL Computer pic

You can’t do it all.  You can try, but you’ll be exhausted for vacation.  Even if doing for others brings you immense gratification, you can not do it all on your own.  Here’s one idea:  Make a packing list and distribute it to everyone in the family.  Let each person pack their own suitcase to the extent their age allows.  My kids started packing on their own as soon as they could read the list – they’d bring everything to a central location and we’d check off everything as it went in the suitcase.  As they got older, less double checking was required.  By high school, they were self-sufficient vacation preppers.  I still make the list, but I only ever have to worry about packing my own suitcase.FastPass+ Mailer Envelope

Sweat some of the small stuff.  It would be ridiculous for me to suggest you go cold turkey on sweating all the small stuff.  It’s what we moms do!  You’ll be worried about a million tiny details.  It’s important to take some time to prioritize what’s really important among those tiny details and focus on just a few bits of minutiae.  Let the rest go!  I’ve cautioned a million times the perils of over-planning.  Please, I’m begging you – don’t worry about things you cannot control, like the weather, ride breakdowns, character fears, and picky eaters.  Focus on being ready to go with the flow, having a flexible schedule, and not allowing unexpected obstacles like meltdowns, rain, or longer-than-expected lines keep you from enjoying all the wonderful, magical details that Disney vacations have to offer.Dad checks his watch at the Grand Floridian

Enlist help.  Shared responsibility means shared control.  Do your best to embrace this as much as you can.  We control freaks super organized vacation planners like to do things our own way.  We pretend we’re flexible, but secretly know that if we want something done right, we have to do it ourselves.  This is a lonely existence during vacation prep – loosen up a little!  Get input on dining, FastPass selections, character meet-and-greet choices, etc.  Best of all – let someone else take over some of the vacation planning completely.  I know, it’s scary to think about, but do your best.Disney-Travel-Suitcase

Use Pinterest sparingly.  You’ll never be able to pull off all those fantastic Disney vacation preparation ideas.  The fancy DIY countdown calendars, tie-died Mickey shirts, picture frames, character autograph ideas, photo suggestions, Disney-bounding outfits, and so much more!  Narrow down those hundreds of amazing choices to a couple of things to try that are within your abilities and budget.  Then stop looking.IMG_2157

Remember whose vacation it is.  If you want it to be all about you, go on vacation alone.  If you take your children with you, the term “family vacation” applies and that means you need to let them feel like they have choices, time to burn off steam, at least a little time to do what they want to do (not what you think they should be doing).  There’s no vacation from parenting when your children are with you.  We actually got mad at Megan when she was five for wanting to leave Magic Kingdom and go back to our resort to go swimming – not our finest moment as parents.  She was hot, rarely got to swim, and sincerely thought the pool was more fun than rides and attractions.  It was her vacation too.  We still feel bad about how we reacted.Disney Character Autographs - Mickey

I’ve seen moms at Disney World yell, scream, taunt, berate, and even cry.  Please, please, for the sake of your family’s vacation happiness (and memories) do NOT be THAT mom!

Have you had a bad mom moment on a Disney vacation?  Tell me about it…we’re all friends here.

 

Thoughts on the Disney Vacation Club

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Disney's Contemporary and Bay Lake Tower Resorts

Disney’s Contemporary and Bay Lake Tower Resorts

I get asked from time to time about the Disney Vacation Club.  Seems like a lot of people think about DVC – the pros and cons, the benefits, how it works.  I’m always happy to answer questions – except the one where I’m supposed to explain how it makes good financial sense.  That one, I can’t really answer except like this – if you’re looking for a solid financial reason to make a DVC purchase, you might not find one.  If you’re looking for a good reason to visit Walt Disney World every (or every other) year, you’re a big Disney geek, and you know your children and present or future grandchildren will love many years of future Disney vacations as well – that might be reason enough.

Note:  Interior DVC studio pictures are all from our most recent visit to Walt Disney World – Old Key West Resort.

Distance Between Bay Lake Tower and Contemporary Resorts

Elevated walkway between Bay Lake Tower and the Contemporary Resort

It costs a lot to buy DVC points and then it costs some more every year to pay the annual dues.  Raymond and I joined in 2011 by purchasing points while on a Disney cruise to Alaska.  This was not an impulse purchase by any means – we thought long and hard about it for several years, in fact.  We took a DVC tour back around 2007 or 2008 and were very interested but ONLY if and when we could buy points at a DVC property located on the monorail loop.  Our favorite resort is the Contemporary and when we heard about Bay Lake Tower, we decided it was time to see if this dream could become a reality.  After visiting Walt Disney World more than a dozen times over the past 25 years, we’re pretty sure our love of Disney vacations will never go away.

Studio at Disney's Old Key West

Old Key West Studio

So, we’re on that Alaskan Cruise (which I highly recommend, by the way) and decide to take time on an at-sea day to listen to the DVC presentation and see if there were any specials available for Bay Lake Tower.  The fact that we won a drawing at the presentation for $500 in on-board credit certainly seemed like a good sign!  I’ll spare you the details, but we ended up with 220 points for, I think, the next 48 years.  Turns out, 220 points is not quite enough (we’d like to add on about 100 more) – more on that in a minute.

First, a cautionary tale…

Sitting Area, Studio at Disney's Old Key West

Old Key West Studio – sitting area

We met a super friendly, Disney-loving family from Ireland on our Disney Mediterranean cruise last summer.  No doubt the entire family loved Disney – you could tell.  Mom, Day, son, daughter – all Disney fans.  During an excursion in Italy, while waiting to leave Pompeii, Mrs. Irish-Disney-Mom confessed to me that they had purchased 320 DVC points and were considering selling them on the resale market.  Seems it was an impulse purchase made a couple of years prior and while they still intended to take Disney vacations as often as possible, airfare to the U.S. was too expensive to go every (or even every other) year and using points for anything other than WDW isn’t the most economical use of the points (in spite of what those DVC sales presenters lead you to believe).  Moral of the story – don’t buy DVC points while swept up in the magic of a Disney vacation – consider this purchase carefully…many point purchases are as expensive as a new car.

My tips & things to consider before purchasing DVC points:

Studio Balcony at Disney's Old Key West

Old Key West Studio Balcony

Do purchase points at the home resort you really love (if at all possible).  The 11-month booking window at your home resort (versus 7 months at other resorts) can make a big difference over the years.  You may not want to go at peak times now, but in the future it may become really important.  Christmas at Walt Disney World – including opening gifts there on Christmas morning – is a big dream of ours.  We’ll appreciate that 11-month window when the time comes to plan that trip.

Kitchen area of Disney's Old Key West

Old Key West Studio Kitchenette

Don’t buy DVC points if you really want to vacation elsewhere (using the exchange capabilities with non-Disney resorts world-wide through RCI) – While we’ve never done this, I’ve heard it is definitely not the best, most economical use of DVC points.  Reports vary on ease of booking, value, and if certain RCI resort options are on par with Disney quality.  There’s also no guarantee (if you love RCI) that Disney’s relationship with RCI will continue way into the future.

Even though it’s more expensive than buying resale, buying directly from Disney will give you the most flexibility with your points.  If you wanted to use them towards Disney Cruise Line or Adventures by Disney vacations, the points cannot have been purchased on the resale market.  Resale-purchased points can only be used at DVC resorts – which works out really well for a lot of people.  We were concerned that someday – out in some unfathomable future time – we’d want to have more flexibility.

Studio TV, Disney's Old Key West

Studio TV at Old Key West

Here’s how we’re using this year’s points:  6 nights (last week of May) at Old Key West, 7 nights at Bay Lake Tower (home resort) in mid-October, 35 points leftover going towards a 4-night stay at Bay Lake Tower for the Princess Half-Marathon weekend in February, 2015 (extra points needed coming from 2015’s points).  If we’d had more points, we would have stayed at Bay Lake Tower in May instead of Old Key West.  We love our home resort and it would be our first choice – thus the reason we want to buy more points.  However, more points means higher annual dues, so once again, we’re thinking it over before jumping in again.

Unused points from one year may be banked for use the next year.  Need extra points?  Borrow from the next year’s points.  Banking and borrowing are common and important to get the most out of a DVC investment.

You get to choose the accommodations that work best for your particular travel party.  Need a room for two?  Get a studio or a 1-bedroom unit.  Need room for 8?  Get a 2-bedroom unit that has a full sized kitchen and living room (with fold-out couch and chair).  Get what you need, whenever you need it.  You’re not locked into one size or one particular time of year.  Having a kitchen, washer/dryer and more room do give you a home-away-from-home vacation experience.  Mousekeeping comes only every 4th day to collect trash and replenish toiletries, towels, and kitchen supplies.

A really wonderful perk is access to dedicated DVC travel planning specialists to help you book your trips and they are super knowledgeable Cast Members!  You also get a dedicated web site to help you figure out what resorts are available when you want to travel.  DVC members also receive a variety of discounts all over Walt Disney World are allowed to purchase the Tables in Wonderland card which saves 20% at bunches of Walt Disney World restaurants (and bars).

For official information on Disney Vacation Club, go here.

Are you a DVC member?  What’s your home resort?  If not, have you considered a DVC purchase?  Where would you love your home resort to be?

 

 

What is The Disney Bubble?

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IMG_3280The Disney Bubble – it’s a very real phenomenon (doo-doo-do-doo-doo).  In fact, I’d ague that for most “Disney people”, The Disney Bubble is an integral, vital part of the Disney vacation experience and one of the primary reasons we feel compelled to return to Walt Disney World time and time again.

What is The Disney Bubble?

For those of you who haven’t yet experienced it, didn’t notice it, or haven’t known what to call it, the Disney Bubble is the total immersion in the magic of Disney upon arrival at Walt Disney World.  You enter the Bubble and everything changes – the worries, stresses, and cares of everything outside the Bubble disappear.  The weight of adult responsibilities – mortgage, bills, car repairs, office politics, home maintenance, kids’ homework, activity schedules, and so on just lifts away.  Once that weight is gone, you feel better, younger, lighter, happier.

For Disney Bubble addicts, once we leave the Bubble, one of our primary concerns is always IMG_2025when and how we will get back in.  This is why count-down calendars/calculators are so popular with us.  There have been particularly stressful times in our life when knowing that if we could just make it through the next XX # of days, we could get back to Disney and the Bubble would make everything seem better.  People that, sadly, have never experienced this most amazing aspect of Disney travel are the ones we can count on to be perplexed at our propensity to vacation at Walt Disney World over and over.  They ask, “Where are you going on vacation?” We answer, “Walt Disney World” and they look at us in confused pity and say, “AGAIN?”  If you haven’t felt the Bubble’s power, you cannot understand its draw.

My personal Bubble Testimony:  There were a few years there along the way when Megan was literally dancing 7-days-a-week and Joseph was involved in martial arts as a teacher, student, and national competitor.  We joked that people thought Raymond and I had gotten a divorce because we were never seen in the same place at the same IMG_1194time.  Every day’s schedule was based on a “divide and conquer” strategy.  Walt Disney World and the Disney Bubble helped our family reconnect, relax together, eat together and enjoy each other’s company.  All while having fun – simple, old-fashioned good times.  Even looking forward to a Disney vacation gave us a common focus when our day-to-day lives were going in many different directions.

If you’re planning a Walt Disney World vacation and haven’t yet embraced the Disney Bubble phenomenon, here are my tips for making the most of the experience:

  1. Stay on Property.  Whether you’re a value, moderate, or deluxe resort fan.  This is an integral part of the Bubble Effect.
  2. Use Disney Transportation.  If you fly to Orlando, use Disney’s Magical Express to get to the IMG_2614resort from the airport.  It’s included in your resort stay and Disney will get your bags from the airport for you.  Just walk off the plane and onto the motor coach.  It’s literally that easy to get right into the Bubble!  If you drive to Orlando, park your car at the resort and leave it there until it’s time to go home.  Bus, boat, and monorail are important parts of the Disney Bubble – let Disney transportation take care of you and eliminate the worry of driving directions, navigation, and parking.
  3. If you must visit other, non-Disney theme parks which shall remain unnamed in this (and every) post, do not leave the Bubble to do it.  Try to stay at Walt Disney World just for Disney.  Go stay somewhere else if visiting other Orlando attractions.  Think of it like this – coming and going from the Bubble diminishes its power.  If you can, stay on Walt Disney World property either before or after visiting those other places.  If I were you, I’d save the best for last, of course.

IMG_1170Do you believe in the Disney Bubble?  I have a theory that some people are, tragically, immune to the power of the Bubble.  We refer to these unlucky souls as “non-Disney people”.  I don’t know where their happy place is, but it is not at Walt Disney World.  Probably we shouldn’t try to convert them – it wouldn’t work anyway.  Plus, it leaves more room in the Disney Bubble for the rest of us.

 

What are your thoughts about the Disney Bubble?