Starting to freak out a bit!

[LarsMal]

We're leaving for our trip in less than a month and I'm the only one who seems to be thinking about it at.all! We're going with the ILs. I've been in touch with MIL over some of the details, but that's it. I keep bringing it up to DH- that we need to talk to his parents and nail down some specifics, but I get nothing...like talking to a freakin' wall! All he says is, "You know how we are, we're not big on planning." Um...okay, but this isn't like we're meeting at the beach for a relaxing vacation and we can just wing it. We are going to WDW, where we will be on the go A LOT!

We're not staying in a Disney resort (the ILs have a timeshare a few miles away). We have a kitchen so we won't be eating all of our meals in the parks, or out in general. I have a princess breakfast reserved, but that's really it.

What are the most important things I should be thinking about/organizing? I haven't been since I was 16, so this is my first time going as the adult in charge! HELP!!!

[WatchingThemGrow]

Do you have tickets?

Which princess breakfast did you get? We're Tues at CRT.

[LarsMal]

Do you have tickets?

Which princess breakfast did you get? We're Tues at CRT.

DH is getting the tickets through work, but I still don't think he's decided how many days to get (3 or 4). I think he's decided against the Park Hopper, though...but I don't know! I can't get him to commit!

Didn't get CRT, we're at Epcot on Wed (Akershus). MK on Tuesday though!!

[egoldber]

I think you are going to just have to go with the flow. If you are going with a bunch of non-planners, it's really hard to fight that. Most people here are HUGE planners, but really, most people go to WDW with no plan and manage to have a great time. :)

Expect that you will be eating a lot of counter service meals, so maybe research those.

If anyone has an iPhone or iTouch, get the WDW Dining app. It was by FAR the best $2 I spent on our last WDW trip. It will tell you which eating places are close by and what the prices are.

[Tinkerbell313]

We just got back from AKL staying Sept. 22nd through the 28th. We were on the basic dining plan (DDP). So we had a sit down meal scheduled every day. We had 5 day park tickets; no park hoppers. I had a loose plan...basically, what park and what time do we arrive as well as what night we were going to watch the fireworks. While we were there, park schedules were still changing.

I did plan what day we were in the parks based on Touringplans.com (I have the paid subscription...well worth it IMO). I used their recommendation of the best parks to be in...usually they are right on.

Although, we went at what was supposed to be one of the lowest crowd times (it definitely was more crowed then expected...thanks to "Free" dining or room discounts)...you still needed a quasi plan.

For example, if we did not have breakfast scheduled in the park, we made sure we were at the parks for rope drop. The first 2 hours are relatively quiet and you can get on the rides multiple times. If you choose to show up between 11am and 4pm...you are bound to hit more crowds and the waits will be higher at the headliners. When we were there, the waits during peak times were 30 to 40 minutes with some of the bigger rides going up to 60 minutes. This wasn't everyday but it was most days.

We did make use of the fast passes. For example, at 1pm, the wait for Jungle Cruise was 35 minutes. Fast Passes were being distributed for a time of 1:40. So we got the fast passes and then walked on to Pirates of the Caribean. Then we walked to BTR and waited 15 minutes for the ride. By then, it was 1:45pm...we could get another fast past, so we grabbed one for Splash mountain which had a 60 minute wait. We went to the Magic Carpet ride (Aladdin) and then we went on Jungle Cruise. Then we used our Splash Mountain. So, we were able to get on a good number of rides...but we had to think about our plan of attack.

We left the parks for midday breaks but would come back in late afternoon. Since we stayed on property we took advantage of the extra hours at night...no lines then!!

If you are going to watch the parade and the fireworks, I would plan on finding a spot at least an hour before. Due to the MNSSHP (which we did not do)MK is closed down at 7pm for non party guests. There are limited nights that we could see the parade and fireworks. This also went for a few thousand of our closest friends!! The sidewalks were about 6 rows deep...all the way from Main Street through Liberty Square and Frontierland.

If the family just does not plan...go with a very open mind...and have an awesome time.

[Tinkerbell313]

I realize my prior post was long...I was trying to get across that I am not a big planner...I am not...working fulltime...with a husband who travels lots for work. And then getting home at 6:30pm to make dinner, do homework, and send the kids to bed...then I do laundry, clean, etc...I don't have much time to plan.

Also, my family is not the type to go first thing in the morning (we are not morning people)...but they were greatful, when they saw all the crowds in the afternoon and saw the waittimes for the rides we went on in the early mornings with no waits.

Just get to the parks early...and have a good time.

[LarsMal]

Also, my family is not the type to go first thing in the morning (we are not morning people)...but they were greatful, when they saw all the crowds in the afternoon and saw the waittimes for the rides we went on in the early mornings with no waits.

Just get to the parks early...and have a good time.

This is going to be my biggest battle. My kids stay up late, sleep in late. I really want to get to the parks early, so I'm going to be on everyone to get up and get going in the morning.

[Tinkerbell313]

This is going to be my biggest battle. My kids stay up late, sleep in late. I really want to get to the parks early, so I'm going to be on everyone to get up and get going in the morning.

If you can get your family to do one thing...this would be it...get to the park at rope drop...and enjoy as many rides/shows as you can. Then later on in the day...just point out the wait times...so the family understands that earlier is better.

Then...just go with the flow. Have a great trip!!