A little sad my 9 yr old twins don't want to go to Disney

[tinkerbellandeeyor]

My kids love Disney but they do not want to go every year. They know there's a big world out there and they want to explore it. They are very excited for our DR trip in August. They have been asking to go to PR also. And they would most definitely pick Hawaii over WDW any day. Hawaii is on my bucket list and apparently on their list too.

What is dr and pr

 

[mco65]

No such luck here.. my almost 13 year old twins are chomping at the bit to go back.. but this time, they want to add a couple days at Universal... My almost 17 year old wouldn't miss it either...

 

[theSurlyMermaid]

We haven't been in a few years so when I announced our trip in December, DS10 and DD7 were excited, but moreso DD who is working on her ride courage. It's a big accomplishment for her to do certain rides so its a big deal whereas DS has ridden everything at Disney and prefers the thrill rides at Universal. But he isn't complaining. I honestly do think a lot of it is staying in a DVC 1 bedroom as opposed to a hotel room and also not going every year.

 

[bettybooplove]

I know every child is different but I'm truly baffled by nine year olds not wanting to go to Disney World.

I have a teen son and a tween girl and they're obsessed with Disney. I recently told them we were going to head to Hard Rock Hotel and Universal for the Christmas week and they didn't have nearly as much enthusiasm (but guess what, they're still going because I said so ).

Are you sure both girls feel this way? Twins are usually very close and there's usually one leader amongst the two. I would ask them separately how they feel. Kids change their minds and moods all of the time. They may think they don't want the vacation now, but as the time draws near they'll get excited.

But as others have said at 9, even 16, I didn't have a say in whether or not I was going on a family trip.

 

[ArwenMarie]

They may have gotten an idea that it's babyish.

Did they say why they don't want to go? It could be something silly

 

[mi*vida*loca]

What is dr and pr

Dominican Republic and Puerto Rico.

 

[bdcp]

We were horrible parents. We never asked our kids where they wanted to go. They went where we took them. That said, we only went to WDW twice while they were growing up, but we did go to the same beach every year. They don't realize how fortunate they are that they can even think to request Hawaii or a cruise and it would be considered.

 

[AngiTN]

Dominican Republic and Puerto Rico.

That's what I had guessed.

 

[SaintsManiac]

I definitely did not have a say in vacations at 9 years old. If so, I would not have chosen tent camping in the freezing cold temps every year.

 

[PollyannaMom]

I'm lucky that my DS (at 16) still loves Disney. I'm pretty sure he will be a lifetime fan.

But I have heard of lots of kids who go through an "I'm too old for that" phase and then fall back in love with it after they get a little more confident in their own preferences. - So there's hope!

As for vacation destinations, I don't remember ever having anything to do with those decisions as a kid! But I do involve DS to some degree in our planning now - especially details like rides and ADRs, but occasionally resort ideas too. I wouldn't stand for a sassy "No, I don't want to go there; I want to go here" sort of thing, but I do think it's OK to take kids' ideas into consideration if you ask for them. You definitely have the final say, though!

 

[amw]

Battling this now. DD, age 12 is a Disney Superfan like me. DS, 14 doesn't want to do anything in the world other than play online games with his friends. DH said that he won't consider leaving him home alone AT ALL and if for some reason we did, he would have a horrible time because all he would do is worry (He skipped the Avatar AP preview because he didn't want to leave DS alone overnight while being a plane flight away.

If we force DS to go, he will make everyone miserable. He knows all of the buttons to push with his father and then DH will make the rest of use miserable.

We have thought out just about every solution and nothing will make everybody happy. Cancelling the trip is not fair to the rest of us. Leaving one parent home isn't fair. DS is just going to have to suck it up and if he and DH feed off each other, I'm sending both of them home.

Like someone else mentioned, would he like a day at Universal? Maybe if there was a special day there, he would be willing to put up with WDW. Or would he like his own-choice day at WDW where you go bowling, or mini-put, or go-karting? I know each 14-year-old is different. Would your DH feel comfortable with him being in the same park as you but on his own for some of the time -- so that if there was a ride he liked he could do it over and over, or just sit and play on the wifi! Or just keep giving him food, that usually keeps boys happy!

Unlike the OP, my problem was DH rather than the kids. He did the first couple trips with us when the girls were small - but he quickly turned into the whiney, hungry, tamtrummy third child. He did not grow up on Disney and it is not his happy place. What he did love was golfing. So, starting when the kids were 9&11, I started taking them to the parks on my own while Daddy went golfing. He would drop us off, and we would usually be done by 4pm. We stay on property so that we can come and go to the hotel on our own. We always have dinner together each day. It's not for everyone, but it works for us. And he loves golfing so much, that he lets us have our Disney obsession annually.

 

[Klayfish]

I have 9 year old twins too (and a 13 year old). We are leaving for WDW tomorrow, and they simply cannot contain themselves. They've been "packing" for days, and today they're about to jump out of their skin.

So am I.

 

[jtowntoflorida]

Yes. We are just back from a trip after a 2 year hiatus, and my 10 year old found Universal much more fun this time around than Disney. She said she's kinda over Disney because the rides are mostly boring (and she's not a ride junkie by any means). She'd rather go someplace else, and both kids (I also have a 7 year old) said they want to go to New York City on our next trip. I'm going to Universal for a work conference in November and neither seem to be very jealous that I'm going without them.

 

[MainMom]

Battling this now. DD, age 12 is a Disney Superfan like me. DS, 14 doesn't want to do anything in the world other than play online games with his friends. DH said that he won't consider leaving him home alone AT ALL and if for some reason we did, he would have a horrible time because all he would do is worry (He skipped the Avatar AP preview because he didn't want to leave DS alone overnight while being a plane flight away.

If we force DS to go, he will make everyone miserable. He knows all of the buttons to push with his father and then DH will make the rest of use miserable.

We have thought out just about every solution and nothing will make everybody happy. Cancelling the trip is not fair to the rest of us. Leaving one parent home isn't fair. DS is just going to have to suck it up and if he and DH feed off each other, I'm sending both of them home.

Can you just take some of DS video games and let him stay in the room?

 

[china mom]

Like someone else mentioned, would he like a day at Universal? Maybe if there was a special day there, he would be willing to put up with WDW. Or would he like his own-choice day at WDW where you go bowling, or mini-put, or go-karting? I know each 14-year-old is different. Would your DH feel comfortable with him being in the same park as you but on his own for some of the time -- so that if there was a ride he liked he could do it over and over, or just sit and play on the wifi! Or just keep giving him food, that usually keeps boys happy!

He just doesn't want to go anywhere. He wants to miss our Hershey Park trip (DH is OK with leaving him home because we can drive back in 2 hours) I offered Kings Dominion - nope.

I told him that I would load a gift card and he could just do his own thing all week (and eat his heart out) - nope

For several years now, we have let him come and go to the parks by himself or back to the room so DH is perfectly fine with that.

We tried to figure out how to bring a friend along without breaking the bank but even before we figured out that we couldn't afford that, he poo poo'd the idea.

He WILL go if that is what we decide but he will be grumpy and get the whole family worked up. That has been our pattern since puberty hit.

 

[china mom]

Can you just take some of DS video games and let him stay in the room?

I offered to buy a carrying case and to bring his xBox1... no go

 

[luvmy2boyzz]

My boys are 21 and 18 and still love Disney! We skipped Disney the last two years for UO and they insisted we go back this year! While we love UO for the thrill rides, the atmosphere at Disney can not be replicated. I am glad this is still our "happy place" Can't wait to visit someday with grandbabies

 

[Hikergirl]

My 2 ds's were pretty much done with WDW when they were around 10. My older ds suffered a little longer than my younger ds though (our last family trip was when my youngest was 10). My dd19 loves WDW and can't wait to go back.
I was sad, I thought that we were done with WDW vacations, but then dh agreed to go on a just us trip last year. Had a blast, and plan on going again next year. Poor dd though we aren't taking her LOL.

 

[mickeyfanachey1999]

I have enjoyed Disney since my first visit 35 years ago.
I was planning a family vacation in Spring '18 and my 9 year old twins told me they don't want to go back to Disney. They prefer a cruise or Hawaii (they have never been there). I figure we take a break for a few years and see if the magic comes back.
I then decided to book a short 4-day Disney trip with our 4 year old next week while the twins are in camp and they didn't even care that they are not going. So sad
On a good note, I'm now happy I didn't buy into the DVC that we were thinking about.
Have any of you experienced something similar with you kids as they grow a little older?

I thought I was too cool and lost out on about 15 great years. My 15 year old still has fun and my 6 year old loves it as much as I do. The only one that might stay home is DW.

 

[Ava]

I just told my kids this morning about our trip this summer and they are super excited. They're only 8 and 4, though, and our last trip was two years ago. We went to two years in a row, in 2014 and 2015, which I think was too much for us. Skipping a year is making it more exciting to go back again.

That said, I can see my 8-year-old wanting to go to Universal instead next time. She's already asked about going to "Harry Potter World" because some of her friends have gone, but I wanted to wait until my youngest is a little older so she'd be tall enough for more of the rides.

I'm also trying to branch out more as my kids get older. Disney is a really fun, easy vacation with young kids but there are so many other places I want to visit with them, too.