Getting grandkids excited for upcoming trip!

[Barbruka]

Taking entire family of 15 to WDW in February (5 grandkids, ages 6-9). What can I do to get them pumped for the trip? First time for all of them. What can I send them in the mail, etc.? I want their first time to be magical!!!

 

[Tink_83]

My recommendation would be Disney story books. The kids can read them and start to get excited about the upcoming trip. The other thing would be a Disney movie they don’t own yet, you could get them a movie so they can do a movie night and get excited about the characters. I’d check with the parents first to see what movies they own so you don’t duplicate them though oh, another inexpensive idea is to go to the dollar store and get some of the projects that are Disney themed (like the paint your own sun catcher, etc.) so they have a project that is Disney themed they can do as well.

 

[la79al]

Idk how close you are but my kids love Disney movie theme nights with food, crafts, activities relating to a specific Disney movie. On the flip side, I don't think people really know what to expect when going to Disney for the first time so it might be challenging to get them excited about DW specifically. Maybe make some kind of countdown calendar/activity for them?

 

[MainMom]

My kids had a hard time being excited so far away from a trip. They had a lot of school, friends and activities that the trip just seemed far away. Usually about 2 months before I would start with Disney movie night, YouTube videos, etc. Since your trip is in February maybe some Disney themed Christmas gifts? A gift card for souvenirs. Some people do a scavenger hunt for a trip reveal.

I agree that not knowing what to expect sometimes makes it hard to sustain excitement. We are taking my twin niece & nephew in 3 weeks...they don’t know yet.

 

[tinkerjo]

Along with movies and books you could maybe make up a “questionnaire” and ask them what what rides they are most excited to ride, what characters they want to see, If they want to swim at the pool, etc. and have them mail the questionnaire back to you. (Especially if you are managing Fast passes or meals) let them pick the color for their magic band, maybe order a pin lanyard,cheap autograph book, or string bag (Amazon has this stuff very reasonable. Not park stuff but at age 6-9 they don’t care) if they are girls cute Disney barrettes, earrings etc. boys like hats and sunglasses. You could even mail them a postcard reminder monthly with a special note on how excited you are to share this with them!! I hope you all have a wonderful time!!!!

 

[unrequited23]

I would send them the Birnbaum's for Kids book or another travel book that is very picture heavy but light on strategy--this is not the time for the Unofficial Guide. This will get them familiar with the different parks and rides and may help you understand their preferences when making FPs. The official planning video is amazing for psyching a kid up but does show an unreasonable amount of magic (at least for our budget.) If the kids are really into maps you can order a set of park maps on ebay for around $2. My youngest son would study the maps before our first trip and could tell you where every ride and nearly every restaurant was in MK before he was 3.

 

[jo-jo]

I guess I'm the odd man out, but I'd be afraid the kids being too pumped up. You know, you see commercials the whole family sits down and picks out their favorite rides for FPs with no issues, walking hand in hand with Mickey, no more than 12 people in the parks, etc.

 

[Nsaudra]

Get family shirts made... Its a Disney Thing and it really gets them excited. When my kids got them in the mail it was hard for them not to wear them.
We got Thing One-eight 1/2 shirts made for Universal then Disney shirts for Disney

 

[NYCgrrl]

Taking entire family of 15 to WDW in February (5 grandkids, ages 6-9). What can I do to get them pumped for the trip? First time for all of them. What can I send them in the mail, etc.? I want their first time to be magical!!!

Another Grandmother here but have a DGD living with me so do not much more than pay for the trip.

I like the idea of the t shirts for a traditional relationship. A Walt Disney biography that fits the various age groups would also be fun and offer back story.

Keep in mind they'll already be "pumped" with the idea of the trip and keep them in the loop while planning FPs and ADRs.

 

[DisneyOma]

Taking entire family of 15 to WDW in February (5 grandkids, ages 6-9). What can I do to get them pumped for the trip? First time for all of them. What can I send them in the mail, etc.? I want their first time to be magical!!!

Have you been before?

 

[Disneyfan754321]

Taking entire family of 15 to WDW in February (5 grandkids, ages 6-9). What can I do to get them pumped for the trip? First time for all of them. What can I send them in the mail, etc.? I want their first time to be magical!!!

I think you are the greatest grandparents ever... my grandparents, my kids grandparents would never take on trip like that... you go grandma/grandpa.
Have lots of fun take a lot of pics they will remember this forever

 

[Nancyg56]

I'm a Nana and have taken extended family trips. I think that perhaps watching YouTube videos might be fun. We had a good time doing thatwhen DGD was older, bit when she was young we stuck with WDW specials on TV and movies. I did not try to get her "pumped" because she was nto that kid who did well if we got her too amped up.

 

[LynnTH]

I would send them the Birnbaum's for Kids book or another travel book that is very picture heavy but light on strategy--this is not the time for the Unofficial Guide. This will get them familiar with the different parks and rides and may help you understand their preferences when making FPs. The official planning video is amazing for psyching a kid up but does show an unreasonable amount of magic (at least for our budget.) If the kids are really into maps you can order a set of park maps on ebay for around $2. My youngest son would study the maps before our first trip and could tell you where every ride and nearly every restaurant was in MK before he was 3.

I second the Birnbaums For Kids. When my kids were younger they loved that book. All color pictures and descriptions of all the rides.

 

[Barbruka]

Have you been before?

Many, many times.

 

[Barbruka]

I second the Birnbaums For Kids. When my kids were younger they loved that book. All color pictures and descriptions of all the rides.

I am waiting for the 2020 edition to come out in September.

 

[DisneyOma]

Many, many times.

Okay, so you know there can be ups and downs for a trip, right? It seems that we hear about so many people who get all hyped up for the 'perfect, magical' vacation, and the expectations get set so high that they can't be reached. It would be awful if the kids were all revved and then didn't have that great of a time, wouldn't it? If they got all excited about something, and it didn't happen that way?

So instead of - "What can I do to get them pumped for the trip? First time for all of them. What can I send them in the mail, etc.? I want their first time to be magical!!!", how about "How can I figure out what is important for them, what should I plan for with young kids, are there any issues with the kids" etc? Of course we all hope the trip will be great, but it just seems that sometimes the trip gets out of control before it even starts, the expectations get out of this world, and then the trip is a huge (expensive) letdown. It's happened to us once, and we learned to tone it all down.

Some things that are in your control to have fun with - matching shirts, finding out which characters are favorites and knowing if/when they can be seen in the parks (but don't let the kids know), maybe some small treats to have in the room? Window decorations used to be a huge thing to bring down, not sure if people do that anymore? The Mousekeepers used to do fun stuff with the stuffed animals when my kids were little, but you can't even count on that anymore, KWIM? I think letting the kids have access to the park maps before he trip might give them a good sense of what to expect, but sometimes the hype backfires.