You WILL follow the plan, or ELSE, ha!!

[Hisgirl]

SO excited! We're leaving this coming Thursday morning for a Thursday through Sunday night trip with DH, DS, DD and DS's gal.
We're doing MK on Friday, Epcot on Saturday and I think AK on Sunday. We're staying at AK kidani (0h gosh, I hope I spelled that right!) in a one-bedroom villa.

Ok, whew! Yay! Disney in four days!

So here is my question. I've been up nights pouring over maps and researching plans and strategies, checking forums, reading books.....I've alerted all in our party the necessity of the PLAN and everyone agreed.

Except one. My son said, "Pshaw...I don't want a plan, I just want to WANDER AROUND AND SEE WHAT I WANT TO SEE"

Have yall encountered this subversive behavior? And how did you handle it? I'm seeing some crowd reports and it looks like this coming trip won't be a care-free quiet trip, so a plan is necessary!

 

[sharadoc]

Well, if DS's "gal" is coming, I'm assuming they are at least 16 years old or older? Then you can let them roam around on their own. Has she been before? He may want to just spend time with her and show her the sights that he likes.

Could be tough to let go of your baby, but it could put a damper on your trip if everyone isn't on board.

 

[MoonFaerie]

We follow a plan in the mornings, so we can get in all the rides we want, and then afternoon & evenings are open. DH was resistant to plans before the trip too, but he loved no waiting for rides.

Or like a PP said, separate some of the time. If DS is mature enough to bring a GF along, surely they can be trusted to roam alone at least some of the time.

 

[Hisgirl]

Yes, they're for sure old enough, 24 yrs. old, but I guess I was looking forward to spending time with everyone. And if they run off, then that leaves DD, with her 'mommy' and step-daddy and she might then want to go with them, and then there we are, me and DH, and he can be, not so much fun....as the kids.

The GOOD thing is, his gal was all in agreement with THE PLAN and I think she'll be able to influence him.

It'd be much better if everyone would just do as I say.

 

[KellyNY]

I am with your son on it, you do not have to plan to have fun.

 

[SunnyP4Disney]

I am with your son on it, you do not have to plan to have fun.

I agree, overplanning can make a vacation into something not very magical. Especially if he's an adult, I'd let them do their own thing and meet up with them for meals and every once in a while.

Someone dictating to me how I spend my vacation is unacceptable.

 

[duffy]

They're both 24? And you want to make them go where YOU want them to go?? Wow.

Maybe you could, oh, I don't know, let them make their own plans, no matter how much you don't like it, because they're adults?

 

[Classickat]

There are two phrases I've never in my life uttered...one is "Oh it's so rich I couldn't possible finish it," (I have a sweet tooth!) and the other is "I'll play it by ear." Disney is the last place I would choose to start winging something!

I am a planner in general...not a real fly by the seat of my pants kind of girl. But, when we go to Disney, there just HAS to be a plan. There is so much to see and do, I just don't want to miss our favorites.

I have been accused of planning bathroom breaks, but that simply isn't true! It is a joke within our family, but we do plan our ADRs based on park hours and EMHs, as I think most people do. We have a general plan of attack for rides. IF something goes astray, we work around it, it isn't the end of the world, but we check park crowd predictors and special events, and along with our ADR, plan our park. We always get parkhoppers but have learned the importance of not wasting too much going from one place to another. We know to hit the park with our ADR for at least part of the day.

Maybe it's possible to gently guide your free spirit to follow your plan without him realizing he's following a plan? It's too bad he's too old to bribe with ice cream!!! I'm with you and a plan!

 

[MoonFaerie]

Yes, they're for sure old enough, 24 yrs. old, but I guess I was looking forward to spending time with everyone. And if they run off, then that leaves DD, with her 'mommy' and step-daddy and she might then want to go with them, and then there we are, me and DH, and he can be, not so much fun....as the kids.

The GOOD thing is, his gal was all in agreement with THE PLAN and I think she'll be able to influence him.

It'd be much better if everyone would just do as I say.

24? Yeah, I'd have been down with some family time at that age, but I'd have wanted time on my own with my significant other too. But I'd been married for 3 years, ds was 1, and dd was on the way when I was 24.

 

[Hisgirl]

Oh, gosh...I'm just playing a bit here. They'll have plenty of time together. My kids are both older and if you asked them their preference, they'd both say they like doing things as a family. We don't get a lot of time together now that they're on their own. We all get along and enjoy each other. If they want to go off, they're welcome to do that.

My concern was that DS wouldn't get to do all he wanted to do because he didn't 'get' the advantage of the planned touring. Just was curious how one emphasizes the advantages of the plan to those who don't understand the hours saved standing in line.

 

[cinder-ellah]

We're also arriving on Thur. Starting out at EP. We depart Sunday afternoon.
So, we'll have 2 full days and two 1/2 days.

With our limited time........the other 3 in our group elected me to make a plan (with flexibility). I love to do the planning and they like it that way.
Yay !

ADR's made, reservations for special events, EMH and FP's.

I'm sure you want to be with your kids the whole time and its hard when they want to wander off on their own.

Hope it all works out well for you...........

 

[cinder-ellah]

sorry........double post

 

[duffy]

I went in Nov. 2009 with my daughter who was 14 then, and my sister, with her 2 kids.

I am a hard-core Disney park freak, up at 6, on the bus and at the park before rope drop. My sister is not.

Each day, she would arrive with her kids between 11 and noon. By then the park would be packed. She and her kids would have taken nice long showers, eaten a full sit-down breakfast and taken their own sweet time.

Meanwhile, my daughter and I had ridden the headliners, grabbed a muffin to eat while in line, and collected Fastpasses for later.

I marveled at all that she missed. They never got to ride Splash Mountain, Toy Story Mania, the Carousel of Progress (a must for us), Finding Nemo, and so much more. She knew what she was missing, but it was more important to her to have the nice long showers and the full sit-down breakfast. She loved shopping, and it makes me crazy.

She marveled at what a crazy, "go go go" person I was.

 

[YodaGirl]

Forced family time isn't going to be fun family time.





Why does this remind me of the thread with the 18 yr old and 25 yr old cousin?

 

[MoonFaerie]

Oh, gosh...I'm just playing a bit here. They'll have plenty of time together. My kids are both older and if you asked them their preference, they'd both say they like doing things as a family. We don't get a lot of time together now that they're on their own. We all get along and enjoy each other. If they want to go off, they're welcome to do that.

My concern was that DS wouldn't get to do all he wanted to do because he didn't 'get' the advantage of the planned touring. Just was curious how one emphasizes the advantages of the plan to those who don't understand the hours saved standing in line.

Then that's his problem. Looking at your signature, it's not like this is a once in a lifetime trip for him, and he's very much an adult. After a day or two of winging it, he may see the value and want to follow your plan. Or he may feel that having a relaxed trip is more important, and there aren't many must-dos for him.

 

[gabzee]

If I am understanding the OP correctly, all she wants to do is make the most out of her vacation with her family. Since her kids are older she doesn't get to see them as much as she likes. I don't believe that you have to plan every minute of the day out but have an idea of where you want to go to first and what rides you want to go on. If something comes up and it causes you to stray away from your plan, RELAX as it is a vacation and will be okay. I think DS's girlfriend might be able to help to get him onboard. If not, try to explain to him that having a plan will simply allow you to have an idea of what you want to get done but if you see some street entertainment or something else that the group wants to do then the plan will be put on hold until we do that activity. Explain that the plan is an outline in order to make sure that you are able to do everything that you want to do. Make sure that DD, DS, DSGirlfriend, and DH have input into what you want to do. That way they might be more accepting of the plan even though you say DS is the only one. I hope this helps and have a great trip!

 

[Edgehopper]

Your plan is not necessary, bcs you already picked good days.

Your MK and Epcot days are 3.9 and 3.1 on TP. We did MK today, doing pretty much every non-kid ride. We got in Jungle Cruise, PotC, Splash, BTMR, Country Bears, HoP, HM, Philharmagic, IaSW, Peter Pan, Winnie the Pooh, Snow White, Tea Cups, Monsters Inc, TTA, CoP, Buzz, and Space. This was with a 10:15 CP res, so no rides until noon, no plan other than "go CCW from Adventureland" and use FP for lines over 30 mins. We also got to watch a Pirate Tutorial show, the 3:00 parade, Wishes, and sat down for counter service lunch and dinner. We were done by 11:00.

When the park's not that crowded (today was a 1.9), you don't need to stick to a plan. Relax and let the kid enjoy himself--he probably just wants to focus on the big rides, which is easy when the park isn't crowded. If he's on board with an early start, there's nothing at all to worry about.

 

[seashoreCM]

Except one. My son said, "Pshaw...I don't want a plan, I just want to WANDER AROUND AND SEE WHAT I WANT TO SEE"

Have yall encountered this subversive behavior? And how did you handle it?

You're mad? In front of his gal?
If they get married, she might think of you as that wicked witch of a mother in law! Or his gal might dump him for fear of marrying into a family and getting said wicked ...

Would this work? Give them a copy of the plan, saying they can join the plan (not necessarily find you) any time they want. Kindly tell them that the plan works only when they go to the events at the times specified, not necessarily going to the events in order.

Then if the two of them get into a spat over she wanting to follow the plan and he not wanting to, you don't have to worry about it.

 

[Hisgirl]

You're mad? In front of his gal?
If they get married, she might think of you as that wicked witch of a mother in law! Or his gal might dump him for fear of marrying into a family and getting said wicked ...

Would this work? Give them a copy of the plan, saying they can join the plan (not necessarily find you) any time they want. Kindly tell them that the plan works only when they go to the events at the times specified, not necessarily going to the events in order.

Then if the two of them get into a spat over she wanting to follow the plan and he not wanting to, you don't have to worry about it.

Noooo...not mad at all! Seriously, I'm being silly and sarcastic! Yes, I'd like to follow the Unofficial suggestions to save time in line, sure. We're all on board to have some semblance of a guide as to avoid long lines. His girlfriend, who adores me by the way, wants to do this as does everyone else. He just heard about having a guideline and didn't see why anyone would need a plan.

And Duffy, I appreciate your remarks, truly. Yes, he's an adult. This trip is a gift for both children, we're paying plane tickets, hotel, food and renting the car. The whole point was to take four days and spend some time together. As adults. We must do things different in our family. When we do a family trip together, the while point is laughing, talking, eating and exploring together. If my DH told them, 'hey we'll see you later, we're on our own' they'd be looking at us perplexed. I love having adult children who can now act like fun friends!

 

[Donut23]

SO excited! We're leaving this coming Thursday morning for a Thursday through Sunday night trip with DH, DS, DD and DS's gal.
We're doing MK on Friday, Epcot on Saturday and I think AK on Sunday. We're staying at AK kidani (0h gosh, I hope I spelled that right!) in a one-bedroom villa.

Ok, whew! Yay! Disney in four days!

So here is my question. I've been up nights pouring over maps and researching plans and strategies, checking forums, reading books.....I've alerted all in our party the necessity of the PLAN and everyone agreed.

Except one. My son said, "Pshaw...I don't want a plan, I just want to WANDER AROUND AND SEE WHAT I WANT TO SEE"

Have yall encountered this subversive behavior? And how did you handle it? I'm seeing some crowd reports and it looks like this coming trip won't be a care-free quiet trip, so a plan is necessary!

DH was once a commando-style planner....every moment was in pursuit of his mission. Then he met me.

On our first trip together I asked for 1/2 of one day to do it MY way. That morning was his last commando day.......6 years ago.

Now I will admit, we go often so if we miss Sorin this time.....we will easily catch it next time. We far prefer the "stop and smell the roses" approach----LOVE to people watch......I can spend hours watching the wee-little ones having their photos taken with characters - LOVE those smiles. For an 8 day trip we generally have about 5 ADR's ahead of time.....pickup others when we are there.

We come home happy and refreshed.

There are many ways to explore WDW and no one plan is right for everyone.

If he is able to head out alone.....let him try it! I traveled alone before meeting DH (in line at BTMRR)....there ARE advantages to solo travel through the parks!


Have a GREAT trip!