How much do you really have to plan before going to the Mouse?
So here I am, only days away from a trip to Walt Disney World. I am obviously excited and counting down the days, but this trip offers a new wrinkle that I can never be prepared for. There is an uncertainty before this trip that I am not used to.
Like most of us that go to the Mouse often, you learn that planning is essential. For some, myself included, this can easily turn into an obsessive, near clinically treatable, compulsion that begins on that all important 180 day mark. Those who have let this fixation come close to taking over their entire lives have turned this problem into podcasts, blogs, or other such outlets. But on this trip, planning was a near impossibility. (My wife is expecting the nervous twitching to stop soon…)
There was nothing I could do about it. It’s not just my wife and I going this time. I can’t keep a plan in my head and spring it on her at the last minute, giving it a clever disguise of spontaneity. We’re going with my wife’s relatives, and I think she is in some ways enjoying torturing me by giving me little to no information on what they may like to do, where they would enjoy eating, or what kind of attractions they may want to see. I have nothing to go. None of Len Testa’s famous touring plans can help me. I have no idea what to expect or where we may end up.
So I guess I can expect waiting on lines, not making it for rope drop, and eating at places I don’t prefer; three things I haven’t done in years of going to Disney World. At least I need to prepare myself for it. Can we still have fun at Disney without hitting the trip planning websites, listening to Matt Hochberg crying about Dinosaur, or without ever even referring to the Unofficial Guide? I know it sounds tough, but I think I can hack it.
In fact, I am kind of looking forward to it. Just letting things happen and see what the Mouse and friends can come up with without months of me planning and scheduling. I think it can be done.
Jennifer said,
October 18, 2007 @ 6:32 pm
I’m a compulsive planner too. Dude, you do NOT want to see my spreadsheets. If I were in your shoes, I don’t think I’d be able to resist the urge to make just a few ADRs . . . I mean, I could always cancel them if we don’t use them, right?
But I have plenty of great memories from trips that I simply couldn’t plan for. One particular favorite? Stuck in LAX, my flight canceled, 11 hours until the next flight home . . . and I was on that shuttle to Disneyland in a New York minute. Sure, I waited in some awful lines (it was a mid-summer Saturday), but there was a joy in giving myself over to the serendipity of the moment.
Mike said,
October 19, 2007 @ 3:38 pm
It should be quiet enough where you don’t have to go too crazy with plans.
Raidermatt said,
October 22, 2007 @ 11:14 pm
I agree with Mike, the saving grace is that it won’t be too busy. Since you know how things work, you should be able to wing it without falling into any major blunders.
That would be tough if it were a peak season though. I’m not a huge planner by nature, but I’ve learned that the best way to relax on a Disney vacation is to do a lot of planning ahead of time. Especially when traveling with a group. No worries about getting a consensus about where to eat or what to do, because it’s already planned. And if the group does actually come to a consensus on something that isn’t in the plan, the plan can always be ditched.
Matt said,
October 26, 2007 @ 9:13 pm
I used to plan a LOT more than I do now. The wife & I are headed out to WDW for the last week of November, and I’ve put almost no planning into it this time. I think it’s because we’ve done it enough at this point (this will be our 5th visit) that we pretty much know the drill. Plus, we never go during peak season, so crowds and lines are not an issue.