I just read an article on Mouseplanet.com by Chris Barry about the Top 5 Things at Disney that he doesn’t get. And, while I agree that there’s more than one
way to do/plan/be excited about Disney, I disagree with a few others. (And, yes, I do spend some of my time reading
books and articles about Disney.
Surprised? )
We “get” planning our next vacation while on our current
vacation. In fact, we budget for that
deposit. We have taken advantage of
bounceback offers while at Walt Disney World and book our next cruise while
sailing. The discounts are great. And, Disney’s cancellation policy is such
that if you cancel within the appropriate window, you get a full refund.
I tried to get a bounceback offer while we were in the World
in July for this coming March, but the specials were only through the end of
2011. So, when we are in the World in
March I’ll be checking for a bounceback for December 2012.
We are able to plan where we dine 180 days in advance of our
trip and make our ADR’s. What we also
do, is not make an ADR for each day, and therefore, not have our schedule ruled
by dining ADR’s. We plan at least one
whole day with no ADR’s so we can be flexible and spontaneous. It sounds like an oxymoron—plan to be
spontaneous. It works for us.
As far as the dining plan goes, in my opinion, it ranks
right up there with Photopass and Fastpass for some of the best inventions to
come from Disney. Some think there’s too
much food. We disagree. We order two adult and one child entrees at
table service locations and counter service locations. It is often the dessert at the counter
service location that seems, well cumbersome, and we’ve gotten creative and
asked for packages of sliced apples, or whole pieces of fruit for dessert and
take those with us for a snack later.
I think there would be much less stress for vacationers if
they had those dining decisions made in advance, as already there is quite a
bit of decision making that goes on during a Walt Disney World vacation. I see and hear them. . . “where are we going
to eat?” They consult the map, hope a
restaurant is nearby, etc.
Stressful! To me, it’s like
driving on the interstate when you’re hungry, need gas, and have to go to the
bathroom and are trying to figure out which exit will be best and how far away
the exit is and if you can hang on until then.
Stressful! (You now have a better
idea of why we fly!)
Another Disney amenity, dare we say feature, that we use to
the max is Disney transportation. The
fact that Disney’s Magical Express is there to great us at Orlando
International and whisk us off to our resort and then be shuttled to any Disney
location via bus, boat, monorail or train makes our vacation a breeze. I am more than willing to let Disney do the
driving! Now, some Disney guests find
that waiting to board Disney’s Magical Express is a hassle, so they would
rather gather their luggage at baggage claim and schlep it to a rental car or
car service and then make the drive to Walt Disney World, and then use that
same rental car to get them back and forth to the parks. While I am stepping into an air conditioned
bus near the entrance to the park, rather than taking a tram or ferry to the
parking lot to then find my hot rental vehicle.
Hmmm. . .. What would you rather do?
Did I mention that Disney’s Magical Express is FREE?
Yep, there are many Disney features, practices, etc., that
we get that others may not. But that is
part of what makes vacationing to Disney unique, as there is more than one way
to do it.
I have written about this before, about the fact that some
people planning a trip to Walt Disney World, want to plan out every detail and
get it “right” or “perfect.” My point,
there is no one “right” way to do Disney.
It is about what fits for you, your family, the people you are traveling
with. We have friends who are DVC
members and enjoy the deluxe accommodations that are available to them using
their points. We are pleased with our “moderate”
accommodations and great specials on dining instead. We know people that drive, rather than
fly. Again, if it works for you, then so
be it.
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