A Disney Vacation Through Their Eyes: Let Everyone Have a Say
You're all going on the same Disney World vacation, but each person in your family may be experiencing a completely different one. That's part of the magic.
Imagine you've just finished a day at Walt Disney World.
You ask everyone what their favorite part was. You might expect the answer to be the attraction you waited an hour to experience. Maybe you anticipate the answer being the character meal you reserved months ago. Or, if it isn't those two, you think it has to be the nighttime spectacular everyone had been looking forward to.
Instead, your child says:
“The pool.”
Someone else chooses the bus ride when everyone was laughing. Another person names an attraction you almost skipped. Suddenly, you realize something.
You all went on the same vacation, but you didn't experience the same exact vacation. That's a good thing.
Everyone Brings Something Different to Disney World
One of the wonderful things about Walt Disney World is how many different kinds of experiences exist in one place. No two trips are alike. Beyond that, though, no two people have the exact same vacation.
Someone may love roller coasters. Someone else might avoid them completely. One person could spend hours exploring the countries at the World Showcase in EPCOT. Another wants to focus instead on EPCOT's World Nature, exploring The Land and The Seas.
Someone loves getting up early. Someone would happily sleep until noon. One person may remember every meal. Another remembers the music.
And children often notice things adults walk right past.
When we plan a family vacation, it can be easy for one person to become the planner. That person reads the articles, makes the reservations, learns the parks, watches the weather, figures out the transportation, and creates the idea of what the vacation is going to look like.
Planning is important, of course. The best trips can happen, however, when everyone is asked what their ideal Disney World trip looks like too.
Give Everyone Something That Belongs to Them
Before the vacation, let each person choose something that matters to them.
It doesn't have to be the biggest attraction in the park. It doesn't have to be something everyone else would have chosen.
Maybe your young child wants to ride Dumbo in Magic Kingdom. Your teenager might choose Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind at EPCOT followed by Mission: SPACE. Your other child wants to see zebras and giraffes on Kilimanjaro Safaris at Animal Kingdom.
Put those choices into the vacation. They matter and, by doing so, you send the message that:
This is the thing we made room for because it mattered to you.
When it is everyone else's turns, participate in their choices. Their favorite thing may never become yours, but watching them enjoy it can become part of your memory.
Sometimes Watching Someone Else Is the Experience
As is often said by Plan Upon A Star, some of the best Disney World moments and lifelong memories are made while sitting on a park bench (often, ice cream in hand).
Sometimes, watching someone else is the experience. Think about meeting Mickey Mouse with a young child. For the adult, the memorable part may not be meeting Mickey at all. It may be watching the child's face.
The same thing can happen when someone rides their first roller coaster, sees Cinderella Castle for the first time, tries a new food, hears a favorite song, or discovers a new show.
There are experiences at Disney World that become special because you experience them through someone else.
You may have ridden the attraction ten times. They haven't. You may know what's around the corner. They don't. You may know exactly what Cinderella Castle looks like when you walk onto Main Street, U.S.A. They've only seen it in pictures. And, yes, you have the words of it's a small world stuck in your head for the tenth time. But to them, it's their first time hearing it and now they are singing it too.
Every once in a while, instead of looking at the thing everyone came to see, look at the person seeing it.
That may be the part you remember.
Let Children Help Shape the Vacation
Adults make most of the decisions on a family vacation for good reason, but children can still have a voice.
Before the trip, show them pictures of a few attractions or experiences that are appropriate for them and ask what looks exciting.
Let them choose between two restaurants. Ask which character they most hope to meet. Let them choose a snack. Or give them control over a small part of one day. It doesn't have to be a big decision, just something.
Their choice doesn't need to determine the entire itinerary. You're simply telling them:
Your vacation—and your voice—matters too.
Plus, their choices might just lead the whole family somewhere unexpected.
Adults Should Get a Turn Too
“Let everyone have a say” shouldn't quietly become “let the children choose everything.”
Parents are on vacation too. So are grandparents, couples, siblings, and friends.
If Dad really wants to ride Haunted Mansion, that counts. If Grandma wants to explore the tea store in the United Kingdom in EPCOT while Grandpa wants a beer next door in the pub, that counts. If Mom has always wanted to stay long enough to see the park at night, that counts.
A family vacation doesn't have to revolve exclusively around one age group. Making lifelong memories means creating opportunities for everyone to experience something that feels like theirs.
Not Every Choice Needs to Be Shared
Families don't have to spend every second together to have a meaningful family vacation. This can be particularly useful when traveling with people who have very different interests.
Maybe some members of the family want to ride a thrill attraction while others would rather find a snack and relax. Perhaps grandparents want a slower afternoon while everyone else stays in the park. Maybe one parent takes a young child to meet Buzz LIghtyear while the other takes the older child a few steps away to Space Mountain.
Splitting up for an hour isn't failing at the family vacation. Sometimes, giving people permission to pursue different interests means everyone comes back together happier—and with something new to talk about.
Ask Different Questions
We often ask:
“Did you have fun?”
It's a perfectly good question, but try asking something more specific.
What surprised you today?
What would you do again tomorrow?
What made you laugh?
What was something you didn't expect to enjoy?
What do you want to make sure we do before we go home?
Listen to the answers. You may discover that the vacation everyone is experiencing is a little different from the one you thought you were planning. That's useful information.
You Don't Have to Love the Same Things to Love the Same Vacation
There can be pressure on a family vacation for everyone to enjoy everything together, but some of the most interesting family memories come from our differences.
The person who was terrified before the roller coaster and loved it afterward. The family member who couldn't understand why everyone wanted to ride something again. The child who cared more about the family of ducks swimming around Cinderella Castle than the castle itself. The restaurant one person adored and another person still jokes about.
Those differences become part of the family's story. You don't need everyone to agree on the perfect Disney day. You simply need to make enough room for everyone to find something they love within it.
Before You Start Planning...
Sit down together before you begin building your itinerary and give everyone the same three questions:
What is one thing you really want to do?
What is one thing you really don't want to do?
What is one thing you'd like to choose for everyone to experience together?
Write down the answers.
You don't have to promise that every request will happen. Some may not fit the budget, schedule, age requirements, or interests of the rest of the group. Listen to them, though.
Then, when you're building the vacation, try to make sure everyone can point to something and say:
“That's my thing.”
Because years from now, you won't just remember what you experienced at Walt Disney World. You may remember what it was like watching the people you love experience it too.
Plan Your Trip. Make Lifelong Memories.