To force dh to Disney world

[squareears]

We have a limited budget for everything to come in for a 2week holiday in July for two adults and 5yo for up to £4K. We get travel discounts from friends.

Dh has found a deal to a not great hotel in Caribbean for £3k in July (st kitts)
Or all stars resort (3*) in disneyworld Orlando including park tickets (with mates rates) for £3k.
Both have no food included and I’m pretty aware £1k isn’t a lot for extras in Disney world but I realllllly want to go.

Husband says he doesn’t want to go to DW. He keeps comparing it to DL Paris which imo is ridiculous as hes not been to Florida one.

I really want to go to DW and actually am not keen on a non resort hotel in Caribbean with our hyper, never ever sleeps 5 yo. I can’t see what we’d do with her once it turns nighttime and whenever I’ve been to Caribbean pre dd I just used to go to bars etc.

Aibu to insist we go DW or are we going to end up breaking the budget?! It would not be holiday of lifetime or anything like that so would really be food and maybe trips that need the extra money.

You may have already thought of this but what about Disney in Anehiem (near LA)? It's the original Disney and is fantastic. Granted I haven't been to the one in florida so I'm not comparing, but the one in California is just part of the overall trip. You could do a couple of days in Disney and then spend the rest of the time doing other things. Venice beach and Santa Monica are lovely. I love Orange County and all it has to offer. The shopping malls are brilliant and the places are fantastic. There's a universal studios in LA as well (although I wouldn't bother with Hollywood). Then there are all of the national parks and places to go in the mountains. It would certainly give your DH other things to do aside from Disney.

Price wise (and again I don't know how expensive florida Disney is) I didn't find it that expensive. Plus there are plenty of hotels close by which are cheaper than those on site. Although I've stayed at both the sheraton and the hilton at anaheim and they were both lovely.

I would suggest costing it up properly and seeing what your budget for food etc would be each day. $1000 for 14 days is only $70/day which really isn't much at all.

I used to book holidays but it's something everyone needs to agree on and I was fed up finding a bargain for DH to say 'well see' and by the time he mulled it over the price had trebles or sold out. And we'd end up going nowhere.

I past the buck so he could see how difficult it was.

We have a holiday booked in a few weeks as a joint effort as he was getting annoyed at the time it takes.

But he learnt a valuable lesson. As your DH is away a lot it makes sense for him to book and check his schedule. Good luck

Is the deal you have only for All Stars?
If your DH is a holiday snob the he will not like the complex as it is quite basic with an overpric3 self serve restaurant.
If you have flexibility there are many decent hotels for a lot less.
My opinion is DW with a 5 year old is magical

YANBU to make DH go to Disney.

DH and I went for his first time a few years ago. He didn’t want to go, moaned about it until we got there saying he didn’t like queues/rides/parades etc., then absolutely loved it when we were there.

People can go on about how they would hate it/would refuse to go/have done DLP and that was rubbish, but if you haven’t actually been to Disneyworld in Flordia, you just don’t know what it’s like; how magical it is and how they put excellence into everything.

I would say do DW. Since you can go back, there won’t be loads of rushing around, so you can take it at the pace you want.

I would personally go to DW. It's so geared up towards kids plus orlando offers some other great things to nearby like some beaches and space centre.

In terms of food we found it really reasonable! The formal restaurants are expensive but I wouldn't bother with that too much with young kids. The counter service stuff is cheap and good portions.

If I could get it for 3k I'd go in a heartbeat!

I was speaking as someone who believed all the hype and saved like crazy to go to DW at the age of 21.
Since growing into a fully formed adult who has been lucky enough to live in SE Asia for 15 yrs as well as Europe for 2 yrs and the US for 3.. I can say for sure that there are about a gazillion places on this amazing planet to go. With your budget. Without having to have your holiday 'made' for you by rank commercialism.

To answer lifechangesforever - yes frankly it does smack of 'brain dead' . In that your imagination seems to be stunted . Of course people smile when they are there. They are having fun. But they could have even more fun doing something a bit different and maybe learn a bit about the world around them. Travel being one of the greatest forms of non formal education.

I have been in the 'Disney safari boat through the jungle' but then again I and our dcs have floated down the Pai river between Thailand and Burma stopping off at various Hilltribe camps learning about the politics and culture.

I have ridden 'space mountain ' in DW. It was fun - you would definitely have seen me laughing, didn't however begin to compare to riding an Elephant from the Elephant sanctuary in MaeHongSorn Thailand, through the ACTUAL non 'virtual' Jungle.
And half the price of DW !

Mickey Mouse is all very lovely but the sight of my eldest sitting on a temple wall in Lopburi feeding a baby monkey grapes, after she came and made a home on her lap - will be a unique experience she will remember for ever.

There is so much out there that to think DW is the pinnacle of a childs/family experience is so sad.

Go see the real world rather than the pretend one. It's far more amazing than anything created in a movie studio.

Squareears - young 'busy' child ? Want to be able to go out in the evening? The obvious answer is Southern Europe where kids are up late. (Siesta). Can't go wrong with Greek Islands - flotilla holiday is huge fun with young DCs . Or Italy villa with a group of friends . Spain?
With that budget you could have 2 or 3 holidays!

OP, Disney Florida is about five theme parks, all of a similar size to Disney Paris. Personally, we thought the Paris one was better as they do the parades and it's more compact / accessible.

There is no need to go long haul in July. Why add jet lag and a long flight into the mix with a five year old when the weather is great across Europe? If child entertainment is your priority, maybe try a Scott Dunn or similar, where there are activities and entertainment for kids all day and into the evening? Even nannies and clubs which will take them off your hands for a few hours (if you think she would go for that)? The Sani resort in Thessaloniki is all inclusive and bombarding me with emails at the moment?

It's the rainy season in the Caribbean towards the end of July.

Some if the best holidays we had with the kids when they were little were in Cornwall - Bedruthen Steps Hotel or Sands? There are so many mini theme parks all within half an hours drive. No queues and many are free! Loads in in the hotels to as completely geared around families. The weather can be iffy, but kids don't care about that. The beaches are truly stunning. Entertainment for kids every night. They loved it.

@fontofnoknowledge yes! I have no desire to go to DW even though DH would like to, for all the reasons you've stated.

I do believe I'd enjoy it (I like theme parks) but I've also been in jungle, national parks, Himalayas etc and could do any of those for cheaper than DW and would find them massively more enjoyable and enriching.

A theme park is great for a day out but I could never plan a whole holiday around one. Think of the amazing things you could do with that money.

"People can go on about how they would hate it/would refuse to go/have done DLP and that was rubbish, but if you haven’t actually been to Disneyworld in Flordia, you just don’t know what it’s like; how magical it is and how they put excellence into everything."

It's an expensive gamble though. I didn't hate Orlando, but there are other places I have been on holiday to that I have enjoyed far more.

OP, Disney Florida is about five theme parks, all of a similar size to Disney Paris. Personally, we thought the Paris one was better as they do the parades and it's more compact / accessible.

amazana If you have actually even been to either WDW or DLP I don’t think you were paying attention!

Disneyland Paris (DLP) is 4,800 acres. Walt Disney World (WDW) in Florida is 27,258 acres.

That is a massive difference. Oh, and there are also four theme parks, not five, and two water parks, and WDW offers many more parades than DLP does.

DLP is “compact” because it’s so small; it pales in comparison to WDW because there’s not much there.

You say the parks in WDW are a “similar size” to DLP. They’re not.

Animal Kingdom is 403 acres, Epcot is 300 acres, Hollywood Studios is 135 acres and Magic Kingdom is 105 acres. The two parks in DLP are 126 acres (main) and 62 acres (studios).

So no, they’re not all a similar size.

It’s fine for you to prefer DLP/dislike WDW/prefer another destination, but please get your facts right before giving out information.

fontofnoknowledge I have been on a round the world trip, visited many countries and been on many experiences. WDW is still, by far, the best and most enjoyable place I’ve ever been. I would go there over anywhere else.

That does not make me “brain dead” or “stunted” or any of the other nasty things you’re spouting. It just makes me a different person to you with different likes and dislikes.

At that age, I’d just take them to a smaller theme park.

Also, Disney World is not my thing. Yes we have to make sacrifices for our kids but I would never centre a holiday around a kids’ thing like a theme park.

It's an expensive gamble though. I didn't hate Orlando, but there are other places I have been on holiday to that I have enjoyed far more.

LoniceraJaponica If you’re a couple and you both have no interest, fair enough. But if one partner (and/or kids) really wants to go, it’s worth it.

I would never centre a holiday around a kids’ thing like a theme park.

ThisIsTheFirstStep Theme parks aren’t just “kid’s things”, you know. They cater for adults and children alike, and attempting to call WDW just a theme park shows how little you actually know about it.

I just took 16 year old DD. OH really didn't want to go. He had other reasons not to go as well (health related), but we went on our own with his blessing.

We had a family holiday in the UK in August as well.

Wow I never knew there was such judgement made on who goes to DW. I grew up travelling the world with my parents jobs.
I have worked for years in European travel and been to many many places, I have an IQ in the top 2% of U.K. and I still like disnyworld. I can’t believe how mean some people are about it. It’s not like I go there for fine dining or refined entertainment. I just like it because I find it fun. I don’t even go on the rides. It’s still my favourite holiday of all so if anyone cares to judge what’s the point on this thread I asked between Caribbean and DW in July?

My dh hasn’t said he looks down on anyone that goes there but he has said he cba to trot around for two weeks with children everywhere. That’s fair enough. I was asking if I should force him to go because I know myself and dd would be happy. And he might even enjoy himself.
As it happens I have already said that’s fair enough but whereas he normally leaves it to me to sort out the holiday and then he either says yes or no I have asked him to sort because he drags it out. Nothing’s changed. It’s just getting more and more likely he won’t take annual leave for a summer holiday.

Thanks to the replies that are relevant.

Slightly off topic but why are you worried about having no evening entertainment?
Book a villa or something and put your daughter to bed when YOU want her to go to bed, and enjoy the scenery and each other . Your daughter is 5, you can't plan a holiday around her sleeping habits.

Go to Disney
Go to Disney
Go to Disney

It's very commercial, obviously, but we always have such amazing holidays there. I very much wish we were going this year!

It's not comparable to DLP.

We did a mini roadtrip in Florida (also Georgia), perhaps dh would prefer that? We only spent a few nights in Orlando, two weeks in disney would drive me mad. Also, 1k spending money seems rather conservative for florida.

"and put your daughter to bed when YOU want her to go to bed, and enjoy the scenery and each other"

You have clearly never had a child who just does not want to go to sleep when you want them to. DD wasn't as bad as the OP's child, but she was never a child who was ready to go to sleep early. She just wasn't tired

Then you take your child to DW and he can sort himself out

Go without him - he seems to not like children so picks completely unsuitable places for her which lead to her behaviour

It sounds much harder work than it should be, tbh. You don’t seem to be struggling budget wise and one 5 year old should be relatively easy on various holidays (unless of course you are going to completely non child-friendly places, in which case it might be more difficult than it should be).

Your DH sounds quite selfish. There are some holidays I would rather go on but choose what the DC would prefer as them being happy often makes it more enjoyable and there are only so many years they are young.

@LoniceraJaponica I have seven children that have all had a set bedtime. If they weren't tired thry could still play with soft toys on their beds or look at books, but they were not allowed to call out unnecessarily, come downstairs etc.

Just because that was he case for you doesn’t mean it works for all children!

That said personally (and with a non sleeping 8 year old) I am not sure having an approach of adding extra entertainment into the night would do much to help the situation! Over stimulation rarely helps

Believe me we tried everything, but it still doesn't stop your child calling out for you snd shouting that they can't sleep.

We have the opposite problem now as DD is under the CFS/ME team and struggling not to fall asleep while revising for A levels .

I would go to Disneyworld, unless you're huge eaters £1000 is plenty for 3. You'll love it, your 5yr old will love it.
We were there in November with our 2.5yr old and 4.5yr old and it was fabulous!!!!!!