To ask if you’ve ever been to Walt Disney world florida?

[Idlovetoknow]

I’m not a Disney fanatic but I’d absolutely love to go back with my kids. Reception and preschool age. I went in the late 90s and recall it been infinitely better than sliced bread and crying every time we left. I’m worried it won’t live up to the hype in my head and too much of the parks has changed.

some of my favourite things seem to have gone; honey I shrunk the kids show and playground, voyage of the little mermaid, discovery island, the swimming with sharks in one of the water parks and Mickey’s house seems to be gone too!

ive been to DLP with the kids and that brought some of the magic back, as I’d been as an adult and found it a bit lacking.

anyone been? Anyone been in the 90s and then recently?

i know it’s not everyone’s cup of tea and that’s ok

I went a few times growing up and loved it (00s) going on all the rollercoasters, great fun.

I think 8-12 is the best age to go if it’s a once in a lifetime trip

I think they'll get more from it when they're a bit older. Mine were 10 and 12 when we went and they were tall enough t go on all the rides. Our best family holiday ever.

Hi!! Yes I went in the 90s and remember it as the best holiday EVER and then we returned (pre covid) twice with our DC and my in laws. It was same same but different. No more Captain EO (for obvious reasons, but that was my absolute favourite ride) or Toad of Toad Hall (which my sister and I still love reminiscing about). But “it’s a small world” was still there and I made the whole family
go on it only for them to point out it’s really not very PC and should probably be ditched. Other than that some of the old favourites are still there (the ride in the Golf ball in Epcot), space mountain, thunder railway (??), splash mountain (although I think that is being re done and will re open as a new ride). There are also more parks and we also went to the Harry Potter part of Universal which we LOVED. The only word of caution I would give is that you have to plan it like a military operation to get the most out of it. My in laws were AMAZING at booking our fast passes and planning it all out so the days made sense. We would never have made the trip a financial priority but it was truly magical to be there and we did absolutely love it. We also managed to stay out in Florida for a week afterwards for a relaxing week by the beach. I hope this was helpful.

Universal is much better

Honey I shrunk the audience was the best thing I'd ever seen aged 14.

Haven't been back since '96 but I've been a real thrilled seeker since I was a child and I didn't rate the rides at Disney at all, even Blackpool was better for that sort of thing!

I have a friend who goes every other year with her husband and young adult son, she loves it but I think they do Universal rather than Disney. She went in the 90s too.

I've been and it's great but it takes A LOT of planning now. You have to pre book everything or you simply will not do the most popular attractions. If you put the effort (and money) into planning it well, it will be absolutely amazing! A few of my top things to consider -

• research heavily whether you want to stay onsite or off-site, there are good and bad points for both.
• download the app and book everything as soon as possible, the best rides and restaurants book up on the release date
• how long will you stay? You can cram it all into a week but there will be little rest and it can be exhausting and not feel like much of a holiday when everyone is tired

I went to California Disney in 1979 on Freddie Laker Skytrain when I was a teen. I first went to WDW in 1994, and have been every year since ( Covid excepted ) Sometimes Ive been 3-4 times a year.

I have DVC and stay in the Beach Club villas.
I went in May for the Garden and Flower festival in Epcot and I’m back again in Oct / Nov for halloween and Xmas celebrations.

I first took my kids in 1997 when oldest was 12 months and every year till they was 18/19. All different experiences as they grew up 😃

They are coming back with me for a big family celebration for my 60th in two years along with my grandson.

Its all completely changed since the 90’s many many times, but it is still as wonderful as always and always will be ❤️

Oh and I also go to Universal too. Cabana Bay or Hard Rock onsite hotels are my fav hotels. Usually a week in Universal and two weeks onsite at Disney.

I went in 2004 or 5 and again in 2010 and it was amazing. Would love to take my children but will never be able to afford to do so. If I won the lottery (even though I don't play 😂) the first thing I'd do is book us to go.

I went in the eighties and then last year. Its still fabulous tbh! I liked it far more than I expected too and we're planning to go again next year.
Yes its busy, expensive, huge etc but it really is still magical. I'd agree with a pp that age 8-12 is ideal as they're old enough to cope with the crowds and walking but young enough to enjoy the magic.
We did love universal too but think its better for older kids, DS isn't keen on the huge rides and we found universal didn't cater as well for kids in between toddler rides and thrill rides. Lots of VR stuff which is great but starts getting repetitive!

Ive went in 1991 - faves were honey I shrunk the kids, the one where you got injected into the body and Back to the Future at Universal.
Took the kids in 2018 - its better than ever, went back last year and going again this year (I am sad, I know). Love it!

My first visit was in 2004. We are going in December this year and that will be my 17th trip. I love it just as much as I ever did (obviously) but there’s no denying it’s got very expensive and as a pp said, you need to plan. The magic is absolutely still there though. I couldn’t tell you how many times I’ve walked down Main Street and I still feel weepy every time!

DC have been every year since they were both 1. They’re now 8 and 11. All ages have pluses and minuses for visiting but it really depends if this is a once in a lifetime trip or if you’d go again. If it’s the former I’d wait until they were older.

@Densol57 we do Universal first, stay Cabana for Volcano bay for a couple of day, move over to club level at Royal Pacific then over to Port Orleans for the long Disney fix.

@Idlovetoknow Yes, went when I was 16 in 1990 and had the absolute time of my life, went to Universal too. Loved Honey I Shrunk the Kids, driving a car on Tomorrowland Speedway racing my sister and the afternoon parades. Also behind the scenes tour where you have that canyon with the water and the explosive petrol tanker, and Jaws at Universal.

Been back, did the whole "Once in a Lifetime" trip and then of course whilst we were still there tried to work out how on earth we could afford to come back. Sold a kidney (kidding). We have been back several times since and loved it but it has changed since Covid and the whole Genie Plus and the extra cost. But I did fly on a Banshee (Avatar) and it was the most breathtaking ride I have encountered, the whole magic of the Avatar land especially at night is mind blowing.

I think before you start all the wishful thinking you need to look into cost and what you want from it. Start with just how much the park tickets are. We stay on Disney property to stay in the "Disney Bubble" but that is not a cheap option even on value resorts. You need to plan like you have never planned before. Most people, myself included, will recommend 2 weeks because your first day will see you fly around 10 or 11am and land at around 3pm which is 8pm UK time and exhausting with very young children so you lose a day to travel. If your children are 6 and under then strollers are recommended because you will walk a lot.

Is it amazing? Yes. Would I go back if I could co-ordinate one child at uni and one child in sixth form for coinciding holiday dates where the eldest isn't working? Absolutely. We are banned from going without them. But it will cost me over £10k easy as I am still stuck with August school holidays but not for long. We fly from Dublin, usually cheaper but depends where your local airport is, shop around for landing, we land MCO (Orlando) but lots fly into other airports and take the hit on travel time to get to Disney World.

I should add there are ways to make it as cheap as possible. The Dibb forum is a fantastic resource for all things Disney, Florida etc. Also there is a Disney World board on here under Travel.

I went earlier this year and it was absolutely amazing, better than I was expecting. 14 & 10 year old prefer universal to magic kingdom

Lots of times, most recently at Easter.
It has changed a lot but we had a great time. We loved Universal as well.
It’s expensive and takes a lot of organisation and planning.
Magic Kingdom is our least favourite park. Tron is not worth the wait!
We loved the new Star Wars area, Galaxy’s Edge. Epcot - Guardians is my favourite ride. Flights of Passageos amazing.

I went in the late 90s and remember having a blast! I was in my early 20s and loved Universal even more than Disney!

I've been as a child in the 90s and I've been with my children a few times. Best holiday ever.
Yes, it's expensive but it's totally worth it. So much to see and do. Last time we spent two weeks in the Disney bubble and we still didn't see everything. I think it's approx 40 square miles, the same size of San Francisco. I love the feeling of just being childish and silly and sharing it with my family.
It's not just Magic Kingdom, there are four parks with rides, shows, parades etc plus two water parks, a shopping area and even mini golf.

We go regularly. The best bet is look at the heights and see what rides they can go on to see whether it's worth it.

We go as regularly as we can- best holiday ever.

Def noticed the price increases post covid though 😳

I think an adults only trip and we’d love universal but with kids this young it’s not worth it.

ive looked height wise and eldest is over 102cm so I’d say can go on 80% of things, youngest about 90cm so less obviously but still a lot to go on, so to me worth it. I’d love for it not to be a once in lifetime affair. Youngest would be under 3 too so free. So will be cheaper now than later.

we’d stay on property. The all stars were omg wow when I went, although disconcertingly the sports one looks identical including room decor. Might avoid that one. Pop century looks alright. Art of animation seems better but a lot pricier and not included in offers.

I've been 10+ times since 1989, also Disneyland in California, and Disneyland Paris 4 times.
I've been as a child/teen/young adult/married etc but after 4 times to DLP am finally taking my own children next October. We're staying for 8nts on I-Drive for Universal/IoA and Discovery Cove. Then 13nts onsite at POP Century for non stop Disney.

Kids will be nearly 7 (DS) and nearly 4 (DD). There's pros and cons to all ages, yes when they're older they can ride the big coasters but when they're younger they still believe in the magic.

I’ve been 4 times. My parents took me. I loved it there and I would love to be able to take my two kids but I don’t think I’ll ever be able to afford it.

It truly is the holiday of a lifetime and if you can go, I definitely recommend it. I would also recommend you do the trip to universal studios too. It’s separate to DW but worth a visit

I’d sY they need to be old enough to be really into Harry Potter to get the most out of Universal.

Despite hating the heat, it is my happy place. I’m not even that huge of a Disney fan. I just love the organized, cleanliness of the parks. I wish the whole world operated like Disney. It brings such a wonderful calm
to my ASD brain that I have spent many hours online looking at houses in the Disney subdivisions, despite really never wanting to live in Florida.

id go annually of I had the time and money.