Welcome back to another My Disney Top 5. Thanks for all your responses and please keep them coming. This time I’m back at Walt Disney World again. As I write this, I’m rather filled with excitement. You see, I have a surprise in store for my wife on Valentines Day. By the time you all are reading this, she will have already received her gift; a surprise long weekend at Walt Disney World this Spring. I can’t wait. I’ve been itching to go back. I realize it’s only been five months and by the time we get back in May, it’ll only be an eight-month absence, but hey— that’s long enough isn’t it?
There will be one major difference on this upcoming trip. We’ll be alone. Just the two of us. No kids! Now, I adore my kids and I adore being with them at Disney. It’s one of the highlights of my life. My wife’s too. There’s nothing like experiencing Disney through the eyes of your children. But I have to admit, both my wife and I have wondered, “What would it be like to be here on our own, not tethered to the kids?” Well, in a few months time, we’re going to find out. That brings me to the topic of this week’s Top 5. So, here are the Top 5 Things I’m Looking Forward to Doing on my Kid-Free Trip to Walt Disney World.
5 – Stay at the Wilderness Lodge
I'm looking forward to this view from my Magical Express bus. MousePlanet File Photo.
This may seem like an odd choice to have on my list, but it has a good reason for being here. We’re a family of 5 and this always presents a problem when it comes to booking a room. At Disney we’ve mostly stayed in the Alligator Bayou section of Port Orleans-Riverside. As I wrote about last time, it's one of my favorite places to be and the trundle beds in Alligator Bayou work out perfectly for us. Our last trip was at The Yacht Club, but we got a serious deal on that and who knows when that will happen again. We’ve visited The Wilderness Lodge and Animal Kingdom Lodge before and they are amazing resorts. But unless I spend the extra money and book a villa, neither of them can accommodate the 5 of us. That’s a shame, but we’re going to get our taste of the Wilderness this spring. I’m really looking forward to being there.
4 – No Chicken Nuggets & French Fries, please!
How about a nice quiet dinner at Citricos? MousePlanet File Photo.
Food isn’t everything. Eating food at Disney isn’t everything either, but it can be a whole other experience if you allow it to be. We’re still going to have our Crystal Palace breakfast with Pooh and his pals. However, I’m really looking forward to taking our time and enjoying some nice quiet meals, maybe a few glasses of wine (or a whole bottle for that matter!) and some uninterrupted conversation with my lovely wife. I will miss my daughter’s amazing artwork on her menus, but she’ll be there next time, I promise.
3 – Slowing Down
We’re going to take our time and really soak in all of the details that are overlooked by the kids. I can’t blame them. Take time exploring each World Showcase pavilion or ride Maelstrom and the Gran Fiesta Tour again? That’s a no brainer for a kid and I’m not complaining. They’re there to have fun and so are we. However, I know on this trip, we’re going to see things in World Showcase, one of our favorite places down there, that we’ve never seen nor appreciated before. The same goes for all of the parks. I think we’re both going to love it.
2 – Space Mountain, Tower of Terror, Everest…
Everest awaits! MousePlanet File Photo.
It’s not that we don’t get to go on the more intense rides at Disney on our family trips. The kids won’t, not yet. I get to go on them, and Diane gets to go on them, but we don’t get to go on them together. On a few trips, when the grandparents came down or when we were traveling with friends, we were on certain big rides together, but this time all of them will be together. That’s going to be pretty cool.
1 – Whatever We Want, Whenever We Want
We’re a pretty diplomatic family on our Disney trips. We don’t do anything unless we all agree and when we have discrepancies, we solve them and make sure everyone’s getting a turn to choose something they want to do or see. We always head back to the hotel for a rest or swim midday. It’s essential for the kids, especially during the summer months. This time, we might not. We might have a marathon day in the parks, without a break. We might go to Animal Kingdom and not go on the rides, just check out the animals and the amazing details. We might shop in World Showcase more. I might finally get to walk through Walt Disney: One Man’s Dream. This time, it’ll just be the two of us. If we want to sit on those great rocking chairs in Liberty Square and watch the world go by…damn it we will and we’ll enjoy ourselves doing so. The World will truly be our oyster on this trip.
So there you have it. I’m doing the impossible, the unthinkable…I’m taking a trip to the kid center of the universe without my kids. I hope I haven’t come across as mean in this article. There’s definitely going to be something missing there without Casey, Alex and Samantha. They are the light of our lives and we love being at Disney with them. But, my wife and I have had a tough year and I honestly can’t wait to take her by the hand and walk through the Magic Kingdom rose garden during Wishes. Jiminy will reassure us that dreams can come true, Tinker Bell will soar over our heads and we’ll be soaking in all of the magic together…just the two of us.
The kids will just have to understand.
That's My Disney Top 5 for today. What's yours? Click on the “Discuss this article on MousePad” link below and share your list!
