When it comes to planning a Disney vacation, the research and trip planning most likely will happen months and months before you actually travel to the Sunshine State. After you book your dining reservations, the next six months until vacation time tend to crawl by. It may be hard to stay motivated to fill the jar everyday and forego the Starbucks when you’re majorly craving a Frappuccino.
Fear not. We have a few tips for getting through the days and keeping the excitement going until the day you arrive at your resort.
- Create a countdown calendar. It can be as simple as a dry erase board that the kids change every day or a little fancier like this if you’re handy, or feel like you deserve a splurge. Get creative. If you are online, you can also create a virtual vacation ticker on a site such as distickers.
- Watch Youtube walkthroughs of the parks. Get the family together and queue up walkthrough videos of all the parks. This can be really helpful in becoming familiar with the layout of the parks and is one of our favorite ways to rekindle our enthusiasm. There are also videos of fireworks, shows, parades, you name it. If it happened at Walt Disney World, someone has filmed it.
- Disney movie Night. Grab a couple of DVDs and some homemade popcorn and watch some Disney! Introduce the kids to some classics or find a new favorite together. Do a Princess movie night, or watch films that feature animals (Robin Hood, Lion King and Bambi, perhaps?) It means so much more to the kids when they meet a character at the park that they have seen in action in a film. Talk about what questions they may have for that character when they finally meet.
- Purchase your warm weather clothing. It may be a perfect time to assess your wardrobe needs while waiting for that trip to begin. We plan a couple of trips to the thrift stores to look for comfortable light-weight clothing and hopefully a few Disney shirts.
- Have a family meeting about what everyone is most looking forward to. Talk to your children about their favorite characters and what they want to say when they meet them. Ask each family member what ride or unique treat they are most excited about trying. Having these things in mind will help when it’s time to finalize your itinerary and get everyone in the family filled with anticipation for your upcoming adventure!
The Budget Disney Diva 