Has anyone ever tried surprising their young children with a trip to Disney World? How did you do it? Did you wait til you got off the plane -- or maybe even till you were at the gate of the park --to let them in on it?

I have friends who surprised their teens with a trip to WDW. I know you have young children, but I'll tell you about my friends anyway.

They told the kids that they were going to visit an aunt for Christmas. They got in the car and between home and the airport, (2 hour drive) they sprang it on them. They handed out the plane tickets in an envelope to each of the kids and let them open them in the back seat.

I can't remember how they got the kids to pack the right clothes.

Anyway, the surprise went over very well. Sometimes with teens, though, it could backfire on you. Teens like to know what is going on and like to be in control... at least the knowledge of knowing what they will do when. Of course this is just a general statement from years of working with teens...... each teen is a unique individual.

I would think that having young kids would be even easier. I could see the plane ride as being one adventure in itself. They could guess where you were going. In the Orlando airport there are dead give aways. Then when you get to the hotel, especially if you stay on WDW property, they will know for certain where they are going.

Have fun planning!
:D

Example Scenario A:

Day 1: Kids find out they're on their way to WDW.
Days 2-7: Kids are at WDW, having a great time.
Day 8: It's all over.

Example Scenario B:

Day 1: Kids find out they're going to go to WDW.
Days 2-30: Anticipation, planning, doing chores so mom will buy them souvenirs at WDW.
Days 31-36: Kids are at WDW, having a great time.
Day 37: It's all over.

Hmm...looks like scenario B is the most advantageous!

BTW, I have no kids -- actually just expecting my first -- but I'm already planning a few years ahead :-)

Parents surprised me with a trip when I was 8ish. We lived in FL and I didn't find out until they turned on the disney approach radio station - tonite, the magic kingdom is open from 8am to 8pm... It was awesome and I'm amazed they pulled it off.

But look what it did to me. 150 trips later I'm still going. Don't let it happen to your kids!!!!

We surprised our oldest daughter last year, but did it on her birthday which was a week before our trip. I got the Disney planning video, a little Mickey, and some Mickey confetti to put in a gift bag with an invitation I made on the computer. The invitation invited Anabelle to have breakfast with the princesses (we scored PS's at Cindy's!) and to spend the day at the Magic Kingdom afterwards. It made for a memorable 5th birthday for her. We are going again this New Years and we debated surprising again, but went ahead and told her. It is our Christmas gift from my dad and stepmom, so we wanted to be sure our kids knew that they won't be getting alot of other stuff from them. I enjoy watching them get excited as we get closer to the trip, chosing what they want to go on, who they want to see characterwise, etc. My two year old has been saying "I going Disey Wod" for the past month and it is adorable!

Originally posted by midwestdreamer
They could guess where you were going. In the Orlando airport there are dead give aways. :D

There would be plenty of information available to even small kids before that, like the plane boarding announcement saying "welcome aboard flight 288 for ORLANDO!" But I still like the surprise attempt - sounds like fun!

Originally posted by Matterhorn Fan
Example Scenario A:

Day 1: Kids find out they're on their way to WDW.
Days 2-7: Kids are at WDW, having a great time.
Day 8: It's all over.

Example Scenario B:

Day 1: Kids find out they're going to go to WDW.
Days 2-30: Anticipation, planning, doing chores so mom will buy them souvenirs at WDW.
Days 31-36: Kids are at WDW, having a great time.
Day 37: It's all over.

Interesting options there. I'd think that the thrill of finding out you were going to WDW (or DL!) would be pretty close to the same, whether you found out on the way or a month earlier. I'd vote for having those planning days. They're excruciating, but totally an important part of the trip!

Two years ago we did the twelve days of Christmas. Every day starting the 12th of Dec Each child (9-11-16) would get a gift. On the 19th which was the last day of school, all they got was a small bag with a piece of paper in it. The first one said "All I want" then the second one said, "for Christmas is" and the last one had a Mickey ornament that said "a trip to Disneyworld, we're leaving now. Priceless! My kids went nuts, we already had their suitcases packed and in the van. Of course, all their gifts that year werre Disney related and we had a great time.

We surprised our daughter with a trip to WDW during Spring Break several years ago when she was in the third grade. We told her we were flying to Kansas City for our vacation, which we did. However, once we arrived in KC we went to the gate where our plane for Orlando was scheduled to take off and pointed to the sign over the desk that said Orlando and said "Let's go there instead." She still looked puzzled, so I started singing "We're going to Disneyworld..." She finally understood what we had done and started jumping up and down. I don't think we could get away with it again, but it sure was fun to surprise her!

We did this with a five year old last May. She was told her vacation was to come to Atlanta from Ohio to see her soon-to-be grandparents and then continue on from there to "Florida" to meet her soon-to-great-grandparents. All that was true. She just didn't know that the big meet and family reunion was going to be at Disney World.

After making a stop at Daytona Beach (where our son did the official proposal to the five year old's mother), we made it to Disney World. Since I'm the Disney freak, I got to spring the surprise. We were headed up World Drive and I knew we were just seconds from the big entrance sign. I turned around in the front seat and said - "Marlie, you remember when I told you I'd take you to Disney World one day". Marlie said she remembered. I said "you're here". Right then, the main entrance sign was in view with Mickey, Donald, Goofy, and Pluto on it. I don't think Marlie's eyes have ever gotten that wide before or will ever again.

It was hard living with all that for nine months before we left but it was a true MasterCard commercial - "priceless".

Originally posted by disnut8
We did this with a five year old last May. She was told her vacation was to come to Atlanta from Ohio to see her soon-to-be grandparents and then continue on from there to "Florida" to meet her soon-to-great-grandparents. All that was true. She just didn't know that the big meet and family reunion was going to be at Disney World.

Ah, that was a great trip report! I've been wondering when the next one is coming!

Originally posted by Ellester
Ah, that was a great trip report! I've been wondering when the next one is coming!

I agree...loved that report!!

My parents surprised us when we were very young. MK was the only park and they didn't have the huge "give-away" sign. My older sister was the only one that could read and figured it out when she saw the on-property sign for information on the radio. Our parents told us we were taking a road trip to a new mall (we lived in St. Pete area at the time). I've been hooked ever since!

When my parents suprised me, it was 20 years ago but I remember it like it was yesterday.

Mom and Dad brought me to the airport because Dad was going on a "business trip". When we got to the gate, he said, "Skip the business trip - how about we all go to Disney." It freaked me out because I was scared to fly.

Cutting to the chase... it was the best vacation of my childhood.

I've never been able to keep it a surprise! LOL We've only done WDW once and we told the kids right away, that way they could be in on the planning, restaurant choosing, hotel choosing and could earn $ doing chores! But we've done DL a TON of times and I've never been able to keep it a secret. The closest I've come is last May, my friend was supposed to go down for his 35th birthday and his other friends flaked out on him on Saturday(they were supposed to leave on Sunday)he came over that evening and asked us to go with him, the kids were already in bed asleep so I packed for them and had everything ready. We got them up early and they were asked over and over "where are we going" They didn't even guess DL because we had just been there 3 weeks prior for a week! Finally, I broked down and couldn't take it and told them after a couple of hours! I just couldn't contain my own excitement! LOL:p

When I was young, my dream was to go to Disneyland and meet Mickey Mouse.

My parents told me we would be doing quite a bit in advance, and I treasure the time I had to look forward to the trip. Don't forget that while surprises are good, anticipation is probably better for something like this. What will it be like? Will I meet Mickey? What rides do I want to go on?

Here's a thought: One thing my parents did surprise me with was that we were staying in the Disneyland Hotel itself. They didn't tell me. We rode the airport bus from LAX, and it would stop at the various motels and hotels near the park. I asked my parents which hotel we were staying at, and my mom kept saying, "I'm not sure which one your dad will pick" or something like that. We pulled up to the DL Hotel and a bunch of people got out, and the bus driver said something about getting shuttles to other motels from there as well. I remember asking my father if we could PLEASE stay at the DL Hotel, and as if he just made up his mind there, he said we could. THAT was a surprise, and one I was very happy with.

So perhaps you can tell your kids about going to WDW, but keep something a surprise, such as the Cinderella's Royal Table breakfast, or a special visit with Mickey at Chef Mickey's or something.

Originally posted by Lani
My parents told me we would be doing quite a bit in advance, and I treasure the time I had to look forward to the trip. Don't forget that while surprises are good, anticipation is probably better for something like this. What will it be like? Will I meet Mickey? What rides do I want to go on?

That's essentially what I was trying to point out earlier. While in no way do I want to take away from the wonderful surprise stories others have posted here, for me that anticipation was almost as much fun as the actual trip. Plus it's fun working yourself into a frenzy, at least where a Disney park is concerned!

Now that I'm old(er) and single, I find that some Disney trips have months of planning in them, while some happen with a couple day's notice. Both have appeal for me - love the planning, and I also love the last minute nature of spontenaity!

We told our teens where we were going, but we didn't tell them that we had hired a stretch limo from the airport! We told them that we would be taking the shuttle and it would probably stop at ten hotels on the way to OKW. When the limo showed up and we said "your ride is here" it was priceless. (we got it all on video!)

So the answer is obvious- gota do both!

Actually, you are thinking ahead- so I'm assuming the first trips will be when your children are very young. For my young kids- knowing ahead of time helped. WDW can be quite overwhelming. Also there is a lot you can do to prepare a young child to enjoy it more- like renting key movies or muppet videos. Going through the free DVD on visiting WDW so they know it is 4 parks and they are different. For my kids, knowing what to expect in a broad way actually increased their excitment. There are always great surprises though in any trip-even for adults.