The 7-Year Itch is Real and We’re Finally Going Back! (updated Nov 2nd)

[Misha72683]

Hello all! I am Misha and I am Starting this pre-trip report as a place to organize my thoughts as I start planning our 2022 trip to Disney. We went back in October 2015 when our boys were 4 and 2.5 and we honestly did not think it would take us 7 years to get back but life got in the way. First, we added a new addition in the form of a little Princess and wanted her to be big enough, so we were thinking Fall 2020 and welll… We all know what 2020 was like. But we are cautiously optimistic about a Fall 2022 trip.


My family consists of me, my husband Mark, our two boys, Alex (10) and Nicky (8), and our daughter Betty (5). This will be Betty’s first trip to WDW and the first trip that Nicky will be able to remember. Last time we were joined by my bff T, who may or may not join us this time (or might come for a few days and not the whole week), however we will still have an extra adult as my mom W will be joining us. It is also her first trip to Disney, she regrets not taking me when I was little and wants to experience going with her only grandchildren.

We are still nailing down dates and which resort(s) we are staying at. Last time we drove, but my mother has zero desire to drive 22 hours each way with 3 small children and so we are flying. Which is fine with me, because I think I only need that experience once in a lifetime. My children are also older, so they will have more say in the planning, which is fun.

The Cast:
Mark: My darling husband, fan of all things nerdy. He is pretty excited about Galaxy Edge, last time he was sad he didn’t get a lightsaber when our kids did. He is a big fan of the Mandelorian, all things Marvel and his favorite Disney movie is Tangled. His favorite princess is Rapunzel.
Misha: Me! I am a SAHM and aspiring writer, and a life long Disney fan. I adore all things Princess. My favorite movie is The Little Mermaid and my favorite princess is Aurora. I am also a big fan of Hocus Pocus, like most other 90s girls.
Mom: My mama! Newly retired and planning how to live her best life, which involves lots of time with her grandchildren. I got my love of Disney from my mother And we spent years watching the movies together. Her favorite movie is Cinderella and Cinderella is her favorite princess.
Alex: My oldest child. The only one who remembers going to Disney. He loves junk food, rides, and anything Movies. He loves both Star Wars and Marvel. His favorite Disney movie is Toy Story. I don’t think he has a favorite princess, but he does enjoy watching the princess movie with his little sister.
Nicky: My middle child. He was only 2.5 on our last trip and doesn’t remember it, but We often tell him the story of how his life-long love of giraffes started at Animal Kingdom when a baby giraffe approached our safari cart. He screamed “Raff, Mama, Raff” and fell madly in love. To this day, giraffes are still his favorite. Like his brother, he loves Star Wars and Marvel. His favorite Disney movie is Cars. His favorite Disney Princess is Elsa.
Betty: Last, but certainly not least, my youngest child and only daughter. She was born after our last trip and was quite annoyed the first time she figured out that her brothers met Minnie Mouse and she hasn’t yet. She is a girly girl to the extreme. Full princess mode all the time. Her favorite Disney Movie is Frozen and Betty loves Elsa with her Whole heart. However, as much as she loves Elsa, her true Disney love is Minnie.

So there you have it! The beginnings of my trip report, I will update more as I start planning!

(my husband made me edit his favorites)

 

[Misha72683]

We are officially booked! Novembet 12-19th, four days at AoA (little mermaid rooms) and then 3 nights at AKL (Savannah view, well for one of the rooms).

 

[Jess_VacayMode]

The 7 year itch is REAL! I had an epic 2015 trip with 10 days at Contemporary Club Level and we bought annual passes. Then life happened. I am debating a trip hard. I kind of want to wait until the kinks get worked out with Genie+ but we will see if that happens. Looks like you are off to a good start with booking the rooms.

 

[Misha72683]

The 7 year itch is REAL! I had an epic 2015 trip with 10 days at Contemporary Club Level and we bought annual passes. Then life happened. I am debating a trip hard. I kind of want to wait until the kinks get worked out with Genie+ but we will see if that happens. Looks like you are off to a good start with booking the rooms.

it is so real! I honestly assumed we would be back before now but pregnancy and a medically vulnerable baby changed the timeline and then then world went to Hell. I hope you get to go back soon!

 

[ZeeWP]

OMG how exciting! I understand the 7-year itch because I haven't been back since I left the College Program back in 2005! I mean, Its not that I didn't want to, just life and whatnot. So for me, it's been 17-year itch LOL. But our November visit will be my daughter's (7) and my son's (5) first time at WDW. They were at Disneyland in 2018, but this is a whole other beast!

I am looking forward to your report, I have a feeling I will learn a lot from it since my kids are close to your kids in age.

 

[Misha72683]

Update: We booked our plane tickets last month, so we now have a rough idea of arrival and departure times. We are arriving in Orlando around 10 a.m. Not sure if we will do a park day our first day or a Disney Springs/relax day.

at this point I am contemplating whether I want to change our reservation and make it 6 park days instead of 5 or if I want to do park hoppers. With things slowly re-opening I am waiting to make that decision.

I am having a harder time getting into the Disney planning mindset than I did last time we visited. It might just be the weight of the last two years or the fact that this trip is more complex do to the two reservations.

 

[FrankAZ]

We are officially booked! Novembet 12-19th, four days at AoA (little mermaid rooms) and then 3 nights at AKL (Savannah view, well for one of the rooms).

Same here! 7 year itch and am "close" to booking the same days!

 

[Misha72683]

I haven’t hit any of my big booking dates yet, but I did purchase Tickets for my Husband and I for the Food & Wine Classic at the Swan and Dolphin on the first day of our trip. My mom will stay in the hotel with the kids and my husband and I will have a bit of adult time before we embark on 7 days of theme parks lol.

i also ordered Magic Bands and booked our pre-flight hotel in Toronto (which is also park and fly), so that we don’t have to get 3 kids out the door at 2 a.m to make our flight.

i also ordered my daughter 3 adorable dresses on Etsy (part of her birthday present) for our trip and I am so excited for her to wear them as I know she will love them.

 

[Misha72683]

I got the dresses I ordered from Flax and Wool threads today! They are so cute! they Are gifts for my daughter’s birthday next month, so I will post pictures once she receives them. I ordered Belle, Snow White and Cinderella, partially because they corespond with dinner reservations I am hoping to get but also because I didn’t love the Elsa dress. With shipping and duty, it was about $60 CDN adress, but the quality is incredible and I love how comfortable they look.

 

[Misha72683]

We are 10 days away from our trip (less actually because we are now driving and leave on the 10th).

i have been about updating my travel plans, but we are pretty much set. I only did a handful of ADRS Becuase of cost (I miss the dining plan,) but may add one more sit-down meal depending on what is available.

Sat- arrival day, F&W classic (just me and my husband)
sun- HS Then PH to EPCOT. We have a droid building appointment and an ADR at Oga’s Catina
Mon- MK then either HS or EPCOT. Breakfast at Cinderella’s Royal Table
Tue- non park day, we are going to the Kennedy Space Centre. Dinner reservation at Morimoto’s Asia (my mom is skipping this one)
Wed- Hollywood studios, late breakfast at Ohana (12:30). This is the day we change hotels. MK in the evening (likely us and the boys, with my mom and the youngest staying at the hotel)
thurs- EPCOT maybe HS in the evening (or maybe some hotel/pool time)
fri- animal kingdom, either end things at HS or enjoy the hotel. Lunch at Tusker House.

My later week park hopping is more open and I will kind of go with the flow and see how we are feeling.

i can’t be line after 7 years we are less than two weeks away!