My Disney Top 5 - Answers To...That Question

Welcome back to another My Disney Top 5.

There’s something in the air lately. The days are longer. The air-conditioners are humming. As an educator, I bid my students goodbye a few weeks ago. My own children are off. The sun is hot here in New York this week, and the neighbor’s pool felt real good this past weekend. It’s unmistakable.  It’s summertime and that can only mean one thing…vacation!! So, here we go again:

• Where are we going?
• When are we going?
• How long are we staying there?
• What hotel are we staying in?
• Where are we going to eat while we’re there?
• The airfare is what?

Of course, all these questions were asked and answered a while ago and the answers are quite similar to last summer:

• We’re going to Walt Disney World.
• We’re going in August.
• We’ll be there for 7 nights.
• We’re staying at The Polynesian again!!
• We’re eating at all sorts of different places.
• The airfare wasn’t that bad, actually.

But, as usual, we’ve had to answer the one question that annoys us Disney fans year after year:

• “You’re going there...again?”

Yes, as a matter of fact, we are going there again and there’s nothing you can do about it. You can’t stop us and nothing you can say will change our mind. We want to go back. We like going back. If any of you readers out there have been hit with this question…and you know you have…I thought I’d help you out with my Top 5 Answers to “You’re Going There Again?”

5 – It’s The Best Bang for Your Buck

Money well spent. Photo By Chris Barry.

I’m adamant about this statement. You get the most out of your vacation dollar at Walt Disney World. There’s so much to do. There are so many options for dining. You’re so well taken care of. The hotels are spotless. The facilities are amazing. Most importantly, for what you get, the prices are reasonable.  I’m not saying they’re cheap. I’m saying that I’d rather pay $179 or $199 for Port Orleans Riverside than $300 for a hotel at Hershey or the Jersey Shore any day. Forget it, if you score a pin code or one of their deals. We’re paying $256 per night at the Polynesian. No, that’s not cheap, but we’re a family of 5 and every other place we looked into this summer was a lot more than that because they wanted us to either take 2 rooms or an expensive suite. Orlando can also be one of the more reasonable airports to fly into. Airfare to the Bahamas, for example, was over $500 each. New York to Orlando was about $300 less for each person. Disney is a good deal. Enough said.

4 – There’s Still So Much We Haven’t Done

Maybe all of us can finally ride together this time? Photo by Chris Barry.

Yes, we’re going on Peter Pan. Yes we’re going on it's a small world.  Sure, we're going on the Seas with Nemo and Friends again.  Yes, we're going towatch the parade. Yes we’ve done all that and more plenty of times. And, yes we still enjoy those things. However, the kids are getting older and the options are opening and expanding. They've been hesitant to go on the bigger rides, but that seems to be changing. We’ve never all been on Big Thunder Mountain together. Never all been on Space Mountain together. It's not just rides and attractions. We’ve never eaten at ‘Ohana. We still haven’t rented a boat of any kind and zipped around the Seven Seas Lagoon and Bay Lake. The list is pretty huge. When you add in the new things like Star Tours, the new queues for Winnie the Pooh and Haunted Mansion and the newer restaurants like La Hacienda and T-Rex that we haven't been to yet, we can probably do all new things all week long if we choose to.

3 – My Kids Are Still Young (And So Are My Wife And I!!)

3 characters and 5 kids. Photo by Disney's Photopass.

I’m quite sure the 12-year-old daughter is aware that that’s not really Cinderella’s Castle. The days of total belief in the characters are long gone for her. The 8-year-old twin boys get it to. They know Mickey doesn’t really live in Toontown. (Especially now!) But so what? We all suspend disbelief when we’re there. That’s part of the fun. I am in the Himalayas on Expedition Everest. My wife is walking through a plaza in Germany when we’re in Epcot. We’re all on a boat sailing through a pirate infested Caribbean town. It’s called using your imagination and it’s in short supply in most other places in this world.

2 – That Whole Magic Thing

Let the magic begin! Photo by Chris Barry.

It’s not corny if you know what I’m talking about and let’s face it, if you’re reading this; you know what I’m talking about.

1 – Because We Like It There !!

What's not to like? Photo by Frank Anzalone.

Is it me, or do my friends that go to Vegas every year not have to answer this question? We go to Mt. Snow, Vermont every winter for a few days of skiing. Nobody has ever said, “You’re going there again?” I know lots of people that go lots of places on a yearly basis and yet, I’m quite confident that they don’t have to endure the rolling eyes and that insipid question. So, why is it when you say you’re going to Disney World, there’s always someone that has to question your sanity and judgment? It’s the most popular tourist destination on Earth and yet people seem to act surprised when I tell them we’re going back.

The fact is that there are a lot of you out there that don’t question my sanity or judgment. You all get it and there are lots of you. My personal belief is that the negative reaction is jealousy. A lot of people go to a place like Walt Disney World at the busiest, worst time and they come back a bit soured on the experience. They don’t look past the lines, crowds and heat and see the magic underneath. Either they don't get it or they've done it wrong. The fact that I get that silly happy look on my face when I say, “Yes, I’m going there again,” probably makes them feel a little sad because I’m going to be happier than they are…real soon.

So, use my Top 5 answers, or make up your own. Either way, answer the question proudly, it’ll make you feel real good about yourself and your sanity.

As I’m approaching 1 month away from trip day, I don’t have to tell most of you out there what I’m feeling right now or what I’m going to be feeling in about 34 days. You can probably sense that silly little smile on my face from wherever you are, can’t you? And that's really answer enough to...that question.

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!