Can you believe it? We have kept the trip a surprise from the kids! They have NO IDEA they are going to Disney World on Saturday for a week! They think that I am flying to a conference and they have to take me to the airport. We plan to surprise them at the airport. If you have any creative ways on how we should do it, let me know!
Here’s a video where we surprised the kids with the Disney trip in 2011:
And when we surprised them with their first trip in 2009. It was a lot easier to surprise them that time because they had no idea that we were driving to Walt Disney World. Now they wouldn’t fall for it!
Have a great trip:) Love the updates and will look forward to them.
We tried to surprise our kids that we were going to go to Disney. We were going with 2 other families and when we all stopped at a gas station together they knew something was up!
We surprised our kids last year. We were going to the airport to have a suitcase “fixed”. My husband dropped me and the luggage off and they went to park. I went up to the check in counters and asked the employee to play along! I made each kid a bag. I bought the small re-useable grocery type bags at Toys R Us. I had a t-shirt made for each child also! I had one of the talent people on DIsboards make me a letter from Mickey and Minnie and also a “plane ticket” The ticket looked real and was personalized with their name. All of this was in the bag. They each had a small book bag packed with stuff to do on the plane and Mickey ears.. I gave all this to the ticket agent and he was great! He told them Mickey had left them a small present and wanted them to come visit! They were stunned!
I have no clue how to surprise your kids for Disney World, but I know how I’m going to surprise our kids we are going to Disneyland once we save enough for annual passes.
On the freeway to Disney is a carpool lane exit specifically for the Disney Resort. I plan to tell the kids we are going to a organic pick your own vegetables farm that is 15 miles past Disney. I’ll “accidentally” take the Disney exit, which my kids are very familiar with, and say, “Oh, heck, I guess we’ll just have to go to Disneyland instead!”
However you surprise your kids I’m sure they will love it, especially now that they are older.
On the way to the airport, moan and groan about how you don’t want to go to the conference, you just wanna have fun, and you want to be with the family. Once you park the car, turn to your husband and suggest ya’ll leave for Disney instead ’cause you can’t bear to be without them! Once he agrees, you both start signing Hi Ho Hi Ho, it’s off to Disney we’ll go!, get out of the car, and start pulling out everyone’s luggage. They may think you are nuts but what a surprise!
Kristin I have a question I hope you have the time to answer, you are always helpful. what do you say at school when you take the kids on vacations for two weeks? do talk to the teachers and let them know and do they let you in your school been absent for 2 weeks? I know some people do it but I wonder how because in my school we can not is against the law according to the handbook we have to sign I wish I can take vacation whenever I please but we can not sometimes we took a mini vacation and they miss one day and we have to lie at school i don’t feel comfortable doing it.whats your advice. please don’t ignore my comment as is helpful subject. just want to know!
Maybe I can help. First of all, in PA at least, there are different types of situations that are allowed for different reasons… meaning, (X) amount of days are allowed to be missed for vacation, (X) amount of days are allowed to be missed for illness w dr. note. (X) amount of days or allowed to be missed for educational reasons. I always compose a page long (typed) note of what an educational experience this trip to Disney will be. One of the Magical things about Walt Disney is that he incorporated learning into a huge percentage of the attractions. Pull up a map of all four parks and go through the list of attractions… 90% is educational! Describe each one, park by park, what they will learn, where they will learn it & how they will learn it. From the Hall of Presidents to the World Showcase @ Epcot, education is just oozing in Disney World. What always happens in my kids case, they use up all of the allotted vacation days, then if need be, borrow from the educational days. If you make your case with a lengthy explanation, you should have no problems!!! Have a great time!
& by the way, we have 5 kids in 2 separate school districts… never one problem & we always go during school time… I am not fighting the summer crowds! We never even have to bother w fast pass… so your doing this right. & kids keep occupied with the school make up work in the airport & on the plane! :)
We don’t lie nor do we have anything in the handbook that we have to sign. My daughter almost died in 2010 from appendicitis. Memories from vacations are extremely important to me and I let them know that.
What fun! Have a great time! We’re surprising our 5-year old this March with her first trip to Disney World. We’ve been telling her we’re going on a secret vacation because she loves to “get ready” for trips and traveling and watching her do that is half the fun. I’m sure she’ll figure it out when we’re picked up by the Magic Express in Orlando. Good luck and have a blast!
Kristin,
You are the kind of momma that I aspire to be.
Have a great time with your wonderful family!
Ellen
I like kimberly’s idea better COMPLAINING about work i think is not a positive thing to teach them just saying…
I was thinking the same.
We are going in June 2013, but we want to tell our girls early. They are 9 and 7. Any ideas on how we should tell them? We want to tell them around April.
I like Bree’s idea much better than anything I came up with!
Kristin,
Can’t believe you managed to keep this secret again! I get so excited when I’m going to Disney that I just have to tell my kids. Enjoy the surprise moment with them. Once they get a little older with more internet access they’ll just be able to follow your website and know when you’re planning a trip. :)
We surprised my kids 9 and 6 last year in March with their first trip!! It was so great! We picked them up from school ( the school knew as I had already got their assignments earlier in the week and filled out all vacation forms) and we told them we were going out shopping and to dinner. It was on a Friday, which in our house is “fend for your self Fridays” for dinner we have leftovers or they normally have cereal. So they were both upset that we were going out to dinner!! Lol when We got in the parking lot, my husband was hiding video taping them to get their expression. I told them to put their book bags in the trunk and ….Surprise!! I had decorated the trunk with a poster that said “Surprise We’re going to Disney” I had made simple iron on shirts with “my first trip to disney” and I had purchased the 2012 Mickey and Minnie doll online from disney months earlier during a sale. I also had Mickey and Minnie hats with ears I got from walmart. I had everything laid out in the trunk with balloons too!! My kids were so excited there was crying, screams, and laughter! Even about 30 minutes down the road to the airport my daughter was crying again and she said she just can’t believe we’re going! I wanted to wait until we actually got to the airport but my husband couldn’t wait anymore. We had been hiding it for 4 months! Kristin — you can tell the kids to grab your umbrella out of the trunk and do something similar!! It was worth the hiding and sneaking :o)
Bree’s idea is cute!! I am trying to decide myself if I want to surprise the kids or just tell them! LOL
I surprised my girls a few years ago by giving them an activities book with lots of stuff to do on the plane as well as maps and checklists for the parks, We went to the airport to “Pick up grandma and grandpa” . my one daughter was upset that they weren’t coming, wish I had that on video.
What if you’re in the car and start complaining that you don’t want to go to the conference. Than have your husband ask, “do you want to stay home?” And you can say something like, “You know what? Why don’t we just go to Disney World?” And have him reply with “hey that sounds like a great idea! What do ya’ll think?”
(Hopefully they say yes.)
SO FUN! We surprised our kids on Christmas a few years ago for their first Disney trip together (we took our daughter when she was younger) All they kept opening for gifts were either Disney themed gifts or DVD’s (we drove) and the last gift was a note that read, Pack your bags, your on your way, Madi and EJ are going to Disney TODAY!
It is 9 degrees in Michigan right now. Oh how I wish we were going to Disney this week too. I like to buy little Disney surprises and stick them in bright red and blue gift bags for my DD. A friend of mine gave her 2 girls Mickey Mouse necklaces when they got on the airplane for their surprise trip. I bet you will come up with something great – let us know, and have fun!
I would pack their suitcases in the van without them knowing and when you arrive at the airport, take them out and say “Let’s go to Disney, kids!”
Tape the reveal for us!! Cant wait to see!! I know you will come up with something great!!!!!!
We took an obscure photo of Epcot and the sky and had it made into a small puzzle. In one corner we wrote the date we were going. We had them open it for Christmas and put it together. We can’t wait for our next trip, enjoy yours!
Have a great time. Hope you plan to give us updates like you have in the past. It makes me feel like I am with you!
An idea would be to “pretend to leave your luggage in the van, only take a carry on bag out. (inside the bag hide a sign that says we are going to disney) then when you husband circles back around to deliver the suitcase they can see you holding the sign up for them. :) have fun
GREAT idea Kimberly!! Gotta remember that! :)
Have you thought about making “tickets” with clues on them?
I say that when you get to the airport ask one of them if they can get something out of your purse & inside have a Disney related object right there and tell them “Oh good, if I forgot *that* we wouldn’t be able to go to Disney World!”
Can I suggest maybe doing a few letters or words in a box for them to put together into a sentence…like this maybe…individual letters and pictures too!
W E R G O I N G 2 (Disney) maybe a Mickey or a castle pic and then a picture of a world! Wrap it up in a box add some extra confetti or candys for fun :o)
Pic not attached..lol!
I surprised my kids twice. I don’t think they would fall for it again. The second I think they were on to me. Now every time we sit down for a family meeting they think we are leaving for Disney! Good luck keeping the secret – hope you have an amazing time! I am trying to get hubby to take us back over Easter Break.