If drinking or rides gets old - or you are in the mood to exercise your mind a little - Disney is a wonderful study in logistics, branding, and emotional play. Just pay attention to how they move you from one space. How they are set up to manage large crowds. Where they stick bathrooms. Sight lines are huge at Disney. In a cynical mood, how they pull money out of your pocket (rides tend to end in gift shops).
I took a friend to Disney who was complaining it was “artificial” I told him to stop thinking it was real or trying to be real and imagine it was a set. Disney does a good job creating the Polynesian Island from your childhood imagination, the African safari in fifteen minutes you wish you could spend two weeks on. But you need to be willing to either suspend disbelief as an adult or enjoy it for what it is - which for some people involves figuring it out.
My inlaws enjoyed going well into their 70s, and I know they liked just about all the rides (physically, they couldn’t handle some of them.) I have other friends who are approaching their 70s who live in Jacksonville and have a season pass (or whatever it’s called) and they go every month or so. Personally, I don’t understand it, but they love it. I’m not saying there’s anything wrong with the parks - it’s just not my idea of a fun time, so I’m one less person in front of you in line!
One thing I’m pretty sure of - no one else is paying attention to what rides you go one and whether you have a kid with you or not. In my experience, everyone there is having their own fun and as long as you’re not being obnoxious, you’ll be barely a blip on the radar of the rest of the world. So release your inner child and have fun. And if you discover it’s not for you, at least you’ve had the experience.
According to Snopes they used to do it but stopped for safety reasons. (That, of course, doesn’t prevent it from being an Urban Legend. It’s just not a complete myth.)
Figuring it out is part of the fun! You are in a totally controlled environment…and it is a masterpiece of planning.
Everything is perfectly designed…whether it’s the location of the gift shops*, the way they move masses of people efficiently without making you feel crowded, even the final surprise show of lights in the parking lot when you leave at night.
It’s a perfect fantasy world --and not just for kids. It really is something worth seeing,(even though, for me, once was enough.)
It’s fun, and no need to apologize about it…Even without a kid attached, you can ride the “It’s a Small World” and enjoy it .
*(yes, they’re gonna find your money, and you’re gonna give it to 'em).
(oh, and one more thing…don’t ride the Space Mountain unless you have nerves of frickin’ steel.It’s been 20 years, and I still remember it…)
It may just be me, but I think they’ve made it brighter since I originally went in the early-mid 80s. Which is cool when you’re at the very top, because being able to barely see the entire roller coaster is pretty neat. But the rest of the ride, not so much, because it isn’t as daunting mostly seeing where you’re going all the time.
Mostly. You still can’t see The Drop coming, and it’s sooooo worth it just to experience The Drop.
If you’re going to Disney World (not Land), take a day and head over to Universal Studio’s Islands of Adventure. The Harry Potter world is pretty frickin’ amazing. I’m not a big HP guy- I read the first book back when it came out, but my wife read most of them and she and my kids have seen all the movies- but I have to say, I was transported when we got to the HP area of that park. It’s an entire world. The ride through the Hogwart’s castle was really fantastic. My daughter went on it eight times, and I joined her on, I think, 5 of them, and even my 5th ride was still really enjoyable.
At Disney, EPCOT is really enjoyable as an adult. Soarin’ is a very cool ride; the 360 degree movies in some of the countries are quite impressive; some of the restaurants are pretty good; there’s booze; and it’s just a nice way to be somewhere that’s all about changing your perspective for a couple days. Downtown Disney has some great restaurants and nightlife, and the Disney Boardwalk is quaint.
ETA: We went in November, so were able to enjoy repeated trips on the rides without waiting in middle-of-the-summer lines. I think the longest we waited to go on any ride was maybe 10 minutes, once or twice. I’d highly recommend going in the off-season for that reason alone. You won’t feel quite as out of place from being surrounded by thousands of ankle-biters.
I was there over Christmas with the child and the grandparents. A good time was had by all. Surprisingly the big hit was the Monsters Inc comedy club show, which (near as I can figure) uses live comedians in motion capture suits. Really quite funny.
But It’s A Small World was just as traumatizing as an adult as it was when I went as a child. Possibly moreso.
A couple people have mentioned drinking, so I feel obliged to mention that there’s no drinking (alcohol) at the Magic Kingdom, except at the Be Our Guest Restaurant, which is only open for dinner. Everywhere else, though, go ahead and booze it up (be prepared to pay through the nose).
Also, for the record, I love “it’s a small world”.
If it’s Disneyworld, definitely go to the restaurant connected to the Pirates of the Caribbean ride. For some reason Google won’t tell me what this restaurant is actually called, but you’d find it easily enough. You’re in a magnificently-conceived night-time outdoor restaurant even though you’re indoors and it’s daytime, and the food is good.
Disney has a surprising number of really good restaurants aimed at grown-ups. Some on the California Adventure side even sell alcohol. They also have nightclubs and bars on the boardwalk and food and wine festivals.
I went to Disney in Cali a few years ago and it was awesome. Me and my cousin went on all the biggest rides and we sat as close to the front as possible. In all my life I’ve never been to an amusement park with someone who likes roller coasters as much as me until him. We had the greatest time.
-Ride the Haunted Mansion over and over.
-Pirates of the Caribbean, over and over.
-Go on the safari at Animal Kingdom (go there early to get the Speedpasses or whatever they are called.)
-Explore the shops and restaurants at Epcot.
-See all the movie stuff at MGM, ride the Tower of Terror and Aerosmith roller coaster there.
-Ride all around Disney World on the busses, monorails, and boats. You can ride around for free all day and see the various resorts and hotels. I didn’t find anywhere that was restricted.
-Hunt for hidden Mickeys, they are everywhere.
Ditto this. And if you are lucky, one of the outside entertainers will be Dominic Gaudious - fantastic guitarist and plays the didjeridoo as well. We spent a very enjoyable hour listening to him play and bought every one of his CDs.
I enjoyed Disney World a lot. Among the things that I don’t think have been mentioned, just appreciating the architecture, topiary, and flowers there is great. The Grand Floridian Hotel (which you can reach by monorail, even if you don’t stay there) is beautiful. Also, there used to be (and still is, as far as I know) a tour through a Disney animation department in the Hollywood section.
Also, I loved the “drive-in movie” restaurant in the Hollywood section.
We did this at Epcot a couple of months ago; we referred to it as “drinking your way around the world” (you do this in the World Showcase section of Epcot).
Started in Mexico with margaritas, things spiraled downhill very quickly after that. We only made it as far as England before the fireworks show (and the closing of the park immediately after), so Canada still owes us a drink, eh?
(rides tend to end in gift shops).
