Trip Planning

[DSPTurtle]

Hello All,
I have a quick question for experienced ABD'ers. My DW called ABD to ask if we were allowed to veer off the tour (Italy Signature) at all in case our DS7 and DS9 get tired or want to see something a little different or even go back to the hotel via a cab if you get a little too tired. She was told that you "must" stay with the tour.
We are used to kinda doing our own thing as we are spoiled with the DVC mentality in Orlando.
Can anyone who has been on a Disney Adventure please comment and alleviate our fears of being chained to our tour guide every second of the day.
Thanks in advance!!!

 

[Bobo912]

Hello All,
I have a quick question for experienced ABD'ers. My DW called ABD to ask if we were allowed to veer off the tour (Italy Signature) at all in case our DS7 and DS9 get tired or want to see something a little different or even go back to the hotel via a cab if you get a little too tired. She was told that you "must" stay with the tour.
We are used to kinda doing our own thing as we are spoiled with the DVC mentality in Orlando.
Can anyone who has been on a Disney Adventure please comment and alleviate our fears of being chained to our tour guide every second of the day.
Thanks in advance!!!

If you choose not to participate in the planned activities, you are certainly not required to. I've been on ABDs where some people decided to stay at the hotel and enjoy the amenities there, while the rest of us were out with the guides. And on our trip last summer to Alaska, there were some folks who booked the tundra tour on their own, while the rest of us were tracking wolves in Denali, which was the planned ABD activity. As long as you are at the bus (or train, or whatver) when the group is moving on to the next location, you are okay. There is also some free time built into each itinerary where you can select your own activities, so you're not with the group every minute, even if you paticipate in all of ABD's planned activities.

 

[WeLoveABD]

Hopefully you'll find that your 7 and 9 yr old will want to hang with the other kids (normally at the back of the bus!), and they won't want to leave the group parts of the tour. We've been on 4 ABD and have seen families deviate from the planned portion of the tour, but overall we found there is sufficient down time for the kids, and for our own sightseeing pleasure. Now, I have not seen it where a family gets on the bus for the day's events and then bails out--I guess you could do that, but i'd be a nervous guide seeing that happen. Bottom line, though: the guides will bend over backwards to accommodate your needs, and I would bet that if the need included leaving the tour and taking a taxi back to the hotel, that they would help you call a taxi and write the hotel name etc on a card in Italian for you. Relax and enjoy the ride--it'll be a great adventure for your entire family!

 

[DSPTurtle]

Thanks for the responses. We usually just do all of our own planning and arrangements. However, after being DVC members for a few years now we thought it might be easier to just go with a package (Disney is pretty good at ensuring a wonderful time is had by all in everything they do). We are just a little leery of not being able to "relax" for nine days in a row!!!

 

[Bobo912]

My DS had just turned 8 on our first ABD and he celebrated his 9th birthday on our ABD last summer. He was happy as a clam the entire time. Never complained of being tired or bored. When you read over the itinerary, some of the activities sound like they might not be all that interesting to a kid, but they turn out to be more fun than you would think. Between the guides and the other kids, it was always fun for him...and for me. Hope you have a wonderful trip!

 

[glassslipper2004]

It's very strange that they told you that you "must" stay on the tour - definitely not. You'll probably want to, as the other posters have said, and your kids will likely be just fine, but in the event that you want additional down time or time away, you can certainly have it. On one of our days in Rome, my daughter felt sick a little after lunch, so she and my husband left the walking tour a little early, picked up some Italian pepto, and rested at the hotel for a few hours. (Luckily she wasn't very sick at all, but the guides were as nice as could be about helping us figure out what to do).

 

[glassslipper2004]

I also meant to add that there is a little bit of down time here and there. Especially if your tour still includes the days in Tuscany - we had an entire afternoon to lounge around the pool, and dinner that night was very relaxed (individual dinners at the resort's restaurant). It was wonderful, and a well placed break about 2/3 of the way through the trip.

 

[Disney Dree]

Everyone has covered this topic beautifully. Can I add one more thought - Disney trips are geared toward children and families. My girls were never bored or requesting to do anything different.

There are no constraints placed upon forced participation. We noticed a family (on our Paris/London trip) that seemed to opt out often, and we really feel like they missed so much by following their own agenda. Their kids didn't blend in as well because they didn't bond through the experiences, and we wondered why they would pay the large price tag if they weren't interested in the itinerary.

Take the (almost) daily 'free time' opportunities and enjoy them in any way you like!!

 

[sayhello]

I'm going to add in here my recent experience with the ABD/DCL Med trip, that DCL was very adamant that if I wanted to deviate from the set itinerary (I'm thinking of going to Pompeii separately) that it was NOT included, that there would be no refund for the excursion I skipped, etc. I wonder if the rep you spoke to misunderstood what you were asking. Hard to say. But I agree with everyone else, that as long as you are where you are supposed to be when the group moves on to another locale (and as long as the Guides know where you're going/how to contact you/how you're getting back/when to expect you, etc) that there should not be an issue.

Sayhello