Check-In Traditions...

[DreamFinder2]

What do you do first after you've checked in? It seems like that's the most euphoric time of the trip...you've just gotten there & everything's soooooo exciting!!!

So, what do you - or you and your family - do first?

I should add that my DW and I generally unpack and go find our refillable mugs!

[princessjojo]

First thing we usually do is eat. Since we tend to leave early in the morning and it cost so much for the 4 of us to eat in the Airport, we usually grab a quick bite at the resort before we head out to the parks. This coming year, I'm not sure though. Our flight will arrive at MCO at 8:30 roughly and we should get to our resort around 9:30 or so, so it'll still be early (yeah). We may just get started early at the parks and get lunch when we get there.

Anyway, our usual thing is to eat.

[dumbo_buddy]

first DH and i bounce on the bed in giddy excitement and then head for MGM and the great movie ride. it's our first attraction of the trip...no exceptions!

[Marker]

The first thing I do after I check in.... hmmmm.

I know, I walk away from the counter. Followed closely by looking around to locate all the people in my party. After that, we begin the process of enjoying another visit to WDW.


I can't say there is anything that I "always" do next. My trips are not that regimented or predictable to do the same thing every time. Let's see, we've :

• Gone to our room to drop off our bags
• Gone to our room to sleep when we've gotten in late
• Gone to the food court to eat
• Gone to check in our bags if our room wasn't ready.
• Gone to the bus stop to head to the park
• Gone into the gift shop and wandered around
• Headed to Downtown Disney to make it to House of Blues in time for a Ted Nugent concert.

[disneydeb]

Unpack and if it is early enough,go to Epcot. If not head to DTD for a bit of shopping and a bite to eat. ON the way back through - if the snack bar is still open - get a resort mug. Get agood noght's rest and prepare for AK, our usual first day park.

[PirateLover]

If our room is ready, we'll go check it out and unpack some stuff. If not we'll eat if we're hungry. We always head out to a park though after we've gotten settled.

[sassafras]

Go check out our rooms and then lunch, if it's early. Otherwise head to a park. The first eveing "Must DO" is eat at Cape May or DH says we're not "Official". Then head to the MK for it to be "official" for me!

[Kairi_7378]

The first thing that we do when we check in is find somewhere to change our clothes! Shorts are a must for us in FL (unless we are going out to dinner.) That being said, we either go to the room if it is ready or we change in the resort main bathroom and check in our carry ons. Then comes the first application of sunscreen. We then go to whatever park we've decided to start with that trip and get an early lunch.

[DreamFinder2]

Interesting posts so far...it surprises me how many of you go to a park right after arriving. I thought everybody just sat around and watched Stacey on resort TV the first afternoon .

[KayDee]

We also like to go to DTD for a bite to eat and a little shopping.

[Darbylew]

It depends on what time we get in. We always
drive so sometimes on our way in we stop at
DTD for supper at Wolfgang Puck's Express. We
do a little shopping and then head for our resort
to check in, unpack, visit the food court and
gift shop. Sometimes we get in late at night
and we just check in, unpack and go to bed so
we will be ready for the parks.
FIRST TRIP 1972
LAST TRIP NOV. 2007
NEXT TRIP MAR. 31 FOR A WEEK
AND MANY TRIPS IN BETWEEN

[CAS]

There's only one thing we do, no exceptions. We just put our bags down in the room and head to the food court for chicken strips and sodas with our mugs. It doesn't matter what time of day it is, chicken strips with BBQ sauce will be the first meal.

[Dakota Rose]

Typically, our flight hasn't landed until 5 or 6pm. So we usually go to our room, unpack a little, shower/change clothes then head to 'Ohana for a late dinner. We even followed suit when I went with my 2 younger sisters in 1997. Except, when I got out of the shower, two things happened. First, the girls had unpacked and it looked as though their suitcases had literally exploded clothes and shoes all over the room. Second, I looked at the clock and it said 9pm, our ADR time. I frantically called 'Ohana and said we were still coming. The guy chuckled and said, "that's okay it's only 8pm." Whew.

[Fangorn]

Since we fly in from the Pacific Northwest, we always arrive in MCO between 4 and 5 pm. Our tradition (it used to be a "routine" but somewhere along the line it became a "tradition") is to check in and then head to Epcot. We go directly to Mexico and snag a table by the water. For the next however many hours it may be until Illuminations, DW and I sit, eat, and talk about all the fun we're going to have on this trip. Somewhere in there I get the margaritas and we settle in to enjoy Illuminations. When the show is over, we take our own sweet time about leaving - stopping to listen to the music and just enjoy the evening together at our favorite place.

Steve

[BelleCiavo]

We usually check-in around 11 am, so far our room has always been ready so after check-in we get our mugs, check out the room, freshen up, jump on the monorail and arrive at MK by 12:30 or so. After a few favorites and maybe a snack to tide us over, we head over to the BC for an early dinner at The Cape May Cafe. Then it's off to EPCOT for a few attractions and Illuminations. Monorail back to the Poly exhausted, but content.

[incredimellos]

Well, first we check in, unpack, and eat a little lunch at the food court. We then proceed to float through the first half of our vacation. Letting it all soak in. Reality sets in on the second half " Oh no, we are already half way through our vacation!" On our last day, we rest... When we get home we already start planning the next visit!!

[adoptionislove]

we always check-in then head straight to MK.

But, this time we are not flying in till 10:30pm, which means midnight arrival to the hotel!

My husband and I will be the first ones up to jump on the kids bed s to wake them and get mooooovin!!!!

Michelle

[BronxTigger]

The first thing I do after checking in is to freshen up from traveling, either in the room, or if its not ready, in the lobby bathroom.

If it's an evening arrival, then I'll eat dinner and/or go to DTD. If it's even later than that, I'll just go to bed.

If it's a morning/midday arrival, then I'll head out to a park until I'm tired. Lately, my first day park of choice has been the MK, although when we stayed at YC/BC we'd go to Epcot first because we'd be too excited to wait for a bus!

[Bethis26fan]

The first thing we do is get our mugs and then go unpack and head to DTD.

[#1donaldfan]

As soon as I sign on the dotted line, I grab the kids out of the gift shop and we head to MK...once in the last 4 years we got our room early. We normally check in around 7 am, grab our hoppers and hit the park running. That one year we got the room early, we moved our bags into the room and caught a quick glimpse of Stacy and then off we went. You are right, once we see the resort sign a wave of emotion overtakes us and we, at that moment, get into the "we're finally here to have fun mode"......