Last month the four of us have visited Walt Disney World in Orlando, Florida.  I thought that a list of what went well and what didn't would help both myself and others.

I hope that this information will also help others planning vacations both to WDW and to other places.

What went well

Spending five solid days at the parks

We only visited Walt Disney World itself and avoided other attractions such as Universal Studios.  For just WDW, this time proved to be exactly what we needed.  Had the weather been warmer and we were visiting Blizzard Beach, we would have wanted an additional day.  Given the size of the parks and how much there is to do, five days was just right.

The Disney Deluxe Dining Plan

Disney food prices are quite expensive.  In particular their sit down restaurants are quite pricy.  Breakfast each morning for the four of us was $60.  Lunch varied from $70 to $110 and dinner varied from $90-$180.  These prices do not include tips.  Given these prices, the dining plan enabled us to save significantly.  It also provided us a good break to get away from the chaos of the parks and experience some very interesting restaurants.

Making dining a big part of the planning

In addition to spending a great deal of time figuring out how much time we needed at the parks and in which order we wanted to see them, I also spent a great deal of time planning which restaurants to visit.  A number of the restaurants - particularly Coral Reef, Citricos, and Sci-Fi Diner, have their own characteristics and provided as much enjoyment as the rides.  For future vacations, I will also spend time looking for interesting places to eat.

Planning what rides to go on and when

The parks were a lot more crowded than we expected, but by using the strategy of visiting popular rides early in the morning combined with FastPass, we rarely had to wait.  We did have access to the tour plans mentioned in the Unofficial Guide to WDW mentioned below - but they were basically worthless.  They either did not contain the rides we were interested in, did not factor in eating meals, or assumed we could get our kids up at the crack of dawn to get to the parks before they open.

Filling our days solid with entertainment, combined with resting intervals

In the past, we often felt that we spent too much time at some locations.  At other times, things just moved at too frantic of a pace and we became tired too quickly.  During this trip, we were quite busy while we went on ride after ride, but we had about an hour each for lunch and dinner that we used to relax.  This worked out quite well - allowing us to move at a fast pace but buffer it with relaxation periods.

Taking the kids at ages 5 and 6

We saw a lot of babies and younger children at the parks and many of their parents looked quite miserable.  While WDW rides are in general tame, there are a number of them that will terrify younger children.  Our older son was still scared by many of the rides while the younger one had absolutely no problems.  There are also height restrictions on some of the rides that in a few cases did not allow our five year old to ride.  From this experience five years old is probably the bare minimum I would want my child to be to take them to the parks.  Younger than that and the trip becomes more for the parents than for the kids.

What went OK

Disney's Animal Kingdom Lodge

We stayed here for the entire trip in a room with a savannah view.  The idea was for the kids to see animals from the room when they wake up and this worked well on one occasion.  While the hotel definitely caters to kids, we were so busy at the resorts that we made little use of it.  In addition, the rooms were quite small and the bed was among the least comfortable we have ever slept on.  I had originally planned to stay at the Grand Floridian but decided against it because I was worried the kids would not find it as interesting.  We visited the Grand Floridian to eat at Citricos and for the hotel itself this assumption was accurate.  Therefore, while I was not very impressed by the Animal Kingdom Jambo House resort, it was probably a decent choice.

The Weather

Of course it is impossible to predict the weather and how was I to know that Seattle would be on average twenty degrees warmer than Orlando while we were there.  On the other hand, except for our last day it hardly rained there.  We were able to do all of the rides except for the water related ones, so it wasn't that bad.

Going in the 2nd week of January

The guide book listed below stated that the second week in January - after New Years when all of the kids have gone back to school - is the best time to go.  Instead, the parks were quite crowded and we needed to strategize how to see things in order to not spend too much time in the lines.  Luckily, we did not spend much time in the lines do to careful planning - though some rides reached wait times as long as 120 minutes.

What didn't go well

The Unofficial Guide to Walt Disney World

This book should be renamed - "The whiner's guide to WDW".  Most of this book was unhelpful and often false.  The reviews of restaurants were not accurate and the descriptions of the rides - in particular how appropriate they are for kids - was not correct.  I just really had the impression that the authors have never been anywhere outside of Disney World and have no concept of the outside world.

Disney's vaunted customer service

When my husband visited the parks fourteen years ago, he marveled at how happy everyone at the resorts was and the degree to which people (called "cast members") would go through to make sure you had the best trip possible.  This is no longer the case and we even found the service to be rude on occasion.  Call me high maintenance but, in general I would give their customer service an "OK" rating.

The day after Christmas,  I receive the following call

Buyer: Hello, could you please show me your listing at 123 Main St?

Me: I can arrange to have an agent show you this property, but are you currently working with an agent?

Buyer: I do not want to use an agent.  I want you to write the contract for me.  I will tell you the terms.  Agents aren't worth the commissions they receive.

Me: I'm sorry, but I do not do dual agency.  You will need to find an agent to write the offer up.

Buyer: I will dictate the terms.  I just need you to write it up.  The seller does not need to know that you wrote it.

Me: That is fraud and I cannot do that.  If you're worried about the commission, why don't you find a discount agent to write it up.

Buyer: I'll go to Redfin!

Me: That is fine.  I do not care who writes up the offer.  I just told you I cannot do it myself.  Redfin, by the way, charges one and a half percent and has a minimum amount they need to make.

Buyer: I know that... You just don't want to leave nice cozy Bellevue.

Me: No.  I cannot write contracts for buyers for my own properties.  It is in your own best interest to find someone to represent you.

Buyer: It's not worth it to pay any commission for just filling in the blanks on a piece of paper for what I tell you!

At this point I proceeded to lecture him on all the work it takes to actually close a property these days.  Unfortunately it was wasted breath as he did not hear a word I said.  I honestly do not care who writes up the contract for him.  I do not do dual agency and even if I wanted to this particular seller forbids me from doing so. 

From his perspective, this is one example where you can argue that ignorance is bliss.

Why is it the holidays seem to bring out the worst in people?  On Christmas Eve, I receive a call from a buyer interested in a property located next to a property I just sold.  This property is of course listed by another agent.

First the buyer asks me a number of questions about the property.  While I had been in it to do comps I obviously knew little else about it.  She then stated that she is looking for a home for her parents and that I must show it to her that night.

Do they have an agent?, I asked.

She replied that she didn't know, but that she just wanted someone to open the door for her.  I replied that any agent would want to get paid for showing a listing and that we are not paid unless the listing closes.  I suggested that she use the agent they are working with to open the door.

She then got rather huffy and insisted I show her the house the next day (Christmas Day).  While we do not celebrate Christmas, we do get together with family that day and I did not feel like driving across town that day to open a door so another agent can get paid.

When I refused, she got quite upset, told me off, and then stated she would just call the listing agent herself.

How's that for holiday cheer?

As most of you know, I deal with several bank owned properties at the same time.  These properties are typically in high demand and therefore I receive quite a few calls a day on them.  I can deal with serious questions, but the following conversation (which on some days occurs every few minutes) really can be frustrating.

Caller: Hello, I am calling about your listing on 33rd Street.

Me: What can I do for you?

Caller: What's the story behind this property?

Me: Well, what do you need to know?

Caller: Is it vacant? (note that vacancy status is on MLS)

Me: Yes, it is.

Caller: Is this a short sale?

Me: No, it is bank owned. (this is also on MLS . I also explicitly say it is ‘not a short sale' in the agent remarks.)

Caller: Do you have any offers? (If I have multiple offers, this is also on MLS)

Me: Yes, we have multiple offers.

Caller: Where do we need to be to get it?

Me: I cannot disclose this.

Two minutes later, I receive another call and it starts all over again, and again, and again.

I have tried changing my voice mail to state that all MLS information is current and intentionally do not answer my phone.  I then receive a message stating "this is so and so.  Please call me.'"  When I return the call, the above conversation happens all over again.

Certainly I have noticed that most agents lack attention to details.  If you want the listing agent to be on your good side, calling her with questions she has already answered on MLS is not a good way to start.

Keep in mind that while I am answering these calls I am dealing with distressed homeowners, trying to close transactions, putting out hourly fires, and trying to prevent myself from going insane.

So the next time you call on a listing, please read the information on MLS first as it is current and up to date.