1/23/23

Resort Only Vacation?! Who Does That?!

Jan 23, 2023

A resort-only stay sounds foreign and strange to a majority of Disney parks fans. Even those in our little weirdo community, you don’t hear an abundance of trip reports about non-park Disney vacations. Sure, there are the DVC properties that are not in the bubble, and while those are definitively Disney, they are also definitively centered around other major draws: primarily the beach. Hilton Head Island Resort, Vero Beach Resort, and Aulani certainly have a Disney flair, but they still aren’t in the bubble. However, would you be able to take a vacation IN the bubble and not visit any parks?

Even as recent as 2 years ago, I would have said no way. The parks are the draw. They are the weenie.

Right?

I love the parks. EPCOT makes me happy. Magic Kingdom fills me with wonder. Animal Kingdom is gorgeous and unpredictable. Hollywood Studios exists. The parks with their attention to detail, creative sightlines, and immersive atmospheres are what drew me into the magic. How could I possibly stay at any of the resorts that are that close to the theme parks and resist the siren call?

Many people simply cannot. For the majority of the WDW fan base, Disney magic is defined and encapsulated by attractions. It’s why they come. It’s what brings them back. And I get it, I really do. Disney World may not have the fastest rollercoasters, or the tallest drops, but they do immersive attraction well. Disney can pluck you out of your regular life and completely transplant you to a different country, continent, or even a different planet.

The parks are fantastic. However, I have entered into a different phase of my Disney World fandom. The attractions now play second fiddle to the overall WDW atmosphere. Naturally, that atmosphere is alive and strong in the parks, but it is just as strong elsewhere in the bubble. I get excited entering the burning town in Pirates of the Caribbean, but I get just as excited sipping an Alla Prima Manhattan from Dahlia Lounge at Gran Destino Tower outside on the observation deck. It makes me joyful to “thank the Phoenicians” on Spaceship Earth, but I take just as much joy in sitting on the beach at Yacht Club resort and staring across Crescent Lake at the Boardwalk.

My perfect Disney Day USED to be: Rope-Drop a theme park, QS lunch (and make it quick), run from attraction to attraction, eat dinner somewhere close by, go hard after dinner until the CMs are literally chasing you with a broom to get you out of the park. My perfect Disney Day now looks completely different. Being with my family or meeting up with friends in the morning. A leisurely breakfast at BOMA. Maybe some park time, but maybe not. Some Monorail resort touring with some Thai Coconut Meatballs from Capt. Cooks. A trip upstairs to Tambu Lounge or maybe a boat ride over to Wilderness Lodge for a cocktail at Geyer Point. A visit to the Springs that evening for some dinner and maybe some live music. I still love the parks, but they no longer dictate my enjoyment of the Walt Disney World property. It is such a weight off of my chest to not obsess over wait times and peak crowds. I am content to simply soak in the Disney climate.

The relationships and friendships I have established in this community certainly have a good deal to do with these feelings as well. Some of my favorite memories from the past 2 years of WDW trips take place outside of the parks. Whether it be with my wife in the Aerophile balloon 450 ft above Disney Springs, or with my crazy Disney crew at Yeeha Bob at Port Orleans Riverside, the memories from non-park days make my heart smile. Karaoke at Kimono’s. Trying weird Japanese treats at Jock Lindsey’s, Enjoying a bison burger at Geyser Point with my family. Sangria University with my Disney Podcast geeks. All of these times are indelibly burned into core memories.

While the majority of our fandom may see the resorts and Disney Springs as fillers between park days, I am now confident that I could do a week or more just enjoying being on property. Would it look different? You bet. Would it be bizarre and a bit foreign? Probably. Would it be a sub-standard Disney vacation? I honestly don’t believe it would, even if it was a solo trip. But with the right people? It would be legendary.