Hi Barbara! Welcome to planDisney.
I'm delighted to hear you are counting down to a
Walt Disney World Resort vacation. I LOVE the countdown phase, where the magic is so close I can start to feel it and I begin to double-check all my plans and imagine my family enjoying it all. Even things like shopping for travel essentials and planning outfits and packing lists...it's all part of the fun!
There are lots of countdown apps out there, and I bet every one of my fellow panelists would recommend a different one. If you search your phone's app store for countdown apps, you even can find ones with Disney graphics! I use a very simple free app called "Days." I upload my own photos and my arrival date and then take a look every day (sometimes multiple times a day). I like this app for its simplicity and the fact that I can count down multiple things - last year, I was counting down to two Disney vacations and my husband's return from his deployment, and when days were hard, looking at those numbers getting lower every day really helped!
My family has another countdown tradition that I would love to share with you. When we are a month away, we sit down together with colored strips of paper and fun markers, and we make a paper countdown chain. We divide up the strips - one per day - and we each write one thing we can't wait to do at Walt Disney World. Then, as we take a link off our chain each day, one of us reads it aloud and we all guess who wrote it! It's such fun. My fellow panelists have some
wonderful traditions that they shared in our Panel Extras - I hope they give you a little spark of imagination for yours! I also hope you'll follow us on Instagram
@planDisneyPanel, where we share our ideas, tips, and discoveries to make your planning and visits magical. (You can even see a picture of my family's chain there!)
Barbara, have so much fun counting down to your Walt Disney World Resort vacation. As you watch the hours tick by, be sure to read the
Disney Parks Blog for all the latest news and planning advice. Since your visit will be filled with
holiday pixie dust, I know you will love reading about all the festive fun in the theme parks, Disney Springs, and Disney Resorts Collection hotels. Come back and see us if you think of any further questions, and have the MOST wonderful time!
Wishing you much magic,
Robyn