Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
time at each park by providing step-by-step itineraries that route you counter to the
flow of traffic. The plans are explained in
detail starting
.
BOB
To keep your thinking fresh and to adequately cover all bases, develop
your plan in a series of family meetings no longer than 30 minutes each.
You'll discover that all members of the family will devote a lot of thought to
the plan both in and between meetings. Don't try to anticipate every con-
ceivable contingency, or you'll end up with something as detailed and un-
workable as the tax code.
Generally it's better to just sketch in the broad strokes on the master plan. The
detail of what to do when you actually arrive at the park can be decided the night be-
fore you go or with the help of one of our touring plans once you get there. Above
all, be flexible. One important caveat, however: Make sure you keep any promises or
agreements that you make when planning. They may not seem important to you, but
they will to your children, who will remember for a long, long time that you let them
down.
The more that you can agree to and nail down in advance, the less potential you'll
have for disagreement and confrontation once you arrive. Because children are more
comfortable with the tangible than the conceptual, and also because they sometimes
have short memories, we recommend typing up all of your decisions and agreements
and providing a copy to each child. Create a fun document, not a legalistic one. You'll
find that your children will review it in anticipation of all the things they will see and
do, will consult it often, and will even read it to their younger siblings.
By now you're probably wondering what one of these documents looks like, so
here's a sample. Incidentally, this itinerary reflects the preferences of its creators, the
