Tips for a Give Kids the World Trip

Recently, I shared about our trip to the Give Kids the World Village during the Make a Wish trip for our son. We had an awesome time, and we met several wonderful families. The first afternoon that we had arrived at the village, we received a plethora of information about everything that there was to do at the village. We also made new friends (who were also wish recipients) who gave us insight on their week and what they recommended. If you’ve found this post because you are embarking on a wish trip to Give Kids a World Village, I’m sharing a few tips today that will hopefully help you make the most of your trip!

 

 

1. Don’t try to do it all. There are so many options of things to do! Let the age and medical condition of the child determine what activities you do each day. Since our boys were on the younger side (3), by day three they were exhausted. We spent extra time relaxing at the village.
2. Check out the additional ticket offerings. When we checked in to the village, we were automatically given tickets to Disney, Sea World, and Universal Studios. However, we were also given a list of other attractions in the area that we could visit simply by stopping in at the front desk and asking! The additional options are pretty neat (Legoland, a petting zoo, etc.). If one of these options works better for your family, be sure to check it out!
3. There is a snack shack at the pool. It took me four days to realize this.
4. When we arrived, there were a few complimentary snacks and beverages in our refrigerator. These are not replenished throughout the week. There are on site snack options, such as the ice cream shop and the pool snack area, but if you want specific snacks in your villa, you’ll need to bring these in yourself.
5. Buy your Disney gear at the local Walmart. There is a Walmart at the stoplight where you turn to go to the village. They have an entire Disney section with shirts, toys, sunglasses, postcards, etc. These items are lots cheaper than buying them at Disney!
6. A gift fairy arrives each day during your stay at the village. Depending on how many kids that you have, you may need an extra bag to carry these items home. We drove to the village, making extra luggage not a problem for us, but if you are flying in keep this in mind.
7. After leaving the village, I immediately came home and accessed the photos that they took of our family at the village. One meaningful photo (the one that they take initially of our family’s arrival) was missing from the photo set. I emailed my wish coordinator who put me in touch with the appropriate person who was able to locate my missing photo(s). The point being- don’t hesitate to contact the awesome folks at Give Kids the World after your stay if you need any information regarding your stay. The workers and volunteers are awesome and help however that they can.
8. The photo packages that accompany the park tickets are amazing! Both the Disney and the Universal ticket packages come with their version of some sort of Memory Maker program. We fully utilized these and came back with hundreds of photos. We stopped at every photographer that we could! It was freeing to not have to carry my camera into the parks, allowing me to totally be in the moment (and in the photos!) with my family.

 

We were so blessed to enjoy this trip with our family! See our initial post trip for all the photos and details regarding our trip, and see our Disney Character Autograph Keepsake.