As I’ve said before that being under 21 is totally awkward. You’re kind of an adult but your parents are still in charge but you (probably) don’t really live with them anymore but they still pay for everything. As an 18-year-old, my parents and I are working through this strange situation, with flying colors I might add. So when a few friends and I decided that we wanted to go to Disney World over winter break this year, they didn’t bat an eye. Actually, it didn’t occur to me to ask permission. My one friend also quickly committed to the trip without much parental conversation. The two others, however, had to confer with and convince their parents to allow them to go. It all worked out, and we will be arriving the day I turn 19. This got me thinking: when is it ok to visit Disney World by yourself? And this is a totally different question if you live in the Orlando area; we’re talking fly-away-for-a-week-trip, not I’ll-be-back-for-dinner trip. Obviously 18 is going to be the cut-off; no hotel in the Orlando area is going to let anybody younger than that check-in. However, I decided upon some other criteria and considerations:
1) Have you traveled before?
I myself am a pretty experienced traveler. I’ve been on planes about twice a year since grade school and am pretty familiar with both the Philadelphia and Orlando airports. I know Disney World like the back of my hand. I could probably sleepwalk my way to Disney since I was twelve. Unfortunately, not everyone has that privilege. So if you’re 18 and this is the first time you’ve been to an airport, you’re probably not ready to head out on your own without an experienced traveler. Disney is way too expensive of a trip to blow because you missed your flight. If you insist on going, try to see as much of the airport you can before actually are ready to leave. Ask for help if you need it (the employees are not particularly friendly at PHL, but it’s worth a shot). Do as much research as you can on your airport and MCO before heading out. If you have a friend who is an experienced traveler, that’s great too. This leads me to my next point....
2) Who are you going with?
If you’re heading out to Disney to stay at the Cockroach Motel with your fellow members of the Stoners for Legalizing Pot Society, your parents probably aren’t going to be in love with the idea. If, however, you’re going with the Chastity Club from the church that your family has been attending for years, your parents will probably warm up to the idea. Picking responsible friends is a good idea for you too. Traveling puts you out of your element and you don’t want to be stuck with shady people if you’re in a tough situation miles from home. And you especially don’t want to be traveling with the person who smuggled heroin on the plane and now you need to call your parents to bail you out of federal prison. Disney World is really only fun with people who are kind of nerds anyway, so travel with people you know you, and your parents, can trust.
3) Do you have the money?
You’re going to have a hard time selling the idea that you’re responsible enough to travel alone if you need an advance on your allowance to pay for your park ticket. If you’re not at least partially financially independent, you’re probably not ready. At the very least, you need a credit card or a debit card backed by a major credit card company to check into a hotel. If you can’t handle you’re own checking account, can you handle a $500+ trip?
4) Are you a responsible person?
If you’re the kind of kid who drives to the store to get milk and comes back with gummy bears and a 6-pack of Monster instead, you’re probably not going to be able to handle a long-distance trip. There is a lot of planning involved: you need park tickets, plane tickets, passports, reservation numbers, all kinds of documentations. While your parents may have went out and got the milk for you, no one at MCO is going to care that you left your birth certificate in the hotel room; your sorry ass is not getting on the plane. And no one will be there to come pick you up at Biergarten because you forget to catch the last bus. If you don’t have your shit together, there’s no back-up plan.
All of these things aside, I truly believe that Disney is the best place to go if you’re traveling alone for the first time. It’s safer than a church on Sunday, and the cast members are always willing to help you. As a rule, I’d say that any person that can handle going to college away from home can probably handle going to Disney by themselves.
When was your first trip without a “grown-up”? If you’re the parent of a college-aged (child? person? human?), would you let them go to Disney World alone?
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