For many people, myself included, the anticipation of an upcoming trip to Walt Disney World can be almost as enjoyable as the trip itself.

Since you will often start planning a trip to Disney World nearly a year (even longer in advance for some) ahead of time, you have many opportunities to look ahead and daydream about the upcoming trip.

For me the anticipation begins when the resort reservations are confirmed. This means that I have committed to dates and I can officially think about the upcoming trip in earnest.

Early on in the process, I think about the restaurants: Which old favorites do I want to try again? and which new restaurants do I want to try on this trip? In my normal every day life, I rarely know what I will be eating the next day, yet for Disney I happily pick out where I am going to eat six months in advance and even check out the menu to think about what I might eat.

Crazy, perhaps, but this extended planning process is a way of lengthening the trip. It’s not just a week or a long weekend of Disney World, it’s a six month or more experience that is capped off by the actual on-site visit.

After the restaurants my thoughts turn to the parks:

• How many days do I want to spend at each park?
• Is there a new attraction that I need to check out this trip?
• Are there any special events going on that I need to check out?
• What new tips or tricks have I learned that I need to try during this upcoming trip?

These are all questions that I ponder as I formulate the plans for the upcoming visit. The planning process is not work, but rather a fun opportunity to relive past Disney World experiences and look forward to new ones.

It is a wonderful feeling to be able to brighten your day by saying: “I’m going to Disney World!”

As I get closer, the plans get more detailed and more real. The anticipation grows. My need to get more information increases, as I frequent multiple Disney related sites to gather any tidbit of news about the parks, attractions, and resorts. I enjoy learning new things and hearing about people’s positive experiences. I certainly don’t want to come back after the trip to discover that a special event was occurring while I was there and I missed it.

Once the trip finally arrives, the months of anticipation become reality. The plans are followed for the most part. I never want to plan to the point that we can’t be flexible. A major part of what appeals to me about Disney World is the ability to escape and relax. I don’t let the schedule infringe upon that. You always need the ability to improvise when something catches your interest and you want to check it out.

After the trip, it becomes time to start thinking about the next trip and start the whole process over again. Although hundreds of miles may separate me from WDW, my thoughts are never far away.

Disclosure: As I write this blog, I only have 3 more days to wait until my next visit to Disney World. Frankly the wait is killing me and I'm having a hard time focusing on my everyday life. I really need to be at Epcot now...it's going to be a long three days.