Traveling to parks alone with young children?

[andrew&ryansmommy]

I am wondering if anyone travels by themselves to the parks with young children. My husband and I are going with our 2 young boys, 1 and 3, and also my mom. She is going to the Keys to the Kingdom tour, and my husband keeps saying he'd really like to do it too! I'd love to be able to surprise him and say "You go too!" I am just wondering if anyone has insight as to whether I would be crazy to do the day, or 4-5 hours by myself? I also cant remember if all the rides in MK would allow me to bring both boys on (I know I cant on Dumbo, cant remember what else). Looking for advice, opinions, suggestions...thanks! Oh, and right now, both kids are very laid back, my older son is extremely well behaved, listens wonderfully..dont have much to say about the baby right now, since our trip is 6 months away!

[Pirate Granny]

Unless you are a bigger woman...the three of you should fit just fine on every ride...even Dumbo. Would you take them back to the resort...the bus may be the tricky thing with a stroller and trying to get both children and stroller onto the bus, along with diaper bag...or you could find a quiet spot on Huckleberry Finn's Island and let them take a nap there...under the pavillion next to the water...nice rocking chairs there also.
:pirate:

[BrerGnat]

I've been taking my two boys to Disneyland by myself, mostly, since they were babies. They are 20 months apart, and now 4 & 6. It's usually a piece of cake. Mine are both special needs kids too, on the Autism spectrum, so they sometimes do NOT listen, are highly distractible, have meltdowns, etc. If I can do it, so can you! I've navigated the parking lot, tram ride and long walks which is comparable to Disney buses in terms of loading/unloading a stroller. It's easy once you get the hang of it. 4-5 hours alone in WDW should be no harder than an outing to a local mall or shopping center. Your kids sound fairly easy to deal with. Having one (or both) in a stroller makes it even easier! As long as the three year old will walk short distances when you need, it should go smoothly.

As long as you are confident in your ability to navigate WDW, I wouldn't think twice about it. You can ride most everything seated three across. Only exception would be rides with a minimum height or age requirement. This is what I love most about Disney parks. I can take my boys and we can all ride together. I can't do that at Legoland, for example, because most of the rides are a maximum of two people sitting together.

[megustamex]

I just spent a week alone in WDW with my kids ages 3 and 5 while my husband was at a conference. We just took it really slow and did stuff the kids liked. We only went on a few slow-paced rides each day, especially the ones where we could sit for a long time, and didn't wait in any long lines. I recommend Small World, Country Bears, People Mover, and we even did Carousel of Progress this time (20 minutes of rest for me!) which my 5 year old ended up just loving to my surprise. We also made sure to sit down and have an ice cream break once a day! At one point I remember just sitting on the floor in the place on Main Street where they show cartoons nonstop and chilling out! These were all things we didn't normally do with my husband (we're usually much more about getting all the rides in!). It was harder than being there with my husband, of course, but we still had fun.

One thing that helped was bringing our lunch into the park when I was alone with the kids. I always had something ready when they were hungry without having to get to a restaurant, find something they wanted to eat, carry all the food and wrangle the kids, etc. We'd just sit down at a table with our peanut butter sandwiches and snacks whenever the kids got hungry. It was so much more relaxing.

[Fastpasssteve]

I wonder if your littlest one won't get in the way of your 3 year old being able to do the stuff he wants. Sometimes it just takes two adults. This doesn't sound exactly fair to the 3 year old.

[VWL Mom]

As BrerGnat points out, 4-5 hours is like a local outing. You will be able to do some rides with them as others have said. Just take your time, go at their pace, and have fun. You can always take them to the little play area by Splash Mt or if the 3 yr old likes "I spy" games maybe you can have him/her help find some hidden Mickey's. You'll do fine!

[indytraveler]

My question is for how long are you going to be at WDW? If its just a couple of days then go head to the MK and have a special day with your children. If you are staying longer then find something to do at your resort for the morning. That way if the kids get tired you are near your room and can take a nap. One day from the parks may be a break to sleep in and take it easy. Just coordinate with your husband and mother-in-law as to which day they plan on going. If it day 3 of 5 then that may be a good day to rest anyway for the kids.

But 6 mos. from now is December, and depending on how close you go to Christmas the parks could be very crowded. With 2 little ones may be a little overwhelming. Since you do have 6 mos. you can have several practice runs at local parks etc. where you can see how long it takes for them to tire out. Yes the Cartoons on at Casey's Corner on Main St. would be an easy way to knock off an hour of rest.

I had my kids in the WDW parks when they were that age and they were the best behaved of their lives so anything can be possible. Don't know if I helped or muddied it up more but the good news is you do have some time.

[KAT1811]

A couple of trips ago we traveled the World as a family my DH, and 3DDs. My husband had to fly home very unexpectedly for a business meeting. He flew home the day before our last day. I was 5 months pregnant with our son (#4). So there I was alone in WDW with three children DD11, DD4, and DD2, 5 months pregnant! We did just fine!!! I had the double stroller and a decent size belly! There were tons of amazing people to help me along the way. Most of the time I had help with the stroller on and off the bus and when I didn't I managed. On one bus trip back to the resort the sweetest old man held DD2 in his lap for the bus ride. She was just so captivated by him. If you take your children out alone at home (which I'm sure you do) you can do it in Disney!


I wonder if your littlest one get in the way of your 3 year old being able to do the stuff he wants. Sometimes it just takes two adults. This doesn't sound exactly fair to the 3 year old.

You'll be fine with both children. Unless your 3 y.o. is exceptionally tall there aren't any rides that the 3 y.o. will be able to do that the 1 y.o. can do. On our last trip our two youngest were 3 and 8 months and the 8 month old could do everything that the 8 month old could do (the only exception being the Speedway). By the time you navigate Adventureland, Frontierland, Fantasyland and have lunch you mother and husband should be ready to rejoin you!

Go and have a great time!!!!!

[crltkcagle]

It also depends on the temperment of your kids. I know mine are prone to meltdowns in the park and they are older than yours. LOL They are plenty of fun things to do for the little ones. Just take it slow and if they get cranky you can always bring them back to the hotel room for a nap. Have a great trip!

[BrerGnat]

It also helps if your DH and Mother book the FIRST tour of the morning. They will have to be there early, and will be done right around 1pm. You can hang at the hotel a little longer, and take your time. Going to a sit down breakfast might be fun, just don't do a buffet! Then, leisurely head over to MK to meet up with your DH and mom around 1pm. The time will fly, trust me!