Taking a 2 yr old

[disney1122]

What would you say "must do's" are for a 2 yr old???:mickey:

[ANG]

Epcot's Under the Sea with Nemo. Our son was 5 months when we took him and his eyes lit up with excitement. :D

And the HISTKs playground.

[cer]

A lot of your fantasy land attractions...

Pooh, Peter Pan, Dumbo, It's a Small World, Cinderellas Carousel, Mickey's Phillarmagic....

Alladin's Magic Carpets, Tomorrowland Transit Authority, Buzz Lightyear, Laugh Floor, the Train...

monorail

At Epcot, there are the bubbling fountains between Furture World and World Showcase, in Mexico the boat ride with the 3 Caballeros.

Living with the Land, Spaceship Earth and Nemo and Friends like the previous poster suggested, OH and don't miss Crush....

At Animal Kingdom...The Lion King Show, Finding Nemo the Musical, Triceratops Spin, Train...Kilamanjaro Safari.....there is also a play area in the Dinosaur area...

At The Studios, I am having a hard time coming up with attractions that you ride, but there is The Little Mermaid show there, and also in Pixar Place (not sure if a 2-yr old could ride Toy Story) but there they can meet the Toy Story characters as well as Mike and Sulley.

I just threw some things out there, I have never taken a 2 year old and I do not recall the height/safety requirements on any of these suggestions, but there is a start....

OK. I just re-read your post, I don't know if these would be considered "must do's" for a 2 year-old, but I think you could call them "can-do's" - or "consider doings" ! :thumbsup:

[RBrooksC]

When we go back to Disney next May, our daughter will be two years and four months. And whatever she is able to ride, she is going to ride.

So, everything in MK that does not have a height requirement, she will ride, including the HM.

And in the other parks, it will be the same thing. If she is tall enough, she will ride it.

[JPL]

Just a warning we took my firend's son who was just about 2 and a lot of the rides scared him because of the darkness not the content or motion of the ride. He really didn't like anything that was dark even for a little while. He loved the rides like Dumbo, Magic Carpets, & Triceratops but really got scared during the first section of Living with the Land when it started out dark the same thing happened on the TTA and even on the Seas with Nemo and he loves Nemo. Just something to think about,

[Gator]

My kids weren't really scared of anything. Of course, I would play home videos of WDW for them to prepare them for the characters and rides.

The two things I'd put forth are all Fireworks and the Nemo Musical. Of course you need to hit the slow dark rides, but the two things I mentioned are the things they talked about the most. There's just something about that little orange fish that kids love.

[Imagineer1981]

Just a warning we took my firend's son who was just about 2 and a lot of the rides scared him because of the darkness not the content or motion of the ride. He really didn't like anything that was dark even for a little while. He loved the rides like Dumbo, Magic Carpets, & Triceratops but really got scared during the first section of Living with the Land when it started out dark the same thing happened on the TTA and even on the Seas with Nemo and he loves Nemo. Just something to think about,


Same with my son at 2 years and 3 months. He loved Dumbo, Small World, Triceratops, etc, but he hated Peter Pan and Pooh and such because of the darkness. Just really be patient and feel out the child. My son would have been content riding the carousel and small world the entire trip

[DizneyRox]

Da Twain, Da Monowhale, Da Bus...

We spent a ton of time digging for dinosaurs and playing in the fountains. Honestly, you probably don't have to set foot inside a park if you don't want to.

[brownie]

Dumbo
it's a small world
The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh
Turtle Talk with Crush
The Seas with Nemo & Friends
Kilimanjaro Safaris

[Goofy4TheWorld]

Just a warning we took my friend's son who was just about 2 and a lot of the rides scared him because of the darkness not the content or motion of the ride. He really didn't like anything that was dark even for a little while. He loved the rides like Dumbo, Magic Carpets, & Triceratops but really got scared during the first section of Living with the Land when it started out dark the same thing happened on the TTA and even on the Seas with Nemo and he loves Nemo. Just something to think about,

My June trip with my 2 year old was MISssssssssERABLE partly because he developed a previously-unseen PARALYZING fear of the dark. He has never cried so hard in his life, he cried ANYTIME there was the slightest reduction in light. You may not have even realized how the "kiddy" rides are dark, but my two year old sure did. He wouldn't even let us get in line for Pan, Hated Pooh, Hated Buzz, Hated Monsters, Lion King, Nemo, Turtle Talk, and truth be told, he probably hated Mom and Dad that week too! We were actually glad we missed rope-drop at Hollywood Studios because we would have cried through Toy Story as well.

A big part of our problem was that we couldn't remember which attractions were going to be dark until it was too late. We walked out of most of his "hates" within 60 seconds.


He loved Dumbo, Small World, Triceratops, etc, but he hated Peter Pan and Pooh and such because of the darkness. My son would have been content riding the carousel and small world the entire trip

They must be twins. My son LOVED Small World and liked Dumbo and Aladdin, but more than anything LOVED the "horseys!"

I now have a great love for Small World because it brought much-needed Peace and Happiness to my son (and me).

[ANG]

hahaha my son hated IASM! He screamed almost the entire time. I felt so badly for the other passengers. I kept turning around and apologizing.

To quote my husband "For such a small world this is a long *** ride!"

[cer]

I have read that some parents give their little ones a small squeeze flashlight for their kiddos to hold and operate during the dark rides. One of those itty bitty lights that won't detract from the attraction...maybe that would help? possibly?

[lovinmesomedisney]

I think it totally depends on your two year old. I have four kids. Two of them went on EVERYTHING they could get on, and were very sad when the height restrictions kept them off of others. The other two were more apprehensive, but did fine on the dark fantasy land things. You know your child more than we do, so you will have to be the judge.

[afowl1017]

I agree with the posters....it will end up depending on how your child handles rides. Each one of my kids have been different liking some and hating others. I will share one thing, a confession of sorts ... I suggest you NOT experience "It's tough to be a Bug" with a small child. "OH we love a Bugs Life! Lets do it!" A mistake my husband and I made with our first child in the winter of 2002.... three children later and we still have never visited it again. :secret: (We also made the same mistake when he was older during a soft opening of "Stitch's Great Escape"....Yep didn't like that either!)

[disney_daddy]

We took our grandson (18 months) to Disney in May and he enjoyed just about all the rides you could put him on, but what he really enjoyed was meeting the characters. They were very interactive with him and he just loved them.

[Jfamily]

Just got back yesterday with my 2 year old. He did every ride that he could. But I do have to say he Loved Playhouse Disney. He danced and clapped the wholw show. He really entertained the people around us

[kemps@wdw]

A midday break! :sleepin:

[Soccermom12]

Last summer we took my DD2.5. She enjoyed most of the rides - however, she LOVED playhouse Disney in Disney Hollywood Studios. She really liked meeting all of the Characters too.....especially the character breakfast at Hollywood and Vine. The characters get up every 30 minutes or so and sing and dance, and ask all the kids to join them. She had a blast!

She also got her first haircut at the MK barber shop. They gave her tons of stickers, a certificate and of course her "First Haircut" Mickey Ears!

[sassy2000]

Must do: Get to MK at opening and go straight to Fantasyland. You can hit Dumbo, Small World, Peter Pan, & Winnie the Pooh quickly (which are my DD3 favorite rides).

HS: Playhouse Disney Live on Stage
AK: The Bone Yard
Epcot: Nemo

[crmark1]

The last time my family was at Disney my son was 2 1/2. My advice is to just enjoy the time together, dont worry if you dont get to do everything you have planned. Enjoy the look on the little ones face as they meet Mickey, as they go down Main St etc... because you will remember it for a lifetime...but the 2 yo will not. My son has been to WDW 3 times all before he was 3 and he doesnt remember it. We have a trip planned for Feb and he will be 6, this is the trip he will remember!

[jillluvsdisney]

Must do's will be what makes your son happy. I think the advise given here has been good about some of the "dark" rides. He mights also like the WDW Railroad that circles the MK. He might enjoy running around Tom Sayers Island. Maybe the color and music of the parades will excite him. The ballon sellers holding dozens of ballons might catch his eye. He might want to take the monorail around and around. If he likes water, besides swimming, he may like the pop up fountains at EPCOT and Downtown Disney.

[The Reservoir Dog]

We are thinking of going next November when my son will be 18 months old.

I have been checking ticket prices but doesn't quote his age group.

Do under 3's get in free?

[bostonsam]

My oldest son was about 18mo when we went once and we did Fantasy/Toontowwn Land rides and any thing Not in the dark...even my oldest doesn't care for Stitch(lilo fan)lol but the flashlight idea mentioned previously was smart,might take that into consideration(ty for posting)for my 3yo this year...anyhow at that age my kids really enjoyed the characters/interaction the most.

[Disney Doll]

We are thinking of going next November when my son will be 18 months old.

I have been checking ticket prices but doesn't quote his age group.

Do under 3's get in free?

They sure do! We just squeezed in our last free trip last week. My son turns 3 next month. He rode everything. His most favorite were the Teacups and Dumbo. He also loved the Electrical Light Parade in Magic Kingdom and anytime there was water he was all about it. We spent a good amount of time in Donald's Boat and in the pop fountains at EPCOT.

Just wanted to add that it's nice to bring a change of dry clothes for the days when you are likely to encounter water play. My son got absolutely soaked in those EPCOT fountains when he was 18 months and we ended up buying a towel and t-shirt.

[BigBaloo]

We have taken all 3 DS when they were 2 & our advice is to start w/ the rides/attractions that you know they'll like & then slowly work your way up the thrill/dark/scare scale. We made the mistake of It's Tough to Be a Bug w/ our oldest & after that we had a hard time getting him to go on any new dark rides the rest of the trip.

Best advice is to just slow down & make sure you take midday breaks so your son can stay rested for the entire trip & you'll get to experience more in the long run.