First time trip with children

[Stephen McNutt]

Our family will take our first WDW vacation (September, 2002) with the children(two girls, age 6 and 3) [img]graemlins/clappy.gif[/img] . My wife and I have been before, but we are questioning our sanity [img]graemlins/crazy.gif[/img] . Many of our friends tell us we should wait a little longer before we embark on such a trip with such small children . We are staying in the resort and think we can shuffle back and forth when the girls get tired. Any tips from veteran mousketeers who have taken such young kids? Would like to hear from you. [img]graemlins/mickey.gif[/img]

[ChipDale]

[img]graemlins/mickey.gif[/img] Welcome to Intercot, Stephen! [img]graemlins/mickey.gif[/img]

I'm going to move this over to Vacation Planning where I'm sure that you'll pick up lots of tips. [img]smile.gif[/img]

Have a great vacation! [img]graemlins/thumbsup.gif[/img]

[ August 13, 2002, 07:24 PM: Message edited by: ChipDale ]

[TiggerRPh]

I personally don't think your children are too young to go to WDW. We've taken our kids even younger. And no one here would question my sanity [img]graemlins/crazy.gif[/img] [img]graemlins/crazy.gif[/img] ....okay, they might, but not in relation to your question!

Definitely bring a stroller for your 3-year old. There's a lot of walking to be done at WDW and little feet get tired easily. Take the parks at the children's pace....take breaks and if you feel you need to, head back to your resort and have the kids take naps. Make sure the kids gets lots of fluids and use plenty of sunscreen.

[CanadaEh28]

When I went I was 10, my brother was 7 and my sister was 5. We went in September and on some days we got a stroller for my sister. Everyone seemed to be fine, however we always took mid-day breaks to go back to the pool. So I think it;s fine that your goin' [img]graemlins/mickey.gif[/img]

[RALPH]

I think your kids will be fine. Our son has been going since he was 3 1/2. He is nine now. The key for us is a NAP NAP NAP!!!

We tour the parks in the AM, then come back to the hotel around 12:30 to 1:00 PM. This gets us out of the sun, and off our feet at the hottest part of the day. A swim in the pool to cool us down and up to the room for a shower and 1 to 2 hour nap. We all take a nap! Up around 4:30 or 5:00 and out for dinner and more fun. The key for us is to get the nap and recharge the batteries. Nothing worse than exhausted children and parents.

I don't know how big your six year old is, but some are still small enough to fit in a stroller. This also helps keeping them fresh, but you wear out a little quicker.

Just pace yourselves, use your judgement. You know better than anyone how you and your child are holding up and adjust on the fly.

[Katmegali]

[img]graemlins/muscles.gif[/img] Welcome!!

I wouldn't worry over the age. We've been going on such vactions since oldest was born (she's 7 now). We have three little girls (7,5 and 21 months).
You will not be able to go commando style and will have to take it more easy with little ones. They tire easy, more so than adults. If on-site, take mid-day breaks at resorts for naps or pool time or rest time. Don't hurry and just relax. If the adults like some of the stronger rides, learn to do baby swaps. Or sometimes as we have learned you may even miss some rides you want because they are scared of them.

All in all you will have a great trip if you relax and have fun

[ August 13, 2002, 10:35 PM: Message edited by: Katmegali ]

[Stephen McNutt]

Thanks to all for the great suggestions;I appreciate the advice!

[Katmegali]

Oh I forgot, I would also recommend a stroller. My oldest two are 5 and 7 and we rented a double stroller for them when they got tired. I've seen kids up to at least 10 or 11 in them.
And my girls loved the water misters (fans which spray water. I would recommend getting them before you leave though as they cost abt 18$ at WDW

[singermom4]

I think your kids are at a great age - any older and they would miss out on some of that great innocent 'magic'. My 5 yo ds already refers to characters as guys in suits!

The midday break is a must as well as a stroller for your younger one. The 6yo should be able to walk. My ds was 4yo when we went and except for one day when he wasn't feeling well, he did fine walking. A double stroller is a pain to negotiate through large crowds too - often we would just park our stroller in a corner and then come back for it after finishing the area.

[POC_Fan]

We took our 3yr old last Oct. with no problems. The key was going at his pace and not the commando pace we where used to, as others have said. We wanted to make sure that his 1st visit and memories were of a fun relaxing vacation. We didn’t have to leave the park once, he was doing so good. I think the time of the year was a factor because it was cool. When he did get tired he just went to sleep in our umbrella stroller and was up and ready to go again. That gave us time to relax , people watch and eat [img]graemlins/mickey.gif[/img] bars. He still recalls events from last Oct. and can not wait to go again this Oct. Have a great time, it will be like your first visit all over again!

[Darrell Armstrong]

Your kids are the perfect age to go! Our Kids are 6, 2 and 8 months. Tehy have always done well at theme parks. Our oldest was 2 & 3 years old during our previous WDW trips. She handled it like a pro.

There are always those detractors that think it's a waste taking young children to places such as WDW. Tell em to mind their own stuff!

[Zeike]

Hi there, I had the same question a couple of weeks ago and postes a topic on it on Theme Parks. It have about 63 replies which are all a lot of help. It should be maybe in the second or third page of the Theme Parks board. Hope it can help you as much as it did me.

[Grumpy's Daughter]

Oh, they are at the perfect age to enjoy the magic! We've taken our two kids since the oldest was 9 months old. While not everyone has such gung-ho families, we managed to go commando-style, only stopping at night (sometimes, at 7pm to go back and go to sleep) Umbrella strollers are a god-send- the four year old was taken care of, the baby could sleep, and you can spot them easier at the entrance of rides better than the park strollers. Also, it's easier to manuever umbrella strollers than a double stroller in the crowds!

[ August 15, 2002, 08:00 PM: Message edited by: Grumpy's Daughter ]

[GrandFlo]

I would suggest bringing some of the kids favorite snacks along.

When we first took my son he had just turned three and he was not good with going back to the room for a nap. He refused to sleep. So after the second day we decided not to fight it. He would fall asleep in the stroller while at the parks and we would sit and relax or browse in the gift shops.

As for the stroller, either bring one or rent one. A double would be great. The only problem I had with the rented strollers were sometimes it was hard for my 3 year old to fall asleep in them. There was a bar right by the back of his head on the strollers from MGM and AK. And he's tall, was 42 inches when he turned three. We used a beach towel for a pillow.

[stitchfan]

If you look at the related thread on what age to take your kids to WDW, you'll see that there's a variety of opinions on what's a good age to go. Over there, I posted that we think that any age is a good age with proper planning, and I'll still stand by that opinion. Your kids will do fine -- especially since you're concerned enough to ask for advice to make sure they do. [img]smile.gif[/img]

In our experience and observation, we've had the best time and seen others having a good time when they pace themselves. Your idea of going back to your hotel midday for rest is popular among parents. [img]graemlins/sleepin.gif[/img] Frequent stops for a drink, rest, people-watching, etc. also help.

It also helps to be on the lookout for cool stuff that kind of pops up -- an unexpected character greeting opportunity, a ultra-short line (it does happen), street performers, etc. A lot of times these things happen right in front of you. [img]graemlins/laughing.gif[/img]

We usually allow at least one whole day per Kingdom, and pick two or three "wanna sees" in each one. We then fill in the rest of the day by keeping flexible for what turns up or suddenly looks good. Park maps and FastPasses are great for keeping your sanity while planning and executing this kind of strategy. Don't overload yourselves or your kids with long lists of "must-do" rides and shows. I always smile when I hear people fret about getting their "money's worth" at WDW. If you and yours have fun and enjoy one another, I think you did get your money's worth, regardless of how many rides and attractions you did or didn't get to see. Just being there is an Adventure!

Go and enjoy your children; treasure their company. We're sending one off to college today -- it seems like he was 6 yesterday -- and I assure you they don't stay little very long.

Stitchfan

[Gus]

All the advice everyone has given is wonderful and I won't repeat it but just wanted to add a couple of things that have helped us on past trips. Our son is almost 4 and was 2 on his first visit. We found it helpful to have little "surprises" to give him when waiting in long lines. If he started to get cranky I would pull out some new legos, a new car or some candy. This would hold his interest and kept him going till we got to board the attraction. The surprises were all inexpensive items but he loved getting a surprise. We also found it best to do a park one day then do something less strenous the next. This way he seemed to enjoy it more and didn't get as tired. Hope you have a wonderful time. WDW is truly magical with little ones. [img]graemlins/mickey.gif[/img]

[J.C.&ALI'SMOM]

Hi! Congratulations on your upcoming trip [img]graemlins/mickey.gif[/img] We have taken our young daughters several times. Our 5 yo has been 5 times and the 3 yo has been 4 times. We have found that the rental strollers were the best option for us. We take the umbrella strollers for DTD and rent the double strollers in the parks because the double strollers are huge! They have a lot of room and we have a lot of room to put the big bag we bring instead of having to carry it. This last trip in July we rented 2 single strollers which costs about the same as one double and they were not complaining about touching each other!

I also wanted to mention that sometimes we schedule each days activity and then we wake up and all the girls want to do is return to MK. In July we were in the parks 8 days and we were in MK 4 of those days. So be careful about thinking "we are going to do this and this on Tues" because the kids might want to go somewhere else!

I would also suggest a character meal. An early breakfast in one of the parks will mean you will be in the park before the hordes (if you finish eating in time) and less time in lines at one of the character greeting areas. If you want to eat at one in the resorts I would suggest having a dinner. You will be eating dinner anyway and that will free up that morning park time when the crowds are lighter. (Don't be too scared about the crowds they should not be bad while you are there!)

Pay close attention to the attractions that the kids like/don't like. One trip the baby was not liking the dark rides, screamed on Peter Pan, so we tried to steer clear of them. This last trip we got more adventurous. She had no problem with the dark rides in MK. We went on Ellen's Energy Adventure and it was torture! Be aware this might happen. You can never tell when they will blow! Also attractions that you might not think they will like are a good rest period for them. Like HoP, CoP in MK and American Adventure in Epcot. Any attraction where they can sit in the cool quiet are good! Have a great time and go with their flow!!!

[Stephen McNutt]

WoW! Thanks to all who have relpied and offered such great suggestions! [img]graemlins/thumbsup.gif[/img] I know we will put all of them to good use. Looking forward to our trip (three weeks and counting!) [img]graemlins/clappy.gif[/img]

[Buddha]

Pace yourself. Remember its about them. Try to plan with the kids in mind all the time. I suggest renting a cart for the kids and a break back to the room during the day. Also, don't be surprised if the kids don't run up to the characters right away it may take some time. The Chef Mickey breakfast is a great place to have one on one with them. They come to each table.

Diffently get a photo of the first time they see the castle.

[Gotta Love the TTA]

A good preparation for your kids is to watch Disney movies before you go, especially ones that have rides associated with them:

Peter Pan
Snow White
Alice in Wonderland
Toy Story
Winnie the Pooh
Jungle Book
Dumbo
Mulan
Aladdin
Cinderella
and Mickey Mouse cartoons

That way, when they meet the characters or get on the rides they have some familiarity.