Disney World Questions

We went and took our 6mo and 22mo old kids, and had a BLAST! We rented a house that was 2 miles from Disney, and I think that made our stay all the better. It was SO comfortable, it felt like we were at our own home.
If you have any questions, or are interested in the house we stayed at, let me know.

G.,

We took our daughter for the first time in May. She was 20 months old and she loved it. We only went to Disney (Magic Kingdom) for one day and we easily filled the day. We did the Fast Pass for all of the rides it was available for and it worked really well for us. Our daughter liked most of the rides we took her on and loved It's a Small World. We did rides like Dumbo, Alladin, Peter Pan, Snow White, Winnie the Pooh, etc. My daughter did not like the 3-D movie at all (Mickey's Musical something or other), she cried during most of it. It has come highly recommended, but did not work out well for us.

They have really good food for kids at the park and I was really pleasantly surprised with the options.

We didn't stay on site. We stayed at a Residence Inn that was very close. Parking at the park is really cheap and I liked having a suite with a separate bedroom and a kitchen. My husband's parents joined us so we got a 2 bedroom suite for a very good price and the drive to the park was no more than 10 minutes.

Book early for a meal with the characters if you think your child would like that, they fill up quickly. We got reservations at the Rainforest Cafe for the evening that we arrived in Orlando. We had 5:30 reservations, I think. It worked out perfect for us. You go through security for Animal Kingdom to get to the restaurant, but you don't go into the park. As we were going through security the woman told me that they were lining up to see the characters. We got in line to see Minnie and we were perhaps the 6th family in line. So we waited maybe 10 minutes and my daughter got to get her picture taken with Minnie Mouse before we even had to go into a park! That took a lot of stress off me. Minnie is my daughters favorite. The pictures turned out really well because my daughter wasn't sick of waiting in line by the time we got to see Minnie. We easily could have gotten in line to see Mickey as well but decided not to press our luck and went to dinner.

Good luck. I am sure you will have a great time with your daughter.

D.

We just went this spring with our brood of 5. Our 3 yo boy had a great time, enjoyed the characters by now - our 18 month old was scared of them - and was able to go on the majority of attractions. Bring snacks and drinks for him and either rent or bring a light recline stroller for when he's pooped out.
I would highly recommend staying on property, you get to enter the parks earlier than opening and stay after closing than regular day guests. This way you can also head back to the hotel for naps and down time much easier. We have stayed at the contemporary and LOVED it. It's right on the monorail, such an exciting thing for the little ones, so you have direct access to Magic Kingdom and Epcot plus the monorail stops at 2 other hotels Grand Floridian and Polynesian making hotel hoping easy too. They have a decent size pool and a ground level play area that is very accessible. Our room was on the ground floor "wing" so it was right out our door. They are doing construction right now so there will be more going on there. You can also see magic kingdoms fire works from the hotel. It was very family friendly in my opinion and would stay there again.

We stayed at the Contemporary last year. It is nice, but I would advise making your reservation early. We stayed in one of the garden wings (cheaper), which was nice and quiet compared to the tower, but it is a LONG walk. If you stay there, be sure to check out the water parade at night. It has some of the old stuff from the electric parade from when I was young! Be sure to eat at Chef Mickey's at the cont. Food is great! It's easier to take a 3 yr old when you have just one child. Make reservations early for the new Bibbidy Bobbidy Boutique (sp?). They dress your little one up like a beautiful princess (for a fee of course). Also make early reservations to eat at Cinderella's Royal Table in the castle - not to be missed. Buy a guidebook - it's a lifesaver for planning.

We took our two daughters this summer, one is 4 1/2 and one just turned 3. Our 3 year old had a hard time. Most of it was over her head, she spent the entire time being overtired and overstimulated and most of the activities/rides were too scary for her or she just didn't "connect" with the activity. We rented a stroller but because you can't take a stroller in any of the lines, there is a lot of standing and waiting and we ended up carrying/holding her a lot while she slept on our shoulders. I would recommend waiting until she's 5 years old.

We just returned from Disney on June 27. Our son is almost two and a half and I had the same concerns that he might be too young. But he had an absolute blast! Definitely take your own stroller, they have some you can rent, but they can be hard to come by. It was nice just to have our little umbrella stroller handy. Also, a must to do is the character meals. We did a breakfast with Little Einsteins and Jojo and a lunch with the Pooh characters and I thought he would just burst with excitement. Make your reservations plenty in advance so you can choose which character meals you'd like to attend. We also bought our park tickets in advance so we didn't have to wait in line to purchase them there. Have a great trip!

We go every three years (thanks to the inlaws) and stay at the Disney value properties which are clean and inexpensive. They offer a shuttle service to the parks or you can drive and park for free.

Plan as much of the park time as you can beforehand so you know what to fastpass, what shows you'd like to see and plan in some downtime for your daughter.

The parks allow you to bring in food and drinks (no glass bottles though) and you can fill water bottles in the restuarants (the buildings, not the stands throughout the park) for free.

Bring your own stroller too.

My son was 18 months when we went in December and had a wonderful time. There are rides and parts of the park that will be just for her. Disney is all about the experience no matter what age. You'll all have a wonderful time.

Definitely bring the camera!!

HI! We took our son when he was about 3 1/2...he still talks about it today as if he were there yesterday and it's been over a year. He can remember all of the rides, the characters, where we ate, everything! He was very excited to go which I think helped. We stayed on the grounds which is great because they have transportation which helps with naps, etc. We made sure to plan everything out before we left, what days we were going where, where/when we were eating (made reservations- very easy by phone and this helps to stay on a normal schedule if you have one) I reccommend any of the character meals- they are great and keep the kids entertained. While she may not be able to go on the rides herself, you will be able to go on them all with her which makes it even more special! We look at the pics almost once a week...can't wait to go back!!

Hi G.,
My family and I go every two years and have stayed on property and off. On is definately easier! My youngest was five weeks (oops, planning error) and the boys were 4 & 6 the first time and are still talking about meeting all the characters! They had autograph books and had no problem with the waiting because it was their idea. THis past time they were more intersted in the rides and the liitle one rode some too (18 mo). I highly recommend Novemeber and the time to go. Visitor numbers are down and the weather is fantastic! Way better than IL no matter what the temperature is! I would call ahead and get their maps and planning guide and remember that some reservations need to be made as far out as six months ahead of time. Everytime we have called the Cast members have been great! They will really be able to answer all your questions and probably some you haven't yet thought of.
Have a great trip and Happy planning!

It's actually more magical when they are young. When they get to be 10,12 and older, it is less fun because they get that the characters aren't real, etc. I think the younger the better. Go and enjoy yourself. Disney caters to families with little kids. I have been taking mine there since the first was 2. My younger one went for the first time when she was 18 months old. We've never had a bad time. It's always great!

We took my son when he was 8 months old the first time. He was not overly interested. But we went again when he was about 18 months and he loved it!!! We stayed at the Swan. They were great! They have character meals there in the hotel, plus the concierge set up several of our other meals and character meals/meet-and-greets, and they have the shuttle bus to the parks as well as a boat to epcot. I think he enjoyed SeaWorld and Animal Kingdom the most, but met the most characters at Epcot. SO depends on what you think they will want more. Definitely hit Animal Kingdom though. Its great for the younger kids that can't do a lot of the Magic Kingdom rides, plus good shows and didn't seem as crowded. We are hoping to go back once a year and hit all 4 parks. We'll see how well that works next year with 2 kids!

Our 3 year old loved it!

Hi G.

We just got back from Disneyworld and we had a BLAST!!! We went with my 3 year old and my 1 year old daughter. My son wanted nothing to do w/ the characters (so if your daughter is afraid of things... then don't bother w/ character meals). However.. he had the time of his life... I am sooo glad we went. My few suggestions are: 1. Make sure you stay on the property so you can have access to the shuttles. 2. Come back to rest in the afternoon, otherwise it is to much for them. 3. Give yourself an extra day or so to just hang out at the pool. 4. Bring an umbrella stroller so you can put her in because it is a lot of walking.. plus at night you can have her in their after the parade and/or fireworks and not worrying about losing her. 5. Bring a sharpie marker and at the hotels they have a button for 1st time visiters.. well put your number on the back of that and have her wear it at all times and know what is on their. 6. Get a hopper pass if you are planning on going to Animal Kingdom, because that is just a 1/2 day trip (morning is best). Epcot you can probably do in 1/2 a day (talking w/ crush is amazing). We didn't have time to go to Figment, but I heard that is fun. We spent 1 1/2 days at the Magic Kingdom and a whole day at the Hollywood Disney (the old mgm). MGM has a lot to do (just make sure you get a fastpass in the morning because that one fills up fast). Also be aware about the fast pass and the parent swap.. because those are two great features. The fastpass will save you a lot of waiting time. You go and get a pass and you can only have one at a time and then you go back to that ride at your assigned time (however.. you can use it after the time, just not before). And if you or your husband want to go on an adult ride.. just bring your whole family to the agent at the ride and tell them that you need to do a parent swap. They will give you an additional fast pass so you or your husband can get right in the fastpass line w/o waiting forever. Soarin at Epcot is a must. Make sure you get a chance to do that.

I apologize for any duplicates.. didn't read any of the other responses. I hope you decide to go, because it is a memory of a lifetime. I am already planning a trip back.

Jen

I haven't read the other responses, but we took our son a month before his 4th birthday. My parents organized a family reunion there. What worked for us was having a hotel very close to the park so that we could come back for an afternoon nap everyday. My son seriously needs his naps. It worked for us, but if we hadn't had the family reunion, I wouldn't have taken him so young.

Hi G.! We went to Disney World when my middle daughter who will be 10 this month was 3 and my oldest was 6! My MIL kept saying don't take them now! Lauren will never remember it etc! Well, to this day she does! She remembers almost all of it! We had a blast and it was the best vacation ever! Gosh I wish we could go back but it would be to much! We have a boy now too and he is 5! We drove when we went too! Anyhow we stayed at All Star Movies and it was the best and the cutest thing! And there is a shuttle bus that takes you to and from everywhere you want to go which is awesome! I loved it and so did my whole family!
S. Bailey CLD
Aurora
www.tendermomentsdoula.com

I'm dying to take my daughter to Disney also. She just turned 4 in May. One reason that we haven't gone is because I was told that she wouldn't be able to ride any of the rides by herself until she was 42" tall. I would HATE for her to go and not get to ride on the rides herself. We took her to Six Flags a couple of weekends ago and she LOVED it! My 14 month old son hated it. So it looks like instead of going next year we might wait until he is 2.

My advice is not to go during spring break. We went this year during spring break and it was so crowded you could not see a thing. I agree with everyone who says stay on the grounds. It is a lot of fun.

The first time we took our kids, they were 3 years old (girl) and 5 months old (boy). Once we got on the monorail - heading into Magic Kingdom, my daughter started jumping up and down wildly yelling "Daddy, Mommy...I see it....I see the castle....it's a dream come true....! and she brought 8 adults (who I didn't know)..to tears! That's what Disney can do...we have gone there at least a dozen times (my kids are 13 and 10 years old, now). We have stayed many times at Coronado Springs (love their restaurant!), once at All Star Movies....my kids loved it because of the toy story themed area, and the Hilton, on property, which is very lovely. Staying at hotels on property gives you the advantage of having the extra hours at the park in the morning and night, only offered to people on property. Re. Princess Castle, you must book that 60 days in advance for the date that you want. Call the Disney number and ask them when that "60 day" mark - no sooner-Disney won't let you. If you are in IL, you need to dial that phone, at 6:00 am that morning and hope you can book. In peak season, it can take you a couple days to get a reservation. I have sat on hold for 8 minutes, only to have someone answer and say they are booked up on my desired date. Also, when are you thinking of going? Disney, during Spring Break is really challenging - and can expand for 6 weeks. Next year.....Easter is Sun., April 12th (2009) and Greek Orth.Easter is April 19th. Just be aware if you are going at that time - very busy. I love going in March (Casimer Pulaski is celebrated by people in Illinois...which is fun to go to Florida, then). May is nice when the crowds die down but can be already hot and October is very nice, right after Columbus day - you still get the 80 degree days, and cooler nights. Have fun!

Hi G.!

We brought our 2 1/2 year old with us last year and my #1 tip is to plan days of activity and days of rest. We went to a park one day and then hung out at the pool the next. That way when we hung around the condo naps could be fit in when they were needed. We did this twice and then went to Cocoa Beach one day. We also went to Downtown Disney and the Board Walk on those evenings that we stayed around the condo. We stayed in a timeshare with a kitchen and laundry, which was awesome! We didn't have to go out to eat every meal. Oh, we also did a breakfast at the Polynesian that the kids LOVED!!

G., I'm a well seasoned Disney traveler. I have been taking my kids since they were born, twice a year. You wanted to know if your child is old enough, first of all it depends on you daughter and what your expectations are. She won't really remember a lot about the trip and many things may frighten her. (some rides and even the characters...they are really big). But if you and your husband are Disney fans you'll want to share the experience with her. Just be patient, she'll still get tired she'll want to eat when hungry and its a big noisy place and she may get cranky. Take snacks (sometimes the lines are too long or food is too far away), a change of clothes(those bathrooms are far away for a little one), lots of sunscreen (it's Florida)and get a stroller (the park ones are much nicer now)!!! Take lots of movies and pictures, you'll probably enjoy it more than her. It's also nice to have another couple or an adult along so you can also enjoy the park and rides. Hotels are a toss up, my favorite is Yacht & Beach Club but not really for small kids. Try to pick one close to the park you'll be spending the most time at. That way if you want a break in the middle of the day you can just pop over to it. Which would make the Contemporary a good choice it's on the mono-rail stop. Have a great time!!!

You must buy the book "Walt Disney World With Kids 2008"!!! My friend recommended it to me she just got back from Disney a month ago, and i rushed out to get it as we were leaving for Disney too. We have only been home for 3 days! We had the time of our lives with our two kids (3 and 5), and had an even better time with the tips given in this book!!! An awesome book if you are taking kids to disney...it gives tips for resorts too. It sells for about $18.
P.S. Your daughter will have the best time! My 3 year old was in heaven...everything was so real to her!!!
Have a great time...

K.
www.kristenstemple.myarbonne.com