Any tips for a mum of toddler twins visiting WDW?

[claire from uk]

We have provisionally booked our holiday for the end of the year. We will be arriving in Orlando 26/11/04 & staying until 11/12/04.

We would really love to hear your tips to help our trip go well.

Matthew & Ben will be 2 & half when we go. There will be myself and DH. We went previously in 1999 for our honeymoon and loved every minute.

We are going with my DH brother and his partner who have never been.

We have had lots of health problems since the boys were born both for them and us. It is really good to finally have something to look forward to. I want to be prepared for as much as I can. I have never been on the net so much. I have found loads of sites but this is by far the best yet.

We are disappointed that some of our family think that we shouldn't be taking the boys but it really is true that once you have been you want to go again!! and we so want to share it with our children whilst their at an age to really believe it. We are also going with the attitude that yes it is our holiday but it is also very much for Matthew & Ben and seeing them happy and having fun will make the holiday really special somthing that I don't think people can appreciate until they have been to WDW!

We hope that it will be manageable, so any tips that you can give us including for the plane trip would be great!!!

 

[Boo Mc]

You may want to consider buying an annual pass. That way you can go for several hours each day and then back to the resort for swimming, naps etc. I find having a park hopper is more stressful because you feel like you have to stay at the parks from opening to closing to get your money worth. An AP might be more money but much less stress IMO. Other tips, take more diapers than you think you'll need and don't forget baby tylenol, bandaids, cold medicine etc. Don't want to have to buy that stuff there -it's pricey and hard to find. I think your kids are at a great age to go! Don't worry about what people say. We go twice a year and our friends think we're crazy too. Definitely take your own double stroller if you can-the ones you rent don't recline so it's hard for little ones to nap in them. The holiday decorations will be up when you are there so that will be fun and Epcot has different Santas at each country. You will have a GREAT time!

P.S. My tip for the plane is to get each boy a notebook and TONS of stickers. My kids loved just putting stickers all over the pages. It's quiet and easy to pack in your carry on. Also, take suckers (lollipops) in case their ears hurt on the plane.

 

[HeatherT]

Hi Claire! I have twins that will turn 3 in March and they've been to Disney 4 times already. We actually just returned 2 wks ago and we had a great time. Here are some of the things we do to keep the week stressless and fun: We only travel with enough diapers/wipes for 2 days. There are a ton of grocery stores near Disney (not on property) that sell diapers at regular prices. If you're renting a car, it's pretty easy to stop. If you're taking a shuttle, most allow for one stop at a grocery store. You're flying a long way and staying a long time so I can't even imagine carrying all those diapers. I'm sorry Boo Mc, but I also don't necessarily agree with buying an AP vs a park hopper. We always buy park hoppers and never feel as if we don't get our money's worth - and we always return to the hotel for naps in the afternoon. Park hoppers never expire, so if you don't use all your days, you can always keep them for the next time. However, if you're staying onsite and there is an AP rate available, buying one might be worth the extra money. Check out www.mousesavers.com. Mary has a calculator on her sight that will tell you if it's better to buy an annual pass or a park hopper. She has a lot of great info that could be helpful, if you haven't already checked out her site. There are also different tickets you can purchase if you're from the UK - she has those listed too.

One thing we never mess with - our childrens' schedules. We always go back to the hotel for naps and try to get them into bed close to their regular bed time. No one will have any fun if you're dragging two tired, cranky kids around (I know, I broke this rule during our last trip and we paid for it the next day dearly!) A lot of people don't understand this since they know how expensive tickets are, but my kids don't sleep in a stroller and I'd rather have two happy, well rested kids and less park time then the other way around

I would suggest you bring your own stroller. We used to use our double side by side but now that they're older we use two umbrella strollers. That way if they want to see/ride two different things, my dh and I can split up for a little while. We bought connecters for them too just in case only one of us can push (like through the airport).

Just like Boo Mc, we've also used stickers on the plane - they work great. We also bought them cheap cd players with headphones and brought their cd's with us. They thought this was great!

Please feel free to PM me if you have any more questions. You are going to have an incredible time - don't let anyone else tell you differently. Your boys will be at a great age - we've always enjoyed our ds & dd reactions when we take them to Disney but this past trip was by far the best! It was so much fun to see them interact with the characters! By the way, if your ds's have never seen any characters, order Disney's vacation planning video or DVD (it's free). I did this before we took our children last year and it really helped them to understand how much bigger the characters are in real life since they look so small in pictures or in cartoons. Hope this helps!

Heather

 

[mbb]

Our twins were just 4 when we went...

FUN!!

A portable DVD player for the plane with some of their favourite programs would be top of the list for us, especially with the long flight that you will have.

You have a great attitude to go with - its all about keeping your sense of humour, and taking the nap!!

PM away!

 

[momoftwins98]

I also have twin girls, during our last trip they were four and did pretty good. We have been traveling with them since they were about 6 months old. When they were toddlers, I would pack snacks, coloring books, books to read on the plane or color pictures together. We always check our car seats and bring our own stroller, the girls seemed to do well with something familiar.

I agree with another poster here, try to stay within their schedule, makes a big difference on the following day, at least in our house it always does. Another thing, just take it slow. During our last (DD's 4) we kept everything smooth and easy paced and the girls were great!