How Young is Too Young?

[SwimMom2]

It really all depends on your attitude towards traveling with kiddos.

Your child is going to be the same child on vacation as he/she is at home. If you enjoy going at your child's pace, you will LOVE a Disney cruise. There is a lot to do with little ones. And while on board, you can book your next cruise for when your little one is 3 and can experience it another way!

If you enjoy traveling with your child, DCL is a great choice. They grow so quickly and trips are so different at every age. Don't let the time pass you by!

 

[hardis5]

It really all depends on your attitude towards traveling with kiddos.

Your child is going to be the same child on vacation as he/she is at home. If you enjoy going at your child's pace, you will LOVE a Disney cruise. There is a lot to do with little ones. And while on board, you can book your next cruise for when your little one is 3 and can experience it another way!

If you enjoy traveling with your child, DCL is a great choice. They grow so quickly and trips are so different at every age. Don't let the time pass you by!

Some people will park their lives, experiences, or limit their choices when having children. We are more of the thought that although the path changes, we are now a family and try to experience and do most things together as such.

Our youngest at first at 18 mos, turning 3 on-board and this summer at 5 will have had a different experience each time on-board (all family vacations). He is comfortable on-board, looks forward to what he remembers of "Mickey's Boat" that he may not all remember later in life but my belief is, we develop largely from what we experience, and I believe DCL is a great family vacation and experience kids of all ages can enjoy and grow in a positive way from.

 

[AJackson09]

Thanks everyone! I definitely am of the mindset that our lives don't stop just because we have a child. And even if she can't remember things we do, it doesn't mean I'm not going to let her go out and experience the world right now! I think taking her on trips now will help her to be accustomed to traveling and that contributes to a better behaved child on trips in the future. I know stopping to take naps is a priority, and I'm fine with that - I like naps on vacation too . The only disappointment is her not being able to get in the pool since she's not potty trained - she absolutely loves "swimming", aka me holding her while she kicks in the water.

 

[MunFam]

Thanks everyone! I definitely am of the mindset that our lives don't stop just because we have a child. And even if she can't remember things we do, it doesn't mean I'm not going to let her go out and experience the world right now! I think taking her on trips now will help her to be accustomed to traveling and that contributes to a better behaved child on trips in the future. I know stopping to take naps is a priority, and I'm fine with that - I like naps on vacation too . The only disappointment is her not being able to get in the pool since she's not potty trained - she absolutely loves "swimming", aka me holding her while she kicks in the water.

I think you will do great and its awesome that you want to get your little one(s) out and in to the world right now, even if they wont remember it. We started traveling with DD when she was just a few weeks old and she had her passport within a few months of being born, so I think its great when families keep living life once they have children. For us, we try to keep our travel budget set at a certain price level since we try to go on a trip every other month (as in, we never travel anywhere at full price, and I usually try to travel at 50% off or more) so for us, a DCL vacation was a big deal since we paid almost full price and we wanted DD to experience it all, so we waited til the perfect age for our Panama Canal Cruise. It was very likely a one time thing for our family because we will continue on to other vacations on our bucket list, unless DCL somehow cruises to places like Africa and Patagonia, ha!

I think there are a lot of families that would be perfectly happy going on one Disney Cruise a year...over and over again... I would die. Ha!

 

[Sleepyluke]

We traveled with a 13 month old and it was great. Her eyes lighting up seeing the characters everywhere and squealing at them is something we will remember forever, even if she does not. Servers are great, and as far as her schedule, we took naps on the pool deck watching cartoons in the shade in a lounger with me holding her most of the time, and napping as well. After dinner we took her and put on her PJs and went to the show. She would sqeal again and clap right until the point she passed out almost on que at the time she normally goes to bed at home. Carried her around till midnight some nights, and she did great. Small stroller helps, but it is not impossible to do what you want to, even if that means not being around your kids, which I dont understand anyway!

 

[PandL]

My mom still talks about the first time that she took me and my sister to Disney World. I was 3 and she was 1. We went 3 times over the course of my childhood. My mom to this day say's that first trip with the two of us was HER favorite. She said watching our faces as we experienced the magic of Disney was priceless. Do either of my sister or I remember the trip...no (actually I have 1 memory...pushing a button on the dumbo ride to make it rise up in the air) However listening to my mom talk so fondly of that trip makes me want to take our son while he is young. Like you said even though he won't remember it, but I will and I will cherish the memories I make forever.

 

[hurleysweety]

I think it is going to be different for each family. Our DD will be 18 months on her first cruise this November. We've been once before (I was actually 11 weeks pregnant!) and this time we're bringing my in-laws too - so that's a ration of 4 adults to one toddler! Very excited about that! We are all looking forward to it and we are cruising to make those memories, regardless of her memories or appreciation.

She's already been to Disneyland twice (6 months and 13 months) and both trips were very different. This was mostly because at 6 months she wasn't eating solids yet, and had just barely started crawling. And at 13 months she loved to stand up/move around and has become a picky eater.

To us, vacation means a break from work, a break from daily life of cooking/cleaning. We like the idea of seeing lots of different places without having to drive and being close to our room when a nap is needed. I'll have diapers, meltdowns, and insane amounts of extra "supplies" when I go out of the house here or if I'm out on a cruise, chilling on the beach in Jamaica. I think I'll choose the cruise!

Just as each parent raises their kid differently, you'll see each parent chooses their vacations differently too.

 

[SailingScout]

I absolutely agree that there is no wrong age. We took our DS when he was 7 and 17 months. He's now 4 and we will be doing the EBPC in October with him and our other DS, who will turn one on the trip. We likely will not be cruisers once they get to an age where they can handle longer flights, but for now a DCL cruise is perfect. Everyone is happy, gets to relax, and we even get some breaks from the kids (a HUGE deal for us since we do not live near family and I am a SAHM)! We are not Disney lovers by any stretch of the imagination, but we love DCL for the great experience we provide and the awesome memories we have from our 2 trips. You will not regret going sooner rather than later! HAVE FUN!

 

[michellekcm]

My son was 10 months when he went on his first cruise. I loved it - a place to nap each day, diaper genie etc provided, somewhere to easily get to to change his diaper, someone to play games with him at dinner...it was very relaxing for me!

He was 2 1/2 on his second, and can't wait to go back. He keeps asking "Mickey ship?" and loves looking at the photos and watching YouTube clips of it.

He's going to love it next time we cruise cos he will be able to go to the kids club with his older sister - he did spend a bit of time crying about not being allowed in outside of Open Houses this last time . But he still LOVED the cruise.

 

[mylittlebuttercup]

FP+ screwed that up. FPs were wonderful before the change!

I actually disagree for people with toddlers. For those riding the headliners lots, the original Fastpass system might have been better because it allowed people to ride the same headliner multiple times in one day, but I actually found Fastpass+ much better with a toddler. We didn't have to run all around collecting fast passes, there were even more family friendly choices than with the old fastpass system, and we could make changes on the fly with our iPhones. But I know that's not everyone's experience.

 

[mylittlebuttercup]

If not getting to use the free childcare/clubs is not important to you, perfect.

It isn't truly free in my opinion because they charge more for the fare of children three and up than they do for younger kids. So yes, you won't have free child care if sailing with a child younger than three, but you will also have saved money over an older child's fare.

 

[mylittlebuttercup]

My answer would be another question--how old would a kid need to be to appreciate being on--or even REMEMBER being on-- a cruise???

I personally don't think that matters unless this is a once-in-a-lifetime trip. The parents will remember it even if the kids don't.

 

[mylittlebuttercup]

Crystal0-o It mattered to a # of people I know who took toddlers on long vacations--and swear they regret doing so.

Maybe they went about it the wrong way. A lot of people expect to vacation the same way they did before they had kids and get frustrated when their expectations don't meet the reality. When traveling with a toddler, you often need to slow down the pace a bit, try to keep to routines like nap time, etc. We had a fabulous five days at WDW with our 17 month old this past November, and I am so glad I didn't listen to any naysayers who said it is crazy to travel with a toddler.

 

[lbgraves]

I actually disagree for people with toddlers. For those riding the headliners lots, the original Fastpass system might have been better because it allowed people to ride the same headliner multiple times in one day, but I actually found Fastpass+ much better with a toddler. We didn't have to run all around collecting fast passes, there were even more family friendly choices than with the old fastpass system, and we could make changes on the fly with our iPhones. But I know that's not everyone's experience.

We were able to do many more FPs each day than the new system tends to allow. We always had special experiences when the kids were young also. I don't like having to be on such a schedule because of that. Would have hated to tell Alice, sorry the kids can't ride on the teacups with you because we will miss our FP time. My DH always did the FP running while I was on another ride with the kids. We always had FPs left over and would give extras to a family we met during the parade/fireworks.

 

[KLK622]

We brought our son on DCL at 13 months (7 night Fantasy), 22 months (7 night Fantasy), 26 months (9 night Alaska) and 36 months (5 night Wonder)....we obviously find DCL to be a great family friendly vacation. I love that they provided a pack and play and diaper genie. We ordered diapers from Babies Travel Light. My son was done with bottles by the time we went on our first cruise, so we didn't really have to worry about that. Overall packing for the trip with a baby wasn't any more difficult than with an older child-we just had to bring our stroller.

Our first two trips at age one were actually much easier than the two trips at age two. He was more adaptable and much less likely to complain if he wasn't getting what he wanted. On our last trip that was weeks before this 3rd birthday he boycotted the nursery that he had loved on all of our prior trips and decided he was going to be an extremely picky eater, so that made that trip the most difficult with him. We did just bring him to Hawaii at 39 months and he was super easy again-so I think 2 is just a hard age to travel at.

We have another one the way so we can't cruise right now (past 24 weeks pregnant) and again until the new baby is 6 months. We have decided we are going to hold off until the new baby is 1 just because we found that be a really good age to cruise at for us.

If a Disney cruise is a once in a lifetime thing for you, then I would hold off until 3+, but if it is just another vacation then go ahead and book it!

 

[MystikaFaith]

I think it depends on family dynamics as well. If I wait until my youngest is 3 or 4 my oldest will be in college.

 

[mylittlebuttercup]

We were able to do many more FPs each day than the new system tends to allow. We always had special experiences when the kids were young also. I don't like having to be on such a schedule because of that. Would have hated to tell Alice, sorry the kids can't ride on the teacups with you because we will miss our FP time. My DH always did the FP running while I was on another ride with the kids. We always had FPs left over and would give extras to a family we met during the parade/fireworks.

See I feel like the old system offered less flexibility in the situation you described above. With the new system, if you are in danger of missing your FP time, you can just go in the app on your phone and pick a different FP rather than missing your time all together like I sometimes was afraid would happen or did happen on the old Fastpass system. (Now given if your FP was for 7DMT or Anna and Elsa, you might not be able to reschedule that, but I know that ahead of time and make sure we are over there at the beginning of our FP+ window.)

I do miss being able to give other people Fastpasses I wasn't going to be able to use like you said, though.

 

[Belleluvswdw]

DD was 6 months on her first cruise and will be 18 months on the next. We all had a blast. Yes, it was a change to our usual vacation rhythm, but unlike touring the parks with a cranky little one, we could easily head back to the room while the older kids (teens) went to find other things to do.

If you love Disney vacations like we do, the sooner you get them used to crowds, heat, characters, etc the easier it gets down the road.

 

[kathi]

We first cruised with our daughter when she was 5. I don't think I would have cruised with her younger than that because we like to do adult activities. She LOVES the kids club, so it's never an issue (we are now on DCL cruise 17 and she is 11 now)

We cruised several years ago with friends who had the Royal Suite. They had their three kids with them and the youngest was 2. They really wish they had left her home with grandma. She was fussy and would not stay in the nursery at all. She did not enjoy herself and just made everyone else miserable. They had hoped to do couples massage, dinner in Remy, etc. and it was pretty much shot (we did watch the baby for them so they could do a few things). We also traveled with friends who took their 4 and 6 year old nieces. They also said that they hadn't really thought it through all that well as they were not able to do any adult things because the girls did not like the kids clubs.

So - I think it really depends on what you want to do on the cruise. If doing all kid/family stuff, getting up early and going to bed early is perfectly fine with you - absolutely traveling with a young child would be fine. If you want to experience some of the adult entertainments/activities available, you may be disappointed.

 

[Uncleromulus]

Maybe they went about it the wrong way. A lot of people expect to vacation the same way they did before they had kids and get frustrated when their expectations don't meet the reality. When traveling with a toddler, you often need to slow down the pace a bit, try to keep to routines like nap time, etc. We had a fabulous five days at WDW with our 17 month old this past November, and I am so glad I didn't listen to any naysayers who said it is crazy to travel with a toddler.

My friends spent half their vacation trying to quiet their toddlers in strollers, often having to leave the Parks in the middle of the day.Being unable to get on rides because the kids were too small--hauling them out of restaurants when they started screaming. Both insist they would never take a kid under the age of 5 to WDW. Having seen a lot of exasperated parents with toddlers in my own 60 trips to WDW, I can easily see where they are coming from! Now--on a cruise there are no rides, and getting to the room for a nap, etc is a lot easier.