SSR Tips for traveling with 3yo and infant

[4boys531]

We are taking our first DVC vacation coming up Jan 19-23. It will be me, DH, and two DS's (3 year old & 7 month old). We have a 1-bedroom. We will have a rental car since we are flying into Sanford.

Any good tips for having a fun trip? I am beginning to think I am a little crazy for booking this but we got a great airfare deal and lucked out on getting a room last minute (we booked Dec. 30th!).

 

[mouseketeer70]

My family loves SSR. Don't skip the community hall. there were fun activities that your 3 year old could do some for a small fee and some free. There are coloring pages and puzzles and crafts. The staff was wonderful with my DD. The pools were fun too. She loved the Grandstand pool sprayers and the small slide of the big pool. The resort is beautiful and relaxing. Have fun!

 

[Fatalbie]

First and foremost-do not try to do everything!! You will have many great trips in the future.
Take tons more photos than you think you should, you'll be glad you did when you get home.
Enjoy some of the non-park stuff like a boatride to DTD and the monorail.
Take a stroller that can accommodate both kids or two strollers. The light weight ones and a snap and go worked with our 4 yr old and 6mo old last september.


We went with my daughter when she was three and she loved it. The 7mo will need down time and that down time can actually add to your enjoyment of the vacation. It will make you slow down and take a look around.

Don't miss wishes with the three yr old if you can time the naps right.
Relax and enjoy, its your vacation too!!
Just my $.02
Jim

 

[mrsannb]

Just take it easy. You're going to love the 1 bedroom.

There are lots of rides and shows you'll be able to see.

 

[brookelizabeth]

We took our 1 year old in November, and will be at SSR the same time as you!

A few tips I learned...
-Go slow. As you well know, kids find excitement in little things, like balloons, or a water feature. They often find this more incredible than Dumbo!

-Watch their eyes light up with wonder. It's beautiful!

-Hauling a stroller onto the busses is a pain, but worth it. Just take a deep breath when lugging all your "kid gear". Or, use your rental car. I'm new at DVC, but I do believe you get free parking at the parks. (A car would have been MUCH easier than the busses. I'm a tad jealous of your car! )

-Our DS naps great in the stroller. So, as soon as we got to the parks, we would get Fast Passes for the big rides. While he was awake we hit rides that we knew he could do with us. Then, when he was down, DH and I hit the thrill rides using the Child Swap - that means we could get two Fast Passes previously (one with my pass, one with his) and use the Child Swap so we could hit both rides easily during nap time.

-Counter Service was MUCH easier than Table! We liked table, and DS does AWESOME with them, but sometimes it was just a bit much with a toddler.

-DS' favorites: It's a Small World, Spectromagic, Tomorrowland Transit Authority, Chef Mickey's, all the kid play areas (slides, etc), the stream and fountain in the lobby of WL, and the ducks at WL and at Epcot. He could have watched the ducks forever!

-The Park Baby Centers are FANTASTIC. Lots of changing tables, clean, cool, a play area for the kids, usually a TV with cartoons. A nice resting spot for Mommy and Daddy and the kids. Plus, they sell baby needs just in case you run into a situation where you need something.

-We had diapers and milk delivered to the room through GardenGrocer.com. There are many other delivery services as well, but this helped save on milk costs from the parks and helped save on luggage space with the diapers.

I hope that helps a bit-you will have a GREAT time and have magical memories of this trip!!

DH, DS and I arrive at SSR on the 20th, staying through the 28th. We have a red stroller and I will have a LGMH on my stroller in case we run into each other!

 

[SunnieRN]

We did the same trip in August, except that it was Mommy, grandma and two boys 3 and 7 mos.
My daughter and I have these suggestions:
1) Bring cheap sippy cups you can toss if they get icky. Prevents spills and lets them hold their own drink.
2) Bring lots of snacks for them and extra baggies to save lunch etc, for later. Often they were so excited they wouldn't eat at mealtimes.
30 Eat before typical mealtimes toavoid long lines, trouble finding tables and meltdowns due to hunger.
4) You wont believe how hard it is to find your stroller in the great sea of strollers, let alone the fact that the cm's are constantly re-arranging and lining them up. Tie something to it that you will be able to spot right away! Also don't leave anything of any vaalue in your stroller.
5) Never underestimate the value of extra magic morning hours. The kids are fresh, lines are short and it is cooler.
6) Baby stations are in each park and are fantastic places to feed the baby and get a drink of water!

There are more tips, but I hope that is enough to get you started!!
Saratoga Springs is beautiful and the one bedrooms are spacious!

 

[4boys531]

Thank you all for the wonderful tips. One more question...should we bring two different strollers (a larger Graco for the 7 month old so he can fully recline and an umbrella for the 3.5 year old) or should I haul my sit-and-stand double stroller (it can have either 2 seats or I can remove one of the seats for the sit/stand platform)?

 

[bkaz]

I would probably take the sit and stand. That way if one of you heads off to a ride or character (on foot) with the older child, the other one can still easily manage the stroller with the younger. If you have two strollers the second adult will have to backtrack to pick up the stroller, or one person will be managing two strollers. On the other hand...I guess if you think you'll split up a lot then perhaps two is easier. We just rented a double, and the double worked well for us (our kids were a bit older though).

 

[MikeyNS]

My advice is get to the parks for rope drop in the morning. You won't believe the amount of things you'll be able to do in 1 or 2 hours.. and then head back for a swim before lunch and hit the parks again mid afternoon (if at all!).