2 year olds and touring plans/toys?

[asktriplets]

hi.

for those of you with toddlers right around 24 mths (as opposed to an almost 3yr. old), how did you plan your day? we are planning on going with the flow, following the kids' interests and schedule. we realize that this trip, like no other, we will be taking advantage of the "other" opportunities wdw has to offer besides the rides (campground playground/petting zoo, mk train, fountains, etc), BUT...

-besides the first-thing-in-the-morning itinerary for fantasyland that many of you offered a while back (thank you thank you!), i don't really know how to go about planning a general structure to our day. actually, the first-thing-in-the-morning is easy for every day at every park, but then should i just go from area to area, seeing if the kids are interested in activities and hitting the rides as we go (and using fastpasses as needed)?? i've got the unofficial guide book, so i have general times for when certain rides get crowded, but most of those times suggest hitting almost everything before 11!

we're planning on doing the parks when they open and some EE days, then staying until 11 or 12, then back to the parks after an early dinner (4 or 5). also, we've got 6 adults, so it _should_ be easy to move the kids from one place to another (and we can split up if the kids have different interests or wants).


----did you bring toys for your 2 y.o.? we'll have plenty of little "keep busy" toys (crayons, blocks, shape sorters, peg boards, etc) and a billion books from the car ride down, but i wasn't really planning on bringing bigger toys to occupy them when we're at the cabins. we're not bringing trikes, board puzzles, any "play pretend" stuff that they usually play with at home. were your kids occupied enough without lots of toys?


THANKS for your help! we leave in 3 days and i'm starting to panic about the logistics!

 

[ErinInCT]

Don't bother with the toys. We had tons too & our backpack was very heavy! The kids are soooo visually stimulated by everything in the parks that the only thing we had to pull out were bubbles when we had to wait for Cinderella's Surprise Celebration to start. So bring those little bottles of bubbles & you'll be in business.
A 2yo will be able to go on every ride that does not have a height requirement. At early 2 they may not be scared of stuff yet, you know your child best. If you think they will be scared of stuff (like PotC or HM), skip them & ride the carrousel over & over!!
Definately take a break after 3ish hours for naps and/or swimming.
What parks are you doing? At MK you can do Toontown & Fantasyland (as well as the others if you think your child would like it - do you have the planning video to show them the rides?). MGM you can do the shows, especially Playhouse Disney! EPCOT, the boat rides in Mexico & Norway are fun as are all the shows. We did not do AK this past trip with kids.
I'm sure they will love the parades (but they are at a bad time for naps!)
Eating early is a great idea! We brought snacks into the park too but never really used them.
Have fun!

 

[crazywig]

i agree, don't bring any toys. on our trip last june ds was 2yr 2months....we brought one of his woody dolls and lost it the first day! luckily he was so distracted by everything going on he never missed it.

june had longer hours so we did early mornings, then back to the hotel after lunch, and back to a park after an early dinner. ds really needed that break even if he didn't nap and just swam/relaxed it was a break from the 'action' of the park.

he had no problem with dark rides or the 3d shows (however for our trip coming up in january i think he might be)

he's a big animal lover and AK was a big hit with him. don't forget to check out the petting zoo in the back of the park at 'conservation station'.

oh, he LOVED the little playground in toontown fair across from mickey's house, we could barely drag him out of there


have a great time!

 

[Serenity]

On one of our trips, my DD was 28 mo. That was a great age for her. She was not scared yet by the 3-D movies and the dark rides (by 36 months she refused to do those things). She also loved all the characters and went right up and hugged them. (At 36 mo she screamed if we got to close to them.)

She loved Playhouse Disney as well as all the shows at MGM. She loved Imagination ride at EPCOT. She really loved the play area inside the exit to the Imagination ride. Water fountains anywhere at Disney were a hit but especially the ones by Imagination - next to the Honey I shrunk the Audience show. There is a circular area where little water balls would jump in the air. She loved trying to catch them. It kept her entertained while others saw the show. All the play areas were a big hit - especially in AK's Boneyard and MGM.

I agree with no toys. There was so much to see and so much noise that she was constantly entertained. We had brought crayons and books, but by day 2 we left them in the hotel - she never played with them and they were getting heavy to carry around.

Have a great trip.

 

[PratersloveDW]

The best advice I can give is to MAKE SURE that your child stays on his/her routine. If they usually take a nap at noon, make sure you are back at the room by 11:30 for them to start calming down. Make sure they continue to eat semi-healthy (I mean you are on vacation just don't let them go over bored with bad eating); otherwise, you could end up like us with a very cranky child becuase they have not gotten the nutrition they need.

As far as toys, I don't think they are needed at all. A couple for when you are back in the room. But for the most part, they will be plenty entertained by everything going on around them or they will be sleeping from all of the excitment! Have a magical time and don't panic...the children will have the most amazing time and for you, it will be wonderful to see the 'World' through their eyes!

 

[kyirish25]

We took my DS right at 24 months. Our plan was to simply do the things he enjoyed and skip over the things he didn't. We started with MK in Fantasyland and did everything. Moved over toward Tommorowland doing Buzz, Astro Orbitor & Indy cars. Then to Adventureland for Aladdin, Jungle Cruise & Pirates.

We had 4 adults and only one child so during some down time we would split up take DS through the shops or to play in the playground while the others did the big rides like Splash, Space Mountain, etc.

We always would just go until he was tired and then head back for an afternoon nap. Some days that was noonish, others days it would be 3:00ish. Just be flexible and listen to your childs cues.

 

[Magic2000]

I don't think toys are needed in the parks either!! One thing my kids did like - and it would keep them entertained for quite a while - was the little light up spin things. (DD still has her Buzz Lightyear!!) Also, don't know if it will be cool when you're there, but the mister spray bottles also kept my little one quiet while we waited for her older sisters to ride one of the "mountain" rides!

I do bring little surprise treats to pull out in emergencies - goldfish, peanut butter crackers, Smarties candies, etc. The only time I would take the "surprise" treats out was if they got cranky.

Have a great trip!!!!

 

[dcmbshafe]

I think you have the most important thing in mind - take breaks in the afternoon. DD is now 5 and DS is 4, but their first trip was about 2 years ago and they both could only go for about 3-4 hours max at a time. The thing that many people fail to consider is the sheer amount of mental stimulation kiddos receive from just walking up Main Street USA!!! This is another reason why toting around a lot of extra toys is somewhat of a waste of energy - they are entertained just looking around. One "extra" that we did have luck with was a little tube of bubbles for when we waited in long lines.

 

[asktriplets]

thanks for all of the helpful info.!!

praterslovedw--i agree with the food issue...my mother thinks i'm crazy that i have my menu plan and grocery list ready, but i know my kids are going to get alot of junk food (how can they not? they're going to WDW with BOTH sets of spoiling grandparents!), so i want them to eat normally whenever possible. i actually asked in another forum if anyone has ever brought a crockpot to use in the cabins or villas (we're staying in the FW cabins)


kyirish-thanks for the specific info on what rides you did when...i guess that is what i'm trying to figure out. ....

.... after the first hr. or 2 of hitting all of the "must-do" rides, did you just wander around or was there a general itinerary that guided the rest of the morning before naptime (for example, in MK, "after fantasyland and toontown, head over to frontierland to see if the kids are interested in show w or ride x, and get fastpass for ride y. if not, go see show z") same for post- mealtime/nap...do you have a specific idea of what you want to do/see if the kids are interested, or do you wing it all?

excellent point about the toys in the parks--we have a bajillion little bottles of bubbles, so we should be prepared. am i hearing, then, the your kids were pretty much ready for eating and sleeping only back in your rooms? i forgot to mention that we're staying at the FW cabins and we're planning a day off from the parks. i can't imagine that the kids will have time to get "bored" at the campground, but thanks for the reassurance that we don't need extra stuff to keep them busy either in the parks or at night....