advice needed: 1yr old in Disney

[bubbiemom]

My husband and I were last in DW in 1993. We may be going with our son who will turn 1 in May. It is a trip with my husband's family (4 other adults and 4 other children)but I was hoping for some tips to traveling with a 12 month old.

1) How do you handle the lines with a little one for the rides? Are they that long? Will he like to go on the rides?

2) We need to fly (2hrs) do we bring his regular car seat on the plane? Does he need a car seat? I don't know if he will want to be held for 2 hours or more. His normal car seat is huge and heavy!

3) If we don't have a car seat, how do you get to your hotel? Silly question maybe but.....

4) Do we bring a stroller? I am sure DW rents them, right?

Thanks for your help. We are just trying to decide whether we should go now or wait till he's a little older.

 

[Ksquared]

When we went to Disney in 2005, my daughter was 2 and my son 11 months. Let me see if I can answer your specific questions:

1) At the time we went, the lines were not too bad. With all the fresh air, my son slept a few times a day at the parks. For the most part, he enjoyed the rides.

2) We did not pay for a seat for him that year so he was free and considered a "lap child". We did pay for my daughter so we had a row to ourselves. We live in NJ and fly from Phila...about 2 1/2 hours. It was not too bad at all, except his ears hurt on the landing. Otherwise, he slept half the flight anyway.

(3) We rented a minivan and they gave us one with built in carseats.

(4) DW does rent strollers. We brought ours with us since we needed a double. It was nice to be able to recline the kids back when they napped. They will tag your stroller and you can take it right up to the door of the plane then they store them underneath. They will be waiting when you get off the plane.....pretty convenient.

Some people think it's more of a hassle to travel with young kids. While you have to take more stuff for the little ones, my son's first vacation was at 6 weeks (although we drove to our destination). We brought enough diapers for the day then bought some when we got to Florida...we got a hight chair and pack n play at our resort (although we stayed offsite that year)....there are lots of things you can do to make it easier on you....I'd say if you have the opportunity why not go.....

 

[aroyer]

We took our 15 month old in August 2006.

We did fast pass for the rides we knew he could ride- the pooh ride specifically. We got the fast pass and then played at pooh's house while we waited for our time. He loved the pooh ride. We also kept ourselves flexible- if he needed to go back to the room, then one of us went back with him.

We bought him a seat on the plane- mostly because he is pretty active and knew that if he were not in his car seat, he would be all over the plane.

We stayed on WDW property so we did the Magic Express, all of our luggage, etc. were taken to the hotel without us having to mess with it at the airport. That was one of the best things we did! So we rode the Magic Express bus to the hotel.

We took our stroller because it was so much more comfortable than the strollers that you rent. The ones you rent are hard plastic which for older kids they work, but with the little guys it is harder for them to nap. Our little guy did actually nap in his stroller, which amazed us since normally he doesn't.

My advice would be to go-- our son loved WDW. He loved the characters and had a great time looking at everything.

 

[CrzyforPiglet]

We took our son at just over 6 months and again at about 13 months this past December. The second time, we didn't do too many rides with him but unless their was a small wait we did fastpasses or just went onto something else. I think the longest line we waited in was for Dumbo. He was so happy to look around and check everything out that I don't think he ever got real antsy. He also still wasn't walking at 13 months so I think that made a difference.

Car seat - for these trips we didn't bring his car seat and he did fine. He wasn't too squirmy on the plane and slept the whole way down so it worked out well. We did take his car seat on another trip and even though he's been a great lap baby - we definitely preferred him having his own seat although I agree they are very heavy. Poor DH had quite a time lugging it through the airport. From the airport to Disney the first trip we did a car service and had them bring a car seat and the second one we did magical express and just held him - worked out fine!

Stroller - we brought our Combi and wouldn't even consider renting. Some of the ones I saw were hard plastic and didn't look that comfy. Plus the walk back to your room from the bus stop can be really long at the end of the day. I would definitely bring your own stoller!

Good luck - Laurie

 

[abeyst]

Going when they're 1 is a great time to go! It was our first trip with DS and it was just like a normal trip w/o a child. Especially if you have other family members with you to share evena few of the duties it will be effortless for you. I'd say without a doubt go for it!! But now for specific answers to your questions, I can tell you how I handled it:

1) The lines weren't that long (we went in February). For rides that had a line, DH and I would take turns holding and playing with him. He was so amazed by all the activity around us he had plenty to look at while we waited. He liked all the rides we went on, except Goofy's Barnstormer.

2) We held him on the plane - didn't have a separate seat for him. DH and I took turns holding him on the plane. He slept most of the way, then ate some snacks and had a drink. He had a pacifier to help with the take off and landing - he only fussed a tiny bit. We took Mears suttle to the hotel, so we didn't need a seat on the van. DH held him the whole ride to the hotel. We arrived really late, so he slept the whole way.

3) See #2 above. I don't think you don't need a seat on public transportation. At least they didn't make us put him in a seat. (when we went in 2003 and DD was 1 we rented a town car and made sure they had a seat for her).

4) We've brought a stroller on every trip. I still bring a stroller on every trip. I never take the big all in one stroller, though. I have a McLaren that I use constantly at home and on every trip. It's great. I hated spending $75 on it, but I've gotten so much use out of it that it paid for itself. And it folds up so small that it's worth it. It came in handy having a stroller outside the parks. Couldn't have survived w/o my stroller outside the parks!!

 

[stacy6552]

Ok lets see here....

1)Bring a front baby carrier for lines and places the baby can go that the strooler cant. Dont bring a backpack because you will have to take it off when you sit down. OUr son rode all kinds of stuff in his Baby Bjorn at 11 mos and again at 19mos.


2) YES! bring the carseat. Get yourself a carseat dufflebag (worth every penny). Even if you have not bought your child a ticket (though I beg of you to do so), they will let you use the seat on the plane if there is room and you can gate check it if there isn't.

3) see #2

4)Bring your own full sized stroller, with reclingin seat, basket and cup holders. The comfort all day is worth any inconvience on WDW transportation. The rentals are not comfy enough for babies. Dont forget a rain cover for it.

I also highly recommend that you get some table toppers. These are presterilized mats that stick to the table so you can put fingerfoods down anywhere for baby.

 

[letsgoagainsoon]

Our son was so good when we took him at that age. I thought that waiting in lines he would be awful, but he wasn't bad at all. There is so much for them to see, I think they are mostly in awe, just looking at the lights and people!

I agree with the others...bring your own stroller. Those hard ones would not be good for a 1 yr old in my opinion. We took our BIG stroller the first time we went and DS was so content and happy.

Two years ago I bought a Combi stroller and LOVE it. It reclines, has a small basket underneath, but it is so compact and lightweight, it is just great for the busses and planes. (Definitely bring a stroller rain cover, and bring it into the parks EVERYDAY).

I wouldn't wait until he is older, I am sure he will be fine!

 

[Eyore4Ever149]

We have been to WDW 3 times as a couple, we are going in Oct with our baby who will be 1 1/2yr old- (your baby must be about 9 or 10 months now) we usually go in May, we have watched our neice develop (shes 9 month ahead of our girl) and figured her language and comprehension will be that much better. They can enjoy Disney on their own level no matter the age.

We are staying at OKW so we will have a kitchen and washer and dryer to make life easier.

Im still open to changing my mind...but right now Im committed to bringing my Graco all in one stroller, based on advice Ihave read hear, your child will be familiar with it and its far more comfortable than the slim lined narrow umbrella strollers. It has a basket to hold a diaper bag. I will travel with our typical fanny pack for adult items like sun lotion, glasses, etc.

We have a Britax Boulevard car seat- BIG, but we are renting a car, I will have to check into what kind of car seat a rental place might provide, we used Emerald Car Rental in the past- it doesnt get any easier!! We walked right into the parking garage, walked to the rows for the type of vehicle we signed up for, selected a car, put our stuff in and drove to the exit- FABULOUSLY easy. NO chance of Magical Express losing your luggage, or not having it to you when you are ready to check into your room. I was frustrated on a past trip when we got early check in- but our luggage hadn't arrived yet, but I hear they are improving things.

Im torn over getting seat for her. It's a big expense and she's a pretty content child, I'd be surprised if she was unhappy sitting on the lap of me Daddy or Grammy. But she would undoubtably be safer, but we dont have many years of her flying in our laps.

We find a rental car is a great way to go, it helps avoid sitting and waiting for a bus with a little one who needs to be on their way immediately. Sometimes you will have to wait for 20 minutes during really busy times when leaving the parks. It also makes it that much easier to go to and from the room. I would suggest signing up for www.tourgidemike.com and follow his planning guide, it will help you see the best of the best, and still not feel wiped out- You will be so amazed at how magical it is there and how excited you will be and making decisions on the fly can use up valuable time.

May is my favorite time to go, not too hot, but warm enough, pool swimming should be done while sun is up, flower and garden show is on and it's beautiful over at Epcot, especially for just strolling around. Easy to get in to eat wherever you want, but make ADRs for the stuff thats really important to you.