Best time to do DCL with a 4yo

[jlb]

We are considering either the 7 day Western Carribean or 4 day Land 3 Day Sea Package on the DCL for 2003. My DD will be 4 yo and we are not really flexible on travel times due to the fact I am a teacher. Our choices are July, August, November or Easter 2004. My question is when is the best time to to travel...light on crowds at the park and the DCL. This will be our first cruise and we are excited about it.

Thanks in advance

 

[Masonpips]

Based on your choices, you have to hit November IMO. July/Aug are miserable at the parks. Easter/Spring Break times are also crowded. I know NJ is one of the few states with a fall break (is that when you'd be going?) so take advantage of awesome FL weather and probably great cruise weather as well. And you'll probably have only 1/2 the state of NJ there vs. 1/2 the rest of the US.

How does the fall break thing work in NJ? Does every school participate? Do they all schedule it the same week or is it staggered?

I'm already stressing next year when my DS is in K and I have to decide if he can miss time to go on a trip (I figure K (since it's not even mandatory down here) is the one year to miss if we're going to pull him out, but it already makes me feel guilty!

 

[PiperG]

Masonpips,

You should look for a thread several weeks ago about pulling kids out of school. I felt good about pulling DS 5 out of K in January after reading posts from a principal and his teacher-wife. We actually have a trip planned during DS's first grade year as well. I would never pull him out at a critical time (like the first few weeks in a new class) but we are o.k. with mid-year for K and 1st.

 

[jlb]

In NJ the fall break will be 4 days next year. Usually the second Thurs./Fri in Nov. It is mandatory for all public school teachers to have this time off to attend the convention in NJ. It is up to the district whether you are required to. So yes, all NJ Public Schools will have those days off.

We were leaning towards Nov. too, Just less stressful in August when I am home and only one of us has to juggle getting vacation time. Is August bad crowd wise in the park??

 

[aseafish]

My understanding is that the weather, too, should be much better in November--barring weird storms, of course.

 

[mcnuss]

August is miserable in the parks. Hot, humid & crowded. My vote is for November. The other time I love is the 2nd week of January which may not work for you depending on when the kids go back to school in NJ.

 

[cruiselovinbunch]

Hi, here's my 2 cents:

You may find you'll enjoy your experience a bit more if you can go in November. We go to WDW nearly every year, and we prefer to travel in the fall -- the weather is warm enough to enjoy the pools but not humid, and the parks are MUCH less crowded. We did a land/sea package in November 2000 and it was just perfect. We just returned from WDW and a 7 day Eastern cruise (we tagged along with some other family members) and I hate to say it but we would have had a much better time if we'd waited until fall. The parks in WDW were just too hot and crowded -- our girls, ages 6 and 3, were exhausted by lunchtime the humidity and heat were so draining. The cruise was nice, it was actually much more temperate in the Caribbean than in Florida. I would say that we would cruise again in summer, but save WDW for the fall.

Good luck and happy travels!

Elly Barczak
Newark, Delaware

 

[Ginny]

I support the November plan. I'm not one to be out in the sun at the height of heat or summer - too many sunburns in my misguided youth.

We did WDW/DCL in the early September timeframe with DD when she was 4 and I much preferred our January and October trips at ages 5 and 7. For the parks, we always get up very early, make breakfast ressies for 10-1030 and then come back to the resort around 12-1 for naptime/swimtime.

 

[plutospup]

If you are considering the 7nt Western, and not going to the parks...Any of those months would be great. Unlike the parks, the ship only holds a certain number of passengers, and is usually always near capacity anyway. Even though July and August are HOT & Humid in Orlando, at sea you have the trade winds to keep it cooler. March/April (Easter) IMO is ideal...It's a chance to get away from the cold northeast, and get a jump on spring! On our 3/9 Magic cruise this year, our DD4 had a GREAT time!(So did Daddy!)