Disney trip with a baby under 1 year??

[Libby6]

My husband and I would love to go to Disney world- I haven't been in almost 20 years, and he has only been once as a kid. I'm pregnant with our first child and we are wondering if it is insane to even consider going when our daughter is 6 months to a year old. Has anyone gone with a young baby, and would they recommend it? We really just want to enjoy the Magic kingdom, maybe Epcot, and spend lots of downtime at whatever resort we would stay at. I would greatly appreciate any advice!

 

[KingofJapan]

We considering it but decided to wait until she is at least 1 year that way she would have most of her vaccination and some of the important ones like the measles. You have to watch out for those families who bring their kids to the parks with flu like symptoms. Those are the inconsiderate parents

 

[NJlauren]

We are taking our daughter at 10 months in May and can't wait! Everyone is different and you're going to get lots if different opinions. I can't tell you how it's going to go but I can tell you for me it's worth it. My daughter is in day care, we have already flown with her twice so she is already exposed to lots of things. I wanted to go on vacation with her so a vacation to the happiest place on earth why not!

 

[msmama]

My son's first trip was when he was 10 months old. It was great. You just have to know that you're not going to get everything done.

There's a lot of rides that babies can ride. If you want to ride the big ones, you'll have to take turns, obviously, but can take advantage of Baby Swap so you don't both have to wait in standby lines.

My son slept in his stroller mostly. He fell asleep on many dark rides and during lots of shows. I was still nursing at the time so I could just nurse if he got cranky. Disney also has baby care centers for nursing and changing and whatever else you need (personally I only used them if they were convenient).

 

[Lthomas628]

We did! I'd recommend baby wearing - my little guy l

 

[Mousemommy1]

We are bringing our son next month and he will be 3.5 months at the time!!!

 

[twinz]

I am bringing my daughter in May, she will be almost 5 months. I am so excited. She is my first and I have been waiting for this day to be able to take my child to WDW.

 

[Lilliputian]

We took our last baby when he was 5 months are are planning to go again this fall with our new baby who will also be 5 months old. It worked out great.

There are some things you can do to make it easier. I'd definitely plan to go when the weather shouldn't be too hot. Get your baby used to being worn in a carrier from an early age because they are a lifesaver in the parks, especially in lines. It's also easiest to go when they aren't pulling up and starting to walk yet. Before they're crawling is even better. They're more content to spend the day in a carrier and stroller before they start moving around (plus crawling in a hotel room is a little gross). Almost all babies won't be crawling before 7 months, and many will start a little later.

 

[HeyKoolaid]

Both our kids had their first trip at 9 months of age. I was so excited to get them their first Mickey ears. Also, Disney has the nicest baby care centers. for nursing. The main thing for use was to consider how long it would take to get back to our resort for a mid day nap. Now that they are older, it is fun to have them take photos in some of the same spots over the years and compare the photos.

 

[Libby6]

Thanks so much everyone- I'm thinking we will do it!

 

[btk2333]

My husband and I would love to go to Disney world- I haven't been in almost 20 years, and he has only been once as a kid. I'm pregnant with our first child and we are wondering if it is insane to even consider going when our daughter is 6 months to a year old. Has anyone gone with a young baby, and would they recommend it? We really just want to enjoy the Magic kingdom, maybe Epcot, and spend lots of downtime at whatever resort we would stay at. I would greatly appreciate any advice!

We went with twins at ten months old - it was a great trip and I would recommend it; however, we have been 30+ times and know the parks like the back of our hands. You really want to do your research to know where bathrooms, food, baby centers, etc are because you don't want to be scrambling.

It was one of the most relaxing trips we've ever had- we took things slow and just enjoyed things. We always gave them some hotel time to crawl around (we stayed BCV and there are plenty of open spaces to stretch for babies. Our little boy was perfectly content to sit in the stroller; however, our little girl just wanted to be held so I wore her basically the whole week. We actually found sit down meals more relaxing than counter service because we could get set up and enjoy the meal, while counter service was always rushed. We did 1-2 sit down meals every day for the 8 days we were there. We brought disposable place mats to put down at the table service meals so they could eat of the table without too many germs- they ate a little bit off of our plates and their snacks that we brought from home.

We went in February- the weather was great and will be going back in November when they'll be 20 months- I would avoid the summer and try to go at a not busy time if at all possible.

All in all it was a great trip!

 

[brittamouse]

Disney is probably the easiest place to travel with a small baby. They have Baby Care Centres in each park with change facilities, quiet areas for nursing/feeding, cartoons for toddlers, etc... We took our baby girl at 3.5 months and she was great and very portable. You should also check out the Rider Switch program which will allow you and your husband to switch up on rides the baby can't go on.

From personal experience, its nice to have a room with a balcony/patio to escape when baby is sleeping, especially if you are going to spend quite a bit of time in your room relaxing. If you are staying onsite, only deluxe resorts have balconies/patios which are great if you can swing them

 

[Jenna319]

We are taking our daughter in November, she will be 1 year, we were able to book a VGF studio with renting points. I cannot wait and would go sooner if I could afford to!! We've been so many times by ourselves and this is the 1st time we will be taking our 1st baby. I understand it will be at a slower pace than we're used to and won't go on all the rides, which is completely fine. I am looking forward to enjoying the Grand Floridian, going on stroller walks around the grounds, and taking her to the pool as much as I am looking forward to the parks!

 

[Crystal824]

We took my oldest at 9 months. It must not have been too bad because she is now 4 and we are taking her and her little sister who will by 10 mo. in April. Honesty, it isn't that bad. You will move a little slower than if the baby wasn't there. It is so much fun to watch your child take in all the sights and sounds. Our baby loved all the Fantasyland attractions in MK. She loved the Disney Jr. Show at DHS. She also LOVED the pool at the resort. At that age, she hated characters and fireworks. We just avoided both on that trip.

 

[Gr8t Fan]

Absolutely, without hesitation. We took each of our 4 kids for their first trips when they were between 8 and 12 weeks old and had a great time.

 

[laughinplace199]

Our youngest was 5 months on his first trip and he was the easiest of my three kids that year! He just ate and slept wherever/whenever.

 

[TravelingTotMom]

Do it! We took our son to the MK for a day when he was 7 1/2 months, and we are going back next month for 3 days for his 1st birthday.

We all had a blast! He met Mickey (actually, he knows Mickey from MM Clubhouse and freaked out, in a good way), got his first mouse ears, and loved It's a Small World. He went on just about every ride with us, including Pirates, and we have a priceless family photo from Buzz Lightyear. Mom and Dad intensively competing, bands on the triggers, and baby in the carrier looking wide-eyed straight into the camera with a "what the heck are they doing to me?" look on his face.

I would recommend taking your everyday stroller, b/c our son took his naps in his. Actually, out of all the things I planned for, I did not plan on him taking a 2 hour nap in the middle of Fantasyland (which was fine b/c we got to child swap on 7DMT and Space Mountain).

Also, a front carrier was great. We got a cheaper one just for this trip to use in line and on rides. Support wasn't awesome for me, but it was great having him see everything on the rides and me not worrying about him wiggling around.

We kept our expectations low, but we ended up doing much more rides that we imagined. We also stayed at All-Star Movies, and the baby loved looking at all of the larger than life stuff.