Disney with a One Year Old

[hughjulia]

My wife and I are going to Disney this September with our son who will be 14 months at the time of the trip. My parents and my sister’s family will be with us for the first four days of our trip. We will be on our own for the next two.

With my family there I feel confident that with all the extra help/baby sitters everything will be fine. When they leave and it is just the three of us, well it might be a little more difficult to do Disney with a one year old.

Does anyone have any tips for doing Disney as couple with a one year old in tow? We will be staying at the WL. I’m putting this question in the Park Strategies forum because I believe that going to the parks will be the hard part. However, please don’t limit your comments to just the parks. Any advice is appreciated. If this has been discussed extensively before, I apologized. Any links to old threads from the veterans of this site would be appreciated as well. My search of the threads seemed to cast to wide a net.

 

[KarenP99]

We're staying at the VWL in Sept, and our youngest will be 15 months at the time.

We've done it before with a 13 month old, and the best advice is go at their pace. The day's of doing "everything" is over for now. We did more looking than doing. Lots of walking (with baby in stroller of course), and she was totally fascinated by all the sights and sounds.

Lots of pool time, and down time in the hotel was great. Taking her out of all the stimulation really helped.

Since you're staying on property...don't go out for the day assuming you'll be "out for the day" (ie. bringing everything besides the kitchen sink). No harm done in leaving a park an hour or two after getting there to go back to the hotel for a change, nap swim...and getting there is half the fum (IMO).

We are DVC members, so we really really enjoy & relax on our trips. There will be plenty of years to see EVERYTHING and when the kids get older they will want to go-go-go.

Hope you have a great time, maybe we'll see you there!

Karen

 

[zcomic]

Many of the wilder rides have a child swap. The way it works is both of you stand in line together and when you get to the front one adult goes on the ride while the other waits in a designated area with the child. When the ride is done, the child is swapped and the other adult goes back to the front of the line.

A note on this for future trips. If you have 2 kids and only one isn't riding the other kid gets to ride with both parents. My son was disappointed when his younger sister hit 48" and could go on all the rides.

My other trip is focus on doing what YOU want to do rather than what your child will like because he won't remember it anyway. On our first trip our daughter was 4. She had a great time but admits she doesn't remember much. Fortunately we took tons of video and photos so she has wonderful memories. Make sure to do the same.

And speaking of photos, make sure you take a pics of the 3 of you in front of attractions then make sure to recreate the same pose in the same location on future trips. It makes for a great collage.

You'll LOVE WL. Have a great trip

 

[tjkraz]

Please, please, please take a break in the middle of the day so that your son can get his normal mid-day nap in the comfort of your hotel room. The weather will still be very hot and humid (and maybe even rainy) in September. Don't force him to sleep in a stroller or miss naps altogether.

Do whatever you can to maintain his normal routine and the entire family will be better off for it.

Other than that, I don't think it's difficult at all to visit the parks with a child. Really it's no worse than a trip to the mall. The biggest decision you'll have to make is whether to bring your own stroller or rent one. If you rent one, it costs about $10 per day and you only have use of the stroller when you are actually in a theme park. A lot of people think it is a hassle to carry their own stroller--particularly on the busses--but it saves you some money and insures you have a stroller available at all times.

Have fun!

 

[danicaw]

We did WDW last Jan. with our DS who was almost 8 months....I know there is a huge difference between 8 months and 14 months...now he is walking and talking. And we just did DL with him this month.
We stayed at OKW in Jan. with extended family and at WLV after everyone left. WL is a great location for little ones. Easy boat access to MK.
My thoughts are:
Go at his pace. Our DS was doing 2 naps a day while we were there. He took 1 in the room each day and the other in his stroller.

A good sized stroller that reclines and has a large basket was a blessing.

Use the Baby Care Centers. We checked out the one in each park and found them to be peaceful, spacious and clean. Great place to change a diaper, feed or just rest.
They have regular high chairs in the Baby Care Centers....the kind with the attached tray.

WL can provide you with a pack-n-play and resturant style high chair for your room. (they have Mickey sheets on the pack--play)

Small World got him to sleep almost every time.

Loved the disposable bibs for eating out - Pampers Bibsters.

We had a wonderful trip. I am looking forward to returning for a short trip when he is 23 months. My biggest suggestion is relax and enjoy.

 

[suerob]

You'll probably have more fun than what you think. On our last trip in Dec. dd was 15 mo old and she absolutely loved it. We did use our own stroller which I would highly recommend for that age. Utilize the baby swap so you can wait together in line and both ride. We didn't even know this existed when we took our 2 year old, it sure would've made it easier on us. Try and stick to your regular nap and eating schedules. Make sure you catch all the parades. This was my dd's very favorite part of the trip. She was so excited to see parades. She liked characters from a distance but close-up they were pretty scary to her. She actually did a lot of the attractions. She loved Playhouse Disney, IASW (closed for rehab now), Winnie the Pooh, the Safari, Magic Carpets, and just imagine how the Spectromagic parade looks to a 15 mo old with all those lights! Okay I'm getting excited, only 2 wks till our next trip. I don't think you should worry about it being difficult, go and have fun!

 

[hughjulia]

There are already some really nice suggestions here. We purchased a Capri something or other umbrella stroller. It had good reviews on Amazon, and it reclines a few inches when needed. It also has a nice basket.

I didn’t know about the Baby Care Centers. I’ll have to find them on the park maps before we go.

A high chair for the room would certainly be nice.

I don’t think my wife knows about disposable bibs. If she does, we haven’t purchased them yet. We certainly will for the trip.

I really like the idea of getting pictures of the three of us in front of attractions and then recreating the same pose in the same location on future trips. That is definitely me.

 

[Geomich]

We took DS when he was about 17 months and he loved it. It was much more relaxing- do follow the advise on taking afternoon breaks.

Visiting the characters was a big thing for him- he absolutely loved them all and I have wonderful pictures/memories from them. We did several character meals and they really spend alot of time with the little ones when they realize they are not afraid.

We have an annual tradition of Chef Mickey and buy the pictures and have the fridge magnet from every year. We also have a picture at the Poly (his first resort) of us every year and even if we dont stay there I make sure I get my annual photo.

Enjoy your trip!

 

[Lesley]

You still outnumber him....things will be fine. Our first child didn't get to WDW until he was 4yo.....but our girls have been going from infancy (we've done 2.5m, 5.5m, 20m.....will be doing 4.5m and 9m this year.....).

Take it slow, use baby swap if you don't mind doing some rides alone....and just relax and have fun. It just gets harder until about the age of 4-5y.....when they begin to become more able to reason and have patience.

I also recommend taking a sling or other sort of soft hip or back carrier for a 14m baby....you have to leave the stroller behind in some places and a carrier saves your arms and back some strain. For older babies and toddlers I like the maya wrap (diaperbabies.com is a great distributor) or the Baby Trekker. I don't advise using a metal frame backpack because of the bulk when you're not using it.

Oh, one last note...restaurant take out is great when you've got little ones!

Your child will be the same kid at WDW as at home....so you're the expert!

 

[Cobra B.]

My DD is now three and she has been there six times starting at 5 months. She LOVES it. You will not do everything in a day anymore. But some advice would be to have a car. Don't depend on the buses. And if the bus is crowded and Jr. is cranky everyone is cranky. Get the afternoon nap. Have a comfy stroller. Don't worry so much about getting on all the rides. Do the Character Breakfasts and Dinners. But most of all, STAY PATIENT! One bad moment can ruin a day. And you're not allowed to ruin a Disney day. It's the rule. You gotta live with it. And one more thing, remember the sunscreen. Sunburned kids are no fun.

 

[liznboys]

We went last year when our youngest at the time was just 17 months. My tip is to start the day early (get to the parks and do as much as you can before the crowds get big), and end the day early. Don't try to do any nighttime activities, except maybe one night. We were back in our room each night by 8pm, gave the boys their bath, and let them watch the Disney bedtime stories on TV for a little bit, then off to sleep. Our very last night there, we stayed late at MK to see the fireworks, but then we slept in the next morning.

We're going next Feb. when our youngest will be 11 months old! We can't wait!! It's really not that hard having little ones at WDW, you can have just as much fun. In fact I had more fun on our last trip than I did any other time in my life without kids. I didn't think it was possible for me to love WDW any more than I already did, but it's even more MAGICAL to see WDW through the eyes of a child!!

 

[moinab]

I also recommend taking a sling or other sort of soft hip or back carrier for a 14m baby....you have to leave the stroller behind in some places and a carrier saves your arms and back some strain. For older babies and toddlers I like the maya wrap (diaperbabies.com is a great distributor) or the Baby Trekker. I don't advise using a metal frame backpack because of the bulk when you're not using it.

ITA! We have been to WDW 7 times, so far, since DD turned 1 year old in January. I couldn't do it without my MayaWrap sling. You have to park the stroller before going on any ride/attraction, including all the pavilions at Epcot. The sling is great for containing a wiggly toddler while in line and also while on the rides or watching shows.

Many of the wilder rides have a child swap. The way it works is both of you stand in line together and when you get to the front one adult goes on the ride while the other waits in a designated area with the child. When the ride is done, the child is swapped and the other adult goes back to the front of the line.

In our experience, the designated wait area is usually outside, so you are not able to wait in line together. I think it often depends on the CM. We have found it easier, in most cases, to simply use Fastpasses, instead. While one adult goes on the ride, the other takes the kids on something nearby that is child friendly. For example, when one of us goes on Space Mountain, the other takes the kids on the TTA. There's a cute little toddler play area in between Splash Mountain and BTMRR.

You'll be surprised by how much you can do with a 1 year old. We take our kids on everything that doesn't have a height restriction (and there are only 3 or 4 rides in each park with the restrictions.)
My DD almost always falls asleep on Kilimanjaro Safari. LOL! She doesn't care for the character meet and greets, but she loves Playhouse Disney. Every child is different, but if my high-need, screams-at-the-drop-of-a-pin DD can have a good time at WDW, anyone can!

 

[ajk912]

This thread is very useful, knowing I will have an 11 month old! I have been toying with the idea of having the baby stay home with grandma (but I would miss her) or delaying the trip for a year till she is bigger. But then my other two would be outgrowing the Playhouse Disney age..and since they LOVE Playhouse Disney, I want them to see it! Thanks for all the help!

 

[moinab]

If you haven't already, check out the Disney for Families board. You will find a lot of information about visiting WDW with babies and toddlers.