Disney World with a 15 month old – a trip and product review!

[labdogs42]

We just got back from experiencing the “world” with our 15 month old son. I thought I’d post about the things that made the trip a little easier, both products I used and tips I received.

-I shipped a box of supplies to my hotel about a week and half before our departure date. The box was filled with diapers, swimmy diapers, wipes, snacks like cheerios and animal crackers, some disposable sippy cups, take and toss spoons and forks, and sunscreen. I used and empty diaper box to ship everything and it cost me about 14 bucks to mail. I think it was worth it.

-I took the big stroller. The Graco Quattro Tour with the big basket underneath, the full canopy, and the fully reclining seat. This is the best thing we took on the trip. We also took a Kiddopatomus Ray Shade (www.kiddopatomus.com) which goes over the stroller shade to make it even bigger and better. This thing ROCKED! AJ napped in his stroller every day and he slept from 1.5-2.5 hours. I think the ray shade really helped because he was fully shaded at all times. He looked much more comfortable than other kids hunched over in their non-reclining umbrella strollers with the sun blazing in their faces.

-We bought our son his own seat on the plane and took his car seat. He fell asleep before take off and slept for the first hour and a half of the flight down to Orlando. I think having his familiar seat helped him be comfortable on the plane. We also gave him Motrin and PediaCare decongestant before the flight (per our pediatrician’s recommendation) to help with any potential ear discomfort. He didn’t seem to have any issue with his ears.

-I used my LL Bean diaper bag (www.llbean.com) for my park bag every day. We left it on the handle of the stroller and we never had a problem. We packed diapers, wipes, sunscreen, swim diapers, a change of clothes for the baby, snacks, and little things like band aids and tissues in here.

-I took a soft sided 6 pack cooler with bottled water and sippy cups with us in the stroller as well. I filled a gallon ziplock bag with ice at the hotel in the morning and put it in the cooler to keep everything cold. It worked well and no one ever gave us a hard time for bringing our own cooler and water.

-I bought the LL Bean gate check ID holder (www.llbean.com) which I used as my wallet for the whole trip – on the plane and in the parks. This little 8 dollar wallet was great! It had a place for my id, a credit card or two, my park passes, and a little cash. It was also the perfect place to stash my Fast Passes!!

-I found some new sunscreen from No-AD that came in a continuous spray bottle. It was SPF 30, waterproof and sweatproof. It sprayed on CLEAR and stayed on all day. This stuff was great – I’ll be buying more!

-I rented toys from www.ababysbestfriend.com. This was a great program. You order the toys online before your trip and they deliver them to your hotel. They have tons of other baby gear for rent, too. The toys were nice because they kept AJ from sticking his fingers in the electrical outlets for amusement! (Althoug I did take outlet plugs along so he really couldn’t do that anyway!)

-We brought dollar store ponchos, a rain cover for the stroller, and our own Gore-Tex rain jackets. All of these items came in handy. We had the throw away ponchos for a quick rainfall at Downtown Disney, we used the rain cover when we had to park the stroller in the rain and when AJ fell asleep in the stroller while it was raining (we didn’t like it on there while he was awake), and the Gore Tex jackets were great when we went to MK in the rain. They were much more substantial than the ponchos and much more comfy.

-The one thing I wish I would have taken was an extra bag that we could use to bring home our souvenirs. I ended up buying a Disney duffel bag that I could check for the ride home. It wasn’t a big deal, but I wish I had brought my own bag.

I hope that my experience can help someone else decide that you can do Disney with a 15 month old and it can be a totally magical experience!!

Oh yeah – how could I forget my Passporter? You can get one at www.passporter.com. It was the best guidebook to take to the parks. The maps in there were better than Disney’s! I also loved the Touring Plans from www.tourguidemike.com.

 

[ObsessedwithWDW]

I am going in September with a 10 month old and have no fear at all....its a different trip but so is my life since having her.....I am used to change now HA! I just did a trip to Key West with her at 4 1/2 months old and it was a great experience with the right planning. ONLY thing I forgot was dishsoap to wash her bottles no big deal though I just bought it there. BUT thanks for sharing your positive experience I appreciate reading that Disney is a good experience too.

 

[bookmama]

thank you so much. we're traveling to the world next year. my niece will be 18 months by time we go and this will so help me plan our trip.

 

[amarberry]

We have the ray shade and love it too! I'm curious about the gate check id holder you talked about. I checked it out on the LL Bean website...do you wear it around your neck or put it in your pocket or something else?

 

[Katienphil]

Thank you!!! This is great info...we're going in October and I'm bookmarking this thread!

 

[makinorlando]

I am glad you had a great trip. You had things well planned out!

When you had posted prior to your trip, I was trying to think of what they called the Gate Check ID holder - my mother and sister both use them, and love them - but you already had one!

Cool idea about renting the toys. Who knew (although I don't need it!) I learned something new!

 

[labdogs42]

We have the ray shade and love it too! I'm curious about the gate check id holder you talked about. I checked it out on the LL Bean website...do you wear it around your neck or put it in your pocket or something else?

Here is a picture of the gatecheck ID holder

You wear it around your neck. I loved it because I couldn't lose it if it was around my neck! (I tend to forget where I put things) It was totally worth the eight bucks I paid for it! I guess you could put it in your pocket, too, but that would have defeated the purpose for me.

 

[Pluto14]

Glad you had an excellent trip! Do you mind if I ask how your DS was with the characters, attractions??? How about napping and sleeping at night? I always like to hear tips and hints from others experiences!

 

[luvmesometigger]

-I took the big stroller. The Graco Quattro Tour with the big basket underneath, the full canopy, and the fully reclining seat. This is the best thing we took on the trip. We also took a Kiddopatomus Ray Shade (www.kiddopatomus.com) which goes over the stroller shade to make it even bigger and better. This thing ROCKED! AJ napped in his stroller every day and he slept from 1.5-2.5 hours. I think the ray shade really helped because he was fully shaded at all times. He looked much more comfortable than other kids hunched over in their non-reclining umbrella strollers with the sun blazing in their faces.

-We bought our son his own seat on the plane and took his car seat. He fell asleep before take off and slept for the first hour and a half of the flight down to Orlando. I think having his familiar seat helped him be comfortable on the plane. We also gave him Motrin and PediaCare decongestant before the flight (per our pediatrician’s recommendation) to help with any potential ear discomfort. He didn’t seem to have any issue with his ears.

We are going soon with our 9 month old. I am taking her big stroller for the exact reasons you mentioned. She can fully recline for her naps! I also bought the Ray Shade. Glad to hear it worked well. In addition, I got her the stroller fan too.

I too bought her a seat on the plane and I am taking her car seat. She is used to being in it and hopefully she will nap on the ride down (we have a 7 am flight!) My ped also said I can give her some Benadryl to help keep her ears clear. Plus I plan on nursing her going up and coming down so hopefully that will help too!!

thanks for the tips!

 

[mommy*RN]

Thanks for the tips! Our DD will be 14 mo when we travel...so this is helpful! I did take DS when he was 18 mo old and I agree 100% about taking the 'big stroller'! It made a HUGE difference and he was able to nap at the parks comfortably in his stroller!

Glad your trip went well!

Oh! I was looking for the Baby's Best Friend website and the link you gave didn't work. The link I used was www.abbf.com

 

[Ava's Mommy]

We are taking our DD age 2 to Disney this October. I thought that idea was great for sending supplies ahead of time. What hotel did you stay at? How did you go about having them keep the package so long? This would save so much space when flying with her. Its our big trip with her, I'm a little lost on what to do.



Thanks Ava' Mommy

 

[michygoomy]

Thanks for this--great tips! I've bookmarked it to go over again. We're traveling with our 17 m/o in 9 days!

Where did you get the disposable sippies? I've seen them mentioned here before, but haven't seen them in a store. Did your baby drink much milk? Did you keep any in the room, pack it in the cooler, or just buy it at the parks?

Did you have a pack-n-play in the room or a crib? How well did the little one sleep there at night?

We were going to do the "ship a box of supplies" and have decided against it. We're going to have plenty of suitcases, and I figure the empty space that once held the diapers and snacks can be used for souvenirs. That might have solved your space problem, no?

 

[labdogs42]

Sorry I',m so slow at getting back here -- I'll try to answer everyone's questions.

We stayed at the Beach Club. I got the address from my passporter book. I mailed the package about ten days before we left. They didn't have any problem holding it for me.

I found the disposable sippies at babies R Us. I've also seen them at Target and Wal Mart. First Years makes them I think.

My little guy doesn't drink a lot of milk because he still nurses. I would think it would be easy to bring milk with you or buy it in the parks. AJ drank mostly water while we were in the parks.

My son was great with the characters and attractions. He was scared of Chip and dale on the first day, so I held him to interact with them until he got comfortable. Day two we went to Toon town and I held him to see Daisy Duck and Minnie. By the time we got to Pluto, I was able to get pictures with just him and pluto. We also visited Mickey in the Judge's Tent and AJ wanted to run up to him! I think taking it slow helped make the character less scary. By the end of the week, AJ was addicted to characters!

As for attractions, he mostly sat on the seat in between us and took everything in. Some rides he wanted to sit on my lap and he even fell asleep on a few! (Spaceship Earth and hall of presidents!) We took him on Spaceship Earth, Imagination, Maelstrom (is a fastpass?), and El Rio del Tiempo in Epcot, Kilamanjaro Safaris in AK, and tons of stuff in Magic Kingdom -- Small World, Dumbo, Winnie the Pooh, Peter Pan, Buzz Lightyear, Carousel of Progress, Jungle Cruise, haunted Mansion, Hall of Presidents, and the teacups. I might be missing something, but I can't think of what it might be. Like I said before, we had a great time!

 

[Pluto14]

Glad he did so well with everything! I was wondering how/where my 14month old DD would sit on rides....I was assuming right between DH and I, but I'm not sure she'll sit still. I'm thinking about getting some kind of hip carrier, so I know she'll stay put.....she loves water, and I'm thinking she'll get one look at the water in which the "boat rides" float and want to jump right in!!

I see you are from the Lehigh Valley area! I went to Moravian College in Bethlehem, so I am quite familiar with your neck of the woods! Did you fly out of LVIA? It makes it SOOO much easier to fly from there!