Entertaining kids while waiting in lines

[Beaker74]

We'll be at WDW in October for the first time with kids. Does anyone have any ideas of how to entertain a 14 month old and 2 1/2 year old while waiting in line? Thanks in advance!

 

[Drewsmommybear]

When our son was 2 1/2, I kept a really small magnadoodle in my purse for him to draw with. Also, the lines usually have things to look at so we would point out objects or ask him to look for things. I also went to the dollar store and picked up little stickers and things. Many times while we were in lines, he'd want to look at his autograph book and then match the sticker with the autograph. He even started handing out stickers to other kids after awhile .

YOu know your children best so you know what they enjoy. Make them little goodie bags from the dollar store of small things that are not hard to lug around that they can do while in line.

I also think that fast pass is great for kids. Try to use it as much as possible.

 

[DisneyArk]

I agree that you might want to bring a few new toys. On our first trip my DS3 was into Transformers and I bought him a few new ones and let him take one into the park each day. I brought a few action figures for DS1.

We also play I Spy. When the boys were younger we used to modify the game and I would keep giving them hints after each guess.

They also like playing a hand "slapping" game. I hope this makes sense, I say "Give me 5 (and they give me 5), on the side (hit hand sideways), in the hole (I make a circle with my fingers and they stick a finger in), Up high (high 5), down low (low 5) and then they try to give me a regular 5 and I try to make them miss my hand and say "Too Slow".

That game sounds simple, but we've played it a million times at different parks and DS8 still loves to play it while we wait. When they were younger I would let them win and say "I can't believe you got me!" I would also let them be it and then I would be too slow.

 

[dreamalittledream]

bubbles!
I always bring the really small tubes or bottles from weddings and they love it.

 

[della]

I second the bubbles! We get the little white wedding bubbles from the dollar store. Just be aware of the people around you. I try to be considerate and stop if I seem to be annoying anyone else. But usually even the grown ups like the bubbles!

The other thing is food-like teddy grahams and sippy cups- things like that. A hungry/thirsty child is rarely pleasant!

 

[Narnia]

What a great Idea! I'm going to have to find some bubbles for disney!

 

[Aliceacc]

You can get the small bottles pretty cheap at http://www.smalltoys.com/Merchant2/merchant.mvc? or http://www.orientaltrading.com/ui/s...tk=all&Ntx=mode+matchallpartial&N=0&x=16&y=12

 

[eaj1228]

We'll be at WDW in October for the first time with kids. Does anyone have any ideas of how to entertain a 14 month old and 2 1/2 year old while waiting in line? Thanks in advance!

We went last year in October and the lines weren't to bad. When I was in line with and Aunt's granddaughters who were 4 years old and 6 years old I would show them pics I took with my digital camera. We would also play rock, paper, scissors. I would also talk about what we wanted to do next and our favorite moments from the trip so far. What I like about this is you don't need to lug around any additional stuff.

 

[Schmeck]

Please do not blow bubbles in a confined space - bubbles can pop in your eyes and sting, stain clothing, and some people (my younger DD included) can be allergic to some bubble solutions. If one popped on my daughter when she was little, we'd have had to leave the line and go wash her skin with copious amounts of water.

Also, a small child could dart after a stray bubble, getting through the queue (and out of sight) a lot easier than a parent could follow.

 

[crisi]

Your best bet is to avoid the lines. Which is actually not that hard. A lot of people find Tourguide Mike to be vital for avoiding lines. Its pretty simple though 1) Arrive Early. 2) Know which rides get lines, do those first. 3) Make use of Fastpasses. 4) Have a plan.

Remember that anything you bring with you needs to get dragged through the park and not lost.

I agree with not bringing bubbles. They are charming for your kids, and not so charming for the person who slips in spilled bubble solution.

 

[DVC Sadie]

Please do NOT use bubbles while waiting in line.

One of our last visits while waiting in line for the POTC we, and everyone around us was bombarded with bubbles by two different families. It was not a fun time and it did cause a little girl to slip and fall.

 

[*pixie*dust*]

Please don't bring bubbles! On my last trip there was nearly a fist fight over this. One family had two children blowing bubbles. They were going everywhere. The people in front of them asked them to stop. They didn't. They asked again LOUDLY. No response. Then the guy finally turns around and said if they didn't stop the kids with the bubbles he was gonna put a boot in someone rear. (But he didn't say rear) It was ugly.

 

[DisneySweetheart]

New toys do the trick. Although, I usually pull them out at our TS dinners to keep them occupied. Even if it's a $1.00 toy, its something new for them and they seem to love it. If you have room in your budget, you can pick up small toys at the park. My 3 year old son loved a monarail that we picked up for him. It was $15.00 but worth it because he never tired of playing with it the whole trip.

Good luck!

 

[Aliceacc]

Please don't bring bubbles! On my last trip there was nearly a fist fight over this. One family had two children blowing bubbles. They were going everywhere. The people in front of them asked them to stop. They didn't. They asked again LOUDLY. No response. Then the guy finally turns around and said if they didn't stop the kids with the bubbles he was gonna put a boot in someone rear. (But he didn't say rear) It was ugly.

You guys have given me something to think about with the bubbles.

But couldn't that situation have ended if the family had just put the bubbles away when first asked??

To me the problem here seems to be rudeness, not a bottle of bubbles.

I think we'll bring them, then be careful about where and when my youngest takes them out. (I'm pretty sure my 2 older kids are far too sophisticated for bubbles.)

Thanks for a point of view I hadn't considered.

 

[everylastbreath]

We found the best thing to do on line with my 2 year old GS was to walk v-e-r-y slowly!! as long as he felt like he was going somewhere and not just standing in one spot we were ok. Fastpass what you can and just walk very slow!! Good luck, nothing really seems to work when you stuck in one spot anyway, you just have to hope for a fast moving line! The slowest lines seem to be Dumbo & Aladin (because they are not continuous rides) so I would either avoid those, or hit them early.

 

[sk!mom]

We just returned from a Grand Gathering of 21.

We had a 2 year old, two 4 year olds, a 7 year old, an 8 year old, a 9 year old, three 12 year olds, and two 14 year olds. None of them needed anything special to stay occupied in line. They took the chance to drink some water, misted each other, talked about the previous ride or what we would do next.

We utilized getting to the parks at rope drop and riding tons of rides with no waiting in the morning. We gathered fastpasses as we were moving in the am to use as soon as the lines picked up so we really never waited more than 10 or 15 minutes. Our one line was when we ducked into Toy Story in a driving rain storm- only time we were caught in the rain all trip- it was raining really hard so we just decided to stand in line as it was evening and that was our more relaxed touring time.

There's just a lot of visual distractions at Disney- we've always found minimizing waits to be the way to go.

Count me among those who find bubbles really annoying unless you're the one playing with them.

 

[sconnell]

I'm going to have to agree with those who have said that they don't wait in line! lol. Seriously, get there early, use Fast Pass. The times that we wait are for rides where there is a PreShow gathering room. Like Laugh Floor, PhilharMagic, etc. In those we usually talk, take pics, look at pics, drink some water, etc. Stickers can be nice. Bubbles can be nice, but not in lines. Waiting for an ADR at CP we played with bubbles. Not near anyone, but fun! And at the resort.

 

[crisi]

You guys have given me something to think about with the bubbles.

But couldn't that situation have ended if the family had just put the bubbles away when first asked??

To me the problem here seems to be rudeness, not a bottle of bubbles.

I think we'll bring them, then be careful about where and when my youngest takes them out. (I'm pretty sure my 2 older kids are far too sophisticated for bubbles.)

Thanks for a point of view I hadn't considered.

But if no one says anything and your youngest spills (which kids are prone to do) leaving a slippery mess, then it WILL be the bubbles and not the rudeness of not putting them away when asked.

 

[sconnell]

But if no one says anything and your youngest spills (which kids are prone to do) leaving a slippery mess, then it WILL be the bubbles and not the rudeness of not putting them away when asked.

Great point! But if you don't let the kiddos blow or hold it, there's less of a chance of spilling. Mine like to pop the bubbles. Again, not in crowds, but there are times when letting them out of a stroller to stretch their legs a jump around a bit are great!
I say just do it in a place where there aren't other people around and make sure that you don't spill.

 

[wlwilliams9]

bubbles!
I always bring the really small tubes or bottles from weddings and they love it.

I love bubbles too! Our DD who was 22 months when we were at WDW loved popping them in line. I found a 12 count box of small wedding bubbles at the $1 store! They are perfect size for stashing in your pocket or stroller pouch!