First time to WDW! 2yo and 5 yo

[apirateslife4us!]

We're so excited we can't believe it! And it's only 26 days away I've been reading through so many posts and this board is so WONDERFUL. Any tips for first-timers with a DD5 and DS2? I am a complete Disney nut, too bad DH is pretty much NOT He wants this for the kids sake and he loves the idea of a vacation... he does think it sounds like fun! I want it for those reasons and also because I could basically live in the Disney store Let's see... DD loves princesses, DS loves cars, I love everything, and DH loves breakfast! Ayone who has anything to offer/advice/opinions/random comments, I'm all 0
ears!

FYI, we don't have park hoppers, we arrive Monday in Orlando airport at 9am and leave Saturday at 7pm. Our ADR's are:

Sci-Fi (Mon 5:20, MGM)
1900 Park Fare (Tues 11am, MK)
Ohana (Wed 5:15, TL)
Akershus (Thur 4:30, Epcot)
Chef Mickey (Fri 11am, ???-Kind of a people's choice day!)
Sat...maybe DTD or try a park that morning?

Thanks so much in advance for any tips!! Stroller tips, bus tips, anything at all! Thank you!!!!!!

 

[*KeepMovingForward*]

My personal recommendation would be to bring autograph books and pens for the kids (or buy them at Disney). The passports at Epcot are nice too, although my kids just used their autograph book when they did all the kidcot stops. They loved having the stamps and personal messages written in their books.

I'd also bring mister fans...the heat is really cranking up down there-unless of course, you are already coming from a hot and humid area. Take photos of your park tickets-major help if you happen to lose one. We never thought we would lose one...but it happened...and showing the clear photos of our passes to Guest Services made getting replacements quick and easy. On the same note...take pics of your kids each morning before you leave your resort-nobody plans on losing their child, but if it happens to you, you'd be amazed how flustered and blank you can get when a CM asks you what your child is wearing.

I see your doing TL. I'd get there for opening if you can manage that. Getting chairs is an issue if you come later. We LOVE TL.

Are you taking your own stroller or renting one at Disney? We took our own once and because it was a bit heavy, it was a pain in the butt to haul on and off the busses. Another time we rented one from Disney, but then we did not have anything for the kids once we left the parks. Disney's strollers are also huge and they are hard plastic-not too comfy for the kids. We buy an umbrella stroller at Walmart or Target once we get to Orlando and we use that...light and easy to collapse and carry on the busses and we have it all the time. We've never paid more than $25 for an umbrella stroller down there. When our trip is over we give it away to someone...or we leave it at the front desk of our resort (with a CM) and ask them to find a good home for it-never a problem and still, it is cheaper than renting.

Most of all...just relax and have fun. You have all the planning done...so now its time to reap the rewards! I totally relate to your situation too-I am the Disney nut...kids have been converted too...but DH is not fully on the bandwagon, though he tries.

 

[Perditamarie]

Welcome to the Dis! You are going to have the best time and I bet your DH will be converted by the end of your trip...or you will have to just keep going. Here are some of my favorites:

* pack kids outfits in ziplocks - in the am you can just grab and go and even dh can help! You know clothes out of the ziplock need to be laundered.

* Pack a little of everyone's clothes in every case -- that way if a suitcase is misdirected for a bit, everyone still has some clothes.

* If using Magical Express, plan on not seeing your suitcases for hours, so have a change of clothes/swim things, plenty of diapers and any necessities on hand.

* Bring a softsided cooler in the park w/juice, water, snacks, etc. Then you will have familiar snacks and drinks when you need them. It may just be me, but I have a hard time finding the right drink/snack when I need it and there is usually a large line to battle as well.

* Plan potty breaks before long lines and shows and snacks/drinks for same.

* Don't miss the Lights! Action car show at MGM -- you can also pose w/Mater and Lightning McQueen at MGM and see the Power Rangers tear around in their super duper car and then pose for pics.

* The umbrella strollers are great for ease of carrying (love the Maclaren), but if you bring a sturdy double, have a plan - one parent wrangles the stroller, one the kids, keep bags to a minimum. If you are staying at Disney, take advantage of having any park purchases delivered to your resort.

* Our kids are young too, so we pretty much skip nighttime activities and stick to their regular routines so they are not crabby the next day.

* Plan plenty of time for swimming at the pool at your resort. If you are staying onsite, you can borrow life vests for the length of your stay.

* One of my favorite things to do is collect a stash of great items from Disney Store sales and put in little cellophane bags that I don't normally use at home to leave over night or when we leave the room as a surprise from Tink. Last year I put everything into one gift basket for each child and smuggled to the resort in our luggage. The kids were dazzled.

* If you go to DTD, definately carve out time to visit the lego building stations.

* Many shows and attractions are LOUD -- maybe bring earplugs or cue kids to cover their ears! Read up on shows like Tough to Be a Bug and Honey I Shrunk the Audience to see if they are appropriate for your family.

Have a great trip and happy planning!

 

[apirateslife4us!]

Wow thank you!!!! These ideas are awesome For the record, we're staying at the Pop, we're on the dining plan, and I am completely stumped about the stroller issue. I keep reading through all the stroller threads and the more I read the harder it is to decide what to do!

So I've taken notes and am SO glad I posted I love the zip-lock baggies for each outfit, and taking pics of the tickets and of the kids each morning (gee, I reeeeally hope I never have to use those pictures ) Everything is so helpful guys, THANK YOU!

I'm really trying to keep the amount of "stuff" we have with us at the parks to a minimum. Any tips? Luckily DS will be 3yo in three months and is already totally potty trained I'm so relieved not to have to lug around diapers every day! But I'm still afraid that, in my attempt to bring along everything we need, I'm going to have enough gear to climb Everest on my back! Help?

Thank you Perditamarie for the great cars ideas for my DS!! He is such a race car lunatic, he looks at his bin of hot wheels every morning like it's Christmas morning, and we can't pass by ANY little quarter car ride in front of a store without him desparately wanting to sit in it, even if I don't put money in it! And as for Lightening McQueen, he will watch that one as often as I let him!! Thanks also for the snacks tip. Even though we're on the DDP I like your idea of having familiar snacks on hand... hot moody kids and long snack lines sound like an awful mix!

Thanks *KeepMovingForward* for the tips, and I'm glad to hear that you like TL... I wasn't sure with such young kids but it seems like so much fun!! We'll definitely try and get there early, but what do you think about making it to the Ohana dinner by 5:15? I tried for a later ADR but no luck for me... and with needing to get back to the hotel and cleaned up, then back to the Polynesian in time, I'm kinda worried about missing our ADR! Also, I like the misting fan idea... we live in a very hot, dry area, and I know the humidity is going to wipe us out!

Can you tell I'm a teensy bit of an overplanner? Seriously, I adore planning these things out, even though I'm pretty much aware that I'll have to go with the flow and just focus on having a good time once we're there. (Go. with. the. flow. Those words make me cringe! )

Thanks again guys! So now I've just found the trips reports page and am completely addicted to this site!! Not that I have anything else to do right

 

[Mommymcgee]

Sorry if this was already mentioned, but have you considered doing the BBB for your DD before the princess meal? There is a great FAQ thread on this board with tons of pics and info on it. I'm doing it next week with my 4 yo DD and she is sooo excited about it. If your DD is a princess nut you should look into it.

 

[*KeepMovingForward*]

I'm so relieved not to have to lug around diapers every day! But I'm still afraid that, in my attempt to bring along everything we need, I'm going to have enough gear to climb Everest on my back! Help?[/B][/COLOR]

We try to keep the extras to a minimum too. When its hot out, the last thing you want to do is lug stuff around-except maybe a drink! We just recently bought mini misting fans that have a carabiner so you could attach it to your belt loop. Love that I don't have to hold it all the time! We haven't used them at Disney yet, but we have used them here at home for the kids sporting events.

I'm glad to hear that you like TL... I wasn't sure with such young kids but it seems like so much fun!! We'll definitely try and get there early, but what do you think about making it to the Ohana dinner by 5:15? I tried for a later ADR but no luck for me... and with needing to get back to the hotel and cleaned up, then back to the Polynesian in time, I'm kinda worried about missing our ADR! Also, I like the misting fan idea... we live in a very hot, dry area, and I know the humidity is going to wipe us out!

It's kinda early, but you just have to keep track of time. We find that when we are at TL, the day really flies by. My kids are 2 to 15 in age and everyone has such a good time there. We used to do just one day there on each vacation, but often times we wind up going back for a 2nd day. The kids area is very nice and they have a family slide in the regular section that is totally mild where 5 or 6 of you could pile in one tube. I wish I was there now!

DD just walked in from school and is all huffy...her music teacher is leaving for Disney tomorrow to accompany her sons high school band trip. Maybe we can stow away in her baggage?

Can you tell I'm a teensy bit of an overplanner? Seriously, I adore planning these things out, even though I'm pretty much aware that I'll have to go with the flow and just focus on having a good time once we're there. (Go. with. the. flow. Those words make me cringe! )

I think pretty much everyone on this board is a bit compulsive about planning-I know I am! Of all the addictions you could have, I think being a Disney addict has the least negative side effects. My pocketbook hurts sometimes...but it makes us all happy and is not hazardous to our health!

 

[Kies99]

We just got back from 8 days with a 3yo and 5yo. This was the first trip for them (one of multitude for we the parents ).

Here are my tips:

Bring 2 umbrella strollers. We got by with one regular stroller, but at times it would have been helpful to have had both. If you rent one there, you won't have for getting to bus/car or from bus/car to hotel room. If they don't want to use it, you can haul your stuff around the parks in it.

Ice water is free at any counter-type service place in any park. Take refillable water bottles and just keep filling them up. We used 2 of the Brita Sport bottles we got off of Ebay and they worked GREAT!

Kids meals are inexpensive and MORE than enough food for a 2yo or 5yo. We actually got them a couple of times for ourselves!!

Pack food/juice/snacks. We stayed at POP Century and bought slices of bread a couple mornings on the way to the busses. We brought with us some individual peanut butter packs. We would spread those on at lunch time and there was a sandwich. We packed a bunch of snacks in a shoe box in our checked luggage as well (goldfish, cheese crackers, etc...). We made sure to toss in some candy as well and then we didn't need to buy any at the parks (our kids aren't big candy eaters anyway so a little went a long way).

Go at your kids pace. You should probably try NOT to do everything you possibly can. Taking it slowly and doing what the kids want to do (with nudging from you of course) worked great for us. We have actually talked and we think we actually did MORE this way than if we were constantly pushing the kids. Since we were moving at there pace, we skipped rides if the lines were too long and then would come back to them later and find the lines were very short so we had no waits longer than 10 minutes the whole time.

Medicine. Do NOT forget to pack general med's for the kids. Ours always seem to be getting ear infections and sure enough our oldest was sick for most of the day at Epcot. If you forget, ask in a shop at the counter for children's Tylenol. Most have it but you may not see it on display. We found it was only slightly more expensive than at the store.

Have a down day. We went two days to the park and then a down day of swimming in the pool and going shopping at DTD. Worked really well and really revived them both. As someone else posted, they have life vests at the pool for the non-swimmers. We took ours down and could have saved the space.

Number 1 tip (and can't stress this enough) is to RELAX! Do not let minor (or even large) tantrums/meltdowns affect the trip. Things that normally might have set us off at home we were calm with or just ignored and it really made the trip go very smoothly.

 

[apirateslife4us!]

Just wanted to say thanks again to everyone!!

Mommymcgee thanks for the BBB tip I did a whole bunch of searches and read up on it, my DD would LOVE it! I am going to try and squeeze it in somehow, I so wish I had known about it before I made my ADRs, I just don't see how we can do Epcot, BBB, and still make it to the princess dinner at 4:30. Actually, I wish I had known about ADRs a lot sooner!

*KeepMovingForward* Your DD sounds adorable! I'd want to go too!!!! You could put her in the mascot costume and she might go unnoticed or have her sneak into one of the tuba cases!

SO I went looking for trip stuff (not that I haven't already spent too much already!) and I almost bought some misting fans, but I'm so glad I didn't! Now that I've read your follow-up post I totally want the kind you can clip to your belt! Also, wanted to say thanks for the support on being a more-than-slightly-obsessed Disney planner. I am getting the feeling you're right... I'm not alone!

Kies99 WOW thanks for that water tip! I keep reading about the water bottle prices at WDW being practically extortionary, but blech, I did NOT want to spend any time out of the park at a grocery store buying water with such a short trip planned kwim? This is such a great solution!! And also, thanks for the stroller advice, I'm STILL stuck on what to do... it seems like one of those family-style type decisions, there's a different right answer for everyone! After reading through at least five stroller threads that went from a simple question to a full-on stroller debate I figure I'll just have to make a decision and learn for next time!

Thanks again everyone, I'm loving this board!! Off to read some more of the Meanest Mommy in the World's TR, she's hilarious!!!

 

[mamaprincess]

Don't forget about the baby care centers located at each park. Make a note of where they are on your maps. They are great places to go cool off with young children. They can color a page or look at a little movie. I use them liberally.

I second the purchase of the umbrella stroller. Full size strollers are a pain when you are getting on and off the trams. If both of your kids are of stroller age a double umbrella stroller may work for you. I have twins. These are pretty light weight from what I remember.

 

[donaldbuzz&minnie]

We just got back from a trip with our small grandchildren, and went at the pace their parents set. It was fine and everyone enjoyed themselves, but it was HOT in the middle of the day and we never seemed to get all that much done.

If I ran the zoo, I probably would have gotten everyone up early to get to the parks when they opened, then eaten a counter service lunch on the early side, then gone back to the resort for naps and the pool. I would have gone back into the parks in the late afternoon for fun (with fastpasses collected in the morning) and an early dinner. Then back to the resort for a reasonable bedtime. On the one or two nights I really wanted to stay out late for parade/fireworks I would have taken it as easy as possible the following morning to take the heat into account. Push-come-to-shove, I probably would have skipped as many late night activities as possible to maximize the fewer people-cooler morning activities.

However you structure your visit, have a great time!

 

[TBGOES2DISNEY]

When we went in Sep 06, my girls were 2 and 5. I planned ADRs for dinners, but DH didn't want me to plan our days so we could go where we felt like. BIG mistake. We kinda ended up wandering and park hopping too much. It was exhausting. Next time we get to go back, I will plan our days better. I think we will get to the parks early and take a long afternoon break so that we will be rested enough to still be able to see parades or night shows at least once for each park. On our visit, we only saw the MK parade, but we did see all the night shows. Our lack of method was just tiring.

An umbrella stroller for each child is a must! Soooo much walking! Bring lots of wet wipes and hand sanitizer. We didn't buy water misters - wish we had! Disposable bibs for messy ice cream were lifesavers! Bring spray sunscreen - it's so fast and less messy (although it can feel a bit sticky, but not too bad). Bring hats or sunglasses for your kids in case they complain about the sun in their eyes.

Oh, we used a backpack to carry our necessities. I thought all the pockets were great, but I couldn't remember where anything was! I would suggest a bag with only a couple pockets and then use labeled or clear bags (cosmetic or ziploc or whatever) on the inside to organize them.

Also, something I wish we had done... bring a small ice filled cooler in the bottom of your stroller for cold drinks, which are very costly in the parks. Unfortunately, our umbrella strollers didn't have baskets.

Don't be so busy your kids can't go swimming (only 1 dd got to go and only once). Let them see the characters 50 times (we did) - they love it! Just enjoy your time together!

 

[neonurse]

Whenever you get the opportunity to have your picture taken by a CM take it and also ask them to take a picture with your camera. They all will if you ask and that way you don't have to buy all the pictures from disney (gets a bit pricey). Also don't be afraid to ask a stranger to take a pic of the whole family. I often will volunteer to take a family pic for someone if I see that ONE parent is left out. One of the best pic I have is take on one of the bridges beside the castle. Some nice woman saw that I was taking the pic and offered to take it so that I could be in it. She said she has sooo many pic without her in it. Now I try to be as thoughtful as that lady. Play it forward!!!