First time w/ child

[MandM521]

Hi all! Just discovering this site, 3 weeks before our trip.

DH, myself and our 2 1/2 yo son are staying at SSR for 6 nights. The last time we were at WDW was 7 years ago and we were only there for 2 nights, so I know it's going to be a completely different experience this time.

I have some questions that I'm hoping all you helpful experts can answer.

My big question is DH doesn't want to do only WDW while we are there and I'm a little confused as to how the Magic Your Way tickets work. It doesn't look like we'd be saving much if we bought a 3 day pass. Is it even worth us buying this?

Our DS really has had no exposure to the original characters and his experience w/ Disney has only been JoJo, Bear, Little Einsteins and the Wiggles - characters that I'm sure aren't magically appearing in the MK (although I'd love it if they did). Did your kids not have exposure beforehand and still enjoy seeing the characters? I'm definately going to beef up on the originals the next few weeks, but I'm not sure he'll take to them.

Am I correct in that I don't have to pay for our son at the parks? He is only 2 1/2 (as of last month) but does look older. How hard do CM's scrutinize? Should I bring proof?

I think that's it for now. I'm sure if I can find the time to read through more posts I'll probably find answers to any other questions. Thanks in advance!

 

[disneyfreak74]

First things first!!! HAVE A GREAT TRIP!!!!

Your DS is at a GREAT age (same as my DD). She did not a a great deal of exposure to origional characters, but warmed up to them fast!!!!

You do not have to pay for him. DD is also big and no one asked for anything when we went in DEC.

Not sure what to tell you about the tickets. We only do Disney when we go to do Disney.

Have a great time!!!!

 

[nucpharm29]

Can't really help with the tickets, b/c when we go we just do disney. But for your little one Bear and JoJo appear at Playhouse disney live on stage at MGM studios . JoJo and Goliath has character meet and greet around the attraction area--you'll just have to check for times. I saw another thread about whether or not Little Einsteins have appeared at the parks--the consensus is no (which is really sad for me b/c DD LOVES the little einsteins).

We went with DD last year when she was 14 and 16 months old and never once was questioned by CM's about her age. She will be just over two when we go next week, and I"m not expecting any problems. Have a great trip with your youngster!

 

[waltdisneyworlddreamer]

My DS is a huge Jo Jo fan. That was the highlight of his trip--meeting Jo Jo and getting her autograph. He quickly become fans of the ToyStory characters even though we have never even seen the movie. He fell in love with the Buzz Lightyear ride, got to meet Buzz and even wanted a Buzz Lightyear birthday party when we got back home. The characters are so friendly and fun that I'm sure your DS will love them, whether he knows them yet or not. That is a great age. I'm sure you will have a great trip!

 

[janets]

most kids enjoy it. But remember that the characters are really big and some kids are a bit intimidated by size. Just allow you child to guide you and if he seems apprehensive, back off and try again another time. We took ds#2 when he was about 2.5 and we had to slowly desensitize him to the characters over the week. At the beginning, he saw Goofy and almost tipped his stroller over trying to get away. By the end of the week, he was chasing Minnie through Chef Mickey's to get a kiss.

Just let your child guide you in this. Don't push. Just give him an opportunity to observe and eventually he'll be fine. Then again, some kids take to the characters immediately.

Playhouse Disney at MGM is a great show. All the characters on the Disney Channel shows so enjoy that. The live shows like Mermaid, Lion King and BATB are terrific also.

You'll have a great time.

 

[mcgrawfan]

We recently stayed at SSR with our DD who turned 1 on our trip. The resort is really nice. We saw the pool area but never took advantage of it. SSR is really nice with kids because of the kitchenette in the room and 1 and 2 bedrooms have laundry in the rooms. I don't know about the studios if they have laundry in the room or not. The laundry was really handy. We used the kitchen to make breakfast pretty much everyday. It saves money and then everyone is ready to go for the day. We would just throw a load in each day and we didn't have near as much laundry to do when we got home.
We saw JoJo and Bear at the Playhouse Disney show at MGM. You can meet JoJo and Goliath at MGM at JoJo's trailer. It is across from Who Wants to Be a Millionaire. We met the Little Einsteins during Mickey's Halloween Party, but I have read they only are available at special events like that.
My DD turned 1 on our trip and she didn't really like the characters. Not even the Princesses which I really thought she would like because they do not wear a mask.

DD meeting JoJo and Goliath wearing her JoJo costume at MNSSHP.

 

[all4fun]

Hi,
From what I've read about the MYW ticketing system, the more days you stay, the greater the savings, so I think your assessment that you're not saving buying 3-day passes is correct. I'm not really the person to ask though because in the past we have bought AP's.... You might check out some of the other boards - maybe the budget board?

As far as character exposure - did you get the free planning DVD from Disney? That's a fun thing for little ones to watch to give them a little "exposure" to WDW before the actual trip.

As far as age goes, you can bring a copy of your child's birth certificate however it's very unlikely you'll need it. If the cm's do ask, they tend to ask the child how old they are so as long as your ds doesn't say "three" you won't have a problem. My ds is pretty tall for his age and recently when we were at Disneyland (CA) we were asked by a few different cm's but we answered that he was 2-1/2 and that was the end of it. They never insisted on proof. Between the time ds was 13mos and 23 mos we had 4 different trips to WDW and overall spent about a month there (we were making up for lost time, lol, since the previous year we couldn't travel due to health issues). During all that time we were never once asked by a cm for proof of age. I hope that helps put your mind at rest about that issue!

Hope you have a great trip and enjoy your stay at SSR. It's really a beautiful resort.

Cheryl