First timer!! WDW for 4yr olds??

[jinglesmountjoy]

Will be making our first trip ever to anything Disney and I am jumping out of my skin!! . I'm 35 and have always wanted to go to WDW (kid at heart who still enjoys video games). If that's not enough, my DD will have just turned 4 a few days before our trip and we are being met by my BIL, his wife and their 4yr old son that my DD misses playing with and hasn't seen in over a year (we live in Niagara region of Canada and they are in Vancouver, BC). Oh, and my DS will be 1yr3mos at time of trip so, I assume this trip will probably not have much if anything for him.

Now my question. After buying 7day MYW with Plus option for DW, DD and myself we should still have about $800-$1000 USD to play with over the 2 weeks. We rented a pool home so eating out will be rare except for the must-do's (whatever they are). Of all the WDW attractions what would you consider suitable for 4yr olds?

Thank you all in advance

 

[Safari Queen]

It's very individual, of course, and you know your child best. Many attractions are too intense for little ones. In MK I'd recommend Small World, Pooh, Dumbo (if heights aren't an issue), Philharmagic, the merry-go-round, any parade and the stage shows, plus Toon Town for characters and Mickey and Minnie's houses. AK would be the Kilamanjaro Safaris, Pangani, and the animal walk in Asia, the parade, the Lion King show and Pocahontas's Friends. MGM has Beauty and the Beast and Playhouse Disney. Stay away from Stitch, Tough to Be a Bug, and Dinosaur. There are some kids who like rollercoasters, I guess, but not in our family!

 

[raysnkaysmom]

My youngest has gone when she was 2, 3 and 4... this last trip she rode EVERYTHING she was tall enough for....Tower of Terror being her favorite at MGM....
Your young one will enjoy the sights...and all around Fantasy Land
Your 4 yr old will be amazed...take her all around Fantasy Land..and the castle..don't let them fall asleep for the fireworks display! Country Bear Jamboree is cute, and they'll have fun just being at the pool too!!

 

[pennst8r]

Depends on your child. There were only 2 rides my 4 yr old DS COULDN"T ride--the Rock-n-Rollercoaster, and Primeval Whirl.(which my other DSs like to call the Primeval Hurl.) He rode everything else and loved it all--his favs were the Tower of Terror and Mission:Space. He went on rides my 9yr old DS didn't like!

As for the younger kids, there are lots of rides they'll love! Safari Queen gave a good list.

Make sure you get an "It's my Birthday" free pin/badge at the parks. Ask about them when you get there.

 

[rt2dz]

It is going to vary from child to child dramatically. For my 4yo, the must do's are, in no particular order: Character meal (favorites, Chef Mickey dinner & Liberty Tree Tavern dinner), Goofy's Barnstormer, meeting characters, Buzz Lightyear, The Bone Yard, Festival of the Lion King, Donald's Boat, Dinosaur, Splash Mountain, Test Track, Kilamajaro Safari, Big Mountain Thunder Railroad, Playhouse Disney, and Carasoul of Progress (go figure). There are, of course, many other attractions he enjoyed.

Since you'll have a 15 month baby, here is what my DS#2 enjoyed at 15 months: Buzz Lightyear, Country Bear Jamboree, Kilamajaro Safari, little play area outside Splash Mountain, Play area in Toon Town, Playhouse Disney, riding the train in MK, and just looking around at all the people and characters (from a distance). We took him on anything that didn't have a height restriction.

 

[karinbelle]

We went for the first time when my DS was 4.

Must do: Chef Mickey character dining

He LOVED "Spaceship Earth" ride in the Epcot ball. We went back last year and he rode it several times! He even drew it during school and wrote about it!

At night, when it gets dark, there are "lights" that come from the concrete at the entrance to Epcot. We told my DS these were stars and that they flew up to the sky. He tried to catch one. We told him "Hold it tight so it won't fly away" -- Then I asked him if it felt warm - he said "YES" (big eyes!)

Me: "Do you hear anything?"

DS: "Yes" (Serious expression and clenching fist as tight as he can)

As soon as he opened his hand, I looked straight up into the sky and asked him if he could see his star (it was a clear night). He said "YES!"

He caught another one and held it until our bus came. He let it go inside the bus, but we told him it shot straight through the roof!

Oh, that was so magical!

Now, every once in awhile when we see a bright star (north one), he will say "Look, the Disney Star is out!"

 

[3DisneyKids]

We hcae 3 kids...6, 4, and 3 and all have been to WDW a few times, so we've had a 4 yo there more than once.

When my DS was 4, he was most into the characters and the shows---HUGE thrill. We made sure to start and end each day with a character visit.

For my 4yo DD, it is all about the rides.

Big tip: START SLOW. Don't make your first ride anything scary (meaning fast or DARK). Start with the FantasyLand rides...Dumbo, Peter Pan, Pooh and guage his/her level of enthusiasm about rides. I know MANY families whose trips were less-than-magical because parents put them on Mission: Space first and the kids got so scared that they refused to go on any rides the rest of the trip.

 

[jinglesmountjoy]

Being that my entire family are going to be first timers, all these tips are a great help and I thank you all.

Chef Mickey's seems to be the popular food outing and I think we will definitely do that. From what I'm hearing, most of the stuff for young ones is in MK while there are still lot's of other stuff throughout the other parks so I'm thinking:
First park to visit - MK
Second - Epcot
Third - AK
Fourth - MGM
Fifth - kid's choice (now that they've been to each)
Sixth - kid's choice
Seventh - MK

That will finish off our 7day MYW park visits and we can fit the water parks in between park visits so as not to completely exhaust the kids (and us). Of our 5 "plus" days, my thoughts are 2 days at each waterpark with the 5th plus day being used for the adults at pleasure island while Granny stays at the villa with the kids.

Is this way too much for a 2wk visit?? With the prices of 4, 5, 6, and 7 day MYW Plus being the same (at ticketmania), we may as well get the 7 day and if we don't use the days... so be it.