First trip to Disneyworld questions

[califam]

This is my first post on this site, but I have enjoyed reading it all week! We are trying to plan our first trip with our 4 and 2 year old. We are wondering if Dec. 8th to the 15th is just as slow as February. Also, is a 7 day park hopper too much for 2 young children? How long would you recommend? We do have Disneyland passes so we have gone there a lot. Thanks for any advice!

 

[txmomto1]

We took our son to WDW for the first time in January for his 4th birthday. We where at the parks 4 full days, and a half day. He was fine, although we did not park hop. We stayed at one park each day. You could do park hoppers, I'd just suggest taking a break each day in the afternoon for naps, and maybe do another park at night. If you are there for 7 days, you'll have plenty of time to see everything, and can take your days easy.

It's my understanding that December, excluding the week from Christmas to New Years is quiet.

We are going back in September, while we can still go in off season before DS starts school in a year.

 

[Coconuts]

I have never been there in december, but was there years ago in early february and it was slow. I was there last september with 5 and 2 year olds. We got the park hoppers because we were only there for 5 days, which is really about 4 days because you miss time on your arrival and departure days. You might be ok without the hopper, the kids were very tired at the end of the day, and we were usually in bed by 8:30, so we didn't really get to take advantage of night EMH or see fireworks. We even fit in naps on 2 or 3 days, and they were still tired. We also never seemed to last in the parks more than 3 hours at a time and that was pushing it. Hope this helps.

 

[Ellester]

First of all, welcome to the DIS!

Early to mid December has always been a good time to go. It has gotten busier over the past few years (it is very popular with DVC owners) but I think is still a great time. Probably better than Feb. especially around President's Day. As you get closer to Christmas, it picks up of course.

As far as the tickets, it all depends. We are not hoppers, we find it just sucks too much time out of the day. Many people disagree and enjoy hopping. It can come in handy during very busy periods when the park you are in just becomes unbearably crowded, but I doubt you'll have that problem when you are planning to go. Just remember that each time you switch parks you have to hop a bus or monorail, usually having to unpack and fold your stroller, and then go through security all over again. I would rather not have to unpack the diaper bag and stroller more than once a day! But again, that is our personal preference. It has been suggested before on the boards to just get a non-hopper ticket and if you decide once you get there that you really would like to hop you can pay to upgrade at Guest Services.

I do not think seven days is too long, especially with littles. Knowing you have so many days in the parks will allow you to slow down some while you are there instead of trying to pack it all into four or five days. The price difference is so slight, I'd go for the max days for sure. We used all seven days last January and still didn't see everything. But we were able to slow down a bit and let the kids play on the playgrounds, enjoy the shows etc.

No matter what, I'm sure you will have a great time! Happy planning!

 

[LisaFB]

Enjoy your trip! We're taking our kids for the first time in just under 2 months. They will have just turned 2 and will almost be turning 4. We decided against park hopping because of logistics (we've done it when it was just us). Have fun!

 

[vicceja]

Last year we visited the world the first week of December and it was wonderful. There were no crouds - we basically walked on many rides and the decorations were magical. Try to do MVMCP, the boys loved it. Also, the first week of December can be warm some days and cold others so we were able to enjoy the pool. As far as park hopping - we definitely take advantage of the park hopper only because we return to the Resort mid day and take a break and whoever wants to head back with me can do so.

Enjoy you and your family will have a blast!

 

[wrighter]

We took our first trip to WDW when our kids were almost 4 and 17 months. We flew down on a Sunday, spent Monday-Friday at the parks, and then left on Saturday. We figured this was more than enough time to enjoy ourselves, but not long enough so that we were pushing it. Plus, being in the parks only on weekdays cut down on crowds.

We also decided against park hoppers. We had done it when we didn't have kids, and it was such a whirlwind. We really wanted to take our time and not rush or feel we have to go here, there, and everywhere. And like a pp noted, our kids were wiped out at the end of the day. No real chance to "hop on over" to Epcot for Illuminations or anything. We just made sure to plan for those things on the days we went to that particular park.

Have a wonderful time!

 

[GoofyG]

We went the last week of Feb/1st week of March with our DD2(almost 3) and DD 10 months. The parks were not crowded at all. The weather was great. It was much warmer than we had anticipated and went in search of flip flops to wear. We did 5 days in the parks with park hopper. That is the way to go for us. We took DD3 to Magic Kingdom for some time every day. That way we were able to do what park we wanted to do and was still able to keep her happy. Both DD's did great. They loved all the characters. We always took a break in the afternoon for naps and/or pool time. Only 4 more weeks till our next trip to WDW. We plan to go again in late Feb. '08. If only we lived closer.........!

 

[Elmo888]

I liked the park hopper with two young kids (6 and 2) because you could go to one park in the morning, nap in the afternoon, and head to a different park in the evening for dinner (usu. Epcot).

7 days probably isn't too much for park tickets, and it allows you to go for just part of the day if you desire. For example, we slept in one morning and swam. In the afternoon, DD2 napped while DH took DD6 to a park and we met them later. Plus, the difference between a 6 day and 7 day is very little.

Enjoy your trip!