FIRST TRIP WITH 5,3 and 2 y.o - What shouldn't we miss???

[Allstar Kids]

Hi,

We have a Tinkerbell (2) and two Monsters (5 and 3) and we have booked our first Disney family trip for this October. We are staying at the All Star Resorts and plan to make good use of the transportation system. Our and love swimming and we therefore intend to visit both Blizzard Beach and Typhoon Lagoon, and obviously the major themeparks, but we'd really appreciate advice on what not to miss or anything that will make our first trip that bit more magical.
ie. Best place to eat with small children
Photo spots
Characters / Character dining
What to do first
etc

We've booked the Hoop de Doo Revue but so far that's it...

Please help...........


We're sooooo excited...........

 

[3kidsdisney]

We just returned from our trip with our 5 yr. oldand 3 yr old twins and they loved tha character meals--we did 3. They loved Chef Mickey the most. Magic Kingdom was their favorite park--Buzz Lightyear ride was a favorite of all of us. They loved the parade there also--sometimed one of the twins were afraid of the rides that were dark so we brought a little flash light to calm them down. Mickey's toontown is great also-they loved going in all the houses and playing on Donald's boat. There is a small rollercoaster there also--all my kids loved that. Actually, there was not much that they did not like. MGM was also alot of fun with the litle kids---they have disney playhouse which they all loved--we ate at the sci-fi dinner theater and they just loved it---actually it was their best behaved meal--since they did not sit next to each other and were watching a big movie screen the whole time. Have a great trip.

 

[alka]

My 2.5 year old son absolutely loved Festival of the Lion King at Animal Kingdom. I think it was probably one of his favorite things to do. He still talks about it and the fireworks at Magic Kingdom and it has been over a month since we have been back. Your kids are going to love WDW.

Also we stayed at Fort Wilderness where the Hoop de Doo is. Plan time for your kids to get to walk around the petting zoo and to see all of the peacocks.

 

[Allstar Kids]

Hi

Thanks for the response, did you do Chef Mickeys for breakfast, lunch or dinner?
The flashlight is a great idea and I will invest in a couple of these.
I'm sure the kids are going to have a wonderful time, we just want to try and make it as magical as possible.
They will love Playhouse Disney as my 5 year old still takes his Bear to bed with him every night and it has been their favourite show since they were all tiny. Buzz Lightyear is a hero in our house so again we will look out for that one.

Did you have to pre-book all of your character meals or am I safe to do it when we arrive?

 

[3kidsdisney]

We did Chef Mickey for breakfast---my kids love d it because there is a kid section where they can get their own stuff---we also did crystal palace for breakfast with Pooh and friends and did 1900 Park fare with cinderella for dinner. i booked them all about 4 weeks before we left--it was good for us because we got to see alot of characters and get autographs and pictures so when we saw them in the parks we did not have to wait in a long line. October is a great time to go also--are you going to MNSSHP???? We all loved that parade-and the kids got to dress up. Have fun!

 

[Magic2000]

I would suggest for a character meal - especially one as popular as Chef Mickey's, you should make a PS. That way, you know there won't be a long wait for a table with your little ones. Crystal Palace is another family favorite for my kids - they have the Pooh characters.

Also, most of the restaurants at the parks are kid friendly - they have a kids menu and crayons and stuff for the kids. We also just discovered a new favorite - Ohanas at the Polynesian for dinner. It is served family style - they bring the food to your table, but they have coconut races and hoola hoop contests for the kids. They also showed the kids how do do the hula!

If you are staying at the All Star Movies, request a room in the Toy Story section. (Even if your not staying at the Movies, you can always go over and see the HUGE Buzz & Woody, and they even have the Remote Controll Car out that you can take pictures in!!! There's a cute 101 Dalmations section too!!

If you are going to be there for mid to late Oct, I would suggest getting tickets for Mickey's Not So Scary Halloween Party! We did this for the first time last year and my DD loved it!! It was so much fun! She dressed as Princess Aurora, and loved going trick or treating in the Magic Kingdom!

Have a great trip!!!

 

[Allstar Kids]

This is fantastic. I will make a PS for breakfast at Chef Mickeys.

We are staying at the All Star Movies - Can I request that we stay in the Buzz & Woody section prior to our arrival?

We will be there mid to end of October. How do I go about getting tickets for the MNSSHP? and love dressing up.

Is it worth booking a Fantasmic dinner package so we don't have to then queue for seating? Any recommendations?

:thewave:

 

[DisneyMin]

Definately do the Playhouse Disney show at MGM. I'd do it early in the day,,the line gets long as the day progresses. Chef Mickey is great,,we've only done it for b'fast. They take your photo as you're waiting to be seated. I'd make your ps well in advance,,it fills up. they have pony rides for $3 at Ft. W. If you do disposable cameras,,buy them before you arrive,,they're twice as expensive to buy one in the park. Some kids like to buy autograph books for the different characters to sign. My kids have laynards and buy the disney pins each time we go,thats fun. the Downtown Disney area is nice,,they have a big lego store as well as a huge toy store,where they can build w/tinkertoys and lincoln logs and potato heads and stuff. If you go to chef mickey,let them take a ride on the monorail,my kids love to do that. Get some guide books to help you plan your trip. have fun!

 

[thumperjr9]

Also, for the Buzz/Toy Story fans don't forget Al's Toy Barn at MGM, you will find Buzz, Woody, Jessie and somtimes the army men to meet and greet.

My kids have always like Epcot at a young age ( which might be unusual) This year my DS4 liked Living Seas, especially the new Nemo theme to it. Also he really liked doing Kidcot Fun Stops at World Showcase. If you have any train lovers, look for the Train display at Germany.

Another thing, if you time it right is to try to get a ride upfront with the driver in the monorail. This is not always easy to do. We were going into MK in the late afternoon when it was not very busy. As we walked up the ramp the monorail was about to leave so instead of rushing we waited. And as it pulled away it left us the 1st in line fo the next one. I was about to ask a CM if we could ride with the driver but she must have read my mind and asked us if we wanted to ride up front. My DS 4 was thrilled.

We have avoided seeing Fantasmic the last 2 times we went because my youngest DS tends to get scared of certain things easily and I have heard that the show has villians in it and can be scary for young kids. Although a friend of his saw it and didn't get scared so I guess it depend on what your kids like.

 

[fizz13]

My kids are 4, 2 and 1 and here was their list of favourites:
The enchanted Tiki room- the colours and music
Flying carpets, dumbos- they were in control of the ride
Teacups- the spinning was just the right level of excitement for them
Belle's storytime- great interaction
all the parades- the dwarves came over to say hello, so did the 3 fairies from sleeping beauty
all character meals- they don't care about the food, they just love the characters
affection section at ak- petting/ brushing the animals
Playhouse Disney- even I got a buzz out of seeing Bear!
Mickey's Philarmagic
The jumping fountains at epcot
Designated character meeting ie. the trails at ak, toontown fair etc.

These are just their favourites. some of them, I could take or leave but to see their faces enjoying it more than compensates.
May your trip be blessed with much pixie dust.

Claire.

 

[moinab]

My 3 year old DS and 16 month old DD both love the Boneyard play area at AK. They also enjoy the HISTK play area at DS, but they much prefer the Boneyard. DS also loves to play the carnival games in DinoLand. I believe the games are $2 to play, but it is very easy to win, and you get a cute plush dinosaur (much nicer than you'd expect.) Our favorite place to eat in all of WDW is Pizzafari at AK. The child's meal deal is $6. You get a full size personal pizza, a bag of chips, and child's drink, plus coupons that are good for a free ice cream (or popcorn-your choice) and a free bottle of soda or water. We get 2 of these deals, and it feeds all 4 of us. Also, the restaurant itself is beautiful, with lots of bright colors, and cool animal theming. Be sure to check out all the rooms.

At MK, don't miss the TTA in Tomorrowland. It's a great break when you're starting to feel tired. When DH and I want to go on Space Mountain, we each take the kids on the TTA while the other rides SM.

Have a great trip!

 

[thumperjr9]

At MK, don't miss the TTA in Tomorrowland. It's a great break when you're starting to feel tired.

Oh I forgot that one, we decided to ride it while waiting for fastpass time for the Buzz ride, my DS4 loved it, and oh so nice for resting tired feet, we ended up riding it several times on our last trip.

Another attraction that preschool kids tend to like is Tom Sawyer Island, there isn't that much there and not too thrilling for adults but the little ones love to run around and it is a break from the crowds.

 

[kelscross]

My girls (2) loved:

MGM-
Honey I shrunk the kids playground
Playhouse Disney
Fantasmic

They were terrified in the Great Movie Ride (there is a part where an alien from the movie alien comes out of the ceiling right to your car. It scared the crap out of them.

MK-

They loved all the rides in the MK that they could go on. Except Snow White it's a bit scary for little ones.
Mickey's Toontown Fair was a big hit.

EPCOT-
They would have stayed in the Living Seas the whole day if we let them!
Imagination
They were terrified on the boat ride in Norway

We didn't get to do much at AK so we're going to check that out a bit more and just hit their favorites in MGM.

The character greetings were hit and miss with my girls. One loved all of the characters (except the Beast) and the other one was scared of all of them.

We went to the Princess Storybook Breakfast in Norway - great food, Mulan, Jasmine, Aurora, Snow White and Belle.

Crystal Palace for dinner - Pooh characters...didn't care for the food though.

Chef Mickey's - Mickey and the gang - great food.

They absolutely loved Typhoon Lagoon!! We had to cancel our PS's for that evening because they didn't want to leave and we wouldn't make it there on time. This year I made the PS for late evening for that day.

DTD was a bit boring for them except the Legos and the big Disney Store they liked all the stuff in there. It was too crowded to let them run about though and really enjoy it.

Hope that helps!! Have a great time!!

 

[moinab]

They were terrified in the Great Movie Ride (there is a part where an alien from the movie alien comes out of the ceiling right to your car. It scared the crap out of them.

If this is a concern, ask to sit in the back of the tram. We were in the very last row, and couldn't even see the alien until we passed right under it. Because the tram moves sooooo slooooowly, we were able to easily distract our kids by the time we got to it.

 

[Allstar Kids]

Hi

Many Thanks for all the tips. We shall bear them all in mind when planning our trip.


I can see us planning the second one very soon. Two weeks just isn't going to be long enough!!!!!

 

[DisneyMomx7]

Last year when we went our kids were 2, 4 and 5. The things they liked most were the character breakfasts, MK, MGM, Festival of the Lion King and Boneyard in AK, and swimming breaks. We took them to BB but I really think it was wasted except for the three year old. The other two were just as happy going back to the pool at GF every day. They also like to swim at night, since at home they're in bed before it gets dark. They really loved the MK parade and the fireworks.

 

[sgtpet]

Playhouse Disney show. Wishes. Chef Mickey's Breakfast