For parents with younger kids. Less of a DL Q, more of a parenting Q

[seagodess]

While at DL, I assume most parents let their kids stay up much later than their regular bed times. Well, what if you kids usual bed time is pretty early? How do they do with staying up later? We do plan on taking breaks in the afternoon, but I dont know if DS will actually sleep or not during that time. He's not usually a nap taker.

 

[skiingfast]

When DS was just past taking daily naps, at Disney he would stay up 2, 3, even 4 or 5 hours past his normal bad time. Then always sleeps most of the drive home.

 

[starshine514]

My girls aren't nap-takers at home, but my obedient 7-yr-old lays down and takes a nap during our afternoon break. My 5-yr-old is a different story; she won't calm down unless forced to, so I've found a little extra stroller time (a detour to head to the other park just to grab FPs on the way out, etc.) often lets her doze off and get that much-needed nap in.

We don't do a swimming break (as I've seen suggested on other threads) because swimming wears me out, so it's not a good 'rest' activity for me. Some people say it substitutes for a nap for them, though.

 

[mooshka1]

How old is your son? If he is very young, just bring/rent a stroller for him so he can sleep in it if you are in the park after his bedtime. I think you already have an idea how he reacts to being tired/sleepy, so go by that. He may not take a nap the first day there, but probably will the other days because he will be tired. I know people like to hit the park early in the day, but would letting him sleep in later help him with the later bedtimes?? Maybe?

 

[luckyman_apd]

What is your typical lifestyle? I mean, are your kids highly scheduled? or do they go with the flow easily?

We have taken several trips to WDW, and we are going to DL in June. I have a 6 year old and a 2 year old. My kids are very flexible and we throw bedtimes out the window. We are in DISNEY! All kidding aside, our kids will sleep in a stroller, and because they are usually up very late in a place like Disney, they won't always "sleep in" because of it, so we take breaks to nap and rest in the afternoon. Keeping kids up and getting them out of schedule, will lead to crankiness other times, so you just need to manage it.

I could be up at 7, in the park at 8, and stay till midnight repeatedly, but my kids would be the crabbiest, worst behaved kids in the world if we did this. To help with this, we just take breaks when we get tired. We've tried to "cram" at Disney, and it just leads to everyone being miserable. Better to take breaks and enjoy the time when everyone is happy, then cram stuff in and be miserable.

Just my opinion on how we do it.

 

[disneydreamer74]

My DD5 is not partial to naps either! We go back for breaks in the afternoons where she can nap if she would like or just lay on the bed and rest. The point is to de-stimualte or she will get very cranky! Since she is a smaller 5 yr old we use a jogging stroller where she can nap throughout the day or in the evening. It seems to work right. Her regular bedtime is 8 p.m., but at DLR she sometimes stays up until 9 p.m. We don't mind her staying up late on vacations! Enjoy your trip!

 

[Brady's Mom]

My kids are bigger now, so this answer doesn't apply as much now as it used to.

We love to go off season so often my kids weren't too messed up on their sleeping schedules when they were younger. But, when we have gone and the hours have been longer, they have been tired enough to take a nap in the afternoon, or sleep in the stroller.

On our first trip when my youngest was 2 he ended up sleeping 4 hours in the stroller one afternoon. Our stroller reclined all the way, has a big sunshade, I had a small blanket to keep the sun off and the motion helped him sleep. It was a little challenging to go on rides since we had a sleeping child, but DH and I just traded going with the other kids.

My kids do NOT sleep in - they were up late last night and awake this morning at 6:30, BUT, they do get up around 6:15 to get ready for school. They will sometimes sleep in at DLR if we've been up late or are a few days into our trips.

If we find our kids are getting tired and cranky because of not enough sleep we just cut one of our days short and take them back to the hotel to go to be early. Since we have an older son who usually goes with us - either my DH or I will stay with him at DL while the other puts the younger kids to bed.

 

[TigerlilyAJ]

We just took a big Easter trip to Washington, D.C., which is actually a lot like a Disney trip in that you ride the Metro and then walk miles and miles each day on the National Mall, to restaurants, through the Zoo and Smithsonian museums, catching a ride on the Mall's carousel. (I lost 4lbs on the trip despite grubbing like a fiend!) My kids are 2, 4, and 7, insane, and only the 2yo still naps--and never in a stroller. We stayed out quite late for them, becoming those parents everyone judges for being at the restaurant getting dinner at 8pm. (The best/most popular Smithsonians stay open to 7:30pm.) We found that they just slept like rocks when we got back to the hotel. No need for stories, no delaying tactics, just falling into bed and sleeping until 8am, an hour late for them. It was actually pretty awesome, and when we did get back in our car to drive home (we didn't use it once while in the Capital), they all slept in their carseats, and then slept long and hard each night for the first four days back at home.
The excitement and adventure kept everyone awake through our days, and only the 2yo was a problem with the crankies, teaching us that at DL, at least one of us really will have to go back to the hotel to get him a rest, even if others stay in the park. Makes one of those Harbor motels seem more attractive.
GL!

 

[coaches24]

DD was almost 2 1/2 last time and was a sporadic napper. Her bed time was 8 pm on most nights. When she did take a nap she would fall asleep between 2-4 pm and sleep for 1-3 hours. At DL we thought she might map in the stroller but she never did. She would lie down and rest but never fell asleep. But what would happen is she would fall asleep around 8:30 or 9:00 each night in the stroller as we were waiting to see F! and WOC (seperate nights of course). She slept through the shows and then we would go back to the hotel after that. She very rarely sleeps in always waking up between 6:30 and 7:30 am so we were able to get to the parks early. DW and I would get ready while DD slept and we wouldn't wake her up until it was time to leave (only day DD didn't wake up on her own was actually the first day going to the parks. After that she knew we where at DL (and had a taste of what DL actually is) and was hooked so every morning was like Christmas after that. Up early saying "can we go DL now" at 4:30 am.

 

[Misskitty3]

My kids stopped napping back at the hotel while at DLR by the time they were two. My youngest was never much of a napper even at home, though. We always had strollers for them at that age and if they fell asleep in their stroller for a nap, that was fine. As a huge Disney loving parent, there is nothing more frustrating than walking all the way back to the hotel for a mid day nap and your child is so keyed up they can't even sit still let alone fall asleep!

However, we would head back to the hotel around 9pm or after the fireworks. So they were really only up for an extra hour or two past their bedtime (normal bedtime being between 7pm - 8pm).

 

[cgh]

We actually roughly keep to his schedule. (he has an 8:30 bedtime though) For us, the priority was getting to the parks early so that worked well. Haven't decided what we'll do this year.

So, we'd get up at 6 or so (a little earlier then normal), rush to the park, Stay there around 11:30/noon, grab lunch and nap. Then, we'd go back to the parks between 4 and 7ish. Bedtime might go back to 9. It worked up very very well and we all had fun. The sleep helped our son just be so much more easy going in lines etc.

 

[Lavender Mom]

When we were last in DL, we had an early bedtime (7pm), and my kids wouldn't nap in the afternoon. They were also never the type to nap in the stroller or car. We ended up sticking pretty close to our regular schedule. We'd wake up early to hit the parks for a 7am magic morning most days, stay until probably 4 or so? and then get dinner and call it a day. Sometimes we'd hit the pool in the afternoon, but the kids were usually in bed within an hour of 7 and that worked well. They never saw fireworks, or any of the evening entertainment, but honestly, they never missed it. We were traveling with another family so dh and I were able to sneak out one night and see the fireworks. Sleep-wise, our kids were pretty exhausted by the end of our 4 days there. I can only imagine what a mess they would have been if we'd stayed up a lot later each night. (But my kids have always been really sensitive about sleep...)

 

[seagodess]

DS will be 5yr. We dont dont use a stroller. He normally goes to bed 7-8pm and sleeps until 7ish. He has stayed up late before, I dont think any later than 10 though. It may not be a issue if he is able to get a short nap in during our break, which he might if he is worn out enough. The first day we will be in CA we wont be in DL, but still be out late. We have reservations at midieval times and it doesn't start until 6, we are used to dinner by 5pm. So I think that may be his hardest day now that I think of it.

 

[Mugglemama]

The last time we visited DLR during the Summer (read: late hours) was in Summer of 2010. My youngest was 5. His normal bedtime was about 8:30...we got back to the hotel around 10pm. It was our first trip *without* a stroller, and DS5 walked ALL day long, didn't get cranky at all, and thoroughly enjoyed himself. I'm not sure the hotel door had even been closed yet before I turned around and noticed this, though...

 

[lroger01]

I suggest if you decide on taking a break to not call it "nap time" but rather "Movie time" or something. Just close the blinds, turn down the lights and start a movie or TV show. Everyone flops down on the beds to find a place to watch...and....before...you...know....it...they're snoozing!

I explained it to my kids like this: At home we normally go all day - to work and school and such. At the end of the day, after dinner, we chill out and watch TV and do quiet activities until bedtime. At Disney, we can't do that since we want to enjoy the night time activities at the parks. So instead of chilling out at night, we'll come back after lunch and do it.

I never had any problems or complaints once I explaned it, but then my kids are the go-with-the-flow type.

 

[seagodess]

The last time we visited DLR during the Summer (read: late hours) was in Summer of 2010. My youngest was 5. His normal bedtime was about 8:30...we got back to the hotel around 10pm. It was our first trip *without* a stroller, and DS5 walked ALL day long, didn't get cranky at all, and thoroughly enjoyed himself. I'm not sure the hotel door had even been closed yet before I turned around and noticed this, though...

That is so cute. Makes me feel better, thanks.

 

[lalasmama]

My DD was "older" when we went--she turned 8 on the trip--however, she has always been at the high end of "sleep-neediness". At 8, she's just now making it to stay up until 8pm for bed.

When we went to DL at the end of Feb, her normal bedtime was 7:30am (I know, it was EARLY! and she was still sleeping like a rock until 8am!). Like others, we threw out bedtimes when we were at DLR, especially on Leap Day.

I dealt with a crankier child, and I let her sleep in later in the morning (loved those black-out curtains at the motel!)... For us, there was jut no other way around it. I wasn't ready to head back to the hotel at 7pm, she would have balked at a rest time in the afternoon (and she won't doze off if the TV is on), and so we pressed on through the day. I did try to do some "quieter" activities in the afternoon. We would go snuggle in the corner while waiting for Turtle Talk with Crush, or relax with a showing of Captain EO, etc.

In the evenings, when it was past her bedtime, I would let her make more of the choices... "I want to go on Toy Story MM, which can be a long line. What would you like to do before we go on TSMM, so that you can handle the line better?" But, that kind of wheeling-and-dealing wouldn't necessarily work with a younger child!

 

[TigerlilyAJ]

I suggest if you decide on taking a break to not call it "nap time" but rather "Movie time" or something. Just close the blinds, turn down the lights and start a movie or TV show. Everyone flops down on the beds to find a place to watch...and....before...you...know....it...they're snoozing!

Oh, lroger01, I am SO taking notes here. I'm doing exactly that.

 

[Isatricia]

My girls are 6 & 8 and we didn't worry about bed times. My girls have never been on a schedule other than a rough 8pm bedtime for the past 3 years. We have found that our girls adapt to what ever the day's schedule might be. I believe this to be because a strict schedule was never placed on them. My girls did not get cranky during our trip and we were up by 7 each morning and in bed between 10 an midnight. We had originally planned to take a break in the afternoons, but we never found the time and the girls were not ready to leave the parks when we did. Oh and they walked the entire time and I logged 7-10 miles on my pedometer each day.

 

[lisachrystine]

My kids were 2,4 and 6 when we went in December. We started early and went back after lunch for a rest. We had the 4 year old and the two year old lie down. They were out within minutes (They also did a lot of walking). We put a movie in for my 6 year old and he AND DH were out within the first 10 minutes. They were happy to stay in the park until well past bedtime. There is no way my kids would ever sleep in a stroller with so much going on around them - I had to give them down time away from stimulation and it worked well for us. The key for us is being away from all the excitement. We were staying in a condo across the street. If you're staying on property, I would make use of those blackout curtains, put in a movie and see what happens.