Going to Disney with a Two Year Old

[MadHatter's Sister]

Hi, my name is Misty. This is my first time posting. My family and I are going to Disney April 2017. My son will be two when we go. I know he can go on some rides which means standing in line with him for a long time. What I wanna know is how do I keep him entertained that whole time so we can avoided melt downs?

 

[Alesia]

Hi, my name is Misty. This is my first time posting. My family and I are going to Disney April 2017. My son will be two when we go. I know he can go on some rides which means standing in line with him for a long time. What I wanna know is how do I keep him entertained that whole time so we can avoided melt downs?

He won't just be able to go on some rides - he'll be able to go on almost all of them.

If you make a good plan, you won't have to wait in long lines. We always go when the parks are busy and we rarely wait more than 20 minutes - never more than 30. I recommend getting a good guidebook, such as The easy Guide to Your First Walt Disney World Visit.

What are the exact dates of your trip? It's really helpful to know that when giving advice.

 

[imthemamahere]

For a two year old, it is definitely hard to wait. You'll probably want to work around his normal nap schedule, perhaps hit the parks pretty early to take advantage of lighter crowds/shorter lines, then plan out your Fast Passes for after naptime....

As for how to keep him busy in the lines, some rides (Dumbo and Winnie the Pooh come immediately to mind) have queues that will keep him entertained by giving him places to play along the way. If you'll have a phone/ipod touch/etc on you, kids that age are VERY easily entertained by a handful of simple apps. So can going through the photos you've taken on your phone - kids that age LOVE to look at pictures of themselves and loved ones. The park map (grab a few copies on the way in) can also be entertaining to look through together. You can also bring a little notebook and a handful of crayons and let him draw, give him some stickers to stick in the notebook, etc. Honestly, at that age, a baggie of cheerios or goldfish crackers can also while away some time, if he's waiting and hungry at the same time. We went for the first time as a family of three when my son was 2 1/2 and to be honest, we didn't bring much with us to keep him entertained in the lines. I think I'd bought a single tiny sticker book to bring around when he was that age (search Amazon for Dover little activity books - they're definitely little, but good for a few minutes' distraction). Between the photos on my phone and a few rounds of "I Spy," we typically made it through just fine.

 

[jmccoy18]

The first thing is to make a good touring plan to help with the wait times. We usually go during Christmas/NYE, so the most crowded time of year, and with a good touring plan we never waited longer than 30 min for my DD1's first trip when she was 2. Most rides have things to look at while you are waiting, so we never really had a problem. Our longest wait was 30 min for Jungle Cruise and we just talked to her about the ride, thinking about our favorite part of the day so far, what we wanted to eat for lunch, pointing out cool things to see, etc... Park maps are also fun for them to look at. For a backup, you could always have your phone to play on.

 

[DisneyMomma1216]

We took my daughter when she just turned 2, and she will be going again this May. She was actually a lot easier than I thought, but her first trip was when she was 9 months old, so we knew what we needed to do with her. She slept in her stroller, we had snacks for her, bubbles, stickers, glow sticks for nighttime, and we occupied her as much as possible. Some of the lines were a little tedious, but either myself or my husband held her, and we found something in the queue to occupy her with if we didn't have a fastpass for that particular ride/character. While she slept in her stroller, we walked around and just took the sights in.. gave us some relaxing adult time, and she got her nap in. If there is a chance your son doesn't do naps in the stroller, I would plan to go to the parks early in the morning, get some rides in, then take a break and go back to your resort for a little. Giving you all some downtime is a lot more beneficial when you're in Disney. Fastpass the rides you think he may like (based on character preference even), or character meets. Stay in tune with his needs/wants, as you always do. It's a lot easier than most people think. Keep in mind, meltdowns may just happen.. sometimes, they are just inevitable. But that's okay. Just remember to take your time and enjoy it all.

 

[mernin]

I agree that having a touring plan will help with lines. We went with my 2 year old in December (she was almost 3) and our plan was to be there at rope drop because the lines are way less in the morning vs afternoon. We did FP+ for the rides which had the longest waits. We didn't wait in lines much. Longest one was for the princesses & princes at the Christmas party. During regular park hours it was less than 20 minutes for any ride we went into the standby line.

 

[luvgoing2disney]

My DW goes with a perpetual 2 year old on each of our trips!

 

[tlmadden73]

I went to Magic Kingdom and Animal Kingdom with my son when he was 2 years, 2 month old. We had a great time and he had a great time. He still remembers parts of it to this day (over a year and half later).

This is what I did .. this advice may or may not apply to your family:
1) Go early (like rope drop). You'll get more done before the heat and nap time
2) Nap in the park .. my son just napped in his stroller for about 90 minutes. He was out and was not bothered by the noises around him. .. we just found a quiet corner in the shade. If not, go back to your hotel.
3) Fast Pass anything and everything you can .. No line is better than a 10 minute line. After you finish your first 3 .. get the 4th, 5th, 6th .. as many as you can .. even for "kiddie" rides.
4) See characters .. but don't FORCE it if they are scared. HINT: .. stand between the character and your child while you hold them.
5) Character buffets (for dinner). Kids (that young) are free and you get a great meal and the characters come to YOU while your child sits in their high chair. It is a great way to see a lot of characters. I would suggest Crystal Palace.
6) Lower your expectations --- you will be moving slow with a child. Take joy in HIM enjoying all the cool stuff. You may not get on a lot of rides . but you will have a good time.
7) Stop and smell the roses -- get your photos taken, see parades, watch street shows.
8) If there is something he wants to do again .. do it. . If they want to just play with things in the toy store for a while .. let them.
9) Don't stay late .. we made sure to leave before (or as) the night shows were starting. It was still past his bed time, but not much.

My son was entertained by the sights and sounds and didn't need anything else to entertain him throughout the day, so he was fine in lines, even longer ones. We had plenty of snacks and drinks on hand to keep up his energy.

He was actually WORSE when we went back when he turned 3 as he was a lot more independent and vocal then. Take advantage of the child being confined to a stroller.

While you can go on MANY rides at MK, I would suggest these for 2 year olds:
1) Dumbo/Aladdin
2) Jungle Cruise
3) Small World
4) Peter Pan

I would not suggest:
1) Haunted Mansion
2) Pirates
(they may be too scary)

 

[Dallas Bengal]

Wow two years old is the perfect time to start taking the little ones. Our daughters first trip was when they were two. We took them every other year for years, It amazed me just what a impression the park made on them, They would remember where all their favorite things were when we took them back at 4... we still love going as a family. As a matter of fact our oldest turned 22 TODAY and will be graduating from college on April 29 ( Oklahoma Christian University ) She has always wanted to see the Eifel Tower so we asked if she would like to go as a Graduation present ..... She thought for like 30 seconds and said " I would really like to go back to Disney World " So we arrive on May 8th thru the 18th. Guess I will make reservations in France at Epcot, they have the Eifel tower there. LOL
Your two year old will love it.. It's so magical to a small child and I still feel like a kid when there. My best and Favorite family movies are of our trips to the world. Defiantly the happiest place on earth.
Have a great vacation,
Scott

 

[Fabnsab]

My daughters first trip was at 2. We kept her happy just by talking and making faces and such and when them at wasn't enough, there's always the phone!

Best advice I can give- don't stay all day. Know that you won't do everything. My kid was never the type to nap in a stroller and we pushed it too long. She had a meltdown and I felt so bad because I know we caused it by staying too long.

Have a great time!

 

[TravelingTotMom]

My DS is almost 2 and is about to go for his 10th time (FL resident pass holders and do day or weekend trips) - and let's just say it's a learning process each time!

At this age, we can't do lines (or shows!) because he's go, go, go!

My best piece of advice is to let him have some time to run around and play. There are different spots at each park to do this: Animal Kingdom has the Boneyard playground; Magic Kingdom has the indoor playground at Dumbo, the splash area by Dumbo and a small play area by Splash Mountain; and Epcot has play areas at the exit to Journey into Imagination and Mission Space (as well as the car area at Test Track, the aquariums in the Seas with Nemo, the jumping fountains by Journey into Imagination and the hedge maze in the UK). Hollywood Studios is our least favorite park with a toddler, as they can't do as many rides and ours won't sit through any shows. He also likes to dance when the different entertainers are performing.

Also, some of DS's favorite rides at the Magic Kingdom usually have no - or a minimum - wait, so we save those for the most crowded times of the day: the Enchanted Tiki Room, Carousel, People Mover.

And sometimes you just need to stop and have a Mickey ice cream bar (we have one while waiting for the parade to start).

 

[MrPTato]

My two year old has now gone 3 times. Key is to do short wait times and to work around the typical nap schedule. She liked most things that she was able to ride on. She loves the tea cups and the carousel the best and is still talking about them from our January trip.

 

[Tara1988]

Having a good plan will cut down on how much time you spend in lines. A lot of lines have interesting surroundings so that helps to give them something to look at or do. Bring small toys, bubbles, and snacks. If he's potty trained, make him go before any line more than 20 minutes, and limit drinks in lines. Talk to him and play little games. Most of the kids I see getting aggravated and throwing fits are the ones whose parents are not paying them any attention

 

[ayz75]

We took our 2 year old last May, and to be honest - it was actually easier than we thought!

Here's the thing - a 2 year old doesn't care THAT MUCH about "rides". In fact, my daughter spent almost an hour at the Swiss Family Treehouse.. she loved going up and stopping to look at the stuff there. We also did the Railroad around the park. There are a lot of things you can do that don't require line ups (or very small line ups).

My strategy was basically to schedule my 3 FPs during the morning (I think I chose the speedway, Dumbo and Peter Pan) and then I got my 4th FP (purposely picking something around 2 or 3pm so she can nap first). I avoided rides that had a wait time of over 30 minutes, but surprisingly we managed to do A LOT of rides.. (part of it is I utilized my FPs to the max). But any in-between time, we just walked around and did the stuff mentioned above.

 

[AtlantaDisneyDreamer]

My older daughter loved the parades and characters when she was two. She was afraid of many of the rides because they were too dark. We kept snacks for her and let her snack and drink juice while she waited in her stroller for the parade.

Younger daughter loved all the rides when she was two. No fear at all. Her favorite was Mickey's Philharmagic. She laughed throughout the show. Philharmagic terrified my older daughter when she was two.

Older daughter was also terrified of fireworks when she was two. We were so excited to see the fireworks, and when they started, she screamed as if she were being tortured. We ran back down Main Street toward the exit (not sure we could manage that today with the crowds) with her in the stroller yelling as loud as she could yell. Younger daughter liked seeing the fireworks, but she didn't like the noise. We brought her earmuffs to the park with us. She may have been the only child wearing fuzzy pink earmuffs in July at MK.

So a lot of it depends on the child.

 

[DisneyMomma1216]

You can also watch YouTube videos of parades, rides, fireworks, and character meets to show him and see his reaction towards them. It may save you some time if you see that he doesn't like watching something specific.

 

[cgh]

Bubbles. A small thing of bubbles works wonders. Also, come up with a plan. We rarely wait in lines, or nothing that long. We do most of our touring in the morning, and use fast passes. Also, do remember that everything for the most part is fun and let him lead somewhat. Train, monorail, elevators, boats, all of it is fun. You can always just ride the vehicles on Main street and he'd have a blast.

I've also found with avoiding meltdowns, the key is to follow along with my son and not force things, have snacks on hand and make sure to follow meal schedule, nap in the room (for us that works best). If food is an issue then have an idea of where you'd like to eat. (my eldest was one who at 2 would pretty much only eat grilled cheese. This was not a worthwhile battle for us on vacation.

Finally, temperature- to avoid meltdowns, for my son, heat could be something to fuss about. I like a stroller fan. alternatively, I make sure to take breaks in A/C.

Oh-one more thing-dark rides can be scary. Pay attention to how you order rides. I found first doing outside rides (ie. dumbo, the cups) worked bests. For 'dark rides" (which could be loud and scary) do the gentler ones first then work your way up to something else.

 

[chloelovesdisney]

We used FP+ and then scheduled a 4th, 5th, etc. so the line waits were minimal. Tom Sawyer's Island the fish tanks at the exit of the Nemo ride were the favorites of the trip. He spent a LOT of time at both locations just walking and looking around. Parades were also a huge hit.

 

[chloelovesdisney]

And carry plenty of snacks.

 

[Disneychick75]

Our grandson is 2.5 and will be going on his 3rd trip. Get FP's for Peter Pan, Jungle Cruise, It's a Small World- his favorite. DGS loved going to the iron fences and watching the ducks. We learned to slow down and let him lead us with his amazement at the smallest things. Get the FPs that you can for the rides you think will amuse him. On our next trip in May, we're only spending a couple of hours at Epcot. DGS likes Living with the Land and the Nemo ride. Soarin' is down and there is not a whole lot else for a little one. We'll probably only spend a half day at DHS and AK as well.
Your little one will be a lot less worried about the lines than you think. Don't stress, enjoy the trip!