HELP! DH thinks our kids are too young for WDW...

[kahluacream]

Hi,

I'm new here, but I love WDW and all things Disney!

Here's the story: I have two little boys, ages 2 and 4. I'd love to take them to Disney soon, but my DH insists they're too young. He wants to wait until they're 5 and 7 to make our first trip. I think his main concern is flying with very young children, as he's had many business flights ruined by screaming kids.

Anyway, I was wondering if anyone would be willing to share their Disney experiences with young children. I'd like to hear the good, bad, and ugly from people who have been there, done that.

What would a Disney vacation be like with a toddler and pre-schooler? Is it worth trying to convince him, or are we better off waiting until our kids are a little older?

Thanks for your help!

 

[SqueakyMouse]

My dh always felt the same way until we took our 2.5 yo (fil just out of hospital so in-laws unable to babysit) this past May. She had way more fun than her almost 5 and almost 13 yo brothers. I won't say she was better behaved, but the other 2 helped to keep her entertained.

 

[LaDonna]

Mine were 3 and 4 the first time we went, plus we went during Spring Break so it was very crowded, and it was the best trip we've ever had!!!! I honestly thought it was going to be tough with the kids being so young, but there is just so much for them to do and see! We enjoyed ourselves so much we can't wait to go our second trip in a few months

 

[SylviaL]

Seeing my 18 month old meet Buzz (his fave) was absolutely priceless! My boys were 18 months old and 3 1/2 when we took them last November. They may not remember much from the trip (actually the 3 1/2 yr old still talks about it) but it made DH and I so happy to see them so excited and happy. As parents, isn't that what we all live for?!

 

[tikilyn]

We took our two kids dd4 and ds 18months last december. You should have seen dd's face when she saw the castle for the first time. Her little face just lit up!! We went to Mickeys very merry xmas party. After the fireworks were over our dd turns to me and says "thank you mommy for making my birthday wish come true"!. That made me cry right then and there. And to this day she thinks I made those fireworks just for her on her birthday (yeah, I won't tell her any different either!).

Now about DS who was 18 months old. He was intimadated by the characters. They would come up to him and he would shy away saying no, but as soon as they left he would start saying bye mickey, bye pooh and wave at them. Really sweet. But get this to this day he still remembers disney. Not the way you or I would remember but like when a disney movie comes on and it shows the castle in gold, he gets excited and starts say Mickey mouse!! While we were in wal mart the other day some guy was putting in one of the .50 ride machines. It was a might mouse on a rocket. While we were leaving Lorenzo starts getting excited and starts screaming MICKEY MOUSE,MICKEY MOUSE!!

Its the best time to take them. Well there's our wounderful memories of disney!

HTH
Sabrina

 

[pooh2001]

just take an afternoon break - naps for kids - DH maybe swims then relaxes

It'll be good for the kids and you and your DH

When our kids were young - we got up by 7:30 am - did breakfast-
did not worry about the early Park openings - did another Park - back to the hotel for our break - then EPCOT or MK to walk around and dinner out.
Maybe fireworks if by 9 PM and kids had a good nap. Then back to the resort.
Be prepared to carry the kids - or use your own umbrella stroller.

Enjoy, relax and have fun

 

[AlexTina]

I say take them and have your camera ready! When they see the characters their faces will light up and they will love the parades too! The only other time I have ever seen my daughters face light up like that is when we take her to see Santa at the mall at Christmas time. My DD has been to WDW 4 times the most recent being last month she's 3 (will be 4 in September) and her very first trip was when she was 7 month's old, my DS just went on his first trip to WDW last month and he is 6 months old. We always try to stay at the Poly because we spend most of our time at MK and always take advantage of the monorail to go back to the resort for a swim and nap in the afternoon and we've never had any problems. We also take advantage of the baby swap on the rides which have height restrictions that way DD gets to ride her favorite rides twice once with me and once with DH. All of the rides that do not have height restrictions we just take the baby on them with us and he did great. Have fun planning.

I almost forgot to add that the airplane has never been a problem for us, I always make sure that my DD has some gum and DS is sucking on something during take off and landing so that their ears don't hurt. Both of my kids have always just conked out right after take off, I guess it's the constant noise and motion because they both just pass out as soon as we get going and usually sleep for most of the flight and we have a long flight, it's 3 hours 15 minutes direct from Albuquerque to Orlando.

Tina

 

[WANNABE@WDW]

I think trips with younger children are filled with extra magic! They truly believe in the magic of Disney. Of course I am thirty something and I still believe in the magic too!!!! You just have to plan your trip accordingly. Build in naps and don't do the parks "commando style". I worried the first time I took dd's, they were 2 and 5 (I took them by myself!), but that trip was awsome. I was forced to slow down and take my time. Now my dd's (5 & 8) share my Disney obsession!

 

[Rowlf]

My DH was quite skeptical about taking our 15 month old DS last year, but we all had a blast. A couple special memories: a mime in France at Epcot making little bug antennae out of a balloon and putting it on DS's head while a whole crowd cheered his cuteness and DS bopping around to the Beatles cover band in England, much to the delight of the many retired folks sitting around. AND? His first haircut in the MK, which was (ostensibly) the entire reason for the trip!

The flight wasn't bad - but, then again, I didn't check where you live, so it may be longer than ours. We stayed Poly concierge, and that was a great choice for access to the parks and to snacks.

 

[marcij]

We took our kids when they were 5 and 2, and it was a really magical trip. Their faces were priceless, even just riding the monorail! As the previous posters said, if you use a few strategies, you can have a great trip. I always fly earlier in the day, as it is easier when the kids aren't as tired. I start collecting a few month's ahead age appropriate inexpensive things to fill their backpacks with for the airplane ride. Just small things they have never seen to keep them busy. If they like watching videos, borrow a DVD player if you don't have one and put in some educational entertainment. For the park strategy, always plan to spend the afternoon at your hotel with nap time/swimming. I always make table service restaurant reservations so we are out of the heat for some down time.

While my kids still enjoy the magic of WDW, there was something about the way they "saw" it when they were younger that will always stay with me. With a little bit of planning and the knowledge that you'll need to be flexible with young ones, you will have a fantastic trip!

 

[golfgal]

There are advantages and disadvantages of every age. With the little ones, the looks on their faces when the characters come up to them is just priceless. Everything there is just magical for them, but, they can't go on any of the "big" rides and the lines for the characters can take up your entire day. If you don't mind going at their pace, it isn't a big deal.

Waiting until they are older they will still like the characters, but it won't be as much of a WOW thing for them. They will, however, be able to go on most of the rides and will be more into seeing the stuff there.

For me personally, I wouldn't want to have to do the Disney parks with a stroller, way to much of a pain in the rear for me.

 

[ptslp]

We took our kids in April (6 mos and 2 1/2 years) and they both loved it! The looks on their faces were priceless. My dd (6 mos) loved the characters- squealed with delight when she saw them and my ds (2 1/2) had a blast. He hugged every character, loved the rides he could go on and still talks about it almost every day. He remembers his favorite rides, meeting the characters and wants to go back! (We have already planned our second trip with them for the end of September!)

As for the plane, for the most part, our kids are well behaved. We planned ahead and had a bunch of stuff for them to do (food, coloring, books, small toys) and actually had too much! For the trip home, we packed a bunch of the stuff in our luggage! You could even bring a portable DVD or laptop for the kids to watch if you are very concerned. We had a 2 1/2 hour flight. I think at 2 and 4, as long as you plan well, your kids should be fine on a flight.

I hope you can talk your husband into it! It is the best with kids- any age!

 

[pooh4evr]

We went in May with our DDs 4 and a week away from 2- it was wonderful not too crowded or too hot. DDs got to be in storytime with Belle who is DD4 favorite she was in awe of Belle I almost cried because of the look of pure joy on her face! DD2 loved seeing the castle and meeting Ariel at PSL and seeing "Nemo" at Living Seas. We did not go back to hotel for naps- girls napped fine in stroller!! The plane rides were fine we did not take carseats, both had seats, flew Southwest out of St Louis- we took snacks and small toys on plane an it worked well. We rented a side by side double stroller from Baby's Best Friend and it was perfect! And finally we stayed at Best Western Downtown Disney. Definately GO- before they get too involved with school or extra activities!! Let me know if you have any other questions!!

GOOD LUCK

 

[Mr Poohbrain]

My DS was just shy of his 2nd birthday when we went down for the first time. He loved it!! We went again this past April (2.5) and will be going down to celebrate his 3rd BD.

The things that are "magical" at this age are truly amazing - yes, Mickey was cool, but not as cool as the elevator buttons at the hotel.

One suggestion - have the boys start watching the Disneyland Sing Along VHS tape (not available on DVD). It will get them used to the "live" characters.

Best of luck,

Mrs. PB

 

[kldmom2000]

My DH sounds like your DH! LOL! We took our girls in December-they were 2 and 4 at the time. My 2 yr old actually did better than my 4 yr old. She would run up to characters and hug them-absolutely fearless.... would do any ride that she was tall enough for. My 4 yr old on the other hand, was terrified of the characters, wouldn't ride any ride that was "indoors" so that limited us to the carousel, Dumbo, the tea cups, Indy speedway, etc... no Pooh ride, Peter Pan, etc.... even at the other 3 parks, she didn't want to go on anything. DH now wants us to wait until they are both 5 and 7 so hopefully my older one will have outgrown some of her fears and we also won't have to deal with the carseat on the plane, diapers, etc.....

I personally loved our trip and thought we made some wonderful memories... the girls watch the video repeatedly and beg to go back.... but DH won't budge on his stance

 

[tlbwriter]

I'm going to go against the crowd and say that if this is a once-in-a-lifetime trip, wait until they're older. If you plan to go every few years, go ahead and take them now. But they'll have just as much fun in two years, and more memories in the long run.

 

[DisneyArk]

I think WDW is fun at any age. Do you think you will take a once in a lifetime trip or several? If this is your one and only trip, then you may want to wait.

The first time we took our 2 sons, they were 18 months and 3 years old. That trip was so magical and they showed their excitement about everything!! My ds3 loved Buzz and carried a small Buzz toy with him throughout the trip. I can't even describe how excited they were on this trip!!

The 2nd trip they were 3 and 5. That trip was wonderful too, but my ds5 was more grown up and not into Buzz at all. This trip was awesome too, but different from when they were younger. It was really cool to watch my ds5 reading things and enjoying Epcot.

If you decide to take young kids, then you really have to stop and smell the roses and not try to do everything. That was the key for us. We let them ride some rides over and over.

I think being able to use a stroller is a bonus!! Now my sons are 5 and 7. We haven't been back to WDW, but when we go on vacation they do get tired of walking and we have to constantly make sure they are keeping up with us. That sounds simple, but in a crowd it can be easy to lose them. Also, when the kids are younger you can go during the off season, when the parks are not as crowded. Now my oldest is going into 2nd grade and the principal does NOT want children to be taken out of school for vacations.

As far as the plane ride goes, you will probably need to bring things to keep them entertained. I buy small toys at the dollar store. My sons don't chew gum, so I brought fruit snacks and star bursts and let them eat those during the take off and landing.

Another point is that kids can't stay at the kid's clubs until they are 4. We wanted to go to dinner at California Grill without the boys, but my youngest wasn't old enough to leave.

Good luck making your decision!! Decide what's best for your family. If you are looking forward to riding every ride together then you may want to wait until the boys are older and ready to ride the bigger rides.

 

[3mickeys&me]

The first time we took our boys to Disney World was when they were 2 & 4 and they loved it!! Infact my 2 yr old CRIED his little heart out when our trip was coming to an end because he wanted to go back to Mickey's castle LOL!!!
They had a blast on alot of rides loved the shows and loved the resort pools!! We took them to the Hoopty Doo Review as well and they loved that too.

I would do it again in a heartbeat if my kids were that age, we had no regrets!!

 

[alexb]

We took our son ( then 4 y.o.) and daughter (then 18 months) twice last year, courtesy of my parents and my in-laws. The kids absolutely loved it and got a lot out of it. Whenever my daughter sees fireworks she says unprompted "they are just like the ones at Cinderella's castle at Disney World". My son also talks about the trips at least once a week and both kids are constantly asking to go back. My kids had a blast and it was fun.

As others have said, if you are going to go to WDW again in future years I'd say go. There is so much to see and do for all ages that what they like now will be different than what they'll like in 5 or 10 years.

For both trips we were there for 7 days and we went to the parks every other day so the kids (and us) didn't get burned out. We got the parks when they opened and stayed through lunch. We headed back to the house we rented and put the kids down for naps/rest time and my DW and I either napped or went for a swim. After the kids got up we headed back to the parks before dinner and usually stayed until closing if the kids were up to it. It worked out very well for us and we saw and did everything we wanted to see and do.

IMHO, there is something at WDW for all ages from 1-101.

 

[benjyt]

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