Help me decide on resort - concerned about 16 mo. old sleeping in same room as parent

[StrikersMom]

Here's our situation. We're taking our son for his first trip at 16 mo. old in Oct. Previously, his dad and I have loved POR, so we booked there. However, I am concerned he will not sleep in the same room as us and that we'll have to go to bed at the same time as him (8 p.m.). I am wondering if staying at a 1 br. at OKW or SS would be better. However, I'll only be able to do that if a discount comes out. We really want to stay on property as we will be going back for naps, etc. and are looking for the same type of ambiance as POR - not the hustle and bustle of the values.

Please help with your suggestions!
Thanks!

 

[KristinU]

We've run into the same thing too - we loved our stay at POR but it wasn't ideal with our little guy - he was 9 mos. when we were there with him and we'd take turns going on walks to the food court etc after his bedtime. We still had a great time, but we like traveling with him better if we at least have a balcony to sit on after bedtime...my DS still has a pretty early bedtime and we stick to it even on vacation most of the time. You might consider a studio at a DVC resort or a 1 bedroom at a home away from home like you talked about. Whispering and eating desserts in bed while watching TV isn't the worst thing in the world either

Good Luck!

 

[revelstoke]

I am concerned he will not sleep in the same room as us and that we'll have to go to bed at the same time as him (8 p.m.). I am wondering if staying at a 1 br. at OKW or SS would be better. Please help with your suggestions!
Thanks!

Last October - our first trip as a family to Disney...we had exactly the same experience you are speaking about! Avoid it at all costs!!

Due to unfortunate circumstances (right after hurricane Wilma) many people had come up from southern Florida to Orlando as a get away and our hotel had booked our (pre-paid) hotel room to someone else...but fortunately for us we were ugraded to a one bedroom suite...it was glorious

Later in our trip (after a breif visit to the coast) we returned to the same hotel and stayed in a standard hotel room (like the one we had originally booked)...I have to say the stay was like night and day...we will never ever ever ever (infinity times ) stay in a standard room again. The ability in a 1br to get away close the door, let the kids watch TV, go to bed early, play with their toys in the other room was worth every $. Honestly after spending every second of every day with each other every one needs a little away space...it's overload when your all together in one room...

One of the biggest things was that our youngest (DD22mos at the time) was able to sleep in the crib any time she wanted to...(and she needed her naps or at least to hit the sack early (8pm)...this was no problem in the 1br but not in the standard room...in the standard there is just way too much action happening (she wouldn't even lay down) and forget about having the TV on in the evening no way...and being together 24/7, getting less sleep made everyone much more likely to

So the math is
our daughter in standard room (and of course how she goes we go!)
our daughter in 1br suite and us

good luck!!

 

[princessjv]

We have stayed at POR & POFQ with our kids at 2.5 & 10m each time. I found these resorts a great option because they have a curtain for a changing area, so you can go back there and change while little one is falling asleep.

What we did is put the pack and play in a corner in the front of the room. We brought a cheep, dark shower curtain with us and those 3m sticky clips that remove when you pull the back tab. With our materials we were able to make a 'small room' for the pack and play. We closed it at night by pulling it around the outside of the pack and play and hooking it to the wall. We also brought our IPod with speakers and played Disney Lullabies continuously through the night to keep the noise level constant in the room (this also helps with neighbors slamming doors...especially when they pull the lock out, so they don't get locked out...those darn neighbors...you know the ones!

Anyways, back on track... These baby measures kept our little ones sleeping all through the night and allowed us to watch TV and talk queitly! Good luck!

 

[LISAVWL]

why don't you check out the DVC rent/trade board -- you can rent points from an owner and you won't have to wait for a discount. We have been DVC owners for 5 years and have stayed at both SSR & OKW and love the rooms! We have 4 kids and go back each afternoon for naps/down time and there's tons of room for all of us! It's really wonderful having the separate bedrooms for the sleeping kids while the others are stil awake at night -- wouldn't trade that for the world!

 

[LISAVWL]

sorry -- double post!

 

[go cowboys]

I can't imagine you having a problem getting your child to sleep after a full day at the parks. I haven't met a child yet that couldn't sleep after all that excitement. Plus are you really going to quit early to stick to a bedtime? There is still alot of things to be done after 8:00. Maybe loosening the bedtime would help solve your problem too.

We own DVC and as others have said, look to rent if you want to get a 1 bdrm.

 

[dis-happy]

We've travelled TONS with 3 kids over the years and really, it shouldn't be that difficult. POR is nice because of the curtain. When we stayed at POFQ we put the pack-n-play in the closet area and closed the curtain. Also, I am a HUGE fan of white noise machines. Have it plugged in near the crib to drown out any stray sounds. Start using it at home before you travel so the baby gets used to it. In our house, the white noise = sleep time. Since you'll have the small fridge in your room it will be easy to have a small snack, breakfast or light lunch right there. Bring a bottle of wine and some chocolates for you and your dh---a romantic evening while the baby is sleeping behind the curtain.

 

[jchop]

First - I'm a huge fan of staying onsite. I love the feel of staying in a Disney Resort. Period.

However (and it's a big however) - our most recent stay (we just returned on June 6th) we opted for an off-site condo at a very, very nearby property and - I can't believe I'm saying this - I don't know that we'll stay onsite again until a) our kids are older and we can afford 2 standard connecting rooms, or b) we are able to secure at least a 2 bedroom accomodation somewhere on property or c) we win the lottery.

Our kids are 5 and 8 and they need to be in bed at 8:30 or 9om at the latest. My older child has proven to us on many occasions that if she gets less than 10 hours of sleep she is an absolute terror. Not joking. She is the grumpiest child when she is tired - very inflexible, moody, you get the picture. I'm praying she outgrows this. My 5 year old is more laid back. She'll get a little whiney if she doesn't get her beauty sleep but it's nothing like my older child. Point being - the kids must be asleep at a reasonable hour or the next day will be a struggle.

The condo we rented was brand-spankin' new and absolutely gorgeous. It was decorated totally Disney - Safari Disney to be exact. We had 3 bedrooms (K, Q, 2T) a fully stocked kitchen with all the comforts of home, a full-sized washer and dryer, large flat-screen tv in the livingroom, tv's in all the bedrooms (with DVD), high-speed internet access, a screened-in balcony, a beautiful pool with water-slide, what have I left out? Oh yes, it took exactly 7 minutes from lot to lot to get to AK, and between 12 and 16 minutes to get to the rest of the parks (I mean from the time we backed out of the parking slot to the time we pulled into our WDW parking slot).

I cannot say enough about having all the space we had. I don't think I will ever stay in a standard room with my girls again. Being able to snuggle in bed with them, read them their bedtime story, kiss them goodnight and leave the door open just a crack (night-lights provided) was priceless. Making pancakes and bacon for breakfast or just tossing cereal and yogurt on the table was also a wonderful plus - not to mention munching on the late night Oreo's and milk from our own fridge.

Dh and I were discussing the fact that even if we did stay at a Disney resort - we would not be able to take advantage of the Extra Magic Hours that staying onsite affords you. Our kids are just at an age that we cannot burn the candle at both ends - at least not without consequence.

I know that there are purists that will only go for the entire Disney experience. I can completely appreciate that. The last time we stayed onsite we stayed at the Animal Kingdom Lodge and loved every minute of it. Someday we will return to the WDW properties. In the meantime, we will stay where we have the space to stretch out and relax......did I mention that we only paid $99/night? That's another big plus. That will allow us to return to WDW even sooner than if we had paid $200 or $300 (or more) per night.

SOrry for the length of this post.

 

[revelstoke]

I can't imagine you having a problem getting your child to sleep after a full day at the parks. I haven't met a child yet that couldn't sleep after all that excitement.

Really? Well you haven't met mine... LOL

 

[mom2isaac&ella]

This is the exact reason we decided to stay at the DTD Doubletree Suites. We got a great rate from mousesavers.com & it included breakfast. I know we are not technically "on-property", but we are as close as it gets. I've read some good reviews on these suites, so I hope they are true. Most importantly you need to know your child. My son had a horrible time sleeping away from home until he was close to 4 - even after a long day would you would expect them to drop dead asleep. Now my 2 year old goes to sleep easier than DS did, but she's a light sleeper so we have different problems with her regarding sleep away from home. Look through all the ideas from Disers and find what you think will work for your family.

 

[jodifla]

Here's our situation. We're taking our son for his first trip at 16 mo. old in Oct. Previously, his dad and I have loved POR, so we booked there. However, I am concerned he will not sleep in the same room as us and that we'll have to go to bed at the same time as him (8 p.m.). I am wondering if staying at a 1 br. at OKW or SS would be better. However, I'll only be able to do that if a discount comes out. We really want to stay on property as we will be going back for naps, etc. and are looking for the same type of ambiance as POR - not the hustle and bustle of the values.

Please help with your suggestions!
Thanks!

Your situation is exactly why we bought DVC 10 years ago. We planned to have kids, and knew we'd want more space.

Now we stay in one- or two-bedrooms at OKW. Now that's a real vacation! All the magic of staying onsite, but without the big pricetag. Our DVC has been paid off for years, so we only pay our dues.

 

[jchop]

Your situation is exactly why we bought DVC 10 years ago. We planned to have kids, and knew we'd want more space.

Now we stay in one- or two-bedrooms at OKW. Now that's a real vacation! All the magic of staying onsite, but without the big pricetag. Our DVC has been paid off for years, so we only pay our dues.

I'm very interested in learning more about DVC.....all the Magic - plus the space! That's exactly what we need.

 

[RachaelRol]

This is the exact reason we decided to stay at the DTD Doubletree Suites. We got a great rate from mousesavers.com & it included breakfast. I know we are not technically "on-property", but we are as close as it gets. I've read some good reviews on these suites, so I hope they are true. Most importantly you need to know your child. My son had a horrible time sleeping away from home until he was close to 4 - even after a long day would you would expect them to drop dead asleep. Now my 2 year old goes to sleep easier than DS did, but she's a light sleeper so we have different problems with her regarding sleep away from home. Look through all the ideas from Disers and find what you think will work for your family.

We stayed ther for our honeymmon in 98- IT was great!!