how long will a 17 month old last in WDW?

[Mad4Mickey]

I didnt travel with my own to WDW ehen they were that young . The youngest I have ever taken a child is 3 yrs old . I am wondering how long I should plan in the parks for my Granddaughters 1st trip in Jan. My DD of course has been many times but her DH has never been and it is more for his 1st time then anyone elses.

I will be making ressies for meals and stuff and I know how to plan that so she is not going to be waiting to eat at wierd times. But about how long should I plan for her to have park time ? We did take her to Sea World when she ws 7 months old and she loved it and slept when she was worn out . But I think Disney is going to be different .

 

[Ashley Kees]

My son was 18 months when we went in November. The first (full) day we kept his normal schedule. Breakfast at 7am, lunch at noon, back to the hotel for a nap after lunch, supper at 6, back at the hotel at 8, bath and bed. Result: the morning was fine BUT he was overstimulated and couldn't fall asleep for an hour at naptme, he slept an hour past his normal time, and was excited again when he woke up, which caused him to fidget through supper and, and he wasn't sleepy at bedtime. The next day, we decided naptime had to go. The excitement of the day was too much for him to nap through.

We spent the rest of the week with this schedule:
8 am breakfast in the room with disney tv on, he took a proper bath in the morning with me.
parks from opening to lunch
midmorning break (30 minutes) at the baby care center (a GOD SEND!! My older girls ould watch TV, it was quiet, and there was far less stimulation.)
lunch at the parks around noon
parks until supper
mid-afternoon half hour break at baby care center
supper
he usually spent the evening in the stroller, he liked the lights and the fireworks, etc.
snacks around 8pm (something with sugar in it, typically)
we left the parks at closing, he was asleep in the stroller and on the bus
back at the hotel, he was so tired he slept through us nekkiding him up, wiping him down with baby wipes, changing his diaper, and getting his jammies on. He slept all the way through the night.

a few tips:
1. we did a wipe down in the evening, a fresh bath in the morning got him ready for the day, rarin to go.
2. we made sure to alternate rides he could go on with ones he couldn't, so he never was just sitting in the stroller for hours on end, and he also got a decent rest in between rides. We also got a cheap walmart umbrella stroller that reclined and had a shade for like, $30. Worth every penny. When he fell asleep, we just dropped him into recline, draped a blankie if the sun was in his eyes, and did the big rides we would have had to baby-swap anyway.
3. We made sure to visit the playgrounds at least twice a day. Helped shake the energy out of his body instead of just tiring out his mind by staying up late.
4. We used our money's worth out of those baby care centers. They were fantastic.

 

[Keurigirl]

We took my daughter at 12 mo, at 18 months and at 2.

At 18 months she was super easy - just needed some play time at the couple of children's areas a couple times a day, or just time out of the stroller, and she was pretty happy in her stroller the rest of the time. We hit the parks at rope drop and went back mid-day for naptime and rest time. By then we wanted a rest too. Went back for dinner and evening stuff. Eating is easy, they have $3 toddler meals that are great.

Just know where the baby care centers are, and have snacks & a drink for her and she will likely be just fine!

 

[kpadalik]

I agree with the PPs. I have a 22month old and she is great in the parks. However, every child is different and you know their limits. We don't ever go back to the hotel for naps, but we are AP holders and tend to just stroll leisurely through the parks. We never get there very early and don't leave terribly late either. But we take our time, make sure that she is well fed and hydrated and give her a chance to get out of the stroller, walk a bit, play on the playgrounds.

 

[Macduffy]

I planned my ADR's for the earliest opening - so around 4:30 - 5 PM hoping to miss the mad rush and potential waits.
I think as long as you plan your park days with breaks that work with her existing schedule at home you'll be okay! My breaks are for two hours in the afternoon around 1 - 3! We get back to the park just in time for Dinner and when his is fussy then go home for the night. Just be flexible and take breaks when they start to show signs of being over stimulated or tired.

 

[candielips]

We were just there & our DD was 22 months. She did great! We were at the parks around opening & she usually lasted until 2pm before she would pass out in her stroller. This is a child who was still napping twice a day. There was no way that was happening at WDW, she loved it so much. Some days she'd fall asleep around 11am but again only in stroller.
We tried a few times to get her back to the room to sleep in the aft. but she always wound up falling asleep as soon as we left the park & would wake up back the room., raring to go.
I think you need to consider how regimented or adaptable your GD is. And then factor in the excitement of WDW.

 

[monorailsilver]

My kids first trips were at ages-15 mo, 22 mo & 2½.

I did the same for each of them, we hit the parks at opening & if it was early entry we did that. We had lunch in the park (usually) & then went back to our room for the mid-day break.

They took a nap, sometimes dh did, sometimes I layed down too (most times I did laundry). Depending on when they woke up, we'd go for a swim for about an hour & then we'd shower & head back to the park for nighttime hours.

I also plan off days so we have no parks 1 to 2 days per trip. We can sleep in & go to the pool all day, basically a relaxing day.

 

[lnh'smom]

Do any of you think it was easier to just let them sleep in the stroller or to take them back and put them in their beds? I remember when my parents took my Dnephews on the train and just rode around for like an hour and let them sleep while we all kept going on rides. I am afraid to waste time with him sleeping on the bus and then waking up back at the hotel and not wanting to nap again.

 

[pgumiela]

We went last Sept with DS20mo. We stayed at ASMu and we never once made it back to the room for a nap. It seemed to take so long to get from our room to the park, that we never went back for a nap. We had been planning on it, but it would have taken forever. So we just took it easy around nap times, made sure we had alot of snacks to keep everyone's energy up and he took naps in the stroller. Our stroller reclines pretty good so he was fairly comfortable, and there were several ADRs that he slept through, which worked well for us since he is a picky eater and alot of times would not eat what we had at some of the restaurants. And when he had enough of sitting in the stroller DS7 was more than happy to ride and let him walk.

 

[geniegirl]

We did the same thing. Our slept in the stroller at the parks. We headed over around 8 and stayed to close. We knew when it was enough and he would sleep for about 2 hours. We also hit the play areas. He fell asleep on the way back most nights and slept through.

I dont like wasting the time to go back and he did not mind sleeping in the stroller.

 

[Ashley Kees]

Do any of you think it was easier to just let them sleep in the stroller or to take them back and put them in their beds? I remember when my parents took my Dnephews on the train and just rode around for like an hour and let them sleep while we all kept going on rides. I am afraid to waste time with him sleeping on the bus and then waking up back at the hotel and not wanting to nap again.

I totally thought it was easier to just let him nap in the stroller. The day we took him back to the hotel for a nap was a nightmare! Once we started letting him nap where he was, everyone was happier. We made sure the sun wasn't in his face and spent that time doing rides we would have had to baby-swap anyway. He missed nothing and we didn't have to entertain him while waiting for ToT.

 

[monorailsilver]

Do any of you think it was easier to just let them sleep in the stroller or to take them back and put them in their beds? I remember when my parents took my Dnephews on the train and just rode around for like an hour and let them sleep while we all kept going on rides. I am afraid to waste time with him sleeping on the bus and then waking up back at the hotel and not wanting to nap again.

For me no.

I make sure I leave the park before nap time is going to happen. So say if you child naps at 1, leave at about noon (unless you are in the MK & staying at a MK resort then it is a shorter trip back). You will be back to the room before the child naps.

I know I'd be stir crazy if I had to ride around & around & around on the train.

 

[3boys4me]

Last year when we went my ds was 17 months. He did great. We didn't go back to the room mid day or anything. We also don't get up super early to get to the parks either. Just kind of whenever we get up and moving. I think a big plus was that we brought out the big stroller. He had plenty of room and could sit upright and cross his legs if he wanted to. He could also lay flat to sleep. I think a big stroller for comfort while that young is a must. Good luck and have fun.

 

[mickeymaker2003]

My 18 month old napped in the stroller (make sure you bring one that reclines if you have one). We brought her blanket with (but not somewhere she could see it). When it was nap time, we just told her it was time to take a nap, reclined her stroller, gave her a blanket and a sippy cup and she went to sleep for an hour or so. We never went back to the room for naps (we pretty much opened and closed the parks for 7 days straight). However, she is a let's go kinda girl... one morning we took too long to get ready to go to the parks and she got into the stroller by herself to try to get us to get moving.... She knew Disney was out there and she wanted to go!

 

[kpadalik]

Do any of you think it was easier to just let them sleep in the stroller or to take them back and put them in their beds? I remember when my parents took my Dnephews on the train and just rode around for like an hour and let them sleep while we all kept going on rides. I am afraid to waste time with him sleeping on the bus and then waking up back at the hotel and not wanting to nap again.

I do let my DD sleep in the stroller. She would be way too wound up to fall asleep back at the hotel. But you know your kids and if it'll be easy for them to fall asleep in the stroller or not. One thing that I love to do is to hop on the TTA with my DD and ride it around and around. She almost always falls asleep on it, it's shaded, breezy, and gives me a chance to put my feet up as well. My DH and other DD ride the Tomorrowland rides while we are resting and we meet up later. However, I know that the TTA is down right now and not sure if it'll be up when you go.

I have done the train as well. It's a nice ride, but the seats are very hard and uncomfortable to sit in for a long period of time. And the "choo-choo" is so loud that it sometimes wakes DD up. But we like riding this around while my DH and DD6 ride Splash and Thunder. It gives us something to do.

 

[lnh'smom]

I do let my DD sleep in the stroller. She would be way too wound up to fall asleep back at the hotel. But you know your kids and if it'll be easy for them to fall asleep in the stroller or not. QUOTE]

The older kids and I are practicing walking. (They think I am just mean mom making them walk for exercise! ) He usually falls asleep in the stroller while we are doing that so I don't think he will have a problem. I think I read somewhere that TTA will be back up when we do in Sept. Maybe I made that up in my head! Anyways, we can try that too! Thanks again for all your thoughts.

 

[CLR4321]

Unless your child has trouble sleeping in public places, I'd just bring a stroller that reclines all the way and stay in the parks as long as you want. Let him nap whenever he wants to. Don't wake him up to try to get on rides or anything. Take turns or do things where you can let him sleep. This is a great time to go shopping.