How to do Disneyland with toddlers?

[Lebestiole]

Hello guys! It's nice to be back again! I missed this forum.

So! I'm going back to Disneyland (again in October) but this time my twin cousins (Elisa and Enrique) are coming with me. They will celebrate their 4th birthday there, so we are quite excited! Also, this will be their first trip.

This is the first time in many years that I go to Disney with little kids tho, the first time I was a kid myself, and I want to make this trip as enjoyable as possible for my family. We are also traveling with my grandparents (83 yrs old and 73 yrs old), so any tips are so so welcome here!

Should we take strollers with us? Is breakfast with the characters a good idea? Do kids that age enjoy fireworks? Little Enrique is a HUGE fan of Cars, he owns more than 80 Lightning McQueen toys, so is there some sort of Cars dining experience that he can enjoy?

Thank you so much for your help!!!

 

[tinkpower]

My opinion is absolutely use strollers for that age. Lots of walking for 4 year olds. We usually do afternoon breaks with swimming with toddlers and grandparents. Well rested todlers are far more fun the overstimulated cranky ones. We are looking forward to Flo's V8 counter service restaurant. It looks like a great dinning option in Cars Land. You can look at details on the Disney Parks website and All Ears.

 

[taffy]

We always take a stroller, not that they are in it all day but it is great to have for them to chill, especially later on in the day. As for fireworks it depends on the child, Ours love fireworks but I know many avoid them as they dont like the noise.

 

[hanna-nana]

When we ate at Flo's a couple years ago, the kids dinners came in lightning mcqueen cars. My kids weren't into fireworks at that age (too loud), so we just had a normal day and left after dinner.

 

[smartlabelprint]

You can get noise cancelling headphones for $30 on Amazon.

 

[Lebestiole]

My opinion is absolutely use strollers for that age. Lots of walking for 4 year olds. We usually do afternoon breaks with swimming with toddlers and grandparents. Well rested todlers are far more fun the overstimulated cranky ones. We are looking forward to Flo's V8 counter service restaurant. It looks like a great dinning option in Cars Land. You can look at details on the Disney Parks website and All Ears.

When we ate at Flo's a couple years ago, the kids dinners came in lightning mcqueen cars.

Flo's seems like a great option. I already looked into the Lightning McQueen toy and its a type of lunch bag, so it's perfect!! We are definitely taking a break in the afternoon, and my grandparents are going to thank us as well for that, so it's a great tip.

As for fireworks it depends on the child, Ours love fireworks but I know many avoid them as they dont like the noise.

You can get noise cancelling headphones for $30 on Amazon.

I didn't know noise cancelling headphones existed! I'll buy a pair for the kids, I hope they enjoy the fireworks because Disneyland is not the same without the shows!

 

[Gisele]

Professional daycare.

 

[figment_jii]

I think character breakfasts can be fun, but it depends a lot on the child. Some kids love seeing the characters, others are scared of them. So until you know whether they like the characters or not, it's hard to say whether a character meal is a good plan or not. I went with kids that were 5 and 3 and the 5 year old loves characters and was happily hugging them. The 3 year old was much more unsure of them and tried to hide behind an adult when they came by. So, for the 5 year old the breakfast was great. For the 3 year old, it wasn't so good. If you do want to do a character breakfast, I would schedule it towards the latter half of your trip. That way, you can see how they do with the characters on the first few days and cancel (before the no show/late cancellation penalty goes into effect) if they don't like the characters. Note that Ariel's Grotto has princesses (which are "face" characters), but most of the other character meals feature "head" characters (e.g., Mickey). Kids sometime react differently to "face" characters than they do "head" characters.

As others have mentioned, fireworks are kind of hit-or-miss. I would try to take them to a local area show first to see if they like the noise or not. Or, as others have suggested, buy some noise cancelling headphones to block out the sound.

Strollers...I think it depends on the kids. How much walking are they used to doing? It's not uncommon to walk 10 to 15 miles per day at DLR, so if they're not used to walking that much, I would bring a stroller. There was a thread a few days ago talking about double versus two single strollers:
http://www.disboards.com/threads/double-stroller-or-two-singles.3480566/#post-55096867

Unfortunately, there is no Cars themed dining option other than Flo's V-8 Cafe (counter service) or the Cozy Cones (snacks). I think Flo's is fun, but truthfully, I'm not sure it's something that little kids really understand. There is a lot of Cars-inspired decor, but it doesn't scream "McQueen" - it's as if you walked into Flo's Cafe in Radiator Springs. It's something that adults seem to get more than kids (at least the kid I went with didn't really associate the 50's(?) music or the decorations with Disney's Cars). Still, kids vary, so some might have more "fun" than others. My group liked having the Cozy Cone snacks and sitting outside watching McQueen or Mater at the meet and greet (the 3 year old, who loves Cars, was a bit scared of Mater and Red so being close, but not to near was ideal for him) or seeing the DJ dance party.

 

[amyg1975]

Our daughter is 4 and a stroller is a must for us. We can't carry her around everywhere, and having her walk places would make us a bit crazy (little legs= going super slow!). The stroller is also great for her naps. If we were to go back to the hotel for a nap, she would get wound up being in the hotel, and not actually sleep. Right after lunch, we stroll around with her declined, and out she goes for an hour or two!

Character meals are something we started at age 2, which terrified her! At age 3, she loved them. She barely eats, so keep that in mind, but for us, it is a time to sit, relax for a good hour (rest feet!), and she has fun interacting with the characters.

Fireworks- she hates the sound. We usually head back to the hotel right after the parade.

 

[lovebug33]

I second a stroller. My kids have a motor disability, so we have no choice. But last time we were there, I saw a parent trying to carry a sleeping kid who looked really big, like maybe 5 or 6. Mom was struggling! I'm sure she wished she had a stroller. When my kids are well enough, we park at one place and do the whole land without getting the stroller again, so that is also an option!

 

[Lizzards]

My kids favorite character meal is Goofys Kitchen at the Dland hotel. Really fun but it is pricey! Definitely have a stroller available. You can always park it in one spot for a while but at least it is there. You don't want to have to carry a 4 year old for too long. The thing to remember when you are with kids is to be flexible. Every child is different. Some can go go go and don't mind noise. While others need to take more breaks and stay out of too big of crowds. Pack snacks for the kids. Bring light up bracelets and toys from the dollar store for night time. Have fun! My kids love the fireworks but can't always stay up that late to see them.

 

[beachdreamr1229]

We take our kids all the time (a 5 year old and 2 2-year-old twins). Definitely bring a double stroller. Even for 4 year olds--they get tired faster than you'd expect. We enjoyed the Minnie character breakfast at DL. I think the biggest thing to remember is to go with the flow. Some kids will love faster rides like BTMRR while others (like my oldest) will prefer slow rides/dark rides. For Cars, check out Flo's V8 Cafe. They have pretty good food and it feels like you're eating right in Radiator Springs. As for the fireworks, my 5-year-old thinks they are too loud. They're pretty, but he prefers seeing them from a hotel room to being in the middle of the noise and crowds. Some little kids love being in all the chaos though, so it will depend on their individual moods.

Enjoy! Oh, and I'm sure you've already experienced or at least heard about this, but twins draw lots of attention compared to average kids (especially if they are identical), so don't be surprised if a tourist tries to take a picture of them or something. It's happened to us more times than I would have ever thought and ours aren't even same gender.

 

[Karyanne]

Mine went at 4, he went on everything he was tall enough. His favorite ride is splash mountain. I would say it's all about the personality of the child.

 

[SMD]

4 year olds are not toddlers. I'd leave it up to the parents if they want to use a stroller. Many 4 and 5 year olds can walk just fine without one. Tell them what your touring plan is so they can decide. But ai would also not try to do commando touring and multiple park hops per day so that a 4 year old has no chance of keeping up, either.

 

[Lebestiole]

If you do want to do a character breakfast, I would schedule it towards the latter half of your trip. That way, you can see how they do with the characters on the first few days and cancel (before the no show/late cancellation penalty goes into effect) if they don't like the characters. Note that Ariel's Grotto has princesses (which are "face" characters), but most of the other character meals feature "head" characters (e.g., Mickey). Kids sometime react differently to "face" characters than they do "head" characters.

As others have mentioned, fireworks are kind of hit-or-miss. I would try to take them to a local area show first to see if they like the noise or not. Or, as others have suggested, buy some noise cancelling headphones to block out the sound.

As for the fireworks, my 5-year-old thinks they are too loud. They're pretty, but he prefers seeing them from a hotel room to being in the middle of the noise and crowds. Some little kids love being in all the chaos though, so it will depend on their individual moods.

Thank you, figment! I really hope they do enjoy breakfast with characters, I think this year I'll try to take them to costume parties so they get used to it. About the fireworks, can you see them from Disney's Paradise Pier hotel? I don't really know if they'd enjoy the show right in front of the castle with all the noise.

Our daughter is 4 and a stroller is a must for us. We can't carry her around everywhere, and having her walk places would make us a bit crazy (little legs= going super slow!). The stroller is also great for her naps. If we were to go back to the hotel for a nap, she would get wound up being in the hotel, and not actually sleep. Right after lunch, we stroll around with her declined, and out she goes for an hour or two!

So it seems strollers wil be a must for us too! And its really a great option for naps that I hadn't considered, I just hope they can get some rest with all the noise around them, but it's a great tip to have lunch and then try to get them to sleep!

 

[amyg1975]

What's funny is the noise is what keeps my daughter asleep. As soon as we get in a quieter area, she starts waking up!

 

[crystal1313]

I think my biggest tip is to make sure to take breaks. Disneyland can be really overwhelming, so we make sure to take a break every 2-3 hours. We bring a ton of snacks into the park, so we have the kids eat a snack, drink water and take a potty break. Sometimes they don't want to stop, but this helps to avoid meltdowns. My kids are grazers and eat a lot of small meals throughout the day, so we try to do the same thing at the parks, otherwise they get super cranky. We have also learned our lesson that the kids can usually just share food with us for meals. A lot of times we have bought them their own meal and it goes the waste.

I also agree with taking a stroller. We average about 12-13 miles a day at the parks. Like a previous poster said, we would just park it in one land and then come back to it when we were moving to a completely different area. Make sure not to leave valuables in it.

One more thing to note is that a a lot of the attractions exit you right into a store. To diffuse a lot of the "Can I have that" questions, we make a rule that they can pick their souvenir at the end of the trip. Once they decide on something, that is all they get. We allow them to look of course, but make a point not to buy. This also helps them to look at all the stuff and really decide what they would like the most.

4 is a great age for kids to go and I am sure you will have a great time!! Enjoy =)

 

[DisneyJewel]

That is a great age to go and you will have a blast. I agree to take the strollers (or you can rent them, and that way if you really don't need it, just return it). My recommendations w/ kids that age (mine are teens and we have been taking them to Disneyland since infancy) is to start early. Kids wake up early anyway generally. Since you have a Cars fan, try to do an early start to Cars land to ride RSR or at least get a FP. If you have Magic Morning, even better. At that age my kids loved Goofy's Kitchen, so that would be a fun character breakfast if you are there for more than one day (or you can do a very early breakfast).

Kids that age often love Fantasyland and there are no FP for the main rides there. So keep that in mind -- either go first thing or be ready for long waits.

TBH, I might be a bit more worried w/ the grandparents. It can be hard to juggle the 3 generations at Disneyland -- I've done it. Are you grandparents really mobile? If not, consider renting a wheelchair. Do they like rides? Is there a chance they might not be comfortable walking long distances or standing in line? If so, make a plan for them to maybe wait for you at a comfortable spot while you take the kids on rides or something. There are a number of places where this would work.

Also I agree w/ planning the souvenir thing ahead of time. Make a budget and stick w/ it, or allow them to pick 1-2 things, whatever works for you. And check w/ their parents about naps. Finally, be careful w/ the junky snacks. Everyone loves a treat but kids that age can melt down easily. Make sure they have some decent protein and pack a couple things so you don't spend a fortune! Good luck!