How Young is Too Young???

[aussiejen]

Hi All


we've just returned from our DL trip and totallyed adored DL so much that we're in the middle of organising to go back next May 2011.

Anyway we have a 6yr old & a 3yr old, and i've been getting alot of comments like "theres no way i would have taken my kids that young" & " your kids are too young to remeber anything"

But the way i see it , is that at their ages they believe that all the characters are "real" especially my 3yr old daughter & the looks on their faces were priceless every moment we were in the parks.

do you think theres such thing as "too young" to take your kids to DL??

 

[ahill004]

Definitely not too young! I think it is the perfect ages! Of course I have a a newly turned 4 year old and 6 year old that have been to WDW multiple times and will be in disneyland in 6 days! We took them to WDW when the oldest was 3 and the youngest was just over a year. We had a great time and my oldest still remembers highlights from the trip. We have gone at least once a year since then. This is the age where they truly believe the characters are real and the magic exists, etc... It is so wonderful to see it in their faces at this age! In fact, my 6 year old is already starting to ask if the animal characters are real, etc... so I would say GO NOW!!!

 

[jelwallace]

I have taken my kids (now 4 and 7) many times over the years and every trip is different. As they grow their preferences change and what they want to do changes. I say take them multiple times and let their pace and their preferences guide the trip. Every trip will be different and fun.

 

[HydroGuy]

We have four kids - all teens now - and purposely did not take them to DLR when they were tiny. We never did strollers. We left the tiny ones with grandparents and took the older ones.

I think 3 years old is about the right time kids can start grasping DLR. So all of our kids had their first vist when they were 3-4 years old. Your kids are the perfect age IMO.

BTW my first memory of DL was right after my 3rd birthday. And that Dumbo ride went much higher back then than it does today!

 

[Monkey Monkey]

I've always thought that was a ridiculous thing to say - would you refrain from doing anything enjoyable with your kids because they are too young to remember? I certainly don't feel like I'm wasting my time doing fun things with DD just because she's a baby!

I've been bringing both my kids to DLR, SeaWorld, the zoo, the beach, and many other fun places since they were under a year. It's as much for me as it is for them. Family fun is for the whole family!

DS remembers events from when he had just turned 3. He told me last week that my brother wears his sunglasses on top of his head, a fact that I had forgotten. DS hasn't seen my brother since a month after his 3rd birthday, and he even remembered where he saw him (at my mother's house). This was 2 years ago.

So I wouldn't discount a 3yo's memory! And even if she can't remember it, who cares? Did she have fun? Did your family have fun? If so, that's all that matters! DS loves looking at pictures of himself at fun places when he was a baby.

 

[DSNY4ever]

I think those ages sound perfect for a trip to Disney! It all just depends on the person and if they are willing to do all of the extra work that comes along with traveling with a a baby/toddler. If it was a once in a lifetime trip I would probably wait till the kid could remember it, but if not then who cares. It's family fun!

I mean Monkey Monkey got that adorable avatar by bringing her baby! Haha.

 

[Homemom]

Not too young! Our oldest had her first visit at 3 1/2, she loved it and at 9 1/2 still talks about it. Our second had her first visit at 3 months. I know she got nothing out of it, but they rest of us did. The photos are priceless, so is the memory of our family vacation, which is what it's all about for us. Being together as a family and in such a magical place, too.

 

[letthembelittle]

I was one of "those people" who said there was NO WAY I would take my kids until they were tall enough to ride most everything and go without naps and strollers. So ummm, we took them for their first trip when my oldest two were barely 3 and barely 1. My 3 yr olds reactions were priceless and while she might not remember a lot of that trip in the future we took pictures and had a wonderful day, so wonderful in fact that last year we took our 6 month old, 2 1/2 yr old and 4 1/2 yr old, that trip too was wonderful so wonderful we bought APs!! Now having said all that if I could live in a perfect world I wouldnt take my kids until they are about 2 and can "believe" the characters and rides and such are real, seeing Disney through their eyes is precious!

 

[DisSarahK]

Not too young at all! We took our for the first time when they were 4.5 and 2.5--the older one has very clear memories of the trip two years later and the younger one has some memories (although not many). HOWEVER--*I* have many memories of both of them loving Disneyland. It was an amazing trip and I am so glad we went while they were little.

 

[toddbushman]

They are free until they are three so why not take them?

Seriously though, we first went to Disneyland when our youngest was 2 (didn't wait until then, just hadn't really become the huge Disney fans we are today) and she absolutely loved it. We've been back many times since and even if they don't remember it, we certainly did. I think most people talk about not taking kids that young because they only go to Disneyland once or twice in their lives (or while their kids are growing up). For those of us who go at least once a year if not more, it is obviously a much different story. Disneyland has become our vacation spot of choice, and the whole family loves it, so I think it really depends on if you are only going to take your kids once or twice during their childhood you may want to wait until they are older so that you can talk to them about it for years to come. If you are like us, we were hooked by the look of awe and fascination that our little ones had when we went, and have come back so many times since then that it is a "second home" of sorts for the whole family (and I guess since we joined DVC it literally is a second home...).

 

[Brancaneve]

Never listen to people who say such silly things. They may not remember(actually, they will), BUT you will remember. They're just jealous.

 

[Kayla's Mom]

I've always thought that was a ridiculous thing to say - would you refrain from doing anything enjoyable with your kids because they are too young to remember? I certainly don't feel like I'm wasting my time doing fun things with DD just because she's a baby!

I've been bringing both my kids to DLR, SeaWorld, the zoo, the beach, and many other fun places since they were under a year. It's as much for me as it is for them. Family fun is for the whole family!

DS remembers events from when he had just turned 3. He told me last week that my brother wears his sunglasses on top of his head, a fact that I had forgotten. DS hasn't seen my brother since a month after his 3rd birthday, and he even remembered where he saw him (at my mother's house). This was 2 years ago.

So I wouldn't discount a 3yo's memory! And even if she can't remember it, who cares? Did she have fun? Did your family have fun? If so, that's all that matters! DS loves looking at pictures of himself at fun places when he was a baby.

I completely agree! We have been taking our girls since they were under one year as well. DD3 still talks about the trip we took when she was only just over 2.

 

[50sjayne]

We didn't take our kids until our youngest was 4. Seems a more old fashioned way of thinking I guess. My husband growled at how many strollers there were and all I could offer him was well, when you have big families, how are the older kids ever going to get to go if you wait until the smallest are at the best age, y'know...but he said what Hydroguy did--leave 'em with the grandparents.

"You try and do special things for your kid. I thought, "I'll take him to Disneyland. That'll be fun." Disneyland for a three-year-old... Mickey Mouse for a three year old... ________. Mickey Mouse to a three-year-old is a six-foot _______ rat! Robin Williams

There was a baby crying throughout Great moments with Mr. Lincoln, my husband was rammed into by a dad with a stroller at highspeed coming out of fantasmic.
I don't know. If you are going to take ones that little I think it would be in the best interest of everyone to take them at a slow time. I'm also the kind of person that get highly ticked when people take their little kids to movies that are A. violent, B. just frigging boring to the kids.
It is a lot also.

 

[JeannieNM]

This brings back found memories. We took our dd to DL when she was just about 2. We would not have thought to take her but my family was having a get together there and we did not see why we should miss out just because dd was in a stroller. She had been traveling and flying on planes since she was 6 months old. It was one of the best trips we ever had a DL. We did what we wanted, when she was tired she napped in the stroller and DH and I sat under a tree and rested and had a snack. It is a much easier trip then with older kids who have to ride space mountain 15 times in a day in July. Build your memories any way you want at any time, they grow up so fast. Our next trip is Sunday with 16 teenagers...space mountain here we come.

 

[Kittyskyfish]

I think taking very little ones will definitely alter the DL experience, and that's why some are against it. You have to adjust to a different pace and do things a lot differently than with older children (or adult-only trips).

I'm used to adult trips with my husband, but last year I went to WDW with my friend and her (just turned) 4 and 6 year-old daughters. Before we arrived I was a bit frustrated that I couldn't do my normal rides because of the girls, but it turned out I had a GREAT time! It became fun once I adjusted my expectations of what a Disney trip should be like. I became an "auntie" for the day and I got to experience how wonderful it is to watch young children interact with the park and the characters.

I know the children in my example aren't toddlers, but my point is to go in with a different set of expectations and not stress over having Disney "you way". It'll end up being really fun!

 

[longtimedisneylurker]

I think the right age is whenever the parents can competently take them without everyone getting completely frazzled and having a miserable time. If you're the kind of parent who can do that with a babe in arms or a 1 year old or whatever, then go for it. Some parents and kids might need to wait until the kid is much older to make it an enjoyable experience for all. I think the only people who can decide this are the parents of the children who are going, not some relative, friend, or acquaintance that doesn't know the ins and outs of your family.

I knew about myself that I wasn't going to be patient and happy traveling to Disneyland with tiny babies and toddlers. Our first trip my older DS was 5 1/2 and my younger DS was 3 1/2. It was a little tough for us at times, but we mostly had a great time and I'm glad for our family that we didn't go sooner. Our trip one year later was even better! My brother and his wife are going to take their daughter for the first time when she's 1 1/2. She's a very mellow, go-with-the-flow kid, and she'll be the only child accompanied by 4 adults. They are very excited and will probably have a great time. I would never tell him his daughter is too young or he shouldn't go.

My younger DS doesn't remember much about his first DL trip, but even my older DS has only fuzzy memories as well. It doesn't matter. DH and I can remember. And we all had a wonderful time together as a family in the moment.

 

[toddbushman]

I think it all boils down to what your personal preference is (different strokes for different folks). If you feel comfortable taking your kids that young, do it. It will be an amazing experience. If you don't feel comfortable, due to strollers, etc... then don't.

My preference is to go at least once a year with my kids no matter what age, and we absolutely love it. My extended family are the type that are probably only going to go 2 or 3 times with their kids their entire lives. Good too. You definitely have to plan differently with little ones so that you take turns on big ticket rides, etc... But that's the beauty of going multiple times in my opinion is the kids get excited for finally being tall enough for Soarin', Grizzly, Indy, etc...

FYI, neat little thing I discovered, if your child isn't tall enough for a ride, ask for a "When you're tall enough" card (not sure if that is really the name). My daughter was just a little to short for Grizzly and the CM gave her this card to use when she came back next trip and was taller that is basically a Fast Pass for 6 people. Pretty cool! It had Koda and Kenai on it with a picture of one of the rafts and on the back it says, "We may be cubs right now, but one day we'll be tall enough to ride Grizzly River Run! Keep this card in your paws until then!" She loved it and still talks about her card and how next time we go she'll be "tall enough".

 

[disneyfaninaz]

My DD was 16 months old the first time we took her. She has been back about every year since then and WDW twice! No, 3 and 6 are definitely not too young. They may not be able to remember very well, but they can sure enjoy looking at pictures. Besides, you will have memories of your children enjoying DL.

 

[Grumpygrandpa]

I did't take my son to DL until he was almost 10. He liked the rides and had a good time while there but even after several more trips he never connected with the magic and doesn't like to go as an adult.

When his second child was born (our granddaughter) we took our 14 month old grandson to give our DDIL some time alone with the new baby. We had a great time and have been taking the DGKs three or four times a year since then. I remember when our two year old DGD was asleep in a stroller wearing her Minnie Mouse jacket and a passerby commented "How cute! All tuckered out from her first trip to DL." and my DW pointed out that it was actually her sixth trip. My DGKs love Disney. My DGD thinks of the Grand as her own hotel and they both can feel that magic feeling when they cross under the RR tracks and into DL. They are 10 and almost 9 now and love DL! IMHO you should train em young.

 

[goldies 5]

I agree with MonkeyMonkey and Kayla'smom. I have many wonderful memories and pictures of a 3 week old and most recently a 6 month old at DL. These were my favorite trips. I feel it is up to the parent if they are comfortable taking children that young. You don't want to go and be miserable if it is to stressful for you either. I personally love taking them at all ages. To me babies are the easy one's. And toddlers are so much fun to watch.