I need advice-I'm bringing my 17-month old (and my parents) to Disney in June.

[Mark'sMom]

This is our first family trip!! My husband and I were at Disney nine-months before our son was born and my parents and I were there approximately 15 years ago but this is our first time really travelling with my son. I have reserved two rooms with balconies at the Swan for 6/20-6/26/01. My husband, myself and our 17-month-old will be staying in one room and my parents in the other. (I recieved the teacher rate of $174 per night per room.)

Am I crazy for bringing a 17 month-old?

Are there any "can't miss" attractions for his age?

What are the most appropriate ones?

I am bringing my parents for two reasons- 1) I don't want them to miss the expressions on their only grandchild's face when he experiences Disney for the first time and 2) I sure that they will be a big with my son.

Is there anything else I can do to help ensure this trip is magical?

I would appreciate any advice anyone can give.

 

[DisneyDad_CJJE]

Take lots of pictures and watch your son's expressions as he sees things for the first time. It gives you a whole new perspective on WDW to see it from his point of view.

We took our youngest DD when she was 18 months. It was great!

 

[TinkTink]

He won't be able to go on anything with a height restriction, but that doesn't limit you much at WDW! Take lots of pics and take advantage of the baby sitters you brought along...

 

[stacy6552]

things hell love:

the dinosaur dig pit at the bone yard in AK.

its a small world

buzz lightyear

anything with water!

let go of the pressure of planning for your child. its a sad fact of life that he wont remember it or appreciate it. so go do the things you love and enjoy your childs experience!

 

[dcedwards]

We took our son and my parents to DW when he was 12 months, 18 months and 24 months. The first thing I can tell you is RELAX.

There are tons of things that he will be able to do. The biggest piece of advice I can give you is identify the MUST DO things ... do them and then relax. We were fortunate in that we had been many times before and when we took our son we simply went with the flow.

A few must do things....

1) Do priority seatings for some meals. Depending on the time in June it can get very busy. We went the same time and it was busy. We would pick one "character buffet" a day and make a PS for it. If we made it fine, we had a place to eat, if not, no big deal. Some of our favorites and our son's were: MK -Crystal Palace (Pooh, Tiger, Eeyore, Piglet) for lunch or dinner; MGM - Holloywood and Vine (Minnie, Pluto, Goofy, Chip/Dale); Chef Mickey's (Contemporary) - Mickey and gang; MK-Liberty Tavern (dinner) - Minnie and Gang; Ak-Rain Forest --no characters but the animals fascinated him...the thunder storm scared him at first but we told him it was the angels bowling and he got a kick out of that.

2) Plan time in the afternoon to go back to the room and let him nap. Often my parents were ready for a rest and would watch him in the room while we went swimming.

3) Plan time to go to the Disney Marketplace. Bring a couple extra pairs of clothes and let him play in the different "water" exhibits. He will also love the lego shop where he can play with those. And guess what, McDonalds is right there.

4) Bring your own stroller. My son would often take a nap in the stroller. We would simply go into an air conditioned restaurant and let him sleep while we sipped on a cold pop and relaxed.

5) Don't miss Toon Town and the little playground there. It is smaller than the one at AK and our son had a good time. Plus, he could do most things there like Mickey's house, etc. He loved sitting in the cars and pretending.

6) Fantasy land was, of course, a big hit. We took him on Peter Pan and he liked that...hold onto him tight. He LOVED pooh, dumbo and most of the other rides. Snow White was pretty scary for him. I covered his eyes in some things and played peek a boo... The lion king was a bit long for him. He also loved Country Bear Jamboree in Adventureland.

7) Bring a cotton hat, one with a flap that goes on the back and shoulders. When he gets hot you can dip it in water and put it on his head. Also, we bought small, clip on fans that were battery operated. We connected one to each side of his stroller and he had a breeze most of the time. Encourage him to drink lots. We often diluted juice with water and he didn't notice. That way he got the liquid without all the sugar. I think it was at DW that we bought snow cones without the syrup and he liked the ice.

The best piece of advice is to enjoy. Don't stress out if you don't get to see things. You might also want to buy one of those two-way radios for you and your parents. That way, if you get split up, you can easily find each other. That or cell phones work, too.

8) The fireworks often bothered my sons ears so I would simply play "hide and seek" with his ears and he thought that was funny. He liked all the lights.

9) Be sure to go when it is dark. My son really got into the lights.

Good luck. Let me know if I can answer any questions. We've stayed at the Dolphin but it was before my son was born so it has been awhile. You will enjoy yourself.

 

[kiddisney]

hi - we also took our kids when they were that young (dd @ 18mos - ds @ 16 mos) and
the most fun we had was watching the shows. grandma & grandpa also loved sitting
down and watching the kids - we also hit all of the bands playing - and don't stop at
MK - there's music & adventure in all the parks - you'd be amazed at how much a
baby will enjoy - have a great time

 

[tom smith]

Hi --
Thanks for all the ideas. Which park would you say is best for an 18 month old, and which rides?

jim

 

[dcedwards]

Tom -
Probably MK would be the best park. It depends on how mobile your 18 month old is but MK, Toon Town, has small things she can climb on and many things in Fantasy Land can be ridden by an 18 months old with the parents.

The AK might be good if your 18 month old is really into animals but ours wasn't at that age. He did really like the safari but that was about it. The playground was too hot and he didn't want much to do with that in June.

Hope that helps.

 

[Patio]

I also had my ds there at 20 months with my parents. Of course he was in his umbrella stroller most of the time, but having my parents there allowed myself, dh and dd 6, the opportunity to have babysitters for some of the rides. My parents preferred to watch the crowd and ds while we enjoyed ourselves. Just have a great time and enjoy.

 

[Synonymous]

Plan to spend alot of time doing simple things, like running around in the fountains and wandering through gardens. It's nice with a little one because they are interested in small things that you might not even notice, otherwise.

Be careful with shows, though. Most are very loud and many of them have scary stuff. We took our DD at 2 1/2 and she got very frightened in shows that we thought would be safe. To this day, she doesn't like Little Mermaid, because of the show. Try one and see how your child reacts. Bear in the Big Blue House is certainly safe, and I believe the Lion King show at AK would be, also. But most of the shows based on movies or fairy tales will have scary villains. I don't think little ones understand that they are not "real."

Tom

 

[wdisneyaholic]

Hi,

We took our then 12month old son in August of last year and he had a blast. I would say that definately MK is the best park. Just take your time and take nap breaks. My son loved all of the indoor rides with the airconditioning. As soon as the ride started, he fell asleep. Don't worry about your trip, just take some time in planning. Definately make PS reservations for all of your sitdown meals. Especially if you want to go to DD, we made the mistake of just going to DD without PS and everything was like an hour wait. Not bad for an adult or older child, but with an infant they need to eat. Just make sure to plan and don't try an do everything in one day.

Hope you have fun!!!

 

[Mark'sMom]

Thanks to all of you who offered advice, I really appreciate it. There are some great tips here.

There are 3 weeks left before we leave, I am getting quite nervous.

Does anyone have dining tips??

What restaruants are and are not toddler-friendly??

 

[beattyfamily]

MK is the best for little ones, we spend a lot of time there!

If your child isn't afraid of the characters, then there's lots of those to choose from. Chef Mickeys and Cinderella's breakfast are good ones and so is Hollywood & Vine at MGM. Most restaurants are kid friendly at the World.

 

[jfranklyn]

Just an additional vote for YES! YOU WILL HAVE A GREAT TIME! We took our DD at 17 months, and it was a GREAT trip - he'll love it, don't worry, and he'll sleep like you never thought possible.

For meals, we did Chef Mickeys, which she really loved, and Crystal Plaza (pooh characters) Both were great. Almost all restaurants at Disney are toddler friendly, so don't worry!

 

[DisneyKidds]

You will have a great time and your DS should love it. Our DD is 2.5yrs and has been 4 times - including a trip at 17 mos. As far as advice:

Go slow and take frequent breaks. Our trips with DD are different than before DD. We go at a somewhat slower pace, see things thru her eyes, and notice a lot about WDW we never picked up on before.

We always go back to our hotel so our DD can nap and use the pool. Keeps us all fresh. We get to the parks at opening, still do our semi commando bit to hit the really popular rides quick and early. At this point we take it easy and go with the flow. We then leave the park around 11:00 and eat (if we didn't before we got to parks) and head for the hotel. We will head back to the parks in the late afternoon. This has always worked well for us.

I would also recommend bringing your own stroller. It is very useful to have one outside of the parks. We also stay at the parks late (somewhat selfish on our part - but we love WDW) and our DD sleeps in the stroller - so it is nice to have a comfy one. We always rent a car so we don't have to deal with WDW transportation and getting a stroller on a bus. Also, if it is late and our DD is asleep it is nice to be able to put her in her car seat and keep her asleep, rather than holding her on a bus.

Also highly recommed the character meals. Our DD loves them. One thing we like to do is get the latest character breakfast seating at GF when we go to MK or latest seating at BC character breakfast when we do EPCOT. We park at either hotel in the am - go to the parks from there- and our car is waiting when we are done eating. We just tell them at the gate we have a PS. Some people may frown on this - but they allow you to park at the hotels for 4 hours or so without a hassle (may give you a visitor parking pass) and you are eating there. It is nice to walk or monorail to the hotels to eat when the parks get crowded. We also enjy the Pooh meals at Crystal Palace in MK. Food is average but atmosphere is nice and characters are great.

As far as parks - MK is probably overall best for young kids. However, you should hit them all. We have great memories from all our DD's trips from all the parks. The Bear in the Big Blue House and Little Mermaid are good for the young ones at MGM, Animals are neat for kids at AK, MK Fantasyland and ToonTown.

You really can go to most any restaurant with a child. We have gone to nice dinners at Brown Derby, Le Cellier and Chefs de France with our DD. We are fortunate because she is good at restaurants. If you are lucky in timing your DS may sleep in his stroller while you have a nice quiet dinner - we had that happen once or twice. Don't worry and enjoy yourself.