I need HELP-Question on kids sleeping in the World

RachelsMommie

Bring Back the Cookie Boat!
Joined
Oct 17, 2007
...or NOT sleeping. I am terrified that my DD (who is 3.5) will not be able to sleep in the hotel room. If we ever try to let her sleep in our room with us, she is up for HOURS.

Any tips for how to get a child to go to sleep when you're sharing a room??? We're staying at the Poly, so she'll have her own little bed. Just not sure if she'll ever get some sleep and I don't want our time in the World ruined by exhaustion.

Thanks!
Kristi
 
You never know.
But, we have the same problem with DS.
At WDW we found he fell asleep pretty easily because he was so tired. We made it a habit that at night we didn't turn the tv on. We kept it very quiet in the room and just got him ready for bed and sat with him.
I was usually nursing the baby at the time, and really I was so tired I was drifting off with him.
 
If I were in your shoes I would either get a cabin at Fort Wilderness or a family suite at All Star Music. If your little one needs her own room to sleep, then I would get lodgings that provide an extra room.

I love the Poly, and I understand your desire to stay there, but unless you can afford to get a suite there, I would save the trip to the Poly for when your little one sleeps in your room without disruption. Being well rested isn't just a good idea for Disney, it is a requirement.

I have said it often, but the family suites at All Stars really are wonderful. You get a queen sized bed, just like the poly, and you get two televisions, two bathrooms, a kitchenette, and a lovely sitting room/sleeping room.

The cabins, with only one bathroom, are still a wonderful choice, and just a boat ride to the Magic Kingdom.

--Eeyore's Wife
 
You never know.
But, we have the same problem with DS.
At WDW we found he fell asleep pretty easily because he was so tired. We made it a habit that at night we didn't turn the tv on. We kept it very quiet in the room and just got him ready for bed and sat with him.
I was usually nursing the baby at the time, and really I was so tired I was drifting off with him.

Did you guys keep the nap in place? We have plans to let her take a nap, but I'm not sure if it would be better to skip it in or not...what did you guys do?

Also, are there suites at the Poly???
 
I know the Poly has suites at Tonga, but I don't know if they have others. They are a bit pricey. We paid $830 a night a few years ago, but split the cost with the others staying with us. For my money, I would rather stay at the All Star Suites or a Cabin at the Wildreness Lodge.

--Eeyore's Wife
 
For this exact reason, we ALWAYS get a suite when we travel. We were going to get two adjoining value rooms before we rented someone's DVC points to stay at the saratoga. Unfortunately, Disney does not have a lot of affordable suites on property. DD is 21 months and needs to have it quiet to fall asleep for her nap and bedtime. She just can't seem to fall asleep if we are around. Hopefully this is something that she will grow out of soon!

We took her to DIsneyland in May and tiring her out at the parks all day did not help her fall asleep in the same room as us (there was confusion with the reservation). We ended up changing hotels and she was fine once she had a dark room to sleep in.
 


I reallly dont know if this would work, but I read it as a suggestion for the kind of problem you are anticipating. One family has luck by bringing one of those thin, kiddie tents and setting up the sleeping bag it came with in the room. For some kids it might provide the setting they need. Grammy
 
Did you guys keep the nap in place? We have plans to let her take a nap, but I'm not sure if it would be better to skip it in or not...what did you guys do?

Also, are there suites at the Poly???

DS is 4 and stopped napping just before his 4th birthday.
We didn't do naps for him and the baby slept in her stroller.
What worked for us is we would eat breakfast before we got to the park, we'd snack throughout the morning and then we booked late lunch reservations (2:30-3) He was pretty exhausted by then and would actually sit and relax for awhile.
We weren't staying at the Poly but we went to Kona Cafe for lunch. They had movies playing in the lobby and he just sat there for quite awhile just relaxing.
We did try going back to the room to nap, but he wouldn't sleep. So we only tried that once.
Having said that, we're going back in May and DD will be 13 months. She requires a lot of sleep so I assume we will go back. I wouldn't skip naps if your child normally naps - it's a long day!
 
My DD was so tuckered out she could have slept anywhere! Before I took her on her first trip at age 5, I had all these fears what could happen..getting lost, not eating enough, not sleeping, or tempure tamptrums...she really surprised me. We only had one melt down on the last day, other than that she was angel. I think kids surprise us, espeacially when they are in new places and experiences, there is an attachment to be your side and listen better than they do at home.
 
Our daughter who is 3.5 will not sleep anywhere except for in her own bed normally. But when we were in Disney she was so tired she probably would have fell asleep anywhere! She fell asleep with no problem in the room. Even if a light was still on or if the tv was on.
We went back to the resort one day for a nap, she was definitely over tired and we could tell. We pretty much just let the kids tell us what they needed as far as naps. I seriously don't think it will be an issue.
 
Ditto the pp ! Both DS10 and DS5 are notoriously bad sleepers anywhere other than their own beds. They slept like logs at WDW . They were so tired at the end of the day they just conked right out and they slept through the night.
 
I would also be sure to bring whatever they sleep with at home. Forgetting our kids' blankets would be disasterous...
 
Despite many who say their kids are so tuckered out at Disney, they will just sleep on a dime. My DS is NOT like this. If he is in the same room or in the same bed, there is just so much goofing around that it gets really crazy (it's mostly because we just don't have him in our bed or our room at night...he does so well in his own room).

Our solution is that we bought into DVC to have the 1 BR villas. A suite at anywhere other than AS or Pop would be way too expensive, plus the suites I think are hard to come by, so DVC is our answer. He sleeps in the floor in the bedroom while we can go out in the front room and watch a little tv until he falls asleep. Then we sneak in and all sleep pretty well. A 1 BR at BWV or BCV or WVL might be roughly in the same ballpark as a room at the Poly...it might be worth checking into.

Yes, we definitely go back for naps still at 3.5. He doesnt' always nap, but we and he needs that break.

Good luck and hope it turns out well!!!
 
We have 3 kids who are all really light sleepers which can be a pain when we travel But we have found one thing that works really well for all of us.

We always put a fan or small air purifier in the room. For some reason we all seem to fall asleep quicker since it drowns out the noise from outside...people walking by, doors closing, car alarms, etc.. The white noise seems to soothe everyone and works wonders for all of us.

May be worth a try for your daughter as well.

Have an awesome trip!
 
Just be sure to be firm the FIRST NIGHT, and maybe even talk about 'the rules' for sleeping on vacation before you leave. Like 'even if you're not tired, when it is bedtime you need to lay down and rest'.

Make the room dark - send one adult out of the room to get a drink or go for a walk. The other adult stays in the room totally ignoring the child. IF the child gets up out of bed or sits up - the first time or two remind him 'it is time for sleep now'. After that - just ignore (or if it gets real bad - put some sort of punishment in place ' no mickey ice cream bar tomorrow or similar). I sit on the bed and bring a flashlight and read my book. After the kids fall asleep I turn on the TV on low.

I have also thrown some towels in the bathtub and read my book in there - if your ds really needs to be alone to sleep - this might be the way to go.
 
I plan on purchasing a tent kit for DS8. I'll keep it in the box until we get to WDW. Since we are driving down and spending one night at my MIL's home and one night in a hotel in Atlanta, I should be able to gauge whether he'll need the tent for WDW. If he does, I'll set it up on his bed or on the floor (whichever he'd prefer). If he doesn't, it stays in the box and gets returned to the store when we come back. :cutie: Blizzard (DS's stuffed kittie) will also be joining us on our journey, so that should help him sleep. I put my foot down on bringing his entire stuffed animal collection!!!

DS and I both have to have a fan for white noise as well, so I'll be bringing my desk fan that I keep at work. Plus, we'll probably all be so tuckered out that we'll end up crashing at night... :thumbsup2 Here's hoping, anyway...
 
...or NOT sleeping. I am terrified that my DD (who is 3.5) will not be able to sleep in the hotel room. If we ever try to let her sleep in our room with us, she is up for HOURS.

Any tips for how to get a child to go to sleep when you're sharing a room??? We're staying at the Poly, so she'll have her own little bed. Just not sure if she'll ever get some sleep and I don't want our time in the World ruined by exhaustion.

Thanks!
Kristi

in the case of our family, *everyone* ( kids and adults alike ) had no problem falling asleep as we were all exhausted from the daily activity!
 

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