Im sooooooooo confused

[brookies_mommy]

I have been a dis member for a couple months now.. i think lol and DD (3 turning 4) are going on a mother daughter trip in 3 weeks. I bought the unofficial guide.. and ridemax and dont know what to do. I was all into makeing the ridemax plans and then a friend pointed out what happens if DD wants to go on a ride again.. or if its down.. or potty breaks.. or nap breaks.. so many different things that could go wrong and ruin the whole plan.

I got in trouble for posting my ridemax plan for the first day so i wont do that again. But it had me all over the place. tomorrow land to toon town and all over.

Is that really the best way to do it? I put in the same ride multiple times in ridemax to get an idea of wait times through the day and it gradually went up in wait times, and then down later in the day. So wouldn't that be the norm for all the rides?

Is there someone who has personal experience that could share and let me know which way to go, and how to pull this off.

i would really appreciate it

thanks

 

[Heymy]

We went for DD's 4th birthday and I figured in 5 days we would be able to get everything done even with her wanting to do the same thing over and over again. I was partially right Somethings didn't get done until grandma watched the girls one evening while DH and I went out. I never thought I would have to watch the Tiki Room more than once a day, HM yes because she's obbsessed, but 3 & 4 yr olds are very opinionated
My advice, let your DD lead the way and give some suggestions here and there. It will make a pleasant trip for both of you!

 

[goldies 5]

I have been to DL to many times to count. No matter what plan you use things can change any day of the week. I have never used a plan but often found tips to be useful here. We however go with the flow for our family. It is just so much more enjoyable if you don't feel frustrated or pressured by an exact schedule. I know many people will disagree with that statement, but I am only representing my feelings. 4 year olds will often want to do the same thing more than once. It has always been in my experience more enjoyable when I slowed down and let my kids sort of lead the way. I have also ran from ride to ride but it can wear them down quickly. And it wasn't as much fun either. September can be a great month to go. There are usually less people to contend with, which makes for a more relaxed atmosphere. Just make sure that whatever you do don't stress to much or you won't have as much fun.

 

[LuLusApple]

I like the follow your child approach, when traveling with little ones. there are so many little things that couldn't be planned. Like making time to pull king Arthurs sword, taking a pic in Toads car, knocking on little doors by the teacups and many more.
We used to say we'll do "that" later, well "that" later never happened most of the time. Take time and enjoy

 

[srauchbauer]

I have been to DL to many times to count. No matter what plan you use things can change any day of the week. I have never used a plan but often found tips to be useful here. We however go with the flow for our family. It is just so much more enjoyable if you don't feel frustrated or pressured by an exact schedule. I know many people will disagree with that statement, but I am only representing my feelings. 4 year olds will often want to do the same thing more than once. It has always been in my experience more enjoyable when I slowed down and let my kids sort of lead the way. I have also ran from ride to ride but it can wear them down quickly. And it wasn't as much fun either. September can be a great month to go. There are usually less people to contend with, which makes for a more relaxed atmosphere. Just make sure that whatever you do don't stress to much or you won't have as much fun.

we are going October 22-25 thanks for the advice on not stressing out, I need to hear that more often. I am so planning on letting DD (4 yrs old) led the way with choices. Hopefully when we get there I will remember that is a vacation and not a marathon. So again thanks for the advice and enjoy the ride (lol).

 

[HydroGuy]

Your concerns are valid especially with a four-year-old. Here are some ideas to consider:

1. Use the "Slow" option in RM - this will build in more time between rides

2. If you decide to take a RM plan with you do not be afraid to change it real time or drop it entirely

3. Consider making a plan for the first several hours of the day and let everything after that be totally flexible

 

[pixiewings71]

You know, in all our trips (14 from July 07-July 08, and you can see how many this year in my siggie), I've never ever used Ridemax. We just go with the flow, get FPs as we want them and ride what we can when we can. We don't follow a set plan, we just "wing it". LOL I'd let your DD lead, but make it clear that you have the final decision, that way if a line is simply to long you can go elsewhere, but it also makes her feel involved. Take it slow, enjoy the parks and just relax. If you don't get everything done that's reason to plan another trip in the future.

 

[brookies_mommy]

You all are so helpful I love the DIS!!!!

 

[3Minnies1Mickey]

For our trip (with 4 under 7) I have set a loose guide to where I want to spend the morning and what order I'd like to do the rides. Then I left the afternoon/evenings up in the air (with the exception of particular shows and nightime events) to redo some rides, use FPs, etc.

 

[PRINCESS VIJA]

Since you already bought ride max, I would keep making plans, because it helped mostly to figure out how to start the day. You don't necessarily need to use them, but it really helps you understand the flow of the park better.

We just got back from our first trip, and I used Ridemax mostly just in the morning and went with the flow in the afternoon, but just getting a feel for a ride order helped alot!!!! So, maybe it might help you get your day started and then let your DD lead the way. If you have access to MM then please do that to ride the fantasyland rides. barely any wait, and we rode almost all of them in the first hour, it was great, and ridemax doesn't have a plan for MM. I used the help of the great DIS'ers here for a list. That would be a great area for her to lead the way too.

 

[Judy from Boise]

and never forget that most 4 year olds enjoy the motel pool as much as the park it'self! Build some down time in the later afternoons for swimming and reading in bed etc.

 

[mnmrmustard]

Yeah, you have to take into consideration that there may be a ride early on in your day that she will absolutely fall in love with and you end up camping out there. When my younger DD was 5 my DW and I had to tag team riding ToT with her because she rode it 5 times in a row!

I'd say pick 3 or 4 things in the park that you think are fun/important to experience and try to get to those, but more than anything just go with her mood and energy level and embrace the enjoyment of watching her having fun and experiencing the magic

 

[brookies_mommy]

Yeah, you have to take into consideration that there may be a ride early on in your day that she will absolutely fall in love with and you end up camping out there. When my younger DD was 5 my DW and I had to tag team riding ToT with her because she rode it 5 times in a row!

I'd say pick 3 or 4 things in the park that you think are fun/important to experience and try to get to those, but more than anything just go with her mood and energy level and embrace the enjoyment of watching her having fun and experiencing the magic

Good point!

 

[Buttercup26]

When my daughter and nieces were younger we always had some kind of plan for the morning. We would be there for rope drop and do FantasyLand, especially Peter Pan and Dumbo before those lines got crazy long. Nemo would be another one to do early. We let them decide which Fantasyland rides they wanted to do first. The earlier you get in the park the easier it will be to go slow and be flexible.

The railroad is a great "rest", when your DD starts to get a little tired ride the railroad around the park.

Take a break in the afternoon and swim, nap, etc.. Little ones get tired out so easy!

 

[fairykin]

ahhh... i would really urge you to plan in downtime.

We took our twin grandchildren last christmas they were 4..and our oldest granddaughter who was 6.

We didn't rush to the park first thing.. we moved at our own pace.. we at in the room a breakfast they were used to.. a bowl of oatmeal.. and maybe a bananana. then we went to the park..and we ran into characters on mainstreet.. so we stopped and took pics with them.. then went down to the castle.

We had a list of things to do that were age appropriate and height right..then we would go with the flow in whatever land we were in.

I showed the kids videos on youtube of different rides to make them more familiar with it..and the park.

Sometimes they have the idea of mickey from cartoons..then they see this giant mickey walking around..it can scare them, if that happens..its normal so don't be disappointed. If not..yeahhh.. go find some more.

Remember.. there are long lines.. have juice boxes and snacks with You. Or some little disney people from the dollar store toy section to give them if they get fussy.

If you can.. prebook your meals. Learn where the bathrooms are.

And above all... know yourself and your kids... remember..you don't have to be in the park everymoment it is open... there will be time for that when they are grown. Take it at the pace that is best for you and your family.

Like..plan on spending a nice amount of time in toon town..your kids will love it at their ages.. and they get a chance to run around and play... also.. the colors are so bright.. it makes for beautiful pictures.

Don't feel bad if you need to go back to the room early at night and miss the fireworks or parade.

Just plan to have a relaxing fun trip.

Are you going to dress your girls up in little princess dresses? We did and it was so much fun.

 

[fairykin]

mnmrmustard... good advice

 

[specialks]

Last year was our first trip to DL. I had an obsessive plan based on the Unofficial Guide on where to go when. Our party consisted of myself, my husband, 4 yr , 2 yr , and my mom. The first day I was stressed out telling everyone -"we have to go here now", "can't do that now we have to head to ____ ride". Needless to say, I was stressed, my husband was stressed, and my mother was about to pull out her hair. Finally, after telling my daughter (4) "We can do it later" for about the 10th time, I gave up. I relaxed, enjoyed the rest of the day and the other days we just went with the flow. Did we "maximize" the most effective time/ride solution? No. Did we see every single ride there was? No. BUT, did we have a wonderful vacation and make memories we all will remember? YES!

 

[lawyergirl22]

We are about to head out for our fourth disney trip and the kids are now 5 and 2. The best thing I've learned is to have a general plan for the morning (say first 2 hours) of rides I know they will like or do like, simply because you really can accomplish so much in the AM. We then take the rest of the day as it happens. If the kids want to repeat a ride, no problem. We also travel in off peak seasons, so that helps alot in cutting down any wait times and not worrying that the parks are going to fill up before we get everything accomplished.

This time, I have a list of things we have missed on previous trips, and my goal is to try one new thing each day. We also will be at DL for six nights. This allows us to take our time and not go commando through the parks in 1 or 2 days. Whenever I start to stress that we aren't going to see "everything", I take one look at the kids and remember why I am there--to have a good time with my family!

Good luck!

 

[brookies_mommy]

I am really likeing your guys tips! I think I will ditch going planning crazy. lol

 

[moikturtle]

What exactly is RideMax?