Last Minute Trip with Two Small Boys!

[Tiami]

I'm hoping to get some suggestions for a Disney trip in late August.

I've planned several trips before but always quite a bit ahead of time and always for adults. This time I'm going on a last minute (for me!) trip with my father, his wife, and their two sons, my half brothers. My brothers will be 3.5 and 4.5 at the time of the trip. I'd love to come up with some ideas for things to do together that my brothers will enjoy. Unfortunately, a lot of my favorite ideas are already impossible since it's so close to the time of the trip. The oldest boy loves the Beast, so it would be great to take him to the castle to meet him... but as we all know it's nigh impossible to get a reservation for dinner at Be Our Guest this close to the trip.

The exact dates haven't been decided on yet. My dad and his wife also have a serious problem with timeliness, so I'm hesitant to make any reservations, at least not yet.

Does anyone have suggestions for events that 3.5 and 4.5 year old boys would enjoy, that wouldn't be difficult to arrange on short notice? Particularly restaurants that would keep them entertained, but wouldn't necessarily need to be reserved ahead of time.

Any other suggestions for Disney with small boys would be appreciated as well! They've been before but my dad doesn't research Disney or anything so I think they've probably missed out on a lot. I'm the family Disney expert, but I've never been with small children!

 

[kmb584]

I'm hoping to get some suggestions for a Disney trip in late August.

I've planned several trips before but always quite a bit ahead of time and always for adults. This time I'm going on a last minute (for me!) trip with my father, his wife, and their two sons, my half brothers. My brothers will be 3.5 and 4.5 at the time of the trip. I'd love to come up with some ideas for things to do together that my brothers will enjoy. Unfortunately, a lot of my favorite ideas are already impossible since it's so close to the time of the trip. The oldest boy loves the Beast, so it would be great to take him to the castle to meet him... but as we all know it's nigh impossible to get a reservation for dinner at Be Our Guest this close to the trip.

The exact dates haven't been decided on yet. My dad and his wife also have a serious problem with timeliness, so I'm hesitant to make any reservations, at least not yet.

Does anyone have suggestions for events that 3.5 and 4.5 year old boys would enjoy, that wouldn't be difficult to arrange on short notice? Particularly restaurants that would keep them entertained, but wouldn't necessarily need to be reserved ahead of time.

Any other suggestions for Disney with small boys would be appreciated as well! They've been before but my dad doesn't research Disney or anything so I think they've probably missed out on a lot. I'm the family Disney expert, but I've never been with small children!

My first piece of advice is to keep checking for a BoG reservation. ADRs do open up and you may be lucky enough to score one. Check 45 days prior to the first date that would suit you as that's when final payment is due for Disney packages. If people don't pay, their reservations are canceled and released back into the pool. You could also do a quick service lunch there, no ADR required (and if staying onsite you could book a FP+ for it). Sure, the Beast isn't in attendance but at least your brother will be able to explore the inside of his castle.

As far as other restaurants go, it may be next to impossible to secure a table with a walk-up. August is a busy month in the World. You could book an ADR at T-Rex (DTD) or Rainforest Cafe (DTD/AK). My DD is 5 and fascinated with both places. We've had success with getting a walk-up table at RC in AK on numerous occasions. Pizza Planet at DHS is pretty cool, lots of arcade games and kids seem to enjoy the atmosphere. Cosmic Ray's at MK has Sonny Eclipse and he keeps the little ones entertained.

 

[Tiami]

Thanks for the suggestions! I'll keep trying on BoG. I hadn't considered the Rainforest Cafe but I remember liking it myself as a child! It's a definite contender.

Another place I was considering was Restaurant Marrakesh. I've seen a lot of kids having fun dancing there. I'm not sure how easy a walk-up would be, but it doesn't hurt to try.

 

[mm1971]

I'm hoping to get some suggestions for a Disney trip in late August.

I've planned several trips before but always quite a bit ahead of time and always for adults. This time I'm going on a last minute (for me!) trip with my father, his wife, and their two sons, my half brothers. My brothers will be 3.5 and 4.5 at the time of the trip. I'd love to come up with some ideas for things to do together that my brothers will enjoy. Unfortunately, a lot of my favorite ideas are already impossible since it's so close to the time of the trip. The oldest boy loves the Beast, so it would be great to take him to the castle to meet him... but as we all know it's nigh impossible to get a reservation for dinner at Be Our Guest this close to the trip.

The exact dates haven't been decided on yet. My dad and his wife also have a serious problem with timeliness, so I'm hesitant to make any reservations, at least not yet.

Does anyone have suggestions for events that 3.5 and 4.5 year old boys would enjoy, that wouldn't be difficult to arrange on short notice? Particularly restaurants that would keep them entertained, but wouldn't necessarily need to be reserved ahead of time.

Any other suggestions for Disney with small boys would be appreciated as well! They've been before but my dad doesn't research Disney or anything so I think they've probably missed out on a lot. I'm the family Disney expert, but I've never been with small children!

For activities, Pirates League in MK seems to be a popular choice.

Restaurants - T-Rex in DTD, Chef Mickeys is usually a popular one and O'hana for breakfast is a must do for DS.

Have a fun time.

 

[kmb584]

Thanks for the suggestions! I'll keep trying on BoG. I hadn't considered the Rainforest Cafe but I remember liking it myself as a child! It's a definite contender.

Another place I was considering was Restaurant Marrakesh. I've seen a lot of kids having fun dancing there. I'm not sure how easy a walk-up would be, but it doesn't hurt to try.

I don't think you'll have trouble with Restaurant Marrakesh. Every time we've been to Epcot they've had walk-up availability.

 

[Tiami]

I don't think you'll have trouble with Restaurant Marrakesh. Every time we've been to Epcot they've had walk-up availability.

I ate there on my last trip and it was practically empty!

 

[BlueFairy]

At FW Campground there is a free Chip N Dale marshmallow roast, meet and greet with singalong, and it's followed by a movie. No reservations required, but you'd need to allow enough travel time to get there close to the beginning so you don't miss the characters.

Take them to Tom Sawyer Island in MK to run off steam and explore. Also, bring extra clothes and allow time to play in the water at Casey Jrs Splash pad in MK.

Get FP+ for Buzz in the MK. TSMM in HS if you can, but that might be tricky.

Ice cream sundaes at the Plaza in MK for a decent meal. Not particularly exciting, but it's usually not too tough to get an ADR close to the trip.

Allow extra time for meeting characters. Be careful about easing into the dark rides. Kids that age sometimes spook easily.

Haircuts or just colored hair gel and sprinkles at the Barber shop? Sometimes you can do this as a walkup.

 

[MSSANDRA]

Your brothers are so young that they will be so happy with the parks themselves that nothing else really needs to be added. Do your FP as soon as you have dates, and then book your ADRs. Even though they may be a bit last minute, there will be something available and anything is better than walk-ups. Know however, BOG is possible for a lunch walk up, even on busy days. We have done it! Be willing to do meals a little off times, and try some new places. Late August starts to thin a lot with crowds as a lot of schools in the South go back early August. Be willing to do rope drop and use your FP well and you will be fine. The boys are too little to know what all is in the parks so If you need to skip something, just don't tell them it exist. We went to HS quite a few times without DS7 even knowing that TSM existed. I refused to be part of the early madness and he was happy doing Buzz.

 

[DisneyBliss7]

T-Rex Café was a big hit for my three sons on our last trip(ages 6,6,&3). We did Build-A-Dino after dinner, they had a blast making those. All three boys still sleep with their dinos every night. If you call to make a ressie for T-Rex I would suggest calling them direct and not going through Disney. I tried making a ressie 180 days out and they were booked b/c Disney only has a few tables they can book from there. They gave me the direct # and I got in no problem. Chef Mickey, Tusker House are great places too if you can get in...Keep trying for BOG. My friend is going in the fall and she couldn't get a date for any day that they'll be there. She kept calling and they actually had a date open up last week for dinner and they got in...Do they pin trade? That might be a fun thing to start..

 

[Claire&TheBoys]

They might enjoy one of the pirate cruises. Sounds like they'd be a great age for that!

Keep trying for the BOG availability. They do pop up - be persistent, if you can, try several times per day.