mid day naps

[snginsburg]

My daughter is just turning 3 before we go to Disney and still needs a nap. My husband and I are trying to figure out the best plan of action. Should we plan to leave the parks in the middle of the day so she could take a nap then come back later? What's your suggestions?

 

[deegack]

We went when dd was 16 months. She just eventually fell asleep in her stroller. A couple days I had to find a quiet area and "force" her to go to sleep. The only real meltdown we had was when we tried to leave to go back to the room and swim and relax. We plan on doing the same next time we go.

 

[happymommy]

Have her sleep in the stroller - bring your own comfortable one from home. It's the only way that we did it when my DD was 2 on her first trip.

We actually loved that - my kids were 2 and 4, in our own nice comfy double stroller, mid-afternoon, they crashed, so we found a nice shady spot, conveniently located by the Bawa Bar in DAK (or someplace in Epcot....) had a couple cold beers while they slept! So nice.

We also kept almost normal bedtimes. That was about 7 for DD and a little later for DS, so we'd go back and have our normal bath/jammies routine, so they weren't overtired.

Stayed at the BWV that trip so one night, my son was begging after getting ready for bed to go back one more time to the Big Globe as he called it (Spaceship Earth), so I took him while DH put DD to bed. DS was asleep in the stroller walking back from his ride, but he was so happy!

 

[tevisco4]

We like to take mid-day naps. We go to the park when it opens and then head back to the hotel for a nap after lunch. Then we swim and nap, go to our dinner and then hit the park with EMH! It may not work for everyone but it works for us. Have fun!

 

[Lumiere Lover]

I have always found the mid-day breaks to be great for kids and adults. I like to be at the parks before rope drop, and at the end of the day, so a mid-day break during high crowds and high heat is very refreshing!!

 

[Syd&Cammie]

when my girls were young enough to nap, we usually went back to the room for a midday break. I'm a fan of letting the kids nap in the stroller, but my husband always needed the airconditioned nap (he claimed his participation in the nap was really for the kids).

 

[tdpolo26]

sleep in the stroller.....worked awesome for us

 

[snginsburg]

Thanks everyone for your suggestions. I am bringing a stroller so I might see if she will fall asleep in it so we don't have to go back. If it is too hot we may go back.

 

[connie1042]

We rented a bigger stroller for my granddaughter for our trip in May. She will be almost 4. We are not going back, so hope she falls asleep in the stroller. I figure if she does, i will find a cool spot to sit with her and the young grown-ups can go do what they want for an hour. The Hall of presidents is good at MK or the American pavilion at Epcot. I love to just sit and people watch, so anywhere with a breeze and shade will do.

 

[shell8558]

We still take mid day breaks! The first couple of years, it was for the kids to nap- now it is for them to swim. It's a nice break, especially in May!

 

[Shelly F - Ohio]

In May you will need to take a mid day break because the temps will start getting hot and you will need that break.

 

[MinnNice]

We love mid-day breaks! Even now that are kids are older and don't need a nap. It's nice to escape the crowds for a bit and we love being able to use the pool. We like to be at the park early, leave mid-day and then hit a different park later.

 

[Boncho]

We love mid-day breaks! Even now that are kids are older and don't need a nap. It's nice to escape the crowds for a bit and we love being able to use the pool. We like to be at the park early, leave mid-day and then hit a different park later.

That is what we do too.
We find that going back to the resort and spending some time in the pool and then having something to eat refreshes us so we can spend lots of time in another park later.

 

[earthfaries]

Lots of people with children leave for naps in the middle of the day. When our kids were younger we never did, they were fine all day long at the parks. Even though they usually took naps at home they did fine for the two weeks we were on vacation.

Mid day breaks are nice for families though. You can rest, eat and escape the heat, then go back for more fun.

Either way, you'll know what's best for your family .

Have fun!​

 

[AnjieNet]

We found it much easier when DD was younger to just let her fall asleep in the stroller at the parks. While she slept, we'd use a FP on one of the bigger rides and do the child swap.

 

[brockash]

In my opinion it depends on where you're staying (especially if you have a stroller.) We've gone since my kids were babies and we tried doing the nap thing one of the first years when we were staying at a value, and honestly for us, it was more exhausting doing the travel to and from the hotel than anything.

The last few years we've stayed at BLT and we go back for naps on days that have EMH's (only at MK and Epcot) and it is nice to have that downtime and it's convenient only having to roll the stroller onto the monorail and be done with it.

So, for us, this year we're staying at BLT again and we'll be going back for a rest on one of our MK days and our Epcot day, but otherwise the little ones can sleep when they want in their strollers.

 

[pooki1]

Heat is the biggest reason to take a break for us, noon to 3 it gets pretty hot so we go cool off in the pool and nap,shower then head back recharged.