MK with One Year Old

[ckdsweet]

Hello,

My hubby and I are taking our little girl to the Magic Kingdom for a day in November She will be one week shy of her first birthday. Wondering what are some must-dos for this age? Thinking Dumbo, It's A Small World and Winnie the Pooh are must-dos. Was going to try and use our Fast Pass Plus for Under the Sea - Journey of the Little Mermaid, Winnie the Pooh, plus Space Mountain and Seven Dwarves Mine Cart with Rider Swap for the adults.

Also, wondering on your thoughts on Mickey's Philharmagic for that age? She loves Mickey Mouse Clubhouse, so I thought that might be a good option as we won't get to Hollywood Studios to see the Disney Jr. show. Any other must-dos at MK for Mickey Mouse Clubhouse fans?

Lastly, we've decided (sadly) to skip the Very Merry Christmas Party for this year as she will be so young. So we are trying to decide between going on a non-party night (and hoping she'll last to see the Fireworks show but bedtime is usually earlier) and going on a party night and seeing a few of the party festivities until 7? Thoughts?

Thanks so much!

 

[cyneswith]

Taking my 14 month old soon. If she's a Mickey fan, meet Mickey at the Town Square Theater (he talks!) and use a fastpass. Meet Minnie, Daisy, Donald, and Goofy at Pete's Silly Sideshow. If you want to do 7DMT, use a fastpass. I plan on doing the teacups and meeting a princess. My kids don't care about Winnie or Dumbo, but my son likes Aladdin, so we'll do the magic carpets with him - doesn't really need a fast pass. It's a Small World was kind of on our to-do list, but it opens back up on our last day. I don't THINK it usually requires FP.

 

[ckdsweet]

Thanks for the tips! She is a huge Mickey fan, so the talking Mickey will be cool! Definitely got to add that to the list. We are doing Chef Mickey's as well (on a different day) so I might skip the Sideshow, but haven't decided.

 

[TravelingTotMom]

We've been taking DS2 since he was 7 1/2 months old, and our trip right after he turned one was one of our favorites.

You are right on track with the rides at that age - Small World, Dumbo, the Little Mermaid and Pooh remain favorites (and getting a FastPass for Pooh is smart).

I agree with that you should get a FastPass for talking Mickey (in place of the Little Mermaid FastPass). Maybe stop by the Chapeau on Main Street and get a Mickey ears hat with your daughter's name embroidered beforehand? It makes for some great photos.

Some other good rides to consider at that age are the Carousel (you or your husband can sit on the horse with her), the Jungle Cruise, the Magic Carpets, the Tiki Room, and Peter Pan (though you would need a FastPass or to rope drop that one). You can also take a "break" and ride the railroad or PeopleMover or go on Carousel of Progress. If you have time, go ahead and meet the characters at Silly Pete's - the lines are usually pretty short, and it's a nice a/c break by Dumbo.

Also, do not miss the 3 p.m. Festival of Fantasy parade. We always watch it back in Frontierland for a couple of reasons. First, the parade starts back there, so you aren't waiting quite as long. Second, we can usually easily find a front row spot half an hour before. We grab Dole Whips or Mickey ice cream bars while we wait to pass the time.

In regards to Philharmagic, it didn't work out so well for us at that age. DS couldn't keep the 3D glasses on the whole time, so he spent part of it watching a blurry screen. Now at two he likes it, but he also better understands that he needs to wear the glasses to see it correctly.

As it's your first time taking her, I would suggest going on the party day. Even though you have to leave by 7, the park is usually less crowded earlier on party days, which will make everything a little less stressful. Our first trip with DS was on a party day, and we were amazed at the amount of things we got done - and we were ready to leave by 7. Also, you could always visit one of the monorail resorts for dinner and then watch the Christmas party fireworks from there (which would also be great if you don't know how she is going to react to the loud noises).

Overall, just follow her lead and make adjustments to plans if needed. Regardless of what you do or don't do, you will still end up having a memorable and magical trip taking your daughter for the first time.

 

[ravenanne]

My DD will be one during our trip and the first FP+ I booked was talking Mickey. She loves Mickey Mouse Clubhouse too. I also booked to have her first haircut at Harmony Barbershop, so that's an idea as well.

 

[Miumiu4me]

I started taking my daughter to WDW regularly at 3 months (she just turned 3 yrs old last week). When she was one she really liked the furry characters. She would go nuts over talking Mickey. We have cute photos/videos of various characters holding her arms up so she could walk. She's loved the parades since she was about 9 months old.

Philiar Magic is cute, but my daughter still takes the glasses off during the movie.

 

[sullyfam]

We just got back from a trip with our one year old (she turned one while we were there). We spent the most amount of time at MK. We brought her on Dumbo, Peter Pan, Little Mermaid, It's a Small World, Teacups, People Mover, Magic Carpets, Pirates of the Caribbean, Winnie the Pooh, Jungle Cruise, Buzz Light Year and Haunted Mansion. Pretty much anything without a height requirement, we took her on. She did fine with everything. She took it all in and loved just looking around at everything on the rides. Her favorites were probably Pooh and Peter Pan.

We also did Hall of Presidents and Carousel of Progress and I nursed her during both of those. If you are looking for a quiet, cool and dark place to nurse, those are definitely good spots! We also did breakfast at Crystal Palace which she loved. She loved meeting all the characters there and wasn't scared of any of them although I know all kids at that age are different. Have fun!