Must do activities for girls 3 & almost 6?

[silence182]

Hello! I'm planning our first trip staying at a WDW resort (Wilderness Lodge - late September). We took our girls to MK about 1.5 years ago for two days (stayed off resort), but this is our first time visiting all of the parks.

My girls love the characters and we have free dining so I've made reservations at as many character meals as I could...including CRT, Tusker House, Crystal Palace, Akershus Royal Banquet, Hollywood and Vine.

My girls do love the princesses so I'm following the touringplans website recommendations (they have one that emphasizes princesses in MK). For our previous trip people recommended Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique...is it really worth the cost?? We are already spending so much on this trip. Is this something that can wait until a future trip (maybe in a couple of years)?

They are also SUPER afraid of anything scary or dark...and haven't even seen many of the Disney movies. We did watch Monsters University this summer and they loved it. Of course they love Frozen but I wasn't able to get fastpasses to meet the princesses. Is the best way to at least see them from afar the parade at HS?

I did purchase tickets for the Halloween Party and I really hope it's not scary (my oldest especially gets scared over the smallest things!). Anything I should seek out that would be especially fun for little girls at this event?

My girls do not ask for hardly anything so they don't have their hearts set on any particular activities. I know it's going to be a great and fun time, but I like to plan ahead to minimize waiting and don't want to wander around looking for things because that exhausts me. We will be in the parks 5 days (2 days at MK). So any tips of things I should add to my itinerary would be great!

Thank you!

 

[Spartangirl1]

Following to hear responses as we will be traveling with our 2, 4, and 6 year old daughters in November....

 

[lovemy2girls4eva]

I just came back with my girls ages 4 and 2.5! We did the following character meals:
-Akershus- great princess interaction. Cute parade. Highlight was Ariel holding my youngest DD in the parade..so cute!
-Hollywood & Vine- Girls love Disney Jr so this was a must. Got to see Doc, Sofia, Jake & Handy Manny. Girls danced with their fav characters!
Food was good too.
-Chef Mickey's- just awesome! They loved seeing all the classic characters!
-Crystal Palace- they love Pooh so this was great!

As for the Anna & Elsa fast passes, keep trying. We were able to snag 2 right before we left. Also, if you don't get them, I recommend trying to see them during MNSSHP. The wait was like 20 mins when we attended. MNSSHP was awesome! The girls ToT, lines were shorter than normal and the parade was awesome!!

We also did Frozen Summer Fun at HS. they loved it!! Parade was cute, singalong was fun. We built a snowman. They absolutely loved it! Have fun!!

 

[Raenstoirm]

3&6 are great ages! Skip BBB. It is worth the cost, but they won't let your little one do it unless she is actually 3 (almost 3 doesn't cut it) and that will cause you a headache if one can do it and the other can't. I might consider buying them princess dresses before your trip though if they are into dress up. A lot of little girls will be dressed and the outfits are so expensive once you are there.

Be careful with free dining. Some character meals are two credits (CRT from your list). Evaluate what you have booked and see if it is better to pay out of pocket for CRT or for a basic meal another day and use the extra credits for CRT.

MNSSHP can be a bit scary for really skittish children, but it a really good event and the best thing disney does imho.

You will have a great trip!

 

[Ladygoldenhair]

Epcot water play areas, take a change of clothes and micro fiber towel. I carry microfiber everyday for rain, clean ups, and clean/dry place to sit.

Look online for Hidden Mickeys locations. If the kids are fussy you can look what they may find in the area. They have books at Disney, maybe $12.50ish.

Penny presses, take roll of quarters and Penny's 1983 and before. Polish them before you go. Insert Lincoln's face towards the quarters. You can buy a Penny book to hold them or craft a shadow oz or frame to display at home. I love shaping them into a Hidden Mickey.

 

[Lisa loves Pooh]

We do BBB and only once. Don't plan to do it this time around for my 4yo, but we may catch it on our next onsite big visit. I don't want to do it too early as it will be one and done. It can be expensive, but it doesn't have to be especially if you bring the costume or do without.

 

[MandiC]

My girls loved Akershus! It was actually their favorite, we all preferred it over Cinderella's Royal Table. Unless you think your kids would really enjoy the idea of eating in the castle (because honestly when you are in it it doesn't feel like you are eating in the castle any more than when you are at Akershus or Be Our Guest...unless you are lucky enough to get a window table I guess). It is 2 dining credits per person on the dining plan, so definitely something to consider. It won't be repeat for us.

BBB, bring princess dresses and buy the cute mickey tiaras (you can find them a lot of places, we got ours in our resort gift shop), watch some you-tube videos on how to do a high bun and buy some glitter spray. They will look just like they've been to BBB for much less.

Speaking of the dining plan, I have heard that during free dining they offer 30% off room discount, you can only have one promotion or the other but for the deluxe resorts it usually makes more financial sense to take the room discount and buy the dining plan. Something to look into.

Pressed pennies and pin trading were some of my girls favorite things. You can find lists online to print that have locations and designs of the pressed pennies. I bought our pins/lanyards at home before our trip. 3 might be a little young but your 6 year old might have fun with it They also enjoyed doing getting their 'passports' filled out. I printed it off on cardstock and had it bound at Office Depot, they have all sorts of designs on the creative DISigns borad

 

[silence182]

Thank you all for the great tips! It helps a lot. I'm pretty confident that our plans will make for a great time. I can't wait to go!

 

[jacknsally19]

So rather than spend the money on BBB, I would just buy a few different princess dresses and have them "dress up" to meet the princesses. I've seen the idea of writing an "invitation" from Cinderella to go to CRT and leave it in your hotel room.

Given that you are staying at WL, it might be nice to walk to the Contemporary to watch the fireworks from the Concourse level and take the boat back to WL rather than staying at MK to watch the fireworks. (Far less people - but still rather nice)

I would check out Kenny the pirates site for information on character meet and greets. He has lots of great advice on meeting characters (princesses & others).

My daughter also really enjoyed Raglan Road if you need a break from some of the character dining. (I love it but I get kind of sick of buffet food - although that is a lot easier with little ones and their picky palate.)

At Epcot, my daughter loved listening to all the musical acts & dancing. She loved coloring Duffy and Phineas (?) at each of the countries. I think you can get stamps too. I feel like Epcot is nice for a little more "down time". There is more for the kids to kind of wander, hang out, explore.

My daughter LOVES the electric light parade. Definitely try and see that with your kids and maybe bring some lights for them to play with while waiting.

The rides that I found my child to enjoy the most were Its a small world, the carousel, the country bear jamboree.

And the shows my daughter really loved were Festival of the Lion King, Disney Jr at HS and Fantasmic. ENJOY.

(Also, Voyage of the Little Mermaid at HS can be a little scary for little ones. My daughter totally jumped out of her skin at the dark lights / water combo. Ursula didn't scare her at all... go figure)

Make sure that you schedule in downtime for the kids to just play. My last trip, it seemed like my daughter didn't get enough down time so I have scheduled more for our upcoming trip.