Must-do's for a 5 year old & 3 year old? Non-rides

[aristocatz]

I have a pretty solid plan for which rides to take my kids on during our December trip, but what are the other must-do attractions & activities for this age?

We are staying at AKL & would love ideas for both the parks & the resort.

Thanks!

 

[mustinjourney]

If in to princess stuff:

• CRT (pricey -- but food is better than expected and the ambiance is better than 1900/akershus)
• Akershus -- get to meet all the princesses and best use of a single TS credit on the dining plan
• 1900 park (dinner) -- cinderella, prince charming...and the true stars -- the evil stepmom and step sisters. Anastasia was the best interaction we had in the whole park -- she wouldn't take no for an answer from my daughter (in a good way). She was the only character to willingly get my daughter out of her chair and interact (she got shy around all the characters).
• Princess meet and greets (FP+ eligible at MK). There are two at MK. There is a frozen one at epcot by Norway...not sure if FP+ is necessary for it though -- as the line moved very quickly when we were there in February (I've heard they have two sets of cast members).

Non-princess stuff:

• breakfast at Tusker House was great. Good food and classic characters. Not too expensive (~$30 a piece I think?).
• I've heard the mad hatter at 1900 park fare for breakfast is a hoot...although we haven't done it.
• BOG for dinner is a lot of fun. A little pricey -- but the ambiance is great if you haven't been. If you just want to experience the atmosphere, but don't want to drop a ton (and are on the meal plan), then breakfast here is a great use of your QS credit (it costs $24 for breakfast).

As far as attractions --

• frozen show in DHS
• Beauty and the beast show at DHS
• I liked the little mermaid show at DHS (wife is not as in to it though) -- my DD4 loves it though
• Any of the character meets are great -- but the Tales of Belle is a really cute one for the kids since it's interactive.
• Festival of the lion king
• Finding nemo
• Fireworks shows at the parks (can be difficult with the little ones since it is usually late and past bedtimes). I had to walk out of Wishes right before it started with my 18 month old because she was melting down. My 4 year old was good though. She stayed with DW and grandparents.
• Parades are usually fun.
• Stage shows at both MK and DHS (star wars).

Resorts:

• pools
• running around exploring
• they have arcades -- some games could be fun
• watching disney movies in the room -- especially at night or while making meals

lots more to do -- but that's what I can come up with off the top of my head.

 

[Mickeymouseisking]

Every evening there's a free sing along with chip and dale at fort wilderness, followed by a Disney movie under the stars.

Also at your resort there will be a Disney movie shown every evening outdoors.

At Animal Kingdom there's a character dance party in Dinoland a number of times a day.

At Magic Kingdom they have a great street dance party parade called Move It! Shake It! Dance and Play It! which happens a few times throughout the day around the castle hub. The floats stop, the characters come down into the street and all guests are invited to join and dance! It's one of our favorite things at WDW.

If your kids are into animals you should go on the two nature trails at AK and consider catching the Flights of Wonder show, which is amazing.

 

[aristocatz]

If in to princess stuff:

• CRT (pricey -- but food is better than expected and the ambiance is better than 1900/akershus)
• Akershus -- get to meet all the princesses and best use of a single TS credit on the dining plan
• 1900 park (dinner) -- cinderella, prince charming...and the true stars -- the evil stepmom and step sisters. Anastasia was the best interaction we had in the whole park -- she wouldn't take no for an answer from my daughter (in a good way). She was the only character to willingly get my daughter out of her chair and interact (she got shy around all the characters).
• Princess meet and greets (FP+ eligible at MK). There are two at MK. There is a frozen one at epcot by Norway...not sure if FP+ is necessary for it though -- as the line moved very quickly when we were there in February (I've heard they have two sets of cast members).

Non-princess stuff:

• breakfast at Tusker House was great. Good food and classic characters. Not too expensive (~$30 a piece I think?).
• I've heard the mad hatter at 1900 park fare for breakfast is a hoot...although we haven't done it.
• BOG for dinner is a lot of fun. A little pricey -- but the ambiance is great if you haven't been. If you just want to experience the atmosphere, but don't want to drop a ton (and are on the meal plan), then breakfast here is a great use of your QS credit (it costs $24 for breakfast).

As far as attractions --

• frozen show in DHS
• Beauty and the beast show at DHS
• I liked the little mermaid show at DHS (wife is not as in to it though) -- my DD4 loves it though
• Any of the character meets are great -- but the Tales of Belle is a really cute one for the kids since it's interactive.
• Festival of the lion king
• Finding nemo
• Fireworks shows at the parks (can be difficult with the little ones since it is usually late and past bedtimes). I had to walk out of Wishes right before it started with my 18 month old because she was melting down. My 4 year old was good though. She stayed with DW and grandparents.
• Parades are usually fun.
• Stage shows at both MK and DHS (star wars).

Resorts:

• pools
• running around exploring
• they have arcades -- some games could be fun
• watching disney movies in the room -- especially at night or while making meals

lots more to do -- but that's what I can come up with off the top of my head.

Wow-thanks!! We have 3 out of 5 of those restaurants on our ADR list I'm printing out this list

Every evening there's a free sing along with chip and dale at fort wilderness, followed by a Disney movie under the stars.

Also at your resort there will be a Disney movie shown every evening outdoors.

At Animal Kingdom there's a character dance party in Dinoland a number of times a day.

At Magic Kingdom they have a great street dance party parade called Move It! Shake It! Dance and Play It! which happens a few times throughout the day around the castle hub. The floats stop, the characters come down into the street and all guests are invited to join and dance! It's one of our favorite things at WDW.

If your kids are into animals you should go on the two nature trails at AK and consider catching the Flights of Wonder show, which is amazing.

I didn't know this about the character dance party at DAK! How do I find out info about times they do it?

 

[mtemm]

When my kids were that age one of their favorite things to do at Epcot was the maze in the back of the U.K. pavilion.

 

[coasternut22]

Keep in mind that kids may not be into the major attractions as much as adults. Kids may find interest in the smallest of things. For our kids it was the dig in AK. Couldn't get my kids out of there. Any place where they can be free to run around and explore and not have to sit or stand in line. My son loved driving the cars in tomorrowland, although most adults hate it. Tom Sayer Island was also a favorite place as well as Rafikis Planet Watch.

 

[Chippy4]

My four year old was completely enamored with making pressed pennies.

 

[bigbabyblues]

Mine were those ages on two of our trips. They liked it all, but they loved playing in the fountains that squirt out of the ground. When my oldest was that age, he loved IASW...we rode it 7 or 8 times that trip. Now he is 16 and we force him on it as payback!

 

[Party.Of.4-NY>>>FL]

Meeting talking Mickey in MK was the highlight of the trip for our 2 year-old

 

[sharonabe]

I have a pretty solid plan for which rides to take my kids on during our December trip, but what are the other must-do attractions & activities for this age?

We are staying at AKL & would love ideas for both the parks & the resort.

Thanks!

Two of our favorites are both in EP.

Outside the Imagination Pavilion are the jumping fountains. Just stand and watch for a moment, and you'll catch the fountains "jumping" from one pad to the next.

The other was the miniature trains set up in Germany over in WS.

 

[DisneyCAL]

Club Cool at Epcot, Mitzukoshi Department at Japan Pavilion (if interested in hello kitty or pokemon)

It's Tough to be a Bug at AK and the Dino play area

Pirates League (mermaid or pirate experience) and peoplemover at night at MK

Ice cream on the boardwalk (after a day at epcot)

If one or both of your kids are girls, kid mani or pedi at Senses Spa Grand Floridian.

Visiting the ponies and horses at WL Tri Circle D Ranch.

 

[CabesLove]

I have a 5 year old boy and 3 year old girl. They love doing the Kidcot Fun Stops in Epcot. Good for a little break, and they get a free little memento to take home. We also like to stop in Club Cool there and sample the international sodas (a treat for them, since we don't normally do soda lol). Tom Sawyer's Island at Magic Kingdom is a great place to just take a break and let them play. Movies by the pool at the hotel are always a hit with mine. On our next trip I'm planning one of the pirate cruises for my husband and son, and while they're doing that, I figured it'd be a great time to take my daughter to a princess meal!

 

[jvz82]

My kids (2, 4, 6, and 8) LOVED the character dining. It was a favorite for all of us!

Also my younger 3 had a blast in the splash pad at Disney Springs. Bring a swim suit or spare clothes.

At AKL, we didn't stay there but we had dinner at Boma and before the dinner the kids were invited to be part of a drum circle. They really loved that and it was one of our favorite moments from the trip. They got a little drum bead on a necklace, and apparently there were other beads you could get from AKL for kids doing other activities. So maybe check into that! It was a super cool souvenir.

 

[LaBelleVie]

My kids (who are the same age as yours) REALLY loved riding the ferry boat from the TTC to MK. Like, to the point where they repeatedly said that was their favorite part of the trip (they have since decided the best parts were meeting Buzz and Mickey). They also really loved letting Stitch spit on them at World of Disney at Disney Springs.

 

[Mickeymouseisking]

I didn't know this about the character dance party at DAK! How do I find out info about times they do it?

I'm so sorry...just looked it up and turns out they stopped doing it in 2015 unless there's a new one I'm not finding in my search.

 

[Princess Minnie321]

My kids were also 3 and 5 on our trip. At MK, they loved tom sawyer's island, the enchanted tales with belle, talking Mickey, and basically any character meet and greet there was! Our favorite character meal was tusker house. They loved the play area in AK near the dinosaur land. Turtle talk with crush in Epcot was super cute. In Hollywood studios, my five year old loved all the Star Wars meet and greets and the Jedi training.

We also stayed at AK. They do a lot of kids activities. We missed most being at the parks, but one night they did a parade in the lobby. My 5 year old loved the water slide at the pool and I was glad it was a zero entry pool because my 3 year old was happy to just in the shallow end. Seeing the animals was also fun!

 

[Dakota731]

Where is talking Mickey?

 

[DisneyCAL]

Where is talking Mickey?

Town Square Theater. To the right when you enter MK, before you get to the confectionary.

 

[Party.Of.4-NY>>>FL]

Where is talking Mickey?

Here's a random YouTube video in case you were wondering what the interaction was like. Definitely worth a visit IMHO.

 

[DisneyWorldbuff]

My kids love the Boneyard at AK. It's a great place for them to run around in a secure area for a little bit.