My kids go to bed at 7:30pm...

[dominia_1979]

We are bringing our 2yr old and 5yr old to WDW in December. I'm trying to determine if we should do MVMCP. They typically go to bed around 7:30pm, so do you think it is worth the extra money for the tickets when they might not even be awake for the parade or fireworks?

 

[randumb0]

You wouldn't be there very long. Not worth it in my opinion

 

[Jadyreen1282]

I've seen kids up a lot later than that. It would be a waste of money to end the night early. If you think they will crash bag it.

 

[xjuax]

I say no, I don't think that it's worth the price tag if your kids won't be able to enjoy it. Bring them back in a few years when they can stay up later.

 

[DizneyMommy]

My kids go to bed at 7:30 as well, they have zero problem making it to 10 or later when we are at Disneyland. Maybe because they get such good sleep usually, they don’t even melt down!

 

[MudBud]

Took my kids to MVMCP at the same ages & their normal bedtime was 8pm.

My 5 yo made it till 10:30 (and probably could have kept going) & my 2 year old made it till 10 and crashed in the stroller.

I just made sure we didn’t have to be anywhere till noon the next day.

If you don’t think they’ll make it till 10 though, I would pass on it.

 

[StarSeven7]

My kids usually go to bed at 7:30-8pm as well. We were at MK a few weeks ago and it was our last night so we planned to watch fireworks and stay as late as the kids wanted - closing time was 11pm. My 5 year old fell asleep on DH's shoulder immediately after Happily Ever After (it started at 8:55pm) and our 8 year old was good for a bit longer but was really done by 10pm. But we had also been at MK since 8am that morning, so I think they were totally exhausted at that point. If you can rest up earlier that day (i.e. don't go to a park!) and you think your kids can make it, it might be worth it, but I know my kids just could not last long enough even now for it to be worth the extra expense for us!

 

[GADisneyDad14]

Very personal decision of course. My kids also go to bed at 7:30 IRL, but we’ve been taking DS (now 7) and DD (now 3) to the parties at various ages 2+ with absolutely no regrets at all. Disney with littles ones is about compromises anyway (in our view) and the parties are no different. We adjust when and where needed, but have never had a “this wasn’t worth it” feeling. It works for us.

 

[Delirium]

Yes. Your 5-year old is at the age where the the party will be most awe-inspiring. If you wait until the younger one is 'old enough', some of the magic will be gone for the older one.

Are you even required to purchase a ticket for the two-year old?

Just keep them rested during the day and you should be fine.

 

[Dis703]

If you are set on keeping to their bedtime, no. But my oldest went to the Christmas party with me at 2 1/2 and 5 and he took a little nap and made it later at 2 and at 5 he made it until after 11pm. You won't have to buy a ticket for your 2 year old so if you can keep them up a little later I do think it's worth doing.

 

[pixiegoose]

My kids had/have the same bedtime and were 2.5 and 5.5 on our last (December) trip. We chose not to do MVMCP until they were older because we wanted to make sure they got the full experience and could handle being out until midnight. Not to say we stuck to their bedtime during the trip (I think the closest we got to their normal time was 8:30 and I know the latest was our last night at about 10:30) but I didn’t want to pay extra to have extra whiny kids out way past their bedtime. I’m not sure if we’re going to do it this December or not, with a 5.5 and 8.5 year old.

 

[LongLiveRafiki]

We went with a 7 yo and a not quite 2 yo who normally go to bed at 9. At the party, my toddler fell asleep in the stroller during the midnight stage show and my 7 yo stayed awake until we got back to the hotel. No grumpiness. Every kid reacts differently to going off routine though. If yours are typically okay with deviating from the norm, the go for it. If you think they will for sure pass out super early or get grouchy, then dont.

 

[4leobeans]

We are bringing our 2yr old and 5yr old to WDW in December. I'm trying to determine if we should do MVMCP. They typically go to bed around 7:30pm, so do you think it is worth the extra money for the tickets when they might not even be awake for the parade or fireworks?

We took our 2, 5 and 7 year old to a Halloween party. We're also early birds, and still haven't seen a fireworks show....we always leave around supper.

However, we wanted to celebrate my 5 yo's birthday, and the Halloween party was her treat. We didn't do a day in the park that day, slept in, and had a relaxed pool day. I also made everyone have an afternoon nap on party night. We headed to the party around 5 pm, and lasted till about 10;30 or 11. It actually went well, no meltdowns , although the weather was the pitts, so we did lots of rides. As we were leaving, we did stop and watch the fireworks show, since the rain had stopped. They loved it, and it was pretty relaxed, we just sat down on the ground in tomorrowland

My youngest fell asleep when we were leaving, but it was pretty simple, since he just ending up sleeping through the bus ride back.

If you wanted to try, I'd make sure you had no big plans that day, and nothing super early the next day .

 

[mi*vida*loca]

If they will sleep in a stroller so you can still enjoy the parade and fireworks I might do it. If not I wouldn't spend the money. The two year old is free but $90 for the 5 year old not to experience much of anything is a tough pill to swallow IMO.

 

[mrcase77]

How do they normally do when they stay up late? Do they just sleep in the next day or do they get manic or cranky the next day? Seems like it would depend.

 

[robinb]

I would go for it. Take that day easy as well as no rope drop for the next day. Oh, and rent/bring a double stroller even if you would not usually use one for your oldest.

 

[ElenaRN]

Are you going to make them stick to bedtime on vacation? Our girls bedtime is also 730 @ home. They are 7 & 4. We don't usually keep bedtime on vacation. They have never had a problem staying up. Usually on the day we go to a theme party, we will stay at resort and do a pool day in the morning and relax and then go to park at like 4p. My kids won't sleep late no matter what but if yours will try to let them sleep late that morning.

 

[KrazeeK120]

My 2 YO goes to bed at 7:30, even on vacation. I suspect that he would actually do fine staying up late, but I prefer not to rock the boat. Overtired toddler isn’t situation I want to take a chance of dealing with in a theme park. We decided to do EMM instead of the Halloween party...that will be better for our normal schedule.

I will say that if I just had a 5 year old, I’d be willing to try it.

 

[DaniMoon]

We rarely stayed out past 9 when we do Disney. My youngest has always had an off switch and once that was flipped he was done. It was not worth the next day being miserable. At 9 he has started being able to stay up later and wake up earlier without being a grump. We will have a few late nights this trip before resort days and hope to do a Halloween Party, but I'm going to wait til we are in Disney to buy tickets. (I booked the SW dessert party last year and he had an asthma flare up, so he and I didn't make it -- so I'm not prebooking any parties this trip).

Bottom line, you know your kids.

 

[brockash]

We are bringing our 2yr old and 5yr old to WDW in December. I'm trying to determine if we should do MVMCP. They typically go to bed around 7:30pm, so do you think it is worth the extra money for the tickets when they might not even be awake for the parade or fireworks?

My kids don't have bed times at Disney. We go every year and have been going for over a decade with kids as young as 2 months through now 16.

We are not a stick to our regular routine family at Disney - we think you miss too much. I can't imagine ne er seeing a nighttime show etc., because of a bed time. The little ones nap in the stroller if they're tired at the park. There are times all kids, teens, adults nap in the middle of the day if we go back for naps, and there have been plenty of times when little ones were out running around, ridi g rides at 1 or 2 in the morning. For us, that's part of the fun about being on vacation.

If you decide that you guys def want to stick to your at home schedule, then I'd say def not worth the money, but if you choose to not stick to tour regular routine then they could really have fun at the party....it just depends on how you want to vacation.