Napping

[Hannathy]

I am just curious for all those that say their kids nap great in the stroller, even in the summer. By great do you mean a normal nap? My DD sleeps 2 to 2.5 hours at naptime, sometimes even 3 hours when we are Disney (because we go early/stay late.) I can not imagine her doing that in 95 degree heat/humidity. Plus, like another poster said, I would be bored to tears. Getting a drink and sitting in the shade for a little while is one thing, but for 2+ hours?

Why would you sit? you keep going. We used to go on rides they couldn't go on like Splash or SM, TOT, RNC, etc, go to Hall of Presidents, shop,watch a performance at Epcot, even eat uninterrupted. If it was hot sometimes we would ride the monorail a whole circle and everyone would rest and cool down.

 

[Chee Chick]

I am just curious for all those that say their kids nap great in the stroller, even in the summer. By great do you mean a normal nap? My DD sleeps 2 to 2.5 hours at naptime, sometimes even 3 hours when we are Disney (because we go early/stay late.) I can not imagine her doing that in 95 degree heat/humidity. Plus, like another poster said, I would be bored to tears. Getting a drink and sitting in the shade for a little while is one thing, but for 2+ hours?

I would be bored to tears sitting in a hotel room for two hours. You can definitely find things to do when your child is napping in the stroller in the parks.

DS did take shorter naps than usual, but it didn't seem to have that big of an impact on him. We didn't stay in the parks until closing. He got more than enough sleep at night.

 

[luckyfin]

I think it depends on the child.

My dd will NOT nap in the stroller. she will NOT nap if we are out anywhere. She has been like this since she was just over a year old lol. So we go back to the resort in the afternoon. We are going in september so we are all going to need to get out of the afternoon heat anyway but even when we go in December we need to go back to the resort or there will be no nap and DD will be DONE by dinner

This is my child, too. No way, no how was she going to sleep in the stroller. Doesn't matter how tired she is, if there is something to see she isn't going to miss it. We were hoping while at Disney that she would be so tired that if we reclined her stroller she would fall asleep. Boy were we wrong. We ended up back at the resort every day to nap, which still suited us fine. Even pre-child DH and I used to go back every day for a nap or swim.

 

[mikeweider1]

I have 3 young kids and have been doing the nap thing for 3 years now at Disney... It depends on a couple of things...

1) Will your kids nap well in the stroller? If so then that might work ok but if they only sleep fitfully for 30 minutes then you are going to regret that decision.

2) Are you staying in a disney hotel nearby? If so then by all means go back to the hotel for 2 hours. You will be refreshed and so will your kids and the evenings will go so much better.

3) How long is your trip? If you are only at DIsney for 2-3 days and wont be coming back for several years then batton the hatches and push on through but be prepared for breakdowns and tears as the day wears on... If you are there for 5 days + then take the extra time to go back for nap. You will thank yourself for the break! I PROMISE!

 

[libcon]

We have been taking my DD since she was 4 months old and we have always felt like when she is tired she will fall asleep....so we have always let her sleep in the stroller. If she fell asleep I would just find a quiet spot with her if there was a ride my DH and whomever we were traveling with wanted to go on. It worked for us.

 

[kalolaina]

Thanks everyone! I think it's going to be a "see how it goes" thing. My DD is usually easy going and will fall asleep when she gets tired in the stroller. I just don't want to have to go back to the room and sit for a couple hours when we could be walking around and riding things they she can't while she's sleeping. I know our friends DS won't have any issues b/c he sleeps better when on the move in a stoller than in his bed I think. We'll try out the napping in the stoller and if it doesn't work go back.

 

[Suzanne74]

I would be bored to tears sitting in a hotel room for two hours. You can definitely find things to do when your child is napping in the stroller in the parks.

DS did take shorter naps than usual, but it didn't seem to have that big of an impact on him. We didn't stay in the parks until closing. He got more than enough sleep at night.

Okay, that makes more sense. We stay until closing so getting in at 9am, leave from 1-4pm and back in the park by 5 still gives 9-10 hours of park time. The highlights of our trip are electric light parade, fireworks, illuminations, fantasmic, etc... My kids love those. They are a must so leaving early is not an option.

As far as bored at the hotel, we alternate who takes older DD to pool. She is 9 now and is an avid swimmer so it is relaxing for both of us. The other usually relaxes with a glass of wine on the balcony (this time we will see animals!) and then takes a power nap. If we are in a villa, I usually do laundry and get all the pajamas out for the night so everyone can crash when we come back at night.

 

[sparks19]

Yeah i like the break too. Its nice to get DD to nap so shes rested up for tje evening but its also nice to stop for a bit. Maybe take a snooze, take a shower, load my pictures onto the computer and email them to the family, after nap maybe take a swim and go back refreshed. I need it just as much as DD. Plus hubby and i arent really into solo riding so we wouldnt be doing any rides even if DD would nap in the stroller.

But just that break to just sit in the AC and get a reprieve from the heat..... Ahhhhhh lol

 

[AZMermaid]

We took my then 8 month old to Disneyland this summer. Until that point he had NEVER fallen asleep in his stroller. It took a LOT of strolling to get him to fall asleep, but he finally did for his morning naps. He napped 20-30 minutes in his stroller. We took him back to the hotel for an afternoon nap. It worked okay for us, but man I am envious of people who have kids who will nap anywhere.

He just started daycare a month ago and at 11.5 months, has never napped more than 30 minutes in the 8-9 hours he is there each day. I know the teacher is annoyed because he always wakes up the other two babies, so then they only nap 30 minutes too and she doesn't get a break. But, I keep telling her he needs two quiet, dark naps. They offer him a morning nap, but he won't nap because the girls are playing. But, now I am way off topic!

 

[Jerseymomof2]

It won't be warm, it will be hot. Last Sept/Oct trip we went on, it never went below 95 degrees and was super humid. I personally wouldn't even go to a park the day of the Halloween Party. Stay at the resort pool, give them good naps and then enter at 4pm with your Halloween ticket. My 3 year old stayed up until 11:30pm that day and she got to see every character with no lines and we walked on every ride. It was the highlight of her trip.

I totally agree. This is what we do and it works out so wonderful. That is not a day you want to be to tired, We get up early go to the pool and EVREYONE takes a long nap. then we go to the park for 4pm and stay until at least 11. We plan to do nothing the next day.

 

[josh29]

Our then-2-year-old was never much of a napper at home, so not at all in the parks. We just powered through the entire day, and she was able to stick it out from 8am-8pm or so. Only once - Epcot day - did she nap in the stroller for about an hour.

We DO try to keep to a schedule, though, of same meal times and getting done at the parks by 7:00 or so (unless we're staying for a parade), just to have some kind of schedule/structure that she's used to.

 

[Sandi]

My DD is 16 now and we still take a mid-afternoon break for a nap (and we usually do sleep for a bit). DD would nap in a stroller when she was really little, but there is nothing as good as a nice, cool, dark room.

One year we travelled with my brother, his wife, and their three kids. We got to MK for rope drop, did a lot of stuff following DD and my plan, and then I took them to lunch at Crystal Palace for about 12:30 or 1:00 (had an ADR). After lunch, DD and I said, "okay, now we go back to the resort for a nap and a swim, then we'll come back for evening stuff and the fireworks." SIL (who is now an ex-wife) was adamant that they were fine and the little one could just sleep in the stroller, they had a lot they wanted to do and they spent a lot of money and they weren't going to waste time sleeeping. They'd just meet us after we took our rest.

We called them around 4:30 and said we were on the bus to MK and where should we meet them. DB said the kids were having a melt down, wife was in a bad mood, and they were just going to do a couple more things and then leave for the day.

The fireworks were lovely that evening -- just me and DD.

 

[dsneygirl]

Nap in the stroller. However, if we went in hot months, we would most likely take an afternoon break just to get out of the heat.

Ds napped in the stroller no problem. A lot of time he fell asleep on the bus or a boat.

 

[Wadecool]

Nap in stroller for sure.

 

[kmedina]

Depends on several factors.

Our last trip was in January 2010, and we stayed at a moderate. DS was 3. It was not hot and somewhat time consuming to get back to the hotel from any park (unless hopping to a different park afterward). He usually napped in the stroller or through lunch/dinner (we tried to wake him but he was too tired). We had the deluxe plan, so there were a lot of sit down meals. He also was an unusual napper meaning different times every day and some days he did not nap at all.

If he was unable to nap in the stroller or through meals (as some others have suggested), I would have taken him back no matter how difficult it was. I have always been huge on letting my son get all the sleep he needs (even when my husband was insisting things like it is too late in the day for a nap, so he will not sleep tonight).

Our next trip will be in December for DS 5th birthday. We have a new DS who will be 5mos. This trip will be at GF. My older son does not nap much these days (except at preschool), since they require them to lie down for 2 hours. He will be overly tired at DW though and may need naps. Since we are staying on the monorail, it will be easy to get back to the hotel on MK days. I still have not decided whether or not we will use a stroller for him (which is a whole 'nother thread).

Our younger DS will probably nap a lot during the day, so we will not rush back to the hotel for those naps. I will just take him to a nap safe zone in his stroller while DH and DS5 play.

 

[DopeyDame]

As you can see, opinions are all over the place and it just really depends on your kid. I had SO hoped to just stick with stroller naps, but DS found the parks way to stimulating and he only once in 5 days fell asleep in his stroller, and that only lasted about 30 minutes. We went back to the hotel for a real nap and some pool time and it worked out perfectly for us.

 

[Queen2PrincessG]

It depends on the kid. My daughter will sleep in her stroller but I know kids who need a bed and a dark room.

 

[lizzyb]

We are going back to the resort. DS will not have a good nap in the stroller and will be hot and miserable if we don't have a break.

 

[CandleontheWater]

I agree that it really does depend on your kid. We just stroller nap, because my son WILL NOT nap in the hotel room. We've tried bringing him back and it just resulted in major tears and tantrums and major frustration on my part.

If I just push him around he will fall asleep and stay asleep for at least two hours. He'll do this in any kind of weather, I guess he is just used to it, seeing as how we live in DC and walk everywhere, all summer long. I do have a stroller fan to help keep him cool.

We usually do rider swap for the adult rides (the adult with the kid waits in an air conditioned shop), or just take in the scenery and details. We take lots of pictures, we enjoy shopping in World Showcase, we sit down with a drink, there is plenty you can do at WDW without riding rides.

My favorite parks for pushing around a napping little one are Epcot and Animal Kingdom. In Epcot you really can experience most of WS (except the rides and movies) and we just walk around, get snacks and drinks and actually get to enjoy adult conversation.

In Animal Kingdom, we often hang out in the dawa bar, or we enjoy the animal trails.

DHS is a little more of a challenge, but you can get drinks to go from the Tune In Lounge, and just hang out on the streets of America.

In the MK, we've ridden lots of rides via rider swap, we've driven the RC boats near Jungle Cruise, gone to the Frontierland Shooting gallery, and played Skeeball in the arcade at the exit of Space Mountain. One time we sat outside of one of the shops in Frontierland and played checkers. We've even taken the monorail over to the MK resorts for a drink.

I actually love stroller nap time, because it gives DH and I time to connect just to each other. If I wasn't pushing around a giant stroller, it would be almost like we were on our honeymoon again!

So, really there are plenty of things to do in the parks during nap time!

 

[CandleontheWater]

ooh, another idea for the MK would be to download Lou Mongellos Audio Guides to your Ipod and use them as a guided tour. I did this with the Main Street Audio guide on a solo trip and it was awesome. It is really cool seeing all the little details he points out in the guide actually in person. He has a whole bunch now, so that could definitely keep you occupied through multiple days of naps. It would be like taking your own napping version of the Keys to the World Tour!