Naps for Toddlers in the parks

[MrsJ Henry]

For those of you that have gone to WDW with toddlers.. How did you handle this? Our daughter who is a little over 2 1/2 and who likes her structure (but does ok without it too) takes a nap every day for a couple hours in the afternoon. Well I KNOW she won't sleep in the hotel room. I'm assuming she HOPEFULLY will take some naps in her stroller. So I was wondering how your kids did with being on the go, what you did with naps and how early you got them into bed at night.
We are going to be at Disney at the end of April for 5 days.

 

[BuzznBelle'smom]

On our last trip last August, DH and I switched off taking our younger two (DD5 and DS2) back to the room. DD normally doesn't nap--we would ask her to lie down for a while, if she slept, fine, if not, no biggie. Some days she did, some days not. DS2 napped daily--he was wiped out. So, don't assume your DD won't nap in a hotel room, you just don't know. OTOH, I have never had kids who would nap in a stroller--ever! Oh, how I wish!

As far as how late, we did MK EMH our last night--all of us went back that day for a nap (and everyone slept). I left the park with DS2 around 9:30 pm, leaving the stroller with DH. He brought our older three back at 1 am. Of course, we slept in the next day, and everyone napped on the plane. That was a one-shot deal, though. Most days, we were heading back to the room around 8 or so. At least, one of us would with the little guys.

 

[Colinsmom]

Our kids NEVER napped in the stroller, but if we went back to the hotel room and made the room completely dark, they would usually fall asleep right away and nap for a couple of hours. When my older DS passed 3yo, he stopped napping at home and at Disney, but we still did a couple of hours of quiet time in the afternoon to recharge him for a few more hours in the parks.

 

[amjg]

Last time we went we had 4 little ones 5 and under. We thought that there was no way they would take a nap with everyone in the same room. Also by that time our two 5 year olds had stopped napping, but they napped at Disney. Like someone already said, we made it very dark and everyone would lay down. They fell asleep pretty fast. They would sleep for a couple of hours and then back to the parks.

 

[adventure_woman]

When we went last month, my DD2 (2 and 3 months) didn't want to sleep in her stroller. We went back to the room every day for a 3 hr nap! (usually it is about 2 hrs at home). Our schedule went like this:
7:30-8:00 - out the door (she is an early riser)
1:00 - back for nap in the room. We made in completely dark, and I brought our baby monitor so DH and I sat outside the door so we didn't have to be completely quiet.
4:00 - back to the parks. A couple of times I had to wake her up!
8:00 - usually back to the room for bedtime.

Being that we only have her, it is easier to plan our schedule around her. I just know that if she gets tired, she gets very naughty, and I didn't want to have to deal with her. I also knew that we were going to be there a week, so I didn't want to wear her out by not letting her get the sleep she needs.

 

[arielmomma]

We have never taken our toddlers back to the room for a nap. We always spend the full day in the park. Here is what worked best for us: Both of my children always napped shortly after lunch (1pm). So we made table service reservations for lunch. We filled their bellies and cooled them off in the air conditioning. Then we would leave the restaurant and walk around for a little bit. They were always sound asleep within minutes. Then we would find a nice place to park in the shade or in a building and my husband and I (and now an older son) would take turns going on rides and what not while the little one slept. Then they would be ready to go for the rest of the day.

 

[momof2inapril06]

I am finding this very interesting to read! We will be going to Disney at the end of April with an almost 3 year old (he turns 3 the day we get home!) and 5 1/2 year old. I plan to get up EARLY and hit the parks. Then btw.l 1-2pm, head back to our villa and nap for a couple hours (hopefully me too!) and then go back out at dinner time and stay until night. Hopefully they will be pooped out and fall right asleep!

 

[my3sons77]

Our 2yr old slept fine in his stroller. It helped that we brought the big Graco. You'll find some people don't like to bring the big stollers but we always do. It helps out alot when you have a comfy toddler. We never went back to the room to let him take his nap, he would fall asleep in his stroller, I would recline it all the way flat and place a blanket over it to make it dark. Since my DS is extremely hot natured I would turn on the clip on fan and point it directly at him. He would sleep for a couple of hours, even with all the noise.

We went in October so the blanket over the top was fine. If we had been there when it was hotter I would have done the same but kept one side up and had about 2-3 fans going.

 

[DRS_Are_Best]

We took ds to WDW for the 1st (and only [thus far]) time when he was 13 months old. He wasn't a consistent napper at the time and we had some concerns. They were unnecessary. Every day, after lunch, we'd put him in the stroller. Every day, within 5 minutes, he fell asleep and would be out for about 2 hours. The was the START of a consistent nap for him.

Now we are going back next month -- he is now 3 (will be nearly 4 when we're there) and we have since had twins (will be 26 months old when at WDW). All 3 kids will be put in their respective strollers after lunch and we hope will nap. We don't want to have to go back to the resort, but may have to change that if it becomes necessary.

Realize that a WDW vacation is OUTSIDE, all day long. That, by itself, wears people out, kids especially because they don't know to conserve any of their energy. They are also really excited which will eventually make them very tired.

Good luck with everything! I hope everyone has a great vacation!

 

[scjo68]

My ds has slept in the stroller each trip. We always have been in Jan., so heat has not been a problem. I just find some shade, get myself a snack, and relax as he sleeps and dh and dd ride rides. He has done this at 18 mo., 2 1/2, and 3 1/2 y/o. He does not usually ever nap at home.

After the first time, we learned to bring our reclining stroller (Peg p3) even though it is bigger/ harder to maneuver on bus than the small umbrella stroller. We used the small cheap umbrella stroller once, but since it does not recline, his head kept falling over as he slept. To prevent this, I had to sit holding the stroller at a recline for his whole nap. After that it was worth it to bring the good stroller!

 

[nessz79]

I'm sure they will nap in their strollers. You might want to try napping at the hotel on the first day or two to give it a try, though. Kids that don't normally nap might be conched out if you make the room dark and quiet. My kids won't nap unless we lie down with them. You can always get up once they fall asleep. Anyway, we found going back to the hotel for a little shut-eye and rest is GREATLY beneficial for the rest of the day and also for a good rest-of-the-week. There's something about getting out of the noise and crowd (and heat if it's summer) that makes for a much more restful nap.

 

[saraheeyore]

my daughter was 2 hen we took her and she normally doesn't have a nap but we went back to hotel room each day and most days she did nap. I found it was easier to get her to sleep if we made things dark and quiet and sent hubby to get snacks and drinks as he shuffled around too much

 

[MrsJ Henry]

Thanks folks. We'll have to see what works best for her.

 

[AmyMama2AvaNtheo]

We are going in May. I am hoping my kids will nap in the stroller but I am thinking a trip to the resort is what will work for us....

 

[bushdianee]

I took my 2.5yo DNiece last summer. We tried going back to the resort a few days but she would fall asleep on the bus then be wide awake! One day we had lunch ressies at Hollywood & Vine so she ended up falling asleep in the stroller right after lunch. I found a shady spot to park and sit and sent my DSis on ToT. DNiece slept great so after that we let her nap in her stroller in the park while I staked out spots for parades!

 

[teacup princess]

I think it depends on the child. When we went in June we tried the going back to the hotel for a nap, didn't work for us. We did better if he just napped in the stroller. We'd start at rope drop, have an 11:30 lunch, and then he'd fall asleep in the stroller and we could continue on until the parade every day. When we went back 8 months later, he wouldn't sleep much in the stoller. If he didn't nap and was cranky, one of us would take him back to the room right after dinner for bedtime while the others continued on. Just be flexible, read his/her cues and you'll figure out what works best for your child. Have fun!!!

 

[debdebdebby13]

We are going in about a month and I have the same concern for my DD, 2yrs 9mos when we go. She still needs a good nap EVERY day at home or else she's a fussy, irritable mess by 7pm. I'm thinking this will go double at DW. She's not the kind of kid to conk out in a stroller though, she never fell asleep in her stroller as a baby either. I'm assuming the daily trip back to the resort will be a must for us.

 

[2bearsmom]

My youngest ds was 18mo for our first trip and this is how he chose to nap every day:


Last year at 2 1/2yrs we all went back to the resort each afternoon and took a nice long nap.

In 2wks I'm sure we'll be doing the same.

 

[crisi]

Ours were 2 1/2 and 3 1/2 on the first trip. We tried napping in the room, but they'd fall asleep on the way back to the room, and once they had the ten minute nap, no amount of dark room and quiet would get them back to sleep.

We became masters of the transportation nap. They slept on the bus. The MK train, the monorail.

But this was typical napping for my kids, who would nap at daycare, but on weekends if we needed naps, we'd put them in the car and one of us would sit in the car with sleeping kids while the other went grocery shopping.

 

[PinkRhombus]

I was going to, also, suggest the riding the bus/monorail thing. If you're at MK, you could try the TTA. Lines are pretty much non-existant there, so you might be able to just stay seated for several laps.