Need Advice for 1st Trip with 21 month old

[catra121]

Great answers, so helpful! The only thing I can add is to take his grandmother along... it always helps to have an extra adult to entertain.

I'm reading this thread with special interest because we will be taking my grandson who will be 2 1/2 in December, and it will be a VERY different trip, as the OP has identified.

We are planning a definite quiet time/nap/rest in the hotel every afternoon and planning to have a sit down meal everyday, although we are hesitant to make too many ADRs because we also want to respect and be guided by his schedule, which we can't predict so far in advance. Rather than wait in any character lines, we will book a character meal and handle them that way. We are also bringing his stroller from home because we know he can sleep in it in a pinch and want to have that familiar piece with us in the parks, just in case we need it. Plus it may be handy in the airports.

That will be such fun! We'll be taking a trip with the grandparents...but this first one is just going to be us. My parents can't wait to go to Disney World with my daughter...I'm actually thinking of upgrading my ticket this trip to an AP so that next year we can squeeze in another one (or two) trips before she turns 3. I get 5 weeks of vacation at work...6 weeks next year...so I think we can find time to make a couple of trips.

I'm sure you guys will have a great trip too!

 

[catra121]

Don't forget the playground by the splash mountain exit. That are is a big hit with my family!

I always forget about this one...thanks!

 

[catra121]

I first took my son when he was 23 months old. The most valuable lesson I learned was to let him influence the decisions. There is so much to see on Main Street that he wanted to take his time. It took me a day or so before it sunk in that rides/characters weren't as important to him as they were to me.

Try the Dumbo play area. It's also nice for parents to relax for a bit there.

My son was really into transportation. Riding the train and monorail (even though we weren't at a monorail resort) were hits. Even bus rides were interesting.

At DHS, we did the Disney Junior show. Other than Mickey and Minnie, he didn't know any of the characters, and he still loved it.

Anything remotely "scary" was a no-go. My son also hated the Pooh ride, but loved playing in the tree house there.

Have a great trip!

I'm so intrigued by all that people who say the little ones like shows...I wouldn't have guessed they had the attention spans for it. I'm really curious to see how my daughter likes them.

 

[tinkerbella16]

That sounds like a fun time. I definitely am in the same boat as your sister...just so nervous about how the little one will do...and I'm probably over thinking things...lol. I've never been one to take breaks during the day though so this will be new to me for sure. They just opened a new splash area for little ones at POFQ...so even if she doesn't nap there will be stuff to do at the resort. Plus...Disney Springs is just a short boat ride away and we can do that too...or just walk around the resort and POR which could be relaxing in the stroller for her.

I'm sure you will have a great trip and maybe we will see you there!

The new splash zone at POFQ looks awesome! You will definitely have fun there with her during your midday breaks - if she doesn't sleep, then head on over there! Yes Riverside is only a 10 minute walk, if that and is so relaxing. The boats to Disney Springs are one of my favorite things about staying at Port Orleans. Very relaxing and a great way to get away from the buses. I know it is hard not to be nervous, I think it is normal especially the first time bringing a toddler. But I'm sure you will have a fantastic trip!

 

[Jing]

Ours was 22-months for our October trip. Here is what worked:

- Staying with home routine hours as much as possible
- Park/Resort Hopping - particularly useful around nap time to help lull to sleep. Taking his cues, we usually had a park time limit of 3-4 hours before changing scenery.
- Table service lunches - we did lots of character meals, and he had a blast
- Going with the flow rather than the plan - we dropped over half our ADRs and FPs in favor of being spontaneous. Turns out he hated Peter Pan (?!?!?!?) so we dropped our second FP, we dropped pre-park ADRs twice to sleep in, changed park days entirely a couple of times the night before, and another day we had enough of the park and decided to ferry over to WL/FW to explore both resorts since we had never been there.
-Date night - if hubs comes and you are comfortable with sitter services, do it. We had 2 date nights over an 8 night trip and I kind of wish we had a 3rd.

FWIW, I was one of those folks who did not see the point in taking a kid still in diapers to Disney. Now I get it!

 

[AnnaS]

Many great tips.

My son, dil will be going down with my granddaughter next week. She is 23 months and this is her fourth trip down. (We are meeting them a few days after our cruise and our second time with them).

They have their car (drive down). They start more or less park opening time and they do try to get back to the resort before her nap time (1pm). My dil will try and it usually works, to keep her awake for the ride back.

They have their own playpen (you can use the resort one of course). They bring a noise machine too.

Take advantage of the Baby Care Centers in the park. I visited one with them during our last trip - very nice. (for some reason she hated the regular bathrooms and had a fit - only time this happened).

If you go with any other family members, try to have one night to yourselves (unless you are comfortable with the sitter service).

They don't make ADR's as late as they used to and they bring the iPad or use their phone if she starts acting up but she has been great. She gets to watche movies and youtube educational stuff.

Spend a morning or afternoon by the pool to relax/unwind in between.

They also do not stay out late as much as they did before. They might give themselves another hour but that's it. (No 10/11pm nights). Stay as close to her schedule as possible.

Lot's of sunscreen/glasses/hats - also always have a light sweater/jacket/long sleeve. Some rides are really cold, restaurant and busses. So many times we see babies/kids with sleeveless shirts and the busses are absolutely freezing!!!

Have a great time - lot's of picture - try to plan a character meal too!!

 

[catra121]

Ours was 22-months for our October trip. Here is what worked:

- Staying with home routine hours as much as possible
- Park/Resort Hopping - particularly useful around nap time to help lull to sleep. Taking his cues, we usually had a park time limit of 3-4 hours before changing scenery.
- Table service lunches - we did lots of character meals, and he had a blast
- Going with the flow rather than the plan - we dropped over half our ADRs and FPs in favor of being spontaneous. Turns out he hated Peter Pan (?!?!?!?) so we dropped our second FP, we dropped pre-park ADRs twice to sleep in, changed park days entirely a couple of times the night before, and another day we had enough of the park and decided to ferry over to WL/FW to explore both resorts since we had never been there.
-Date night - if hubs comes and you are comfortable with sitter services, do it. We had 2 date nights over an 8 night trip and I kind of wish we had a 3rd.

FWIW, I was one of those folks who did not see the point in taking a kid still in diapers to Disney. Now I get it!

Thanks...that helps a lot. I plan to follow my daughter's lead...this trip is about her. I've done all the rides and stuff before...the fun of this trip will be seeing her enjoy things and making memories. I don't want those memories to be of a cranky girl that I'm trying to force into doing things because they are "fun." That's part of why I don't want ADRs this trip...so there will be no pressure and we can really go with the flow.

 

[catra121]

Many great tips.

My son, dil will be going down with my granddaughter next week. She is 23 months and this is her fourth trip down. (We are meeting them a few days after our cruise and our second time with them).

They have their car (drive down). They start more or less park opening time and they do try to get back to the resort before her nap time (1pm). My dil will try and it usually works, to keep her awake for the ride back.

They have their own playpen (you can use the resort one of course). They bring a noise machine too.

Take advantage of the Baby Care Centers in the park. I visited one with them during our last trip - very nice. (for some reason she hated the regular bathrooms and had a fit - only time this happened).

If you go with any other family members, try to have one night to yourselves (unless you are comfortable with the sitter service).

They don't make ADR's as late as they used to and they bring the iPad or use their phone if she starts acting up but she has been great. She gets to watche movies and youtube educational stuff.

Spend a morning or afternoon by the pool to relax/unwind in between.

They also do not stay out late as much as they did before. They might give themselves another hour but that's it. (No 10/11pm nights). Stay as close to her schedule as possible.

Lot's of sunscreen/glasses/hats - also always have a light sweater/jacket/long sleeve. Some rides are really cold, restaurant and busses. So many times we see babies/kids with sleeveless shirts and the busses are absolutely freezing!!!

Have a great time - lot's of picture - try to plan a character meal too!!

Thanks...all great tips! I will definitely make sure I know the location of all the Baby Care Centers just in case we need them. I know very well about how cold the buses, rides, etc can get...I have extreme sensitivity to cold (causes bad pain flares) so I always layer and am usually the weirdo in 90-100 degree weather wearing jeans. I'll make sure to remember to bring layers for little one too. Appreciate the advice.

 

[MinnieSweetheart]

With everything going on at DHS and not many rides for little kids I figured Epcot would be better. I don't know if my daughter will have the attention span for the shows (even though some of my favorites are at DHS). At Epcot there are lots of things to explore plus the character spot, figment, the seas, play areas inside some of the different rides (like figment, mission space, spaceship earth, etc), and innovations.

The only other person will be my husband...hopefully. If he can't get time of work it will just be me and the little one.

I had a feeling. The boards are a bit overreacting about how much there is to do at DHS. It is still very much a full day park for most people. Our last trip my daughter was 22 months. She LOVED frozen show, little mermaid show and Disney Jr show. She also enjoyed club disney (not sure if this is still open), Beauty and the Beast and TSMM.

I've also taken her on a trip by myself when she was 15 months. You can handle it either way.

My daughter has been bored at Epcot every single time she's been. She LOVES the Nemo ride and the seas pavilion, but that is about an hour. She also likes figment. We skip the character spot. We do mexico pavilion and uk pavilion and try to play up the friendship boats. She just really finds Epcot boring. And honestly the play areas are equivalent to your local chick fil a or mcdonalds play areas. If you don't have hoppers, I would strongly consider if you want to spend the day there.

As far as ADRs, my daughter has usually done well with them. My husband and I had a hard time with character meals on the 22month old trip because she couldn't really understand the way to know when it was her turn since they don't have a line. Before that, we've always really enjoyed them. We'll definitely try again.

Also, be prepared for your kid to be afraid of Mickey and friends. I've seen it happen where the kid is so stoked the whole time in line and then sees Mickey and is like "OHHHH He's really big."

 

[MinnieSweetheart]

FWIW, I was one of those folks who did not see the point in taking a kid still in diapers to Disney. Now I get it!

We went when I was pregnant and we swore, we wouldn't go until she was potty trained. She's been 3 times.... and she still isn't potty trained, lol!

 

[mickeymom22]

We found that going back to the resort was too much of a hassle. When our children were younger, they napped everyday at home. However, when we went back to the resort, they would not nap. We would let them nap in the stroller. For the most part, we would just let them fall asleep in the stroller and then find a QS and grab a snack while they slept and we all soaked up the AC! If they were having a hard time falling asleep in the stroller (and we were at Epcot or MK), we would keep them in the stroller and take a monorail ride. That got them every time. We would then get off at a resort and look at the gift shop, maybe get a drink/snack.

The baby care centers are great quiet places too. Once I went in there and used one of the rocking chairs to get my youngest asleep. My older kids enjoyed the cartoons playing and were quiet enough for me to get her settled.

I think you are going to have a great time! You have picked one of my favorite resorts!

 

[catra121]

I had a feeling. The boards are a bit overreacting about how much there is to do at DHS. It is still very much a full day park for most people. Our last trip my daughter was 22 months. She LOVED frozen show, little mermaid show and Disney Jr show. She also enjoyed club disney (not sure if this is still open), Beauty and the Beast and TSMM.

I've also taken her on a trip by myself when she was 15 months. You can handle it either way.

My daughter has been bored at Epcot every single time she's been. She LOVES the Nemo ride and the seas pavilion, but that is about an hour. She also likes figment. We skip the character spot. We do mexico pavilion and uk pavilion and try to play up the friendship boats. She just really finds Epcot boring. And honestly the play areas are equivalent to your local chick fil a or mcdonalds play areas. If you don't have hoppers, I would strongly consider if you want to spend the day there.

As far as ADRs, my daughter has usually done well with them. My husband and I had a hard time with character meals on the 22month old trip because she couldn't really understand the way to know when it was her turn since they don't have a line. Before that, we've always really enjoyed them. We'll definitely try again.

Also, be prepared for your kid to be afraid of Mickey and friends. I've seen it happen where the kid is so stoked the whole time in line and then sees Mickey and is like "OHHHH He's really big."

Thanks for the advice. We will play it by ear as far as which parks we go to (this is another reason not to have ADRs). We'll go to Epcot and if she isn't interested or bored then we can try DHS. My biggest thing is I want to see how my daughter likes the shows. She really doesn't watch TV at all...is very uninterested in it and would rather run around and play or read books in my lap. A live show could be completely different...and that could also change over the next few months too. I love DHS...and if it was just me or if my daughter were older I would definitely go...I just think if my daughter isn't interested in the shows then it will be a bit of a waste. But we'll see...until we actually get there and start doing stuff I don't think there's any way to know what she will love, like, or hate.

 

[catra121]

We found that going back to the resort was too much of a hassle. When our children were younger, they napped everyday at home. However, when we went back to the resort, they would not nap. We would let them nap in the stroller. For the most part, we would just let them fall asleep in the stroller and then find a QS and grab a snack while they slept and we all soaked up the AC! If they were having a hard time falling asleep in the stroller (and we were at Epcot or MK), we would keep them in the stroller and take a monorail ride. That got them every time. We would then get off at a resort and look at the gift shop, maybe get a drink/snack.

The baby care centers are great quiet places too. Once I went in there and used one of the rocking chairs to get my youngest asleep. My older kids enjoyed the cartoons playing and were quiet enough for me to get her settled.

I think you are going to have a great time! You have picked one of my favorite resorts!

I have a sneaking suspicion that my daughter may be the same way. I'm planning on breaks but if they don't happen or work for us...then I won't force it. However...my daughter has only ever fallen asleep in her stroller ONCE...and doesn't even sleep in her car seat. She's more likely to not take a nap at all...but if that's the case we will try to at least find a "quiet" place to chill out for a while.

 

[Lupeix]

We took DS when he was 2 and 1/2 the first time, this is what I learned from that trip:
- Don't do TS at dinner, toddlers don't do well at that time. I would plan only one TS a day and make is early lunch or breakfast.
- Character meals instead of meet and greets. Crystal palace is a big hit, specially if you show her some Winnie the pooh ahead of time. LOs usually love the furs (they are giant stuffed animals), but be prepared for them to be scared (they are GIANT from their point of view).
- Take it slow, Stop and smell the roses. DS was so awestruck by Cinderella's castle we spend 1/2 hour just staring at it. As someone already mentioned.
- take advantage of unstructured areas to let them blow off steam. DS loved getting soaked at Casey Juniors
- Plan for an afternoon break but make sure you have a good napping stroller with you. DS refused to nap in his room for the whole trip. Even-though at home he will always only nap in his crib. He will fight to stay awake but eventually he will fall asleep (usually on the monorail/ferry). We will walk around with him in the stroller for a little bit and then sit to have a drink at one of the resorts (in the AC) until he woke up.
- We did 3 days at MK (mostly just mornings), I will not do 2 days at Epcot.
- Do rope drop and the must dos in the morning. Be prepared to miss all the fireworks, unless you have a good stroller napper.
- Ship diapers/wipes/snacks to the room
- Always have snacks with you
- Avoid any line longer than 20 minutes.

good luck

 

[catra121]

We took DS when he was 2 and 1/2 the first time, this is what I learned from that trip:
- Don't do TS at dinner, toddlers don't do well at that time. I would plan only one TS a day and make is early lunch or breakfast.
- Character meals instead of meet and greets. Crystal palace is a big hit, specially if you show her some Winnie the pooh ahead of time. LOs usually love the furs (they are giant stuffed animals), but be prepared for them to be scared (they are GIANT from their point of view).
- Take it slow, Stop and smell the roses. DS was so awestruck by Cinderella's castle we spend 1/2 hour just staring at it. As someone already mentioned.
- take advantage of unstructured areas to let them blow off steam. DS loved getting soaked at Casey Juniors
- Plan for an afternoon break but make sure you have a good napping stroller with you. DS refused to nap in his room for the whole trip. Even-though at home he will always only nap in his crib. He will fight to stay awake but eventually he will fall asleep (usually on the monorail/ferry). We will walk around with him in the stroller for a little bit and then sit to have a drink at one of the resorts (in the AC) until he woke up.
- We did 3 days at MK (mostly just mornings), I will not do 2 days at Epcot.
- Do rope drop and the must dos in the morning. Be prepared to miss all the fireworks, unless you have a good stroller napper.
- Ship diapers/wipes/snacks to the room
- Always have snacks with you
- Avoid any line longer than 20 minutes.

good luck

We will have our stroller from home and it reclines all the way back (and several positions in between). Bonus aside from being good to nap in (not that she ever does) is that I can change her diaper in it...which is good because I can't always lift her up onto the changing stations in the bathroom.

We are planning 2-3 days at MK. This is another play it by ear one...if she loves it there then why not, right?

I can't wait to see how she reacts to the Casey Juniors...I think she's going to love it!

Definitely will be shipping diapers, wipes, and snacks to the resort...doing a grocery delivery too so we can easily have stuff in the room for snacks, breakfasts, and drinks. I figure if we want to be at the parts at rope drop (or close to) then we'll need food that is easily transported (though I imagine we will be getting some Mickey waffles at some point too).

Thanks for the tips!

 

[WuvEeyore]

We were lucky with our DD. She napped in the stroller. On the bus ride back at the end of the day, she would fall asleep, wake up when we got back to the room long enough for a quick clean up and snack and then out for the night. The day tired her out and she slept better there than she did at home. We brought plenty of snacks/water and some toddler friendly things to keep her busy while waiting for rides or shows to start. She was a trooper, from rope drop til closing some days. Every kid is different though, so just take your cues from her and have a great time!

 

[MinnieSweetheart]

Thanks for the advice. We will play it by ear as far as which parks we go to (this is another reason not to have ADRs). We'll go to Epcot and if she isn't interested or bored then we can try DHS. My biggest thing is I want to see how my daughter likes the shows. She really doesn't watch TV at all...is very uninterested in it and would rather run around and play or read books in my lap. A live show could be completely different...and that could also change over the next few months too. I love DHS...and if it was just me or if my daughter were older I would definitely go...I just think if my daughter isn't interested in the shows then it will be a bit of a waste. But we'll see...until we actually get there and start doing stuff I don't think there's any way to know what she will love, like, or hate.

They are constant singing... it's hard to not be interested. I think being flexible is the best way to go about it. You really don't know what they will end up loving and what they won't.

My daughter changes every trip too and they have only been about 9 months apart.

 

[cutigerlady]

At that age, my boys were most interested in the playgrounds, riding transportation (bus, boat, or monorail) and swimming than the vast majority of rides! We learned to order their food as soon as we sat down to eat and asked to have it brought out right away. We learned to slow it down and go at their pace. My 5 year old still likes to watch his "ducky friends" for what seems like forever.

 

[catra121]

They are constant singing... it's hard to not be interested. I think being flexible is the best way to go about it. You really don't know what they will end up loving and what they won't.

My daughter changes every trip too and they have only been about 9 months apart.

They do change fast...it's hard to really know what to expect in 4 months when next week she'll be doing new things.

 

[catra121]

At that age, my boys were most interested in the playgrounds, riding transportation (bus, boat, or monorail) and swimming than the vast majority of rides! We learned to order their food as soon as we sat down to eat and asked to have it brought out right away. We learned to slow it down and go at their pace. My 5 year old still likes to watch his "ducky friends" for what seems like forever.

This is what I am expecting honestly. It wouldn't surprise me if my daughter played with a flower pot for an hour...lol...and it won't bother me at all. I just want to enjoy being in my favorite place with her and let her enjoy whatever she wants. I've done all my favorite stuff before and even though there will be some new stuff when we go...I'm not going to worry about any of it. Thanks.