New here - help!

[Mom2Ben02]

Hi, all! I have just "decided" (almost!!) to surprise my hubby with a Disney trip for Christmas. We have a 13-month-old, and I am a little nervous on how this will all work out! Any opinions as to taking a toddler? I am also considering a Disney cruise, but not sure if he is too young for that too.

Also, I am not too familiar with a lot of the "lingo" on this board. Where do I go to find the best deals, on relatively short notice?

Thanks!
Karen

 

[snyderla]

I would check out the trip planning board on this site for any help on getting a good deal this time of year. I know room discounts are hard to find, but you might be able to get ticket discounts at least. I have seen where people can get discounts with AAA even when there are no others.

As far as taking a 13 month old, I have never done it, but did take an 8 month old once. I do have a tip for you though. If you want to do the Fantasyland rides, either set up a First seating for breakfast at Crystal Palace and then head straight for Fantasyland when you finish, then ride all the rides before the lines get crazy, OR ride them during the 3:00 parade.

Good luck, and have fun.
Lori

 

[wuv tigger]

We took our DD2 for the 1st time when she was 14 mos and had no problems. She really liked all of the characters. Just make sure that you have a stroller that folds back so he can get a nap. Everything is free for your son, so that makes it easier. You can also do a baby swap so you and your husband can both do a ride but only wait in line one time.

We have passed on a cruise until the girls can take advantage of the kids activity deck (I think it is 4+ potty trained). It is too much money for us to not be able to have the kids participate.

One thing to consider is that you are not tied to the school calendar. Christmas will be very crowded and hard to get discounts at this late date. Mid January will be very uncrowded with tons of discounts available off site and many deals onsite also. If you want warmer weather we go in May and have had good times every time.

David

 

[HitchhikingGhost]

My greatest tip to anyone traveling to Orlando with small children is to contact A Baby’s Best Friend (www.abbf.com) while making all your reservations. Their cribs are outstanding, and the strollers and everything else they have is great. We would not go there without using them, as they make the vacation so much more pleasant.

Everything delivered to our hotel ahead of time, and clean quality items are the norm. We have always been extremely pleased with them.

Hope this helps!

 

[swilphil]

We liked bringing our own stroller. We could check it at the gate when we boarded the plane and they would have it waiting for us when we got off. That made it much easier to move around the airport. The stroller became a luggage cart too!

All the Disney resorts provide pack n play cribs for free. The Swan/Dolphin, which is on site but not owned by Disney, gives you a choice between a pack n' play and a regular crib (actually a little smaller). We got the regular crib for our 1 year old. It worked out great and included sheets and a crib blanket.

We didn't have any problems with our 1 year old on the trip, but he really didn't get as much out of it as the 3 year old did. It did help us that we were staying at the Dolphin, and it is so close to MGM/Epcot. Bus service to MK/AK is excellent too. We were able to return to the parks every afternoon for a nap and swim in the pool (1 yo's favorite thing). I would be hesitant to take a child that young on a cruise. I would worry about motion sickness. I get it terribly bad, but can take medication. I don't know if a baby that young could take medication or even let you know they were feeling sick until it was too late.

I would check mousesavers.com for information about discounts. It will be hard getting a good deal so close to Christmas. Even though it's much more expensive. I would highly recommend staying on site during the Christmas season. We stayed off site one Christmas and spent so much time in traffic, stuck getting in the parking lot, etc. Plus the parks close to offsite guests when they get full. That happened to us the Christmas day and the day after.