Newborn on rides?

[whithouston]

I dunno. I'd be a little reluctant to take a baby that young on rides. Even on the tamer rides there are so many colors, noises, motions and lights that might scare a very young child (they don't know it's supposed to be fun). Then you may have a screaming little one for the duration of the ride, and I know I wouldn't want to distract the other riders with a crying baby. But then, you may have an extremely placid or unflappable baby. You'd know best.

If it were my 3 1/2 month old, I'd definitely use Baby Swap.

DisFlan

I'm with DisFlan. I would play it safe and not take the baby on any of the rides.

 

[Cheeky in TN]

I did not realize this was a touchy subject. It is a simple question. The reason for the question is so we could target indoor attractions to cool off in and get out of the sun. We also plan on the morning/evening thing and going back to the room before noon. Actually we have many plans for keeping cool, which we also use while we are on the lake, but I am not going to justify it all here.

I guess I forgot to add that my mother is going with us to also keep the baby in the Ac while my wife and I enjoy some rides with my son.

Please do not try to second guess everyone's intention. I know it is easy in light of the tragedy that just occured, but we are confortable with the heat factor. I have lived in Texas and Tennessee all my life, as has my wife. I did not spell every detail of how we plan to keep everyone cool, I was simply looking for some direction on the rides so I could use that in our plans.

I did find the BRUTAL comment a bit over the top, but understand this is a message board and open to other people's comments (good or bad).

thank you to everyone who answered my question and helped my planning to make this a magical trip for my 7 yo son, who this trip is all about.

 

[Emmaline Lola]

I say GO FOR IT! I have been taking my dd since she was 8 weeks old to WDW and Sea World. Her 1st ride was Small World and she was amazed at everything going on around her. Pretty cool to see her on it!

She also slept through Pirates, Peter Pan, Malstrom (even w/ all the drops!) She likes Mexico too, probably reminds her of Small World.

I took her in to see Tarzan Rocks to give her a bottle and I thought she would be deaf by the time the show was over--it is loud! But she was unfazed and fascinated by the show. She also really enjoys The Little Mermaid show and Beauty and the Beast at MGM.

The worst thing I have found is worrying about sun exposure on an infant under 6 months old. Our pediatrician won't let us use sunscreen until she is 6 months old (July 6th she'll be 6 months!! YAY!!). So I bought a sun shade at Babies r Us to cover the entire opening of the stroller and I drape a light colored blanket over the tray of the stroller to cover her feet and legs from the sun. She has been to the parks at least 2 to 3 times a week for the last almost 4 months and knock on wood-no sunburn!! Maybe you could look into one of the sunshades for your stroller? It was $6.99.

There are plenty of air conditioned shows, restaurants, and shops. Enjoy your visit! And congratulations on your new family member!

el

 

[PratersloveDW]

Cheeky in TN, first off, welcome to the boards!!!

As for the little one, there are actually many rides that you can take him/her on. We took our DS to the World, for our annual family gathering, when he was 4 mo old and had a blast. In the Magic Kingdom, most all of the rides in Fantasyland are suitable, along with the Jungle Cruise, Buzz, and my all time favorite with an infant, the People Mover (TTA) - a great way to cool off with no line! *Note: I would take caution when it comes to Pirates of the Caribbean and Haunted Mansion. Obviously, you know how your child would react to these better than anyone; however, I say this only because of stories I have heard from friends and their youngsters. *

At MGM and AK, shows are always a great escape from the heat and an easy exit is always available if the baby is fussy or scared - we usually entered the theater and then let others sit so we could be close to the end of a row. I would again suggest you be cautious with shows that have a lot of noise (ie: Tarzan); however, shows indoors such as The Little Mermaid, DS thoroughly enjoyed - great lights and music he loved

You are smart making your way back to your room early in the day. Get a break from the heat and let the baby nap in a quiet room. This was the best thing we could have done. Our DS always napped for a couple of hours and was refreshed and ready to go mid to late afternoon.

Best of luck and have a magical time!

 

[DisFlan]

I posted my concerns about rides in general for two reasons:

1) We took our very laid-back 4 mo son on a very tame ride. Within seconds he was scared out of his wits. He screamed for the rest of the ride. He had sleeping problems for weeks. This surprised us. We had taken him everywhere with us up to that point, and nothing had upset him like this before. It was his last ride as an infant.

2) Frightened, crying children decrease the quality of the ride experience for everyone else on the ride. I took this into consideration when our son was an infant. I'm sure legions of ride-goers were grateful. And now, I'd be grateful for the same consideration.

DisFlan

 

[Cheeky in TN]

I did not mean to infer my last response was in reference to your comments about the rides. Those are valid points and I am still debating on whether she will go on Haunted Mansion or POTC, I will see how that goes. I did want to know whether she was allowed on the People Transport, etc. I do appreciate your comments/concerns re: the rides.

 

[Laugh O. Grams]

We took our very laid-back 4 mo son on a very tame ride. Within seconds he was scared out of his wits. He screamed for the rest of the ride. He had sleeping problems for weeks. This surprised us. We had taken him everywhere with us up to that point, and nothing had upset him like this before. It was his last ride as an infant.

Now I'm interested, which ride freaked him out?

 

[DisFlan]

Now I'm interested, which ride freaked him out?

A ride at Silver Dollar City similar (as in a slow boat-water ride) to It's A Small World. Nothing scary. But my point is, you can't be sure how your very young child will react to a ride - any ride. To me, it's just not worth the risk of what it might do. Simply wait until they're a little older.

I have to add here, though, that the damage wasn't permanent. He grew up to be a WDW kid. In spades. He was in the WDW College Program, and he's applying for an Advanced Internship next year. He plans on a career with Disney.

DisFlan

 

[PratersloveDW]

He was in the WDW College Program, and he's applying for an Advanced Internship next year. He plans on a career with Disney.

DisFlan

Lucky kid - getting to work with the mouse!

 

[lab_girl]

Take a look at this site: http://www.magictrips.com/plan/kids/5under.shtml.
Most attractions are slow moving and most, if not all, should be O.K. for newborns.

Thankyou for the great link...our youngest will be almost 2 when we go!

 

[DisFlan]

Lucky kid - getting to work with the mouse!

Yup, it makes an old mom's heart beat proud.

He met his wife while he was in the College Program. We got a two-fer. We sent one Disneyphile kid to WDW and got two back, and we couldn't be happier. They're both planning on working for Disney.

DisFlan

 

[jann1033]

can't image having a problem with a little baby except maybe the heat of a Fl summer. i would think an older infant would be harder than a tiny one as far as startling ect. but a lot would depend on the nature of the child

 

[TinkerbellMama]

But my point is, you can't be sure how your very young child will react to a ride - any ride. To me, it's just not worth the risk of what it might do. Simply wait until they're a little older.
DisFlan

Well, IMO this is true of anyone of any age. You can't know how a newborn, or a 7 yr. old, or your 50 yr. old mother will react FOR SURE until they ride. The older child and the grandmother could freak out all the same...sometimes you just don't know ahead of time. Personally, I would ride with my infant son. He is very easygoing and I have no reason to believe he would freak on a boat ride at Disney. So far he's done two carousels and laughs and laughs. He loves the lights and sounds at DTD. We only postponed his first "official" WDW trip until his birthday so we would have time to plan the week and make it special for him and our extended family. I personally don't believe that the best way to deal with it is to just not take the baby on any rides (unless you have reason to believe he/she IS very sensitive to motion, new/different situations, music, etc.). JMO.

For the person with the ped who recommend no sunscreen, ITA it is a good idea to forego chemical sunscreens for babies! Try a physical sunblock that contains titanium dioxide and zinc oxide. These actually block the sun's rays rather than absorbing the UV chemically. We use California Baby brand. You can buy it on Amazon!