Offseason afternoon breaks?

[Blue32]

Ok... I've been reading a TON on here lately...maybe earlier than I should(I am getting pumped about our first family trip to DLR!)
My question pertains to afternoon breaks in the offseason. Do you all who go during NON PEAK times still take afternoon breaks?

We will be coming the week after Thanksgiving this year and are bringing our two daughters who will be 6 and 4 yrs old. Being that the hours are quite a bit shorter this time of year, is it still advisable to head out of the parks for a rest in the afternoon? I don't want to waste valuable time but I also don't want to burn my kids out as well. Our trip will most likely be 4 days at the parks.

 

[Maddysdaddy]

We normally go at the end of September/early October, and we still take afternoon breaks.

We like to spend 3-4 hours in the park until about 1 or 2, and then go back to the GCH or DLH and take a swim/crash for a few hours, and then go back to the park around 5, which then allows us to catch a few rides and to see fireworks/Fantasmic/parades/WOC.

We first started coming when my daughter was 4, and the afternoon rests were for her. Now that she's about to turn 8, the afternoon rests are more for my wife and myself...

 

[SpaceMan5]

I guess it really comes down to how much your kids can handle in a day. We have also traveled in the off-season and found that we could never work in a break in the afternoons even when my kids were much younger.

We planned on taking breaks but always seemed to get caught up in the excitement of being at DL and the time would just fly by. If they got too tired they would just crash for a bit in their strollers.

 

[mamaofthree]

We don't take hotel breaks when hours are limited. We took a four day trip in Jan and the park was open 10-8, and we stayed there open to close. My youngest is five and doesn't nap, so there was no sense in walking back to the hotel. We did rest in the park tho. Took our time eating lunch and snacks, and some of us skipped a few rides and hung out on a bench to wait for the others. We went to bed early, and took our time getting up and getting ready so nobody was overtired. We did bring swim suits in case we got bored of Disneyland and wanted a swim break but that never happenned.

 

[nannyz]

We've been going to DL for 30 years, first just my husband and myself, then with our twin daughters, now with the whole family (4 grandkids). We NEVER take breaks outside of the park. The babies take naps in their strollers; the bigger kids don't get sleepy; and the adults can sit on a bench and rest. We eat all three meals in the park and stay to see the fireworks, then stop to shop on the way out.

 

[coaches24]

We do not take breaks, or atleast we dont leave the parks to take a break. Last trip DD was almost 2 and a half and she is one of those kids that just keeps going until you make her stop or until she passes out. We had our stroller so when she got tired she would ride in there and we were sure she would fall asleep a few times in the after noon but she never did. Each night she went from opening (8 am on the days we were there) till about 8:30 or 9:00 before she passed out. As it happened she missed both F! and WOC because she fell asleep right before showtime each night.

Our breaks are usually when we eat lunch. We go somewhere you can sit down and eat and take our time. We can plan what we want to do next (I cant plan out all my rides before hand, we have to just do what we feel like doing at the time, or whats near by that doesnt have a long line).

We do end up leaving a little earlier (right after F! and WOC last trip). Never lasted till closeing. Though if I were by myself I would be there open to close no problem. But with DW and DD that wont happen.

 

[HydroGuy]

Off-season breaks when DL is open 10AM-8PM are not as valuable as during high season. It will depend a lot on you and any kids you have along.

 

[lwilkison]

Ok... I've been reading a TON on here lately...maybe earlier than I should(I am getting pumped about our first family trip to DLR!)
My question pertains to afternoon breaks in the offseason. Do you all who go during NON PEAK times still take afternoon breaks?

We will be coming the week after Thanksgiving this year and are bringing our two daughters who will be 6 and 4 yrs old. Being that the hours are quite a bit shorter this time of year, is it still advisable to head out of the parks for a rest in the afternoon? I don't want to waste valuable time but I also don't want to burn my kids out as well. Our trip will most likely be 4 days at the parks.

Oh my yes! We definitely take afternoon breaks.

DLR is wonderful and magical and exciting but it can also be loud, hot, and crowded! In order to keep up from having a melt down we usually go first thing in morning (after breakfast) then leave parks for lunch and go back to our hotel room, have a swim/nap and then after we are refreshed we head back.

Don't "go-go-go"...it will lead to the inevitable meltdown! It is far harder to recover from a meltdown then to go and just have a rest without a time frame...take as long as you need until you are refreshed! We usually needed an hour or two

You have 4 days...and you can always come back another year

Remember, DLR is never finished (as per Walt) and it is always changing and evolving! Enjoy your trip

 

[Eeee-va]

I think that breaks are needed in high season because of heat, crowds, and late hours. It's possible you will not have to face any of those things. (I hope you won't!)

You know your kids, and you might have to play it by ear when you get there. Assuming you think they can probably make it from open to close, I would try to stay in the parks the whole day the first day (using the in-park break tips people posted). Again, if that doesn't seem to be working, take a break that first day. But if they are tired on Day 2, you can take a break the second day. (Or if you have to, you could even (GASP) come to the parks a little later that second day. I don't ever recommend that, but you're going at a low attendance time so you could probably afford a late entry one day if you absolutely had to.)

Have a great trip!

 

[taaren]

We like to now, because we stay close and we know we're going to be back again. We usually go in Sept-Oct, sometimes in May. If we stay off-site we don't take naps (I have some great pics of my DNeph12 napping under the Golden Gate Bridge in DCA), but when we're on-site if we get up early enough, we collect FPs in the morning, use some/ride what we want to, then go back to the hotel around 1ish (grabbing FPs for the evening on our way out), nap/pool time, then head back into the parks from 4-8p, use the rest of the FPs, then have a late dinner after. That way we usually get about 7-8 hours of park time in, from 9a/10a-1p and 4p-8p, sometimes staying for WOC.

But if you're staying far away and have to trek back to your room it might not be worth it. BWPPI was alright for this, when I tried this at FFI it was too much. Didn't even try when we stayed at convention center hotels.

 

[KittyKat1978]

I went in Feb (the week before Presidents Day) for 3 full days and two partial days and I took breaks almost daily. I sit on my butt all day at an office job so walking in DL takes a toll on me.

I would walk back to my hotel around 3-4ish, soak my feet in ice cold water for 5 mins, then go and relax on the bed for 30 mins or so. I didn't sleep though. Naps don't work for me.

It helped me alot. And I plan on doing it again when I go in May.

Just go with how you and your family feels. If you need a break, take a break. If you don't, then motor on

 

[monkey30]

It all depends on the kids and the people in your group. Play it by ear if you need a break take it, better to take a break then deal with a cranky kid! We have gone back just for a hour and just leaving the park has helped!

Good luck!

 

[monkey30]

sorry posted 2 times!!

 

[jennabennabofenna]

We were there this month when it wasnt crowded. We still took afternoon breaks though... we usually left from about 2pm-4pm. that gave my DDs (ages 1 & 3) a chance to nap. worked out great for us.

 

[nbliss]

No breaks for us. We went in late October, Monday-Friday with our 8 and then almost 6 year old. They never asked for one, I think they were just so excited to be there. They even had enough energy when we got back to HOJO's at night to go to the pirate play area until it closed. My husband wears a pedometer, and we were averaging 9-10 miles per day walking.
I agree, depends on your kids, though.

 

[Babybears]

When it is High Season we get up early and are at the park gates at opening. We then almost always take a mid-day break and go back to the park for the evening.

We have went once during relative off-season (Mon - Fri Early October) where park hours were 10:00 - 8:00 and honestly found that mid-day trip were not needed or worth it. One day we did come back to swim, but not because we were bushed, just because we wanted to use the pool. More than often what ended up happening was that we got up and were at the parks at opening and if we felt tired, just came back to the hotel and hour or so before the park closed (especially with no fireworks/fantasmic happening). This particular trip our youngest was 3 and in a stroller, which helped a lot as she did occasionally take a snooze and it didn't disrupt our touring. I also loved having the stroller to store our water bottles, snacks, souvenirs! Kinda miss the stroller now....LOL!!

 

[3Minnies1Mickey]

When the hours are shorter (10-8 or even 9-9) we don't leave the parks but we do get some down time. Favorite spots include Animation building in DCA, watching Aladdin, golden horseshoe, goofys garden in toontown, or just sitting on a bench and grabbing a bite to eat.

 

[azdisneylover]

I say, if your kids are used to a little nap in the early afternoon, keep the schedule. It wouldn't hurt anyone to take a break for a couple of hours (maybe grab lunch and have in your room while watching a movie, swim, etc). Just an hour or two of quiet time will help everyone to be refreshed for the evening. You can use the time to check out your kid's feet for blisters and switch their clothes for evening. (switching shoes, socks, from shorts to pants, grabbing a jacket, etc).
You can always see how the first day goes, and adjust your schedule accordingly. If you are relaxed and enjoying yourself, your kids will be more apt to do the same.
What ever you end up miss doing or seeing, don't worry, because you can always do it on your next trip.
Have a great time.

 

[3Minnies1Mickey]

Also consider travel time when heading back to the hotel. We have found that a two hour nap is a 3-4 hour break when factoring in getting out of the park, back to the hotel, to your room and settled down, nap for two hours, then getting ready to go again (change into warmer clothes?), back to the park and through security and gates.

 

[teach1abc]

We just went to Disney two weeks ago with our 4 and 8 yr olds. The first day, we went back for an afternoon break which did not work well for us. Once the kids stopped and fell asleep, they did not want to get going again. We decided it would work better for us to take a break in the park. We took the train around the park, went on It's A Small World, found a shady table by Jedi Training to have an afternoon snack (we brought snacks, lunch, and waters and kept it in the bottom of the stroller), saw a show - Turtle Talk and Disney Playhouse, etc. That was enough of a break where they could sit and relax to energize, and then they were good to go for the rest of the day.