Parents of toddlers...opinions needed!

[ekball]

Hello all,

Some of you may remember me from a few days ago....I posted a thread with the onsite vs. offsite debate, and justifying the cost of an onsite resort. The long and short of it goes like this...

I booked a DW vacation for 9/25-10/2 at an offsite townhouse. We initially liked the allure of the space, and price ($775 with tax/charges), that this option held. I have since started to have a change of heart and have been knee-deep in soul searching about changing to an on site resort (seriously, you'd think this was a life and death decision ). I have been going back and forth with this for the past three days weighing out MANY MANY pros and cons(I'm driving DH nuts and he threatened to only book vacations 2 weeks out from now on - so I don't have months to overthink things ).....i.e. convenience for naps/breaks (we will be with DS 14 mos. and DD 2 1/2), space of townhouse vs. 1 room hotel room, Disney magic, cost, free dining, washer/dryer, space of townhouse for mom and dad to have alone time once kids are asleep, overstimulation being at a Dis hotel??? And I could go on and on and on....

So now, I am looking for a little feedback from those who have done an onsite resort with toddlers. Realizing FULLY that every child is different (really, I do ), how did it work for you and your children?
How were your days? Nights?
How were the nights in a single room with young children?
How did they handle Disney transportation? Was it really as easy as people make it sound or was it a pain - managing strollers, wait time, bus stops, etc.(we are looking at WL - so we would have the ferry option as well)
What were the days like when you didn't go to the parks - what did you do?
How did you handle being in one room together? Did you sit on the balcony at night for a little quiet time, or did you crash early with the kids?
How did you feel about the Magical Express?
How easy or difficult was it to travel to other resorts with young children for a meal or to explore?
Were the kids overstimulated by all of the activity? Did you feel like they could have used a break from "all Disney, all the time"??
Any WL specific information would be helpful too.

Like I said earlier, I fully realize that every child is different and what worked for some may not work for others. That said, I've read a lot of posts here and have really gotten a lot out of the experiences that others have shared.

TIA for your help and feedback. I feel like such a Disney basket case and am ready to make a decision about this (and stick with it)!

Erin

 

[AllyCatTapia]

HI I'm the one (or among the ones) who pointed out to you the convenience of going back to onsite resort for naps. Naps are a MUST, you probably realize that.

As for your concern about sharing a room- my children adore this! They have their own room at home and it just makes it that much more special that we are alllllll sleeeping together.

Also, they are so exhasuted that DH and I in the same room doesn't affect their naps/nighttime at all!!!!

The transportation IS a pain as far as strollers. You will have a challenge folding it up and taking it on the bus while also trying to take your kiddos on the (crowded, standing room only) bus. But, once again, you trade off, as you're not going to hike through a millin car parking lot to get to your car (or take a tram to your car- but then again, how's that any differnet from the bus issue??)


We definitely crashed witht he kids a LOT, even naptime. If we didn't feel like crashing, yeah, we sat out on the balc, or read, or watched tv quietly.


Again, teh anps are teh lifesaver and no way you'd be able to do naps offsite. No way.

GOOD LUCK. I'm an overplanner too.

 

[belle&beast]

Our familyof 4 went to WDW in January with my parents and sister. We stayed onsite at POR with DD4 and DS who turned 2 on the trip. We did not use ME because we flew into Orlando Sanford airport and it was not available to us. My parents rented a minivan and dropped us off and they stayed at a condo offsite.

We had one bedroom with 2 queen size beds and a pack and play (which is the protable crib you get from Disney). I chose the moderate resort because I did not know if we would be coming back to the hotel for naps and I wanted a quiet resort. It turns out that we never went back to the room and we would have been fine in a value- live and learn! Anyway, DS was almost always asleep by the time we got back and I was able to change him and put him to bed easily. 4yo was tired, too so she went straight to sleep.

The kids loved the buses and by the end of the trip were pros! We often would wait a few minutes for a bus that was not full so we could have seats on the way back to the resort at night- it was never more than 10 minutes. The way there was never an issue for us to get seats or to have plenty of room for the double stroller. Of course we went during value season, so the parks and resorts were not very crowded. I have no complaints about transportation.

We spent all our time in the parks with the exception of one morning. DH and DS went to see the dvc and DD and I went to the GF with my sister for the Princess Tea with Aurora. We generally got up and ate breakfast then headed to the parks with the exception of 2 character breakfasts, and spent the days and evenings in the parks. We took breaks at the parks and DS occasionally fell asleep in the stroller, but really we had no need to leave. We played it by ear because we didn't know what to expect and in all honesty our DD is the one who really needs naps, but it worked out well for us. Have a wonderful trip- whatever you decide!

 

[Chuck65]

I agree Alley Cat.............I think just for the naps it's worth it to stay on site. Think of it this way, to get to the park in the a.m., you need to feed the kids breakfast, load the car, drive to the parrking lot, unload the car, walk to the tram, take the tram to TTC ( if you are going to MK) unload from the tram, take the monorail or ferry to MK. All of this has to be done with the stroller and the other supplies for the children. Now, on the return trip for the naps, everything needs to be reversed. Whereas if you stay onsite, you eliminate your car, the tram, and the TTC. If you decide to go back to the park, everything you did in the morning, is going to have be repeated. It makes it much easier if you are on site.

 

[o2bacelt]

Here's my disclaimer, I had both my parents and my inlaws with us on our last Disney vacation, something I will NEVER do again.

How were your days? Nights?

Days, were great with the exception of too many grandparents trying for the baby's attention. She had her moments when she was hot or tired but hey, so did I. Nights were fine, she was so tired from running around and playing and seeing everything you could have lit a bomb off under her and she wouldn't have noticed and that's a kid who still doesn't always sleep through the night at home. We were there for 10 nights and 11 days and had an absolutely fantastic time.

How were the nights in a single room with young children?

Really easy for us but we were a co-sleeping family until recently, we had a king bed, we would turn the tv on at night and she would fall asleep on the bed. Our DD still sleeps in our room just usually in her own bed now.

How did they handle Disney transportation? Was it really as easy as people make it sound or was it a pain - managing strollers, wait time, bus stops, etc.(we are looking at WL - so we would have the ferry option as well)

We used it to park hop and didn't have any trouble with monorails or boats, we didn't use the buses at all but we really didn't use it a lot, we found it easier to have a rental car but I have family in the area and some things I wanted to do off site so we wanted the freedom to leave. Had to visit my grandmother in Kissimmee and hit a few outlet malls. We did take the ferry to MK and it was fine. It was nice for us to have the car because if my DD had enough we didn't have to wait for a bus to go back to the resort.

What were the days like when you didn't go to the parks - what did you do?

We went shopping and visited family. One day we were in the pool at the resort (Pop Century.)

How did you handle being in one room together? Did you sit on the balcony at night for a little quiet time, or did you crash early with the kids?

We turned on the tv, our DD would crash when tired and then the rest of us went to bed.

How did you feel about the Magical Express?

It seems like a great service. My inlaws took it to and from the airport and said it was fantastic.

How easy or difficult was it to travel to other resorts with young children for a meal or to explore?

It was for us but that was because we had the minivan we rented. We went to both the contemporary and GF for meals.

Were the kids overstimulated by all of the activity? Did you feel like they could have used a break from "all Disney, all the time"??

Overstimulated? Sure but so was I from time to time especially with both sets of grandparents telling me how to handle my kid. DD didn't have any trouble with the theming all over the place, it was fun to look at but she's more upset by noises and constant running around but she did really well most of the time. Everyone had moments on our trip.

 

[tiff211]

I was like about staying offiste, wanting lots of room with the little ones! In april we stayed 6 nights at the POP and LOVED it!!! We went with DD5, 3 and 7 months.

The buses: Try to stay somewhere that does share buses with other resorts or that you have the first stop. We always had a seat because the POP doesn't share buses. The stroller was a manageable pain. DD's loved the bus ride ALMOST as much as the parks!

Staying in the room altoghether: Granted no one was able to run laps around the room but it was nice to be so "cozy" for a change. The baby slept in her pack and play, DDs shared a bed and DH and I shared the other. We drove so we had a LOT of stuff and I still never felt cramped.

Coming back for naps: I only did this one day. My girls were fine, the baby just fell asleep in her stroller (see pic below), we actually would leave the parks for the day around 4-5 and the girls would play in the pool for awhile, have bathes, get dressed for bed and we would go to the food court in their jammies. So convenient! The one day we did come back for a nap because we were going to MK to see wishes, they laid down without a problem, got up and had time to go into the pool, then get clean-up, we had dinner at MK and saw the fireworks.

To me the key was trying to work around the baby's schedule. That's why we would leave the parks early so she could still have her dinner and reg. bedtime. DD3 and 5 had no problem when we said it was time to leave the park as they knew the pool was waiting for them at the resort.

The kids were so tired after such a jammed parked day, that they eyes closed almost as soon as they hot the pillow. I would pack everything for the next day and lay out the clothes and DH and I would watch tv or a movie and after a full days at the parks with the girls, we were pooped ourselves.

The day we didn't go to the park, we went to DTD.

I loved staying onsite, the ease, the theming, the way the girls loved it. It was magic! We will stay onsite again and again.

 

[ekball]

Thanks all for your feedback.

Well, I did it! I booked us at the WL for our 7 nights. I am terribly excited and a little nervous at the same time, but it is done and I am happy! We just agreed to a completely different vacation than we had originally planned, but I think it will be wonderful and I have high hopes that everyone will do well and will have a great time.

I booked my ADR's and though they were a struggle (not much left for the times I needed with the little ones), I think we have some great options! I had already booked the LTT and Breakfastosaurus for character meals, and in addition scored a 1900 PF character dinner with Cindy on our last day (DD is going to be thrilled ) Other TS meals are at GF Cafe, Kona, & Boma. Tried for Ohana, but couldn't get in. I really tried to keep our choices close to home base so we aren't travelling all over disney properties to eat with the kids. I think our choices will work fine for us and I'm so excited!

Anyway, I could go on and on, but I'll just stop and say thanks for your advice and input. Now what am I gonna do for the next 3 months?!?!?! (already researched and bought the double stroller )

 

[mama4]

Hi. You sound a lot like me. Although I've never considered staying off-site, I plan and worry and agonize over a lot of my decisions for months prior to my trip (I also aggravate my dh ). I just want to make sure my family has a wonderful time-and they always do- even things do not go according to my plans Here are my answers to your questions- and hoping this thread makes your planning easier:

How were your days? Nights?- Our days are usually spent in the parks- we don't do park hoppers and we dont leave the parks for naps. If we're on a long trip, we do take at least a day to hang out at resort. We love exploring the grounds, using the FUN pools, and you still FEEL like you're at Disney the whole time. It's truly special for us. Nights are fun too. The only bad experience we had was wanting a sit-down meal and coming back (around 7 pm) to a completely filled Boatwright's (at POR) with a wait time of almost an hour. This is easily enough avoided by making ADR's- it was our 1st BIG trip with the kids and I just didn't realize the resort restaurants often fill up too.

How were the nights in a single room with young children?-Fine. We have 3 (a teen and two under 5.) We will soon have another baby so we'll need more room next time but we never minded being in the same room. Our teenage son and preschooler share a bed and our toddler sleeps in a crib. I was always up before everyone else so bathroom space wasn't an issue either.

How did they handle Disney transportation? Was it really as easy as people make it sound or was it a pain - managing strollers, wait time, bus stops, etc.(we are looking at WL - so we would have the ferry option as well)- We've only used busses (and a boat from POR to DD-only once and it was fun and relaxing) and the stroller is the only thing that ever bothered us. Last time we didnt bring our double because it was too big on the crowded busses. We made sure to have seats for the kids(even if we had to wait for another bus) so they would be safe. The walks to bus stops (we were never extremely close) never bothered us and wait times (at most 20 min) never bothered us either.

What were the days like when you didn't go to the parks - what did you do? -We went to Downtown Disney once on each family trip and stayed at the resort like I mentioned earlier.

How did you handle being in one room together?-- This was fine. I kept our laundry, snacks, shoes (and other messes) in order so we wouldn't be too crowded. I put our clothes in drawers and suitcases out of the way. I made sure all clothes and diaper bags were ready for next morning(if we were going to the parks) and just planned on spending as little time in the rooms as possible

Did you sit on the balcony at night for a little quiet time, or did you crash early with the kids? --I was always worn out so I crashed with the kids.

How did you feel about the Magical Express? -Never used it. We live in Gainesville Fl and drive down.

How easy or difficult was it to travel to other resorts with young children for a meal or to explore? This is also not an issue for us- since we drive we have our car at the resort. If renting a car is a possibilty, it may be worth it if you want to do a lot of traveling around (not just back and forth to parks) because I wouldn't do busses except to and from parks.

Were the kids overstimulated by all of the activity? Did you feel like they could have used a break from "all Disney, all the time"??--Not at all. I think they DO get overstimulated at Disney sometimes but they certainly didn't stay that way. The resorts (even POP with it's large icons and busy theme) was relaxing for us and the kids. Like I said, we explored and saw momma and baby ducks, bunnies, and all the icons were great fun to see. We also just had fun playing at the pool at POP (the kiddie spalsh pool is great). We liked POR a lot because the kids loved the river, the horse and carriages walking along the sidewalks, the boat trip, and just walking the pathways around the resort and finding the playgrounds. We found it very peaceful and quiet (and we were there during spring break in '05!) We also went over to WL once and they got a kick out of the Fire Rock geyser. The pool didn't seem as fun for little ones as the POP pool IMO though. The inside of the WL is TRULY AMAZING. They looked a little overwhelmed by the size of it. I'm sure there are all kinds of things for little ones to do if you are staying there but since we were just visiting, we just looked around a bit, had a snack and left. I think my dh and I would get more out of on one of our solo trips (for actually staying there).
Have fun planning. I'm sure, no matter what decision you make, you will have a wonderful time!

 

[cruiserkaren]

Hello all,

Some of you may remember me from a few days ago....I posted a thread with the onsite vs. offsite debate, and justifying the cost of an onsite resort. The long and short of it goes like this...

I booked a DW vacation for 9/25-10/2 at an offsite townhouse. We initially liked the allure of the space, and price ($775 with tax/charges), that this option held. I have since started to have a change of heart and have been knee-deep in soul searching about changing to an on site resort (seriously, you'd think this was a life and death decision ). I have been going back and forth with this for the past three days weighing out MANY MANY pros and cons(I'm driving DH nuts and he threatened to only book vacations 2 weeks out from now on - so I don't have months to overthink things ).....i.e. convenience for naps/breaks (we will be with DS 14 mos. and DD 2 1/2), space of townhouse vs. 1 room hotel room, Disney magic, cost, free dining, washer/dryer, space of townhouse for mom and dad to have alone time once kids are asleep, overstimulation being at a Dis hotel??? And I could go on and on and on....

So now, I am looking for a little feedback from those who have done an onsite resort with toddlers. Realizing FULLY that every child is different (really, I do ), how did it work for you and your children?
How were your days? Nights?
Wonderful, although dd does get up earlier on vacation than she does at home.
How were the nights in a single room with young children?
We never had a problem. Dd would go to sleep and dh and I would watch something on her DVD player. Sometimes we just went to sleep when she did, WDW will wear you out!!
How did they handle Disney transportation? Was it really as easy as people make it sound or was it a pain - managing strollers, wait time, bus stops, etc.(we are looking at WL - so we would have the ferry option as well)
My dd LOVES the buses. She really wants to be old enough to ride school buses so she loves that she can ride WDW busses (especially w/o a car seat!). She always says: "me old enough for disney world busses!!!" It's so cute.
What were the days like when you didn't go to the parks - what did you do?
We went to the pool, played at the playground, walked around the resort, rode escalators.
How did you handle being in one room together? Did you sit on the balcony at night for a little quiet time, or did you crash early with the kids?
When we stayed at CR we would sit out on the patio for just a bit. Honestly we were so tired from the heat and humidity that we'd crash not long after her.
How did you feel about the Magical Express?
LOVED IT! Nothing easier.
How easy or difficult was it to travel to other resorts with young children for a meal or to explore?
This is kind-of a hassle in my opinion. It's not that easy to get from one resort to another. We really enjoyed having Chef Mickey's right there when we were at CR. When we were at POFQ it wasn't horrible, but it was a bit of a hassle. I didn't book a dinner at 1900 Park Fare just simply for the fact that I didn't want to mess with getting there. Also my little cousin was with us, who is bi-polar with some autism so that factored in heavily when deciding where to eat. If it had just been dd, I may have went for it.
Were the kids overstimulated by all of the activity? Did you feel like they could have used a break from "all Disney, all the time"??
I didn't feel that way at all.
Any WL specific information would be helpful too.

Like I said earlier, I fully realize that every child is different and what worked for some may not work for others. That said, I've read a lot of posts here and have really gotten a lot out of the experiences that others have shared.

TIA for your help and feedback. I feel like such a Disney basket case and am ready to make a decision about this (and stick with it)!

Erin

I know you decided already but thought I'd go ahead and give you my 2 cents! I always flip flop too. Drives dh crazy! The fact that we have a young child was the sole reason we decided to stay onsite, now dh says he doesn't want to go any other way. Have fun!

 

[akamom]

I really think you will LOVE staying on site. It was awesome! My kids LOVE it! And they are only 4, 3, and 1 (obviously she doesn't care yet). It makes everything easy!

How were your days? Nights? Actually bed time and nap times are easier at Disney then at home! lol
How were the nights in a single room with young children? Fine, we didn't have any issues.
How did they handle Disney transportation? Was it really as easy as people make it sound or was it a pain - managing strollers, wait time, bus stops, etc.(we are looking at WL - so we would have the ferry option as well). For event like the MVMCP it is very busy, so it was kind of a pain because alot of ppl go to those, but other than that, it's very easy!
What were the days like when you didn't go to the parks - what did you do? SWIM!! Or we'd go to DTD
How did you handle being in one room together? Did you sit on the balcony at night for a little quiet time, or did you crash early with the kids? We crash with the kids.
How did you feel about the Magical Express? I love not renting a car!! And it's free! No carseats to tote or anything!
How easy or difficult was it to travel to other resorts with young children for a meal or to explore? Just hope on a bus or monorail and you're there! SIMPLE!
Were the kids overstimulated by all of the activity? Did you feel like they could have used a break from "all Disney, all the time"?? I think my kids would not be happy if we went to Disney and they didn't stay in Disney. They associate the hotel with Disney.

 

[4lilpoohs]

I see you already decided but I thought I would put in my 2 cents
How were your days? Nights?
How were the nights in a single room with young children?-I went with a friend and her two little ones. So we had two adults, two 5 year olds and two 2 year olds in one room. I slept in a bed with my boys. My friend slept in the other bed with her older daughter and her younger one slept on the daybed. It worked out fine.
How did they handle Disney transportation? The monorail was of course the easiest because we didn't have to break down the strollers. Even though I was by myself the buses really weren't bad. WE never had to wait very long. We always had a seat.
What were the days like when you didn't go to the parks - what did you do?-We were only there for 5 days so we went to the parks everyday.
How did you handle being in one room together? Did you sit on the balcony at night for a little quiet time, or did you crash early with the kids?-We left early in the morning and came home late so there wasn't time to anything but sleep
How did you feel about the Magical Express? -Great
How easy or difficult was it to travel to other resorts with young children for a meal or to explore?-We only went to GF to see the Gingerbread house. It was very easy.
Were the kids overstimulated by all of the activity? Did you feel like they could have used a break from "all Disney, all the time"??-I really think the kids did great. When they were tired they would sleep in the stroller.

 

[juligrl]

Hey, I'm glad you followed up your original post.

Okay, this is my experience as of our first WDW trip with DD (then 2), this past January. Keep in mind that DHs parents had a connecting room with ours at POP for 5 days of our 7 day stay.

how did it work for you and your children?Jaycie loved having Mommy and Daddy sharing a room with her. This does not usually happen at home so it made her vacation extra special.

How were your days? Nights?Generally we hit the parks early (did 4 days of morning EMHs). Since we did not do the dining plan and we are use to early dinners at home due to my husband's work hours, we would do our big meal around 2:30pm then head back to the hotel for a while. Were usually back in the parks by 6 and stayed to close or beyond doing evening EMHs 4 of the nights we were there. My husband is use to late hours since he works 4pm-11:30pm and my daughter did fine with them since she is usually not a napper, but took naps on the days we did evening hours.

How were the nights in a single room with young children?Great! As I said, Jaycie thought it was neat spending the night in the same room as us. She's usually a pretty light sleeper so I was concerned at first that she might not be able to fall asleep if DH and I were still up, but she was simply exhausted after her days at the park and usually fell asleep mid-sentence, as soon as her head hit the pillow.

How did they handle Disney transportation? Half the fun was getting to the parks! No kiding, the busses were one of Jaycie's favorite rides. She really had no concept of time, so even waiting 10 minutes for another bus was okay with her.

Was it really as easy as people make it sound or was it a pain - managing strollers, wait time, bus stops, etc.(we are looking at WL - so we would have the ferry option as well)We had our big evenflo stroller. I had wanted to take our little umbrella stroller, but DH said no to that. I'm glad he did. Is it a pain to struggle with stroller and sleeping children on Disney transport? Yes. Are you going to be the only one doing so? No. And you probably won't even get nasty looks for toting a huge stroller since most of the other families there will also be toting strollers. If it really bothers you, there's always stroller rental (but then you still have to get the kids to the park entrance from the busses and vice versa.

What were the days like when you didn't go to the parks - what did you do?We went to the parks every day, so I can't answer this one. We did take an evening and go to the campfire program at Ft. Wilderness -- which my daughter loved!

How did you handle being in one room together? Did you sit on the balcony at night for a little quiet time, or did you crash early with the kids?How early do your kids go to bed? Can you be a little flexible with them on their vacation time? I know that if we were back in our hotel by 10 and were getting up to do a morning EMH the next day DH and I were pretty exhausted ourselves and didn't want to be staying up much later than that anyhow. For naptime one of us would stay in the room and read while the other swam or went for a walk (or my crazy husband went running). If we had a balcony, we might have sat on it, but not having a balcony wasn't an issue for us we just did something quiet.

How did you feel about the Magical Express?
Loved ME! Very quick and convenient and nice not to have to juggle our bags and our daughter again.

How easy or difficult was it to travel to other resorts with young children for a meal or to explore?It did take some planning. We went to Whispering Canyon Cafe for a late lunch (DH & In-Laws gorged themselves on the Canyon Skillet) which we took the boat from the MK to. That was part of our adventure and again, our DD loved it! We just had planned on being at a park and leaving from there to other resorts we either wanted to explore or eat at. Still easier than renting a car and navigating ourselves while on vacation. Less stressful too!

Were the kids overstimulated by all of the activity? Did you feel like they could have used a break from "all Disney, all the time"?No because we took things at her pace. We didn't "do" everything. We're pretty sure that we will be back in a couple of years, and it's kind of neat to see it all through your child's eyes. I think there is such a thing as too much planning. Have a general idea of what park(s) on what day, but stay flexible and don't push if it's too much for your little ones.

 

[pbharris4]

Glad you decided to stay on site!!! You will absolutely LOVE it! It's much more convienent! My youngest was 13 months and 25 months when she went and it was easy to go back to the room for a nap or just rest or swim and I didn't have to cook either. When we have the stroller we don not use the buses. We did that once and it's such a pain and bulky. Have a great trip!

 

[pixie dust 112]

My DDs are 10, 12, and 14 and we've been staying on site since the two oldest were toddlers and the youngest was yet to be! Prior to having kids we always stayed offsite.

The best thing for me when they were toddlers was the convenience of going back to the hotel for the afternoon nap. Sometimes we'd be so exhausted that we'd all nap! Other times DH and I would sit outside while the girls napped.

There were days when one of us would stay in the room with a napping baby and the other would go to the pool with the other DD or DDs.

The lobbies of the hotels always have coloring pages and crayons for the kids and sometines the girls would just want to go to the lobby or foodcourt to color. The disney resorts cater to your children's needs!

With the free dining plan, you can't go wrong! Even if your stay goes into October, you still get the free dining for the length of your trip as long as you are staying there by September 30. But remember, time to book the free dining plan is running out!!

Even with our DDs being older, we have times when one of us will go back to the hotel with DD(12) who loves swimming in the Disney Pools above all else, and the other will stay in the parks with DD(10) and DD(14) who could ride roller coasters forever. We could never do this staying off site.

I did find strollers to be a pain on the busses. We ended up keeping the stroller in the room and renting the strollers at the parks. Much easier! They have double strollers you can rent, which are great for two kids.

Sorry, never stayed at WL.

Fair warning .... Once you stay on site, you'll never stay off site again!!

Have a great time!

 

[mrsltg]

Disclaimer: I've only stayed offsite one night in all of my adult Disney vacations and I hated it!!!

I have a 5.5yr old and a 12 month old. We did Disney as a foursome in January when Caroline was 7mos. We were at the BW and it was great. She slept just fine in the room with us after so much action during the day. Naps were a little trickier but that was my own fault. From the get go I should have gotten in bed with her and she would have napped fine. Us being up and moving in the room would wake her (she has bat ears and will wake up to ANYTHING...).

Fast forward to this August - We'll be back in the World for a week at the Poly. Caroline will be 14 months. I'm not sure how this one is going to go. My older dd is Caroline's best favorite most wonderful friend! When Caroline sleeps in the same room as Dierdre she thinks she can play with her sister. Around 3am screams of "DI-JA" can be heard throughout. I am planning to sleep with Caroline and have Dh sleep with Dierdre (with Dierdre on the side where Caroline can't see her easily if she wakes in the night). I don't know if your kids are anything like this, though.

We have taken Dierdre on several trips as a little one. She always did fine with Mom and Dad in the room awake or not. The only way to know whether or not this will work with your kids is to try it. I will say you are more likely to do evening activities if you are close by. You also can't plan for how tired your kids will be after time in the parks. It's a whole different experience than anything else they've done.

All in all, you're going to have a good time no matter what - as long as you keep everything in perspective. What your children find interesting may be a balloon waving in the wind or a lamppost or a lizzard instead of the rides. Just go with it. I never SAW WDW until I brought my girls there. Now I get it...

 

[liznboys]

I was going to reply and say how much we love staying onsite (so much so that we bought into DVC)...but I see you've decided to stay at the WL! We've never stayed there, but we've visited it and it's amazing... I think you're going to be glad you changed your mind. Have a wonderful trip!!

 

[all4fun]

We stayed at WL one trip, in a DVC studio. DS loved the water feature in the lobby. He would run around it for hours if we let him.

We ate at Whispering Canyon Cafe a couple of times. The food was good and the atmosphere is fun.

The resort grounds are really beautiful. You will like it. I don't know what it's like to stay in the actual hotel part so you might want to check the resort board for info on that.

We took the ferry most of the time. One time the boat broke down so we had to take the bus. It wasn't as nice of a ride (it's just bus, after all), but I do think it was a bit quicker than the boat. We were usually never in a big hurry to get anywhere and enjoyed the boat ride back and forth to MK. Unless you have a really wide stroller, you should be able to stroll it right onto the boat. There are a few boats they use that are smaller though, so you might have to fold the stroller up.

As far as naps go, ds always slept in his stroller. The times we actually went back to the hotel for a nap, he wouldn't go to sleep. He just kept getting out of bed and trying to open the door because he wanted to go back to the park. So we'd go back to the park and he'd fall asleep in his stroller. Bedtimes, fortunately, weren't a problem as he would be so tired by the end of the day he would fall asleep easily.

Hope you all have a great trip!

 

[cjnix29]

If space was an issue...did you consider renting DVC points? You can get a bigger space, most times for a really decent price. That is what I did the last time, so we had a little more room than a regular hotel room. Only got a studio, but it had a lot more space than some on-site rooms. We had our car, and I don't think with a small child I will ever go to Disney without one. The only time we use Disney Transportation is to go to the Magic Kingdom, just because it is such a pain to drive. But when we did take the bus, my 2 1/2 year old LOVED it! He kept saying he was going on the school bus.

 

[michygoomy]

Wow, you sound like me a month ago. Might be time to step away from the planning and stop making yourself nuts. It's hard when you're a planner, I know.

Note: I have not read all the replies to this thread.

Anyway, I just got back from a 10 day trip with DH, DS12, DD10 and DD 17 months. I'll try to answer your questions:

How were your days? Nights?

Very, very good. Surprisingly so! During the day, DD fell asleep, usually with one of us holding her, then would nap in her stroller. If we needed to push the nap along, we just had to go on a nice, dark attraction. Hall of Presidents worked great for this. I had to sit through two shows once.

Nights were so much better than I expected! The first two nights I had to cuddle her to sleep, and then she ended up back in bed with me sometime during the night. However, by the third night, I could just plop her in the pack-n-play wide awake and she'd go to sleep for the night!

How were the nights in a single room with young children?

Fine. Most of the time we were all going to bed so it wasn't a problem being a little quiet. We were usually back in the room late.

I actually prefer a single room with a toddler. She could roam free, yet someone always had an eye on her because she couldn't go far! I had to keep the bathroom door closed, though, otherwise she would play in the toilet.

How did they handle Disney transportation? Was it really as easy as people make it sound or was it a pain - managing strollers, wait time, bus stops, etc.(we are looking at WL - so we would have the ferry option as well)

She was good on the buses. She would get a little antsy and want down, but then we would sing to her. Yes, for anyone that was there last week, we were the annoying family who sang "The wheels on the bus..." on EVERY SINGLE BUS TRIP. Oh, and I always got a seat with her. Even on the fullest buses, someone would always get up and offer me a seat.

The stroller was a bit of a pain, but I couldn't live without it. DH was in charge of folding it up and bringing it on. It was a little difficult on a full bus, but we always managed. There is no way I could have done the stroller and the toddler by myself--the one night we split up I went back to the room with just the toddler and left the stroller with DH and the kids.

The wait time was fine, and when we did wait, she was entertained in her stroller with toys or juice (or singing more songs!).

What were the days like when you didn't go to the parks - what did you do?

Didn't have many of those! We went to the pool (which she loved) or walked around the resort, looking at ducks and bunnies (which she also loved!). Sometimes we just stayed in the room and watched Disney Playhouse or put on our smuggled Barney DVD.

How did you handle being in one room together? Did you sit on the balcony at night for a little quiet time, or did you crash early with the kids?

We were OK with it. We didn't have a balcony, but would have loved to use one if we did! We mostly got in bed when the kids did, and either read quietly or watched TV. Again, we were usually back late.

How did you feel about the Magical Express?

It was OK. Saved a bunch of money. I didn't like when we arrived at MCO only to find TWO lines to wait in for ME, but it beats carting all that luggage around. The return trip was OK, on-time.

How easy or difficult was it to travel to other resorts with young children for a meal or to explore?

Easy for the MK resorts, that's all we did. We went to WL (gosh, we fell in love with that place! The baby LOVED it!), Poly and Contemporary. Boats and monorail rides were another attraction themselves to the baby. She had a ball running around the WL lobby. She walked across the little bridge about 15 times!

Were the kids overstimulated by all of the activity? Did you feel like they could have used a break from "all Disney, all the time"??

Surprisingly, no. She would just kind of shut down when she got overstimulated--zone out or take a nap. I think she was just at the right age for that. She loved the attractions, the sights, the fireworks, even. She never once got scared.

We usually took a break in the afternoon regardless. It's too hot and crowded in the parks by then, anyway. I did choose to keep her back our last full day while the rest of the family went to Typhoon Lagoon--which was a good call because she came down with a high fever later in the day which lasted until we got home.


Have a magical trip!

 

[MiknMinMouse]

My kids have been going to WDW since my oldest DS (15) was three, we now have a DD (8) and another DS (soon to be 2). We've never gone back to the resort for naps, the kids would just fall asleep in the stroller when they were tired. We almost always have grandparents with us. The kids love it as much as the grandparents. We have learned to try to alternate trips with grandparents so that both sets are not there at the same time. We love staying on site ~ the kids would much rather do that than have tons of room,although we're DVC members so usually we use our points for a villa. But we have stayed at the All-Stars, CB, & Poly with the kids and they loved that.
Try not to stress too much just enjoy . We just go with the flow. If someone needs to go back to the room, go, if they don't need to don't. You know your children and can figure out what's best for them.

Have a great time!!