Question about when to go with toddler

[MrsJ Henry]

Ok we have decided to look into planning our next trip to Disney. It's been a while since we were going through an adoption and now have our little one.

Here are some of my quesions:
1. Would you take a toddler when they are 20 months old or almost 2 1/2 ?
2. Where would you stay ( we LOVE the Yacht club and AKL but we are interested also in the best deluxe while having a toddler)
3. What tips would you have for taking a child of this age? We have never traveled with her before except to bring her back to this country. She has been apart of our family since she was 7 months old in February)

By the way the more tips the better.... DH and I have traveled quite a bit and have gone to WDW a few times but never with a baby!!!

 

[monorailsilver]

1. Would you take a toddler when they are 20 months old or almost 2 1/2 ?

I would consider both. I took my oldest when she was 15 months old & she loved the characters & went right up to them. We went again 3 years later but with her brother who was 22 months old. He was the shy type & although he loved the characters he would only go near them if dh or I were holding him.

Our next trip, our 3rd & final child will be 2.5 yo & I am actually excited because I am hoping that she will be PT'd by then so I won't have to bring a diaper.

2. Where would you stay ( we LOVE the Yacht club and AKL but we are interested also in the best deluxe while having a toddler)

Honestly I love the Poly. Our 2 main parks we visit the most are MK & Epcot so we like the ability to roll the stroller right on the monorail & we can walk to both monorails.

I disliked taking the bus with the stroller but that is me so we only go to AK once & MGM, one am & then cut back thru Epcot for lunch on our way back to the monorail to the Poly.

3. What tips would you have for taking a child of this age?

Lets, see, don't plan to see everything. Don't get disappointed if you don't see something you had hoped to see. Plan a break sometime for a nap (for the mom & dad too).

Don't rush, see it thru your child's eyes.

The first time we took our oldest. I was planning on doing the child swap so I could ride Space Mountain. Guess what, I didn't care once we were there because my dd was more important then me getting on SM.

When we went in 2005, I was preggo, by only a few weeks. Prior to that I was planning on going on rides since my parents were there but once I got the news the rides didn't matter.

Bring some snacks in the parks, lots of water too.

We also bring our own breakfast & eat in our room (cereal, pop tarts, bagels, etc...) & this way while dh & I are getting ready (showered, etc...) the kids eat & it actually saves us time.

Have fun & happy planning & most of all congratualtions on your adoption.

 

[WDWorBUST]

The best thing we did for ourselves when we took our DD for the first time was to get annual passes. We actually planned 3 trips in that 365 day span of time so they made sense....but they ended up being such a blessing. By having an AP - we didn't feel like we were wasting or losing money by leaving early. So if she was sleepy - we left. If she was cranky - we left. We did everything around her demeanor and mood. They were very laid back trips - but they were awesome. (we took her at 13 months, 22 months & 25 months on those annual passes).

 

[NYBlue1]

We took our triplets when they were a little over two as well. We stayed at the beach club villas and really enjoyed the location. I think any of the deluxe resorts would be just fine for a toddler and the ones on the monarail all the better.

Besides the animal kingdom and magic kingdom there are not tons of toddler like things to do in epcot and mgm. The kids loved the bear in the big blue house show and that was about it LOL. We did enjoy the character meeting experience in epcot, you could meet mickey, minnie,pluto, donald , goofy ,chip and dale,and figment with little or no line and take your own shots as well as have the fast pass photogs as well.

I would recoment getting the more close up shots with your own camera as the fast pass ones are more further away. My kids warmed up more to the charcter the more they were around them, the mistake I think we made was taking them to get pics in epcot before taking them to a character breakfast. They were much more warmed up by the breakfast, we did get better pics than.

I would recomend brining your own fold up stroller, the ones that you can rent are hard plastic if I am recalling correctly and not very comfortable, they would be great for older kids but maybe not so great for the little ones.If you have an easy to colapse one you will have no problems and an instant nap area if needed. I cant begin to tell you how important resting is, we tempted fates one day not taking the kids back for a nap and it was a mess by the end of the day. The lack of sleep/rest creates quite a mess by weeks end if they have not had enough rest!

I think wishes is the best first firework experience if your child has not seen them before, we stood inbetween the area of the opening to main street and the crystal palace and they were not so loud that they startled the little ones. I believe that illuminations is a bit louder and than there is the fire, we were over by norway on the rail and boy did we feel that fire !

We packed frozen waters and juice boxes and some goldfish and such for quick snacks and had no problem. Make sure you remember enough diapers if not trained and if so changes of clothes regaurdless in case of any accidents.

I would be happy to help with any other questions please feel free to ask or PM me! You will have a blast!

 

[Nanu57v]

We took DD at 9 months, 18 months and next month at almost 2.5.

For a deluxe, I would also recommend the POLY. Being on the monorail is so nice, and I'm looking forward to doing that instead of needing to take busses everywhere.

Biggest tip-- Take an afternoon nap at the hotel. We tried just letting her sleep in the stroller, but she was in a much better mood when we actually went back and took a break at the hotel.

 

[MrsJ Henry]

Thanks everyone!
I have a hard time warming up to the Poly but i really do hear that people love it there.
I have another question.....
I had forgotten that we would have to bring a car seat and do most people bring their own strollers?
How the heck do you carry all this stuff while traveling????????