Taking my 18 month old tomorrow

[lisard]

Hi there. I'm new to these boards. Tomorrow I'm taking my 18 month old son to MK for the first time. (I'm a FL resident pass holder, but I've never been myself...first time for both of us.)

Some background here...My son is SUPER high energy, hard to entertain. He LOVES, LOVES, LOVES Sea World. Doesn't sit well for the shows, but loves to ride around in his stroller or walk and look around.

Will he like it? Are there any rides for him? I'm a single mom, so it will just be the two of us. Anywhere he goes I go, and anywhere he doesn't go, I don't go.

Also, will he enjoy any of the other parks? I would like to take him to AK someday.

Any tips would be greatly appreciated.

L&J

 

[henrylovespooh]

My daughter was about that age when we went two years ago. There is lots for your 18 month old to do. Take him to Toontown so he can play on the playground there and he can walk through Mickey and Minnie's houses. My daughter loved the Pooh ride, the carousel, the Peter Pan ride, The Country Bear Jamboree, and the Dumbo and Carpets of Aladdin ride. There is so much to see that your son will love looking around.

Try to keep him in the stroller, though, when you're walking through the parks. It's very easy for a little one to get lost - and tired.

Animnal Kingdom is great for little kids. My son and daughter loved all the animals. It's a big park so a stroller comes in very handy here. There's a nice train ride to a petting zoo (better when your son is a bit older) and a dinosaur boneyard to play in (again, when he is older).

Have a great trip.

 

[mom2att]

My youngest is 18 months and like you, we have the FL Resident Pass. We activated our passes in Jan. and have made 6 trips to the parks since. We've been to each park at least once, and ds has had a great time at each. Our older children are 8 and 4 so most of the rides and attractions we do for them while the little one just goes with the flow, but that doesn't mean he doesn't love them! You definitely won't lack for things to do at the MK--our ds loves the Pooh ride, Peter Pan, Buzz, the train, I could go on and on. There's also a great play area at Mickey's Toontown Fair where our ds would play for hours if we let him! You mentioned AK--all of ours love seeing the animals on the safari ride, and the trails are a great place for little walkers to get some energy out. There's also a train to Rafiki's Planet Watch, which has a petting zoo that my little guy thinks is great. Don't forget EPCOT--mine loves the Living Seas, Journey into Imagination, as well as walking around World Showcase. MGM is our least favorite park, but if your little guy likes Playhouse Disney, make sure you catch the show there.

There's nothing like seeing Disney through the eyes of your child--have a great time, and enjoy those passes!

Barbie

 

[ophie]

henrylovespooh's suggestions are right on. Your son will have a blast. There's plenty for him to do. He'll probably like Buzz too. But, as was also mentioned, it's easy for small ones to get lost. You'll want to be sure that you have his name, your name, and your contact info on him.

Are there any characters he's partial to?

 

[lisard]

Thanks for the info... and don't flame me, but I have a harness for him for the out of stroller times. He is really active, and he is much happier on the harness than in the stroller all day.

As for Playhouse Disney, we'll definitely check it out. The kid LOVES Bear in the Big Blue House, The Koala Brothers, The Wiggles, and JoJo's Circus. Bear and Tutter are his favorites.

Thanks again! And we still welcome more input. (We live in Orlando, so easy access to all of the parks.)

L&J

 

[skiptomypooh]

First, you'll have a great time with your 18 mo. There's so much to see and do. We took our first son for the first time when he was 19 mo. He loved it. We didn't have an agenda, just did what he liked, and it was great. Now my second will be 22 mo's in April when he makes his third trip!

Of course, the other posters named many of the fun things already, so I'll just give you two hints I found helpful from these boards:

1) This is pretty obvious, but be sure to have in mind a couple of places in each park where you plan to let your son loose (or on the harness, whatever makes you more comfortable!) and let him run around. There are several playground areas in each park. It lets them get their energy out and then you both will be happier to stroll and just take in the rest of the sites.

2) Bring along a bathing suit AND change of clothes (maybe for you too) with a couple plastic bags. Many of the more exciting play areas have water play and your son is bound to be soaked. Some of our favorite moments/pictures/videos are of our sons splashing and frolicking in the water. When they're that young, they are fascinated, just trying to figure out where the water is coming from. It's so much more fun when you don't care how wet they're getting.

Oh, and this isn't particular to Disney, but I had to carry a few extra 'bribes', fruit chews or raisin boxes, to entice them to leave the play areas. Sometimes that's the hardest part!

Relax and enjoy. With the passes and close proximity, you'll be back to enjoy it all again soon!

 

[lisard]

Just got home from MK, and DS had a GREAT time. We didn't do many rides today, but he LOVED Buzz!! Next time we will try to ride more rides. Pooh was a little slow for him, so next time we'll try Dumbo, I was afraid he'd be scared, but now I don't think so.

Thanks for the advice.

L&J