Taking our 2.5 year old to DW...helpful hints?

[Catie'sMama]

I posted this about 20 minutes ago, but it has disappeared into oblivion. Or I just can't find it! Anyway, so here goes again...

We are headed to POR in late September. I finally made a decision between POR and ASMo after all the helpful comments from this site. It will be my 8th trip to DW, DH's 4th, and DD's 2nd. Our DD will be almost 2.5. We last went in January, 2004, when she was 9 months old. (She LOVED it's a small world and Figment at Epcot!). Because of her height, we will be skipping the rides with restrictions. The only one I am bummed about is Splash Mountain, but that's okay because it's all about introducing her to Disney Magic! She really, really loves characters. A LOT!! So here's our itenary so far...

Arrive 23rd: swim, relax, with a later dinner at Chef Mickey's
24th: MGM with lunch at 50's PTC and dinner at Sci-Fi
25th: Epcot with lunch at Coral Seas and dinner at Le Cellier
26th: MK with breakfast at CP and POOH! before the park opens
27th: AK and Mickey's BackYard BBQ that night
28th: Leave but not before breakfast at 1900 Park Fare

The only new stuff for us is Aladdin's Magic Carpet Ride and Soaring (which I think has a height restriction). I plan on doing a lot of the shows, as I think she would love them. I plan on her not napping, but we'll see how that goes. If anyone has any helpful hints or things that worked really well for them with a young kiddo or things we should definately NOT miss, I would love to hear them!

Thanks!!

 

[Pats Dragon]

With a 2 yr. old the best adv ice is to let HER take YOU. Seriously, plan on going slow and let her look at everything and play. Plan picnics at outdoor tables where she can run around and explore. Don't miss playgrounds. Be sure she has naps. Fantasyland has lots of rides she will like and she will love the characters maybe (if she isn't afraid of them.) Fountains are fun for toddlers and great to cool off in. One of my children was wonderful at 2 but the other one had enough after an hour or two. The fussiest families seem to be rigidly adhering to a plan in spite of their child's feelings. Everyone has fun if you remember to be flexible. Nothing like seeing everything with a 2 yr. old. They are in awe of birds, flowers, sales carts, other children and things we wouldn't even notice. Have a great time.

 

[tinkerbellsmommy]

We took my dd for the first time when she was 2.5. It was great because everything was free for her and it opened her eyes up to disney for the first time. I would highly recommend Mickey's Philharmagic. My dd still talks about it. Playhouse disney was a huge hit too. It was the first time for her to see Bear in the Big Blue house. She fell in love with Peter Pan during this trip too. She can now recite the whole story book.

Enjoy!

 

[sabrinadv1]

Deffinetly see Muppets 3d in MGM. I am just wondering how ya'll are going to be able to eat all that food you have planned. Sounds good but you sure will be full.

 

[craziefortigger]

My DS first trip was at 2 1/2, we let him decide what was ok and what wasn't. He napped in a stroller or in our arms, liked the characters (did NOT love them at first), ate when he was hungry and enjoyed every moment, every reaction, every second of our first trip with him.
I was laid back and did NOT follow any type of schedule since that time (that was 4 yrs ago) he has been back 7 times (8th trip will be in 44 days!!!!!). He LOVES WDW and LOVES the Magic. He stills "rules" the trips but I'm able to plan a few more things (nice dinners, Cirque de Soliel and such). I wanted him to "feel" the magic and he has every single time. Just enjoy this trip and if you have ressies for dinner I would highly recommend a nap in the afternoon - you know how dinner w/a fussy toddler is at home, it's 3x as bad out in public.

Have fun and Enjoy EVERY SECOND!!!!!

Oh, if you are staying on the property be sure to get a wake up call! Actually what I do is set our alarm clock for 15 min BEFORE my scheduled wake up call. THis gives him time to wake up some and when the phone rings he's quick to get it and really awake to realize who's calling him. I still do this routine on every one of our trips!

Patty

 

[Catie'sMama]

Deffinetly see Muppets 3d in MGM. I am just wondering how ya'll are going to be able to eat all that food you have planned. Sounds good but you sure will be full.

DH and I plan on splitting a lot. But I LOVE to eat! I am now a WW lifetime member, who lost 50 pounds in 9 months, but did NOT lose my love of food!

 

[luv2nascar]

our dd was 2 in June when we went. She loved playhouse disney, all the characters especially Mickey and the princesses. She loved Figment and the Biergarten. She loved the little play area under the exit of splash mt. Buzz light year was her favorite ride. She still talks about Woody Buzz. Have fun and enjoy.

 

[kareneast]

DS's first trip to WDW was at 2 1/4. He loved trying to catch the water in the jumping fountains by the Imagination building. Now at 19 & 6 ft tall, he still loves those jumping fountains, especially since he is tall enough to catch the water to splash at us.

 

[southjerseymom]

Your plans sounds good. I know with my kids (DD2 and DS4) we had to pretty much go with how they were feeling that day. Some days they were up for anything....others days they needed to "recharge" their batteries. The only thing we found was that planning a sit down lunch and dinner was too much for them. We loved Chef Mickey's for dinner and our kids relaxed while we enjoyed some adult time. The Crystal Palace was great. Good food and again they were happy. As far as my kids - dining out is not always what they wanted to do so we made adjustments. I found it really easy to make th PS (or whatever they are called now!) so we had the option of better dining. But most days we did counter service for lunch. They were just too excited by the whole place to justify paying top dollar to sit with squirmy kids. Knowing the different park food options from the Allears site made choosing a place to eat really easy! If you go that route we loved, Flame Tree BBQ, Columbia Harbor, Casey's, Cosmic Ray's, we didn't love it but kids loved Pizza Planet. Whatever you do have a great time. Nothing is better than going to the World with a 2 year old!!

 

[cruiserkaren]

I love reading these posts! We are taking DD who will be 2 weeks shy of her 2nd birthday when we go. It's our 1st trip for all of us. Reading all these stories makes me want to jump out of my skin with excitement. Another thing is over the weekend DD suddenly fell in love with Toy Story! Out of the blue! Right now she is asleep with her cousin's old 'Jesse' doll. This should only aid in her excitement. 20 days to go!!!

 

[WeemanMom]

We are going back next month. DD will be 13, DS will be 10, and the littlest member of our clan, DD, will be 23 months. SO looking forward to introducing her to the 'Disney alternate reality'. I agree, the key no matter the child's age is to be aware and move at their pace.

You might be surprised how much you like pizza by pool side. We were.

:thewave:

 

[Skroops]

already been twice. It is sooo cool to see WDW through his eyes. He loves the music everywhere, and the visual stimulation. The landscaping, the colors, and feeling that it is all for him.
My advice follows what the other posters have said. It really didn't work well for us to have a rigid schedule. A couple of my ADR's were a nightmare. Mama Melroses' was really the worst. He did not want to be there. We ended up getting our dessert to go and ate it with him in the stroller as we walked. I guess IMO, I'd stick to one sit down meal a day. The character meals worked best (although he didn't like Donald Duck at all!). I'd also say to relax and enjoy the surroundings and expect to see just a few things a day. This was hard for me, because I like to have a schedule. It just didn't work out that way. What we learned by our second trip was to have a basic outline of the day. We have one ADR, and one or two "must sees" at the park. Because we still need a nap time, that cuts into the day a lot. Because of all of the new stimuli, he wanted to sleep longer, and I wanted to wake him up! I didn't, but we barely made dinner reservations!
It is such a fun time. You will totally love it!

 

[littleprincessmom]

I am also a fan of taking little ones - they may not remember it, but I'll never forget the look on their faces during those magical moments!!!

Being driving distance from WDW, it is easier for us to go than many and our oldest (5) has been 7 times, and our youngest (3) four times. Like their mom and grandmom, it is their favorite place on Earth!

I agree with the poster above who said let your child take you. I always plan PS's for meals (great choices above, BTW) but we don't stick to a regimented schedule with little ones. Expect meltdowns and go with the flow.

Best advice besides have a ball? Hmmm... here goes..

1. Introduce your child to as many characters as possible before your trip through books, videos, books on tape, songs, etc. The more my children knew about a character and identified with them, the less likely they were to be scared on themed rides or of the characters themselves. i.e., Peter Pan ride not scary at all when you know peter conquers that nasty Hook and saves the day! Avoid Snow white's scary adventures (who is that ride for anywhay?) and prepare yourself to ride Small World multiple times.

2. Despite what you will read on these boards and elsewhere, we do MK EMHs at night. We let the girls take a late and long nap and then head back to the park in the evenings. Some of our most magical times have been at midnight - riding Peter Pan 4 times in a row without getting off (in May, no less), ditto Carousel, seeing Minnie and Mickey at 1:00 a.m. in front of castle with no lines. Are we crazy? SURE! But we don't do this every day!!! It is vacation and you can always sleep in and do breakfast at O'Hana at 10:30 the next morning!

3. Do the shows - Fantasmic, Belle's Story Hour, Cinderellabration, Beauty & the Beast, Little Mermaid, Pocahontas and our absolute fave, Festival of Lion King. Great time to cool off and rest for little ones.

4. If a child is too short to ride, you can get a certificate for most big rides saying that they will be able to ride soon. Don't ask me why, but my little one loves this!

5. Bring bathing suits to park and let them splash around. Have a set of dry clothes to change into after. In May, we took turns riding Kali River Rapids while DD 2 (at time) played in fountains....it is the simple things....!

6. Let her have an autograph book to have characters sign!

7. Politely ask each time you ride the monorail (if it is not a crowded time) if there is room in the front. That is such a treat for a little one to get to "drive" the monorail!

8. Do the parades and don't forget a popcorn and soda or other snack while you wait.

9. Definitely do Spectromagic if it runs while you are there! Little ones love the lights.

10. Be warned that some children like fireworks better from a distance (read: Wishes/Illuminations). My girls are not fond of loud noises although they are gettng better about this. If you can, watch from O'hana's, CG or beach at Poly one night.

11. Give her options and let her make choices.

I truly believe my kids love disney so much not just b/c it is disney but b/c it is one place that I give them my absolute, undivided attention for an extended period of time. No job, working, cleaning, church activities, social activities, etc., etc., etc., - just us and the Mouse!

Have fun and take LOTS of pictures!!!

 

[J and R's mom]

We'll be taking our 2 1/2 yr old AND our (then) 12 month old DDs in late November. This will be my 8th trip but none of my previous trips were anywhere near focused on seeing kiddie attractions...except for the ones I liked (like Figment in journey into the imagination). This is also the first trip I haven't really planned since I already know that most any itinerary I make will be long forgotten with kids this age. I'm also in no rush to see everything or do any kind of commando touring (since we've been so many times before and the girls will be our main focus on this trip).

Anyone out there have a list of attractions that are must sees for kids this young? Rides that their 2 1/2 yr old and/or 1yr old absolutely loved? We're kind of clueless in this area.

 

[dismom]

We took dd in May for her 1st trip. She was 34 mos. Going back again a month from today!! She'll be 38 months.

The most important thing we found was to be flexible. One night dd wasn't feeling well & we made a decision to sleep in instead of doing the morning EMH at Disney Studios that day. We didn't have time to get everything done that we wanted to do, but gave up Tower of Terror & R&R Roller Coaster, so she could see all the shows she would enjoy.

We were surprised that although we had talked up all the characters & she knew them all & was looking forward to several princess meals, once she saw them, she wanted nothing to do with them! This was really surprising. Now, since then, she attending a bday party where Cinderella & Snow White were in attendance, so next month may be better!

Here's a silly thing, but dh & I kept talking about which "park" we were going to, etc....The first day, we went to Animal Kingdom. She rolled along with everything, but when we were ready to leave, she had a fit. Why? Because we still hadn't gone to the park! We told her we just spent the whole day at the park. She cried, "NO we didn't! Where are the swings and the slides???" OMG! She was so upset. So we quickly had to change our description of where we were going. Even still, she was always on the lookout for play areas. One of her favorite things is the play area in Mickey's Toon Town. She played there for almost an hour before we finally decided to try to get her to move on!

She loved Dumbo, Aladdin's magic carpets, the teacups, and it's a small world. Didn't like Philharmagic & the Muppets movie. Fell in love with Ariel...figures, it's the one princess we didn't meet! (Didn't want to stand in line for an hour just to have dd cry once she saw her!) She LOVED all of the boat rides! We stayed at the Wilderness Lodge, and always took the boat anytime we could! To her, that was just as good as any ride in one of the parks!

Bring a swimsuit so she can get wet in the water areas. Wish we had done that!

Rethink the naps...it was hard for dh & I, 2 type A personalities, to put so much time & effort into planning everything, only to have it all work differently than we planned due to bathroom breaks, longer lines, etc. We needed the break almost as much as she did so we wouldn't get cranky with each other by the end of the day!

Most of all, just have fun being w your kiddo!! We've done some really neat stuff w our dd in her 3 short years, but our disney trip is definitely our most magical family vacation!!

 

[ZIPBAGS]

We are going in a week. We also will have my 2 1/2 year old DS. He loves going on rides. And has been watching the Disneyland Fun and Beach Party at WDW videos constantly for the past week.

 

[Yensid_MD]

NAPS NAPS NAPS

Cant reiterate that enough. Go slow, you will go back.

I have seen too many miserable families as they drag they young ones through to accomplish everything. They then probably have a "awful trip" instead of a "relaxing vacation"

Also get the Fairy Godmothers one night so that you can go out just the two of you.

Enjoy!

 

[WeemanMom]

I truly believe my kids love disney so much not just b/c it is disney but b/c it is one place that I give them my absolute, undivided attention for an extended period of time. No job, working, cleaning, church activities, social activities, etc., etc., etc., - just us and the Mouse!

Have fun and take LOTS of pictures!!!

Bravo Bravo Bravo...Well put! I could not agree with you more!

I think this applies to the older children as well. I have a teenager, a ten year old (boy), and the toddler...nothing pleases them more than having their parent's undivided attention.

Additionally, in our family, it's a time when we (up parents) give up much of the control and allow them to make the majority of the decision (within reason, we are still the parents). But they get to chose the directions, the rides, the shows, etc.