To take a rest break everyday or not?

[Kalea]

Try it one day and see how it works for your family.

Last year was our first trip, and we took our 9-yo DS and 3-yo DD. Neither of my kids are nappers, but DD will sometimes just crash and sleep for an hour or so. Notably, she crashed in her stroller in the parks, and never slept back at the hotel.

We did 8 days of parks, made rope drop every day, and took midday breaks maybe half the time? Many of the days we didn't take breaks, we stopped early. We often got caught up in doing One More Thing. A FP, then we pass by a ride with little/no line and decide to ride, then we see a character with an impromptu meet & greet, then DS wants to stop by the store... then 90 minutes has gone by and there's no time for a break.

This year is our second trip, and we're planning for a few breaks with a little more self discipline.

 

[baseballnut]

Our DD wasn't a napper, but we went back to the resort every day and that was the best thing for us. We'd go swim for a bit or just chill out and rest in the room, with the shades closed, and pretty much always napped -- DH and I included!

Breaks are good for everyone, no matter the age. Unless maybe you plan on being back for bed by 9 p.m. (or sleep in late). Otherwise, the break allows you to unwind (because it's A LOT to take in) and then go out to enjoy the rest of the night and stay out late at a different park or two (with parkhoppers).

We're going again in July and I have scheduled nothing from 1-4 each day so we can swim or nap. Plus those are the busiest and hottest times of the day, so we'll be saving ourselves some headaches, AND, BONUS: enjoying the parks at night when they're less crowded.

 

[hpsalb]

We took DS at 2.5 this time last year and took a break each day. We had PH and it was a short trip, so we would usually head back to a different park after the break. DH made me promise to tour like this again for the future

We are headed back, so DS is 3.5 now and we are taking my niece who is 6.5. We are staying for a week and have 5 park days, with a break day thrown in. If we plan to stay late, we will take a break. If we are not taking a break, we will have some down time at the park (show, etc.) and head back late afternoon/early evening. We are alternating those days so one day we take a break and the next day we stay.

I do hate that we miss park time taking a break, but we usually leave about the time it gets hot and come back to see large crowds of miserable looking people leave for the day. DH made me promise that if missing a few hours keeps everyone in good spirits, we will do it!!

 

[Mcterry]

We are at DW right now and we are currently in the room with both kids (15 months and 3) napping! We were at EPCOT and only rode a few rides and it really isn't too hot today and my kids were exhausted!! I'm hoping this means they will be fresh for our 7:10 dinner reservation tonight!!

 

[GWhitten98]

It really depends on your kids and what you have planned for the day. Our kids were 15 months, 3 and 5. We had some days that where we went all day with no break, some with a break and some that started late or ended early. Here is our rough schedule...

Arrival day -- MVMCP (6-midnight)
Day 2 -- AK from 10ish to 5 (Dinner at Boma at 6)
Day 3 -- MK 8am(early ADR) to 4pm
Day 4 -- Epcot 8am(early ADR) to close with 3 hour break mid day
Day 5 -- HS 9am (mid day ADR/relax in park) to close
Day 6 -- MK 9am to 1pm/resort afternoon/Chef mickey dinner at 7
Departure day -- Character breakfast and hit the road

We only truely had one really late night and that was the start of the trip, even the two nights we closed Epcot and HS kids were in bed by 10.

 

[DSNY4ever]

We have never gone back to the the hotel to nap. We do plan in a break day midway during the trip to just relax and swim, but going back to the hotel during the day for a break wastes too much time for us.

We took DS at 2 and even though he was down to only one nap a day at home he actually napped twice a day in Disney! I think it was because he was hot and excited and his energy level was running on overtime . But he was a great stroller sleeper and so anytime he fell asleep we'd take that chance to do a child swap and ride or do something that he was too little to do.

His unexpected naps did blow a lot of the planning with the magic bands, but we sort of had to ignore the magic bands and just go about our day and enjoy ourselves- and if one of the times worked for us then great, if not, we'd try to change it or let it go. I found that type of scheduling with a small child in tow very annoying.

 

[monorailsilver]

For me I always did a mid day break. As a kid we would hang out by the pool but it was really just the MK and Epcot.

Since I have had kids and we go in the summer, we...ok me...are up by 6 and dh shortly there after as are the kids. We are out the door between 7-7:30 and we have had breakfast since we bring it and eat in the room.

So since we are up early, breaks are crucial, more so when it is hot.

My oldest has gone 4 times and the last time was last August. She was 12. She napped! If she didn't she would of been miserable. I napped too but naps sometimes make me more tired. My ds was 9 and he napped and my dd was 7 and yep, she napped. So us went back to the park at about 5 til closing. On Epcot nights we'd rush back after illuminations and watch wishes from the poly and then go to bed.

We also took non park days to really recoup!

So it all depends on your family. My ds, now 10, can survive with little sleep and by survive I mean he doesn't get crabby, nasty, mean, rude, etc.. My oldest is a miserable girl when tired and my youngest isn't the greatest either in the pleasant department.

 

[kam1011]

We usually do it every other day.

 

[baldy6060]

I was always anti returning to the room. When my son was little he napped in the stroller. When they were all grown up I didn't feel we needed to. When my wife & I went sans kids we went on the kttk tour. Afterwards it was super hot & busy. We basically walked around aimlessly. We were getting cranky and my wife had a wardrobe malfunction. We reluctantly went back to the room (WL). We cooled off, ate a sandwich, enjoyed our boat ride there & back and we returned refreshed with shorter lines. So if it's easy to do, go for it. I'm just worried about this next trip with a 15 month old staying at Pop.

 

[Ravenne]

Time is so limited (for us) to begin with, we don't see the benefit of wasting an hour or more returning to the hotel room in the middle of the day. If someone wants a rest, we find a less populated area, chill for a while, and then move on when everyone is ready. But that's just us!

Ditto! Maybe if we had a car, it wouldn't be so bad, but one of the biggest reasons why we go to WDW is to not have to deal with car seats so we have to rely on Disney transportation which can easily be a 2 hour ordeal round trip to go back to the resort for a break...and that's not even including the break itself. I think of all the trips that we've been to WDW we only went back to the resort for a break once, and that was because it was a longer stay and we had the time to. It was nice though, but it took far too much time.

 

[Kingdome8]

We never go back for naps....I've been twice with a one year old.
We normally try to have a off day in middle of week for pool and hotel time.
Me and my family love to swim. But park days once were there we're there.
They have always napped in stroller. Sometimes we eat or just walk around while there sleeping. Or me and older kids ride while my wife watches baby. Then we switch. We're going in September and she will be two. Older kids are 11,7. No plans to go nap. Now for us the only full day park is magic kingdom and hollywood studios. Have never done full day at Epcot or animal kingdom.

 

[TinaLala]

We never go back for naps....I've been twice with a one year old. We normally try to have a off day in middle of week for pool and hotel time. Me and my family love to swim. But park days once were there we're there. They have always napped in stroller. Sometimes we eat or just walk around while there sleeping. Or me and older kids ride while my wife watches baby. Then we switch. We're going in September and she will be two. Older kids are 11,7. No plans to go nap. Now for us the only full day park is magic kingdom and hollywood studios. Have never done full day at Epcot or animal kingdom.

Not everyone needs a nap we usually never go back for a swim. We usually go swimming at night. When they were younger we might have gone back for a swim if they needed it, but like you they usually napped in the stroller

 

[amygphillips]

We have never gone back for naps. We took my youngest when he was 15 months and at 33 months. He did just fine taking little cat naps in the afternoon. We usually open and close with the parks (so very long days) And they have always done just fine. My kids normally go to bed at 730 to 8 at home but not Disney week. We do normally have at least one day to rest and swim and relax during the week so that does help some. Most night my youngest 2 fall asleep on the way out after the fireworks though. For me a week in Disney is not enough time to do everything we want and to take serval hrs out of each day.... Then we would lose a lot more time. Have a great trip! You will make the right decision for your family!

 

[PartOfYourWDWorld]

We don't go back for naps necessarily, but for a much needed break from the heat, walking and hustle and bustle of the parks. The kids love to swim, so they can do that if they want, or just relax in the AC. It also gives us adults a chance to out our feet up and freshen up before dinner. This break also allows us to keep the kids out later. We're more close the park people and very rarely make into rope drop.

Now we go pretty much every year, so I can see how it would be different for the once in a lifetime trip people. But the bottom line for us is that it's a vacation, and staying in the parks and being on the go all day is just not our idea of a good time.

 

[emilik]

We planned to go back for mid-day rest (children 4 and nearly-2) but decided at the last minute, by which I mean several weeks in advance LOL, that it wasn't worth the travel time. I also knew that if we went back and the littlest *didn't* nap I would be really irritated that we bothered to and probably grump about it worse than an overtired toddler.

I was so torn because I was convinced she wouldn't nap in a stroller either (we are never on-the-go nappers and this was the first time she had ever ridden in a stroller) but she did! Each day after lunch we found a super quiet un-populated spot in the park (they exist!) and my husband would do a brisk walk/slow jog to lull her to sleep and then we would pull the sun shade all the way down and do something quiet with my 4 y/o - get a snack and encourage her to lay back in a stroller while she ate it, watch the performers in Epcot, browse the Main St. shops in MK, wait in line for a character etc.

The 2 y/o took a good nap every day and my 4 y/o was tired by the end of the day but never melted down - we didn't stay super late, out of the parks by 7:30, and we didn't do any mornings that were earlier than they typically wake up at home. I think it was a good balance and I'm really glad we didn't spend so much park time on travel.

 

[JillShari]

It all boils down to knowing your kids.

I have a 4 year old who has a tired time of day, who if we are in the car at the right time will fall asleep. If he does, we can be out late. My 8 year old doesn't nap, but will complain about tired feet. So, we did go back everyday and we really loved it. After too many late nights, my kids get really cranky and not fun to be with, so we made sure we had nights where regular bedtimes were maintained also....so that was 8 o'clock for the youngest and 9 for my oldest. And we successfully avoided almost all meltdowns during our entire stay....so we were all happy. My youngest napped 2 days and the adults did too! My 8 year old chilled. On those two nights, we got to stay out late without the crazy meltdowns that would have occurred otherwise.

I know that we made it to the parks within 15 minutes of opening and we rode most rides within those first 3 hours or so. It got really crowded midday, so I was excited to get out of there.

Honestly.... whatever you do, know your kids, know what to expect, and that will make things so smoother.