Touring Advice needed - 5 yo boy

[Liisa]

My husband and I have been to WDW several times. Next year we are planning a trip for the two of us plus my brother-in-law, his wife, and my 5 yo nephew. The difficulty is that my husband and I have no children so we have always planned our trips focusing on more adult activities - nice dinners, thrill rides, late nights.... I'm hoping that I might be able to get some advice here to help me plan this trip. What rides do adventurous 5 yo boys like or don't like, what are the best places to eat, tips, strategies, etc. etc.

Thanks for your help!!! This will be my nephew's first trip to Disney and I'm hoping to make it a very magical experience for him.

Liisa

 

[SqueakyMouse]

My 5 yo ds became a thrill-ride junkie during our October visit. He rode MS, TT, ToT, BTM, etc. several times. On our upcoming March trip, he has requested that our first stop be at SM!

Ds loves everything Disney. I don't think there is a single attraction he won't visit. He also enjoys the parades and night time shows.

TS meals, on the other hand, are not a favorite. He kind of enjoyed CP, CM, and WCC during our December visit; but he really preferred fries from Pecos Bill's and other quick bites like that. Unlike our younger dd who couldn't sit still for a meal, ds had no problem with that -- he just enjoyed the quick CS meals (especially the kid's chicken leg meal at Tusker House) more.

Have fun! Seeing WDW through the eyes of a 5 yo is a blast!!

 

[disnut8]

We took our just then turned five year old granddaughter on her first visit a few years ago. What an experience! She didn't even know she was going until we were onsite. So no preparation for her.

I had visions of enjoying all the attractions with her, having been told she'd be fearless. Yeah right. For about ten seconds after we entered the queue for Pirates of the Caribbean. After that, she rode almost nothing. She was afraid of the dark, of fire, and water coming into her face. Didn't leave too much to enjoy.

Except we did. She loved Epcot and the countries. She didn't mind sitting outside Twilight Zone and waiting while the adults rode (she was with an adult the whole time). She ran around the old Swan boat area with me while the other adults rode Space Mountain. She tried to go through with Dinosaur but was very relieved when my husband took her out before we boarded. She loved the Boneyard at Animal Kingdom and we practically had to drag her out after the Flights of Wonder show. She pouted when we wanted to take the Pangani trail and then it took over an hour to complete the thing.

I guess my advice to you is to slow down and take your time. We kind of were forced to do it the first time (she's been back since and it was a totally opposite experience) and we were so glad we did. Very different perspective.

One note - we did have a cheap fold up umbrella stroller. She didn't need it all the time but when she did, it was priceless. Something to consider for your nephew. We were told the girl would walk circles around us but after walking in a park all day long, she loved having it to be pushed back to the car. I think five year olds are the make or break point with strollers. Tired adults don't really want to be carrying a tired child back to the buses or the parking lot.

 

[TeamMMouse]

5 years old is a great age for DW. He will love it. My tips are:
- get a stroller as a back-up
- At MK: do the motor speedway (a favorite), Buzz Lightyear (definite favorite), also some of the thrill rides if he likes that (space mountain, thunder mountain, etc.)
- At MGM - loves Sci-Fi Drive In Theater for lunch, ToT, Rockin rollercoaster if he likes thrills, Honey I....playground, also the shows are great.
- At EPCOT Test Track, Honey I shrunk the audience (if he likes thrills); plus our boys always enjoy the video games & things to explore at Innoventions --good place to regroup a little
- Also AK is really fun for that age - the digging playground, tricertops spin, etc. Lots of fun things there.

He will love it! Have fun.

 

[Liisa]

These are all great. I hadn't even thought that he might not like sitting through a TS restaurant... I hadn't gotten much further than thinking that he probably wouldn't like Bistro de Paris! (Can you tell I don't have kids?!!)

I guess I'll be looking at everything a bit differently. Now I've got to remember that the snake in Honey I shrunk might be a bit intense, same with the bugs in It's Tough to be a Bug!

If anyone else has any thoughts / suggestions, I'd welcome them!!!

Liisa

 

[tricia]

Of course, a lot depends on what the child is used to. My oldest DS has been at 3, 5 and 6 yr old. Youngest at 18mos and 30 mos.

Things I know about my kids: They get cranky if tired. They get cranky if hungry. They get cranky if thirsty.

Things I did to avoid this crankiness: Kept early bed times (on a 10 day trip only stayed out for fireworks or night shows 2x). Kept early ADRs so the kids could eat at a time they were used to. Always had a bottle of juice or water with us.

My sons are very used to TS restaurants, so we did not worry about that. Just did what I do any other time, brought something extra to entertain them so that the adults did not have to rush. (depending on child that could mean anything from crayons to a Gameboy)

 

[Goofy Rulz]

We were in WDW last March w/DD8, DS4 and two nieces 7 and 5. An occasional character meal does wonders. It keeps them entertained while giving you the opportunity to sit down and enjoy a decent meal. They loved Crystal Palace and the adults enjoyed the food. As for regular TS, try to select a restaurant that would be entertaining to the eye (i.e. Sci-Fi Diner at MGM; kids loved that too). As for the types of rides, you're best bet is to try a few to feel your nephew out, depite what your inlaws may say ("oh he'll be fine, he's a daredevil"). My son kept say "I'm going on that" but when on it, was freaked out by one thing or another. His first ride at MK was POC and that small unexpected hill totally scared him and every ride in the dark after that was "is there a hill?!" Believe it or not even Peter Pan spooked him because of the darkness. He was a trooper and tried most rides but usually clutched my arm so hard that I had to pry his fingernails out of my skin. Most of our videos from the trip are laced with "is it over yet??!!" We're going again in June and he says "this time I won't be scared mom". It's easy to be brave 1200 miles away. We'll see. You probably avoided Fantasyland or at least didn't make it a top priority on your visits. Well that will change w/your nephew. That should be the first land you hit and hit it as early as possible. Try to throw in an afternoon break back at the hotel/pool if possible. And carry some snacks and juice or water around with you. I found that it came in handy when we were stuck in a line to just give the kids a snack to keep them occupied and quiet.

 

[DizznyChick]

read some trip reports-some of them are really funny and have great ideas for touring the parks
5 y/o is a great age
i started with my son at 6(wish i didnt wait so long)
we had a few problems at 1st-he was afraid of BTMRR
but then he wanted to do SM
so once we did it-he wanted to do everything
just play it by ear-be relaxed and so will he

 

[Gupbrat]

When our son was 5 he really liked getting the characters autographs. You might want to surprise him with an autograph book before you go. Also, the pressed pennies is still a hit with my 8 year old DS. He loved looking for them before and after the rides and looks forward to adding more this March. You can purchase a Disney holder for all the pennies. He might also like the whole pin trading experience with the cast members if he is the outgoing type. A BIG must for us at this age was a swim break. Hope this helps!

 

[ReninDetroit]

First of all, I HIGHLY recommend purchasing Kim Wright Wriley's "DisneyWorld With Kids 2006".

And second of all, I don't think the trip will be that much different with him. 5 year old boys are more like adults when it comes to touring than you might think. The real differences are with the girls (princesses, tea cups, etc.)

While he may want to ride Aladdin's Magic Carpet, Pooh, Dumbo, etc...there's a GOOD chance that he'll also want to ride the thrill rides with the grown ups.

The dining will probably have to change, as the more adult restaurants don't please the chil'ren as much as PrimeTime Cafe, SciFi, Crystal Palace, etc etc. But that's not to say that you can't still have nice dinners with him. (Or there's always resort babysitting )