travel with an infant

[momoftwogirls]

we will be travelling in Jan with a 5mo old infant and two older children 3 and 6. I am trying to decide what would be the best room/ resort situation for us. Should we get two rooms at POP Century (I'm hoping for an AP discount of $49 per room) or should we look offsite for a one or two bedroom suite? We love being onsite but I think we'd need two rooms because of the baby. I'm afraid that the middle of the night feedings and crying would wake up the older children. The only downside to Pop would be no refrig or washer/dryer in the room. The refrigerator is not a big deal - we always take a cooler and keep water and drinks in it. I was thinking we might need to do more laundry than usual with the baby - spitting up, leaky diapers, etc. Any opinions or experience with on vs. offsite with an infant would be appreciated.

 

[justhat]

We're travelling in May and June with our 1st baby who is due in March, so we don't have any experience yet, but based on advice from other DISers, this is our tenative plan. We're staying onsite for both trips as we figure we'll have to spend more time than normal in the room because of the baby and using Disney transportation would be much easier for us than driving back and forth ourselves. We plan to bring lots of clothes for the baby (and more than usual for us too in case of baby accidents) but of course this is easier for us since we don't have to pack for 2 other kids as well. We're hoping it will reduce our need to do laundry though, and hopefully we'll only have to do it once per trip. Also, when we modified our reservations to include the baby, Disney told us that if we need the refrigerator for medical needs, including storing formula/breastmilk, that we'd get it free, rather than paying the $10/night that they usually charge. Since we haven't done this yet, I can't confirm that it's true, but that's what we were told. Also, since Pop Century isn't open yet and we haven't stayed there, I don't know specifics about the hotel, but I know that we love the All-Stars and would definitely pick 2 rooms there over staying offsite. So if PC is similar at all, we'd choose that over offsite too, if for no other reason than the convenience of being on Disney property. I'm sure others with more knowledge in this area will suggest this too, but look into renting a 1 bedroom DVC unit. That way your older 2 would have their own bedroom and during the day they'd have a space to play too, plus you'd get a washer/dryer and a kitchen. I've never rented points so I don't know how the prices compare, but I'm thinking that you might be able to get one for a little more than 2 rooms at Pop Century.

 

[Ratpack]

Why two rooms? If you have already planned on the amount to cover two rooms at PC, then I would suggest a room at a deluxe such as WL for about the same price as two at PC. We traveled with our 5 month old this July and we had plaenty of room. We only had one other child, but we had bunk beds so another would have had a bed as well. The crib (play yard) fit into a nook beside the TV and left plenty of walking room. Stay on site, getting to and from the parks is much easier on Disney transportation.

 

[momoftwogirls]

Ratpack, I was thinking two rooms so that my older two could get a good nights sleep. I'm anticipating middle of the night feedings and crying from the baby. Does your 5 mo old sleep through the night? I can't remember what age the older two began sleeping all night and not waking up for feedings. I am hopeful that AP discounts will come out soon for Jan and we can get PC rooms for $49. WL rooms would just be a little bit more than two PC rooms with an AP discount. We've never stayed at the WL and would love to but I'm not sure about the limited space. Has anyone else had experience with older children sleepng or not sleeping with a young baby in the same room?

 

[Samandmom]

If your kids are anything like my DS they will sleep through the baby crying. I would think most babies sleep through out the night by 5 months.

 

[ahutton]

Some kids will be sleeping through the night, mostly, by 5 months. One of my DDs did at 3 1/2 months, the other at 7 months, but she had very bad acid reflux and we did lots of small meals for a very long time. At least at that point if you do a feeding around 11:00 you usually don't need another until 6 or 7:00, which is most of the night.

One room option I haven't seen come up would be renting DVC points. If you plan to check in Sunday night and check out Friday it is a very reasonable way to get one bedroom room, with lots of space, and a complete kitchen and laundry in the room. You might check the DVC Rent board.

Another option - I saw this on the Great Hotels show on Travel Channel - is at Wilderness Lodge they have deluxe rooms that have a living area with a roll away bed, then a bedroom with doors that can be closed. If you had the baby in with you and DH the other kids could sleep on the rollaway and have their own TV. Also, for naps and such the older kids can be up and have a place to play while other sleep in the bedroom.