WDW with a 2yr old??

[chicknoodle99]

Hello!
We have just decided to take our first "family" vacation to WDW. DH and I have been there numerous times but our daughter will be just over 2 when we go in January 2007. Anyway, there will be my parents, grandparents, and sister and her boyfriend for a total of 8 plus DD. Can you give me any advice for doing Disney with a toddler? What can she ride on in the Magic Kingdom? We want to stay on the monorail for easy access for naps, etc..

Any tips, advice would be great for these pre-planning stages!

Thanks!

 

[allysmom1218]

We just got back in April from our first trip. It was myself, my DH and our DD who turned 2 four days before we left. In the MK she could really ride alot of the rides. Her favorite was the teacups which we rode about 4 times, she really loved them. She liked just about everyride that she went on, she just sat there in " AH " of everything. The look on her face was worth all the planning and the saving for the trip. She really enjoyed the character meals. I think she liked Chef Mickeys the best. It was really cute and the food was also great. We just took our time enjoying ourselves thru the parks and went along with how the day was going according to our DD moods, which went really well. I think you will find out that it isn't all that hard going to WDW with a 2 yr old. I was really nervous about it, but it was a Great Trip. She did get a little crabby every now and then because of too little sleep (not getting as long of a nap as usual) but all in all it was all worth it. The MK was the best park for her, she talks about the "mouse" everyday. (came home with 4 new Minnies). The best advise I can give you is just do your planning ahead of time which really helped us out alot. (what parks to do on which days and were to eat) Our trip must have really been OK because we are going back in Sept 06 (thanks to free dining) JUST ENJOY!!!!!!

 

[all4fun]

Hi, I recommend you read the Infant and Toddler FAQ on Allearsnet. There's also a Stroller FAQ that you might find helpful as well.

Your dd can ride anything that doesn't have a height requirement. The one ride w/a minimum height requirement my ds (who is tall for his age) was able to ride at that age was Goofy's Barnstormer (kiddy roller coaster) in Toon Town. The height limit for that is 35". Whether you'd want your dd to ride that also depends on her temperament of course. The Height Requirement calculator will tell you which rides at WDW she will be restricted from, if that helps.

hth!

 

[alloyd1170]

My sons first trip was just after he turned 2. My dad & I were the only ones who took him. The beauty of WDW is that there is so much a 2 yr old can do. He loved the Indy Cars (he even drove as he was tall enough-it was a rough ride though), Small World, Dumbo, Carousel, tea cups, Jungle Cruise, train, Pooh, etc. He did not like the Haunted House and still doesnt, and at the time the 3d movies. At MGM he liked the Playhouse Disney, I Shrunk the Kids playground, Little Mermaid, and at Epcot the tame rides. We watch parades and the shows, including Fantasmic which might be too intense for some. At the time, he was afraid of Santa so in prep for the large characters, I got the Sing Along videos (Beach Party, Small World, Campfire) and the free planning dvd. When it came time to meet them, we had to hold his hand for all except Mickey. We saved the character meal for the last day and by then he was used to them.

I dont know how much he remembered on his own, but I think most memories that year came from the videos and pics I took. When we went back a year later, it was a whole other story. From I-4 he recognized DTD and went nuts. He wouldnt stop talking about Disney, CR where we stayed, the monorail, etc (and that stuff was his own memories, not in the pics and on videos). Now we are planning to go in the fall and hes already talking up a storm about all the rides, etc. He still loves the old favs, and fears the big stuff (roller coasters). Hes even telling his 10 mos old sister about it all. I need to start her on the videos so shes ready!

We stay at the CR as I mentioned (monorail-son loves that it runs through our hotel, can see MK and the fireworks, the water parade, and Chef Mickeys is right there which we love). We like the wings vs the atrium too. The first year we went back for lunch and for our son to nap, but we couldve easily have stayed in the parks (I think we needed the break more than him)! January is when we went, and again the following Feb. The weather is iffy temp wise then, and swimming is out. We did have some warm days (70s), but the mornings, and nights were chilly. Stay clear of MLK and Presidents weekends as theyre crowded. Otherwise the lines are almost nil, especially at Epcot (at least in our experience).

alison

 

[2poohbears]

We took our 2.5 y/o twin sons to WDW in JAN/FEB of 2006. They and we had a BLAST! They rode just about everything without a height requirement. Their favs were pooh's ride, it's a small world, peter pan's flight, buzz lightyear's spaceranger spin, pirates of the carribean, triceratop spin (AK), and pooh's thoughtful spot playground. The playground was a real winner! We went one afternoon when it was warm and they played for a good while. Be aware there is a water area, so be prepared with change of clothing. It was warm enough that we removed their shoes and socks to walk around. They were both afraid of the characters for the first few days, but by the end of the trip they were used to them and we had a great character meal with mickey mouse, pluto, chip n dale! One son was also afraid of all the 3-d movies as well as fantasmic. I just made sure I knew how to get out in case he got upset. The CM's are great about helping you get out if you need to. I went in with the philosphy that we would try everything we could and if either boy got upset we would just take them out. I had to remove one son from every 3-d movie, except Philharmagic and we had to leave the minute fantasmic started---I think the noise level is the problem for him.

Stay on your child's normal sleep schedule as much as possible. Go back to the room for naps. You'll all enjoy the trip much better this way. You're going at a great time - crowds are minimal, so you won't have to wait around for much. We're going back on Jan 29 and staying 7 days in 2007!

Good luck! Feel free to PM me if you have any specific questions about our experience with 2 y/o's at WDW.

 

[3princesses+aprince]

There are alot of rides your 2 year can go on and will love.
I recommend a character breakfast/lunch/or dinner.

 

[mrstomrice]

We went last month with our 22 month old. He held up really well and loved the trip! The only bad day he had was in EPCOT, which I think was just coincidence after a drive down and 2 long days in the parks. I do think that EPCOT is tough though b/c you often have to park the stoller outside of the buildings, so you have to be on your toes
We bought a Mickey Mouse dvd for him to watch to get acquainted with the characters, but now that the new MM clubhouse is on, I would suggest introducing him to the characters....something to have him look forward to!
He handled all of the rides so well...Dumbo and the carousel we the top choices! He did well on the race cars and the haunted mansion too.
My best suggestion is to get to the parks early before the crowds get too big. It saves a lot of time in the long run. We made it through Fantasyland in under 4o minutes with no lines at all.
He slept in the stroller during the days that we stayed in the parks and we were able to go on our rides. The monorail worked out well when he was asleep, because we were able to roll it right on (we may have been on a wheelchair accesible cabin.)
Have a great trip

 

[lovethattink]

My son is 2 years old and he loves Disney. We have annual passes and go often. Usually don't stay the entire day at a park. However, on Saturday we were with 1st time Disney guests and did spend the entire day at the park. By 8pm he said he wanted to go home. Yesterday, he was worn out. We had been in the do Disney Rambo style for our company, but it was just too much for the toddler. He even took a two hour nap in his stroller at AK. But I think the combination of being active when not napping and the hot sun wore him out.

With that said above, I was to add that when we usually go to Disney we spend about 6 hours at the parks. That seems to be the magic amount of time that he can handle. He absolutely loves the characters, the attractions (except Snow White's Scary Adventure), the fireworks, the parades, etc. His very favorite attraction is Triceratops spin in AK.

Be sure to bring a few toys with you into the park. If you are doing a baby swap and not taking the child on a different attraction, he might get bored. My son brings his favorite Buzz and Woody figures and often CM or characters will spot him and play with them with him.

 

[Cruz91]

If you're not already convinced you'll have a great time by the other posts - we took our first trip with DD4 and DS just shy of 2. It was absolutely the best. By the time we left, we had already made tentative plans for a 2nd and 3rd trip (and we're not local to Florida - so they're major excursions for us). Personally, I would suggest spending the VAST majority of your time in MK. You know how kids that age are - they can do the same thing over and over and over and over again and still take delight each time. Luckily - I take delight each time in the look on their faces, so it's all good! My son's favorite rides were the the Pooh ride (for which we FP'd religiosly) and the teacups. He also loved meeting the characters, which I thought would frighten him but did not.

Have a great trip!!!

 

[stacylm]

My DD was almost 3 when we went to Disney the first time. And we loved seeing Disney through her eyes. Our first day we got to MK when the afternoon parade was coming down Main St. We had a front row place to see everything. Our DD was shouting all the characters names and waving. Just seeing how happy she was and believing in the magic. I was standing there crying. We got her an autograph book and she was on a mission. We could not believe how determined she was to meet characters. This is a little girl who will be 5 next week and still swings punches if Santa gets to close. The face characters are awesome. We loved the Character Meals. I would recommened a monorail resort if possible. We stayed at POR which was nice. But the convience of the monorail for going back and taking naps, I'm sure can't be beat. I do remember my DD being scared at Philharmagic because it was so loud. Also plan so down time. We had only 4 days and on the 3 at DS she had a major meltdown as soon as we got there. And if you're yelling at your kids at WDW everyones deffinitely over stimulated. We are planning are next trip for 2007 when my baby DD will almost be 3. So have fun planning. You will love it.And what they don't remember becomes awesome bedtime stories

 

[mommystieg]

DD#2 was 26 months old on our first WDW trip. To help prepare her for meeting the characters we bought several of the Disney sing-a-longs. These are great because they show the characters interacting with kids. They were filmed at WDW and Disneyland so your child can kinda get an idea about what to expect. DD#2 watched these and the Disney vacation planning video all the time. I recently found these on DVD at Babies R Us. The ones we have are Disneyland Fun, Beach Party at Walt Disney World, Camp Out at Walt Disney World and Flik's Musical Adventure at Disney's Animal Kingdom.

Your child can ride on anything that doesn't have a height restriction. We did find that at that age, DD#2 was bothered by the loudness in the attractions more than the darkness. So much stuff at WDW is LOUD so you may want to invest in some earplugs. She enjoyed all of the parades and watched Illuminations and Fantasy in the Sky as long as someone covered her ears. She slept through Fantasmic.

We did several character meals that trip and she did really well on all of them. By the middle of the trip she was going up to the characters with her autograph book without one of us having to hold her.

We just kinda followed her lead and tried not to push her limits. We tried going back to the room for a midday break but it took too long--by the time we got to the room, her nap was over. She did nap well in her stroller and we also enjoyed the dark, indoor, air-conditioned attractions such as Spaceship Earth, Hall of Presidents, etc when it was close to her naptime.

DD#2 absolutely LOVES WDW and she looks forward to our visit every year. This year should be interesting with our rambunctious, independent 19 month old Have a great time, you will be making some magical memories for everyone

 

[MPeter]

Thanks everyone for the great advice in this thread. We're planning our first WDW vacation as a family too (DS 2.5). We originally were going to wait until his 4th b-day, but the free dining in September gave us a push.