WDW with an 18 month old

[Piglet]

We are heading to WDW at the end of October. Oldest DD will turn 11 on our trip. This trip we will be taking our youngest DD for her first trip. Tell me about taking a 1 1/2 year old.

What kind of rides will she enjoy?? Any tips?? Personal Experiences???

Melinda

 

[ajcolorado]

Walt Disney World Resort features "theme parks" - not just "thrill parks". Walt's intention from the beginning was that the whole family would enjoy the experience. As the oldest park, the Magic Kingdom most reflects that goal but there will be good options at each of the parks. You could easily fill two days at Magic Kingdom. Disney-MGM Studios is a good choice if your child is not going to be bored by shows and productions.

The whole family will be able to do these attractions:

Magic Kingdom:
• Its A Small World
• The Adventures of Winnie the Pooh,
• Peter Pan's Flight,
• Cinderella's Golden Carrousel,
• Snow White's Scary Adventure,
• Pooh's Thoughtful Spot (play area),
• Enchanted Tiki Room (show),
• Jungle Cruise,
• Magic Carpets of Aladdin,
• Pirates of the Caribbean,
• Country Bear Jamboree,
• Tom Sawyer's Island,
• All of "Mickey's Toontown Fair" with the possible exception of Goofy's Barnstormer,
• Tomorrowland Transit Authority,
• Buzz Lightyear Space Ranger Spin.
• Parades, fireworks and other live entertainment.

Animal Kingdom:
• Kilimanjaro Safari
• Rafiki's Planet Watch,
• The Boneyard Play area
• 2 Animal Viewing Trails
• Triceratop Spin
• "Festival of the Lion King" (great show)
• "Finding Nemo - the Musical". (great show)
• Pocahontas and Her Forest Friends" ( OK show - geared towards little ones)
• Street performances
• Character Meet-and-Greet opportunities.
• "Mickey's Jammin Jungle Parade". (A favorite of my family’s)


MGM Studios - how well can you keep the little one occupied while trying to enjoy a show? Disney-MGM Studios has some great shows:
• "Lights, Motors, Action!",
• "Indiana Jones Epic Stunt Spectacular",
• "Beauty and the Beast Live".
• "Playhouse Disney Live on Stage".
• Voyagle of the Little Mermaid.
• "Muppet 3-D" is not scary - but is a little loud.
• "Fantasmic" will also be fine though possibly a bit scary.

Epcot:
I think Epcot is WONDERFUL when traveling with a little one. Maelstrom (Norway pavilion) and Honey I Shrunk the Audience 3-D might be too loud or scary.

Future World Area:
• Spaceship Earth,
• The Universe of Energy (Dinosaurs & 45 blessed minutes of air conditioning)
• Journey into Your Imagination with Figment
• One of the Innovention pavilions has a lot of things geared for little ones.
• “The Seas with Nemo and Friends” is great for kids – marine life & “Turtle Talk with Crush” are fantastic.
• “The Land” has a character meal
• Princess meals at the Norway Pavillion.
• Character Meet & Greets all through Epcot
• Jammitors are a “Stomp” like percussion group
• The boat ride at the Mexico pavilion is similar to “It’s A Small World” - but is currently closed for refurbishment until April 2.

Keeping a little one occupied may make it hard to enjoy the American Adventure or the Circle Vision movies in China & Canada. If I was going to choose one, I’d go with the China movie. The American Adventure is a good spot for a nap.

World Showcase Area:
• Kids are intrigued by the model train at the Germany pavilion.
• Most kids love wandering through the Morocco pavilion.
• Japan Pavilions - There are Koi fish in the pond. Japan has three great things for kids – “Matsuriza” is a traditional drum act; “Miyuki” is a very neat candy artist, and there is a Japanese Storyteller “Honobono Minwa”.
• France Pavilion - The “Serveur Amusant” (France) is a comedic balancing act.
• Italy Pavilion - Sergio (Italy) is a juggler.
• The Outpost - “OrisiRisi” is the drum circle and African Storytellers (Mon- Fri)
• China Pavilion - Kids always love the Dragon Legend Acrobats because they are children too.
• Some kids will enjoy “Off Kilter” (Canada) – bagpipe rock, “British Invasion” (Beatles sound in the U.K. pavilion) and “MoRockin” (Morocco) – Middle Eastern pop sounding band.
• IllumiNations is the evening fireworks show and it is excellent.

Epcot takes a little advance planning so that you see the entertainment that you want to see - some starts earlier in the day, others a little later in the afternoon.

 

[Perditamarie]

What fun!

Definately plan to visit the play areas in each park to give the little one a chance to stretch her legs and run about freely (careful, though, there are some opportunities to get wet!).

Bring a cooler bag stocked w/sippy cup & juice/water/ snacks. You will love the convenience-- you don't want to have drop everything to search for a snack. Pop a snack in your pocket when going to a show or waiting in line. Don't forget the ziplock bags!

A hip hammock or sling carrier will work great in lines, especially when DD is sleepy.

The baby centers are nice to calm down, cool off and stock up.

Get a must do list from dd11 so you can work that around baby's schedule and everyone knows what to expect.

Find a raincover that fits your stroller well -- it's great to tour when its a little rainy and kiddos don't mind in their cozy stroller.

If flying, ship baby supplies to yourself at your resort or order from some place like gardengrocer.com to make packing a bit easier.

Have a great trip!

 

[MamaOfTwoPrincesses]

We just went in January with our then 5 year old and 17 month old DDs. Read my trip report for lots of ideas. My 17 month old had a great time!

 

[Hoosier Mom]

We took our son last September during free dining.

On the flight down, we gave him a new toy and fed him cookies during the non-stop flight.

We packed little applesauces, toddler disposable spoons, indv wet ones, disposable sippy cups, and a couple good insulated sippy cups. Also we were glad we had the spray mister fan. It was miserably hot. Took the Maclaren umbrella stroller with the large sunshade added on.

We stayed at CBR. We got a little tired of lugging the stroller on and off the buses. We wished we had stayed at the CR for the monorail service. We loved the quiet pool and the laundry room was nice.

Our resort giftshop sold 1/2 gallons of milk and loaves of bread (and even peanut butter). Dustin did great at all the restaurants. We did bring the little soft cooler with the applesauces and even a p.butter sandwich in a baggie. He mostly ate what we ate, but on occasion he had a sandwich.

Each morning at the food court, we filled his insulated sippy cup with ice water (also poured ice & water in the mister fan).

He liked all the rides except the teacups. He got a little scared at the Indiana Jones show.

Because of the heat, we did parks all morning and then had lunch. Then we went back to our cool hotel room til 3:30 or so.

He especially liked Cosmic Rays and the Coral Reef. Also the character meal at Garden Grill was excellent. He kissed Mickey Mouse on the nose.

Try to head to Fantasyland first thing. We noticed it was pretty empty until about 10:00 or 10:30 am.

It seemed like at Epcot we had to carry him a lot in the buildings because they didn't allow us to bring a stroller in.

I think there's a link at the bottom of my post to go to our trip report. It has some photos. By the 7th day, we had seen all we cared to and were exhausted, but happy! I think next time we are going when it's cooler, and maybe only for 6 days.

Have fun!!

 

[randbmom]

Highlights from that trip for us were mostly at MK. We spent at least three hours at Toontown. Minnie's house was a big hit. We went when it wasn't crowded (early December) and we had the whole house to ourself for a while. The playground near the train station was also good for a long exploration. Donald's Boat was another big discovery zone, except that we had to wait for the weather to warm up to midday before letting him explore the water fountains at that time of year.
The Laughing Place is a nice little playground near Splash Mtn to wait out while others ride. He could have stayed there for an hour if he had his way. The train was also fun, and an easy way to get from one part of the MK to the other.

 

[Tikicampers]

DS made his first trip at 18 months, and it was so much fun, we have already been back (with DD at 2 months). Make sure you have lots of room on your camera's memory card. Our pictures from both trips are priceless.

My number one piece of advice is to be prepared to take things slowly. If you go at your child's pace, you'll have a great time.

 

[zaza]

We took our 18 MO GrandPrincess in May. We had our own stroller and wouldn't do it any other way. There's too much walking (and carrying!) at the resort, airport, etc. to rent in our opinion. We had a plastic placemat
($12 at Babies R Us or order from www.onestepahead.com) that we used for meals so she didn't have to eat straight off a table--it is a wonderful invention! We carried packets of Clorox wipes to clean it off after meals. We took plastic bibs, but discovered she wasn't wearing a bib if everyone else in the restaurant wasn't! The afternoon nap break was invaluable. For us, it worked best for one person to go back and start the nap. The other could go back to rest once she was asleep or just tour. It's a great treat to look at the Emporium all by yourself! We stayed at WL and found it was very convenient, given that we spent a lot of time at MK. Be at your morning park at rope drop--saves you lots of time. Be sure to use baby swap on the big rides. We took her small pillow and blanket--made it easier to get her to sleep. We also had a small fan (for me) that helped her to sleep--it made white noise that blocked out the boat horn--that's the only outside noise we could hear. We took Gerber Graduate breakfast bars and other snacks and had Garden Grocer deliver milk, cheese, apple juice, fruit cups, bananas, etc. She did a great job at our TS meals--we were on DDP so we had a lot. We used a small soft-sided cooler to keep juice, etc. cool during the day. Put ice in a zip-lock bag to prevent leakage. We took cheap plastic ponchos and clothespins, and covered our stroller when we went in to a show, meal, etc. It protected it from rain and also made it easier to find if CMs moved it. She loved the little playgrounds, but sometimes had trouble with bigger kids bullying her--the kind that seem to be there without any parent. That's all I can think of now--ask if you have specific questions! Above all, have a great time. It will be different from any other Disney trip you've done, but SO much fun!!

 

[Piglet]

Thanks for all the info. Really looking forward to this vacation!!!!

Melinda

 

[KristiKelly]

Your DD will have a blast. We went last Sept w/ our 3 kids, youngest DD was 15 mo. She LOVED it!!! She loved all of the characters, especially dinner @ Crystal Palace with the Pooh characters. We also had to buy her one of the big Mickey balloons. She rode all of the rides that didn't have a height restriction. Just remember to take it slow and go back to the room for a nap if you need it. Our DD wouldn't take a nap in the parks - scared she might miss something.

Have a great trip!!!