What did your baby NOT handle? I want to be prepared!

[westie55]

Hi everyone!

First trip with a baby is quickly approaching. I've read these boards quite a bit and have gathered lots of tips and tricks. It really seems most infants handle the parks quite well! I know every baby is different, but I'm curious... what experiences did your infant have a really hard time with? What did you think was the hardest part about Disney with an infant? Rides, shows, whatever! Don't worry, I can't be scared away

 

[brandylouwho]

It has been a few years since we had babies, but our little ones were very easy in the parks--easier than when they were toddlers for sure. Making sure we had downtime in air conditioning was important (if going in the hot humid months). That might be a break back at our resort, a TS meal or some time at the baby center. I had one scary moment at the MK. I was holding our infant and found myself in a tight crowd of people. I kept thinking I was going to fall or I was going to drop her and she'd be trampled. That was likely more of a fear in my head than a reality, but I made a very conscious effort to stay far away from big crazy crowds after that (such as the hordes of people leaving the park after Wishes).

 

[2DisPrincesses]

For my youngest, NAPS!! My first DD would nap in the stroller whenever she got tired. My second, not so much. We ended up having to go back to the Resort to have her nap which really broke up our day. However, we got used to that routine and have only now began staying in the Parks all day again and she's now 7.

 

[StirlingSilver83]

We took our 8 month old son on Pirates of the Caribbean, LOL...he cried the whole time...After that any dark rides we did he cried on them lol...he wasnt impressed with jungle cruise, but he loved the characters! took him back a year later, he was around 20 months then and to him characters = bad, LOL, but he loved the princesses (little flirt!).

 

[Mousemommy1]

The last time our youngest went, he was 3 months. He handled everything fine. As long as he could eat, sleep and get his diaper changed, he was all good. I have a feeling that he will be a little harder to entertain on our trip in 3 weeks - he'll be 15 months old.

 

[Betty Rohrer]

the one thing daughter found was she, mom could not handle the carrier as much as she planned in the sticky heat. she, mother, was over heating. but that is not stopping us as we have another trip planned with a very young one. birth mother of oldest can refuse to let him go if he misses school just because she can. so we can only go when school is out and not her holiday involved

 

[ayz75]

We took our daughter when she was 5 months old. She was great and really easy going (she napped in stroller and carrier), the only thing she hated was the great movie ride at hollywood studio, the gun shots really startled her!! So just keep that in mind.. loud rides might not be great for babies.

 

[Crystal824]

My oldest as a baby could not handle fireworks and characters. My youngest didn't mind those, but really disliked the baby carrier at WDW. I think it was just too hot for her. It really depends on the kid.

 

[Minnesota!]

Older son hated the characters. Only attempted one meet and greet and decided that was enough - no need to torture him, the character, or the people within ear shot. Pretty hilarious.

Also, both my kids would get explosive diarrhea when they were babies in WDW. Not sure if water, sun, richer food, etc. Just kept well stocked in diapers, wipes, and butt paste.

 

[pixie08]

1. Naps. My lo was 13 months on our first trip and will be 19 months on the next. He still takes 2 naps and really needs a good one in a bed cooled off. We let him nap in the am in our carrier or stroller but always went back to the resort after lunch for a good nap before dinner. At 13 months he really couldn't make it past 8pm either so as you can see a large part of the day involves sleeping. Be prepared and just know you will only do a few things each day. Build in downtime daily and just pick the top things you want to do. If you do more, great!
2. Dining. Character meals (he loooooved characters at that age) or buffets were just easier. The atmosphere was laid back and we ate at our own pace. He really couldn't sit 2 hours through a meal. We did one signature and it was good but he got antsy towards dessert and I took him outside while dh finished up with our friends.
3. Use the baby care stations in each park to change, relax and feed you lo if need be.
4. He loved almost every ride. He was just starting to walk so he liked to run about in little areas away from things. We picked certain things we thought he would like and it worked out.

 

[kam1011]

Hardest part for me was around 10-12 months and mobile - they didn't want to sit on rides or shows, didn't want to be held in line, etc.

 

[teddygurl28]

My 15 month old-
Not a fan of characters up close. From a distance was fine but she wasn't happy when they got close (however this got better as the week went on.

Being stuck in the stroller. She was just learning to walk and wouldn't stay with us to walk just wanted to run so she needed the stroller and often she would just need to run off energy but there was no place for her to where we were

 

[AshleeH]

It depends on the age. At 4 months old, my daughter handled everything beautifully. At 18 months old, she hated the non-face characters, but that was easily remedied by telling the handlers and they always steered the characters toward my boys.

 

[l4dyj8]

We went at 3 months and then a month later with an overnight stay.

The first trip, was completely fine during the day. We did not do any rides but took lots of breaks. I BF and used the baby centers often. However, due to the busy surroundings, it was hard for her to nap. It was too warm to wear her in a carrier. But we still have her in an infant seat that attaches to the stroller. Towards the end as we went back to the car, she screamed. Too tired and overstimulation.

2nd trip: stayed overnight (DL) to take advantage of breaks. She did just fine. Basically, keep to the feeding and nap routine. Break away from the group to do this. Love the baby centers.

Also, our first DD went at 20 months old. Loved every ride: small world, Pirates, haunted mansion... We only did rides with less than a 20 minute wait. We went at a busy after Thanksgiving time too. Totally doable

 

[l4dyj8]

Oh have to add.. Like pp, did not like the non-face characters as well. Basically, A little scared to see a giant stuff animal moving around.

 

[DopeyDame]

Heat. As long as we kept him reasonable cool, he was fantastic.

 

[DisneyParkLover]

My son has been at 2 months, 15 months, 22 months, 24 months and 27 months. He was not scared of anything on any of those trips. It is only now at almost 3 that I am starting to notice him being fearful of certain things. That's one of the reasons I think a trip with an infant is so great. They are usually very go with the flow! With the first trips he was fine to sleep in the stroller, but on the last couple he has really needed a good nap at the resort midday.

 

[T00dles]

TS rez in the middle of the day, with our family near to 11 is better. Its such a nice break. Buffets are OK, but can be some work with littles. But they also eat right away so there's that.

Also some littles can be scared of dark rides. Some aren't. Try an easy one first like Pooh to see how it goes. We had great fun when we went with a 4yo and 10 month old!

 

[EPCOTgrl1]

So I have taken my baby at 4 months and at 8 months. 4 months was easy and she did great. She really rather be held then in the stroller so we did a lot of baby wearing. At 8 months we needed to be back at the resort between 6 and 8p. Her bedtime was between 6:30 and 7 so she was just really tired at the end of the day. She also didn't do well at shows, just to wiggly.

Both trips she was good at restaurants, rides and with characters.

Good luck with it all!

 

[twinz]

I took my daughter at 5 months old, she liked everything EXCEPT POC. She fell asleep but woke up for Wishes, watched it then fell right back asleep. I am taking her next month when she will be 17 months old (turning 17m on our trip), she loves to walk everywhere. I am not too sure what to expect.