What to do about naptime?

[cubfanjen]

My husband and I are taking our son to DisneyWorld in June. He will be 14 months old. We will not be staying at a Disney hotel (my husband is going for work, so our hotel is paid for by his company). I wanted to stay at the Contemporary so we'd be walking distance from the room for naptime, but it's too expensive, so we'll stick with the hotel that my husband has (a few miles away from Disney). I've been to Disney a lot...but never with an infant. I'm trying to figure out if i's feasible to leave midday, go back to the hotel for a nap, and then head back to the park. Will that be too much effort? Anyone have any suggestions? Also...any suggestions for what a 14-month-old will enjoy at the parks?
Jen

 

[califred]

When we styaed in a house last year we did that on several days, just make sure you get there early!

 

[lovesdumbo]

On my trips with my youngest at age 11 months and 20 months she napped great in her stroller-something she wasn't doing at home. We did go back to the resort for the 4 & 3 years old to nap. I bet you'll be fine staying at the park-bring a comfy stroller.

My DD loved Small World, Dumbo, and the boat ride in Mexico. At 20 months she LOVED walking around outside after dark.

 

[EthansMom]

If you don't find it feasible to leave the park for naptime, try to find a quiet spot for your son to nap in his stroller.

For my son, who doesn't nap in his stroller, I was able to get him to fall asleep in the stroller by taking him on the monorail. You can just roll your son on in the stroller and ride the monorail in circles -- seems to work like taking a cranky baby for a car ride. I do recommend taking a book or magazine to help pass the time for you!

 

[bartty]

My dd, 13mths, napped in the stroller....didn't bother her schedule a bit!

 

[all4fun]

Another stroller napper here! We would also put the canopy up and put a stroller cover on to block out the light (we have the one by Kiddopotamus - A regular sheet or blanket would work as well. You might want to bring a couple of clips in case there's a breeze.) We also tried to find quiet areas to be in but I will admit sometimes it's tough. I do like the monorail idea. I wish I had thought of that! While at MK you might also take a boat over to the Wilderness Lodge area and just walk around for a bit. It may be a little less hectic than the park.

Like the pp said, if you want to take a midday break from the park, then definitely plan on being there at opening otherwise you won't want to leave once you get there.

hth!

 

[elan]

Ours napped in their strollers too. We've never used them but the baby care centers might help when it is time for napping. Quiet dark rides worked great for us. The TA and the MK railroad helped ours fall asleep too.

 

[Mary Anne]

I too had a stroller napper. In fact, I've got pictures of him asleep all over Disney, we captioned them with "Are We Having Fun Yet" He was 15 months then; he's almost 17 now. I too vote for letting them sleep in the stroller. He'll be fine.

 

[beth_cam]

Mine slept in the stroller at 2.5 years and we just kept right on going switching off who stayed with the stroller when we got to rides. As far as going back to the hotel...we stayed at an offsite hotel when I was a teenager and my brother was 9 or so. We did go back to the hotel mid afternoon then back to the parks for the evening. We did this to give ourselves a break.

 

[CleveRocks]

I've been trying to figure out if i's feasible to leave midday, go back to the hotel for a nap, and then head back to the park. Will that be too much effort? Jen

Sounds like exactly what I did both times I was at WDW as an adult with no kids in or party either time!

-- Eric

 

[dcgrumpy]

my kids have always fallen asleep in their strollers even though they don't do it at home. It's amazing, they'll sleep through Illuminations and Wishes. I sneeze at home and they're awake. Each of them have fallen asleep on POTC a couple of times. I guess the dark and sound of water knocked them out.

 

[nygrl]

My husband and I are taking our son to DisneyWorld in June. He will be 14 months old. We will not be staying at a Disney hotel (my husband is going for work, so our hotel is paid for by his company). I wanted to stay at the Contemporary so we'd be walking distance from the room for naptime, but it's too expensive, so we'll stick with the hotel that my husband has (a few miles away from Disney). I've been to Disney a lot...but never with an infant. I'm trying to figure out if i's feasible to leave midday, go back to the hotel for a nap, and then head back to the park. Will that be too much effort? Anyone have any suggestions? Also...any suggestions for what a 14-month-old will enjoy at the parks?
Jen

forget about the baby i need a nap LOL we stayed off site when my ds was 2 and every day we went back for a nap for all of us... we got to the park early left about 2 or 3 took a nap and went back to the park around 6.... i really feel a break in the day is good for everyone!! we found we had pleanty of time.

 

[2dogmom]

I have 1 DD that's a great stroller napper (wouldn't nap in the room when she was 2), and the other would prefer a room nap(15mo) but would doze in the stroller too. I would say see how your first day goes, then you can decide if you need to go back to the room.

 

[erinch]

we did the monorail back and forth to epcot a few times when in those parks. It is slow in the afternoon; we had a compartment to ourselves and DD napped away.

 

[lovesdumbo]

I LOVE the monorail idea! My DD did fine napping in her stroller in the parks at 11 months and 21 months but I'm not sure how she'll do at 33 months and I'm not sure taking her back to the resort will make her nap either. When I took my oldest at 3 1/2 I went back to the room every day and she NEVER napped. The A/C brought her right back to life and then she fell asleep every night at 6pm and we would stroll around Epcot with her asleep in the stroller.

At 11 my DD fell asleep both times I took her on safari at AK.

 

[diznygirl]

I've taken the monorail over to one of the hotels and sat in a comfy couch while DS napped in his stroller - he can sleep anywhere, anytime! DD is a little more difficult, but she still sleeps in her stoller. I recommend the lounge at the Contemporary - you can get a drink and a snack while baby sleeps.

If your luck is anything like mine, your son would wake up as soon as you got back to your hotel!!

 

[SnowBound]

You will most likely find the stroller naps will just happen, and they are wonderful. As you are going in June, you may consider purchasing a battery-operated clip-on fan. They are nice to have on those days you can't buy a breeze. We use rechargable batteries, and keep a couple of sets with the stroller. We take the charger with us and re-charge them in the hotel for the next day. Really nice to have.