What's the best Age to go to Disney?

[tif22]

My oldest son is 4 right now and I am ponder the big trip to disney world.
our second child is only a baby so we will go again when he is bigger.

What age is the best to go?

I want it to still be magical for him.

I remember going as a kid but I was older and it didn't have the same magical quality that it probably would have for a younger child.

Also and good trip info/tips would be great ie. discount tickets etc!

THanks,

-Tif

 

[tmli]

3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10.....31, 32, 33, 34....40, 41, 42....51, 52, 53......61, 62, 63.....71, 72, 73......81, 82, 83...you get the picture!!!

I took my son for the first time when he was 3....he is 11 and has been every year since. Every year is a different trip....at 3 he was meeting the real mickey the real characters....they weren't costumed characters. I love being with kids under 5....the amazement and wonder on their face.

 

[Tantor]

I first took my DD when she was 2. We didn't have alot of expectations but we still had so much fun. She was so interesting to watch with all the characters.

 

[abirdd]

I agree with Tracey - there is something so magical about watching the under 5 crowd. They only see the "real" thing, and not a person in costume.

DS just turned 1 during our last trip - and everyone in our section of Crystal Palace had a laugh when he yelled "Tigger". DH and I just stared, since he'd never said the word before!!

The sense of wonder and excitement was priceless, and people at a neighbouring table celebrating their 25th anniversary came up to us and gave him a Tigger pin from their lanyard. All in all, a magical moment and one I've not forgotten...

Spotting Tigger...

Posing with Tigger...

 

[NikP]

We took our boys age 6 and 4 in October for the first time. My 4 yr old loved the characters. He really surprised us. He went on all the rides except Everest and Rockin Roller Coaster. I will never forget the expression on his face when he would greet a character he loved. It brings tears to my eyes even now. His response surprised us. He is a very shy child, but he wasn't at all like that at Disney. Our older son loved Disney too. Our trip was worth every penny spent. Now we are saving for the next trip.

I can't say I would ever take an infant. I think this is just too much work for me. My boys were very demanding as infants so I am sure this has something to do with my opinion. Maybe I would think differently if I had and easy going laid back baby.

 

[dhluvsDisney]

I'm with the "any age" crowd here! Our youngest was 2 when we first took him and everyone advised us to leave him behind. We are so glad we did not listen at all! He may not remember, but the rest of us sure do! I know that's purely selfish on our part, but he still has a lot of cute and adorable pics and video. I would easily take a little one again. Matter of fact, looking forward to having grandbabies. They'll be going right after they're born! HeHe

 

[Disneydaddycanada]

I am in total agreement with the previous posts. We took our DD5 when she was 2 yr. i remember my mom telling me she won't remember anything. My DW and my thought was sometimes you have to live in the moment rather than creating memories. She had an amazing time, we did not do alot of rides She was not a risk taker at 2 yrs old. The next year we went and she really surprised my wife and i with what she was willing to do.

We are off in 20 days and my DD5 has no clue that we are going again. She thinkings the family is coming with me on a business trip to Vancouver. She will get the surprise of her life when she is given a "special DVD" at the airport lounge from a flight attendant which is a video message from the big guy himself( Santa) granting DW and mine Christmas wish to spend Xmas in Disney World.
She has asked so many times when we can go back... all we say is we have to wait till DS1 is 3 years old.

 

[wee-haggis]

Our kids have been there almost year since they were babies......
Every year is as good as the last !

 

[Allegro]

39 ....

 

[bigredsfan]

we are going for the first time in 35 years for me in March, lol. My oldest daughter is 6 and will have a 8month old baby girl with us as well. Of course the baby won't remember much and hopefully she isn't too much work. We are going for the 6 year old as she is all Princess Once the youngest is old enough we hope to go back for sure..

 

[Debbie]

I can't say I would ever take an infant. I think this is just too much work for me. My boys were very demanding as infants so I am sure this has something to do with my opinion. Maybe I would think differently if I had and easy going laid back baby.

My youngest cried her entire first year. She screamed the first night in the hospital, and she never stopped. The first time she smiled, she was in the swing (to stop the screaming) and we were eating supper. My oldest, 9½ at the time, ran to get the camera. "Quick mom, she's smiling!" No schedule for that one!

I'd promised the oldest 3 that we'd go to Disney the year that she was born-we'd waited 5 years-and off we went (5 kids-2 months to 8½). You know what? She slept! She loved being in the Snugli everywhere we went (the 2½ year old had the stroller) and she slept. My favourite memory was the baby, tucked in the stroller, rolled under the front table at the Hoop-de-Doo.

Yep, she slept through the noise, the music and the dance. Babies are easy at WDW, and the characters love to see them! Great pics!

 

[biggroofy]

My little princess first visit Disney when she was 20 month-old. Of course, she didn't do all the rides, but she enjoys the Merry-Go-Round, and It's a Small World a lot. She was so happy to see Mickey, Minnie, etc. A little bit shy when she met some stranger characters.

We returned to WDW when she was 2.5 year-old and this time she enjoy more rides - Dumbo, Magic Carpet, even Buzz lightyear. She loves Toontown and meeting with Mickey. She also liked the Playhouse Disney Show in MGM, traveling around the world in World Showcase. Of course, the character dining experiences bring her memories and she kept talking for another year.

Early this January, we visited WDW again (she was 3.5 year-old). This time she began to chase the characters, wanted to meet all the princesses and ask for autographs. She took many rides and attended many shows - and enjoy the pools in the resort too!

Being a Canadian - i think it is a good "excuse" to escape from the Canadian cold, and plan a visit to WDW with your toddlers or little kids. We are looking forward to our next trip - our first DCL trip

 

[slapwhitey]

I know this probably will not be a popular response. Please no flaming.

I believe it is probably more about behaviour than age. I also think that you have to let the child dictate the vacation. I have to preface by saying I've been with young children who have had a blast and made the trip that much more enjoyable for me. At the same time, I recognize that the majority of the other 50 000+ visitors in the park may also be there on a trip of a lifetime. I don't want them going home and the only thing they remember about small world or PoTC is the fidgety, crying, fussy kid that sat behind them. I can fully admit some children are more than fine on the attractions but at very young ages I also feel it would be my responsibility to make sure I'm not deteriorating the experience for others. That being said, there are plenty of things to do with children that do not involve a lot of attractions. I firmly believe that age 5 or 6 is a good age to start. I've been with younger and had a great time. If it's a trip of a lifetime I think I'd wait until everyone was tall enough to enjoy all attractions.

Just one man's opinion........apparently not the same as my wife's. Hi honey

 

[F4disneyfan]

My oldest son is 4 right now and I am ponder the big trip to disney world.
our second child is only a baby so we will go again when he is bigger.

What age is the best to go?

I want it to still be magical for him.

I remember going as a kid but I was older and it didn't have the same magical quality that it probably would have for a younger child.

Also and good trip info/tips would be great ie. discount tickets etc!

THanks,

-Tif

Our kids staryed going at 7-8 months old other than our oldest who was 3 on her first trip. As for the others we started them all very young. Honestly there truly isn't a bad age to start them at.

 

[Disneydaddycanada]

I know this probably will not be a popular response. Please no flaming.

When we brought our DD5 (she was 2 yrs old we had the mind set "don't push her if she does not want to go. Maybe we missed alot of rides but that is just one of many things Disney offers to all ages. We will be down in 19 days and my son just turned 1. We can already see a big difference in him to my DD5 at the same age. This little man has very little fear so we will try some and see what happens, but if he is unconfortable then we do something else.

On one thing I shake my head at is those parents that push their children to far. I always think that if an adult did not want to skydive and someone push them is it the same as making a young child go on a rollercoaster ? Probably in child's mind it would be.. MO only..

 

[tmli]

I know this probably will not be a popular response. Please no flaming.

I believe it is probably more about behaviour than age. I also think that you have to let the child dictate the vacation. I have to preface by saying I've been with young children who have had a blast and made the trip that much more enjoyable for me. At the same time, I recognize that the majority of the other 50 000+ visitors in the park may also be there on a trip of a lifetime. I don't want them going home and the only thing they remember about small world or PoTC is the fidgety, crying, fussy kid that sat behind them. I can fully admit some children are more than fine on the attractions but at very young ages I also feel it would be my responsibility to make sure I'm not deteriorating the experience for others. That being said, there are plenty of things to do with children that do not involve a lot of attractions. I firmly believe that age 5 or 6 is a good age to start. I've been with younger and had a great time. If it's a trip of a lifetime I think I'd wait until everyone was tall enough to enjoy all attractions.

Just one man's opinion........apparently not the same as my wife's. Hi honey

Hi Honey!!! I won't flame you for disagreeing with me....even if you are wrong.

Just kidding, I actually agree with you. If you are planning to bring younger children you do need to have an understanding that it is a different trip!

 

[drag n' fly]

The earliest we brought the kids was at 23 months. To answer the op's question however the best age IMO is the "magical" 40 inches!

 

[goldwest]

I read somewhere it is a good idea to test your child out on characters before taking them when under 6. It seems like a good idea to me. If you watch any Santa line up you will see that some children are more upset and others love it. Also the families expecations can be a big factor. My boys were 4 and 8 on our first trip and it was very magical. We choose not to ride many of the big attrations (let our 8 year old choose a few and we did the switch pass thing) Our kids really enjoyed the atmosphere. They also enjoyed the shows. I agree that each trip is different as they grow. We go every 2 or 3 years depending on finances and each trip has been a new experience. We are headed to DW instead of DL this time and yougest is now 10 so this should be a new experience again. Hope this helps.

 

[goldwest]

I read somewhere it is a good idea to test your child out on characters before taking them when under 6. It seems like a good idea to me. If you watch any Santa line up you will see that some children are more upset and others love it. Also the families expecations can be a big factor. My boys were 4 and 8 on our first trip and it was very magical. We choose not to ride many of the big attrations (let our 8 year old choose a few and we did the switch pass thing) Our kids really enjoyed the atmosphere. They also enjoyed the shows. I agree that each trip is different as they grow. We go every 2 or 3 years depending on finances and each trip has been a new experience. We are headed to DW instead of DL this time and yougest is now 10 so this should be a new experience again. Hope this helps.

 

[michelle1]

I know this probably will not be a popular response. Please no flaming.

I believe it is probably more about behaviour than age. I also think that you have to let the child dictate the vacation. I have to preface by saying I've been with young children who have had a blast and made the trip that much more enjoyable for me. At the same time, I recognize that the majority of the other 50 000+ visitors in the park may also be there on a trip of a lifetime. I don't want them going home and the only thing they remember about small world or PoTC is the fidgety, crying, fussy kid that sat behind them. I can fully admit some children are more than fine on the attractions but at very young ages I also feel it would be my responsibility to make sure I'm not deteriorating the experience for others. That being said, there are plenty of things to do with children that do not involve a lot of attractions. I firmly believe that age 5 or 6 is a good age to start. I've been with younger and had a great time. If it's a trip of a lifetime I think I'd wait until everyone was tall enough to enjoy all attractions.

Just one man's opinion........apparently not the same as my wife's. Hi honey

I completely agree with you. Kids are not created the same...I have seen 5 year olds on space mountain who are absolutely thrilled and 5 year olds screaming on Peter Pan because it is too dark. I have pictures of myself in DL as a baby and toddler and while my parents probably had a great time, I don't remember it. I always tell people who ask me, if you think you will only be taking 1 trip to WDW than make sure to go when it will be memorable for everyone.