Will my two year old enjoy disney?

[newddmommie]

My husband and I are planning on taking our daughter to disney when she's two and a few months next december. We are also brinning my parents and dh's mom. My question is for people who've taken there toddles, do they enjoy the trip (the kids that is)? We'll be going slow and doing what she wants as we will have just been last october. Thanks for your input and tips.

 

[seeking pixie dust]

We took our daughter for the first time at 21 months. We had a blast. She loved the Playhouse disney shows, It's a Small World, Toontown, etc...but her favorite thing was all the fountains. I think if you don't have high expectations, you'll have a great time. My daughter at that age was scared of all the characters.

Now, we are leaving in two weeks and taking our daughter (just turned 5) and our son who will turn two a few weeks later. I've been showing him all the rides and shows on You Tube and the Disney World website - he can't get enough of it. It's really neat to see what they like at different ages. We also took him at 8 months (daughter 3.5), and he was great - loved the sights and sounds.

Have fun!

 

[koolaidmoms]

The best advice anyone ever gave us before we took our 18 month old was that if you do this think of it as a trip for them and not for you. My DD loved it and has been back 6 times since and is just about to head for her 7th.

Going slow, realizing that big characters might be frightening, watching the video of the parks with her beforehand so that she can see things that she may remember may all help. In all honesty my DDs favorite part of the entire trip the first time was the ice machine and the pool. By her second trip she loved the Fantasyland rides, the EPCOT fountains and Playhouse Disney and she was 2 1/2.

Maybe DM & DF or MIL can watch DD for night while you are there so you can go do what you want. Have fun and just enjoy being together as a family. You will be fine.

 

[DVCsince02]

Go slow, take afternoon breaks or naps, and don't expect her to love everything (she won't).
You'll have wonderful memories with this in mind.

 

[my3sons77]

We were just at Disney Oct 25-Nov 1. Our 2 year old LOVED it. He had SO much fun. His favorites were everything! His highlight though was when we took him to Playhouse Disney LIVE. His eyes got so big and he started dancing and singing along.

 

[DisneyCowgirl]

We took our 2YO in May (he was 27 months) and he LOVED it! Learned immediately what standing in line was--get in this line and "wait your turn" and then the fun ride happens--we had no trouble with that. Last week he and I were looking at pictures from the trip, and he does remember it. For example, he pointed to the Dumbo pics and told me, "I like Dumbo," and that Dumbo goes up and round and round. (Dumbo was definitely his favorite ride.)

Bring your stroller and snacks and the camera and have a great time!

 

[DisneyCowgirl]

One more tip--the character meal at Garden Grill is great for this age. Ask for one of the booths that faces out into the Land ride. It is quiet and calm compared to other character meals. And it includes Mickey Mouse!

 

[Captain_Oblivious]

You'll do great. We originally thought we'd never take the kids until they'd be able to remember the trip, but then we realized our 2-year-old cost us nothing, so it didn't matter!

For some reason, he didn't want to do the Tower of Terror, though. Chicken.

 

[adventure_woman]

OH MY GOODNESS! My DD had so much fun when just her and I went in August. (she was almost 2). We are going again in January with my DH too. I know Disney, I have been there a million times, a former cast member (it has been about 7 yrs now since I worked there) and I have NEVER had more fun than watching her in August. Please let me know if you have any specific questions or just want to chat, I could talk about it forever!!

 

[wlwilliams9]

We took our DD at 10 months, then again at 22 months and we had the best times! DD would actually cry when we would return to our villa. DH and I would be ready for a break and she was ready to keep on truckin!! Your little one will have so much fun! I would do a character meal to see how she likes being around the characters. You don't want to wait in the character greet lines only to find out your DD won't go near Mickey!!

 

[newddmommie]

Thanks so much. I already excited about this trip and it's not for another year. We just went in October (just Dh and me) and i missed her so much and kept talking about her getting to see it all. Keep the good tips coming.

 

[jackskellingtonsgirl]

Just pay LOTS of attention to her reaction to things at home so you will know what to avoid when you get there!

The little girl I nanny is 2 (she'll be 3 in January). She is PETRIFIED of anyone in a costume (Santa, Easter Bunny, kids on Halloween, you name it), she is afraid of shows that take place in the dark, she is afraid of parades, she is not terribly fond of strangers speaking to her. At IHOP one day a man in a Shriner hat tried to pat her on the arm and she came completely UNGLUED. She is afraid of Maleficent on her Sleeping Beauty movie, and she refuses to go to the living room from the play room by herself to get a Kleenex because Maleficent might be in there.

As much as I LOVE WDW and I can't wait for her to have her first trip, it would be silly to plan to take her now. Everything would frighten her, and she would make everyone else miserable. I am hoping she will be better by this time next year so her parents can take her for the first time next December.

 

[disneymamaof2]

We went in May and are going in Dec, DS 3 keeps asking every day if today we go see Mickey. I think yours will love it too!! Enjoy!!

 

[PJAY]

My husband and I are planning on taking our daughter to disney when she's two and a few months next december. We are also brinning my parents and dh's mom. My question is for people who've taken there toddles, do they enjoy the trip (the kids that is)? We'll be going slow and doing what she wants as we will have just been last october. Thanks for your input and tips.

We took DD7 when she was 27 months and she STILL talked about it up until our last visit in Oct. We mostly stuck around Fantasy Land and Toon Town and every day she took a nap in the stroller or strapped to mom. One of the best things we brought was a covered umbrella stroller that folds. Many good tips in thios thread like preparing her for the sheer size of the characters. We did the same and she ran up and hugged every single character--even the villains!
The tip saying to thinkof it as a trip for her more than you is good too--when we went to AK, we thought she would love It's Tough To be a Bug but forgot how intense it could be. DD wouldn't do it this last time around and doesn't like any of the 3D shows now because of it!
Have fun and take in her reaction, it could bring tears to your eyes

 

[lilybrooke14]

We took DD in October at 2 1/2 and she had a BLAST!! She actually sobbed for about a half hour when we got home because she wanted to "go back to my hotel". She loved the characters, and we had to wait in line to meet Ariel at her grotto twice, because she was just enthralled with her. We actually skipped going back to the room for naps, because she handled everything just fine, and napped in her stroller if she did get too tired. The only time she had a melt down was when we tried to take her back and make her nap one day. She wasn't having any of that. We did make it a point to get plenty of sleep at night, even if it meant missing rope drops or the fireworks here and there.

We were on the dining plan too, and the Table Service meals were a nice chance to sit down and have a little break. It really was a wonderful trip, and I would highly recommend taking them at this age. She keeps asking when we're going back to see Mickey Mouse again, and when she can go see Ariel again.

We did do a little prep work before we left. We watched the Disney vacation DVD over and over (she would actually request it) so that she had a bit of a visual. We took her to Chuck E Cheese and made sure she saw him, because that's the only character we could think of close by. And I sat on the computer and let her look at some of the ride throughs of the rides on Youtube, so that she had some concept of riding those rides. We also made it a point to take her to a local theme park last summer and let her ride some of those rides, since it was less crowded, and that way she had a little experience.

Have a wonderful vacation, and take lots of pictures!!

Oh, I forgot, I also picked up a couple of the Sing A Long videos that they have out that were filmed at Disney World. They've got the characters in there in costume, and she enjoyed watching them, and I hoped that she got the idea that they were bigger than the kids and the kids were having fun with them. I found them at Babies R Us.

 

[dsneygirl]

We took DS in Sept when he was 26 it was the most fun trip we've ever had. His favourites were the safari at AK and the fish at the Seas. Every day he asks to look at pictures and thinks every bus we see is going to Animal Kingdom Lodge.

 

[aanderson5]

We went in April and DS had a great time. He still talks about it. I agree take it at their pace. We got there early and did a tonne of stuff before it got busy, went back to the hotel for nap/relax time and then returned for a few more hours after dinner. Here is a picture of him demanding, through his tears, that we return to MK.

 

[brightvalleyjrts]

OMG! My son absolutely had a blast when we took him!! He was 2 years 4mths. We really went for my 5 year old, but it was way more magical for Owen. He was in awe of everything. I cried when he first saw Pooh bear and ran to him. And then he did the same thing to JoJo. It is just so priceless at that age.

Sorry to hijack your post, but I just have to share a few pictures of my 2 year olds excitement at disney!!!

 

[aaronlisar]

We took our first family trip three years ago with our only child at the time and he was two. We are getting ready to leave next Friday with all three of our kids (5, 2 & 1). Our 5yo still remembers things we did at Disney three years ago when he was 2.

 

[DVCisME]

Both of my children have gone numerous times before the age of three. A really great thing for them was booking character breakfasts. It gave them more interaction time with the characters, which they liked. They rarely liked having to wait inline and then being thrown at the character just for a picture (we learned that lesson early!)