Bringing my son to WDW!

[maddenfamily]

Hi,

I am new to this site but wanted to say hello. Myname is Mike. My wife and I are bringing my almost 2 year old to Disney from January 6-12th. We are staying at Wilderness Lodge and are very excited! Anyone have advice on bringing a child that young? I know it may seem like a watse but I think he will really love it. I actually worked for WDW from 98 to 03 and I miss it so much. We are living back in PA now and I am excited to see my sons reaction to the place! So any recomendations or suggestions on what to do or what to bring please let me know! Like I said, I did work there so I know the place pretty well, but I am relativley new to the parent thing and have never enjoyed it through my kids eyes!

Thanks,
Mike

 

[coltow]

Awesome! My youngest is almost 21 months and will be there for his 2nd visit next week. We are very excited for him. He loves to watch Mickey & friends on tv and play with his Mickey toys now. We think he'll have alot of fun. We plan to spend most of our time at MK.

My only real suggestion is to try to stick to his usual schedule. If his nap is usually x time to x time, try to stick to it, everyone will be happier in the long run if eating and sleeping is not disrupted.

 

[mickiegraphics]

Welcome to the Boards! :wave: (I know it says i just joined but it's only because I haven't posted very much.)

My husband and I are taking our now 4 month old to WDW in May/June. So I haven't had any experience taking a child with me but if you look in the trip planning section on the boards they have a "traveling with Kids" section. I have found this area VERY helpful.

I probably don't need to tell you that you will defiantly have a different trip then you have in the past. Just remember to take it slow, enjoy every moment, and take lots of pictures/video so you can show your child when they are older.

~Michelle

 

[CAPTAIN HOOK]

Welcome aboard :wave:

My youngest was two the day after we returned from our first trip - she enjoyed herself but was scared silly by the characters - introduce your son to them slowly

 

[MichWolv]

I took my son the first time at 8 months, then 18 months, and every year since then (he's five now), with a couple trips to Disneyland in between. My only advice is to be entirely flexible on what you will do, in terms of schedule, attractions, etc. For the first few trips (up until last year, really), we had a lot of trouble predicting what Aaron would like and what he wouldn't. And things he liked one trip, he didn't like the next. For example, we though he'd love Pooh, but he didn't -- the completely enclosed environment bothered him until he was almost 5. We thought Soarin' and Test Track would be too much, but he loved them as soon as he was tall enough. We thought he'd like FotLK, and he did when he was 2, but hated it when he was 3. On the other hand, he's always liked the bird show.

So do your best to guess what he'll like, but be prepared to change plansif need be. And as others have said, make sure there are naps and rest breaks. My son actually never got really crabby from being tired at WDW, no matter how late we stayed, as long as there was some quiet time during the day.

 

[maddenfamily]

Thanks for all the great advice! Very helpful!

 

[JenJas87]

I hope you have a wonderful time! I just finished a CP at Wilderness Lodge and on my first day on the floor a child about 2 ran up to me and gave me a hug! This is a great age to bring kids because they will be so excited and im sure they will get plenty of attention from CMs. I would just say from observing many parents with small children it might not be a bad idea to take a day off to sit by the pool and relax.

 

[VT GAL]

Welcome to the boards!!!!

You are in for quite an awesome experience!!!! It is a trip that you will never forget! My DD is almost 2 1/2, and this will be her third trip.

Here are a few things that we do to that have been helpful:
- Pack back up outfits (with socks and all) in a ziplock bag to take into the park, so if he gets super messy it will be quick and easy to change him.
- We made what we call a 'gosh darn' box which has any and all medicines we all may need, single servings of pedialyte, and some sort of solution for anything that I could think of.
- This is our first potty training trip, so I bought a travel seat and am bringing post-its to put over the sensors. It works everywhere else...
- Make sure to bring small activities (the dollar store is my best friend for this one) for restaurants to keep him busy while waiting for food.

Also, I would strongly suggest getting photopass. I wanted to make sure that I was able to experience her first trip rather than worrying about my photography skills '

Have a great time! If you want any more tips that have worked for us, please feel free to pm me!!!

Shelley

 

[C.M.O]

Its never to early to visit Disney. My daughters first trip was when she was 18months. She doesn't remember much, but I do!

Biggest thing to do with young children is to take naps! It is so important.

I am sure there is more, when I think of it I will come back. lol its early, i am still sleeping :ROFLOL:

 

[SAV]

My dd has been going to WDW since she was 1.5 yrs old and my DS has been going since he was 1.5 Yrs old. It will definitely not be a "waste". They may not remember it all, but you sure will. They will be having fun in the moment. Take a bunch of pictures and assemble them into an album after the trip. My kids both love to look back on their trips WDW.

Try to remember to bring a towel or something to put over the stroller when it's Nap time. I always liked to find a quieter part of the park with bumpy pathways to "rock" them to sleep in the stroller.

Make sure to visit the WDW with kids forum on this site for more tips.

Have a magical trip.