I can't recall a time that Disney ever allowed wagons in as strollers. in fact, on the WDW Faq page, it's one of the first things listed:
In that case they were just being consistent with policy.
No shirt, no shoes, no service. If their feet touch the floor, there need to be shoes on them. Again, it's a consistency thing. I get your frustration, and yes, they could just as easily crawl on something sharp and pointy, but if the rules state that everyone needs their shoes on then *everyone* needs to have shoes on regardless of age.
No..their policy states that guests must wear shoes at ALL times. So everyone child that kicks off their shoes at any point during their visit is violating Disney policy. How many of you had a Disney employee point that out? We are trying to be consistent with the rules after all regardless how inane the rule might be.
But you're right, we should have researched and read all the fine print. We just had no reason to think we wouldn't be allowed to bring something for our children that was an obvious necessity rather than a luxury, especially when no other place we've been to has an issue with it.
My kids all get their first shoes right around 1, it helps with their first steps but also is important to get used to shoes. Robeez can be great for little ones that are not crazy about shoes.
I do not know anything about your resort dilemma, that definitely is unfortunate and I would agree that this bit is unfair. Have you tried to reason with a CM on the phone, explain your triplet situation? It seems like they should accomodate you guys.
The triplets were almost 3 months premature, so they are really more like 9 months in developmental age. Regardless, they all had their robeez, but only the boy will keep them on for any length of time. The two girls fuss, kick, and scratch at them until they get them off. And yes, we did try to reason with them, but I guess consistency is more important.
How does it compare with other places you have vacationed with 3-1 yr olds?
Completely different experience. The conversations between Disney and Busch Gardens contrast the difference.
Here's pretty much how the conversation went at Disney:
Disney Employee: "Sorry, but you cant bring a wagon into the park. You'll have to use one of the park's strollers."
Us: "A stroller for 5 kids?"
Disney Employee as he points to the 4 y/o and 5 y/o : "You can get two double strollers and they can walk"
Busch Gardens:
Employee: "Wow, that is awesome! Defiantly the way to do it. Have a great visit."
Not sure about the adult for each toddler thing. However, the rest of the issues are rules put in place for safety reasons. They are rules you are expected to follow regardless if your party has 3, 1 or none of the toddlers. I say bring your own stroller built for 3, buy some of those nifty little Robeez bmarkelon suggested and invite a friend or family member to join you. Most of all don't let it ruin your fun!!!
According to the first reply, our stroller built for 4 wouldn't be allowed in either. It's 58" tall and over their limit. Money is a little too tight for us to be flying a family member down from Michigan or buying another ticket for a friend just to be able to take the kids to Disney World, but I guess that what's Disney policy will require if I want to take my daughter for her Bday.
Basic room occupancy laws based on fire codes. The majority of Disney resort hotels allow 4 persons age 3 and over plus one child under the age of 3 in a crib...
If you have the 6yo and the triplets and 2 adults, you have 6 people and will either need an All-Star Music family suite (which sleeps 6) or just get 2 value resort rooms, which are less expensive than the family suite - you just need to put one adult in each room on the reservations.
Work with a good travel agent, they will work out your options for you.
That's what were trying to do, get two rooms. It has nothing to do with "basic room occupancy laws" or fire codes. They consider anyone under 2 years of age an infant and for every infant there must be one adult. We were trying to stay on Disney, not only to do something a little special for her Bday, but also close by for quick trips back to the room. We tried All-Star ourselves and they wouldn't book us because it's against their policy. We also tried a travel agent who could book us in any number of hotels, condos, or apartments as long as they were not Disney property.
As DisneyJoe stated, I was thinking your room occupancy issue wasn't that there were more kids than adults because that's common enough for single parents or larger families. Disney does have to adhere to fire codes imposed upon them and there are occupancy restrictions that they must pass along. They can only allow so many people into the rooms designated for 4, 5, or more.
No, it's about the number of infants per adult, nothing more.
I'm not a mom to multiples but we have twins in our family. I know for a fact their mom plans ahead for everything and leaves absolutely nothing to chance. Going somewhere she needs the kids in a stroller? She brings hers because she knows 100% that it will work for them. Perhaps you could bring your own stroller that you know will fit your family's needs.
We don't leave things to chance, just missed the fine print. Twins would be so much easier. Play one on one coverage instead of zone. Disney rules don't allow our stroller either. I know....I know....another bad on my part ...should have read Disney rules before we bought that stroller too, but things were a little busy when we brought them home and wasn't thinking about reading their rules....
The shoe thing. That's understandable, too. While your triplets might not quite be walking yet or you don't put them down to let them walk around barefoot, 1 year is a pretty average time for little ones to start and others might be more apt to put their little one down and let them do some walking. Disney doesn't want them barefoot. They can't very well make a rule then list the exceptions: "Shoes required...unless _____, _____, or _____." People would bend & abuse that. It's just not practical. They make a rule and have to enforce it. It may be a PITA sometimes but it's for a reason so we all just have to go with it.
So even a new born would be required to wear shoes at all times or have to leave the park??? That is what their rules say after all. They couldn't even stand yet when we visited. There was no walking. They just needed out of the stroller while I took the older kids on a ride. We found a quiet safe clean out of the way spot to let them out for a bit because they were breaking down and you can't hold 3 1 y/o's by yourself for very long.
And if they can't make exceptions, then why did they make a pet exception for service dogs? Why do they allow glass bottles for baby formula? A rule can be broken as easily as it can't bent. I don't think it not requiring an infant/toddler who can't even stand yet an exception to having to wear shoes if he can't walk. By the logic presented here, it would make more sense that they be required to wear knee pads and gloves rather than shoes if it was a safety issue.
I'm sure you haven't encountered the same rules at the zoo, Aquarium, Busch Gardens, etc. that you did at Disney. I don't think any of those places are near the size, see near the volumes of people, or are nearly as complex a place as WDW is either. That's definitely an apples to oranges comparison.
Busch Gardens is 3 times the size of Magic Kingdom, but does see far fewer customers and don't know how "complexity" impacts what kinds of strollers or wagons are allowed, whether an infant has to wear shoes or not, or how many adults you have to have to bring three 1 y/o's. We never go during peak season times and there were so few people that several rides we could stay on and ride again because no one was waiting. Apples and oranges are both fruit, one of which is much more accommodating to families with triplets.
I'm sure if you weren't prepared with the info ahead of time and arrived with all these surprise restrictions that was quite a hassle. And, hey. Kudos to you for being the parent to triplets and making the effort to take them on a family vacation. I think with some careful planning things could go a heckuva lot smoother and be more enjoyable for all in the end.
I certainly do NOT think Disney dislikes or tries to avoid toddlers in their parks. Children of all ages (from 1 to 101) are their bread & butter. Disney loooooves children and families. They just have rules set forth for safety reasons that may not always seem to make sense for obvious reasons. Rest assured, Disney isn't out to make their guests miserable with unnecessary guidelines. At the end of the day it's about providing a safe, enjoyable environment for everyone.
:wave:
No, I don't really think they dislike toddlers. I was just venting, It has me pretty frustrated. We were all really disappointed with our last visit. It had been a long time since we had been able to do anything special for the two big kids since the got their new brother/sisters and wanted to reward them for all the hard work. Instead they got a long drive, a couple of quick rides, and a stressed out Mom and Dad, followed by a long drive. So, armed with the knowledge from our last trip, we were determined to make it up to them only to find out they won't even let us stay at their hotels.
My cousins just came back from a social media thing in Disney and went alone with their kids. They stayed at the Dolphin and had 2 adults and and 3 kids under 3. No one said anything about one adult per toddler. I think it is just a capacity thing.
It's not a capacity thing, but children under 2 vs the number of adults. We did discover that because the Swan and Dolphin are non-Disney hotels, they don't have the one infant per adult rule. Now we just have to figure out the stoller restrictions.
The shoes thing I have to disagree with. We took my 9 month old in September, he wasn't walking on his own, but he would walk if you held his arms..I specifically bought shoes for the trip..I picked up some Lightning McQueen sandals, going for easy on and easy off..Knowing he WOULD take them off in the stroller, but needed something on his feet when he was out...I could slide them on when he was out and pull them off when he went in..Sorry, but I think that's common sense.
Really??? If it was ONE 9 month old, it wouldn't have been a problem at all. Common sense should tell you that trying to keep the shoes on 3 fussy 12 month olds who hate their shoes is something very different. Something else very different is that of all the replies of people mentioning how their child/children would kick their shoes off, not one mentioned a Disney Employee coming up to them to remind them that guests must wear shoes at all times. That happened to us every time we took one out of the stoller, whether they were on the ground or being held because the triplets drew their attention.
.The resort thing I think was a misunderstanding or miscommunication...There is no way you need to have an adult for every kid over the age of three..how would Disney accommodate school functions or other family events? And once again the wagon makes sense, too..Sorry..How would like to be pulling your wagon through Epcot and some guy who just left the Biergerten didn't see it behind you and ran into it and fell on it with your kids in it? I would most people look in front of everyone else, not behind..I had a hard enough time getting a double stroller around with people not looking, your kids will get hurt riding in wagon...I know you are frustrated, but as pps said there is no way Disney hates toddlers..We are going again in September with a toddler (my son will be 18 months and I guess my daughter can't be called a toddler anymore at 5) and I am anticipating no issues with good planning..I understand things pop up, but they do no matter where I go..I bet you can go the mall and run into issues with moving multiples around..God Bless you for children and the "courage" to take all of them to WDW, but I think you are being a little harsh instead of using common sense.
It's one adult per infant to stay in a Disney Hotel, not one adult for every kid over the age of three. They apparently consider children under the age of two as an infant. We don't go to Epcot. They are just as just as likely to trip into anything if they can't see a large bright orange wagon with 5 kids in it and MUCH more likely to trip into my 4 or 5 year old who will now have to walk every where. My 4 and 5 year old will have less positive control through out with no place to sit. We have NO issues anywhere we go with the wagon, only
At any rate, I'm done venting. Not much point to it and it didn't do much to help with my frustration with Disney and just can't agree. One 2 year old kicking off her shoe doesn't compare to trying to keep them on 1 y/o triplets while trying to let your 4 and 5 y/o have fun. Someone can get hit or trip over anything and after a 1 year of raising the triplets, the wagon is the safest and easiest way to keep them controlled whether it's grocery shopping or at an amusement park. They can cut their hands as easy as their feet while crawling so if it was a safety issue for an infant, they they would not be allowed to crawl at all or not be allowed without gloves.
