Your child(ren)'s first time at WDW...

[Billy6]

Next year will be the first time, my daughter will be going to DW with my family. I know it will be a great time for her as well as my family, she already knows who Mickey, Minnie, Daisy, etc are and im looking forward to her "meeting" them...

How was your child or childrens first time at DW? Share some experiences, tips, etc etc...

 

[PeoplemoverTTA]

I don't have any tips, but my brother, sister and I were raised on the classic movies and cartoons - we knew all the characters like your kids.

My twin brother and I were 5 and my sister was 9 for our first trip to WDW. My mom still gets misty when she talks about the way our jaws dropped and we just froze the first time we walked down Main Street and took it all in. Gets me misty, too, thinking about how much I love it still today, 22 years later.

Enjoy moments like that .

 

[ClemsonTigger]

The main things I can suggest are....

A) Plan a very light and casual schedule....the pace changes a great deal with small ones along. Build in nap times and don't stay out much later than the child's normal hours.

B) Make reservations for any meals (character or otherwise) that you want to do.

C) Be very careful about character interactions. Some kids love them and can't get enough...others are scared to death. My daughter would have nothing to do with them for years.

D) Use strollers, either your own or the parks. If you use park strollers, you don't have to worry about negotiating busses or monorails with them. You can also transfer a single rental between parks if you park hop.

E) Research parent swap on rides, or if you are travelling with a larger group, possibly trade off child watching to allow for you to do some other big people rides.

F) Be cautious on all rides. We don't think about it, but sound on many is loud, as are bright lights and rapid motions. The darkness is a problem for some. Even rides in Fantasyland have witches, scary people etc. Fireworks are also a problem for some for the same reason.

With all that said, have a great time, and take plenty of pictures as they probably won't remember any of it!

 

[smk]

We didn't take our kids until they were 13, 11 and 9. We had a lot of financial obligations when they were young and if we had a spare dime we couldn't find it, so a trip to WDW was way out of the question! Now, we go all the time and they remember every single trip we have ever taken. I don't regret not taking them when they were younger and if we had the funds we may have taken them at a younger age. Either way they had fun then and they have fun now, we always enjoy going.

 

[littlegoofy1]

My son's first trip was Sept 2006 when he was 10 months old, he did not really do much other than ride in the stroller, hated the characters up close until the last 2 days of the trip. We went again this Sept with my sons 22 months and 6 months. Both my sons loved it..they both reacted to the characters and we got some great pictures of them both with the characters. My oldest still says..Castle everytime we watch a Disney movie and will sit and watch a Disney Travel Special and say "I ride". He knows most of the Character names now and we can't wait to take them both again. Have a great time with your daughter, take it slow, relax and take naps when needed and it will be a great memory for you and great pictures for her to look back at.

 

[CAPTAIN HOOK]

Youngest was 23 months on her first trip - the characters frightened her to death. Her elder sister was 5 years old on that same trip and thoroughly enjoyed herself

 

[goofntink]

Went with our son last year to MNSSHP, he was 6 weeks old. And he has been to Disney almost every weekend since.:lol:

 

[happymom52003]

ClemsonTigger pretty much gave you the same advice I would.
My kids first trip was the most magical week of my life. My DH and I had been to WDW a few times before we had kids, but nothing compares to the first time we took our kids. The most important thing is to try to keep the child on her regular schedule.....do not overdo it...concentrate on quality, not quantity. I can't stress this enough! You really will not know how your child will react to characters or rides until you get there....all kids are different. Mine have never been scared, but alot of young ones are. Start her off on rides like Its a small World, then work her up to the darker ones. Have a great trip!:wave:

 

[mnfootballmommy]

I will let you know after next week!!! :xmas: DD is nearly 3 and did GREAT with Santa today, so I am trying not to get my hopes up TOO much, but they are slowing creeping regardless!:lol:

 

[happymom52003]

I will let you know after next week!!! :xmas: DD is nearly 3 and did GREAT with Santa today, so I am trying not to get my hopes up TOO much, but they are slowing creeping regardless!:lol:

That is funny....mine loves all of the Disney characters, but is scared to death of Santa!

 

[ThinkTink721]

The summer of 2006 was my kids' 1st WDW trip - they were in awe the entire time.
This year, they had more fun choosing things to do because they knew what to expect.
Next year, I hope they can be more involved w/ the trip planning.

:wave:

 

[KajunWDWFan]

My DW and I took Our DD to the world when she was 8mon. old. She had a good time and enjoyed eveything from the the rides (that she could go on to the fireworks at night). There was times when she took pictures with Mickey and Minnie that they didn't want to give her back. She never cried but she did look at them like they were crazy. We are going back in Jan. when she will be 20 months.