A whole bunch of questions about disney with an infant- help! :)

[danceintherain]

1. It's totally up to you. I would probably pick the Swolphin for the proximity, but we also don't tend to have a car.
2. Definitely! Any park you want. Magic Kingdom is probably the most baby friendly as far as being able to bring the stroller as far as possible. (Epcot has the Land (no strollers allowed) DHS all the shows, AK shows and conservation station means collapsing the stroller). I was actually very unprepared for having to take the baby out of the stroller as much as we did. The rides I knew, but I didn't think of a lot of the other places. We did bring our Lillebaby carrier, which was helpful. If you do decide to babywear in the parks, practice extensively beforehand. Wearing a child around messes with your center of gravity which is all the more frustrating in crowds.
What time of year would you be going? We went in November, so the heat wasn't a huge issue. I probably wouldn't take a 3 month old to the parks during the summer, but I also have a low tolerance for heat, so I prefer to take myself during other times as well.
3. I don't know how this would help. You would still have to take the child out of the stroller once you got to the front of the line, as accessible vehicles are equipped to accommodate wheelchairs, not strollers. We just used the baby's sleeping time to take turns riding things with height restrictions or to take a break altogether.
4. I'm sure strollers do get taken, but if you plan on taking your child to Disney (or anywhere else) often in the future, he's going to have to get over it. One tip that I found helpful was to remove the wheel and take it with you. This still allows the CMs to move the stroller, if necessary, but it makes it unappealing for a thief. This only works for some strollers, but it's a viable option for both of mine (Baby Jogger City Mini and Uppababy G-Luxe). I only did it maybe once, when we took our son, because it was more of a hassle than anything else. Another option is to bike lock the wheels together (not to something else).
5. If you're concerned about getting a good value for your admission, then definitely fly in the night before and spend the whole day. Newborn schedules are excellent for Rope Drop. I loved not having to fight with DH about when to get up in the morning, because DS had woken us up anyway.
6. No. I don't think park hoppers are worth it with a baby. You'll have plenty to do in one park and if the baby gets tired, then the last thing you'll want to do is drag her somewhere else. Get base tickets and if you REALLY want to hop, you can add hoppers as needed.

 

[agmmbolam426]

We took our youngest daughter to Disney when she was 11 weeks old....in September. Saying it out loud it does kind of sound crazy!! We bought a stroller fan before we went to Disney (they have a really cute mickey one) and we brought lots of extra batteries. We kept the fan on her as much as possible and tried to eat at restaurants with good a/c going. Don't be afraid to use the Baby Care Centers. They truly are a god send with babies/toddlers. We would take a break in the afternoon and go back to our hotel and then we would go back to the park a few hours later. This is a good practice in my opinion to have less tired children during the fireworks.
We have never used the park hoppers with any of our kids. Its just too difficult in my opinion to put them in their strollers than out again over and over (and also having to close up and reopen it ten times.)
You can definitely make it work with a baby and I am sure you all will have a wonderful time!

 

[Alexsandra]

I consider myself somewhat knowledgeable about Disney as I have gone 20+ times, but I've never gone with a child and it's also been a few years since my last visit.

I have a little girl who will be 3.5 months old when we have to go to a family obligation in Orlando. She is our only child. Is it crazy that I am flying in a day early so we can go to Disney??? I would not normally plan a trip with such a small baby but I feel like since we are already there, paying for plane tickets etc it would be stupid not to go.

no,it is not crazy, it can be done! I did it and loved it and many others have done it so don't worry or feel guilty about it!


Here are some other questions:

1. Now that I am a new SAHM, we are on a big budget! It looks like there is a great deal at the Dolphin for $129/night for our dates. I've never stayed at the Dolphin (or Swan) before - thoughts? I was thinking about either booking this or the Hilton Orlando, which I stayed at a few years ago and was really nice- had a fantastic pool area. Both are about the same price.

never been can't comment


2. Is it worth even taking her to a park? If so, which park? My husband thinks she is going to be hot and fussy the whole time and it will be a total waste of money, and that we should just stick to activities we can do outside the parks (character breakfast in hotel, boardwalk, pool, etc). I'm going back and forth on whether I agree with him or not.

do the park you want to see, she will be fine. MK has the most rides you can bring her onto, however I loved visiting AK with my baby (beautiful trails to take stroll on. The baby care centers in each park are wonderful and make feeding and resting very pleasant. If u see she gets fussy, go there. It is not a waste of money, you'll make memories that will last forever. She is at a perfect age, so easy to take care of. You can go anywhere and she will be happy as long as she is with you.

3. I saw a few websites that mentioned something about how if you have a sleeping baby in a stroller, you get to go in the handicapped entrance and skip the lines on rides. This can't be true, right? Anyone have firsthand knowledge of this?

no you cannot skip lines with sleeping baby, but you can use baby swap. I Grabbed fast passes and my husband would wait with the baby while I rode, then when I came out, he was allowed to go into the fast pass lane.

4. I read that you have to leave strollers out in front of rides if baby is not sleeping. I KNOW my husband will throw a fit about whether it will get stolen or not (I think that's what 10 years of living in NYC does to you ). How safe is this, really?

I left stroller with diaper bag outside of rides on two 7 day trips. Never got anything stollen. Most people are there with young children and come prepared. I would not worry about it. I was nervous at first but quickly realized that there was nothing to worry about. Don't leave valuables in stroller though!

5. Do you think it's worth flying in the night before so we can get one FULL day in, or if we arrive at MCO at 10 am, is that enough?

I would fly in the night before. You never know when a flight will be delayed. If you arrive next day with delays you'll regret it. Plus your baby will most probably sleep through the flight the night before.

6. Would you pay extra for a park hopper pass? Normally I would but I just don't know how she'll hold up...

park hoppers are just not worth it when traveling with baby or young children. You waste precious hours just switching parks and it is a nightmare with strollers.

Thank you!!

I have a blog where I give tips on visiting WDW with very young children: http://disneyplaning101.blogspot.ca/
I went on my first trip with kids when my youngest was only 8 months old: we had a blast! You can read my trip report here too. The key is just to take it easy and realize you can't see and do everything. Just follow your baby's pace and have fun.
You'll have a magical time!

 

[gap2368]

I consider myself somewhat knowledgeable about Disney as I have gone 20+ times, but I've never gone with a child and it's also been a few years since my last visit.

I have a little girl who will be 3.5 months old when we have to go to a family obligation in Orlando. She is our only child. Is it crazy that I am flying in a day early so we can go to Disney??? I would not normally plan a trip with such a small baby but I feel like since we are already there, paying for plane tickets etc it would be stupid not to go.

Here are some other questions:

1. Now that I am a new SAHM, we are on a big budget! It looks like there is a great deal at the Dolphin for $129/night for our dates. I've never stayed at the Dolphin (or Swan) before - thoughts? I was thinking about either booking this or the Hilton Orlando, which I stayed at a few years ago and was really nice- had a fantastic pool area. Both are about the same price.

2. Is it worth even taking her to a park? If so, which park? My husband thinks she is going to be hot and fussy the whole time and it will be a total waste of money, and that we should just stick to activities we can do outside the parks (character breakfast in hotel, boardwalk, pool, etc). I'm going back and forth on whether I agree with him or not.

3. I saw a few websites that mentioned something about how if you have a sleeping baby in a stroller, you get to go in the handicapped entrance and skip the lines on rides. This can't be true, right? Anyone have firsthand knowledge of this?

4. I read that you have to leave strollers out in front of rides if baby is not sleeping. I KNOW my husband will throw a fit about whether it will get stolen or not (I think that's what 10 years of living in NYC does to you ). How safe is this, really?

5. Do you think it's worth flying in the night before so we can get one FULL day in, or if we arrive at MCO at 10 am, is that enough?

6. Would you pay extra for a park hopper pass? Normally I would but I just don't know how she'll hold up...

Thank you!!

1 never stayed there but looks lie a good deal

2 you have to decide that I have seen a number of babies at disney they do get in free so you are just paying your your ticket and your husbands

3, there is no such thing in fact there really is not any handicap entrances as most lines are handicap assessable to begin with, but if they did do this then the lines would be so long as every one would have a sleeping baby.

4 you have to leave every stroller out of lines sleeping child or not, it would be very unlikely for someone to steel a stroller now if you leave your things in it that would be another story what is more likely to happen is someone will move it to make room for more. but it is VERY SAFE to leave your along with the 100+ other ones I would get some ribbon and tie them to the handle so it stands out

5 this again is up to you by the time you get to the hotel it could be12 so you might want to try a day earlier or maybe an earlier flight maybe one that gets in like at 8 am

6 I would not maybe just do MK there is enough there that she can do that should be fine

 

[powellrj]

Please realize the trip was in 2012, the hotel special is no longer valid and I am going to guess they are already back from a trip that was 4 years ago.

 

[gap2368]

Please realize the trip was in 2012, the hotel special is no longer valid and I am going to guess they are already back from a trip that was 4 years ago.

Just saw it right after I hit send

 

[rideswithchrist]

It has basically been answered over and over- but no, you can't skip lines...you can however do a rider swap which allows your husband to ride and then swap with you. The CM HAS to see the baby though.
Stroller parker is awesome- no one will steal it but they all look alike and get moved around so find a way to mark yours (we just tossed a big blue towel over ours to spot it quickly)
Don't worry about hoppers, it takes WAY too much time with a baby than it is worth and it is too much stimulation changing parks. We did 2 days in MK because it is the most kid friendly and we missed things. Baby wearing is also wonderful!

The stroller was used for us more to carry things for our kids anyway.
(old threads can still be useful! )