Advice!!

[Daftman]

Hi everyone,hope youll bare with me as this is my first thread.

Im travelling to Orlando in November for 3 weeks,it will be my third trip but this time with a big difference as I will be taking my DS who will be 22 months.Has anybody got any advice on how to occupy DS for the flight,it would be much appreciated.

Also can anybody suggest which would be the best attraction tickets to go for,we really want to see all the parks so which would be the best value for money?

Is the weather warm enough for water parks in November?

Unfortunately were staying off site at the Silver Lake Resort ,Kissimmee,does anybody know what its like?

Anyway I think Ill leave it at that for now and stop waffling!!

Sean.

 

[Hamther]

Hi Sean!!

How wonderful to be going for 3 weeks - that's plenty of time to take in loads of things but also to relax - which is really important when you have a little one with you.

My DS had just turned 3 when we took him last year and unfortunately he stayed awake the entire flight (both ways) so I am glad I took plenty to amuse him. You might find however that your DS sleeps. When my DS was 2 he fell asleep on flights (we never did go as far as the US however). The constant white noise and movement of the plane seems to send toddlers to sleep quite easily.

I remember when our DS was that age he liked lift the flap books, "Stuff" from ELC, fat crayons to scribble with, jigsaw puzzles, finger puppets (I used to get story books with finger puppets which he loved). Also, his favourite book I remember was a Dorling Kindersley book which was just full of photos of everyday objects and he could sit for ages pouring over the pictures with me.
He also loved tractors in particular. You can also take him for walks up and down the aisles and perhaps buy him one of the inflight toy planes (they are only a couple of inches long). He'll probably get a bag with some kiddy stuff in it - crayons, jigsaw puzzle, colouring pad.

One tip - if you want the child's meal - phone up the airline and book it especially. Many airlines don't automatically hand out a child's meal and may well give you nothing at all!

I haven't stayed in Silver Lakes but it is very close to where we stayed last year. It is very near to the Disney maingate and to Splendid China. There are loads of restaurants nearby and there is a useful shopping area (right beside Splendid China) where you will find a supermarket and a pharmacy amongst other shops.

Yes the water parks are warm enough in Novemember. They heat them year round and the water is normally much warmer than your average villa pool. I think too that with all the "scenery" around, those parks seem to hold in the heat! You will get more rain than in the summer months so a good tip is to buy a rain poncho, and take a raincover for the buggy (I would suggest that you take your own buggy with you - don't hire them). Ponchos are sold at the Disney parks but you can get cheaper ones at most supermarkets.

I would also advise you take your own car seat - you may be taking it for in the plane anway - but if not, it's worth bagging and putting in the hold (you don't get charged for this) as the seats there are expensive to hire and are often little more than a plastic grubby shell.

Check out http://www.ticketmania.com
for info about all the different park's tickets. Many DiSers have used this company to buy tickets as they ship postage free. They are very reliable and the prices are very good.
I think you will be able to work out from all their info which tickets will suit you.


Have fun!!

Jackie

 

[TraceyL]

DD1 was 2 1/2 when we took her and she didn't sleep until we landed.

I'll agree with Jackie on the car seat. The one we were given (at a cost of $80+ for 2 weeks) wasn't very pleasant or comfortable. We went to WalMart the following morning and bought a really decent one for half that and returned the rental seat to the local Alamo office for a refund. We also bought a very cheap buggy there (big mistake - it was back breaking to push)! We brought the seat home with us in the hold and left the buggy behind !!

 

[WebmasterPenny]

Hi Sean,

Can't help with the question, but I just wanted to say <b>Welcome to the DIS</b>

Penny

 

[Daftman]

Many thanks Jackie for taking the time to give me such thorough advice.

Two questions about the car seat;

Do they fit ok in US cars?

How do you go about taking them on the plane or do they have to go in the cargo hold?

Advanced thanks,

Sean.

 

[TraceyL]

Sean

I my experience you'll have no problem fitting UK seats into US cars - and vice versa.

Some cars seats are allowed onto planes but only if they fit the dimensions and fitting guides laid down by the individual airlines. Or you can put it in the hold.

Hope this helps

 

[Daftman]

Many thanks Tracey Ill definitely take our seat!!

 

[lisag1]

Hi Sean

Can I just add if your flying with Virgin they won't allow you to use your car seat on the plane But you can reserve a Virgin infant seat. We took our 3 car seats with us in November and they just like you to have them wrapped up with your details on and they they are put into the hold.

Lisa

 

[Hamther]

we wrapped our car seat in a big bit of bubble wrap and it was fine (you can buy it at WHS or at Makro).
The airlines take the seats through the bulky package bit at check in (you check your bags in first, they label the seat and then direct you to bulky check in). We stuck extra wrapping in our case for going back (and some tape). We attached a card inside a see-through folder onto the bubble wrap which had the "out" details on one side and the return on the other (so we just had to flip it around).

Our car seat fitted in very easily to the US car and was in fact a better fit than it is in our own car here. I think because the seats there are deeper (front to back length) and the car seats "seat" better in them. I was glad I took it because it reclines, Hamish is very used to it and I knew he would be comfortable as you can spend so much longer than normal driving each day over there.

Before I decided to put it in the hold, I emailed the car seat company (Britax in my case) and asked them whether it was an approved airline seat (some car seats aren't any good). Ours would have fitted in an aircraft seat (Britax Club Class). I also checked directly with the airline - they can tell you the largest size car seat that will fit in.

We have a Maclaren buggy which is ultra lightwieght and maneouverable and has a built in canopy, a rain cover and a net underneath. It was great for the parks and is comfortable for the kids. Although the park strollers are fun, they tend to be hard plastic without much shade.
Again the airlines will carry your buggy free of charge. You can take it right up to the aircraft door (the ground crew take it from you then and put it in the hold). Just tell the check in person that you want to hold onto it until boarding (make sure it is labelled). It makes life a lot easier as well to have the buggy when you get off at the other end as it is difficult to juggle bags, tickets and littl'uns!

Take plenty wipes onto the plane plus a zip lock bag for putting your rubbish/dirty wipes in. Don't wear nice clothes no matter how tempting - you are not usually in such close contact with your walking muck magnet as you are in a plane seat. I also took a sippy cup (with a lid) as I couldn't trust him with an open cup or a carton with a straw on the plane and it proved the right thing as it ended up knocked over several times.

Most of all relax - it is never as bad as you would imagine and often turns out very well!

If you have any other questions - feel free to post away!



Jackie