Planning for first trip with a child

[autkidd]

My wife and I are a few weeks away from having our first child. Our 10 year anniversary is next year and we are considering a Disney World trip with our little one. As our honeymoon was at Disney World we though it would be fitting to go back for 10 years.

At the time we are looking at going our little girl should be roughly 16-17 months old. Any tips for going with a child this age or anyone with experience on this?

 

[LynnTH]

My wife and I are a few weeks away from having our first child. Our 10 year anniversary is next year and we are considering a Disney World trip with our little one. As our honeymoon was at Disney World we though it would be fitting to go back for 10 years.

At the time we are looking at going our little girl should be roughly 16-17 months old. Any tips for going with a child this age or anyone with experience on this?

My kids are older now (25 and 22) but I think a lot of it will depend on your child. Mine always slept well in their strollers so we didn't need to go back for naps.

It's also a much slower pace as your are going at their speed and doing rides/shows to accommodate them. Our first trip with our son, he was 11 months old. He had a great time, especially meeting the characters. Again, some kids will like them and some will be scared.

Best advice is not too make too many plans and kind of go with the flow.

 

[autkidd]

Thats my plan would be to just take it slow and go at her pace.

 

[loves to dive]

It really depends on the kid. We took my grand daughter when she was about that age and it was actually easier then when we took her in Dec. when she was 2 1/2. If you are going during the hotter months make sure you have a fan/fans to attach to the stroller to blow on the kid all the time. I carried around wet wipes as well just to wipe her down with when it was real hot. If you are going during the rainy season (that's a joke, it's always rainy season) make sure you take a cover that will cover the entire stroller, including the bottom. I can't tell you how many times I've seen poor littles with their feet stuck in water because the cover didn't go all the way down or the parents stuff on the bottom of the stroller soaking wet. Cover the stroller any time you leave it, just in case of those pop up showers. Take some sort of rain gear for the little one as well, you are going to have to take her out of the stroller to go into rides, etc. My grand daughter liked the rides with music and lots of colors - Figment, Mexico, Frozen etc. Be prepared to do rider swap. You aren't going to get as much done as you did before, some littles can't nap in strollers, some can.

 

[Betty Rohrer]

My wife and I are a few weeks away from having our first child. Our 10 year anniversary is next year and we are considering a Disney World trip with our little one. As our honeymoon was at Disney World we though it would be fitting to go back for 10 years.

At the time we are looking at going our little girl should be roughly 16-17 months old. Any tips for going with a child this age or anyone with experience on this?

remember that strollers are not allowed in lines or buildings so you might need a carrier for lines. you may not be able to bring stroller into restaurants

 

[jtopp]

If you go with the flow, you will find the trip surprisingly easy. Your daughter is dependent on you, so you get to set the pace. Most kids will nap in the stroller so you can still get around fairly well. You will have more fun enjoying the experience of your daughters first time then you can imagine. Enjoy and cherish the experience.

 

[Specter]

You really need to learn your child and let them guide you, in a manner of speaking. If something is working it is probably best not to mess with it.

We took DD when she was 10 months and the trip was overall fantastic. She did nap in the strollers but even though it was a March trip it was a bit warm out most days and so we opted for midday breaks. Then, one day, we decided to push through and let her sleep in the stroller. Well, we did make it to dinner but we did not get to see Fantasmic because she was just absolutely done and there was no salvaging that one. Lesson learned, we didn't try to skip midday breaks anymore.

Don't get me wrong, some kids can do fine without them but even though she would sleep in her stroller our child needed the quiet time and the cool down time in the room.

Conversely, she was totally fine with characters and was trying to grab noses and hands but other kids are terrified of them. As other's have said, slow the pace down, follow her cues, and have a great time, the memories DW and I have from that trip are among our favorite of all of our trips we've taken to Disney World.

 

[Betty Rohrer]

You really need to learn your child and let them guide you, in a manner of speaking. If something is working it is probably best not to mess with it.

We took DD when she was 10 months and the trip was overall fantastic. She did nap in the strollers but even though it was a March trip it was a bit warm out most days and so we opted for midday breaks. Then, one day, we decided to push through and let her sleep in the stroller. Well, we did make it to dinner but we did not get to see Fantasmic because she was just absolutely done and there was no salvaging that one. Lesson learned, we didn't try to skip midday breaks anymore.

Don't get me wrong, some kids can do fine without them but even though she would sleep in her stroller our child needed the quiet time and the cool down time in the room.

Conversely, she was totally fine with characters and was trying to grab noses and hands but other kids are terrified of them. As other's have said, slow the pace down, follow her cues, and have a great time, the memories DW and I have from that trip are among our favorite of all of our trips we've taken to Disney World.

Our grandson was the opposite of that. Fell asleep on way back to resort and screamed the whole time at room. No one near us got any rest that day. Fell asleep as we got to dinner and slept through dinner plus slept through fireworks. Woke and end of fireworks wanting to eat

 

[sponica]

My wife and I are a few weeks away from having our first child. Our 10 year anniversary is next year and we are considering a Disney World trip with our little one. As our honeymoon was at Disney World we though it would be fitting to go back for 10 years.

At the time we are looking at going our little girl should be roughly 16-17 months old. Any tips for going with a child this age or anyone with experience on this?

I've been with 20 month olds twice....and boy was it a tale of two 20 month olds.

My oldest hated EVERYTHING that moved, seriously she tried to climb out of Dumbo when it was flying. The only rides she somewhat enjoyed were the living seas with Nemo and Frozen Ever After, until the drop and she got splashed. But she absolutely loved the characters, well fur characters...face characters freaked her out a little except for Anna and Elsa. She liked the trails at AK and wandering Epcot.

We had a set of grandparents with us, so we were at least able to ride the adult rides.

My younger hobgoblin child hated Mickey and Minnie's Runaway Railway, Pirates and the dark parts of Jungle Cruise but didn't try to climb out of Dumbo....so that was a plus.
Characters were a hit.

 

[Cadiewampus]

Personal preference but I have never understood taking kids that young, but to each his own. Didn't take either one of ours until they were at least 5

 

[LynnTH]

Personal preference but I have never understood taking kids that young, but to each his own. Didn't take either one of ours until they were at least 5

My take on this.. I like my vacations and going to take them when I can. I want to make memories, no matter if they can remember. When the kids are young, Disney is a perfect place to take them as it is geared towards children. Mine are now 25 and 22 and we still go - they love that they grew up going there. We do a lot of cruises also and started them at age 6 and 8 for that.

Was not about to sit at home waiting for them to be old enough. Kids of all ages can have fun at Disney. But we were lucky enough to travel at least once a year, for some that is not possible and may want to wait until later.

 

[theMoreDisneytheBetter]

My take on this.. I like my vacations and going to take them when I can. I want to make memories, no matter if they can remember. When the kids are young, Disney is a perfect place to take them as it is geared towards children. Mine are now 25 and 22 and we still go - they love that they grew up going there. We do a lot of cruises also and started them at age 6 and 8 for that.

Was not about to sit at home waiting for them to be old enough. Kids of all ages can have fun at Disney. But we were lucky enough to travel at least once a year, for some that is not possible and may want to wait until later.

^^^ This, exactly! If Disney is one and done then wait until they are older. But Disney with little kids is truly magical. They get new “firsts” every year, and even if they don’t remember the specifics they will remember how much they love it there. Another benefit of going early and often is that it takes the pressure off to “do” everything because there will always be another trip to look forward to. If at the end of the day your kid only wants to meet characters, or swim in the pool, or run around the maze behind the UK it’s totally fine. Years from now you’ll look at your teenager eating fish and chips and remember when he was like with a bubble wand, or you’ll ride on the flying carpets and remember when he was in the front pack. Etc etc.

It’s also much easier to make “good travelers” if they have been traveling their whole lives.

 

[Specter]

DW and I are of the same mindset as the last couple of posters. We knew DD wouldn't remember the trip we took when she was 10 months old, and you can certainly argue that she doesn't even remember the two trips just before she was 3 and when she was 3 and a half, but we remember them and when looking at pictures of the trips DD swears that she does too. Regardless of whether it is a real memory for her, the happiness that she feels thinking about it and talking about a future trip is real, and DW and I's memories are real.

One other thing that we have done on every trip, and will continue to do, is get her silhouette done. When she was 10 months she just sat on mom's lap for it. They are pretty fast and it is fun to see how she has grown when they are lined up on the wall next to each other. Whatever you do, enjoy.

 

[sponica]

Personal preference but I have never understood taking kids that young, but to each his own. Didn't take either one of ours until they were at least 5

They're free when under 3? That's why we went.

 

[westie55]

I have 3 kids and have taken all of them at that age. We go every year and have never had a bad trip. IMO Disney is great for kids/babies at any age. Here are my tips:

1) Stroller naps! Going back to the resort just for a nap isn't practical. If the baby is tired, she will fall asleep long before you get there. Go back because you want a break or want to go to the pool, but not strictly for a nap.
2) Don't be afraid to take the baby to restaurants-- even nice ones. My husband and I enjoy fine dining and we have always taken our littles to all the restaurants in Disney. The only place a baby can't go is Victoria and Albert's. One time at Citricos every table there had a baby! You're in Disney and children are welcome everywhere.
3) Cover your stroller if you're traveling during stormy season. Storms randomly pop up and having a drenched stroller is a problem.
4) Utilize lightning lane to keep wait times low. Rope drop as lines are always shortest in the first hour the parks are open.
5) Sit on the end of the row in shows in case you need to get up.
6) Always have drinks and snacks on hand for the baby to keep her happy.
7) If your child is sleeping, they will let you roll the stroller up to tables in sit-down restaurants. Otherwise you have to park it outside.
8) Be prepared for her to be afraid of characters. At that age my kids liked looking at them but didn't want to be up close to them.
9) Utilize rider swap for any rides you want to do with a height restriction.

Enjoy!!

 

[wiggy500]

My tip is this. When you take your child to daycare shortly before the trip and once you arrive they mention that a stomach bug has been going around and you think to yourself, "maybe this will work out fine," don't listen to that thought. Just turn around and bring the kid back home.

Aside from our unexpectedly limited trip, I found 16 months to be good age to start doing trips like this.

 

[Betty Rohrer]

My tip is this. When you take your child to daycare shortly before the trip and once you arrive they mention that a stomach bug has been going around and you think to yourself, "maybe this will work out fine," don't listen to that thought. Just turn around and bring the kid back home.

Aside from our unexpectedly limited trip, I found 16 months to be good age to start doing trips like this.

Years ago when I worked in daycare I remember one family who ended up having to stay at WDW an extra week because toddler broke out with chicken pox while there that was going around center. Could not fly home because of chickenpox

 

[MikeOhio]

Personal preference but I have never understood taking kids that young, but to each his own. Didn't take either one of ours until they were at least 5

You really missed out. I’ve been to Disney World 30+ times and my last two trips with a 10 month old and then 18 month old were my most fun and special trips ever. So many great moments and memories.

 

[Counting Stars]

Am I understanding your post correctly, you and your wife have not been to Disney since your honeymoon 10 years ago? Much has changed in the last 10 years. And as new(er) parents as well; there will be a big learning curve all around. If this is a trip you can afford to repeat later on, then I would say go for it. If finances dictate waiting another 10 years, then I would wait until your child is a little older, and might be able to remember some of the trip. At one and a half years, the trip memories will all be yours. Your daughter won't remember a thing. There is no wrong answer, but more a question of your priorities.

 

[Cadiewampus]

You really missed out. I’ve been to Disney World 30+ times and my last two trips with a 10 month old and then 18 month old were my most fun and special trips ever. So many great moments and memories.

Happy you had good memories. I don't think we missed out on anything. Going without the hassle of carrying diaper bags and all the other paraphernalia you need. Like I said to each their own