Which resort with a 10 month old?

[DisLee17]

Disclaimer: This is a rough plan; obviously my husband and I will make more concrete decisions based on the current climate regarding COVID. We wouldn't travel with an infant if we thought it would be dangerous.

My husband and I are anxiously awaiting the arrival of our first child in January 2021. We are both huge Disney fans, so naturally, we (okay I) have always planned to take our little one within the first year. Now that we are in the early planning phase of our first family trip for mid-December 2021, we are considering resort options that would work the best for a new family and all of the new challenges a baby brings to a Disney trip. We are renting DVC points, so I know it will be a DVC resort, and our favorite park is the Magic Kingdom. I immediately figured we would do a monorail resort and liked the idea of Bay Lake Tower, given the walking distance to the Magic Kingdom. Has anyone done mid-day breaks with a baby while staying here? Was it worth the convenience? Given that we are going to be there during the Christmas season, I thought of doing one of the DVC resorts at Wilderness Lodge, simply because the decorations are gorgeous and the atmosphere can't be beat during the holidays. My only concern is proximity isn't as close to the parks and not quite as simple to head back to the room if the baby needs a break at Wilderness Lodge. Any thoughts or information would be appreciated!

 

[a742246]

Your choice for Bay Lake is an excellent plan.

 

[westie55]

Mid day breaks never worked for my littles because they would fall asleep in the stroller or on the bus back and then be awake at the resort. YMMV. I would give serious thought to whether you really want to rent points in the age of covid. DVC rentals are non refundable and at any time a rental company could go under leaving you without much recourse. Booking directly with Disney is far easier and less risky in this current climate. I have stayed at both the Contemporary and WL. Being on the monorail is nice because you don't have to fold up the stroller and wake up your sleeping child. As a parent, I definitely think that luxury has value!

 

[Brett Wyman]

The Grand Floridan walking path to MK will be open by then as well.

 

[robinb]

Mid day breaks never worked for my littles because they would fall asleep in the stroller or on the bus back and then be awake at the resort. YMMV. I would give serious thought to whether you really want to rent points in the age of covid. DVC rentals are non refundable and at any time a rental company could go under leaving you without much recourse. Booking directly with Disney is far easier and less risky in this current climate. I have stayed at both the Contemporary and WL. Being on the monorail is nice because you don't have to fold up the stroller and wake up your sleeping child. As a parent, I definitely think that luxury has value!

She could rent from an individual and ask for a clause in the contract.

I think the proximity to the MK from the monorail resorts is a bit overrated. You might spend another 10 minutes in transit from WL over BLT. I would go with WL if that's where you want to be.

 

[mjkacmom]

At that age all of my babies were on a regular 9:- 11, 2 - 4 nap schedule, so I’d try to have them stroller nap for the morning one and head back to the resort after lunch. Just stick to a schedule.

 

[DisLee17]

Your choice for Bay Lake is an excellent plan.

Great to hear! Thank you!

 

[DisLee17]

Mid day breaks never worked for my littles because they would fall asleep in the stroller or on the bus back and then be awake at the resort. YMMV. I would give serious thought to whether you really want to rent points in the age of covid. DVC rentals are non refundable and at any time a rental company could go under leaving you without much recourse. Booking directly with Disney is far easier and less risky in this current climate. I have stayed at both the Contemporary and WL. Being on the monorail is nice because you don't have to fold up the stroller and wake up your sleeping child. As a parent, I definitely think that luxury has value!

Thank you for bringing this up, I didn't consider the non-refundable aspect as we have always rented and never had issues. We will definitely be waiting to make a decision about the trip until at least February of next year so hopefully, we have a better idea by then!

 

[DisLee17]

The Grand Floridan walking path to MK will be open by then as well.

I forgot they were adding this in! Thank you! That does open our search a little wider, and we love the Grand Floridan Cafe!

 

[sponica]

Honestly pick whatever resort works best with your budget. The 10 month old won't care. And I second stroller napping whenever possible.

 

[jamescanuck2001]

We went when our daughter was less than a year old and had a snuggly and a Thule Chariot stroller. Stayed at Beach Club. The shallow sand portion of Stormalong Bay was nice for her. Used the babycare stations at the parks. Between her taking naps in the snuggly against us, or within the very comfortable stroller, and using the babycare stations as needed, we never had a need to go back to the resort for baby reasons. This was in February, pleasant, not hot.

It was the best trip ever, until last December's when we went with another family with a same age child.

 

[DisLee17]

We went when our daughter was less than a year old and had a snuggly and a Thule Chariot stroller. Stayed at Beach Club. The shallow sand portion of Stormalong Bay was nice for her. Used the babycare stations at the parks. Between her taking naps in the snuggly against us, or within the very comfortable stroller, and using the babycare stations as needed, we never had a need to go back to the resort for baby reasons. This was in February, pleasant, not hot.

It was the best trip ever, until last December's when we went with another family with a same age child.

Good to know! Even before kids we are usually midday break people, but have always stayed at resorts that only had buses for transportation. If we don't have to take them it's good to know most kiddos do okay not needing one! Thank you!

 

[shoegal9]

Disclaimer: This is a rough plan; obviously my husband and I will make more concrete decisions based on the current climate regarding COVID. We wouldn't travel with an infant if we thought it would be dangerous.

My husband and I are anxiously awaiting the arrival of our first child in January 2021. We are both huge Disney fans, so naturally, we (okay I) have always planned to take our little one within the first year. Now that we are in the early planning phase of our first family trip for mid-December 2021, we are considering resort options that would work the best for a new family and all of the new challenges a baby brings to a Disney trip. We are renting DVC points, so I know it will be a DVC resort, and our favorite park is the Magic Kingdom. I immediately figured we would do a monorail resort and liked the idea of Bay Lake Tower, given the walking distance to the Magic Kingdom. Has anyone done mid-day breaks with a baby while staying here? Was it worth the convenience? Given that we are going to be there during the Christmas season, I thought of doing one of the DVC resorts at Wilderness Lodge, simply because the decorations are gorgeous and the atmosphere can't be beat during the holidays. My only concern is proximity isn't as close to the parks and not quite as simple to head back to the room if the baby needs a break at Wilderness Lodge. Any thoughts or information would be appreciated!

If you choose the Polynesian DVC villas, the studios have two bathrooms. One of them is huge and easily fits a pack'n play (or 2) inside. There's a lot of space in those studios. So, with mid-day breaks, the baby can sleep with a closed door/quiet/darkness and you and your husband can do other things... It's a huge pro for the Poly DVC studios.

 

[Lilsia]

We never went back to the resorts either. We would let everyone sleep in, have breakfast at the resort and then head to the parks. My kids would just sleep in the stroller, but not all kids will do that. It will be something that you will have to pay attention to your kids and decide what works best for your family. Have a fun trip.

 

[jamescanuck2001]

We never went back to the resorts either. We would let everyone sleep in, have breakfast at the resort and then head to the parks. My kids would just sleep in the stroller, but not all kids will do that. It will be something that you will have to pay attention to your kids and decide what works best for your family. Have a fun trip.

True, we took my daughter for daily long walks with the stroller before the trip, and she would often fall asleep. So she was used to it before we went.

To clarify, each park has a first aid / baby care station with decent facilities, complimentary.

 

[DisLee17]

If you choose the Polynesian DVC villas, the studios have two bathrooms. One of them is huge and easily fits a pack'n play (or 2) inside. There's a lot of space in those studios. So, with mid-day breaks, the baby can sleep with a closed door/quiet/darkness and you and your husband can do other things... It's a huge pro for the Poly DVC studios.

I hadn't considered the Poly due to the convenience of a walkway, but that does sound like a huge perk! Just two bathrooms alone is a huge time saver for getting ready in the morning. Good to know and thanks for the info!

 

[DisLee17]

True, we took my daughter for daily long walks with the stroller before the trip, and she would often fall asleep. So she was used to it before we went.

To clarify, each park has a first aid / baby care station with decent facilities, complimentary.

This is my plan! Try to get some long walks in the stroller before we go to see how the baby does sleeping in there. Thank you for the information!

 

[shoegal9]

I hadn't considered the Poly due to the convenience of a walkway, but that does sound like a huge perk! Just two bathrooms alone is a huge time saver for getting ready in the morning. Good to know and thanks for the info!

Well, it would be a long walk but once the Grand Floridian walkway is open you technically can walk from the Polynesian to the Magic kingdom. But, the monorail is easy enough and/or you’re walking distance to the TTC. That makes getting to EPCOT really easy too!

 

[robinb]

Honestly pick whatever resort works best with your budget. The 10 month old won't care. And I second stroller napping whenever possible.

I agree! I wouldn’t pay more for a MK resort. We‘re DVC members and owned at OKW and rode buses or drove everywhere with a stroller when our DD was under 2. It wasn’t a big deal. The MK resorts are a little more convenient but the convenience isn’t worth hundreds of dollars a night for me.

My DD also stroller napped. We were the ones who needed the midday break and nap!

 

[sethschroeder]

I would honestly pick 3 different resorts:

BLT, BWV, or BCV

If you are at MK more than Epcot/HS for the week then pick BLT if not then go with BWV or BCV.