Traveling to Disney

[Windy City Heather]

I just won a free trip to Disney that I have to use with in the next year (by March 31, 2004). I have a 7 month only daughter and was wonder what age everyone thought was a good age to take her (with in the next year)? Also, I would love to hear any advice about traveling to Disney with a her. My biggest question, if someone can answer it, is do I have to bring her car seat? We will be using all Disney transportation from the moment we arrive.

Any help or advice would be greatly appreciated.

[ddmarsh]

Hi - I would suggest using it as late as possible so that she is as aware of everything as possible, maybe even the first part of March if you are able.

As far as transportation, you will need the carseat getting to and from the airport and for a car if you rent one while there but no one uses them on either the Disney buses or on the monorail. On the buses you fold up the stroller and hold the children and on the monorail you do the same or you can even roll them in there while still in the stroller.

HTH and have a fun time planning your trip!

Debbie

[egoldber]

I would also suggest taking it as late as possible, tempering that with the wwather. We went in October last year when Sarah was 14 months old and she had a FANTASTIC time. I was really surprised at how much stuff there was for a kid her age to do. Many of the shows and rides are appropriate for the tiniest of babes.

Here are some links to past Disney discussions:
http://www.windsorpeak.com/dcforum/DCForumID7/2343.html
http://www.windsorpeak.com/dcforum/DCForumID30/269.html
http://www.windsorpeak.com/dcforum/DCForumID30/247.html

I would bring a carseat for the plane and the rental car. I think that having a seat for your child on the plane is pretty much worth any price.

We stayed at a Disney hotel, but did not take buses. We used the monorail and the boats, but we also walked to some parks and drove and parked to some as well. (Driving works well if you are going to a second park in the evening or afternoon and can get in to park close to the gates.)

Where will you be staying? Do you have a choice of hotels?

HTH,

[flagger]

For me the absolute best time to go to Disney World (I assume) is the month of January. We went three weeks after the first for an anniversary one year and only waited in line the longest at Splash Mountain. (45 minutes) The rest we got right on everything else. We also stayed on property but had our car. We used it to drive and park close to the entrance of MGM one day.

We had no kids and did three parks in two full days. (This was before the opening of the Animal Kingdom) If you stay on property you can go into one of the parks an hour earlier than the general public. (When we were there it was a different park each day that opened an hour earlier)

One tip, if you want a picture with the traditional Mickey Mouse go right at opening to the kids section and get in line at Mickey's house. That was about a 15 minute wait for us, but well worth it.

[suzska]

Last year we went in January and the weather was in the 70's. This year we went and it was COLD! There was a 1-2 hour window around 3-4 pm when the weather "warmed up" enough to feel comfortable, but as soon as the sun went down, we just wanted to get out of the parks. So beware of January. Yes, the lines are short, but the cold kept us from doing some things we would normally have gotten done.

We took Evan's carseat both times (flew the first time, and got him his own seat--drove this second time, so obviously we needed it). He was 10.5 months last year. He slept a lot. But we had enough people that we could take turns watching him while the others went on rides and stuff. This year he was 22.5 months.

Since we stayed onsite (at the Boardwalk by EPCOT), we used the buses and boats alot. The only time we drive was when we had a breakfast reservation at Boma at the Animal Kingdom Lodge, and didn't want to rely on resort transportation to get there in time. From the Boardwalk we could walk to EPCOT and take the boat to MGM. We took the bus to the Magic Kingdom. Since crowds are light in January, taking a folded stroller onto the bus wasn't as big a deal.

The slower times are probably January, February (before Spring Break), May, and September/October. I think November before Thanksgiving, as well. The beginning of December is supposed to be okay, and they have their huge light display and all the decorations. I haven't been there at that time yet, but my parents and brothers have and really enjoyed it.

What else. We did the Princess Storybook breakfast at Norway. I made the reservation because my cousin and her daughter were originally coming with us, but they had to cancel at the last minute. We went anyway. The food wasn't that great for the price. And my son wasn't "aware" of Snow White and company. You won't see Cinderella here. She's only at her castle for breakfast and now at the character dinner at the Grand Floridian, I believe. That one is supposed to be nice, but I've never done it. Another nice one is the Crystal Palace--Pooh and Friends show up there.

Our favorite new meals were probably the breakfast at Boma--it's a huge buffet. And the buffet at the Trails End Restaurant at Fort Wilderness. I would suggest checking out http://www.wdwig.com for all kinds of information and menus of most, if not all, of the restaurants. At least it will give you an idea of what you might like to do. I like buffets because I never know what Evan's going to want to eat, and somebody can stay with him while the other(s) get food. Right now your daughter probably isn't eating much "real food," but if you go next year it is something to think about.

You don't say where you're staying? That makes a big difference for any other "advice" I might have.

Okay, it's getting late, and I'm rambling again. But let me know if you have more questions.

[Windy City Heather]

I have actually been to Disney many times and I am a Disney fanatic. I think we are going to go the last week of September. My daughter will be 14 month and I think that will be a nice age. The weather is very nice that time of year but we will have to deal with some rain. The crowds are small then as well. I do not know yet what hotel we will stay at. The contest rules say it will be a deluxe hotel. If I have my say I am going for the Grand Floridian. My second pick would be a Savannah room at the Animal Lodge. I don't know for sure if I get a say.

After talking to many people and hearing everyones advice we are going to take our car seat. I will want it for the bus ride from the airport to the hotel and if there is an extra seat on the plane we can use it there.

My trip will include a charater breakfast and I think we are going to do the Pooh and Friends.

Thanks everyone for all your advice. If anyone has any other advice for traveling to Disney with a 14 month old, I would love to hear it.

[egoldber]

We went when Sarah was 14 months old.

While the Grand Floridian is, of course, gorgeous, we stayed at The Yacht Club this last time and it was great. The whole Epcot resort area is very nice. You can walk to Epcot (our favorite park) and take the boat to MGM. We drove to Magic Kingdom and did not go to Animal Kingdom this last time. The Yacht Club/Beach Club have a HUGE pool area that Sarah really enjoyed.

Ask for a refrigerator for your room. It makes feeding a little one so much easier and less expensive.

The things that Sarah really enjoyed when she was there:

Pooh character meal
It's a Small World
Pooh Ride at Magic Kingdom
MGM Studios Playhouse Disney show
Standing in line to meet characters anywhere (she ADORED this and was not scared of the characters as I was afraid she might be)
The parades (especially the night time parade at Epcot)

There were lots of shows and animal shows that she really enjoyed which also surprised us.

Sarah was still taking two naps a day at that point, but while we were there, she only took one afternoon nap a day. We would get to the park around 10 am, come back to the room for a nap in the afternoon, then go back to a park on the evening. We would usually give her dinner and then take in a nighttime parade.

We had the Parkhopper Plus pass so you can go to any park anytime with a kid and we think that a ticket of that type is well worth it.