How Did You Do on Disney World Vacation?

Years ago I went with the 5 children age 3-11. Disney a couple days, 1 day at Epcot -1 at Sea World (so awesome!) and a couple days at water parks-Blizzard Beach?? It was a long time ago! It was June and very hot! We had a wonderful time!

If possible stay at the park. They have a variety at different prices. I always leave the park before the parade starts. So I've been there from about 10a to around 2 then we go back to the hotel. Eat lunch, put a disney movie on the tv and relax or if she's wired still I'd take her to the pool by the hotel. When she was younger she took a nap sometimes but really watchingthe disney movie and cooling off worked best. We go back in the evening to the park, for dinner etc. The only exception to this rule is the day we go to he water park . Expect to eat lunch at the park and expect to be wiped by the time you get home. I would plan one day at Animal Planet if you can. They have this dino area with a sand pit that the kids absolutely love. Animal planet is not open late like the rest of the parks because of the animals so we usually stay a little later . If you are staying a week I'd also have a day without a park. Just hanging by the pool can be fun

a lot of people will tell you to set an alarm and be at whatever park opens first and then to plan on being at whatever park stays open late each day. forget that plan if your child is younger than say 10 and up. sleep til you wake up and have a good breakfast. and plan your park. do everything you want to do while your in that park and don't park hop unless you are done with that park. you miss a lot skipping from place to place and its tiring and a lot of standing in line. if your kids are younger plan to go back to the hotel and swim in the afternoons or take a nap and then head out again. eat on your normal schedule as much as possible. everyone gets cranky if your eating breakfast at 7am to get to a park at 8 and then not eating lunch til 2. so pack snacks in a bag pbj sandwiches and fruit, crackers etc. bring a big waterbottle with you. we always took a day in the middle and went to old town and just hung out at the hotel to recharge and swim when we go we go usually for at least a week so pace yourself don't try to do to much all the first day.

I second what Sherry said. Remember that you're their to have FUN. Don't feel like you HAVE to do anything you don't WANT to do. Your on vacation.

When we went last spring, DS was 5. We stayed in a timeshare off property (but right across the street from the resort entrance... still about a ten minute drive by the time you got to the actual park you were going to). We had a full kitchen, so we stocked the fridge and ate most of our meals there which really helped us relax rather than fight crowds constantly.

Don't about a schedule. There are SO many people on the be-there-when-the-park-opens plan that you'll still have crowds at the crack of dawn... only you'll be tired and grumpy.

Use a map to plan and prioritize your time in the park. Have each person say one thing they really want to do that day and then make it happen. Everyone is nicer if they feel like they're being heard. It helped us to go far into the park first thing and spend the day working our way back toward the entrance... that way you're not dragging tired cranky, ready-to-be-done-with-this kids (or adults) a mile through crowds at the end of a long day.

Take a day off to chill if you can. We were there for 7 days and only had park tickets for 5. It was nice to have a MANDATORY day off in the middle of the week to just play at the pool and hang out in the room, then get back to the parks the next day.

Pack snacks. The snack food to buy in the park isn't worth the line you'll wait in, and it's mostly either sweet or fried so you'll just end up crankier later. You're allowed to bring food into the park, just not full on picnics and coolers.

Pack a backpack, but pack light. Try to keep all your stuff in one bag you can pass back and forth as you get tired of carrying it.

That's all I can think of.

Hope this helps,
T.

You'll be fine... There is the adrenaline rush and excitement to see and do. Just pace yourself and enjoy all the moments.

Hopefully you are staying at a resort that is on the monorail line, we love the Polynesian.. It is super easy to go to and from MK to those resorts for a quick meal, quick rest, etc.

We've been about 8 times and the strollers are great.. take advantage of them.

Plan to see the parks that are most suited for your children. Enjoy yourself!!

We went when our girls were 5 & 2. We brought two umbrella strollers (the nicer sturdier type)and each pushed one. It made getting through crowds easier than a double stroller and they were easy to fold up to hop on the bus, etc. We did parks for 5 days- 2 at Magic Kingdom and one at each of the others. We had a "schedule"... get to the park very early, when they open. Stay until about 1:00, then head back to condo for naps and food. Then we'd go back to the park at about 5 PM and stay for the nighttime parade/fireworks. We avoided being there at the hottest and most crowded time of day by doing this, and we all had plenty of energy even with staying out until 11:00 most nights. I was shocked, but my kids never even got crabby, we just all had so much fun! We carried a backpack with water bottles, snacks, and PB&J sandwiches, and if they started to show any sign of crabbiness, we fed them! I cannot wait to go back someday. If you haven't read The Unofficial Guide to Disney book, I highly recommend it.

Great responses so far, as usual from mamasource! With 4 days in the park, you just have to realize that you won't be able to see everything. Prioritize, plan your days..there are good websites that will help with that like tourplans.com. Their plans are rigid, but they work if you have to squeeze in the most in the shortest amount of time. If you are more flexible and only have a few "must see" attractions, you can make your own plan to accomodate your family. It is YOUR vacation, so you don't try to force every "disney" photo op and sit in every restaraunt..that is unreasonable. If you have a kid that is absolutely terrified of heights...don't put them on the Tower of Terror because the guidebooks say it is okay for their age group. Voice of experience here..haha! And, splitting up the group if half is done and the other half is okay for more is okay, too! My hubby and dgtr have their own inside jokes and stories from the night they stayed in the room and ordered room service while my younger dgtr and I went to Epcot and watched the lightshow..our own special memory! Family makes the vacation, not location :) Hope you enjoy as much as we did!!

We did only 2 full park days, which was just right for us. We did a short WDW vacation when the oldest kids were 6 and we had a 15-month-old (and I was pregnant). We flew in on a Thursday, went to Gator Land on the way to WDW, spent the afternoon in the pool and the evening having dinner at Animal Kingdom. We did Sea World the next day with a late afternoon nap at the resort and dinner out, then the following day was Magic Kingdom. We got there when the park opened, left at 3, went back to the resort for a nap and swim, then back to MK for dinner and more rides in the evening, stayed for the fireworks and then went back to the resort. The next day we spent the morning in the pool and flew out in the afternoon. We saw what we really wanted to see, left some things for another trip and weren't exhausted and cranky.

Definitely plan on taking an afternoon break and going back later in the evening if you're in MK. Plan your dinners so that if you're going out, you have reservations if needed (the day we went to Sea World, we had dinner at Planet Hollywood and weren't seated until 9 PM - way too late!). Plan your routes at each park - don't try to see everything at every park and build in some down time (shows etc.) when you can sit and relax.

My battle with my DH was realizing tht the strollers where waaay worth it that we could do more if the kids weren't exhausted form just the walking. And that he and our older one could get up and go to the early hours and party all day but that the little one and I would have more fun if we were allowed to get some more sleep.

It's hard to pace yourself and recognize that not everyone has the same energy level and that over exhausted kids are not really having any fun any more. There is SO much to do and it cna get overwhelming really fast. Since you don't say how old your son is, that's all I would say.....

I was NOT prepared for Disney. I am walking 3 miles daily and hope more.

Take the fans with water bottles and mist.

You can't see it all or do it all. You can always go back another time.

Some say 2 days park, 1 day off.

Wow well it depends on how many kids if any. We took our 2 girls (3 yrs & 11 months) and I was 4 months pregnant. We went to just Magic Kingdom and with a double stroller. We made it through the whole park but didn't go on every ride either, considering there were naps for the kids, water breaks, lunch and the kids were too short to ride some of the rides. Magic Kindom was a blast with the kids since every ride the kids went on I was allowed since I was pregnant.

When I was a kid, my parents took us to Disney World like 4-5 times in our 18 years with them and they said it's exhausting, but they left the park around 7-8pm. I don't know this is just how we did.

Like I said a lot depends on how many people you are taking.

Good luck and have fun!

Get up and go early. That will make all the diference. We went every day and were never tired. Really, when you see the look in your son's eyes to be at Disney World, you won't tire.

We took breaks when the kids needed it, and did the Fast Pass when possible. Bring water with you, and mapping out your day ahead of time helps...you'll know where to go in the parks.

My kids are too big for the strollers next time we go, but they were TOTALLY worth it the last time we went, pricey, but worth it!

Took my 3 1/2yr old (at the time) daughter last summer. We stayed at Wilderness Lodge, where we could take a relaxing boatride to Magic Kingdom. We went to the park in the morning, back to hotel in afternoon for swimming, nap and dinner and then back to the park in the evening through firewqorks. We went to whichever park opened early or closed late for Disney resort guests. We went to all of the parks, which was too much at her age, but we were also with a 12yr old and 16yr old. Doing it again, we would've limited ourselves to Magic Kingdom and Epcot, done the dining plan and carried drinks into the park. Definitely take a good umbrella stroller if your child is younger than preachool.

I live in Southern California and have had an the annual Disneyland and then added California Adventure passes since my daughter was old enough to need them (when she wasn't free any more). I'm fortunate, I never felt obligated to spend my day there from opening to closing when my daughter was younger.

When I'm at Disneyland/California Adventure I feel so bad for the little kids that are obviously overstimulated, overtired (melt downs galore) and the parents who are determined to get their return on investment in "fun"! I think it's great to stay nearby and get an early start. Take a break at the hotel mid-day to relax, eat and swim and then head back for the evening activities.

In Florida we also loved Epcot, Sea World (we have one too) and Discovery Cove. I'm not sure how old your son is or if you even want to swim with a dolphin but this place is great (great, not inexpensive!).

Wear comfy walking shoes dress comfortable (it will be hot) and drink lots of liquids. I suggest bringing a small cooler for drinks and a stroller and most important sunscreen. The parks are large and people under estimate the size for children walking. You will not be able to see everything so don't try. All the parks are like a circle so pick one side to start on and work your way around to see the stuff that interests you and your children.

Remember at the end of each day you will all be tired not just from walking but from the excitement too. Have fun and enjoy yourselves and don’t stress if you miss something, you can always plan another trip later on.

You'll be having too much fun to be tired.

We've been to Disney twice. The first time, the kids were 5 and 9, the second time they were 8 and 12. We sometimes hit THREE parks in ONE day. We were in the parks from 8:30 a.m. til 10pm. We didn't do "breaks" to go back to the hotel to rest or swim, we didn't pay all that money to rest or swim. You just do it. Make sure to stay well hydrated and also, eat well - find fruits, veggies, etc.