Learn how to do Disney World with a Child, the Final Information by a former Forged Member

When Jeremy picked Disney World for his thirty fifth birthday journey, I used to be nervous. I imply, we’ve performed Disney World lots of occasions – and I used to be there just about each single day once I was a Forged Member. However we’d by no means, EVER performed Disney World with a child. And this journey, we’d be bringing alongside Child A for child’s first Disney journey!

Would she hate it? Would we hate it?! I had no concept, however I feared the worst. We each braced ourselves for a cranky, overstimulated child that we’d be spending 5 days straight entertaining within the parks whereas switching off driving our favourite Disney rides.

However to my absolute shock, Child A LOVED Disney World. She beloved rides. She beloved exhibits. She beloved characters. She was actually into birds hastily, and for some purpose, lamps? She beloved Forged Members, she beloved dancing to music as we walked by the parks. She LOVED Disney World! And we beloved attending to see it by her eyes. Disney with a child is so price it, y’all!

On this (large) information, we’re sharing suggestions and methods for visiting Disney with infants, together with one of the best (and worst) parks and sights for infants, the place to remain, and some necessities to pack. Let’s dive in!

Psst: In search of extra suggestions that will help you plan your Disney journey? Try a few of our different Disney World posts:

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We even have a Podcast episode all about Disney! A futuristic utopia that’s undoubtedly not a cult. A suicide-themed trip. Lia’s school internship. What do all of them have in frequent? Disney World, in fact! On this episode, Lia spills all of the Mad Tea on probably the most magical place on Earth, plus insider suggestions from her time as a Forged Member. We additionally clarify our tried & examined Disney Technique (aka STRAT), as a result of ready in lengthy traces for rides is a few Bippity-Boppity-BS.

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Suggestions for Visiting Disney World with a Child

Earlier than I dive in, a small disclaimer: all infants are completely different, and child wants differ wildly by age. When you learn one thing that doesn’t apply. to you – like in case your child isn’t on solids but, as a result of we spend a lot time eager about feeding Child A today – be happy to skip it. your child finest!

That mentioned: whereas Child A was 10 months outdated throughout our journey, I’ve additionally performed my finest to include suggestions from our travels with Child A when she was youthful (we began touring together with her round 3 months) within the hopes to make this a extremely useful information even for youthful infants. And actually, y’all – the youthful they’re, the simpler they’re to journey with!

Yet one more factor: I take into account us fortunate that in our journey Child A was not but terribly cell – she’s crawling and standing, however just isn’t but strolling or crawling lengthy distances. So I didn’t have to fret about chasing after her. In case your child is on that mobility life, you’ll wish to take into consideration some baby-wrangling methods (no disgrace in a cute leashed backpack)!

Oh, and eventually – can I simply apologize for the standard of images on this submit? Usually I take advantage of a DSLR digicam once I’m taking photos for a weblog submit, however all I used to be in a position to handle this journey was to make use of my cellphone! Nonetheless adjusting to this entire working/mother factor, y’all. Thanks for not judging me!

OK – onto the information for visiting Disney World with an toddler:

• Hearken to Disney music earlier than your journey, particularly songs which can be on rides (assume “It’s a Small World” or the Tiki Room). I believe this actually helped Child A get excited on the parks, as a result of she was listening to plenty of acquainted songs! There’s a nice Disney Parks playlist on Spotify that we performed for a few weeks earlier than the journey.
• Splurge on Genie +. Genie+ is a paid service that means that you can guide “Lightning Lane” passes to undergo a shorter line (mainly a paid model of FastPass, if you happen to’re accustomed to its former incarnation). It’s price it with a child, particularly because you gained’t want to truly purchase one on your toddler since they don’t want a park ticket. The longest we waited for a trip throughout our 4-day journey was half-hour for It’s a Small World, and that felt like an eternity – more often than not we just about walked on or solely waited a few minutes. Occupying a child in line sucks. Get the cross.
• Carry a journey excessive chair for meals. This foldable excessive chair was a HUGE assistance on our journey. We used it in our resort room for all of our meals, and if we’d had house for it in our stroller, we’d have introduced it into the parks too. Whereas all Disney eating places have excessive chairs, they’re not child sized. Child A is extraordinarily tall, and he or she discovered herself chin-heat at most. of the tables within the parks. Undecided if the tables are weirdly excessive or the excessive chairs are weirdly low, however it made meals within the parks tough. This transportable excessive chair that straps on high of a chair at eating places or can sit on the bottom wherever for snacks is the proper resolution.
• Babysitting is offered at Walt Disney World through a service referred to as Youngsters Nite Out. They will watch your baby when you take pleasure in your individual internal baby on the parks! Youngsters Nite Out also can offer you a sitter to accompany you within the parks if you happen to want an additional set of fingers. Assessment: https://touringplans.com/weblog/kids-nite-out-your-familys-next-vacation-win/
• You possibly can go to Disney World with no automobile seat if you happen to keep in a Disney Resort resort. When you fly with a lap toddler, you may  take a shuttle bus  from the airport, and persist with Disney’s free transportation between the parks and resorts together with buses, the Skyliner, and boats. In a pinch, you can even take Minni Vans, which come outfitted with Graco 4Ever automobile seats. That mentioned, we had been actually glad that we had a automobile as a result of it made attending to and from parks fairly fast (apart from Magic Kingdom, which is a schlep and a half it doesn’t matter what).

• Use the child care facilities in every park for nursing, altering, snacks, cool-down time, microwave, and to purchase any emergency child provides you will have left at house! They’re often subsequent to the primary help facilities too that are additionally necessary to find out about.
• Use Rider Swap. One mum or dad rides whereas the opposite one hangs out with the child. Simply ask a solid member on the entrance of any trip to assist get you arrange.
• Use single rider, too! Solely 4 rides formally have a single-rider lane, however plenty of rides will search for single rider to replenish uneven gaps, which suggests you’ll get to trip sooner. Preserve an ear out for a solid member in search of a solo rider close to the entrance of most thrill rides. We bought to trip quite a lot of stuff with out standing in lengthy traces this fashion.
• Minnie Vans come outfitted with rear-facing Graco 4Ever seats. When you don’t have a automobile throughout your journey, this service is improbable! Mainly, Minnie Vans are Disney-owned SUVs (themed to Minnie) pushed by Disney Forged Members, you could order by the Lyft app. They arrive with TWO automobile seats! They’re improbable for getting round Disney property, although they aren’t very low cost. To make use of them, open up the Lyft app, and select Minnie Van because the trip sort. Straightforward.
• Swap who does bedtime so one mum or dad will get to roam across the park solo whereas the opposite one chills within the room with child. We switched off and every had 2 nights free out within the parks!
• Carry hand sanitizer and sanitizing wipes and do your finest. We used sanitizing wipes on each lap bar and wherever child would put their fingers on a trip, realizing that lots of of youngsters had just lately put their fingers there, too. Mixed with us sporting KN95s masks, none of us bought sick throughout our journey. However simply in case, convey toddler Tylenol/Motrin with you so you’ve it available.
• Carry your individual stroller. Those they hire on the parks aren’t good for infants. We suggest one which folds down simply, like this one, since you’ll must fold it up on Disney transport. That mentioned, you may’t take your strollers inside all over the place, and stroller parking isn’t at all times proper exterior of the doorway – like, if you happen to’re going to The Land pavilion in Epcot, your stroller must keep at Nemo and Buddies. Carriers are useful in these conditions, and so is the Tushbaby.

• When you make an Advance Eating Reservation at a Disney sit-down restaurant, cancellations should be made 24 hours prematurely. In any other case, you will be charged a cancellation payment of $10 per particular person (3 and up). Except you go to the restaurant in particular person on the identical day and beg your case, by which case they waive the payment. Nonetheless, that coverage is …not preferrred for infants. But in addition, Disney meals is definitely worth the danger! So drop these expectations by the ground and do your finest to simply drift.
• Meltdowns at Disney are inevitable, and I’m not speaking about your child. Do not forget that most marital disputes at Disney will be solved by some mixture of snacks, A/C, sitting quietly for some time, and/or a Mickey Bar.
• Carry Snacks! In case your toddler is round 8 months or older, you’ll want snacks for them in between meals. If not, you’ll want snacks for your self – parenting whereas hangry isn’t a good suggestion! Listed below are our favourite baby-friendly snacks for Disney:
  • Pouches! We love the natural fruit and veggie pouches from Costco. They’re hydrating, pretty nutritious, and assist infants follow tremendous motor expertise like sucking by a straw and squeezing!
  • Freeze dried fruit: soften in your mouth fruit! What’s to not love? Er, apart from the value. It’s costly!
  • Yogurt melts: Child A loves them, however they’re exhausting to search out with out added sugar, they make child’s fingers very sticky, they usually appear to make her spit up. And it’s at all times shiny pink and has that bitter yogurt odor. They usually stain. Not our favourite snack however works in a pinch.
  • Cheerios. Basic. Straightforward. All the time a success. Not a choking hazard. 10/10. We have now discovered to at all times have a ziploc baggie of cheerios on us always!
  • Bombas or Gerbers puffs. We discovered some natural Gerber puffs which have a sprinkling of veggie powder in them and that made us really feel good although I’m positive they provide little or no precise vitamin. However they’re enjoyable to eat and assist infants follow their pincer grip!
• Don’t depart snacks out in your stroller, particularly at Animal Kingdom. We noticed a couple of uninvited critters making the rounds at stroller parking in Animal Kingdom, and no person needs squirrels and their germs on their strollers! Clear up stray Cheerios and tuck snacks away in a bag to ensure your stroller isn’t a goal.

Disney World with Infants: Which Parks Are Greatest?

One factor I want we knew earlier than our journey is which Disney World parks are finest to go to with an toddler. Because it seems, not each park is equal in relation to visiting Disney with an toddler. Some parks skew extra towards adults, some extra towards older children. Some parks are sorely missing in shade and air-conditioned indoor areas to take naps or cool off.

To my shock, there was a transparent winner as one of the best Disney World park with an toddler: Epcot! Epcot has one of the best steadiness of baby-friendly sights

Hollywood Studios with a Child

Hollywood Studios does one factor higher than the opposite parks: reside exhibits. Child A LOVED the Magnificence  and the Beast reside efficiency. And that was … about it. The remainder of the park simply isn’t actually designed for infants. That mentioned, it may be price a day go to only for the few sights it does provide – or so that you and your companion can do rider change and trip all of the actually great things.

Greatest sights and rides for infants at Hollywood Studios:

• Magnificence and the Beast Stay on Stage: Child A misplaced her rattling MIND singing and clapping alongside at this present. The dancing and songs at first are enjoyable and upbeat and actually well-done, visually – assume 1930’s period showcase dance numbers. However she kinda misplaced curiosity when issues bought unhappy and sluggish (“story as outdated as time” just isn’t a child bop, it seems). Fortunately we sat on the finish of the aisle so we may make a fast getaway. This was undoubtedly Child A’s favourite exercise at Hollywood Studios.
• Halfway Mania: We had been involved about bringing her on this trip as a result of it’s 3D, and we had been afraid it would make her nauseous with out the glasses on. However she beloved going across the observe and didn’t appear bothered by the blurry, non-3d photographs on the display. She wished to drag the string to shoot too! Nonetheless, she didn’t like a few of the loud noises, and cried and squirmed a bit in the course of the loudest half – breaking plates – however settled after we stopped and coated her ears for a bit. This one undoubtedly verges on overstimulating, however it’s kinda not that enjoyable if you happen to aren’t in a position to be aggressive and play in opposition to your companion.

… and that’s it. Yeah: this park actually wasn’t designed for infants.

Rides to Skip in Hollywood Studios: 

• Mickey’s Runaway Railroad: We held Child A on our laps for this trip, however none of us loved it a lot. The trip is very loud and a bit too intense/scary for her. She bought scared at a lot of the “battle” components of the story and all of us hated the vehicles dancing – I assumed she was going to fall out at one level. Overstimulating, loud, jarring – this trip is only a lot.

Suggestions for Hollywood Studios with a Child

• There’s a pleasant place to nap on the entrance to Galaxy’s Edge proper on the border with the Toy Story part. It’s a quiet aspect space with ambient chicken noises taking part in and no loud noises, and it’s off the principle path so there are not any crowds. There’s additionally a conveniently positioned bench.
• One other nice nap spot is within the tunnel on the opposite aspect of Galaxy’s Edge. It’s totally shaded and has a pleasant breeze and ambient spa music (I suppose Star Wars is all about ambient spa sounds). It’s the proper afternoon nap/nurse spot, although you’ll see that plenty of dad and mom have the identical concept – it’s not as quiet as the opposite spot we discovered.
• The Child Care heart is on the very entrance of the park and also you’ll have to chop the Visitor Relations line to get to it, which is irritating and inconvenient. Not price it, actually.

Hollywood Studios Verdict: if it’s a must to decide a park to skip, that is the one. It’s simply not one of the best park for infants!

Epcot with a Child

Ahhh, Epcot. My favourite park. And never simply as a result of this was *my* park throughout my time as a Forged Member, once I labored at Soarin’ within the Land Pavilion. I imply positive sure, there’s quite a lot of pleased nostalgia tied to the park for me. But in addition? I LOVE journey – hiya, that’s my job now – and a complete half of Epcot is all about celebrating journey and letting you step foot into immersive miniature lands representing completely different nations. The World Showcase is sort of a mile of pure journey gasoline, and I completely adore it.

And on the opposite half of the park are lands celebrating Earth and house. And, er, the Guardians of the Galaxy, which … actually, doesn’t match in any respect, however it’s an superior new trip so we’ll go together with it.

Anway: the park is beautiful, effectively laid out, filled with fascinating issues to see and do, and – drumroll please – the BEST Disney World park for infants!

Why did we rank Epcot on the high? For starters, 3 phrases: AIR CONDITIONED PAVILIONS. There are TONS of pavilions all through the park, and most of them are large and air-conditioned. There’s additionally ample seating – like Connections Cafe, which is basically an infinite Starbucks full of benches and tables – each indoors and open air.

The Child Middle is conveniently situated within the good heart of the park, with a big, comfy nursing room that has house for a number of households. And there’s a vast number of baby-friendly actions, from baby-friendly rides to a big playground to a improbable aquarium. Epot makes it straightforward to entertain or nap a child on a scorching Florida day!

Let’s get to the tea:

Greatest sights and rides for infants at Epcot:

• The Seas with Nemo and Buddies: 10/10 good child trip and Child A LOVED it. Darkish! Cool! Stress-free! Fish! Songs! Nothing scary or loud or jarring. And afterward, AN AQUARIUM! Child A misplaced her thoughts on the aquarium and we returned right here repeatedly. One mum or dad stayed on the aquarium with the child whereas the opposite one rode Soarin on the Land Pavilion subsequent door, and the Guardians of the Galaxy trip close by. Child A may have stayed right here fish all day lengthy (and with the A/C, we had been pleased to remain right here too). There are tons to see in right here and it’s an ideal spot to chill off for some time. Plus, that is additionally the place you’ll discover Turtle Speak with Crush which is certainly one of our favorites, although we sadly didn’t try it out with Child A this time.
• Grand Fiesta Tour Starring the Three Caballeros: This was certainly one of Child A’s favorites! Numerous scenes of Mexico and upbeat music, and the top portion is mainly simply It’s a Small World however with extra of a give attention to Mexico. Plus, there’s just about by no means a line, and it’s a must to undergo the Mexico pavilion to get right here which is totally beautiful.
• Frozen: I believe she wasn’t a fan of the songs switching each scene, however Child A did get pleasure from this trip. She particularly beloved the massive backward drop (it’s actually not that massive of a drop, however it’s to a child!) and appeared to benefit from the music too.

Rides we didn’t have time to expertise however I guess Child A would have loved:

• Spaceship Earth: I completely love this trip, however we fearful that Child A may discover it boring because it doesn’t have a lot music. Nonetheless, we totally deliberate to attempt it … till we realized we’d should stroll alllll the way in which again to the very entrance of the park after we had been already within the World Showcase near the Skyliner. Too far. I’d give it a attempt if you happen to enter on the massive ball, although!

Rides to Skip in Epcot 

• Figment: That is undoubtedly a baby-friendly trip when it comes to the mechanics of the trip (good and sluggish, stress-free), however the trip itself was simply okay. There was quite a lot of speaking and all of it went over her head. And admittedly, there wasn’t sufficient music to maintain her , both. This trip is extra geared towards barely older children.
• Dwelling with the Land: One other trip that Child A simply discovered kinda boring. There’s plenty of speaking about crops and the setting and such (not thrilling for a child, however very cool for the remainder of us) and there’s no music. That mentioned, a really small child would doubtless get pleasure from this sluggish, stress-free trip.

Suggestions for Epcot with a child

• Make a lunch reservation at one of many eating places within the World Showcase. Choose a delicacies from the 11 nations and guide a desk for lunch! The meals right here is phenomenal – all the Cooks are professionally educated and from their respective nations. Your servers can be from the nation you’re consuming in, too.
• Connections Cafe is a huuuge Starbucks filled with tables and benches! It’s an ideal place to chill down and rejuvenate.
• The fountain in Morocco – not the one on the entrance, the one within the Riad contained in the plaza – is a good place to chill down within the shade and do some refreshing water play, or a pleasant shaded nap with built-in white noise.
• Epcot has a really good child care heart, proper in between the World Showcase and the remainder of the park. There’s a giant comfy nursing room with plenty of chairs and footrests. It’s cool, darkish, and quiet – the proper spot for a nap. (Epcot is stuffed with good nap spots!)
• There’s a giant playground exterior of the Creations store. Even when your toddler can’t play simply but, they’ll most likely get pleasure from watching massive children taking part in!

Epcot Verdict: fingers down the winner of Disney World’s most baby-friendly park! From the massive air-conditioned pavilions to the ample seating to the centrally situated child care heart to the baby-friendly rides and sights, we discovered ourselves returning to Epcot repeatedly.

Animal Kingdom with an Toddler

Animal Kingdom is a improbable park for infants, particularly in case your toddler has taken an curiosity in animals like ours (she’s a giant fan of birds, particularly). It’s lush and inexperienced and filled with locations to see animals – plus some enjoyable rides, too.

For fogeys, there’s additionally my favourite trip, Everest, which occurs to have a single-rider line that’ll get you on nearly instantly. It’s nice to trip in the course of the child’s nap! There are a couple of different nice thrill rides too, however there are many sights and exhibits for infants.

The caveat? There aren’t many locations indoors to flee from the warmth – and Animal Kingdom is definitely about 10 levels hotter and extra humid than the opposite parks by design, for the wildlife – form of like of a tropical rainforest. So we suggest visiting Animal Kingdom very first thing within the morning and leaving earlier than or proper after lunch. Right here’s the tea:

Greatest sights and rides for infants at Animal Kingdom:

• Kilimanjaro Safaris: That is such an ideal attraction! You’ll be on a giant open-air truck driving by the savannah and seeing animals up shut – nearly like a zoo however with none of the enclosures. Child A LOVED Kilimanjaro and was clapping for all of the animals! This trip is finest early within the morning when the animals are most lively and being fed, so head straight right here very first thing when you arrive. Every journey is completely different so it’s nice to trip again and again, too.
• Na’vi River Journey: A bioluminescent deal with for the eyes. Every thing on this slow-moving river trip was completely lovely, magical, glowing, and nature-y. The music is calm. It’s a complete vibe. And I believe this was Child A’s FAVORITE trip in any of the parks. She was completely enchanted your entire time and under no circumstances scared. This trip is certainly price a Lightning Lane cross.
• Pageant of the Lion King Present: Child A loved the lion king present, however misplaced curiosity in the course of the slower components and appeared overwhelmed throughout a few of the villain songs. We ended up nursing a lot of the present (it’s an extended present) however may simply have left as an alternative.

Rides we didn’t have time to expertise however I guess Child A would have loved:

• Wildlife Categorical Prepare to Rafiki’s Planet Watch: The Wildlife Categorical Prepare is a peaceable 7-minute journey – a trip in and of itself – to Rafiki’s Planet Watch, a quiet, air-conditioned pavilion devoted to the preservation and conservation of animals. You’ll see some fascinating stuff right here and a few animals. Most of it’ll most likely go proper over child’s head, however hey, there’s A/C! While you’re prepared, take the practice again to the remainder of the park.
• Winged Encounters – The Kingdom Takes Flight: Just like the Tiki Room however with actual birds (and fewer singing). I believe Child A would have actually loved seeing the colourful macaws hovering and swooping overhead!
• Animal Encounters: From lions to tigers to gorillas (oh my!) there are TONS of locations to see animals right here! There’s even a petting zoo. I want we took extra time to stroll by the opposite animal sections. Actually, we may have fortunately spent a number of mornings at Animal Kingdom.
• Drummers of Harambe: Child A is a giant fan of drumming and dancing to a beat, and this reside avenue efficiency within the Africa part of the park would have been superior for her to see. They pull up massive children to bop too which infants love to look at! I want we’d made it a degree to catch certainly one of their present occasions.
• Discovering Nemo: The Huge Blue… and Past: This reside present is stuffed with massive colourful track and dance numbers! In case your toddler enjoys music and dancing too, this can be a giant hit.

Suggestions for Animal Kingdom with a child

• For lunch, Tusker Home is nice. It’s character eating with Mickey and associates (Child A was tentatively within the characters as soon as they began taking part in peekaboo together with her) and the meals is buffet fashion, with plenty of baby-friendly meals and yummy meals for everybody.
• Napping right here and being right here within the afternoon is a problem. It’s 10 levels hotter and extra humid than the opposite parks. And there are not any massive, quiet indoor locations with A/C to chill off and loosen up (apart from Rafiki’s Planet Watch). When naptime hit, it took us fairly some time to search out a great spot. We ultimately discovered some picnic tables underneath a tree that was kinda shaded and quiet… after which some loud a** water present began up and I about misplaced my f***king thoughts.
• The Child Care Middle is centrally situated and fairly good. It has personal nursing rooms, which is useful in case your child is well distracted.

Animal Kingdom Verdict: It is a nice baby-friendly park in case your toddler enjoys animals, and there are many baby-friendly rides, sights, and exhibits. However depart earlier than midday or simply after lunch, when the warmth turns into insufferable. The animals are most lively early within the morning anyway.

Magic Kingdom with an Toddler 

Once we had been planning our journey and looking out into which Disney Park has probably the most rides with out top necessities, Magic Kingdom appeared like it could be the most suitable choice for us: there are TONS of rides which can be applicable for all ages! … Nicely, in concept, anyway.

What we truly found was that the beloved Magic Kingdom was one of many WORST Disney Parks for infants. It’s crowded as hell, takes longer to get to than another park, doesn’t have many choices for cooling off, and people all-ages rides? Lots of them are so outdated that they’re simply not secure to trip with an toddler. Many of the attraction of Magic Kingdom is all concerning the characters and beloved Disney properties, which frankly, infants don’t care about in any respect.

Right here’s the tea on Magic Kingdom:

Greatest sights and rides for child at Magic Kingdom:

The winners for us in Magic Kingdom had been colourful, slow-moving rides with upbeat, acquainted music:

• Below the Sea – Journey of the Little Mermaid: That is a darkish conveyer belt trip in a shifting clamshell. Child A LOVED the Below the Sea scene, which is shiny and colourful and enjoyable. It helped that we’d been taking part in the track for her within the weeks main as much as our journey so she instantly acknowledged it. The Mad 
• It’s a Small World: We truly waited longer for this trip than anything throughout our journey – and we had a Lightning Lane cross. The trip itself is quarter-hour lengthy, so with a 30-minute wait this finally ends up being fairly a time suck. That mentioned, Child A LOVES the track (we’d been taking part in it for her) and was REALLY excited on this trip. She completely beloved it! It ended up pushing her bedtime again about an hour however I believe it was price it to see her clap with glee and dance for 15 straight minutes.
• The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh: This darkish trip was nice! There are some small light up-and-down hills. The music is generally very calm, and the colourful/trippy Huffalumps and Woozles scene was Child A’s favourite. It’s undoubtedly price a lightning lane cross!
• Tiki Room: One other attraction that we prioritized based mostly on Child A’s music preferences. And he or she was actually into most of it! Plus, it’s good and lengthy and had fantastic A/C, so we relished the chance to take a seat in cool air for some time. After which get a Dole Whip (which we needed to eat out of her sight).

As a result of the traces in Magic Kingdom are SO lengthy, we didn’t get to trip all the things we wished to. We want we may have ridden on Individuals Mover, a slow-moving practice that lightly glides round Tomorrowland – good for infants! And we want we’d had an opportunity to attempt Buzz Lightyear Spin since Child A loved Halfway Mania (largely).

Different rides we thought of however in the end determined to skip attributable to lengthy traces and Child A’s chance of having fun with them had been:

• Jungle Cruise: no music, the trip largely consists of speaking and jokes that will simply go proper over her head
• Pirates of the Caribbean: frankly she may need loved it due to the music, however we didn’t really feel like standing in an extended line
• Haunted Mansion: Child A just isn’t a fan of music in a minor key – I believe she will be able to inform it’s presupposed to be spooky/scary/off – and he or she doesn’t like issues which can be chaotic and loud. I believe she would have loved the massive graveyard music scene, and located the remainder of it both boring or scary.
• The Mad Tea Social gathering: Child A didn’t actually appear to get pleasure from fast-paced spinning or shifting. She’s extra into the visuals, music, and sluggish, light rides. So we’ll wait on this one till she’s a bit older.

Rides to Skip in Magic Kingdom

• Prince Charming Regal Carousel

Child A truly loved the carousel. That mentioned, that is simply your commonplace carousel. It’s older than the parks, so it’s not terribly Disney-themed (although we did get to see the Ugly Stepsisters from Cinderella driving it and insulting onlookers) and, extra importantly, there is just one baby-safe seat: a single bench amidst a sea of carousel horses that infants can not safely trip. 

If there isn’t a line, give it a whirl. In any other case, reserve it for a county honest.

• Don’t trip Peter Pan’s Flight. 

For causes that no person fairly understands, Peter Pan is the most well-liked trip in all of Magic Kingdom with wait occasions constantly topping 60 minutes. It’s a totally common trip, so my working concept is 1) nostalgia, 2) child attraction, and three) poor trip design that didn’t account for the demand it could be experiencing 70 freaking years after being constructed.

Mainly, this trip has lengthy ass traces. And Child A was not impressed – the trip is a sleep and never price a Lightning Lane cross.

Worst of all, it’s downright harmful for an toddler. How did we notice how unsafe Peter Pan’s Flight was? As a result of we had been despatched by the trip with no lap bar on our child. Which was terrifying. And very harmful.

You see, most flying rides are outfitted with a harness for security. The trip I used to work on, Soarin’, has a harness, a number of security checks, and even a video digicam on each seat, which Forged Members monitor repeatedly all through the trip in search of any kiddos attempting to wriggle out – that’s a fall danger from 50 toes. If anybody is getting too wiggly, Forged Members can hit the emergency cease button on the trip and produce it again down manually.

However Peter Pan was in-built 1955, earlier than anybody thought of security rules on rides, I suppose. So regardless that your car goes method up into the air, it simply has a lap bar, not a harness. The lap bar routinely lowers about .5 seconds earlier than you allow the sight of a Forged Member – which isn’t sufficient time to make sure everyone seems to be safely seated. There’s additionally no lap bar examine (which just about each different trip within the parks has). 

So, what occurred to us? Child A was seated on the Tushbaby going through me after we boarded the trip. Jeremy was wiping down the lap bar with hand sanitizer and I used to be on the brink of flip Child A round and sit her on my lap, when – shock! The lap bar closed, and we took off. Earlier than we had an opportunity to get Child A seated underneath the lap bar. She was simply sitting on me, above the lap bar. 

We screamed for assist, however the trip took off so shortly that no person heard us. And, as we came upon, there are not any video cameras. So no Forged Members may see that Child A was squirming round attempting to see and pushing backward off of me with stunning energy whereas I clung to her with each arms for expensive life, realizing that if she twisted out of my arms, she would fall. (Bear in mind: it is a flying trip. We had been up within the air. Simply holding our child. With nothing to maintain her from falling.)

Truthfully? It was fucking terrifying. As quickly as we bought off the trip I burst into panicked sobbing and it took fairly some time to relax. We made an incident report with the affected person Forged Members, however apart from that there wasn’t a lot we may do. 

The incident reviews go to the higher-ups, and I hope it will get escalated to whoever makes choices about upgrading rides, as a result of this trip is frankly horrifyingly unsafe. There must be an extended sufficient time period between the lap bar decreasing and take-off for Forged Members to do a security examine. My guess is that they’ve averted doing it as a result of the trip already has such lengthy wait occasions and that can add main time, however it’s completely obligatory. This trip is horribly outdated.

So, till it’s up to date? Don’t trip Peter Pan’s Flight with an toddler.

• Additionally keep away from the Dumbo the Flying Elephant trip, and its copies, in case your child is cell.

That is one other older Disney trip that takes fliers up into the air … in a automobile with open sides, and nothing safer than a lap belt. A crawling, squirming child may simply and shortly decrease themselves to the ground and slip proper out the aspect of the automobile. (In case your child just isn’t but cell, you don’t have anything to fret about as lengthy you retain a decent grip on them.)

So, yup – yet one more older Magic Kindom trip that’s not secure for infants! I do know, I used to be shocked too. Disney is often the highest of the road in relation to security – I imply hiya, I even have photos of myself as a Forged Member in entrance of one of many many indicators backstage that claims Secure D Begins with Me (see them on this submit)! WHERE IS THE SAFE D ON OUTDATED MAGIC KINGDOM RIDES, Disney!?!?!

Anyway. Because you’re avoiding Dumbo, go forward and add the Flying Carpet trip and Astro Orbiters, too. And Triceratop Spin in Animal Kingdom. They’re literallly simply the identical trip with completely different theming.

Extra suggestions for Magic Kingdom with a child

• We ate lunch at Tony’s City Sq., which is true by the doorway of the park. Child A likes pasta, we like pasta, we simply figured we’d have some first rate pasta. We had been NOT ready for a way shockingly good it was. I imply!!! It was AMAZING. I extremely suggest the Orecchiette With Spicy Italian Sausage and the Butcher’s Steak, which was a few of the finest steak I’ve had in a very long time (and Child A beloved the crispy roasted yukon potatoes.) We additionally ordered a Bellini to take the sting off the entire Peter Pan fiasco, which was scrumptious. 
• Storybook Circus is a complete part in Magic Kingdom full of kid-friendly stuff (although kid-friendly doesn’t additionally imply baby-friendly). You possibly can decide up a practice to trip across the park right here, which is a pleasant stress-free trip in and of itself. However most significantly, there’s a splash floor. On scorching days, a splash floor and a crawling child are a match made in heaven. However apart from that, this space is generally for older children.
• Child care heart: Magic Kingdom’s Child Care Middle is by Essential Road, which is … kinda removed from a lot of the park, actually. There are benches out entrance and the middle itself is basically cute and well-themed. It’s an ideal quiet place for a snack or a diaper change. It’s not as nice for nursing although, as a result of there are solely 2 personal nursing rooms. 

Magic Kingdom Verdict: We thought this park can be a success as a result of it has probably the most all-ages rides, however it’s crowded, the rides are a bit outdated and missing in baby-proof security checks, and it’s heavy on the characters and film properties which infants actually don’t care about. Plus, it takes longer to get to and from MK than another park. Price a visit for it’s a small world and a few of the exhibits, however not a lot else.  We’re wanting ahead to experiencing Magic Kingdom with Child A when she’s older.

Full Checklist of Child Rides at Disney World

Once we had been researching for our journey and in search of issues for infants to do at Disney World, we struggled to discover a full checklist of baby-friendly, all-ages rides at Disney World. So, to save lots of you time, right here it’s.

I marked the rides that we loved probably the most with 10-month-old Child A in daring and put those we suggest skipping in italics. Our two favourite parks at Disney World for infants are Epcot and Animal Kingdom, which I marked with asterisks.

The place to Keep at Disney World with an Toddler

I will not be a Forged Member anymore, however I nonetheless have quite a lot of ~opinions about all issues Disney, and many suggestions on your subsequent journey. Certainly one of my very sturdy opinions? You must undoubtedly keep at a Disney World resort, even if you happen to’re on a decent price range! It’s SO price it.

From the $$ you’ll save on parking and a rental automobile (thanks to Disney’s airport pick-up service and large free transportation community) to the unbelievable comfort and Further Magic Hours, the resorts are WELL price it. And much more so, if you happen to can rating a reduced price 😉

There are undoubtedly methods to attain a deal at a Disney Resort, if the place to look. Often, you will discover Disney World resorts listed on resort deal websites – notably for low season dates! We as soon as scored a keep at Port Orleans for underneath $150/night time. Whee! So simply in case, have a look – we noticed a BUNCH of them listed just lately on  Resorts.com  and  Priceline ! That’s how we as soon as scored a keep at Port Orleans for underneath $150/night time. Whee!

The time of yr that you simply’re visiting and while you guide issues, too. Disney quietly runs deep reductions on low season bookings (often January by April) round October/November, so hold a watch out and  examine their particular affords web page continuously. 

And at last, final minute bookings can internet you STEEP reductions! I’ve seen rooms hovering round $150 per night time about 3 days prematurely. You possibly can often rating one by  Priceline . My advice is to guide a good-enough resort by  Reserving.com  so you may cancel it as much as the day earlier than your journey, then hold checking  Priceline  simply in case you may rating a last-minute room at a steep low cost.

We’re massive followers of staying at on the Worth resorts, which actually provide one of the best bang on your buck. Artwork of Animation, one of many latest resorts, is a improbable place to stick with a child. There’s a large pool – it’s truly the biggest pool at any Disney World resort –  with a child space and a giant sprayground, plus 2 different swimming pools for good measure. There’s all kinds of meals, and the theming is fairly cute (we ended up getting upgraded to a Automobiles-themed suite).

And better of all, you’ll have straightforward walkable entry to the Skyliner, which takes you in airborne pods to Epcot and Holywood Studios. Of all of the Disney World transportation choices, the Skyliner is by far one of the best: you’re seated with a pleasant view, it’s not crowded, and there’s a cool breeze. Child A beloved driving on the Skyliner (and so did we!)

 This resort can also be thought of certainly one of Disney’s price range choices – however it’s actually one of the best of the price range choices. A detailed second is Pop Century Resort, which is true subsequent door and in addition has entry to the Skyliner.

I hope you discovered this (large) information useful for planning your journey to Disney World with a child! Do you’ve questions that we will help reply? Drop us a remark beneath!

Psst: In search of extra suggestions that will help you plan your Disney journey? Try a few of our different Disney World posts:

Want you could possibly journey to Disney with out leaving house? We created an immersive digital Disney world tour so you may make a journey from the consolation of your couch!

We even have a Podcast episode all about Disney! A futuristic utopia that’s undoubtedly not a cult. A suicide-themed trip. Lia’s school internship. What do all of them have in frequent? Disney World, in fact! On this episode, Lia spills all of the Mad Tea on probably the most magical place on Earth, plus insider suggestions from her time as a Forged Member. We additionally clarify our tried & examined Disney Technique (aka STRAT), as a result of ready in lengthy traces for rides is a few Bippity-Boppity-BS.

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