MousePlanet staff writer Steve Russo responds to readers who share their own opinions about the “Right Age” to visit a Disney theme park.
Kevin writes:
We (my wife and 4 year old son) live in the Seattle area and have been to Disney World three times as a family. My wife and I had visited three times before he was born as well. Our first trip with our son was on his second birthday and we had worries about it being too early. We stayed for a week and never felt like there wasn’t enough to do. It definitely slowed our pace which actually was both refreshing and relaxing.
When we returned a year later, there was a time or two where he brought something up from the past trip. Did we “miss out” on some of the bigger rides? Sure… but to experience things with him for the first time was so much better than riding Splash or the Tower of Terror. And then to see those memories come back with him the next year and even more so the following year… you can’t beat that.
For the kids, I don’t think there is a “too young;” it really comes down to what the family wants to do and get out of the vacation. As I mentioned before, we’ve been three times with him and never been disappointed, frustrated or the like. He’s just wondering why we’re not going back this year.
It sounds like you’ve got the right idea and a good plan. Thanks for writing.
Pam writes:
I thoroughly enjoyed your article about “what age to take a child to Disney.” We took our 18 month-old daughter for the first time last year. We knew that she was pleasant and not afraid of noises and lots of visual stimulation. Parents definitely need to know what their children will enjoy and tolerate. Many kids can be thrown into stimulation overload and it might be best to wait. My daughter loved it and had a great time!
We also knew that we would be coming back as often as we could every few years. If this were her “once in a lifetime trip,” we would have waited. If parents are in that situation, here is a view point to consider: I teach second grade and have seen many seven and eight year olds embark on their first, and perhaps only childhood Disney trip. They seem young enough to appreciate and enjoy the fantasy and the characters and stories and old enough to get on even the scariest rides. Many a student has come back excited and wide-eyed about the Tower of Terror and the roller coasters and dark rides. They seem to take it in stride a bit more than they would have a year or two prior. Again, all children are different in this area too, but this just seems to be a common age to take a child and most seem to have an incredible time.
When planning our trip, I gathered lots of great tips from other parents through books and websites. I weighed the whole “we need a stroller at the airport, versus renting one at the park” and planned for all toddler supplies. I tried to go back to the resort each day for a nap, but some days my daughter fell asleep sooner than expected and seemed to nap fine in the stroller, while I strolled in the coolness of the shops. If parents can afford it, this is where the monorail resorts would be preferred. By the way – my daughter loves to look at the pictures of our trip and talk about what we did there. I’m so glad we took a chance and went and are looking forward to returning again around the holidays!
It sounds like you’ve had success in how you’ve approached Walt Disney World trips with your daughter. I wholeheartedly agree with your comments on the once-in-a-lifetime trip as well.
Jenni writes:
I loved your article regarding the “perfect” age for Disney World. We took our daughter for the first time a month shy of her second birthday, and again last year a month shy of her fourth birthday. I have to say that both trips were perfect and truly magical, but in different ways.
My daughter enjoyed both trips, but it took a lot of planning on our end. Both trips were in September when the crowds were lighter and I packed the whole house to keep her entertained and happy. My advice is to plan well and not have too high of expectations. Go with the flow and expect for some plans to change based on the child’s needs. Also, expect to have a magical trip no matter the age of the child. We are going back this September for my daughter’s third trip and her fifth birthday, and she is beyond excited. She remembers so much from our last trips and is actively involved in planning this one. There is nothing more exciting than seeing Disney World through the eyes of a child. Your article was great and so true.
It’s great that your trips with your daughter have been very successful – proving it is possible if you approach it properly. Thanks for sharing that… and thanks for writing.
Jim M. writes:
I enjoyed your article about what age to bring your child. I have a 4 girl and a 6 year old boy and have found that each child is different as to what age they and my wife and I could enjoy the park (we live in California so we go to Disneyland). My son did not enjoy Disneyland until the age of 5. Before that he was a nightmare to take. Our girl has enjoyed going since she was one, and has been a delight to take every year. In fact when our son was three, we left him with relatives and only took our daughter. I believe the correct age to bring your kids is dependant on the individual child.
One thing that I have seen with children younger than five at the park is that some don’t understand the concept of rides and standing in line for one. When our son was four he became unbearable at the park when we tried to get him on a ride. It wasn’t until I notice he was having a good time by simply climbing on some rocks that I got the idea of letting him do only interactive things like Tom Sawyer’s Island. Rides can be a very passive form of entertainment that children just don’t enjoy. As soon as we let our son engage in physical interactive attractions we had no more problems. I have since seen this many times in our friends’ children, and warn all of my friends who go to Disneyland for the first time to watch for this.
I’m glad you enjoyed the article and thanks for sharing your experiences. You point out nicely how being in touch with your child’s requirements is the key to a successful trip.
Rae M. writes:
I say wait until your child is 35 years old – they don’t whine and you don’t have to push them in a stroller! That’s what I did in 2005! My son and I had a wonderful time visiting the parks and running in the Taste of Disney 10K. Of course that was a bit-tongue-in-cheek, but I have seen my share of miserable babies and parents as well as lots of smiling faces. Personally I don’t think a very young baby should be exposed to that much humanity. Also. it’s not much fun to watch a child detox from too much sugar or fatigue. Parents should just use some common sense and some discipline before the child gets out of control.
That’s an interesting perspective and one that is certainly easier to plan for.
Kimberly P. writes:
I found your latest article very interesting indeed, as we have had some of the same discussion in our family. The first time my husband and I took our children to Walt Disney World, our son was just a couple months shy of his third birthday. Our daughter was only seven months old. Of course, everyone told us we were crazy to take an infant because she’d never remember the trip.
We did follow one part of your advice — we had my husband’s parents with us. We had specifically planned our vacation that year to take advantage of the fact that our son was virtually free because there is no admission charge for the under-three set, and very few food costs (I think we weren’t charged at any of the buffets because he was so young); yet he was old enough to enjoy so many of the rides.
The surprising thing to us was how easy it was to manage Walt Disney World with our seven-month-old. I would recommend that anyone planning on bringing an infant also plan on bringing their stroller from home, especially if it has a reclining back, since the ones at Walt Disney World are not meant for that age group and don’t recline (at least they didn’t when my kids were that small). Our daughter was used to napping in her stroller so it was no big deal for her. We just reclined the seat back and she would fall right to sleep. We also never heated her bottles, so it was easy to fill them with water in the morning and just add formula when she was hungry. The only difficulties we had were washing the bottles out in the sink in the room, and we had to throw away any unused baby food in the parks because we couldn’t refrigerate it.
We’re now at the stage where we’re wrestling with the whole independence thing. Our son will be 12 on our next trip and he’s been to Walt Disney World so many times that he feels almost as comfortable there as he does at home, so he doesn’t quite understand why he can’t go off and do things by himself. I think the advice about gradually increasing the length of his “leash” is a good idea, I’ll have to let you know how it works for us.
Thanks for sharing your experiences. And please do let us know how the “leash” approach works with your son.
Peter writes:
I loved the article on right age. I have a three-year-old boy and a seventeen-day-old girl. My son has already made four trips to Walt Disney World, the first being when he was eight months. Some of our friends, mostly non vacation people, criticized our choice to go, citing the popular “he won’t remember anything.” My wife and I would usually respond that we are going for us mostly (we went all the time pre-children too) and to spend time away from our jobs as a family.
We usually try and bring a family member (or members) to help out. It isn’t that hard to talk someone into a Disney trip, plus we usually get a night to go out to a nice dinner, with a baby sitter that we know and love watching our child. On that first trip, my son’s first character was Tigger, to which he screamed and looked terrified. I was a little worried and thought maybe we didn’t have to do characters on that trip. That was until my son saw Pooh was also there. I took him up to Pooh and all he could do was stare in amazement at a live version of his favorite plush toy. Since then it has been three years of loving the characters (even Tigger!).
I guess traveling with young ones also really depends on what type of child you have. My son has always been a sleeper and honestly is a good traveler. He is fascinated by the airport and the flight from New Jersey to Walt Disney World is only about two and a half hours, so it really isn’t too bad. Even in restaurants he is immersed in atmosphere and foods, and character meals might be his favorite part of the trip.
My daughter’s first trip will be this December. It’s already booked, meals reserved, Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Party tickets in hand already. My son is already talking about going on the Barnstormer, now that he is tall enough. Let’s hope my daughter likes Walt Disney World as much as the rest of her family. All in all, I think any age is perfect for Disney World, provided that traveling is well thought out and preparations have been taken.
Thank you also for sharing your own experiences. The common message in the feedback I’m receiving is in your last comment: “I think any age is perfect for Disney World, provided that traveling is well thought out and preparations have been taken.”
Anna writes:
I really appreciated the article you wrote on what is the best age to take your child to the parks. We first took our son to Disneyland just before he turned two. People thought we were nuts, but we knew otherwise. He LOVED it and so did we. Sure, things had to be a little different than our previous trips without a kid, but it was so much more meaningful with him.
I have friends that ask me when is a good age to take your child to Disneyland or Walt Disney World. My response? It depends on your kid. I know older kids that really aren’t ready and little teenies, that are. If your kids have never seen a Disney cartoon, I would start with that – it will mean more to them when they see Stitch and actually know who or what he is! Also, if your children have “melt downs” easily, then maybe you need to think about your timing. If you have a “go with the flow” kid, your trip will be fun and easy. It’s such an individual decision and your trip is really what you make it.
My son just turned four and we’ll be headed to Walt Disney World this December. He’s been to Disneyland twice and is totally excited and looking forward to a whole WORLD of Disney adventures. We can’t wait!
Thank you for those nice words. Enjoy that trip in December – it’s a great time to go.
