youngest a child should be going to disney?

[lorapinky]

Hello

I was just wondering if anyone could offer any advice on this topic.

We are going to Disney next year and we plan to start a family after it. I was just wondering what you all thought was the youngest a child should be before going to Disneyworld?

 

[Cinderella2006]

Each to there own i suppose but we wouldnt have considered taking our son before his second birthday. We are going in October and our son will be 2 1/2 and the eldest 8 years. I would of prefered to wait another year so he would be able to enjoy more of the rides but we are going to Disney to get married and its now or never! I think no matter what their age, they will have a good time but i like to get my moneys worth!

 

[angel659]

I personally feel it pends on how many times you want to go. If you only intend to go once I would wait until the child is at least 5-6. If you plan to go regularly like we do I would take them as young as 1. It really pends on what time you go i.e heat and crowds. I wouldnt want to my 1 year old in August. We went last yr and my boys were 23 months we went in October. We took them as we plan to go away every other year to WDW. Also my dd is 6 now it was a lovely age to take Casey lasy yr. She really understood what was going on and still talks about it today.

 

[T16GEM]

I often ask this question, there are lots of people on the boards who have taken babies to WDW, I think I will be waiting until Shelby is about 2 or 3 just so that she knows what is going on a bit better.

Congratulations on your decision to start a family! It's the best thing in the world!

 

[Goofyish]

I think is an individual personal choice at what age you take a child to WDW.

You need to look at it from the child's stand point and the parents - the long flight, the heat, the crowds and whether are they actually going to get anything out of a trip to WDW if too young. Also, taking a young child on vacation anywhere can be a bind - buggies, nappies, feeding, changing, tantrums etc.... so with the added stress of the long flights, heat etc... what sort of holiday will mum and dad have?

Our youngest was 4 when we first went to WDW. She was able to walk round the parks and enjoy the characters, shows and some rides so she got a lot out of the vacation. We also appreciated the fact that we could see she was enjoying the experience.

 

[lorapinky]

thank you everyone, you have really helped me.

I like to go to disney every 2 years, but think after next year will have to wait a few years before going again but it will be worth the wait.

Congradulations to Cinderella2006 on your upcoming disney wedding!!! I got married there last year and it was lovely, if you have any questions please do not hesitate to ask me.

Thanks to everyone again!

 

[JohnnySharp2]

We first took Joshua when he was 10 months old, and he has been most years since.

To be honest he was too young and I guess ideally 4 or 5 would be the ideal age to start.
Having said that it has only been the last couple of years where we have just stayed in Orlando and we have found the majority of our holidays to be be quite relaxing in many ways.
Although looking back on some of our earlier holidays and all the driving we did, to all parts of Florida, I must admit I do wonder how we coped with it all, especially staying in hotels like we used to do.
The long flight has always been our main concern, rather than the hot weather etc

I do agree that the amount of extras you have to take for the child is a consideration, however with Josh's Autism we have always had to take additional stuff with us anyway.

The one thing I would say from personal experience is a private villa does give you the chance to relax more when away from the parks, and you don't have to worry about waking up the neighbours etc also useful for us because Josh is such an early riser!

 

[Floridafriend]

As others have said it is a personal choice and all children are different. We first took our DS when he was 14months, and he loved every minute, he was easily pleased and took naps in his stroller. This year he was just over 3 and loved meeting the characters and going on the rides. The holidays were different but each very much enjoyed

 

[catherine]

We started taking our eldest DD when she was two, but we did live in CA at the time. I have to say that she loved it and thrived in the atmosphere. She was never afraid of the characters and we have great photos of her with Goofy, she looked so little next to him, but he didn't phase her at all! We started taking our youngest DD when she was six months old. At that point we were living over here in the UK, but we had to make numerous trips to visit the in-laws. We have never had a problem with any of the travelling or at the parks. Both of our DD's have gained a lot from all the travelling that they have done. In fact looking back I really can't think of any negatives.

 

[Verity Chambers]

We took Evie at 5 months!!! It was so easy as she just slept in her pushchair most of the time! She won't remember it but we will!! We probably won't take her till she's 3 now. (Although nobody I know believe i will hold out that long!! ) I think it's a personal choice, e you knoew how your child copes with things or can have a pretty good idea.

 

[tashasmum]

Our daughter was 4 when we first took her to WDW. She knew a lot of things from watching disney movies. Our first day in MK is one i will never forget. Dd never liked people in costumes, not even father christmas and she would run the other way. On entering Mk we took her to see Mickey mouse, as soon as she saw him she ran straight up to him and gave him a big hug, we were left to apologise to the other people in the queue. We have been going back every year since and she still loves it.
In years to come we realised that she actually thought they were real characters and not people.

 

[carolfoy]

My Ds was 7 the first year we went, it was great, old enough to walk all day and tall enough to get on most rides. I would have loved to have taken him earlier in retrospect but it worked out wonderfully and to be honest I couldn't have afforded it then.

 

[gilld]

I'm one of those who thinks the child needs to be a bit older - about 6 or so -to get something out of it, but that's only what I think, I wouldn't feel others were wrong for taking younger children. Everyone knows themselves and their own children best.

I do hate seeing young babies there in the hot, humid, summer months though - I've seen them really struggle then.

Enjoy your forthcoming holiday and enjoy starting your family.

 

[Scrap_Vamp]

When we were deciding when to get married in Florida, we were considering the age of my niece (who was born just before our trip this year!).

We chose 2009 as she will be three by then, and we think that will be a very magical age for her first Disney trip

 

[Bexx]

I didn't worry too much about the ages of my DDs!! I wasn't so bothered about what they would get out of the trip - I went for what I would get out of it!!

One DD was 4 1/2, and the other was 16 months. Worked out very well - as one was post tantrum stage, while the other hadn't started it. And I'm happy to say that they both really enjoyed it it their own different ways.

 

[castanea1985]

We took our DD daughter when she was 3 for the first time, but took DS when he was just 10 weeks!! Obviously, he was too young to remember, but DD was 5 when he was born.
Its great to see how the kids tastes in rides evolve as they go back year after year. DD's first favourite was It's a small world, but now at 19, she can't wait to get on EE!!
It took me 10 years to get my DH to go to the US, and on he is first trip, we flew into Toronto (stayed with friends at Niagara on the Lake) and drove down to Naples FL, and back, spending about 3 days at WDW, when DD was just 3! DD was perfectly happy in her car seat for the 3,500 mile round trip!
I can tell you DS was a lot easier to manage at 10 weeks, than at 3!! By the age of 5 he was going on the Tower of Terror!!!
I wouldn't worry too much about the age of your child - if it feels the right to time to go back ......GO!

 

[disneycymru]

A Bonus to taking a baby is you can use a sky cot and get bulkhead seats. But seriously we've taken ours since they were 6 months and it was no problem but then the holiday is for you as they won't remember much.

It also depends how your child likes the heat and travels, fortunately all ours liked both.

 

[wilma-bride]

Well, our DS is almost 4 and we still haven't taken him. For us, the biggest issue is the 8 or so hours cooped up on the plane. He is so active, I just know he won't find it enjoyable (and nor will we). Also, it might sound selfish but when we go on holiday, that's the only chance we get for 'us' time - to have a toddler along would mean we would miss out on a lot of the things we like to do as a couple (believe me, when you have kids, you stop being a couple and are just Mummy and Daddy 99% of the time). I may well get flamed for this but, each to their own and we would far rather take Daniel when we know he is old enough to a) behave b) stay up a bit later and c) appreciate it more

When you have children of your own, only you will be able to tell when they (and you) are ready. For us, it's just not the right time to be thinking about taking Daniel - to give you an example, he is in bed and fast asleep every night by 6.30 and sleeps 13 hours. Whilst he may be able to cope with staying up a bit later on holiday, it wouldn't be long before it would take its toll - and we don't want to either subject him to being tired and grizzly or ourselves to having to 'retire' at 7 every evening. Purely personal choice.

Having said all that (and I did go on a bit, sorry ), I am starting to think that I would like to take Daniel next year - purely because I feel he is very quickly getting to an age where, if we wait much longer, it may not be as magical for him. I certainly won't consider taking him, though, if he's still going to bed at 6.30

 

[castanea1985]

I couldn't and didn't go away without my kids till they were both in there teens, and even then we only went away locally for a couple of nights.
We are so glad we have taken our kids away with us (from 10 weeks old), they do get something out of it, and it gets them used to long haul travel earlier.
My DS was a hyperactive child and a real handful, when he was younger, and no one worried more about how he would behave on the plane than me. He was fine. Plenty of things to keep him occupied, and as I said, the earlier they get used to the long flights the better!
My DD, now 19, can't wait to take her DB and show her all the things she has seen over the years.
T.

 

[Kevin Stringer]

I agree that it entirely depends on how often you plan to go. If you are going often, you can take a child at practically any age. In fact it is much easier to deal with a very young (as in baby) child than a toddler. They sleep through most of the flight and are happy in a pushchair most of the time.
I would avoid the really hot months though.

We have taken our children at all ages from a few months to the 15 years that our eldest is now.
I believe that they get different things from the WDW experience at different ages. As a baby the colours and movement amaze them, as they get to be toddlers the characters become the centre of their attention and when they get a little older the rides and shows are more appealing.

As usual with these questions there is no definitive answer. Your child, your choice. I'm just glad I got to go with my children at all stages of their childhood.

Kev