We are going to disney world in August and are only staying 3 nights. With so much to do and see, I want to plan ahead so we don%26#39;t miss anything that they would really love.
I would appreciate any advice that people have on your favorite things for 3 - 6 year old boys.
I figure we will visit parks in the mornings and evenings and stay by the pool midday when it%26#39;s the hottest.
I%26#39;ve heard the water parks are very crowded in the middle of the day when it%26#39;s hottest. Is this true? Are the water parks good for these ages?
Any experience with stroller rentals? I was thinking of doing a double in case my older one gets tired too or we could put bags in the other side. Is it hard to get around with a double stroller?
My boys interests are toy story, the incredibles, power rangers, star wars, the new cars movie, lilo and stitch, nemo, chicken little, pirates of the carribean, etc.
We are staying on the monorail on the concierge floor of the grand floridian. Any advice on meal planning from people who have stayed on this concierge floor? Is it enough to feed kids for breakfast and dinner? How about adults?
One last thing - we have 8 people so we are a grand gathering - anything great we should take advantage of from that?
Sorry for so many questions...any advice / tips will be greatly appreciated - thanks!
Advice Needed - what not to miss with boys (3 %26amp; 6) in disney
The waterparks are, indeed, most crowded in the midday, and to be honest, with children of those ages, I don%26#39;t think you%26#39;ll get your money%26#39;s worth from the water parks, because of the height limitations on most of the water slides. Save your money this trip, and stay at the resort pools instead; most of them are terrific in their own right. Then, when they both get a little bigger and older, take them back to do the waterparks when they can go on everything at them.
I%26#39;ve no experience with strollers myself, but maybe someone else does.
For their character interests, I%26#39;d say Magic Kingdom and MGM Studios would be children%26#39;s favorites to see all those characters they enjoy, particularly in the parades. Animal Kingdom would also be a fantastic choice for them.
Grand Floridian is a great resort; you%26#39;ll love it.
Here is a link to some reviews of the ';grand/magical gatherings'; events some folks did. See if this is your cup of tea:
allearsnet.com/reviewpost/showproduct.php…
Advice Needed - what not to miss with boys (3 %26amp; 6) in disney
You have a great idea when you stated that you would hit the parks in the morning and again in the evening. This is what we do. You will be one of the few without screaming children. It gives them time to chill from the theme park overload. Your only problem will be getting them out of the pool.
If your 3yr old cannot swim well, lifejackets are provided. Look for the big box, they offer many sizes.
Unless your tickets include the waterparks, I wouldn%26#39;t bother. They are crowded and there is not a lot for them to do. Each water park has a kiddie area, but it is not worth going for just for that. I personally don%26#39;t recommend because other children are not always considerate. Picture a bunch of children screaming and jumping on each other. You have to watch your kids very closely.
I always rent a stroller. You may want to bring a ribbon or something because there are hundreds of other strollers that are all parked together. It will make it easier to find yours. Also, the cast members move the strollers so if it isn%26#39;t where you left it, don%26#39;t panic. It was probably moved and can be found in a different spot. And yes, it can be hard to get around with a stroller. But it is worth not having to carry bags, kids, purse, drinks, etc.
If you can, hit Toon Town first thing. You can take the train, walk. It is a great place to meet the characters and get the pictures.
Advice on the concierge floor. Lots of cereal, muffins, etc. The unlimited chocolate milk, soda, water is worth the price of the concierge. Plenty for breakfast. Not enough for dinner. It is more finger food types of items. Be warned chocolate milk before the rides is not a good combination.
Grand gathering-We did a grand gathering in June. The only thing we took advantage of was the nighttime boat trip. It was great fun. We watched the fireworks from the chartered boat.
I forgot to add, the Stitch ride can be very intense. Use your judgement with the three year old. It could be to scary for him to ride.
Hello
I would definitely use the strollers. Now keep in mind the double stroller rental is $18.00 a day but cheaper if you buy the stroller pack for multiple days. I think we saved 2 bucks a day by doing that. It is well worth it and your little ones will need it.
You want to do MK in a couple of days and devote and entire day to AK. I thought MGM was ok but it was cold that day. MGM is great for shows and your kids will like them. The Lights Action Motor Cars will be your kids highlight I am sure.
Your boys can see Power Rangers at MGM as well as Chicken little and now I can%26#39;t remember who else.
Make sure to catch all the parades as they are the best way for your little ones to see all their fave characters. The car parade at MGM is great. I have pictures online for you to check them out.
http://www.edmontonvirtualtours.com/cars.htm
Great idea to go in the morning then back in the evening. My kids liked going back to the hotel and swimming and returning rested. Just remember that you keep your stroller rental receipt and when you return to the park you can pick up another stroller at no charge. That is the beauty of renting strollers. It is pricey to rent but I would rather spend the money then lug two kids and two strollers from Jersey to Florida. Having kids means you have enough to drag already.
We brought a suitcase with snacks for our kids. I don%26#39;t know what your financial situation is or your dietary concerns but bringing some granola bars, trail mix etc sure helped during long lineups. It also held the kids hunger at bay until designated mealtimes.
Best of all.... HAVE FUN!
Jokelady
P.S. bring bandaids with you for blisters and owies, wet wipes too!
Magic Kingdom is head and shoulders the favourite at our house -- although my 6-year-old didn%26#39;t like Stitch.
Definitely get the double stroller -- there%26#39;s miles and miles of walking, and I promise they%26#39;ll use it -- there%26#39;s plenty of place to throw the bags, too, as well as cupholders, etc.
Pass on the waterparks -- just not that much fun for the kids -- they%26#39;ll have just as much fun at the hotel pool (and a break to swim and have a nap before returning to the park is an excellent way to go!).
Epcot%26#39;s great fun too -- just in a different way -- someone once summed it up that MK is a complete departure from reality, while Epcot is total immersion in it -- that%26#39;s a pretty good assessment. Epcot is science and technology, as opposed to the complete fantasy of MK.
Animal Kingdom is awesome for kids, too -- they even have a free-roaming animatronic dinosaur (coooool!)
Have fun!
Water parks - I agree with the others, you have too little time at WDW to make these worthwhile. Stick with your plan to enjoy the hotel pool.
By the way, the ';Electrical Water Pageant'; (floating parade) usually passes by your hotel around 9:15 PM. Check with the desk to be sure though.
Stroller rental, we rented one for our 6-yr. old and it was well worthwhile. Be sure to save your receipt because the rental is good all day - you won%26#39;t need to pay again when you come back in the evening. If you end up park hopping, you can leave one stroller and pick up another at the next park. Another option is to buy a double umbrella stroller and bring it with you.
Since I mentioned park hopping - it is an expensive option when you are going to be there for only three days and you lose a lot of time going from one park to another. It is not just the transportation time but you have to go through security and the entry lines twice.
Consider skipping Animal Kingdom - your little one won%26#39;t be big enough for Expedition Everest, Kali River Rapids, Dinosaur, and Primevel Whirl. Until the new Nemo shows opens later this year, they are down one show. The things that are available are all out in the sun, with the exception of ';It%26#39;s Tough to be a Bug'; and ';The Festival of the Lion King';. I love Animal Kingdom, I%26#39;m just afraid it will be too hot for you in August.
Touring plan - you absolutely need one. August is hot and crowded. You are going in a group and you just lose too much time if the group has a discussion about what they want to do next at the end of every ride. Believe me, I have been there with groups many times. Also, a good touring plan can help you avoid long lines. You can get the book ';The Unofficial Guide to Walt Disney World'; or www.buildabettermousetrip.com does custom touring plans.
Magic Kingdom - Be there at least 20 minutes prior to park opening. Someone suggested going to Toontown first - as I recall, Toontown opens a little later than the rest of the park. Skip the characters at the front of the park - there will be other opportunities but you should go straight to Fantasyland. If you want to ride Dumbo, do that first. It is the slowest loading ride in all of WDW and the lines get long. Also, Fantasyland is surrounded by concrete and gets horribly hot. You should be able to do Fantasyland by the time Toontown opens. One person in your party may want to go get ';Buzz Lightyear Space Ranger Spin'; fast passes. I agree that the Stitch%26#39;s Great Escape will probably be too scary for your 3-yr. old. Buzz %26amp; Stitch are found at the Timekeeper lobby.
I%26#39;ll put my Epcot suggestions in a seperate post. I%26#39;m a big fan of Epcot. Ignore it if it is not your thing. Nemo is generally found in front of the Living Seas intermittently from 10 am - 5:30 pm.
Disney-MGM Studios doesn%26#39;t have a lot of rides but it does have a lot of shows. Star Tours is a Star Wars ride, the Power Rangers are in the parade and so is Luke Skywalker. The Incredibles are usually found infront of the Magic of Disney Animation intermittantly from 10:15am - 5 PM. Power Rangers are seen on the Streets of America at 10:45 %26amp; 11:45 AM and 12:45, 1:45, 2:45 %26amp; 4:20pm.
I think Epcot is WONDERFUL for kids your kid%26#39;s ages. Mission Space is probably the only thing too intense and even that has a new ';no spin'; option. If they’re tall enough; Soarin’ and Test Track should be fine. Honey I Shrunk the Audience 3-D and Maelstrom might be a little scary for some but many do just fine. Spaceship Earth, The Universe of Energy (Dinosaurs %26amp; 45 blessed minutes of air conditioning), and Journey into Your Imagination with Figment are all visually interesting for kids. One of the Innovention pavilions has a lot of things geared for little ones. The Living Seas is great for kids – marine life %26amp; “Turtle Talk with Crush” are fantastic. “The Land” has a character meal and there are Princess meals at the Norway Pavillion. There are Character Meet %26amp; Greets all through Epcot. There is some great entertainment too – the Jammitors are a “Stomp” like percussion group and Kristos is a Cirque du Soliel type balancing act.
There are “Kidcot” stations throughout the World Showcase. Your kids can make a cardboard mask (free) at which ever station they stop at first. Then they can add a decoration at each additional station. The boat ride at the Mexico pavilion is similar to “It’s A Small World”. The kids may or may not enjoy the American Adventure or the Circle Vision movies in China %26amp; Canada. If I was going to choose one, I’d go with the China movie. There is a little hedge maze in the UK pavilion that is too short for adults to find challenging but I saw a bunch of kids gleefully running through. I also saw kids intrigued by the model train at the Germany pavilion. My kids loved wandering through the Morocco pavilion. There are Koi fish in the pond in Japan. Norway has a Viking boat play area. There is some fantastic entertainment that kids will enjoy: The “Serveur Amusant” (France) is a comedic balancing act. Japan has three great things for kids – “Matsuriza” is a traditional drum act; “Miyuki” is a very neat candy artist, and there is a Japanese Storyteller “Honobono Minwa” on Wed, Thurs, %26amp; Fri. Sergio (Italy) is a juggler. “OrisiRisi”, he drum circle and African Storytellers (Mon- Fri) in the Outpost get good reviews. Kids always love the Dragon Legend Acrobats (China) because they are children too. Some kids will enjoy “Off Kilter” (Canada) – bagpipe rock and “MoRockin” (Morocco) – Middle Eastern pop sounding band. IllumiNations is the evening fireworks show and it is excellent.
Wow - thank you so much!! You have all been super helpful. I will definitely do the stroller and skip the waterparks. The ride scheduling info is very helpful too. I%26#39;m going to buy the unofficial guide for sure. I also didn%26#39;t realize there were so many things for kids at Epcot - very good to know.
I%26#39;ve never written on one of these things before...I%26#39;m so glad I did. I love all the details. Thanks again...would love to hear more!
Since you asked for more......
Grand Gathering. I suggest you speak to the Disney reps. They gave us lots of idea%26#39;s on packages for the grand gathering. If I remember correctly, they offered a Safari at the Animal Kingdom hotel that sounded really great.
Dinner shows. You didn%26#39;t say if you were on a dining plan or not. If you have the time and the funds, I would suggest trying at least one breakfast or dinner show.
People on this board have their favorites. What%26#39;s great is everyone has their own idea%26#39;s of what is fun for a family. You can get tons of suggestions on places to eat.
Someone recently wrote about a Captain Hook character show. Hopefully, they will re-post.
My favorite Character breakfast-Winnie the Pooh at Crystal Palace located in the Magic Kingdom or Chef Mickey.
Favorite dinner-Hoop De Doo Review, located at Fort Wilderness. This dinner show is not mentioned very often. I love it because you get to make alot of noise, play with spoons and washboards, and my kids will eat the food.
Disney Marketplace-We go there often. However, since you have limited time, I would skip it. There is not alot for little ones to do.
MGM-Has Bear in the big blue house, and some great stunt shows. We usually don%26#39;t go to this park. My 4 year old doesn%26#39;t still still long enough to enjoy the shows, and there aren%26#39;t alot of rides for her. My 10 yr old loves it!
Animal Kingdom. VERY hot this time of year. Again, not alot to do for your little one.
Do you plan to eat any sit-down meals in the parks? You can check out menus in the dining section at www.allearsnet.com. You need to get your reservations as soon as possible as many things are already going to be filled. You get them by calling 407-WDW-DINE.
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