Disney World with Toddler and Infant

Well, depends on what your expectations are. It's pretty well set up for travelling with small children, but the three year old is not going to get any more out of it that a trip to the mall, and while the two year old will LOVE it, he/she probably won't remember much, and will not be old enough for thing that will be appropriate in just a year or two.

That said, if you've been before, and don't have an urgent adult agenda that needs to be considered, it could be a lot of fun for everyone. I would strongly recommend staying on property with very little ones, and in a monorail resort if you can manage it, so you can make a speedy exit if it's starting to be too much.

As a parent, now in my 60's, I don't know why you would want to wear the kids out when they don't have a clue what is going on and will be tired and cranky - making your day the same.
Go to ST Augustine, FL, rent a condo - I can suggest one that belongs to a friend, then chill out on the beach. The small one won't know, the 2 year old will love it, you'll be relaxed! Some really great LOCAL (NON CHAIN) places to eat too!
As we say down here " 43 miles of beaches, and the rest is history" ( Oldest city in the nation)

Sorry, that should have been 3 month old.

Some may disagree, but I'm with fishinmore on this. Visiting WDW usually is a grueling, physical experience, particularly if you factor in hot & humid weather. I honestly think your two kids would enjoy it much more in a few years...and you would too.

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Vic's travels: http://my.flightmemory.com/vogilvie

Thanks everyone - your input is very helpful. We are thinking of spending one week in the area but limiting our "exposure" to Disney to 3-4 days.

Yes, it can be managed. We did it when our kids were very young, though not a few months old.

My suggestion is that if you can swing it financially stay at one of the resorts on the monorail. that will give you an opportunity to take a break in the middle of the day.

Other thought is that if yiu don't stay on monorail line, consider renting a car. We stayed a few times at the Animal Kingdom Lodge, which my kids loved for the animal view. But it can be a long bus ride to the Magic Kingdom. With our own car we had far greater flexibility.

First, get a tatoo on your forearm that reminds you "It is not a contest to see how much we can see in a week". We traveled to WDW with our kids at about that age and some people thought we were nuts. The baby will get parked in the stroller and rolled around and think s/he is at the mall or for a walk - no different than home except you need to watch for sunburn, dehydration, etc. For the older kid, if you do it right s/he will be so thrilled to have Mom and Dad's attention for a week, things can go well. As long as you are not one of those parents hauling over-tired whining toddlers thru "just one more ride" at 4 PM after a long day when everyone is exhausted.

You have many more years to return to WDW - and while the idea is to stay close enough to enter, leave, re-enter one of the Parks after a rest period, we never ended up returning - our kids were happier playing at the hotel pool, chasing little lizards in the landscaping - that type of thing.

So if you are going to act as if this is a must-see marathon, wait until they are 10 years older. If you can view it as a fun family adventure without the gnawing thought that "we came so far and paid so much" then go for it.

And contrary to popular advice, we stayed off-site, rented a car, saved money and got a suite-type arrangement with at least a mini-kitchen set-up. Eating out 3 meals/day with kids that age gets old really fast, and sometimes take-out in the room was a better choice. (But there were far fewer WDW hotel options back then)

Why would you do this. The children can't do many/any of the rides. It is expensive. It would be the LAST place on earth I'd go. Go to the beach and have a good time.

We took our now grown kids several times over the years. I firmly believe that children don't get much out of WDW until they are at least 10. Their favorites times were when they were in their teens. Very small children don't understand much of whet they are seeing, they get tired and hot and sunburned. Wait a few years at least, IMO.

It really comes down to whether you are willing to invest in expensive tickets, etc, (although the little ones are free), and then take things at a relaxed, frequently interrupted, small child friendly pace. And not become frustrated that the little lizards are more fun than any of the elaborate amusements. You are probably going to miss a fair amount.

If this is your one-time only dream vacation I would skip it for at least five years (and 10 might be better), but if you are willing to treat the place like a giant park/mall with the best kiddie rides ever, you could do it. If I were taking very little ones, I would devote one or two days to the Magic Kingdom, one to Animal Kingdom, one to Downtown Disney, one to Seaworld, if possible, probably one to Epcot, and at least one day just to swim, find a playground, etc. I'd probably skip Hollywood Studios altogether, and ditto for the water parks.

They won't remember this trip, or not much of it anyway, but you will, and if you are willing to treat it as quality family time, and not the "Bataan Theme Park Death March", it could be magical. And the children won't be free next time. And one great advantage of Disney is that no-one will look at you cross-eyed for taking a two-year-old into the better restaurants, either.

My vote is a big NO. The kids will get little or nothing out of it, they won't remember anything, and you'll get frustrated trying trudge around with them.

Go to a FL beach instead and maybe take a day for SeaWorld or something like that. You can have a nice time and probably spend a lot less money.

I disagree with the advice of those who say don't go. It's your money and you know your kids temperent, sleeping patterns and ability to handle change better than we do.

We took our daughter to her first restaurant at two weeks old. At 7 she's quite comfortable acting appropriately at a highly rated restaurant near our home.

At a month old we let our son sleep at my parent's house for the first time and let him stay over one night a week for his first several months. He can now sleep anywhere and like a rock. Our two nieces didn't do their first sleep away from home until they were 3 and 2 respectively. They found it impossible to sleep when it was our house that was their first experience in a different room.

My son took his first airplane trip at three months and at 9 has been to 14 foreign countries.

Our kids went to WDW when they were 27 months and 9 months, respectively. At that age they didn't remember going to our local playground either. Doesn't mean they didn't enjoy it.

Kids are adaptable and become comfortable in situations when they are exposed to them at an early age.

You have the benefit going when schools are in session and the parks are significantly less crowded. I would agree that taking two little kids in the middle of July could pose a challenge. But when you have a schedule flexibility to go when everyone else can't, why not?

I think we took our two kids in early November the first time we went and they were perfectly fine.

You know what your kids can handle. We don't.

You had it right, it IS crazy.

Going to a restaurant and sleeping over at granny's house is a LOT different from dragging around a huge hot theme park that costs a bajillion dollars to step inside.

Kids under three are free. If you go in October or November it isn't as hot and it isn't as crowded.

I wonder how many who say "DON'T GO!" base that on their experience of doing just that with their children at a comparable age?

We took our two kids at toddler age. We managed just fine.

And they'll be done renovating Small World by the middle of October, which is one of the few things that are really wonderful for even a young baby.

Please note that OP stated the adults were "Disney adorers" - they do not seem to think the kids are going to remember the trip, just would it be possible. I am of the opinion that kids that age are happy to just spend time with their parents - and in this case the parents want to go to WDW. When kids are that age the quality of the trip is all about the logistics and accomodations and having reasonable expectations. Which is why this trip can work just fine. the kids would be just as happy at the playground or local pool - they don't need a vacation, the parents do. So if the parents want to go, can afford it, I still say go.

Have they been "Disney adorers" while toting two toddlers?

**I disagree with the advice of those who say don't go. It's your money and you know your kids temperent, sleeping patterns and ability to handle change better than we do.**
I was under the impression the OP was soliciting opinions. No?

**I think we took our two kids in early November the first time we went and they were perfectly fine.**
Didn't you just tell the OP to ignore the advice based on others' experiences?

I have no interest in hijacking the guys thread but I think if you stop taking it so personally K9, you'd be far better off.

The OP is a big boy I'm sure and capable of determing what they'd like to do.

I believe Gail stated my thought far better than I did.

Disney World's a great place to go with really little ones as long as you have realistic expectations. Try not to go during extremely hot weather, and go when school is in session so the crowds are down. Pace yourself, don't try to see everything, and don't expect your kids to remember a lot.

I don't ever see anyone say "don't take your toddlers to the beach", but plenty speak up about Disney World. I say don't think about it as a theme park vacation, think about it as a resort with tons of things to do. Stay at a hotel with a nice pool (if you can't swing a monorail resort check out Wilderness Lodge, the Swan/Dolphin, Animal Kingdom Lodge or Coronado Springs). You can take Disney transportation everywhere, and you'll have lots of dining options. The theme parks are just more nice places to walk around, and they happen to have some attractions you can include in your visit, along with 6-foot tall mice (and very nice air-conditioned baby care centers, which I highly recommend).

After having just spent a lot of dollars to take two 9 year olds and a 4 year old to the local county fair and ride on the midway, I say Disney tickets are not that expensive for what you get. And go for more than a couple of days--after 3 days the marginal additional days are very cheap.

And for the record there are plenty of attractions that your little ones can go on, even if Small World is closed. Since you're WDW fans you probably already know that.

Just for me, the real joy of taking my kids or grands would be (and was) THEIR enjoyment of the place. We have memorable pictures. If these young folks are Disney adorers and want to go, more power to them. It is so beyond my ken. SO couch in THOSE terms. WE (20-30 somethings) want to go to Disney. What can we do when we have our wonderful two young children with us.

I was about to ask this question then I seen it already. My son is almost 2. I was thinking of going there in December. Everyone seems to think dont go on here. I read on another site their are things for a toddler to do. A baby will probably sleep most of the time. And Yeah the weather will be much more manageable in November then in the summertime.