Disney World with kids for the first time
Mar 16th, 2012, 10:04 AM
#1
Original Poster
Join Date: Feb 2011
Posts: 37
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Disney World with kids for the first time
Taking kids to Disney world for the first time. My wife and I have been there multiple times so we know what to expect, however, we haven't been since 2004. Our daughter is 6 and son will be very close to turning 5. We are staying at the Polynesian since we have heard so many good things about it from family and friends and want to be closer to the Magic Kingdom side. If you have stayed there, please give your opinion of this resort (i.e. rooms, pool, character breakfast, etc.).
My son's favorites are Cars and Toy Story. I know that there are some rides geared toward these movies but I'd like to know if there are any other attractions for Cars and Toy Story that we should not miss. I heard something about taking a picture with Lightning McQueen. Is that at Hollywood Studios?
We have a reservation at the bibbidi bobbidi boutique for my daughter and then we are planning to eat dinner in Cinderella's castle immediately after. Has anyone experienced this and if so, how was it?
We are planning on going to all 4 parks and would love to hear about anything that we should NOT miss out on that my kids would love.
Thanks for any help!
My son's favorites are Cars and Toy Story. I know that there are some rides geared toward these movies but I'd like to know if there are any other attractions for Cars and Toy Story that we should not miss. I heard something about taking a picture with Lightning McQueen. Is that at Hollywood Studios?
We have a reservation at the bibbidi bobbidi boutique for my daughter and then we are planning to eat dinner in Cinderella's castle immediately after. Has anyone experienced this and if so, how was it?
We are planning on going to all 4 parks and would love to hear about anything that we should NOT miss out on that my kids would love.
Thanks for any help!
Mar 16th, 2012, 05:27 PM
#2
Join Date: Mar 2004
Posts: 2,713
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
The "meet and greet" for Lightning McQueen is at Hollywood Studios. I've always seen Lightning McQueen come out with Mater.
The line to take a picture with them forms pretty early and gets really long. I've seen lines forming as much as an hour before - though this was in early June, which is the start of the busy summer season. If you were going at a less crowded time the wait would probably be less.
The line to take a picture with them forms pretty early and gets really long. I've seen lines forming as much as an hour before - though this was in early June, which is the start of the busy summer season. If you were going at a less crowded time the wait would probably be less.
Mar 17th, 2012, 11:50 AM
#4
Join Date: Jun 2005
Posts: 203
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
We have been to the Polynesian and you will probably like it. The pool is great, the rooms are fine, and the convenience to the monorail is the best. The character breakfast at Ohana is a great one. The food is served family style at your table, which is much nicer than buffet, in my opinion. We had 7:50 reservations, which was perfect. We were able to see all four characters (Lilo, Stitch, Mickey, Pluto) in under an hour and made it to MK shortly after the 9:00 opening.
Also, if you are going at a busy time, pay attention to the extra magic hours for people staying at Disney resorts. If your kids are up to it, you can skip the middle of the day when everything is packed and hot, and stay in a park until midnight enjoying minimal lines. I can’t wait until my kids are old enough for the late night hours!
When are you going? Do you have reservations yet? We have never done dinner at the castle, because we’ve never planned ahead enough. I’ve heard the reservations there book up immediately when they are available 180 days out. I haven’t tried though, so who knows. We have done the Cinderella dinner at 1900 Park Fare (in the Grand Floridian hotel). It was great. The characters are Cinderella, Prince Charming, Anastasia and Drezzela. The step sisters are hilarious. It’s a little refreshing to have a snobby, sarcastic character after seeing so many smiles all day. haha
Buzz LIghtyear does character greetings in Tomorrowland in Magic Kingdom. I don’t know about Epcot or HS. The Buzz Lightyear ride at MK is a LOT of fun, and I would plan on riding that a few times if you have a Toy Story fan. Woodie and Jessie are behind Splash Mountain in Adventureland.
As much as I love Fodors, and use it for a lot of travel research, it isn’t the best place for Disney info. I used www.touringplans.com for my recent trip, and found that they have excellent information. If you subscribe and download their app ($12 per year, I think), you can get crowd calendar info, which shows the expected crowd levels in each park. It is very helpful when deciding which days to spend in which park. Also, it has wait times for all rides, and a great chat section with a bunch of helpful Disney lovers. It has touring plans, which are a great tool to help avoid or at least minimize long lines.
Other sites that are helpful:
http://www.disboards.com/
http://allears.net/index.html
For the best character greeting info (unofficial), see www.kennythepirate.com. His character schedule is awesome!
Have a great time! I’m sure the kids will LOVE it. Make sure to do enough planning so that you don’t have to stand in a ton of long lines, and it will be great. Maybe you’ll even get to experience a lot of the new Fantasyland expansion!
Katie
Also, if you are going at a busy time, pay attention to the extra magic hours for people staying at Disney resorts. If your kids are up to it, you can skip the middle of the day when everything is packed and hot, and stay in a park until midnight enjoying minimal lines. I can’t wait until my kids are old enough for the late night hours!
When are you going? Do you have reservations yet? We have never done dinner at the castle, because we’ve never planned ahead enough. I’ve heard the reservations there book up immediately when they are available 180 days out. I haven’t tried though, so who knows. We have done the Cinderella dinner at 1900 Park Fare (in the Grand Floridian hotel). It was great. The characters are Cinderella, Prince Charming, Anastasia and Drezzela. The step sisters are hilarious. It’s a little refreshing to have a snobby, sarcastic character after seeing so many smiles all day. haha
Buzz LIghtyear does character greetings in Tomorrowland in Magic Kingdom. I don’t know about Epcot or HS. The Buzz Lightyear ride at MK is a LOT of fun, and I would plan on riding that a few times if you have a Toy Story fan. Woodie and Jessie are behind Splash Mountain in Adventureland.
As much as I love Fodors, and use it for a lot of travel research, it isn’t the best place for Disney info. I used www.touringplans.com for my recent trip, and found that they have excellent information. If you subscribe and download their app ($12 per year, I think), you can get crowd calendar info, which shows the expected crowd levels in each park. It is very helpful when deciding which days to spend in which park. Also, it has wait times for all rides, and a great chat section with a bunch of helpful Disney lovers. It has touring plans, which are a great tool to help avoid or at least minimize long lines.
Other sites that are helpful:
http://www.disboards.com/
http://allears.net/index.html
For the best character greeting info (unofficial), see www.kennythepirate.com. His character schedule is awesome!
Have a great time! I’m sure the kids will LOVE it. Make sure to do enough planning so that you don’t have to stand in a ton of long lines, and it will be great. Maybe you’ll even get to experience a lot of the new Fantasyland expansion!
Katie
Mar 18th, 2012, 06:56 PM
#5
Original Poster
Join Date: Feb 2011
Posts: 37
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
KatieL, thanks for the response and great information!
We are going at the end of July and staying for 5 nights. My travel agent made the reservation for dinner at Cinderella's castle at the same time she made the reservation for the bibbidi bobbidi boutique, so that was a relief.
Thanks for the info about where to see Buzz, Woody and Jessie. Both of my kids are huge Toy Story fans and I'm sure they will enjoy seeing them. The Buzz Lightyear ride is definitely on the list to do. We also have to make sure we do the meet and greet with Lightning McQueen and Mater at Hollywood Studios. That is the other favorite.
My daughter of course is in to all of the princesses with her favorite being Ariel. Is there a meet and greet with Ariel that we should be aware of?
Also, thanks for the other websites.
The last time my wife and I were there was back in 2004. We're not familiar with the Fantasyland expansion. What exactly are they doing or adding?
We are going at the end of July and staying for 5 nights. My travel agent made the reservation for dinner at Cinderella's castle at the same time she made the reservation for the bibbidi bobbidi boutique, so that was a relief.
Thanks for the info about where to see Buzz, Woody and Jessie. Both of my kids are huge Toy Story fans and I'm sure they will enjoy seeing them. The Buzz Lightyear ride is definitely on the list to do. We also have to make sure we do the meet and greet with Lightning McQueen and Mater at Hollywood Studios. That is the other favorite.
My daughter of course is in to all of the princesses with her favorite being Ariel. Is there a meet and greet with Ariel that we should be aware of?
Also, thanks for the other websites.
The last time my wife and I were there was back in 2004. We're not familiar with the Fantasyland expansion. What exactly are they doing or adding?
Mar 19th, 2012, 09:15 AM
#6
Join Date: Mar 2004
Posts: 2,713
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
The meet and greets for the characters do not require a separate ticket, you just get in line. July is in the midst of the summer season, so expect big crowds and long lines. I would recommend looking at the schedule to see what time Lightning McQueen and Mater come out and go over to that area at least an hour before to see how the line is forming.
The Toy Story Midway Mania ride is also in Hollywood Studios - I would recommend getting fast passes for it as soon as you enter the park (watch out for the stampede of people trying to do the same thing if it's at park opening). Then check the standby line and see if you want to get on it then. Beyond first thing in the morning and your return time for any fast passes you get, getting on the ride the rest of the day will be waiting in really long lines. The ride is excellent and great fun.
I second the recommendation for disboards.com - you'll find a ton of information to any question you have and probably information for questions you didn't know you had.
The Toy Story Midway Mania ride is also in Hollywood Studios - I would recommend getting fast passes for it as soon as you enter the park (watch out for the stampede of people trying to do the same thing if it's at park opening). Then check the standby line and see if you want to get on it then. Beyond first thing in the morning and your return time for any fast passes you get, getting on the ride the rest of the day will be waiting in really long lines. The ride is excellent and great fun.
I second the recommendation for disboards.com - you'll find a ton of information to any question you have and probably information for questions you didn't know you had.
Mar 19th, 2012, 11:26 AM
#8
Join Date: Sep 2003
Posts: 3,528
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Buzz Lightyear ride at MK is my all time favorite ride. It just makes me laugh and smile and I love beating my kids with points (yeah, I'm that kind of mom). My kids are too old now for WDW trips but we have such good memories from there. Have a wonderful time.
Mar 20th, 2012, 12:18 PM
#9
Join Date: Jun 2005
Posts: 203
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
It will be pretty busy when you are there, so keep in mind that character greets will have long lines, just like rides. I am pretty sure that Ariel is part of the castle dinner, along with Cinderella (of course), Aurora, Belle, and Snow White. If not, she does have a meet & greet in Adventureland. I think Prince Eric is with her in Adventureland, but not at the castle. I think she is somewhere in Epcot too, but I don’t know.
The Fantasyland expansion is going to include a new princess greeting area, which I assume is where Ariel will be eventually, but I doubt that will be open by July. For now, the new Dumbo ride and the Goofy Roller Coaster are open in the new Fantasyland. They are going to have a Little Mermaid ride eventually, but I don’t think it will be open until the end of this year. This link has some info: http://www.insidethemagic.net/2011/0...eer-interview/
I hope this helps! Keep in mind that there is no way to do everything. Make sure to find out what the must-dos are for each of the kids and focus on that. You will all have a great time.
The Fantasyland expansion is going to include a new princess greeting area, which I assume is where Ariel will be eventually, but I doubt that will be open by July. For now, the new Dumbo ride and the Goofy Roller Coaster are open in the new Fantasyland. They are going to have a Little Mermaid ride eventually, but I don’t think it will be open until the end of this year. This link has some info: http://www.insidethemagic.net/2011/0...eer-interview/
I hope this helps! Keep in mind that there is no way to do everything. Make sure to find out what the must-dos are for each of the kids and focus on that. You will all have a great time.
Mar 21st, 2012, 07:05 AM
#10
Original Poster
Join Date: Feb 2011
Posts: 37
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Thanks to everyone for the great information. It is much appreciated.
Is there any Cars (Lightning McQueen, Mater) attraction? I know there is a meet and greet at Hollywood Studios but didn't know if there is any other Cars attraction elsewhere.
Is there any Cars (Lightning McQueen, Mater) attraction? I know there is a meet and greet at Hollywood Studios but didn't know if there is any other Cars attraction elsewhere.
Mar 30th, 2012, 05:25 AM
#11
Join Date: Jul 2007
Posts: 8
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Your daughter will LOVE getting transformed into a princess at Bibbiddi Bobbidi Boutique. I live in FL so Disney is our "local" amusement park so we have annual passes and we have been to the BBB 3 times - word of advice - if your daughter has an Ariel costume or you can buy one ahead of time at a Disney Store, do it and take it with you. They are much cheaper to buy ahead of time than buying one in the Boutique.
You are coming to Disney at the hottest time of the year so I recommend bringing refillable water bottles with drink mix packets that you can fill up at the water fountains so you aren't shelling out tons of money for drinks every hour. Also, it rains in July about evey day in the summer time so plan in advance and buy cheap rain ponchos elsewhere with a hood so you can put them on and still enjoy the park and not have to pay the park prices. Disney is also ok with bringing food into the park, so we always pack snacks/PB&J sandwiches because it never fails, as soon as the kids get to the park they are starving!
You are coming to Disney at the hottest time of the year so I recommend bringing refillable water bottles with drink mix packets that you can fill up at the water fountains so you aren't shelling out tons of money for drinks every hour. Also, it rains in July about evey day in the summer time so plan in advance and buy cheap rain ponchos elsewhere with a hood so you can put them on and still enjoy the park and not have to pay the park prices. Disney is also ok with bringing food into the park, so we always pack snacks/PB&J sandwiches because it never fails, as soon as the kids get to the park they are starving!
Mar 30th, 2012, 08:12 AM
#13
Join Date: Feb 2003
Posts: 333
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Do you have reservations for Cinderella's Castle? When we went six years ago, we made reservations months in advance because back then it was the hardest restaurant to get reservations for.
The storybook restaurant in Norway at Epcot have princesses as well.
I second disboards.com and touring plans. They were invaluable when we went.
The storybook restaurant in Norway at Epcot have princesses as well.
I second disboards.com and touring plans. They were invaluable when we went.
Mar 30th, 2012, 10:49 AM
#14
Join Date: Mar 2003
Posts: 217
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
The Unoffical WDW guide book has touring plans geared for families with younger children that you might want to look at. The best advise I can give you is to arrive at the parks 15-20 minutes before opening and be there for the rope drop. If you are renting strollers for the kids, take in account the time it will take to accomplish that. You are going at a very busy time of year and the only way to see everything you want to see is to get there early and have a plan.
It will also be extremely hot and humid. If you aren't used to this kind of heat it can be very hard to deal with. Dress the kids in lightweight, loose clothing, drink lots of water, have the kids wear a hat if they will. Also, as the other poster mentioned, it will probably rain every day for some amount of time. It could last 10 minutes or an hour and can come at any time of the day so having the ponchos handy will also be helpful.
It will also be extremely hot and humid. If you aren't used to this kind of heat it can be very hard to deal with. Dress the kids in lightweight, loose clothing, drink lots of water, have the kids wear a hat if they will. Also, as the other poster mentioned, it will probably rain every day for some amount of time. It could last 10 minutes or an hour and can come at any time of the day so having the ponchos handy will also be helpful.
