So we decided to take a quick trip to Disney with our 4 year old son to check it out. When we made the decision to go I really didn't realize there was so much planning. Years ago when my mom took us to Disney, we just went and did what we wanted. Now it's all about reservations and planning - if you really want to see anything and not spend your day waiting in line. Once I found this out, I jumped on board and started planning. Here are my tips for visiting Disney World with a four year old.
Dining/Food: If you plan on having sit down dinners at the parks or hotels, you should make reservations six months in advance. They allow reservations six months in advance and things do get booked up quickly. I strongly suggest making reservations as soon as possible especially for the character meals. I do also recommend looking at the schedule for the parks and their shows for the dates you are visiting and make reservations at restaurants in the park or near the park you plan to be at for that particular day. This will minimize your time traveling all over just for a character meal. (check schedules on http://www.wdwinfo.com/).
Dining Plan: The other major decision is the meal plan...should you do it? That really depends on what your eating habits, likes/dislikes are. We did decide to do one of the meal plans (1 counter service meal, 1 sit down meal and 1 snack each day). Personally I would not decide to do the meal plan again (unless they were offering the "free dining" special) because it just seemed too limited for us. We also don't benefit from the desserts that are included because we don't always eat dessert anyway. We also found that especially in Epcot there were so many other food choices that we were interested in that were not included on the meal plan, but since we already paid for the meal plan, we just didn't want to spend more money on additional food. Restaurants that we did enjoy for character meals: Akershus, O'Hana and Chef Mickey's. I do also suggest to bring some light snacks for your kids. I packed granola bars, peanut butter crackers, raisins, fruit strips, Cheez Its and some individual lemonade packages to mix with bottled water. It was easy to just pull out a snack while in line or while walking to another attraction without stopping and buying an expensive food item.
Things To Pack: In an earlier blog post, I did share some ideas for things I bought for my son before we went to Orlando. See my other post for details, but my favorite purchases were the Mickey Mouse t-Shirt (from Walmart for $5) and the Buzz Lightyear t-shirt (also from Walmart for $5) and the Buzz Lightyear Pajamas. I brought along a small gift bag decorated with a Disney character sticker for each item. After my son went to bed each night, I put out the gift bag for him on the dresser. I also decorated the bathroom mirror with Disney character wall decals I bought at the dollar store while my son was sleeping. He loved it! When he was tired in the morning and didn't want to get up but we had to get moving for a character breakfast or something, we told him there was a small gift from Mickey on the dresser and he went nuts! It was so cute! He also loved the Mickey Pez dispenser! Other things I packed that he liked were glow bracelets, small light up toys (for scary rides/night time shows), small first aid kit, rain ponchos (just in case it rained...who wants to carry an umbrella?), snacks, lemonade packets, hand sanitizer, anti-bacterial wipes, baby wipes, disposable kids toilet seat covers, travel size sunblock, change of clothes for my son (just in case!), camera, video camera, cell phone (with Disney line wait applications - which was helpful in the parks!), jacket (for night time) and sunglasses.
Strategy/Planning: I did use a book to help plan our time efficiently in the parks. I use the Unofficial Guide to WDW and I found it very helpful. I think it was worth the money especially if you plan to visit the parks at a busy time of year or have limited time in the parks and want to make the most of it. The book gives you an idea of which rides fill up at which times and how to use the Fast Pass system (if you learn anything, learn about Fast Pass before you go!). There was also valuable information on the hotels and restaurants that are a good guide. There are other books available that offer the same type of information, so head to the bookstore and check them out. Another option, ask a friend about borrowing a book. You will be surprised how many friends are also planning a trip to WDW too (we had 3 different friends all going within weeks of our trip!). **Read my other post on what our strategy/day plan was for the Magic Kingdom. It worked great and we managed to avoid lines almost all day!
Hotel Review: We stayed at the All Star Sports Resort. This is in the cheapest category of on-site hotels, but it worked fine for us. The room was brightly decorated and clean. The room was pretty small. There were two full size beds and not much room to walk around them. The bathroom was tight. The sink/vanity was in the main room and the toilet/shower in a separate room. Though the room was small, it met our needs for our 3 night stay. There was also a safe in the room which was nice. Disney hotels also have cribs/bed rails available which is great for parents. We requested bed rails for our son and that worked out great! One of the other benefits to Disney hotels is the transportation. They Magical Express transfer from the airport is included and they transfer your baggage to the hotel for you. In addition, the transportation to the all of the parks and other Disney hotels is included. We used all of the Disney transportation while there and rarely waited more than a few minutes for shuttle to arrive. Overall, we had a great stay and the price was right. The room was normally priced about $110 per night, but was on special for about $80 per night!
Other Comments/Observations: Disney was so much fun. There is so much there to do, you will never see it all on one trip. Have an idea of what you really want to see/do before you go and make a plan - even if it is just a loose plan. Use the free WDW Planning DVD (they will mail you one if you register for it on the website) to help you and your family decide what they want to do. Bring your camera and make sure it is charged up! Take lots of photos. Stop to saver "the magic" while there. It truly is magical! The park fills up later in the day, so start early if you can to maximize your time there. Make advanced reservations for the character meals...it was so worth it!
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