Hi everyone, I’m Tyler, this is my first post here, it seems like a great community! Please pardon any “typos” as I learn the acronyms and lingo.
We are planning to go to Disney next April with our son, who will be 18 months old at the time. He is our first. My wife and I went to Disney in 2019 and had an incredible time. We had each been a few times prior to that too. I planned it down to the minute and it was perfect. Now I’m trying to figure out how to properly plan with an 18-month-old and some of the changes at Disney… as I know that will change everything!
Some details:
-We plan to stay at the Poly. Most likely will rent via DVC
-My parents will be coming as well, which is a huge help and will make for such a memorable trip!
-Likely 7 days / 6 nights
-We are very active so we plan to get Park Hoppers for each day and will try and start mornings bright and early
The big question: what are your best tips for going to Disney with an 18-month-old? Tips and tricks, favorite things to do, schedule and routine management advice, anything you wish you did differently?
Some general concerns I have:
-does Disney supply pack n plays at resorts? I heard typically yes, but not always
-when booking Genie+ / ILLs can I book on behalf of our entire party? My parents will have a separate room
-I’m worried about being tied to park reservations… it’s difficult to determine what park we want to go to so far in advance, and with a baby we want some degree of flexibility. Can park reservations be changed as the dates approach if availability allows?
-do I really need to book ~11 months in advance for Poly DVC?
-any specific room request recommendations for Poly w a baby?
-are TP room requests possible when renting DVC points?
-what’s the best transportation method… are any rideshare programs equipped with car seats? I thought staying on the monorail would help significantly
Ultimately I know this is a once in a lifetime trip for our family and thus I want to plan ahead as best as I can… and even if our son may not remember it, the rest of us will!
You can request them. They are not guaranteed but I can’t honestly think of a time anyone has reported they were unable to get one.
Yes, provided you’re all linked up as family/friends
Yes, you can cancel your reservation and rebook to any available park right up until you tap in
I would definitely put in a request with the rental company ASAP. Availability at all DVC resorts has been tighter than normal over the last couple of years due to built-up unused points during the pandemic.
You might want to consider not getting a lake view as some report finding the ferry horns disruptive to sleep
Yes. You use the very same process as if you book a room yourself, providing the reservation number when you configure the room request
For both MK and EP you’re going to want to use monorail in all likelihood because that’s simplest with a stroller.
For the other parks your only options are bus or - currently - rideshare. Minnie Vans will be coming back online “soon” and should be available by your 2023 trip - those would have car seats assuming they come back as they were before. Other ride shares may offer vehicles with car seats but I wouldn’t rely on it.
I think that’s about it. I would 2nd putting in a request for Poly 11 months in advance, especially since you’ll be traveling during spring break time. Also you can cancel and rebook any available park reservation at any time, but again traveling during spring break you might not have a lot of availability if you wait too close to the day of. Somone else recently asked about traveling with a baby and got lots of good replies. I’ll see if I can find the thread and link it for you.
Yay! You are going to have a great time! I went for the first time with my mom for my daughters 4th birthday when my son was 15mo. One thing I will say is be prepared for meal variety for your baby to be limited. Character meal / buffets were good for us because babies eat off your plate (for free) and then you can actually have access to fruit etc. rather than buying a kids meal for them to eat half a hamburger bun.
These are pricey, but if you can fit Minnie Van rides into your budget for trips from Poly to AK and to HS, I highly recommend them. This made travel between our resort (BLT) and those parks much much easier with very young kids (DS was 13 months on one of our trips) and we loved having the car seat.
Have a plan, but keep expectations low. There will inevitably be unplanned washroom, snack, and rest breaks needed. And everything takes longer with a young child/stroller
Will you be sharing a room with your parents? If not and you have two rooms, set up a “Trip” for both in your TP dashboard, detailing the confirmation numbers. Then when making the room request, you can make one for each room and note that you’re traveling together.
We’ll have two rooms and I’m hoping to book them both by renting DVC points. Not necessarily adjoining or anything, but ideally in good spots! As of now dates are flexible, but thinking the second half of April to hopefully miss most of the spring break action.
The comment about the ferry horn at the Poly is great intel. Is it really that disruptive? How often does it go off? I’d imagine we’ll be up early enough most days but afternoon naps would be my concern.
It goes off every time they come into and leave out of the TTC. The ferries run continuously from well before park open until well after park close so you’ll hear it a few times an hour, every hour, for most hours of the day. If you’re in the Moorea building you will definitely hear it. I guess it depends on how sensitive you are to sounds.