What To Do With Grandkids?

While on our visit in May 2018, our daughter and son in law will take the Keys to the Kingdom tour leaving me and DH with the two granddaughters for 5 hours. They are ages 8 and 10. We’re staying at Bay Lake Tower and will have already been at WDW for 5 days at this point. We’d like to do something a little different with them so it’s like they are having a special event like Mom and Dad.

We’re thinking maybe renting a boat and cruising around Bay Lake but that only takes an hour or two tops. Another thought was going over to Epcot to do a Buzzy Bee scavenger hunt as part of the Flower and Garden Show. Hubby wants to go visit different resorts but we did a bit of that on our last visit a few years back and the girls just weren’t that interested.

Any ideas or recommendations would be appreciated. Thanks!

What about Sorcerers of the Magic Kingdom at MK, or the Pirate Scavenger similar thing?

Or breakfast at Park Fayre @ GF?

Go round Bay Lake on the resort Launch all the way round and then onto WL, hire bikes and cycle across to FW. Look at the horses, or try kayaking/archery. Carriage ride perhaps. Cycle back for lunch at WL somewhere. Or if that’s not appealing, stay at WL and do their hidden Mickey trail before lunch.

Head to Kidani for breakfast at Sanaa with a view of the Savannah. Then do some of the activities at AKL / Kidani. Watch the animals, cookie decorating, “bead activities” (tho they may be mostly in the evening).

Also I know you can do ceramics and t-shirt dyeing at BWI community centre, not sure what activities the community centre have at BLT if you’re DVC members. Actually they may be open to all guests, not sure on that one.

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My kids loved the Pirate Adventure tour when they were 9 and 6 - and want to do it again this summer two years later! It’s kids only and I’m still not 100% sure what they did - https://disneyworld.disney.go.com/events-tours/pirate-adventure-cruises/

There is also the Family Magic tour, which is a tour led scavenger hunt - https://disneyworld.disney.go.com/events-tours/family-magic-tour/

In Epcot, my kids love the Agent p scavenger hunts and the pirates’s adventure scavenger hunt games. https://disneyworld.disney.go.com/attractions/magic-kingdom/pirates-adventures/

Do you figure they’re too old to do BBB? Maybe they’d like the pampering followed by a princess meal? Or maybe the pirate league if princesses don’t get them too excited anymore… how about afternoon tea at the GF?

My 7 year old told me that on our next trip she wants to rent Surrey bikes on the boardwalk.

Maybe you can do a girls mani/pedi at one of the spas.

Fantasia Gardens and Fairways Miniature Golf depending on your vacation package it might be included. There are lost of things to do at FW also.

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I know only a minimal about this but would you like horseback riding? That’s an option at (I think) fort wilderness. I was looking a pony rides for DD and come across that too.

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I would ask them what they want to do. Chances are much of this vacation has been planned with them in mind, but none of it was actually planned by them. It might be a fun project to sit down with them, ask them what they want to do with you, and then help them make their plan to do it.

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I wouldn’t make it too complicated. They might need a break. Sleep in a little - have breakfast. Rent a Sea Racer for half an hour and then swim.

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My DD is 8 and wanted to go to the Japan shop, pick-a-pearl, and get her face painted!! She really enjoyed herself.

Both my kids DD8 & DS 10 enjoyed playing the SOTMK card game & finding pressed pennies.

Also the Spike’s Pollen Nation is just OK… we didn’t get the map but still found a few Spike’s.

The butterfly garden at Epcot would be nice to do!

I’m not sure about the timing of KttK, but what about afternoon Tea at the Grand Floridian? My sister and I would have loved it at that age. (We did in our 20s twice!)

I know they do the special packages that can be expensive, but if they still offer ala carte, that isn’t super duper expensive.

I also like the idea of renting the boats as well. Maybe you could combine the two?

Pirates adventure goes from Contemporary I think, so convenient, you’re not with them, which might be a good thing. Wilderness explorers in AK, and scavenger hunt in EP would be great to all do together. They would enjoy some of a waterpark, but you guys might not? You’re interested in the flower and garden show, so scavenger hunt makes sense, and you could combine it with a Pirates adventure or a trip to the Boardwalk.

The girls loved the idea of the hidden Mickey trail but we can’t find anything about it. Is this a marked trail? We looked in the Hidden Mickeys book we purchased for the trip but don’t see it mentioned at all. Also did a google search. Would love more info. Thanks so much!

We did just that - thank you for the suggestion! They wanted to do a boat ride on Bay Lake and then the hidden Mickey trail at Wilderness Lodge resort. Then when that’s done they opted to just walk around MK and ride on whatever they want. :slight_smile:

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There are hidden Mickeys all over the resort to find. If you ask at the concierge desk I think they will give you a guide sheet, but they can be really hard to spot. I just walked around to see how many I could spot.

Same at AKL/Kidani. Even knowing there was one on the walkway between the Sanaa Lounge and the outlook fire pit, I had to get a CM to point it out.

I’m glad it worked out for you! Sounds like they have come up with a fun plan.

In case anyone is interested, this blog has the Hidden Mickey Trail at Wilderness Lodge for you to see in advance…

http://www.wildernesslodgesite.com/content/wilderness-lodge-hidden-mickey-hunt

Thanks again to all the suggestions! 25 days to go :grinning: