How old was your kids when you started taking them to DisneyWorld?

[Kelcat9494]

Hello,

What the title says really, DH and I usually go every year but with a baby due in January I don't really want to spend all that money when they won't remember or enjoy it, what did you guys do? Or what do you guys think?

X

My parents are in their 70s and I’m in my 40s and they’ve never taken me

That makes sense. So about £5k spends. So looking at £10k approx all in.

What blow out treats do you envisage

We always stay in Disney with the dining plan so we only take spending money for tips, clothes and random Disney shit to fill our house with, which is normally anywhere between £500 and £2000.

@Buxx

That makes sense. So about £5k spends. So looking at £10k approx all in.

What blow out treats do you envisage

I was going to give my niece $25 a day for whatever she wants (presents etc) so that was $350 just for her haha, a few nice meals but Disney meals can add up even quick service. My husband wanted a massive shopping spree as branded items are a lot cheaper! It was only my grandma that would miss out a bit but she'd be happy being left at the pool 😂 off the top of my head I can't really think of anything haha check out DFB on YouTube and some of the you tubers before you go, they give you so many ideas haha

My BIL and SIL took our two to DLP when they were 6 and 11 respectively. The then 6yr old still talks about it all the time and he's about to turn 9 - he absolutely adored it. The 11yr old liked the really high octane stuff but not the twee stuff iyswim. She's 13 now and says she'd happily never go again though she appreciated it as a one off. We've just been up to Scotland for a week and she is desperate to go back and has a list of things to do there.

I am more of a camping/hiking/exploring type and wouldn't go tbh but I reckon at least 6 if you want them to have lasting memories.

I'd be the shopper in that scenario.

I'm thinking massage and spa time for my husband. Would keep him sweet the whole day knowing a sauna and sports massage was waiting at the end!

The meal thing is something that definitely requires thought. Found at DL Paris a lot of places booked up in advance so difficult to get in at the right time. That said really liked the Aladdin themed restaurant (surprisingly good arabic food) and pirates of the Caribbean restaurant in the dark. Good coconut shrimp!

I can't believe the price of it! Definitely not my cup of tea if I was going to spend 5 grand on a holiday it would have to be somewhere exciting like Vietnam or Cuba.

I think they either need to be young enough to be transported by buggy or old enough to be able to walk at least 2-3 miles per day round the parks. DS was 7 when we took him, he loved it but doesn't remember a great amount about it, however I thought it was a good age as he was still young enough to get excited by collecting character signatures and enter into the magic of it, but old enough not to be exhausted and overwhelmed quickly.

Do you think taking him at 7/8 months old would be okay? It's unlikely to be a once in a lifetime trip and even if it is, it's not the end of the world but I want him to enjoy it even if he doesn't remember it haha

Never been, have no plans to do so. Shudder at the thought of such places. But each to their own as they say.

@Wheresthebiffer2 was that a helpful or necessary post ?

OP at that age its more important you enjoy yourselves. It is a long trip for a baby so I'd be worried it would put sleeping patterns out of whack and Baby won't be able to do anything as such at that age. Also for rides and things you'd need to do those separately and then swap over - sorry can't remember if extended family were coming

If you really want to go - go, but I found traveling with a baby a bit of a faff and would personally keep the Disney trip until older.

I’ve done a lot of transatlantic travel with DD and I have to say that 7/8 months was the worst age by a long shot. Wanting to crawl all over the plane floor, no attention span, used to throw up in flight, too big for the bassinet but too small to sit comfortably in her own seat... prior to 6 months and after 1 were a complete breeze though! Personally never had an issue with jet lag but she’s always been a good sleeper and will nap anywhere.

DD was a month before 3. DS was then born so she went when she was 6.5 and he was just after 3.

Have been every year since then and should be there now.

3 for us was perfect age as go regularly

For a one off I would say 5 or 6

I did plan on going next year but we are going to hold off now. My son would have been nearly 3. I know people who have taken 1 year olds though and had an amazing time. It's just a different experience and you will do different things within the park

You might want to amend the typo in your title, OP. You’ve put the singular “was” instead of the plural “were”, but you’re referring to children in the plural.
Thankfully, my children never wanted to go to theme parks. My elder daughter and I are both autistic and would never have coped with the sensory overload!

We preferred quiet beaches, exploring Roman and Greek ruins, visiting the bear sanctuary in the Carpathian Mountains, drifting round Venice on a gondola, touring castles in the Baltic states, going to the opera at Verona... there are thousands of much more wonderful and (culturally stimulating) places to see on this planet than a plastic theme park. My two DDs developed a love of travel as children, and went on to explore the world as adults.
By all means take your DC to Disney, but don’t deprive them of all the world’s culture by doing that every year to the exclusion of all else.

@Babdoc did you understand what the title meant though? I did.

OP awe were meant to be going now with 9&13 year olds but obviously it's been cancelled - hoping for next year?

We've been doing Disneyland Paris since kids were toddlers.

@Babdoc

You might want to amend the typo in your title, OP. You’ve put the singular “was” instead of the plural “were”, but you’re referring to children in the plural. Thankfully, my children never wanted to go to theme parks. My elder daughter and I are both autistic and would never have coped with the sensory overload! We preferred quiet beaches, exploring Roman and Greek ruins, visiting the bear sanctuary in the Carpathian Mountains, drifting round Venice on a gondola, touring castles in the Baltic states, going to the opera at Verona... there are thousands of much more wonderful and (culturally stimulating) places to see on this planet than a plastic theme park. My two DDs developed a love of travel as children, and went on to explore the world as adults. By all means take your DC to Disney, but don’t deprive them of all the world’s culture by doing that every year to the exclusion of all else.

I know I said I go every year but we also go on other holiday, we've been to LA, Paris, Spain, Japan, Las Vegas, places in the uk etc it's just DisneyWorld is special to me and my husband as that's where we went on our first holiday and our honeymoon, we like it and wanted our son to enjoy it.

I apologise for the title, I'm a bit stupid haha I'm glad people know what I mean :)

I went for the first time aged 10, my sister was 5. I took DS to Orlando when he was 4 and had his 5th birthday when we were there. I wouldn't consider any younger personally, for various reasons.

@Babdoc

You might want to amend the typo in your title, OP. You’ve put the singular “was” instead of the plural “were”, but you’re referring to children in the plural. Thankfully, my children never wanted to go to theme parks. My elder daughter and I are both autistic and would never have coped with the sensory overload! We preferred quiet beaches, exploring Roman and Greek ruins, visiting the bear sanctuary in the Carpathian Mountains, drifting round Venice on a gondola, touring castles in the Baltic states, going to the opera at Verona... there are thousands of much more wonderful and (culturally stimulating) places to see on this planet than a plastic theme park. My two DDs developed a love of travel as children, and went on to explore the world as adults. By all means take your DC to Disney, but don’t deprive them of all the world’s culture by doing that every year to the exclusion of all else.

If I asked the average 3 year old if they wanted to go to the opera or ride Pirates of the Caribbean I bet the majority would say the latter. To each their own, no need for snobbery. I holidayed in Disney all through my childhood yet still managed to study languages and live abroad. Shocking isn't it.

Babdoc I don't think you could actually sound more pretentious if you tried

How do you know we haven't done those things with our children as well as going to Disney land? Crazy I know but it is actaully possible to do both.

I love it when people say, you should take your children to all these cultural places, for Ds2 it would be like taking a teenage New Yorker to an Amish village and expecting him to be astonished. But get him on a bike and he will ride for hours in the countryside, or he will walk for hours and hours. Stare at a landscape? Eat questionable food (his teacher went to Vietnam and ate everything) absolutely not for Ds2.

We took the children to Disney World for the first time when Ds1 was 11 and Ds2 was 7. He turned 8 whilst we were there and had his 8th birthday with his favourite character, Pluto at Chef Mickeys.

We have returned many times since then, we absolutely love it.

We did the 7+ thing for several reasons, firstly the flight. Having been on a long haul flight with other people's children the idea of trying to keep a child in a seat for take off/landing and turbulence would have been hell. Secondly the heat and humidity depending on when you go.

I followed YouTubers for Disney way before we went and they now have a child, watching them try to get their baby/toddler (they are DVC) to drink water all the time to keep them hydrated just feels stressful. Plus the possibility of overheating. Also depends where you stay. We stay on property, so no car, just Disney buses or walking (Universal) and I didn't want to hire a pushchair and park it up.

For me holidays are about relaxing, hence why I waited to do long haul with the children. My friend has been every year to either Disney World or more recently Disney Cruises. Maybe she has easier children and is more laid back

We've never been! So much ridiculous consumerism. That said we're not heartless and would have taken them if they'd been interested but have never wanted to go. Much prefer a break with bike trails and swimming and great ice cream, visit to a water park and maybe a Disney film in the eve. Much less expensive, less busy and much nicer.

@Babdoc we have been fortunate enough to do both thank you very much

My own children were 9, 11 and 13 but I got our own house over there they were in their early 20s
My grandchildren started to go at 5 months upover.
We did the parks to death in our 40 or so visits so for us it was all about a lifestyle holiday with some attractions thrown in.
We loved lake toho and kissimmee lakeside, the air boat rides, east lake fish camp, Clearwater, in its day cypress gardens, gator world was always a big hit.
We liked to go up to mount dora, where my dd got married, celebration and eat at one of the restaurants and walk around the many lakes there watching the anhingas drying their wings , the alligators snoozing on the grass and spotting the occasional deer, , loved the cinema there too till it closed.

I haven’t been for 10 years now and as my dh doesn’t want to do long haul anymore, I cannot see us going again
Sadly.
I bet Disney hasn’t changed much in all that time.
It never did.

My dd has taken her children every two years since we stopped going .
Except this year of course.
They love Harry Potter at universal.
We missed the treat.
It was about to open after our last visit 9 years ago
The children are now 16, 13 and 11 and the 11 year old and the 16 year old first went aged 5 months..but we did have the house so was a lot easier..and was cheap holidays too.
I used to go for £200 for a month at a time plus car and spends
I think my dd for the 5 of them all in came in at £7k for two weeks.
They tend not to do Disney , they much prefer universal.