Tips for Little Ones in a Disney Park

Those of you who follow me on Twitter or Facebook know that I’m part of a Disney podcast called the Dis-Explorers. One of my fellow Explorers, Adrianne, runs an awesome Disney World blog: WDW Bound. Adrianne is known among our Explorer crew as the “Jedi Master Trip Planner”, and she has an endless supply of tips and tricks for visiting Disney parks.

Please enjoy Adrianne’s list of tips for visiting a Disney park with the tiniest of Disney fans!

Traveling with children can be challenging, and trips to Disney parks are no exception. The thing to remember is children are children, no matter where they are. There are a few things that you can do to prepare ahead of time and while you are in the parks that can make your vacation run that much more smoothly.

Bring a Stroller (Even for Older Kids)

I think everyone knows that you will be walking a lot in a Disney park, but I still think people grossly underestimate just how much you’ll be walking. It can be up to ten miles a day, and while children seem to have boundless energy, they will get tired. With small children, I always bring (or rent) a stroller. With my older child, we bring a light stroller, and park it in stroller parking somewhere in the morning, and go back for it later in the afternoon when she’s tired.

Don’t forget to bring something to set your stroller apart from the rest of the crowd. A balloon or a bright scarf can usually do the trick.

Choose Appropriate Attractions

One of the saddest things I’ve witnessed in a Disney park was a mother attempting to force her son on a roller coaster and him begging not to go. Moral of the story: make sure you are choosing appropriate attractions for your children’s age and ability. A four year old on Rock ‘n’ Roller Coaster? Probably not. A fourteen year old on Winnie the Pooh? Probably not. But A Small World? Everyone should do that at least once! 

Try Character Dining

The best time saving, kill two birds with one stone tip I can ever give, go for at least one character dining experience. In Walt Disney World, we almost always opt for a princess meal for my daughter or a Fab 5 (Mickey, Minnie, Donald, Daisy, Goofy) character meal. Why do I suggest this? Several reasons. One, a table service reservation allows for a break in your day, air conditioning and a bit of time to relax. Two, food! Three, meeting several characters without having to wait in multiple lines – they come to you!

(Roughly) Stick to Your At-Home Schedule 

This is a hard one when on vacation, but we always try to stick to the same wake time, nap time, bed time schedule when we’re in the parks. A sure-fire way to get a cranky child is to mess with their schedule. Unless you’ve been blessed with kids who can fall asleep anywhere, which I most definitely was not! It can be really hard to head out of the parks early, but I’ve seen way too many screaming, cranky kids in the parks late at night to risk that kind of misery with my own children. 

Take Breaks/Schedule Downtime

To go with the last tip, take a break in the middle of your day! In Florida especially, the crowds are at peaks when the temperatures are, so there are really no good reasons to stay in the parks mid-afternoon. Head out of the park, watch a movie in your resort, take a nap, hit the pool for a bit, just relax! The attractions will still be there when you go back. Again, my kids have always been creatures of habit, any disruption in their routines caused them (and me!) a much worse time than if I had just stuck with what they know.

Bring Snacks/Drinks

Another obvious tantrum-inducer? Hunger. When you’re in line for Peter Pan’s Flight and they get hungry, your options are fairly limited. I always keep a small stash of snacks in my park bag, things like fruit snacks, goldfish, granola bars and a couple of juice boxes. Bonus? If you have kids that talk non-stop like mine, keeping their mouths otherwise occupied by a snack also gives my ears a break.

Bring Time-Wasters for Lines

Same scenario, you’re in line for an attraction and your kids get antsy, whiny, and plain ol’ annoying – what do you do? I like to bring a small amusement item in my park bag as well. We love the Play Packs that come with a small coloring book and some crayons, but a pack of cards can be just as handy. Kids like technology? An iPod touch can be just as good. No shame in my keepin’-my-kid-happy game.

Don’t Overschedule

This is my number one tip – and for good reason! I know, you’ve paid dang good money for this vacation and you’re going to squeeze every drop of fun out of it there is to be had, but I suggest otherwise. Making a crazy-tight touring plan with every minute planned to the last second is going to make everyone miserable. Have a general plan, have two or three must-do items on your list, but take time to really enjoy your time with your kids and family. It is a vacation after all! I like to say that magic happens in the unplanned moments. Your kids might not remember that you scored a Fastpass+ at the perfect time for Space Mountain, but I promise they’ll remember something like a random character meet, or buying their favorite color balloon, or a castmember wishing them happy birthday as they walked down Main Street USA.

I hope this list gives you a couple of ideas to make traveling to a Disney park with your young ones a bit easier. Have any tips? Let me know, I’d love to hear them! Feel free to email me at Adrianne@wdwbound.com.

Did you enjoy Adrianne’s post? For more of her awesome tips, tricks, and expertise, check out WDW Bound. You can also contact Adrianne directly through her social media.

Thanks so much to Adrianne for this post!