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How To Navigate Disney With Small Children

How To Navigate Disney With Small Children

You’ve managed to secure the tickets and set the date for your family’s first trip to Disney World or Disney Land.  Now comes the tough part of this dream vacation.  Figuring out How To Navigate Disney With Small Children is your next step.  With miles of walking within the park, hundreds of rides, characters and events to check out it can be a daunting task to undertake with small children.  These tips will help make this dream vacation a memory of a lifetime that everyone will look back on fondly for years to come.

USE THE APPS FOR NAVIGATION:  All Disney Parks now have great apps you can download that have not only the general map of the park but information on the closest bathroom, snack bar or lost and found.  These apps are much easier for a parent juggling sippy cups, souvenirs and a tired child to check than unfolding a paper map and searching.

MAP OUT YOUR DAY AHEAD OF TIME:  Between the websites and applications you can download it is easy to map out the direction you wish to take once you arrive at the park.  Checking out the various rides, shops and events ahead of time will help you know what your kids will wish to see the most (get their opinion if possible) and will also cut back on those times you will be standing looking at the apps and maps while in the park. 

PACK SNACKS:  There are food vendors at every corner throughout the parks but it is often not the healthiest or least expensive choice for small children.  Pack baggies of grapes, crackers, fruit snacks and of course bring your own refillable bottles or cups to be used at the various water fountains throughout the park.  Bringing items you know your kids will eat helps cut back on costs and wasted money when they decide that mickey mouse shaped sandwich just isn’t to their liking.

USE THE TRAIN FOR NAPTIME:  I cannot say this enough.  Use the train for naptime.  Not only does it ride around the park continually with minimal stops for new passengers but the breeze and slight swaying motion are perfect for helping an overly tired toddler or preschooler drift off into slumber.  This helps your aching back and gives them the recharge they need to continue plowing through the park the rest of the day. 

SPEND MORE THAN 1 DAY IN PARK IF POSSIBLE:  While not every budget allows this luxury it is much easier and more fun when you are able to take a leisurely pace knowing you’ll be back in the park the next day.  Check out the Citypass or local Sam’s Club or Costco for great discounts on 3 Day Passes and enjoy the park at a slower pace with your children. 

DON’T FORGET THE HAND SANITZER AND BABY WIPES:  Inevitably you’ll come across goopy hand rails, snotty noses or those messy faces after ice cream and you will be wishing you had these items.  A small bottle of hand sanitizer and small travel pack of baby wipes will become your life saver over and over throughout the park. 

FOCUS ON THEIR FAVORITE CHARACTERS:  When in doubt of where to go next in the park always focus on your kids favorite Disney characters.  This may mean you ride the Pooh Ride a dozen times in one hour but the reason you are at the park in the first place is for them to have fun. 

SKIP THE FIREWORKS AND AVOID THE CROWDS:  Sure fireworks over Disney are beautiful but what’s even better is slipping through the crowd and going back to Fantasyland to ride It’s A Small World while there are no lines to wait in and the view of the fireworks is even better and no crowd blocking your view. 

Whether you are going for the first time yourself or the first time with children how to navigate Disney with small children is something you will learn along the way.  These tips are just an idea of good practices to put into place.  The best guide will be listening to your children and their needs along the way.