Long or short stay with young kids??? opinions please

[hygienejean]

Is a 7 night stay too long with children aged 3 and 11 months? I am debating on 5 nights or 7 nights. Has anyone had any experience with this? My fear is that they will be so pooped by the 5th day that it won't be fun for anyone. On the other hand 7 nights could afford us more time to saunter around....Thanks for any and all input!!!

Jean

 

[travelitis]

I prefer a long stay with time to take it slowly, but we did 4 nts with an 18 mo. old and 4 yr. old and had a great time. I wouldn't be worried about it being too much for the kids but rather for the adults. Pick the length of trip you'd most enjoy, and then pad it by one day to allow for slower touring. The kids will enjoy it only if the adults are in good spirits and having fun. With our 4, 8, and 10 yr. olds, I'm feeling that 5 days in the parks is cutting it tight and would love to add a 6th day. However, the kids really want to go to NASA and will probably opt for that.

 

[melk]

I agree, I would go for a week, at least. With only five days you may be tempted to squeeze in more than the kids can handle. We find that with a week we can have a couple of "down" days and go at a more leisurely pace. Ideally we would like to go for 10 days, maybe next year! Also, we have found that the first day or two the kids are adjusting to their surroundings and we don't do too much. We pick up the pace on day three and then let their moods dictate how much we can do each day. Just remember try not to do too much, if the kids are cranky and tired, it's not much fun .

 

[POOH&PIGLET]

The longer the better!

 

[juliesue]

Seven days is the minimum that I would go. It lets you have time to take it easier and return to the park for things you might have missed when you had to leave because the kids (and you) are pooped out.

The best advice I ever got was make sure to take a break from the park during the day. If you are staying on property, go back to your room for a much needed break/nap. I think DH and I slept as much as the kids in those early trips! You can return to the park after a couple of hours feeling all refreshed when everyone else is leaving and crabby! It also gave the kids a chance to swim. I swear no matter who the kid is, they remember the pool as much as any park ride!

We took our kids for the first time when they were 18 mos and 4. It was fantastic and we all had a great time. Just be aware that they may be afraid of characters up close at that age.

 

[cinmell]

We usually do 10 days. And this time, our first time with our daughter, will be no different. The longer the better because you don't have to rush and feel like you have to be on a tight schedule. I think it will be good to have extra time with a young child because you will most likely be taking alot of breaks for the pool or naps. With more time, you won't feel like you are losing out on "park time."

 

[MinnieGi]

Last year with our toddler DD we did 8 days/7nights and it was great. We went at her pace and had plenty of time to see and do lots of things. With a long trip you don't feel like you have to cram everything in.

Have fun!

 

[AZKathy]

My youngest was 13 months her first trip with two older siblings. That trip was 12 days and all did fine. We have to do extended stays since we travel from across country...to get more bang for the buck with airfare!!!

With the increase in days, you don't feel you have to do the parks commando style which is hard for little ones. You can go back to your resort every day for a "well needed in a real bed nap" without feeling you are wasting precious visiting the parks time. The kids are less crabby then and gives you a more enjoyable visit to WDW!

We now average 14 days on our visits.

 

[Tink]

Before kids, we always went for 5 nights/6days. We could be in the parks longer without a lot of breaks. Now that we have kids, we go for 7nights/8 days. There are a few reasons:

1. If I am gonna pack all of the stuff we need, I want to go for a while. Especially since our newest DD will still need bottles and formula on this next trip.

2. We take it much slower with the kids. We always go back to the hotel for a nap and swim. This way the kids are not cranky before its dinnertime!

3. We only do one vacation per year. No long weekends away or anything like that. So we like to get away from it all. I am a stay at home mom who works one night per week and weekends. DH has a stressful job, so this is our break and special family time.

Once, on DD #1's first trip down we stayed and extra night and day. We had Ap's, but for some reason it seemed like a long time away from home. 7n/8d just seems to work for us.

 

[crisi]

Longer trip, slower paced. And if you can get extra adults to join you (at least for part of your trip), it will make your trip much more enjoyable.

 

[Disney_Girl10]

Longer than 7 nights at least so you can relax, cos 7 nights ain't that long to stay in America and do a long journey like that it's better to stay longer.

Disney_Girl10

 

[hygienejean]

Wow thanks to everyone who has responded so far! We have rented points from DVC owners and we will be at the BWV's for 5 nights in a 2 bedroom with my parents. (From Sun to Thurs where the points are lower) To add on a Fri or Sat would be double what we are paying for weekday. Too much money really. If we do stay 7 nights the other 2 would be at another resort. Have any of you resort hopped with little ones? Naptime would be blown on the changeover day. What other resort would little kids enjoy? BC,WL, CR are on the list but I am wondering what your experiences have been at these or other places.... Plus I am HOPING we will see a nice discount for travel in May...
Thanks so much everyone!!!!!!

Jean

 

[hygienejean]

P.S.
The reason we won't be at the PR this time (I absolutely LOVE it) is that we will be staying there the next year with parents, Sister & her family and we want to try somewhere different.........

 

[MinnieGi]

Jean,
Since you are doing 5 nights at BWV in the Epcot area you might want to try an MK resort for your last two nights. CR or WL would be great IMHO with little ones. Our DD just loved the WL lobby last year and the CR with the monorail accesss sure would be nice.

You might get lucky with a check-in at your new hotel early enough for nap time. We haven't resort hopped at WDW, but we just came back from a vacation week in Colorado and switched hotels three times. Almost 2yo DD did great with the changes and still got her naps in. She loved checking each new hotel room out. I'm sure you'll all be fine!

Good luck

 

[cinjam]

Our trip last April with our then 14 month old DS was at the AKL for 9 nights - perfect all the way around.

DH & I went very slowly, but since we were there for such a long period of time we did not feel like we "missing" anything. We had a wonderful vacation!!

So I voted longer. The next trip (planning on February 2003) we'll do 9 nights again...now I am just trying to pick a resort!

 

[momofdbsdc]

The longer the better! It is wonderful to be able to pace yourself. We are heading down September 12th with 5 children ranging in ages from 1 year to 9. We are staying for 10 days so that we can lounge around a couple of days at the HIFS.

 

[AimeeM]

The first year we went, my dd's were 3 & 5 . We went for 4 days, and it wasnt long enough. There was so much we didnt get to see. We stayel at the ALL star Movies and they LOVED it there. THey just got a kick out of the larger than life characters outside of the buildings! We never went back to the room during the day, but in January, the parks close earlier. They were never cranky at all! My 3 year old usually fell asleep on the bus back, and she didnt have a stroller either! She was great! This January, we went for 9 days with our 4 month old DS and the girls who were 6 & 8. Again, we stayed at the movies and never came back to the room for naps. THe baby slept in the stroller. He was very good. We really took advantange of the baby centers. They were AWESOME!! It was a nice quiet AIRCONDITIONED place to change, feed, nurse, rock, or just take a break with the little ones. They had a full kitchen and had everything imaginable to buy incase you needed something!!