Tips for first trip to DL with a 5 month old

[Tikiman]

Well I am entering a new world of traveling with a child. We will be at Disneyland for the 4th of July weekend (well getting there the Thrusday before) and I wanted to see what I need to be ready for with a 5 month old who so far travels well. I am sure you are going to say mid-day breaks but he does well out all day and sleeps just about anywhere. I wanted to know how it is going to work with getting on rides and the whole handoff thing and tips like that so we can actually do somethings while we are there. I think we will skip the parades other than the fireworks.

Thanks

Steve

 

[tinknsnow]

Steve,

We have done WDW with an infant and it was very painless. We had a great time actually!

I can't speak to the specifics of DL but in general, the baby can ride anything without a height restriction. We took ours on just about everything but the tea cups, I think. Mostly, ours just slept thru (or nursed thru ).

I wore a baby sling which really made the baby and me pretty comfy. DH and I would switch off when my shoulder/back felt tired.

The Baby Centers at WDW are AWESOME. (I assume they are similar at DL). They have everything you could need for the baby if you forget something. There is a great place to change diapers, a room for feeding w/ hi chairs, etc, a darkened quiet room w/ rockers for breastfeeding... it's very convenient.

As for baby swapping for rides, WDw did it differently each time we used it. Once, we all did the queue together and when we got to the front, one of us would wait with the baby and ride with the other kid(s)... when the ride finished, we'd switch out and the kid(s) wouldn't even have to exit the ride. The other time (most recently) the CM at the entrance would hand us a ticket like a FP. One parent would take the older kids thru the queue... they'd ride. When they were done, the other parent would take the kids thru the FP line and get on.

HTH a bit.

 

[Barbday62]

We took our 5 month old Grandson Last August and he slept in the stroller no problem too. We bought the battery operated fan from www.onestepahead.com and we went through one set of batteries a day. We used a receiving blanket to shield him from sun and the fan was in the stroller under the blanket.

He was bottle fed and had to learn to take his bottles less than warm. We bought powder formula and carried bottles pre fillled with 4 ounces of water then we just had to add powder and shake it up. Be sure to carry a bottle brush and soap to clean up the bottles each night in the hotel room. My daughter had an assembly line going with bottles soaking, scrubbing and drying upside down on a towel each night.

Most restaurants had those wooden high chairs so we tipped it upside down and the car carrier that clips onto the stoller would work as his infant seat. He wasnt sitting up in a regular high chair yet at 5 months. We did not always have the seat with us because he preferd to sleep in the stroller with out the infant seat. We had PS reservations so we knew which days we planned sit down restaurants and planned to carry those days.

My daughter also has a front back where he could look out or towards her. We did put him in there some of the time too. He loved facing outwards. We have a picture of them sitting on a bench looking at a park map and it looks like my grandson is reading the park map at 5 months old Be sure to use sun screen on the legs and arms and wear a hat on the as the sun is torture.

As for rides we had a 3 year old with us also so we took turns with baby swap. They let one set of people ride then swap off and let the second set of us ride. We let the 3 year old play in the fountains when we was waiting. The kids can do so many of the regular slower rides at Disney.

I think the 5 month old did better than than the 3 year old since he slept so much of the time. and when he wanted to be carried we used the front packto keep us from sweating to death over him.He never got bored or needed extra entertaining. He did love it when we went into buildngs that were airconditioned (As we all did!!)

Ask at your hotel if they have a crib for you to use. My daughter actually packed his bumper pad and mobile so he would get a scense of normalcy and hopefully sleep more at night. It was very calming for him Im sure. We stayed at Shades of green and they gave us a portable crib on wheels. Even if you have to pay extra its worth having a crib!! She also brought an extra sheet because in the middle of the night if she needed an extra she didnt want to wait to have another delivered.


Dont forget the swim diapers in case you swim. They are required and at that age its hard to think of it. They will be a bit big but at least you can swim this way.



Baby Swap: Thats what they call the hand off thing you refer to. Basically one person gets to ride by going through the main entrance or fast pass entrance if you have a fast pass. Then usually as you get off the ride you get a pass for the other person to come in and skip the line. The pass is good for up to 3 people too. Its avaliable on anything the baby cant do. I think Mission Space did a great job with baby swap. The wait area has a kids play area for the kids and a lot of game things going on with a big screen so the adult at least can watch that. (With a baby you wont have to watch the play area as hard like we did with a toddler) And too boot its all airconditioned!! The exit to Mission Space exits into the room. We didnt use a lot of baby swaps as we took turns with the kids and let the other group go ride so I dont have a lot of them to tell about. Im sure others can tell you about other rides. Mission Space is one of the few rides we all went together to do. I think we did a few more but I am totally forgetting which ones now.




EDIT: DUH I forgot I was in the Disneyland forum. The same holds true in Disneyland so I left it all there. It just not as hot there as Florida or humid so everyone will be mroe comfortable, But do get a fan for the stroller. Do not leave the park if possble because I tthey do close the parks on the 4th.

 

[iheartdisney]

The only ride we child-swapped on was Star Tours. We asked the CMif the had a childswap, and he handed me a blue ticket, and DH went into the line, while I took the kids to change and get drinks, then met him up in the shop that exits the ride. Then I got to walk right up the exit and they put me on the next "flight"
The only other rides we did, We each got our own fastpass and went one at a time.
The trickiest part is remembering where you park your stroller- they tend to get lost in the crowd so to speak. I always try to park mine by a post ore tree- something that I can spot it easily!

 

[crazymomof 4]

We went last December with a three week old, 2 year old, 8 and 9. The infant was by far the easiest. We didn't go back for breaks either. That's what strollers are for right? If your baby nurses plenty of rides are good for that too! That way you don't really have to slow down unless needed.