Is it worth taking 2 yr old to Disney?

We will be stopping in Port Canveral in August. My 2 year old granddaughter and parents will b with us, celebrating her 2nd birthday. Do u think it would b worth while to take her to Disney for the day? None of us have ever been there so it will b new to all of us!

Thanks so much for any info/ advice u can give!

Adalyns Grammy ( aka Jacki )

We will be stopping in Port Canveral in August. My 2 year old granddaughter and parents will b with us, celebrating her 2nd birthday. Do u think it would b worth while to take her to Disney for the day? None of us have ever been there so it will b new to all of us!

 

Thanks so much for any info/ advice u can give!

 

Adalyns Grammy ( aka Jacki )

Disney World is a great experience for children - say at least three, probably four years old and up - as well as fun for adults. But a barely two year old would be overwhelmed - probably more scared than entertained - and would probably ruin the experience for the adults. It is very expensive , so it would be better to save it for a few years when the shared experience would be great for all.

We will be stopping in Port Canveral in August. My 2 year old granddaughter and parents will b with us, celebrating her 2nd birthday. Do u think it would b worth while to take her to Disney for the day? None of us have ever been there so it will b new to all of us!

 

Thanks so much for any info/ advice u can give!

 

Adalyns Grammy ( aka Jacki )

A day trip in August with a two year old is a recipe for disaster. It will take at least two and a half hours just to get back and forth, it will be crazy hot, and LONG lines. Better to make a dedicated trip and I say all of this as a Disney pass holder.

Totally agree.

Thanks for the replies so far. I was thinking along the same lines..... Too hot, long lines, diapers.... Just hate to miss the look on her face to see Mickey! She loves him soooo much, as only a 19 month old can!

Jacki

Although she will get in for free, it will cost a lot for the rest of you. Add to that the need for very low expectations for the day due to crowds and heat, and I believe I'd skip it. That comes from someone who loves some Mickey Mouse.

No...absolutely NOT. First...she's way to young to get the "magic" that is Disney. Way too young. 2nd, it's too far...and costs too much... the round trip, including parking and getting INTO the park takes a couple of hours (like 3+)... You don't just get there, and voila....nope...it's a process.

Save your money, wait until she's at least 6 or 7, and take a land based trip to Disney. You need DAYS...not hours! I'm not kidding! A 2 year old just doesn't "get it"....

We just did this in October from P.C. we have been to Disney many times and I would tell anyone not to do this . It is a matter of time and money it will cost a lot for a little time in Disney. I know it seems like "hey were here lets go for it'' but it is not worth it I.M.H.O. Take that money and start a Disneyworld fund and do something local in P.C.

We took our girl at an early age to Sea World and Disneyland, but as a separate day trip and definitely in the spring when it's usually on the cool side in Southern California. Can't remember her exact age for each trip but definitely before age 4 for DL and maybe 1 or 2 for Sea World. Since we didn't have a deadline to get back on the road (two hour and one hour drives for these places), and had the time to allow for diaper changes, rest stops, etc., while in the park -- the big things was making it for the shows at both as these were more important than going on rides -- it was a better experience.

I don't know if we would have tried to do this during a port stop on a cruise. Not an excursion that would take an hour or so to get too.

And for those who say the child won't remember, sometimes the experience of being exposed to a different environment that is fun can help develop brain cells. Plus, the kid can later on look at the photo album or computer slide show and know they got to do something even at such an early age. They don't want to hear that for the first five years of their life they never got to go anywhere, especially if their parents use their age as an excuse.

Visiting Disney during the Summer with a 2-year old would be very frustrating. The lines will be so long, the wait just for one ride can go up over an hour.

And one day only in any of the Disney Parks will probably just leave you feeling like you missed out on most of the experience.

I would wait until probably age 5 and your child will absolutely love the trip!

Our 2-year-olds loved Disney. Best part: it's free.

However, regardless of age, we would never even consider going in August. Any chance you can make it Sept-November(non-holiday)? Totally worth it and a wonderful family vacation then, even for a 2-year-old.

A day trip in August with a two year old is a recipe for disaster. It will take at least two and a half hours just to get back and forth, it will be crazy hot, and LONG lines. Better to make a dedicated trip and I say all of this as a Disney pass holder.

I agree. Doing this as a port excursion is probably just too much.

We have taken our kids to WDW or Disneyland several times (they are now in their forties). Our youngest just recently son swore up and down that he had never been there until his teens; he was kind of put out that we'd taken his older brother and not him!

We had to get out pictures to prove to him that he had, indeed, been to WDW and Disneyland at 2 and 6.

Granddaughter at 2.5, now 14, remembers nothing. She had fun, but also suffered from the heat. She most enjoyed playing in a small fountain near Sleeping Beauty's castle, and was scared of most of the characters, especially Mickey.

I don't think we should avoid taking young kids places, even though probably won't remember, but that long day from Port Canaveral; just not worth it.

Thanks so much for helping me feel better about skipping Disney!

Jacki

If YOU (the adults) really want to go, go...but it is not going to be memorable or actually, every enjoyable for a 2 yr old. For us, when they are old enough to not have to be pushed around in a stroller is the time they're old/big enough for DisneyWorld. And I assume this is in conjunction with a cruise.... so along the same line.....is the 2 yr old going to enjoy and remember the cruise?

We will be stopping in Port Canveral in August. My 2 year old granddaughter and parents will b with us, celebrating her 2nd birthday. Do u think it would b worth while to take her to Disney for the day? None of us have ever been there so it will b new to all of us!

 

Thanks so much for any info/ advice u can give!

 

Adalyns Grammy ( aka Jacki )

Not for the 2 year old. If you haven't been their it might be enjoyable. Lot's of crowds- you can wait on line for almost everything. If it is hot- it is awful- and it is very expensive for admission and anything else in the park.

Having been to Disney multiple times, if you aren't spending a few days at Disney, the ships stop isn't worth it-

Enjoy the ship!

Your grandchild will still love Mickey at age 4!

I took my daughters at age 4 and 8 and they loved it (although I think I loved it more!) My then 4 year old now reminisces most about the loud scary toilets in the public restrooms!

Here was my experience many years ago. You will get to the park and you can rent a stroller if you do not have your own. But when you get on line you have to leave the stroller outside the venue and wait for the last hour or so without any place for the child to sit. The small child is surrounded by people and cannot see anything. They want to be picked up and held. By the end of the day my arm felt like it was going to fall off. I was in my twenties at the time.

Many of the people have purchased their tickets ahead of time and they have fastpass plus. They will be on a priority line (and they still may have to wait 30 minutes). Our recent experience was that if you did not book these fastpasses at the hotel beforehand, all the fast passes to the more popular rides were already taken. I have no idea whether you can get fastpasses ahead of time if you are taking a ship excursion.

Since your granddaughter will not be allowed in the pool on the ship unless she is toilet trained, you all might appreciate a day at the beach. I would check on the family boards for more suggestions and other people's experience.

I would also search on the port of call board for Disney and see if you can get more feedback.

Disney World is a great experience for children - say at least three, probably four years old and up - as well as fun for adults. But a barely two year old would be overwhelmed - probably more scared than entertained - and would probably ruin the experience for the adults. It is very expensive , so it would be better to save it for a few years when the shared experience would be great for all.

Agreed. Two year old would be overwhelmed, perhaps even fearful. Also, probably no memory of the visit later on.

Wait and BTW, take the family to the real Disneyland in Anaheim.

Agreed. Two year old would be overwhelmed, perhaps even fearful. Also, probably no memory of the visit later on.

Wait and BTW, take the family to the real Disneyland in Anaheim.

Which will fit in the parking lot at Disney World :D

I am in agreement with a lot of others not to do Disney as a port. There are just too many other interesting things in PC to do.

However in my opinion, I would take two year olds to Disney in the fall or spring. I have two year old twins and I took them twice last year to WDW. My twins loved it and my dd loved being called a princess every where she went. If one did have a mouse meltdown there was always a cast member that handed out Mickey stickers.

Certainly, not all, but many 2 year olds are afraid of the Easter Bunny, Santa, Claus and all the Disney characters. Then there are the ones who are too tired to enjoy anything.;):)

Mark your stroller in some way. (Buy a balloon, put a huge bow on it.) We had ours stolen outside Pirates at Disneyland. Reported it and was given a free rental. Security said this happens all the time, usually with the rentals as some people think they're more of a 'share situation.

We had nothing in the stroller as we didn't want someone stealing our stuff.

We took the kids when they were younger to the original park but we live an hour away and had local passes.

We took our 2 year old to Disney but had a hotel nearby for a cool down nap and then went back for a full evening. She won't remember it the next week and you won't have many options for down time.

I agree with the others who suggest it is not a good idea to spend a port day trying to have a 'good' visit to Disney with such a young child. Wait until she's a little older. She will likely still love Mickey. :)

I'd rather perform my own appendectomy!

We took our daughter once, when she was 9, in April. All went well and we were glad we waited until she was old enough to be completely mobile but before the "this is so

lame" attitude of teenagers set in.