Disney with Toddler: Tips for Happiness and Hot Weather

As mentioned in my previous blog post, Ronan did very well on this trip. Keeping him to his afternoon nap schedule, meal times and bed time helped all of us and made a world of difference in our little guy. On days when his schedule was a little wonky, we just rolled with it as best we could.

One thing I wasn’t prepared for, however, was the heat. It was HOT and I needed to do a better job of making sure Ronan got a break from the weather. Next time, I’ll build in some time at the Baby Care Centers in each park as a way to cool off and chill out. Poor Ronan puked up his entire lunch on the last day of our trip – and we think it was due to the heat and eating too much.

Another way to beat the heat are the splash pads, specifically in New Fantasyland in the Magic Kingdom. If I had packed a swim diaper and trunks, Ronan could have splashed to his heart’s content and cooled off in the process. In my effort to NOT lug the kitchen sink around on my back, I neglected to do this. Next time, I’ll do better.

Ronan did pretty well when it came to waiting in line for rides, attractions and meeting characters. We used FastPasses every chance we got and the longest line we waited in was to meet Mickey Mouse in the Magic Kingdom…I love that Disney is going the extra mile with the ‘talking’ Mickey greeting/posing thing – but the line was just too long! Any time Ronan got squirrely, we either gave him videos to watch on our phones or busted out a toy car from the diaper bag.

Bringing a bag of his MegaBlocks was also a good idea – when we needed to keep him occupied while we showered/changed, having favorite toys from home helped a lot. We also packed a few of his favorite board books and read to him before bed each night like we do at home.

Investing in a small video monitor/camera also meant that we could keep an eye on Ronan without having to open the bedroom door. The resolution wasn’t great, however, we had never travelled with a camera in the past and liked being able to keep an eye on him.

Similar to other trips, we rented a full size crib from Kingdom Strollers (as well as a stroller, of course), so that he would have the same amount of space he’s used to at home. A Pack and Play is simply too tiny for a three-foot-tall toddler to sleep in.

In short: keep to the schedule (as much as humanly possible), make time to cool off and use those FastPasses.