Tips for a Successful Trip to Disney with Kids

After ten trips in the past 6 years, we are still learning new tips and tricks to make our trips to Disney more enjoyable. That being said, there are a few strategies we have picked up along the way that might be helpful to families traveling with kids.

1. Don't over plan the first day! We fell victim to this in 2015 by scheduling a full day at Magic Kingdom and the Mad Hatter and Alice in Wonderland Tea Party experience at the Grand Floridian. If that was not enough, we also booked a formal dinner at the California Grill in the Contemporary Resort. Needless to say, all Ryann wanted to do was ride rollercoasters. Parent fail! We ended up feeling so bad that we took her to the park around 9 PM for Magic Hours after dinner, Elsa light up costume and all. We managed to make it through the day with a minimal amount of meltdowns. 
2. Just because your child was super into something the last trip, doesn't mean they will be the next. Ryann was obsessed with the characters and character dining the first time we took her to Disney. While she still enjoys meeting the characters, her passion is riding the rides...over and over again. I think she would ride Seven Dwarf's Mine Train 50 times if we would let her. We have significantly cut down on the amount of time we spend at character dining now to spend more time moving around the park (although Ashton is all about the characters at this age).
3. DO NOT fall victim to buying stuffed animals and souvenirs on the first part of your trip. If you let them go crazy the first few days, you will get stuck carrying it around the parks for the rest of your trip. Heaven forbid you leave the stuffies alone at the resort. We now buy our kids Disney Gift Cards before we leave and let both kids know they have a predetermined amount that they can spend. We also really push for all purchases (aside from Mickey and Minnie ears) will be saved for the final days of our visit.
4. Plan more time than you think for naps. We have learned this the hard way and are more purposeful about planning for naps. More naps = less meltdowns (for both parents and kids)
5. Splurge for the Memory Maker. Ninety percent of the pictures from our trips are from our Memory Maker account and were taken by Disney cast member throughout the properties. Almost everywhere you turn, there is a Disney photographer there to capture a memory. Don't forget to ask for a Magic Shot! (A magic shot is where they retroactively superimpose a character or added action to the photo such as Olaf or Tinker belle.) 
6. Bring a stroller! If you child is 10 months or 10 years old, bring a stroller. Disney has stroller parking everywhere because people who know Disney know that this is a crucial item to pack. When it was just Ryann, we brought our BOB. Now that we have two, we bring our BOB double. Yes, Ryann at age 7 still begs to get in the stroller. On an average day, you will walk at least six miles. If you want to make it on time to reservations, pushing your child is the way to go. Not to mention, a comfy stroller is the perfect place for a tired child to take a nap so said parents can potentially have some "adult time". During our first trip in 2012, Ryann slept for about 4 hours while we were at Epcot and Jeremiah and I were able to travel around the World uninterrupted. We just kept on pushing the stroller from place to place (obviously). If you don't believe me about the stroller, Google it! This is the top tip on most regular park goers list. Also, make a sign or do something to make your stroller quickly identifiable. There are a lot of black strollers and Disney cast members move them all the time to make room. We put neon pink ribbon all over ours and change a custom sign with our phone number in case lost from the handle bars. Again, bring a stroller! And also double check the new Disney rules and policies on strollers.
7. During late fall, winter and early spring, be prepared for variable weather. You may be in shorts during the day and gloves and a hat at night. Also, it rains in Florida year round so be prepared with a rain jacket or poncho. 
8. Get Park Hopper Tickets. You will likely not stay at one park all day and will need to visit multiple parks for eating and events. A Park Hopper grants you admission to all the parks in a given day versus a general ticket is one and done.
9. Disney is MAGICAL! But you better have a plan! I planned a ton the first trip and have continued this trend. If you think you are just going to book your trip and show up you are sadly mistaken. You will inevitably have a miserable time because everything at Disney is based on reservations, from Fast Passes to meals. If you can't plan on your own, get a good travel agent who travels to Disney often! Also, aside from making reservations, pay attention to when you travel. I would say trip satisfaction has a lot to do with the time of year you go. There are tons of Disney Crowd Calendars out there that detail the slowest weeks of the year. Our rule is we DO NOT go if school is out! The fist time we went was on the 2nd slowest week of the year that overlapped into one of the busiest. There was an unbelievable difference in crowds during the first part of our trip versus the last. This trip was during the 4th slowest week of the year right before kids started to get out for Spring Break. If you are planning yourself and want something really detailed, I would recommend Touring Plans. We go a lot so the small fee is worth it for us. If you have questions, ask! I love to talk about Disney!
10. Make planning and the anticipation special. I will be blunt...Disney is not cheap! Both times we have done some type of fun reveal and always do a count down to make the upcoming trip special!
11. I am going to circle back to planning one more time because it is that important. Get a spreadsheet, get a Disney planner or get a journal. Below is an example of how detailed we get when planning our day. If you are interested in my planning template, shoot me a message and I will share it with you. It includes and basic planner and then a detailed layout for when you have confirmed all of your dates, reservations and details.