Is it worth it to go to Disney World with a 17 month old baby?

[Silver Bug]

Honestly, leave the kid with family and go have fun!
Your baby will not remember it and will probably throw plenty of fits due to heat. I live 2 hours from Orlando, it's always hot here.

[rennigade]

Well, Club 33 is in Disneyland. There is no Disney World equivalent, so no.

Just as you don't understand why someone would return to WDW year after year, I don't understand how some of my friends rent the same beach house in the same shore town and spend a week doing little more than sunning themselves all day. I would go out of my friggin' mind if I had to do that.

I don't think most people, even many who have been to Disney World, really appreciate all that it has to offer. The Walt Disney World resort encompasses 43 square miles of property. To put that in perspective, Manhattan is less than 23 square miles in area so WDW is almost twice the size. There are 4 world class theme parks, 2 water parks, 20 onsite resorts ranging from a campground to luxury hotels, water sports, horseback riding, bike paths, Broadway-caliber shows and a couple hundred restaurants spanning the spectrum from hot dogs to 5-star gourmet meals.

Why go back every year? No two trips are ever alike partly because it isn't humanly possible to see and do everything in a week or two and partly because things are always changing. New rides, shows and attractions get built, new stores and restaurants open, older things get remodeled and renovated, etc. Also, WDW doesn't exist in a vacuum. It is smack in the center of Florida, surrounded by all kinds of other activities and attractions. Last year, we spent one day at Kennedy Space Center. The year before, we did a 4-hour zipline safari adventure and also went to Universal Studios to see the new Wizarding World of Harry Potter among other things.

We are happy at Disney World. All 3 of us. We love the atmosphere. We love the attractions. We love being able to rent a speed boat in the morning, see wild animals in the afternoon and enjoy a gourmet dinner in the evening followed by watching fireworks. Where else can you do that?

Before our daughter hit school age, we actually used to go twice a year, usually in March and September, but that didn't work anymore. Our record is actually 4 trips in 13 months. That darn school thing gets in the way. My wife and I used to joke that we should have home-schooled her so that we could go to Disney more often.

Does that begin to answer your question?

That does answer it, thanks. Maybe thats what my family gets out of it too. Kind of a one stop shop, everything you'd want within a 40 mile range.

[riverwed070707]

I've only been to Disney once, and I was like 6 so I'm not going to weigh in on the specifics, but my thoughts: if you want to go, go. It doesn't have to be for the kid, but most certainly he will enjoy it. Kids love colors, lights, music, cartoons, etc. He doesn't have to know their on-screen equivalents to be drawn in by the characters.

I think you just need to keep an open schedule with a child that young. Don't over-do it. Know you can go back and see and do more next time, but take the opportunity to have fun and do something different. Silly not to go just because he might not remember it. You'll remember it and you'll have fun. In my book, that makes it worth the small cost.

[disneysteve]

Honestly, leave the kid with family and go have fun!
Your baby will not remember it and will probably throw plenty of fits due to heat. I live 2 hours from Orlando, it's always hot here.

Really? The high temp in Orlando today is 76 degrees, hardly that hot. Quite comfortable actually. We've been to Disney when it was downright cold, in the 30s and 40s. Just last week, they had to close the waterparks and cancel some outdoor activities because it was too cold.

Sure, if you go in the middle of July or August, it can be unbearably hot though we've gone for 2 weeks in August the past 3 years and will probably do it again this year. You just have to pace yourself, drink lots of fluids and take advantage of indoor spaces which are all air conditioned.

[greenskeeper]

If the business trip knocks your expenses down enough that it's "affordable" then why not? Your child won't remember but DS has some good points....you'll have memories of the trip.

My son is turning 3 this year, and we are going to take him to Disney for the first time (we normally go every winter for 1 week, but have skipped since he was born).

Nothing is cheap down there and I want him to at least be able to remember the trip.

[disneysteve]

One more point abou the "your child won't remember it" issue. No, he will not remember it, but you will remember it. You'll have pictures to show him when he's older. We inadvertently started a tradition on DD's first trip of having her picture taken with Tigger. We have since taken her picture with Tigger on every one of her 18 trips to Disney World. We love going back and looking through those pictures and seeing her grow and develop along the way.

Go and make memories with your toddler. Take lots of pictures to show friends and family and to show him when he's older. You won't be sorry.

[minnie1928]

I'm 100% with DisneySteve. I took my son before he was 2, my daughter was 2.5 mths on her first trip and they've been back more times than I can remember.

You will have wonderful memories, I wouldn't hesitate to do it.

Every trip to WDW is different and fabulous.

[Nika]

Thanks guys,

I am now excited about it. I've looked around DW website and Orlando Marriott Convention Center Resort's website. As soon as DH's training is confirmed I'll start researching DW for things that can be done with a 17month old and will come back with few specific questions.

I cannot go without baby. All our family members work, and they already spend most of their days to cover DH's mandatory business trips. Also, we are planning 2 more vacations this year.

[Like2Plan]

Nika,
Is your trip planned at the end of April? If so, the Flower and Garden Festival will be going on at that time. link to Epcot® International Flower & Garden Festival

Link to Festival Highlights

It is one of my favorite times to go. There are topiaries and flower displays set up all around EPCOT in celebration of the festival. Your toddler might enjoy the butterfly garden and in the past they have had a special play area set up for children as part of the festival.

[MonkeyMama]

Nothing is cheap down there and I want him to at least be able to remember the trip.

That's the thing - if it cost a fortune it would be a ridiculous splurge. Well, for a baby. But I think we have all agreed the adults will enjoy too. My kids have been to Disney about every year since they were born, but only that much because we usually never pay very much to go. (We have family in Orlando, and live close to D-Land, and couldn't justify all that expense otherwise).

I went to DW on my honeymoon.

[Sha Financial Diary]

Definitely go!! I took my niece at 3yo. Now she is 5 and she still talk about it. (We are talking about a 3yo who was 44 inches tall at the time and Splash Mountain, a ride with a 50 foot drop, was her favorite ride.) If I could afford to take her every year I would. We are going back next year. We go at rope drop, take an afternoon break, and may or may not go back in the late evening.

Me, my mom and niece, who are all at least 25 years apart love Disney. There is something for every age. The only concern with a 17mo is the character meeting. Some kids loves the characters and some are afraid, you never know what you are going to get with toddlers and characters.

[disneysteve]

My son is turning 3 this year, and we are going to take him to Disney for the first time

Nothing is cheap down there

One thing to keep in mind - children under 3 are free. Once your kid hits age 3, you need to pay for him so if money is an issue, much better to take the kid before his 3rd birthday. A 5-day park hopper ticket is over $300 so there is a significant savings by going with a 2 year old rather than a 3 year old.

As for the cost of a Disney vacation in general, it really depends. You can do it pretty cheaply or you can spend a fortune. It's entirely up to you. You can find a motel offsite for $30/night or you can stay at a Disney deluxe resort for over $400/night. You can fly to Orlando or you can drive. You can eat table service meals 3 times a day or you can keep breakfast food in your room, pack PB&J sandwiches for lunch and do counter service for dinner.

The 3 of us easily do a week in Disney for under $2,500 and if we had to, we could probably get the tab to $2,000 or maybe even less. I'm not suggesting that isn't a lot of money for some people but it isn't nearly as expensive as a lot of people think it is. And that figure is for 10 days including travel days. If we shortened the trip, that would further lower the price.

[Nika]

My trip would be at the end of March. Should be very nice temperature, from what I looked up.

[disneysteve]

My trip would be at the end of March. Should be very nice temperature, from what I looked up.

That is a nice time to go especially if it is before the Spring Break crowds hit. Easter is April 8 this year so you're probably relatively safe in late March.

[minnie1928]

As for the cost of a Disney vacation in general, it really depends. You can do it pretty cheaply or you can spend a fortune. It's entirely up to you.

I totally agree, Disney can be as cheap or as expensive as you want it to be. It's entirely up to you.

People assume that it's horribly expensive, but it doesn't have to be. There are lots of ways to cut the costs and still have a fabulous vacation.

We've been to Disney a LOT, when we lived on the east coast we normally went about 2 times per year. But, in order to do that level of frequency we usually bought annual passes, which allowed us access to discounted rooms. We would drive instead of flying (from NJ or PA), we packed food or stopped at a grocery store to buy drinks/snacks. We ate breakfast in the room. We did lots of things like that to help keep the costs down. But, doing those things did nothing to diminish the fun we had while on vacation and it allowed us to go often.