The Magic Kingdom
When I was a kid my sisters and I LOVED all things Disney! We watched all of the movies, knew all of the songs by heart, and were bonafide members of the Mickey Mouse Club. Like most kids then and even today, Disney characters, voices, songs and stories filled us with joy.
In the late 80’s going to Disneyland was not the financial endeavor that it is now. My parents often took us up to Anaheim to see our favorite characters, ride the rides and enjoy the magic of Disney. My favorite thing was my Mickey themed autograph book. My sisters and I would compete to see who could get the most character autographs in one day. I still have that autograph book - it conjures memories I will always cherish.
These days, going to see the Mouse is jokingly the most expensive day ever for parents. So much goes into planning and executing a family trip to either Disneyland or Disney World. My Mom put the idea in my head and now I endeavor to plan a logistical juggernaut - a family trip to Disney World.
Step one in any planning process is to conduct my research. So why not go check it out? If you’ve been following my blog, you’ll know that I recently transitioned out of the military and am on a journey with my six month old son, Theo, to travel as much as we can in the next year. We decided to book a few days at our timeshare, Westgate Vacation Villas, get two military family tickets to EPCOT and the Magic Kingdom, and enjoy my last day in the Navy with my son.
This trip was also my first traveling solo with our baby. Flying with an infant ignited all of my anxiety that I’ve worked so hard to manage. I thought of all of the worst case scenarios that could happen: running out of diapers, formula, losing our luggage, and above all not being able to sooth an uncomfortable and fussy baby. Being the planner that I am, I did my best to manage all of the things I could control. I watched endless YouTube videos on how to travel with children. Once again thank you to @flyingthenest and @hopscotchtheglobe for their family travel recommendations. I overpacked on the diapers, formula, pacifiers, and Theo’s favorite toys. I prepped his bottles before the flight and made everything I needed accessible once I got to my seat. This was essential. Every time Theo needed something, I had it ready to go! He stayed calm throughout each flight, only fussing when he was hungry. Mama anxiety was managed! I have to also give credit to the passengers on my flights as well as the @United Flight Attendants who were kind, gracious and helpful every step of the way. Thank you!
As traveling to Orlando was managed, it was now time to get ourselves to the hotel and enjoy the week. I decided to bring my own car seat instead of renting one. Lesson learned - it is not worth carrying your own car seat unless it is part of a travel system that you want to use, or plan to use it on the flight. I didn’t bring the travel system car seat and stroller; I brought a travel stroller and checked the car seat. The car rental team @Thrifty had plenty of suitable car seats available for rent and would have made checking in and gathering our luggage a lot easer. All you have to do when securing your rental is to call the customer service team to add a car seat to your reservation. Keep in mind, if you are particular about which car seat your child is using you may not have the choice in brand. Initially I rented an economy car; when we arrived in Orlando I decided to upgrade our car to a full size sedan because of how much luggage we needed room for, the size of the car seat, and general comfort. It was totally worth it. It was then time to head to the resort!
One of the biggest aspects to consider when planning a trip for a large group is where to stay. So many things play into choosing accommodations - size, cost, amenities and location are just a few. I have a large, multi-generational family, with kids from age 5 months (my son) to 16. That being said, I need to find an accommodation that will fit for everyone. Our family likes to travel and stay together, so a condominium style resort works the best for us. Timeshare resorts often meet the need for multi-generational groups that are also budget friendly. We are members of the Westgate Resort Vacation group that has a wide range of resort styles and locations, so we chose to book there for our family trip. I am not a paid advertiser for Westgate Resorts, but I will say I have enjoyed my experience with their resorts, their customer service, and the access to a wide range of resorts around the world.
Finally, we were ready to enjoy the Disney parks. We bought 2 one day passes to each park. First day EPCOT and second day Magic Kingdom. I was looking forward to EPCOT more than anything because of its regional cultural displays. One of my favorite amusement parks to go to with my husband was always Busch Gardens in Williamsburg, Virginia. It has beautiful gardens (it’s in the name) and features different countries with delicious foods, beautiful structures, and exhilarating rides. EPCOT proved to be on another level. We “traveled” through France, Morocco, Mexico, Japan, Germany, China and Scandinavia. We tasted all the goodies, the savory cultural delights, and enjoyed the family friendly rides and experiences. I thought that we wouldn’t get to fully experience the park having an infant with us, but I was pleasantly surprised to find that there were many infant friendly attractions so that we could see it all as a family. One of our favorites was the Spaceship Earth inside the symbolic EPCOT sphere. I highly recommend! We also visited the Mexican pyramid and enjoyed the Grand Fiesta Tour Starring the Three Caballeros. Teddy loved all of the things to see and the characters.
Enjoying the park with Teddy, we made sure to pack all of the diapers, wipes, formula, pacifiers, and all things baby in our handy @chicco.usa Liteway stroller. It was easy to carry while traveling and was essential on this trip. I will say that I wish it folded up even smaller, but it was a gift so I’m not gonna complain! Even with everything we needed packed, Disney parks provide well stocked Baby Care Centers, that are staffed to assist parents during regular park hours. Facilities are completely complimentary, with an on-site shop for almost anything you may have forgotten for your child to purchase. While I didn’t need the facility, I was so happy to know that it was there for me and Teddy in case we did.
The second day we spent the day at the Magic Kingdom, riding infant friendly rides, enjoying the 80 degree weather in January. Magic Kingdom has more to offer for the young and the young at heart when it comes to amusements and rides. We arrived just in time for the Disney Festival of Fantasy Parade - enjoying that first gave us the freedom to not worry about returning to the main entrance for the parade. It was perfect. Teddy was able to see all of the characters and the spectacle that is the parade. So amazing! Not to get into every single ride, these are the rides we were able to ride with an infant:
I will call out the Dumbo the Flying Elephant attraction because it had a convenient feature as a parent. Since lines are long, this attraction had an inside “Play While You Wait” area where kids could take a break from the line and enjoy an air conditioned playground with awesome amusements. We ended the day with the fantastic fireworks show! We brought Teddy hearing protection ear muffs so he could enjoy the show, while protecting his ears. I highly recommend that for children under 2.
Well that was our trip! I got all the info needed to plan our big family vacation while having a great time! If you have any questions or comments, please leave them below or DM on instagram at @furnishyourlyfe.
HAPPY TRAVELS!