Stuff to do for toddlers in Orlando?

Question

We are taking a family trip to Orlando, FL in mid-March. It will be my mother, my 19 yr old brother, my husband, myself and my almost 22 month old daughter. We hope to have my older cousin and her 4 year old son come up a day or 2 from Ft. Lauderdale where they live. We will have 2 different units at a timeshare. Since we go to Orlando almost every year, I'm not trying to make a lot of plans for our daughter. I definitely want to do Islands of Adventure for the SeussLand and the Magic Kingdom. My husband and I have to do Epcot so he can do Mission Space and MGM for the Tower of Terror. The 2 year old will probably stay with my mom at the pool for those trips. Does anybody have an experience with their toddler that turned out to be the toddler's favorite? In those areas or others?

Answer 1

It really depends on your toddlers size and temperment. We took my son when he was 2 he LOVED Disney. We started at home a few months before with a few videos that showed the characters as they look in the park. There are 4 Sing Along Songs videos that we bought (Disneyland Fun, Camping At Walt Disney World, Beach Party at Disney World, and Happy Haunting a party at Disneyland) and they had him ready to see the characters and not be scared. He had an idea of how big they would be and that they were fun for kids. My youngest son (2 now) is going this October and is ready. We met Mickey and Minnie when a Disney Store opened and he ran right up to them. He likes the above mentioned videos but his favorite is Mickey Mouse Clubhouse. He likes Pooh (the original stories especially) and Cars. We are trying to introduce characters like Nemo and Little Mermaid since they are there. To me it helps them get to know who everyone is.

When we went with my oldest son the first time he was a big 26 month old, and he was tall enough for Splash Mountain (barely), Big Thunder, Test Track, and Kali River Rapids. He loved all of them.

MGM has Little Mermaid, Beauty and the Beast, the Honey I Shrunk the Kids playground and Playhouse Disney that were big hits with him, but he also enjoyed Indiana Jones and Muppet Vision. And Fantasmic at night was amazing to him.

Epcot has some things he liked then as well as several new things I am looking forward to with my younger son. Here are some things to think about. Mission Space has a family friendly version that has no height requirement so she could ride that with you. Living Seas has just been redone to have a big Nemo spin and is even more kids friendly. There are great ground fountains the kids love to play in. Great place to wait during a child swap. There is one not far from Test Track and Mission Space right by Mouse Gears. If you tour the countries my son enjoyed doing the Kidcot Fun Stops and making a mask. Illuminations is amazing and my son loved it so much he cried all the way out of the park because he wanted them to do it again. Most the adults we passed agreed.

Animal Kingdom is great for toddlers, and I am sure your husband will want to ride the new Everest. Depending on your child tough to be a bug might be a bit much but we saw several people who just didn't put the glasses on. My son liked it. The Tree of life is nice. My son enjoyed spotting the animals he knew, Festival of the Lion King is great and geared toward kids, but adults rave about it too. Anything with the animals like the trails or the safari or the birds of prey show can be enjoyed at this age, my son liked it all but of course liked the train and the petting zoo part at Rafikis Planet Watch. For me there is a little room inside the pavillion there that has a headset where you can listen to the sounds from a jungle, and I swear somehow the tiger sneaks in the room and stands behind you it sounds so real. Dinoland is geared toward young kids with the sand pit and playground. Overall this park is one of our favorites.

You seem to be going to Magic Kingdom already so I am assuming you know all about it. Tons there for kids this age to enjoy. Be sure to take the time for the parade and stay for the night time parade and fireworks.

Sea World is also a great park for kids this age. The animals are amazing and they love being able to interact by petting the sting rays and feeding the sea lions. There is a dinner with Shamu that is a little expensive but really memorable

Take her for a monorail ride and be willing to wait just a bit to be able to sit up front. Ask the attendant when you get to the platform. Even if all you do is ride it in a circle, for kids this age it is as good as a roller coaster.

Consider a character meal. Pooh is great at Crystal Palace in Magic Kingdom, Mickey and Friends are great at Chef Mickeys and great but more laid back at Garden Grill in EPCOT the Land. There are princess meals too, but with 2 boys I have never been there. There is a new princess salon in downtown disney she may enjoy a bit more next year where she can get the royal treatment. And tea parties at the Grand Floridian.
Overall I would say your daughter is free every where you go, take her and make some memories. The things she will say and do at this age are things you will remember always and different from what she will do next year. My son called Dumbo Uppy Down at 2 and 2 months but by almost 3 he said Dumbo. There are amazing memories for you to be made right now. It is true that she won't remember, but you will never forget.

Here is a great link for all things Disney World.
http://www.allearsnet.com/index.html