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Have you visited Disney World with an infant (a child age 2 or younger)? If so how was that experience and would you recommend visiting Disney World with a child this age? Any tips or good attractions to see with an infant?

Answers posted to the list:

Great question! I have taken our sweet daughter when she was 7 months old and 20 months old so far. Both times were alot of fun, however, each visit had it's drawbacks as well. At 7 months she was just cutting her first tooth so she awakened just about every night. Parks were easy at this age because she wasn't walking yet. The baby care centers at Epcot and MK were awesome as we were able to escape the heat and feed her, change her, etc. We did bring a cooler with her bottles and food as she was still eating baby food. The care centers have everything you need for a price. We didn't go on any rides or anything, we just watched the parades and shows. And shopped of course.

At 20 months it was also fun but at the same time she was walking and we found it harder to keep her in her stroller for long periods of time. We bought a harness and let her roam to expel some energy. This visit was easier with the food situation as she could eat lots of table food and was drinking regular milk. We could always find a place to get her something to eat. We just brought her sippy cups with milk or juice and spring water. We took her on some attractions and she loved them. Character meet and greets were fun too. One night we took her into the care center at MK and sponged bathed her so she was ready for bed (we brought pj's and johnson's stuff) so that after the Wishes fireworks we went home and she was ready to be put down. Overall a great experience with our daughter. Many more trips to come.

Tracey

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Ya know, all the years I visited WDW before getting married and having children I used to look at family's with infants touring the parks and think, 'how could they bring such a tiny baby with them?' Well, I grew up, got married, and had kids and realize that you can't stay locked in your house. :)

We took our daughter on her first trip at 5 mos. and stayed at OKW. It was a great age...just learning to sit up and not yet moving around. She napped in the stroller and we took turns sitting with her for rides. Sure, she had her moments (so did we...even before we had her with us :)) and we tried to take it easy. She even nursed on the AK Safari...forgive me, I had to throw that in! :)

She joined us again at 18 mos...she had a great time eating ice cream in MK. Her brother joined her when she was 2.5 and he was 6 mos. We stayed at BCV. A bit tricky with 2 under the age of 3 and very active, but again we tried to take it easy.

STROLLERS...We purchased the Graco City Lite Stroller before going and made sure it had a full-recline seat...it was great. We had no problems with the bus...other than timing it so baby wasn't asleep when we needed to take one as you have to fold up the stroller most times. With two we took our lite stroller for our son and rented a stroller for our daughter...the rental strollers are not advisable for babies....EXCEPT for AK as they have infant seats that fit into their strollers that you can rent (at least they did when we were there).

TIPS...

Well, the tip I've posted often (forgive me for saying it again)...we ordered diapers, cereal, snacks, toys, etc. from NetGrocer and Eckerd and had them delivered to the resort for our arrival....worked great!

--Be prepared to take it slow and easy. Remember that they're not old enough to have the same level of passion for the World as you might. :)

--Use the Parent Swap option for the rides so you don't wait in line twice.

--Staying in a Home Away From Home Resort (we're DVC members) was a HUGE plus. The fridge was great for drinks, snacks, milk. The kitchen allowed us to eat breakfast stress-free at 'home'.

--Make use of the Baby Changing stations...this is also a great spot to get child snacks...when we were at Disneyland Paris (DD 3, DS 1) they sold things (i.e. milk, lollipops, etc.) for half as much as the stores on Main St just outside the door!!

--USE SUNSCREEN!!!!!! Have an extra LIGHT blanket handy to create a shade over the stroller. All in all we had a great time with our 'babies'. I think the hardest part about any of the trips was dining...it's hard for them to sit thru a meal, understandably. We're looking forward to our next trip on the DCL (DD 3, DS 1) in 20 days!!!!

Heather

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