Im contemplating taking the boys before we have another baby and it ends up becoming a "when they are teenagers" scenario. I really think they would have an absolute ball, moreso now as kids than as teenagers.
Im not so much worried about them remembering it because I barely remember my life before age 12; but people bring up the 'they cant ride all the rides' scenario. I hardly think Disney would exclude their target audience (under 12's) at a theme park aimed at their viewers. Ds1 is over 130cm tall at 5-and-half so he could ride just about everything and Ds2 isnt that far being (115cm). Its Ds3 - he is 110cm and only 3.
So just wondering if anyone who HAS taken their kids to Disneyland under age 5 has any advice or even just stories about it.
We took our boys to Euro Disney for a day. They couldn't go on all the rides but TBH there isn't enough time in one day for all the rides. They have a system where you can get tickets then come back later and avoid the queues and it was worth it to avoid queuing.
They had a great time.
We stayed in a hotel attached to the resort and the boys loved it because it was themed and had lots of amusement in the lobby.
I havent taken ds but went with my parents when i was 6. I had the best time and while i dont remember everything, there are still quite a few things that i do remember. I was able to go on lots of rides and dont remember feeling like i missed out (i was usually a shorty for my age too).
We went during our summer so while it was winter in the us it wasnt really cold. And bc they dont have a long break at that time of ywar, the queues were practically non-existent.
Hth
Everyone has a good time at Disneyland, regardless of age. It's just an awesome experience and your kids will have a great time.
Disneyland is broken up into different areas. Fantasyland is where alot of the rides for younger kids are. (Tea Cups, It's a Small World etc) There are no age restrictions but kids under 7 must have an adult on the rides with them. Alot of the rides don't have any height requirements either.
If you are not worried about them remembering the experience then I would do it. Definately.
We went when the girls were in years 5 & 7 and they had a ball. We were there end August start of sept and there were some lines. The thing that got us was the line looked short but in fact the line was inside the building so in the end was quite long.
The girls still talk about their time at the three places
Also nearby is Movie World and Knotts Berry farm which were great fun also.
We took the girls to Hong Kong Disney last December. Stayed at a Disney themed hotel and were there for two nights, with two days to do Disneyland. The girls were 3.5 and 4.5. DD2 is barely 90cm tall. We could have easily gone back for another day and still not satisfied the girls in what they did/saw.
There were a couple of rides in Toy Story land that they couldn't go on (and TBH looking at them who would WANT to go on them - scary!!), as well as a rollercoaster thing in Tomorrowland. Otherwise everything was available to them at their height/age. What was beneficial was that DH could go on all the rides I couldn't with both girls together so nobody missed out or had to go through double waiting time. The staff made an enormous fuss of the kids everywhere we went and they had an absolute ball. I was concerned the waiting times in lines would be too much for them at their age but they were fine with it.
Benefit of staying at the Disney hotel was that we went back each afternoon for a rest so we got the most out of it, with free shuttle buses running constantly and frequently - never had to wait more than 5 minutes to get on and go.
Disneyland LA has more rides that would certainly include some exclusions for your kids (Indiana Jones and Splash Mountain the only two I can remember) but we were tossing up LA or HK and I was surprised that even with the "bigger" rides, there were still only a handful that the girls would have been too small for. Have a look at the LA website and there is a section somewhere that gives you all the height restrictions so you know what you're looking at.
I honestly couldn't recommend it highly enough, and at their young ages everything is just so magical for them. All four of us had a fantastic time there and the girls are dying to go back.
Thanks for the input guys!
Dh and I talked about it tonight and he thinks Disneyland is a viable option now that we know the boys will still have a ball and be able to go on rides. He's only balking at the cost to head to the USA so we've compromised on Hong Kong Disneyland (especially because we are in Nth Qld so we have to trek south to Sydney usually to catch international flights). Lulu, I checked out the Disney website for height restrictions and it looks like our 3 are tall enough to ride everything bar 1 or 2 of the biggest rides! Thanks for the suggestion!
That's the reason we ended up HK too - price plus huge travel time from Perth. HK Disney was very cool, and HK itself has lots of good stuff for kids too and its really easy to get around on public transport. Take the kids to Ocean Park while you're there too. Its a combination thing of theme park, aquarium, pandas etc.
FWIW, we stayed at the Disney Hollywood Hotel. They had a great playground and pool area for kids, its very new (opened only November last year I think) and its quite a bit cheaper than the Disney Hotel. Its also the "themed" hotel, whereas the Disney Hotel is gorgeous but very sort of English colonial style and we figured if we were going to stay in one, we might as well stay in one where Mickey told us what floor we were on! We had booked a standard park view room and were offered a free upgrade to a seaview room. They're exactly the same size, so we stayed in the park view - got a brilliant view of the fireworks from our hotel room the first night when the girls were just too shattered to stay at the park for them.
We took our girls to Disneyland in LA last year when DD1 was 6 and DD2 was 4. They loved it! DD2 was scared on one or two of the rides but loved it anyway. She wasn't as into the parades as DD1 but ah well, they had an awesome day whether or not we went on every ride and they still remember a lot of it! They loved Pirates of the Carabean (sp?) and Alice in Wonderland, but in all honesty they just loved being there.... they didn't care if they went on all the rides or not and loved the atmosphere.
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Taking kids under 5 to Disneyland?
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