Hi there, Paola! Welcome to planDisney. I’m so excited for you to be visiting the Happiest Place on Earth for the first time with your family. It rings true what Walt Disney said about Disneyland being for everyone. With the age group of your little ones, I can certainly guide you in making the most of your park day!
When my husband and I took our son to Disneyland for the first time at 13 months, we were definitely out of our element. We had spent so many years together at the parks without kids, so this was a beautiful, humbling experience for us. As a parent to a now toddler, I’ve learned to walk the fine line of adhering to a tight schedule for naps and feedings, while also understanding that our littles on vacation are completely different from when they’re at home. We found it helpful during our early visits with him to do one park a day versus park hopping because it didn’t feel as rushed or urgent, especially when we were adjusting to visiting the parks with a little one. We’ve slowly eased into park hopping now that he's a toddler!
With that being said, I remember that we spent most of our time at the
Baby Care Center doing feedings and diaper changes due to its calming environment on our first visit. Their changing stations are padded (compared to the regular restrooms) with ceiling fans (babies love them) above for entertainment! We did as many baby-friendly rides as we could, such as it’s a small world, Winnie the Pooh, and King Arthur’s Carousel. On that first visit in particular, I wanted to commemorate it to look back on for years to come. We did a
silhouette cutting of him that sits on our floating shelf in our living room, in addition to his very first Mickey ears, which sadly don’t fit anymore!
These days, we are nonstop in the parks! Now that my son is over 40 inches, we are entering the big kid rides like Big Thunder and Space Mountain. My mama heart can't handle it! For your children collectively, my go-to would be to head over to
Goofy’s How-To-Play Yard. We spend so much time playing there in the morning or even before a nap because of all the interactive elements throughout. There’s even a closed-off section for younger kids that might be even more suitable for your 1.5 year old and 10 month old, given that it’s extra padded and in the shade. I love to sneak across to Café Daisy for a nitro cold brew as a caffeine boost while my husband goes on the slides with our son!
Here are a few of my tried and true go-to tips when in the parks with littles. We always keep plenty of snacks in the diaper bag. These are great while waiting for a parade or a meal at a restaurant. I don’t know about you, but it’s 0 to 100 when my son goes from happy to hangry! If you’re taking the tram to head back to the parking structures, I highly recommend bringing a collapsible bag to consolidate everything before boarding. I was very naive thinking we could just plop the stroller as is onto the tram, but it turns out you can’t. When you park your stroller, using a stroller sign, balloon, or even an AirTag can help you find it in case a Cast Member moves it to make space for others.
Paola, thank you so much for visiting planDisney! I truly hope my explanation of what a park day looks like for me is helpful for your upcoming visit. Soak in all the moments and take all the pictures you can! I cannot wait for you to experience the joy that I do when I take my son to the parks. If you have any more questions until then, planDisney is here for you!
With a Sprinkle of Pixie Dust,
Bev