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What is the Best Age for a Child’s First Disney Vacation?

How Young is Too Young to Enjoy a Disney Vacation?

It’s a very common question that I get asked quite often: how young is too young to enjoy a Disney vacation? Or put another way: how old does a child have to be to make sure that this trip is worthwhile?

If you’ve been on a Disney Vacation you’ll know that there are guests of all ages in the parks — from newborns to seniors. So, of course, you can happily visit any Disney destination at any age. But what these individuals are really asking is how old does my child have to be before a Disney vacation is worth the money?

In my experience, by two-and-a-half years old a child will know the Disney characters and probably won’t be shy or afraid of the life-size characters they encounter. Of course, there are some children who are afraid of larger-than-life characters when they are very young, so it all depends on your child. The character issue aside, if your little one has some familiarity with Disney pop culture, then you can reasonably expect that they will have a good time at a Disney destination.

Our daughter Amelia meeting Tinker Bell and Terence at age 2.5 at Walt Disney World.


Some people think that 2.5 years old is too young, but in my experience it’s not

At two-and-a-half years old, our own daughter had a very magical vacation. Her eyes were as wide as pie plates upon meeting Disney characters and and we got some of the most amazing photos and videos that you can imagine. Truly the kind of thing that is right out of a Disney commercial. She absolutely loved the characters and of course the kid-size attractions were also a big hit.

At two-and-a-half-years-old some of your main attractions will be things such as Dumbo, The Magic Carpets of Aladdin, the Haunted Mansion (our young daughter wanted to go on this), Under the Sea: Journey of the Little Mermaid, It’s a Small World, Country Bear Jamboree and meeting Disney Princesses and other characters.

While two-and-a-half-years is a good age for interactivity, I have found that at that age a child may not actually retain those memories when they are older. Our daughter remembers that vacation through photos, but she doesn’t really have good memories of the vacations the way that she does of trips since then.

Attractions such as It’s a Small World are a Disney right of passage for kids of all ages (but especially the younger ones).


So the first answer to this question is that two-and-a-half years of age is a great age for a child to have an awful lot of fun and character interaction on their Disney vacation. But, if you are looking to create lifelong Disney memories — or if you think that this may be your only Disney vacation for a long time — then you may be better off waiting another 18 months or so.

The other important point to consider is that at any age below three years, you will need to incorporate naps into your daily itinerary. To make this as easy as possible I strongly recommend staying at one of the Deluxe resorts on the Magic Kingdom monorail loop or in the Boardwalk area. You will have excellent proximity to the parks making it much easier to go back and forth from the parks to your hotel room.

A stroller is a must-have item — especially a folding stroller as this is required for Disney bus and boat transportation.

By four years of age your kids will be old enough to retain memories and go on some rides that may have been out of reach a couple of years earlier.


Four Years of Age is a Magic Number for Disney Vacations

If you’re looking for the youngest age at which a child can have a magical time and lasting memories, the magic number according to researchers is somewhere between four and seven years of age. I tend to believe that four is the magic number. My own first memory is of standing at the gates of Disneyland Resort in California at age four. Our daughter fully remembers all trips from approximately four years old and onward.

So I usually tell Disney travelers that at two-and-a-half years you should be okay for a rewarding vacation with your little one. At closer to four years old and onward, it only gets better and the magical memories that will last a lifetime will likely be remembered from this point onward.

Are You Planning a Walt Disney World Vacation?

Be sure to read my Guide to Planning A Walt Disney World Vacation and my post on the Five Golden Rules of Walt Disney World Vacation Planning.

Also, be sure to subscribe to my Disney travel newsletter for the latest features on Disney travel and curated news from around the web.

Mike Belobradic: The Finer Side of Disney Travel
Luxury Travel Blogger – Deluxe Disney Travel Specialist
The Finer Side of Travel

The post What is the Best Age for a Child’s First Disney Vacation? appeared first on Mike Belobradic.



This post first appeared on Mike Belobradic, Luxury Disney Travel Blogger, please read the originial post: here

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