Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
My 5-year-old was scared pretty badly on a dark ride our first day at Disney
World. From then on, for the rest of the trip, we had to coax and reassure her
before each and every ride before she would go. It was like pulling teeth
.
If you have a tiring, clinging, and/or difficult 4- to 6-year-old who, for whatever
circumstances, willbepartofyourgroup,youcansidestepordiminishpotentialprob-
lems with a bit of pretrip preparation. Even if your preschooler is plucky and game,
the same prep measures (described later in this section) will enhance his or her exper-
ience and make life easier for the rest of the family.
Parents who understand that a visit with 3- to 6-year-old children is going to be
more about the cumulative experience than it is about seeing it all will have a blast,
as well as wonderful memories of their children's amazement.
The Ideal Age
Although our readers report both successful trips as well as disasters with children of
all ages, the consensus ideal children's ages for family compatibility and togetherness
at Walt Disney World are 8-12 years. This age group is old enough, tall enough, and
sufficiently stalwart to experience, understand, and appreciate practically all Disney
attractions. Moreover, they are developed to the extent that they can get around the
parks on their own steam without being carried or collapsing. Best of all, they're still
young enough to enjoy being with Mom and Dad. From our experience, ages 10-12
are better than 8 and 9, though what you gain in maturity is at the cost of that irre-
pressible, wide-eyed wonder so prevalent in the 8- and 9-year-olds.
Walt Disney World for Teens
Teens love Walt Disney World, and for parents of teens the World is a nearly perfect,
albeit expensive, vacation choice. Although your teens might not be as wide-eyed and
impressionable as their younger sibs, they are at an age where they can sample, un-
derstand, and enjoy practically everything Walt Disney World has to offer.
For parents, Walt Disney World is a vacation destination where you can permit
your teens an extraordinary amount of freedom. The entertainment is wholesome, the
venues are safe, and the entire complex of hotels, theme parks, restaurants, and shop-
ping centers is accessible via the Walt Disney World transportation system. The trans-
