[Question] At what age

[dictionary]

would you say is the best time to bring someone to DL? I am planning way early and I do mean early a trip to bring my youngest grandsons (2 weeks, 15 months) to Disneyland and am wondering at what age do you think is the best time to bring them for their first experience? I am thinking anything under 2 years is probably out and I believe I brought my youngest ds around 3 yrs old and he totally loved the Matterhorn. But I wonder if that is the right age...TIA.

[Druggas]

Re: At what age

Brought my granddaughter when she was a month old. She's now 4 and we've been at least 50 times.

[mickdaddy]

Re: At what age

Our kids went for the first time at 2 and loved every minute of it and can still tell you about their first trip. If your an out of town visitor like me this is a good age!

[Chesire]

Re: At what age

There's a small window for children, that allows them to enjoy Disneyland, without being traumatized by the characters. I believe it's around 5 weeks.

[Second Star]

Re: At what age

Bringing them earlier may help in aclimatizing them, but, in my experience... 5 is the perfect age. Before 5 they are probably not going to remember anything, after 5 they will remain some memories. And, experiencing the park through the eyes of a 5 year old is truly amazing. At least it was for me. :thumbup:

[Druggas]

Re: At what age

Bringing them earlier may help in aclimatizing them, but, in my experience... 5 is the perfect age. Before 5 they are probably not going to remember anything, after 5 they will remain some memories. And, experiencing the park through the eyes of a 5 year old is truly amazing. At least it was for me. :thumbup:

This is a good post. Kids won't remember their early years at DL, but that's what cameras are for.

[phantasmic]

Re: At what age

obviously depends on the child, but I recently brought a 1-year old and a 3-year old for the first time, and here's how it went:

1-year-old: had a GREAT time during the soundsational parade and tiki room... basically, anything music-related will entertain them

3-year-old: REALLY REALLY liked toontown and Disneyland in general, but the dark rides in Fantasyland were a bit too scary... also, some of the rides she was tall enough for she was still too small to really see what was going on (autopia, buzz lightyear)

note: just because a ride doesn't have a height requirement doesn't mean it's a good idea to take a child on it... the child might be required to sit on their own seat, and you end up hanging onto them for dear life... i know this from experience, lol

so yeah... IMO you honestly cannot take a child too early to Disneyland... the 3-year-old still asks when we are going back, and the 1-year-old seemed to enjoy it (even if she won't remember it)

[Giant Panda]

Re: At what age

Bringing them earlier may help in aclimatizing them, but, in my experience... 5 is the perfect age. Before 5 they are probably not going to remember anything, after 5 they will remain some memories. And, experiencing the park through the eyes of a 5 year old is truly amazing. At least it was for me. :thumbup:

Besides the memories, chances are by the time they are 5 they will be tall enough to ride nearly all of the rides. Otherwise, their memories will be of sitting on a bench with daddy while mommy and big brother are going on the cool log ride, or looking at the old video games and boring exhibits of Innoventions while Dad and cousin Kelly rode the cool space coaster ride ....

Is it too early to bring up the "S" word? Chances are you won't need one at 5, earlier you might ...

[Joshnyah]

Re: At what age

Im not sure what age it is but I think when they recognize things, around baby's first steps. Any age even if they do not remember it you will and that is who it is for even when they get older. The joy they get is a bonus. Have great travels.

[calsig31]

Re: At what age

Both of my boys have been going since they were three weeks old. They are just shy of three and five now and both have memories of their various trips there. Even for those times that they won't remember, they will be able to look back at photographs and say, "wow, that was me at Disneyland at that age!".

[txdisney]

Re: At what age

would you say is the best time to bring someone to DL? I am planning way early and I do mean early a trip to bring my youngest grandsons (2 weeks, 15 months) to Disneyland and am wondering at what age do you think is the best time to bring them for their first experience? I am thinking anything under 2 years is probably out and I believe I brought my youngest ds around 3 yrs old and he totally loved the Matterhorn. But I wonder if that is the right age...TIA.

We brought our daughter for the first time about 1.5 and she enjoyed it. You wont be able to go a whole day. I would say the kids are too young and it probably isnt worth the money.

[Alpinemaps]

Re: At what age

Bringing them earlier may help in aclimatizing them, but, in my experience... 5 is the perfect age. Before 5 they are probably not going to remember anything, after 5 they will remain some memories. And, experiencing the park through the eyes of a 5 year old is truly amazing. At least it was for me. :thumbup:

Besides the memories, chances are by the time they are 5 they will be tall enough to ride nearly all of the rides. Otherwise, their memories will be of sitting on a bench with daddy while mommy and big brother are going on the cool log ride, or looking at the old video games and boring exhibits of Innoventions while Dad and cousin Kelly rode the cool space coaster ride ....

You guys need to talk to my 4 year old. She's been going to DL since she was 11 months old. We've been going regularly (we got our APs back when she was two) for the last few years.

She'll talk your ear off. She remembers everything. Now, it could be because we take lots of pictures. But she knows the characters. She loves them. One of her favorite activities is to meet characters, take pictures, and get autographs. We've got a record of 17 characters in one day. We really started to work on characters and autographs when she was 2 1/2 - that's when she fully recognized them, and really wanted to start meeting them and getting autographs.

My daughter, at 4 years old, is tiny. She's very tiny. She still isn't even 40 inches tall. There's a *ton* to do there. Sure, we don't get to go on Space, Star Tours, or Matterhorn. But she's been going on Pirates since she was 18 months old. She loves the Treehouse. Jungle Cruise and the Tiki Room are big hits. I don't think there's been a trip to DL that we haven't been on either Ariel or Small World.

DL is a totally different place with a child. Don't worry, there's *tons* to do there, even if you can't ride the big coasters. Going to DL is a huge part of my daughter's life, and she'll have these memories forever.

[HiddenMickeyBook]

Re: At what age

I was 6 when I first went in 1962. Still going! Love at first sight.

Our grandgirl (can't remember the age) could barely stand on her own, but loved every minute. We have a great pic of Goofy bending down as she went over to him!

The younger ones probably won't remember the details, but it will probably stick with them. Our grand is now 11 and can hardly wait for her next trip with us in October.

[sbk1234]

Re: At what age

Very young children may not remember the trip, but for them, it's life in the moment. Therefore, Disney offers wonderful moments for the very young to enjoy. Just remember, young children cannot maintain the pace of an adult, and they get sensory overload much earlier. If you have very young babies/toddlers, slow down the pace, and find those things that they can explore at thier own pace, like Tom Sawyer Island, the petting zoo, and so on.
At a very young age, my kids were captivated by Tiki Room.

Good luck. And don't forget Baby Center!

[Barbaraann]

Re: At what age

My husband and I took our grandson to Disney World when he was about 4 1/2 years old. He remembers some of the vacation. I remember all of it, of course, and it began my overwhelming desire to go back as much as I can. I have been back to Disney World with my grandson, and also visited Disneyland twice with him. He is 19 years old, and I don't think he'd turn down a trip if I invited him.

Everyone knows their own children/grandchildren. Disneyland/Disney World are definitely family vacation destinations. Each family needs to take the child's moods, needs, likes, and dislikes into account when planning and visiting the parks. If they do, they should have a wonderful time.

[Acpisme]

Re: At what age

Bringing them earlier may help in aclimatizing them, but, in my experience... 5 is the perfect age. Before 5 they are probably not going to remember anything, after 5 they will remain some memories. And, experiencing the park through the eyes of a 5 year old is truly amazing. At least it was for me. :thumbup:

Perhaps this varies from child to child. My Daughter remembers her trips between 2 and 3. She loved the Matterhorn, Haunted Mansion, and Astro Blasters. She will tell you to this day the first time she rode the Matterhorn how funny she thought the monster was (child sat giggling in my lap on that ride). By the time she was 3 she was tall enough for BTMRR and Space Mountain, which are the two rides she loves the most to this day. (now she is counting down the inch and a half until she can ride Screaming and she just turned 6)

[Giant Panda]

Re: At what age

You guys need to talk to my 4 year old. She's been going to DL since she was 11 months old. We've been going regularly (we got our APs back when she was two) for the last few years.

She'll talk your ear off. She remembers everything. Now, it could be because we take lots of pictures. But she knows the characters. She loves them. One of her favorite activities is to meet characters, take pictures, and get autographs. We've got a record of 17 characters in one day. We really started to work on characters and autographs when she was 2 1/2 - that's when she fully recognized them, and really wanted to start meeting them and getting autographs.

My daughter, at 4 years old, is tiny. She's very tiny. She still isn't even 40 inches tall. There's a *ton* to do there. Sure, we don't get to go on Space, Star Tours, or Matterhorn. But she's been going on Pirates since she was 18 months old. She loves the Treehouse. Jungle Cruise and the Tiki Room are big hits. I don't think there's been a trip to DL that we haven't been on either Ariel or Small World.

DL is a totally different place with a child. Don't worry, there's *tons* to do there, even if you can't ride the big coasters. Going to DL is a huge part of my daughter's life, and she'll have these memories forever.

I remember my first trip at age 5 forty-some years ago, and not because of photos or watching the characters over and over again on video. And I remember each of my three teenaged children's first "real" visit, all at age 4 or 5. I say "real" to distinguish my younger son's first "actual" visit when we took him and his older brother on the 5th day of a 5-day pass when he was only 2.

And I will never forget taking my daughter at 18 months ... worst DL trip ever.

I agree with those that have posted here that say a trip with the very young must be centered on them, sometimes to the detriment of the others in the party. As long as the spirit of joyful sacrifice can be maintained, great.

[dictionary]

Re: At what age

Well my 15 mo gs is more active than most adults so I think he would wear us down before we ran him down..the 2 week old..still too early to tell what his activity level will be like but sounds like anywhere from 2-5 would be a good age (I don't live close) otherwise um yeah I am pretty sure I would be at DL every chance I got with the one grandbaby..I know he will love it. And my youngest son went at 3yr, 4yr, 6yr, 12yr, 15yr, 20yr..yet he doesn't remember too much about the first 3 trips but he still love going more so with the gf then his parents.

[SoCal Wifey]

Re: At what age

I think the best age for a first time is between 4 and 5. My nephew is turning 4 in a few weeks and he is already getting excited for his first trip to DL, he's been watching Disney documentaries and looking at pictures to help build his understanding and excitement; we'll be taking him sometime in the next year.

[calsig31]

Re: At what age

I agree with those that have posted here that say a trip with the very young must be centered on them, sometimes to the detriment of the others in the party.

Not really, anymore. With the rider swap that allow now, one parent can ride, while the other parent sits with the kid. It's even better with a group because the rider swap ticket is good for two people. Therefore, two people can sit with the kid and when the rest of the group gets done the other two can ride together.

However, some of the best rides like Pirates and Mansion have no height restriction so even the smallest child can ride. And yes, for really little ones, they do allow parents to hold the child in their lap on Pirates.