If you could only take your child to Disney World once, what age would be the “sweet spot” to do it

Children’s reactions to the magic really depends on the child. My DD (20) was very caught up in the magic even at age 11. That year we arrived on Christmas Eve. It was the last year that she believed in Santa Claus. When she woke up to her wrapped gifts from Santa in our hotel room, she was amazed that Santa Claus found her in WDW.

She knew that the Disney characters were actors, but she still allowed herself to be carried away by her imagination. That was a wonderful trip.

After that, she was a teenager when we returned. She still fan-girled when she saw Princess Aurora. Now at 20, I think she might actually be more excited than ever.

I still stand by 9 being the sweet spot.
We spent past Christmas @ WDW with DGD then aged 12. She refused to allow us to open holiday presents until several days past Christmas Day to extend the holiday feeling. In packing for our 4th of July trip I found her Hanna Andersson unopened elf pjs. When she saw them her face lit up and she insisted they needed to be packed for the summer trip.
Yeah she's weird but I so love her:rotfl2:
 
We picked 6-7 years old as the sweet spot because we figured they were old enough to remember everything, but still young enough to believe in the magic.
 
Our first trip my daughter was 2.5 and son was 8 months. My daughter loved it and she was in heaven.

Our second trip last year she was 4 and my son was 2. The first trip just bolstered the second. And it was great. My son was nuts for all the star wars stuff.

If I had to pick one age for just one trip I'd say 5 or 6.
 
I like it when they're a bit older. I would say 2nd grade to the "tween" years. :) They're typically past diapers/nappies, multiple naps, strollers/prams, etc. They can go on more rides, and still be young enough to have a child's excitement & exuberance. They're more likely to get into the scavenger hunts, kidcot stops, pin trading, hidden Mickey searching, etc., which keeps them busy in between rides/shows/meals. They're more likely to be excited about trying new things and covering more ground. I can take a 2 year old to the same park 4 days in a row, do all of the same things, and they'll likely be fine with that. The older kids can often be more eager to see more.

Mind you, the very little ones are just adorable at Dsiney, too, but if I were to go just once, I'd like my kids to be a bit older. :)
 
I took my son when he turned 4 (on the trip). I remember thinking I wished I had waited just 6 more months because he was just short of being able to ride 40" rides. I think ages 4.5 - 7 are probably the best ages because they can ride 40" rides, believe in the magic, and remember the trip.
 
Normally I am not worried about if a child remembers a trip as long as they enjoy it while they are there, but in the case of taking a child only one time to WDW, then I would definitely try to take them when they are old enough to remember it. That way they have a trip to remember until they are old enough to decide to go back on their own if they wish. :)
 
I think around 8-9. Still child prices, but old enough to not be scared of everything! And tall enough too!! It's such a hard question... It truly depends on the kid. I have two boys. My older one (9) is tall and a daredevil. We went just before he turned 7 and he rode everything and loved it!!!
My younger one (7) is tiny and scared of everything!! (He wears size 4/5!) We were there for his 5th birthday and it was tough- I thought he would've liked more rides. He thought Winnie the Pooh was scary because it has thunder and lightning. Omg.
 


My husband and I love Disney. We could not wait to take our daughter. We took her at 16 months and it was a great first trip. She was excellent on the plane ride and at the parks. She did not care for the characters and we had to parent swap a few rides (no big deal). We received a lot of back lash from some family members who felt that it was silly because she would not remember a thing.:charac2: No, she does not remember but we do!! Now 10, she absolutely loves Disney, is quite adventurous, and loves watching videos from her first trip. It's so nice to have those memories and to chuckle together at how cute and little she was and how much we enjoyed building those special memories with her. :love1: This has been the case with all of our children. Albeit young, we have the pictures and videos to share with them and they truly enjoy watching them.

Our second daughter's first visit was at 8 months. She too did an amazing job. It was a little more challenging though with two children (under 5) and trying to maneuver with a double stroller. We then took our son for his first birthday...nightmare.:sad2: He was miserable. Poor little guy just wanted to be free and run around everywhere and anywhere...enough said...We had the double stroller again and our eldest daughter (5 at the time) walked. She did great and never complained. Our second daughter (two) also did great and enjoyed the characters and rides. Albeit amazing and memorable trips, it was a challenge. My husband still talks about how the double stroller reminds him of a big file cabinet filled with this and that. Anytime we went to close it to catch the Magical Express, something (not a child) fell out that I forgot to take out.:rolleyes1 We've gone several other times and each time it gets better and better because they are older and can appreciate and enjoy the rides and entertainment a lot more. It's also great when they are able to feed themselves and are potty trained!!!!YESSSSS!!!:yay: That made life so much easier. No diapers! I still always had a bag with important essentials.

We are traveling to Disney in a few weeks :tongue:and my kids are 10, 7, and 5 and are so excited. We've involved them in every aspect of the planning. We enjoy watching YouTube videos together related to DW and looking forward to this trip more than all of the others because we can ride almost all of the rides together as a family. We are planning on bringing a single stroller for our little guy. They each have their own kid friendly luggage for the airport (another great aspect as they get older) and each morning they will pick out their own outfits and dress themselves.:dogdance: Yessssss!!!! DH and I have absolutely no regrets on any of our past trips but if I had to choose the hardest age to travel with, I'd definitely say my son as a toddler. IMO, most toddlers are just learning how to walk and they do not like being confined to a stroller. Five years and up is a much easier trip. Have a blessed trip! Hats off to anyone who has taken a Disney trip with very young children. They won't remember but that's why we have Memory Maker.:-)
 
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She might not remember the first few times you go to Disney (my daughter is 5 and she went at 2 and 4) but each trip just reinforces the magic of the next one.
 
I'm going to say it really depends on the child. My Daughter whose 16 now was 1st brought to Disney at 2 and half. She had the greatest time rode a lot of rides sat through tons of shows and fireworks and remembers most of that trip. And still a complete fan of WDW today.

My 2 youngest 1st time was at 7 and 4 respectively we went to DL. Neither remember the experience and my then 7 year old, now 11 year old, is not a big fan of rides. He refused to ride them then and now.

My youngest went last year to WDW at 6 years old nearly 7 and was tall enough to ride all the mountains and biggest rides, can't wait for our trip this year to do it again and helped me choose our fastpasses.

So every child is different especially in families. You have to know your child.
 
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I will be doing this too... one trip to make it count.
My kids are young now, but I want them to remember it (espcially if I'm going to spend a fortune going)
PLus there are usually less meltdowns with older kids... or the issues can be reasoned with.
I'm waiting until my kids are 9 & 12. Young enough to enjoy the magic but old enough to get more out of it than a toddler.
A lot of events you can't do with kids under 9. (star wars, pirates adevnture)
PLus I think us as parents will enjoy it more becuase we are not catering to a nap schedule. the activies you can do really open up
Plus for us the long travel time to get there and back would be horrible for a toddler.
 
Between my 3 kids, we've been at every age between 6 months and 12.5 years.

For a once in a lifetime trip, somewhere between the ages of 6-10. We just went this month and my middle child is 8, and she is tall enough to ride everything, but still wanted to meet a few princesses.

We've taken toddlers, and while it's nice that 1 and 2 year olds are still free, I wouldn't want our once in a lifetime trip to involve naps, meltdowns (we have a few hilarious photos from our most recent trip with our 2 year old) and having to deal with parent swap constantly and not being able to ride as a family.
 

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