1 year old and sleeping at Disney??

[BraveLittleToaster2]

We are taking a trip when our youngest will be a little over a year. My worry is...will he sleep in the pack n play? He only will nap in his crib at home and never sleeps anywhere else except sometimes the car. Should I plan on ordering a real crib?

What were your experiences? I just want to make sure he sleeps good.

Also, I'm assuming he will still be on 2 naps a day. So should I only go back to the room for one nap and let him fall asleep in a ride or stroller for the other???

Thanks for any help. I'm a type A planner and this is making me nuts!!

 

[quakechicago]

We travel a lot. Not just for Disney. We have family all over the country and have been traveling since kiddo was an infant.

Stroller naps for sure. Expect more naps because it's sensory overload! My nearly 3 year old who NEVER naps unless ill took at least 2 in the stroller a day and one in the room too. She'd be in the stroller singing a Disney song from pure joy and then just suddenly stop..... and I'd look down. Oops. Asleep again. And normally, she only ever sleeps in a bed!

My kiddo never slept well in a crib and we cosleep (she has reflux). We just kept cosleeping on our trips. For us that's what works, but I knew she would be fine keeping things as close as we do at home as far as sleeping arrangements.

You might want to try a packnplay at home so there's no transition otherwise, if your kiddo is used to a crib, you might want to keep that the same.

You'll be fine. I know as I'm a planner too how hard it is, but no worries, you got this.

 

[teachmedis]

We are taking a trip when our youngest will be a little over a year. My worry is...will he sleep in the pack n play? He only will nap in his crib at home and never sleeps anywhere else except sometimes the car. Should I plan on ordering a real crib?

What were your experiences? I just want to make sure he sleeps good.

Also, I'm assuming he will still be on 2 naps a day. So should I only go back to the room for one nap and let him fall asleep in a ride or stroller for the other???

Thanks for any help. I'm a type A planner and this is making me nuts!!

Hi! We are actually planning our first trip and my youngest ds will be 18 months. From experiences with my older son I have found that they need as much "home" comfort as possible. So if your guy is the best in a crib then I'd have one ready. However, I have found that my little guy has trouble away from mommy on trips so he usually ends up in bed with me even though he always sleeps on his own at home. I would only plan on one nap at the resort and the other he can do in his stroller.

 

[cnkkohout]

We are hoping our little one sleeps well also. We are going to do some pre trip training i think

 

[Happyjen27]

Pack n plays should seem just like a crib to a 1 year old.

I say go forth with confidence, and don't let them weasel out of it the first night, and it should be smooth sailing.

I would plan on one pack n play nap a day. I also had crib sleepers, and we did one pack n play nap a day when we were on the road. Which was rare, because I didn't travel much when they were young.

I would try to get the morning nap done in a stroller, if possible, since morning naps are traditionally the easiest, then do the afternoon nap in the room.

 

[amyren]

We travel a bit, when DS was still taking 2 naps a day we would let him nap in his stroller in the morning then head to the room for his afternoon nap. Now that he's a little older we all go to the room in the afternoon for some downtime / nap. Even DD6 will crash for an hour or so.
Does your little one have a blankie, or lovie? My 2 kids were both sleep trained with a noise machine & their special blankie. It makes hotel or airplane sleeping much easier for us! Of course this totally backfired on us when DS lost his blankie on our last trip!!!
Also it wouldn't hurt to request a full size crib. The resort may tell you that the only thing available is a pack n play but I remember having a full size crib once at Poly (of course it's been about 6 years) and one at WL in Oct 2013.

 

[Betty Rohrer]

how good is your little one at going back to sleep after falling asleep in car on way home? unless you can walk from park to resort you are going to have a ride on transportation to put child to sleep. had 16 month old grandson fell asleep and would not go back to sleep, he screamed until we finally headed to dinner ressie when he fell asleep and slept thru dinner. for us going back to room did not work even with him being a crib napper at home he only did stroller naps at Disney. just be prepared to things to be different while on vacation

 

[Ava]

Our younger DD will be 16 months on our trip next month, and she's also not that great at sleeping outside of her crib. She's gotten a bit better this summer though, as we've done a fair amount of traveling so some days she's only gotten to nap in the car or in her carrier. (She still won't fall asleep in the stroller, and we've been trying. I think because she's a tummy sleeper and in the stroller she's stuck on her back.) She does fine in a pack-n-play though, as that's what she sleeps in when we travel. I'd see if you can borrow one to try at home before your trip, just so it's not completely foreign to him.

Our touring plan most days is to be in the park early, then go back to the hotel for a break after lunch so the baby can nap. We'll see how it goes. If she falls asleep in the stroller or carrier, and we're not planning a late night that night, we might scrap the break and just leave the park in the late afternoon/early evening.

With a child that age, you have to just go with the flow a little bit. On our last trip our older DD, who had just turned 2 and NEVER slept in a stroller, conked out in the middle of the morning our first day at MK. She stayed asleep the whole time me & my MIL were in line for/riding Splash, which was at least an hour. So you never know what they're going to do!

 

[scrapquitler]

We are taking a trip when our youngest will be a little over a year. My worry is...will he sleep in the pack n play? He only will nap in his crib at home and never sleeps anywhere else except sometimes the car. Should I plan on ordering a real crib?

What were your experiences? I just want to make sure he sleeps good.

Also, I'm assuming he will still be on 2 naps a day. So should I only go back to the room for one nap and let him fall asleep in a ride or stroller for the other???

Thanks for any help. I'm a type A planner and this is making me nuts!!

I would work on getting him used to sleeping in a pack and play.

I can't imagine taking all the time to travel back to the resort for TWO naps a day, unless you are in a monorail resort, you need to assume travel time of 45-1hour each way between the resort/park...that would take up a ridiculous amount of park time. Definitely go for the stroller naps (or in a sling)

 

[jacknsally19]

So my DD only slept in a crib at home but was fine sleeping in pack n plays whenever we travelled. However, I found that she needed an extra mattress to sleep soundly in the packnplay. The only reason I found this out was because my MIL just bought an extra mattress and stuck it in her pack n play. She slept soundly at my MIL's in the pack n play but horribly everywhere else! So I purchased one off amazon for less than $20 and just bring it with me. Its kind of bulky but it has made sleeping so much easier. If you don't think you would use it again - you could ship it straight to the resort and then leave it behind. I'm sure its less than the cost of renting a crib for the week. I will also warn you that by the time my DD turned one - she could climb in and out of the pack n'play. It didn't bother me because I was right there but if that is something that would concern you - you may want to consider a crib.

 

[owensamo]

I agree with scrapquitler - if you have a year, you have time to start practicing!

Our DD's first trip was to Hilton Head at 8 weeks - she wouldn't fall asleep unless we held her or rocked her in her carrier at the time (though she did end up napping in her stroller a few times). It was awful! After that, since we love to travel, we made sure she had pack-n-play naps at grandma's and her cousin's house - and sometimes at home.

By the time she was just over a year old she was sleeping in pack-n-plays and her crib just fine, and her afternoon nap was usually in her stroller in the parks - we'd walk around until she fell asleep, then find a quiet, cool place to sit and chat and relax for a couple hours - perfect mid-day respite for all of us!

You could start by trying to do one nap a day in the pack-n-play and get him used to it - I imagine once he's used to it for that, he'll be fine whenever. For stroller naps, just go for walks at a mall or outside near naptime - there's some extra sensory excitement but eventually they learn to just fall asleep. Given everything going on at WDW, the extra stimulation is worth getting used to!

Good luck! I'm sure you'll find the right solution for your family - fortunately you have time to figure it out!

 

[megamom123]

Are pack n plays always available? I have stayed other places that had them for first come first serve.

 

[Lupeix]

I would try to get him used to napping in the stroller ahead of time by taking long walks at one of his usual napping times.
Take a good napping stroller he is used to nap in with you as well as any comfort items such as blankie and paci so he can fall asleep whenever he needs to while in the park.

We went last year when DS was 2 1/2 and we had a crib. Although DS was napping like a champion at home he refused to nap at WDW in the crib the only day we went back for a nap, he just napped in the stroller 1 or 2 times a day.

At night, try to see if you can get him used to a pack and play beforehand. The cribs your rent are truly not that different from a pack and play, so I wish I didn't spend the money. I am sure DS would have slept anywhere because he was exhausted from all the stimulation

we rented this one FYI:
https://www.kingdomstrollers.com/SelectDate.aspx?ProductID=7

 

[OnThisMagicNight]

I second the suggestion to get a pack 'n play mattress. I really think this makes all the difference. We travel with this one: http://www.mamadookids.com/products/foldable-play-yard-mattress-topper/. You can request a full size crib at some of the resorts, but just be aware they aren't really 'full size'. We requested one at the Contemporary and the mattress was the same exact size as the pack 'n play mattress. The only difference was the rails were metal and higher. We ended up sticking with the pack 'n play and sending the crib back. If you really feel your little one won't sleep though, I would splurge and rent a crib (sleep at night is important!) I think the mattress would solve the problem though...those pack 'n plays are really uncomfortable otherwise! Our DS was a little older (2) and down to 1 nap a day, but we did return to the resort every afternoon and he napped for 2-3 hrs each day. We made sure not to cut it too close when we were traveling back, to avoid having him fall asleep on the bus/monorail. I can see how going back for 2 naps might be tricky though. I like the other suggestions of trying to do the first nap in the stroller and then back to the resort for the 2nd nap.

 

[kohlby]

By a year, all three of my kids were down to one nap a day, but that doesn't mean that's what all kids do! One child had a trip at 11 months. We went back to the room once and he wouldn't nap! So, we learned it was best to just let him fall asleep whenever, where ever. He refused to sleep in the stroller (or even sit in the stroller), so he would fall asleep in the sling - but not until around 6pm at night. He did well though. His nap time was a bit messed up, but he was used to sometimes having to sleep where ever whenever, being our third child. I have no advice about the crib, as I co-slept at home so I did the same on vacation.

 

[smiths02]

We are taking a trip when our youngest will be a little over a year. My worry is...will he sleep in the pack n play? He only will nap in his crib at home and never sleeps anywhere else except sometimes the car. Should I plan on ordering a real crib?

What were your experiences? I just want to make sure he sleeps good.

Also, I'm assuming he will still be on 2 naps a day. So should I only go back to the room for one nap and let him fall asleep in a ride or stroller for the other???

Thanks for any help. I'm a type A planner and this is making me nuts!!

My twins are almost two, and we only do cribs at home (at daycare they started transitioning to mats for nap around age 1). Anyhow, we have pack n plays at grandma and grandpa's house. We only visit there every couple of months. At first, they don't like them, but they adjust. Honestly, I don't think they would like it better if they had cribs, they are just in a strange room.

I would go with the pack n play but maybe bring a pack n play sheet that your son or you has slept with before, so it smells right.


We also transitioned to one nap by age one (maybe a little before). But I would only take one break and hope the other nap happens in the stroller (my babies sleep better when I wear them in an Ergo though)

 

[Feberin]

I would just try to get them used to the pack and play. They might have issues sleeping away from home regardless of it being a crib or pack and play and renting one just to find that out seems like a lot of extra trouble.

My daughter never really took two naps but after one day where we tried it we didn't go back to the room at all. We found she slept well enough in the stroller or carrier and that gave us a chance to do things like shows (well if she was in the carrier) that we wouldn't have been able to do easily with her awake. Plus it took us so much time to get back to the room it just seemed easier to stay in the parks all day.

 

[d3gauss]

I am worried about my DS, he sleeps in his crib at home...but any time we travel with him he doesn't sleep well, always ends up in the bed. He also tends to refuse naps, so if he would nap that would be great.

DD will be much easier she will sleep anywhere you put her.

 

[JoeyEmmaMomma]

Do you use a baby carrier like an Ergo or Tula? Those are great for naps on the go.

 

[monorailsilver]

My oldest was 15 months on her first visit (ms he is now 13). She was taking. 2 naps a day just the day before our trip and I figured when we got to Disney I'd cut her down to one nap as she was staying up til 10 with those 2 naps.

She did great! We were out by 7:30. It's mornings if not a hair earlier if we needed to get the bus vs monorail. Then we'd go back for our mid day break and she'd nap and my dh and I would take turns leaving-laundry, drink refills, he played video games. She'd probably sleep 4 hours during that nap in the a/c.

I never heard a crabby moans cry from her that whole trip, even when we were put til after 10. I'd see kids in strollers crying and there was my kid well rested and happy as a clam.

We did plan a day or two that trip of no parks just because!

She has napped on all the trips we took, it's a priority! Even last summer when she was 12 she napped as did my then 9 yo and my then 7 yo and even the then 45 yo and this 41 yo. Waking up early and being on the go all day til after 10 makes us tired and crabby so the naps were vital.

Oh and we also stay at the Poly and our primary parks we go to are the MK band Epcot so both are just a monorail ride away. We only do AK one am and DHS one am.

Edited to add, she like all my kids and us adults were so tired that we just fell asleep. I could remember coming back one night even after naps and I made sure all the PJs were out and ready before we left for evening park hours, anyways, they changed and went into bed and we had the TV on and my dh and I were talking and they were passed out! It's a great vacation of you want your kids to sleep soundly.