Do your older children nap??

[disneyatl]

My DD will be 10 and also bring her friend (also 10). In the past, the afternoon naps sure were great for the entire family. I'm sure me and my DH will want to still take a nap. Anyone had luck getting their older children to nap or at least rest?

 

[vicb]

We gave up on napping long ago as the only one who ever napped was DH!!

You might be successful in getting them to lay on the bed and watch TV for an hour to rest, or you can snooze by the pool while they swim.

 

[llp479]

No way - but then they didn't nap as babies!

They will take some time to watch TV, or play games if we return to the room in the afternoon.

 

[figment95]

My kids refuse to nap. They have always had something against sleep in any form. I make everyone lay in bed and watch, "Zip-a-dee-do-dah Tip For Today" for an hour every afternoon. Usually by the third or forth day we're there someone will actually fall asleep.

 

[laurie31]

Our children haven't haven't napped in over 2 years, but we have told them "Mickey said they have to nap if they want to stay up 'till midnight at MNSSHP." (heh heh) We also told them they didn't have to actually fall asleep, but they had to rest quietly, and could even watch tv in bed while they rested. Since we don't have tv's in our bedrooms at home, they think that is cool. I think Mickey may have that rule for kids seeing Fantasmic and Illuminations as well

Also, in case anyone has fears that we're keeping our little darlings up half the night, midnight in FL is only about 90 minutes later than their regular bedtime, thank to the time zone differences, so we think they will do fine. If they get tired sooner, we'll leave sooner.

And like the OP, it's really me and DH who will need to nap! I guess the kids will wake us up when it's time to go back to the parks - LOL

Laurie

 

[figment95]

OK, now I feel really guilty. We live in the same time zone as DW and we are usually swimming at midnight. But we don't do the parks commando and we don't wake up the kids in the mornings.

 

[ducklite]

My DS 17 will STILL nap at WDw sometimes!

We always took that issue day-to-day, but generally we've found that if mom and dad are tired enough to want a nap, DS will take one as well, although never by his own suggestion

I'd say that one day out of a week we'll all crash for a couple hours in the afternoon.

When he was ten, it was often two, sometimes even three days of the week he'd nap for me at WDW. He never would have taken a nap if we didn't ALL take one though.

Anne

 

[tazz]

Our last trip dd's both took naps with us almost every day -- they were 11 & 12. We spent all morning thru early afternoons at the parks, naps at the resport, then back to the parks. However, we're going in October and that will depend on how late the parks are open in Oct. Our 4 yr old will probably need naps most days in order to make it thru the nights--we did get a stroller for the nights just in case he refuses to nap and just can't make it as late as the rest of us.

 

[susy]

I would let them know before you go that they will get to swim for a certain amoun of time, then they must shower and lay down for an hour. There are good things to watch on tv all the time. Even if you don't "feel" tired, your immune system can be weakened and you can still develop leg cramps,etc. Being on the go constantly at WDW isn't a good idea for anyone!

 

[grinningghost]

On our last trip, DD was 11 and actually did nap one afternoon. It was raining like crazy, so we went back to the room, turned on the TV and all fell asleep for a couple hours.

Funny side note to this: I was the first to wake up, and turned on CNN. There was breaking news that there was a hostage crisis at Walt Disney World. Well, I was a little freaked out to say the least, because for several minutes, they didn't say WHERE in WDW. Turned out it was at the Boardwalk and we were in ASMu. There was some sense of relief, but at Fantasmic! that night, it was a little nervewracking having police helicopters circling around.

 

[IrisEve]

I'm 15, and when I went to WDW, I took an afternoon nap almost everyday. I think at least a rest in the middle of the day is a must because it does get tiring walking all over the place.

Maybe you should think about doing some activities in the morning, then rest, and start back up again in the late afternoon/evening. Since Disney is more busy in the afternoons, perhaps it's a good idea to rest during that time.