Also try to get reservations ahead of time at any of the restaurants that catch your interest or be prepared to wait hours.

I love the Rainforest Cafe and Disney Marketplace.

The Disney Marketplace can be a lot of fun for kids, too. Besides the Lego store and Princess experience (dress up with pictures), there’s the Rainforest Cafe, a train to ride and a lovely carousel. Don’t miss ice cream sundaes at the Ghiradelli shop!

I have to agree with Jewell and her stay on Disney property idea!! It is super convenient to be able to hop on the Monorail and be “wherever!” in a matter of minutes.

I stayed at the Grand Floridian once and it rocked!!!

I absolutely adore the place, and would have been there for a fifth time for my 20th wedding anniversary if funding hadn’t fallen through.

Okay, Ang, first thing is that Bri will be way interested in the Magic Kingdom. At her age, Epcot and such may not hold enough to keep her attention all day long. Meaning that while you might want to visit the other parks there for a half day, you want to stay close to your main interest.

That being said. Stay at a hotel on Disney property. My pick for you would be the Contemporary Resort. Yes, it is a hair more pricey than some of the other newer kid style hotels elsewhere on the propety, (maybe way more pricey) but the truth of the matter is that the monorail runs through that hotel and you can be in the Magic Kingdom in nothing flat.

Meaning, mid day you can hop a monorail and have miss sweeting down for a nap quick as can be. Plus, that monorail connects to the one to Epcot, and the same spot where buses are available to go everywhere.

Also, on the lagoon that hotel sits on, they have a water “parade” at night, full of lights and such. Very pretty, and wonderful to watch when you just can’t run any more. OH, and from the beach, you can see the fireworks at Magic Kingdom. Verra spectacular.

Gurgle, you have me all Disney World now. LOL

PS. If on Disney property, park your car and never use it again. Too much hassle.

It’s been a ridiculous number of years since I’ve been to Disney World, but my husband just went this last winter for a convention. The bum!

Everyone I know says that you should stay at the Disney hotels. It gives you a ton of benefits, but don’t stay in the Safari hotel. That’s where my DH stayed, and he was unimpressed to say the least. I’ve heard great things about the New Orleans themed one, but I don’t know how much it is geared toward the little ones. If she’s anything like my little guy, if it has a pool she’ll be on top of the world, and I’ll bet they’ve all got pools.

Now I heard this second hand, so I can’t vouch for its accuracy, but someone my Mom knows just got back from Disney World and said that the cokes for 18 bucks!!! Then 5 bucks to refill through the course of the day. Surely that was some kind of special souvenir cup or something but still!

We’re planning on taking our little guy Christmas after next right after he turns four, so I’ll be waiting with bated breath to see how it goes for you guys.

This September we’re taking our first trip to Europe since our son was born to visit the in-laws. That’s about an 8 hour flight… *insert silent scream here*

You’ve gotten some great advice here. I’d add that the Unofficial Guide was a great help for Disneyland, and I hear the WDW version is ten times better, so spring for that one.

The height restrictions are a great first step for choosing which rides are good for Brianna, but they’re really just a start. We took the youngest on Space Mountain as the first ride after Nemo, and knew that the reaction to that would determine whether we went on all the rides together, or did the baby swap. Luckily, it was a hit, so we knew we were good to go.

Baby swap, by the way, is very cool and a great help for parents of young kids. We used it a LOT our first trip, when said youngest wasn’t quite two. On rides where Brianna is too short/young/intelligent to participate, one parent stands in line for the ride. Tell the first attendant that you’re doing a baby swap. He/she will give you a pass for the second parent. Once first parent is off the ride, second parent can go right to the front of the line (sometimes through the exit doors). That way, you don’t have to stand in line twice just so both of you can do the ride.

Oh, and FastPass. Get FastPasses whenever possible.

I’ll be working on my article for the local paper in the next couple of weeks. I’ll e-mail you a copy as soon as I’m done.

And have a great time!

And, they have a dd your dd ‘s age, irrc.

Allears.net is another great site. There is an “Anita Answer” q and a spot which is chock full of good info.

Also reviews of restaurants, ride closings for rehab, special events, etc.

A new event your dd might like is the princess tea. she dresses up like her favorite princess and has tea with the disney princesses. If she’s not into princesses..and my dd never was..a character breakfast or character meal is a great idea. You meet the characters in a fun way..lots of interaction and a pretty decent buffet!

If it’s hot…there’s a neat jumping water fountain that kids love to run and aplash in…just bring dry clothes!

Have fun

1. Be prepared to walk….and walk….and walk…..and stand in line.

2. You’ll think you won’t want a locker, but towards the end of the day, you’ll wish you had one. Someplace to dump all the stuff–extra clothes, baby wipes, etc.

3. A stroller is great for when the three year collapses for a well needed nap. There’s usually no where for the poor kid to crash.

4. And don’t just double that budget for food. Triple it. Food, water, everything is expensive. To eat decent food, WAY expensive. The junk is expensive too.

5. Enjoy it. Even if (and I totally did) you get a wee bit cranky by the seventh hour of over stimulation, noise and crowds. It is SO worth it when they’re singing “It’s a small world after all…..” for months afterwards.

If you buy stuff, most shops will send it to your hotel so you don’t have to carry much.

Get a Disney guidebook, they are worth every penny.

Another website to check is http://www.mousesavers.com/, it gives advice and discounts.