Any suggestions on things we can do with our 2 yr old? We are going 1st week of May, so there will be no Fantasmic show. We are doing a character breakfast one morning... Can anyone give us some insight on special things to do that are out of the normal ride the rides mentality? Any secret locations or hidden/off the path things that the general public does not know about?

Any suggestions on things we can do with our 2 yr old? We are going 1st week of May, so there will be no Fantasmic show. We are doing a character breakfast one morning... Can anyone give us some insight on special things to do that are out of the normal ride the rides mentality? Any secret locations or hidden/off the path things that the general public does not know about?
ToonTown! Ride the trains. Ride all the various cars up and down Main St and see if your son can ring the bell on the fire engine or sit with the driver for the horse drawn carriage.

Have you checked out the info at Disney's Magical Beginnings?

http://disneyland.disney.go.com/disneyland/en_US/experience/overview?name=FamiliesWithToddlersLandingPage

Fantasyland is your friend. Also the train and monorail. If you are also headed to DCA, check out Turtle Talk and Flik's Fu Fair.

Consider doing fun things that are not necessarily rides, to keep your toddler from being too excited, such as visiting fountains in the park, or the quieter courtyards in New Orleans Sq.

We have our toddler/preschoolers take an afternoon nap, then hit the hotel pool for a bit, so we can see late afternoon/eveining parades.

Although it seems obvious take your little one to the wishing well to hear snow white sing. My little guy loved it when we first took him at 18 months and every trip since he tells me "mommy, don't forget we need to wish!"

If it's warm and you are over in DCA have your little one run and play in the Princess Puddle Park area. Water squirts all over the place and kids love to run through it. Also, go into the Animation building and just look at the giant screens that surround you, especially if you're there during the week, your little one can sit and watch to their heart's content.

Also don't forget the shows for the little ones, the Tiki room is always a hit, but prepare him/her for the thunder at the end. If you do go be sure to catch the pre-show with the gods and godesses in the enchanted garden and get a dole whip or tiki juice (pineapple juice).

Go get a silouette (sp?) done (on Main Street) of your little one, it takes just a second, but I treasure mine. While on Main Street, check on the cinema. It's usually quiet and they show old Mickey Mouse black and white cartoons. Plus it's air conditioned. We've hung out there on rainy afternoons too and it's a perfect hideaway.

Also, even if your little one is potty trained, go to the baby center when convenient for potty breaks since they have tiny little toilets for the little ones to use. It's really serene and quiet in there and my DS really did well going in there.

Enjoy!

My toddler really enjoys the Redwood Creek Challenge Trail over at DCA. It's a great place for kids to run, climb, and crawl in a clean, safe environment. Some beautiful spots for parents to relax as well...

At Disneyland, Toontown is a must-do for your little one (a lot of interactive amusements without lines), and Goofy's small play-yard area is another good place to burn off steam.

I've found areas like these to be some of my toddler's favorites--plenty of room to run & roam, lots to see and discover, and no time waiting in line.

Have a blast!

We just got back from our Disneyland trip with my 2 1/2 year old daughter. She loved meeting the characters... granted my niece who is a year older was scared to death of them, so I guess it just depends on the child. Our best investment was the Princess Lunch.

On our first day, she was pretty overwhelmed. She actually enjoyed eating at the Hungry Bear restaurant where there were ducks swimming in the lake below. We didn't take her to see the turkeys, but she may have enjoyed that too.

She also liked the animation lobby area in DCA. There are many movie screens that play various Disney animation movies. She stayed there the entire time the rest of our party watched Turtle Talk.

The last thing I would suggest is making time for the parades/shows. She definitely enjoyed all the music, singing and dancing. She especially loved the Aladdin show, Parade of Dreams, Fireworks and Fantasmic. We didn't catch the block party parade or Playhouse Disney, but I hear those are good too.

Good Luck!

She also liked the animation lobby area in DCA. There are many movie screens that play various Disney animation movies. She stayed there the entire time the rest of our party watched Turtle Talk.

LOL! When we went last week for my b-day, DD (20 months) ploped herself down on the floor in the middle of the Animation Lobby and just kept watching the screens! It's the calmest, most calculated thing she has ever done. Funny thing is that it was the first time she was in that building awake! She loves Turtle Talk a lot and I love that I can let her walk around in the "Human Tank" during the show and no one notices!

Mickey's House is a fave for both my kids. They spent the longest time watching his gloves aggitate in the washing machine! Both my kids love trains, so getting them on the DLRR is never a fight. I can't wait for the warm weather to visit the Princess Puddle Park, I know they will enjoy that! Tiki Room, Aladdin and Jasmine's StoryTales, the Jungle Cruise, Billy Hill and the Hillbillies, are usually on our "must do" list every time we're in the park!

Liz :cool:

Liz, love your tag line!

My 2 y.o. daughter loves astro blasters- give her a laser gun and enjoy the ride! We even bought the toy laser gun to keep her busy other places. She loved Billy Hill! And Pirates- but she loves scary stuff.
and if you go to playhouse disney, grab a peice of floor near the back. Then if your kid is needing to burn off some energy they have room.
While in Cal Adventure my daughter discovered the steam ( fake exhaust) from outside the Soarin' over california building. Kept her busy the entire time we waited for her daddy to ride the ride.

My BEST tip: go get a backpack/tether from Target for your kid so they can walk with out running away. 2 is the hardest age for a kid to sit thru ANYTHING at disneyland!

My 2 1/2 year old loved the Playhouse Disney show. I'll have to take her into the Animation thingy when we go on Sunday. The Toontown play area was also a big hit -- it allowed her to run & jump & play a little without being told "no."

We got a backpack tether thing in the form of a monkey (she calls it her "Monkey George" -- looks a lot like Curious George) from WalMart -- the tail has a loop on the end for the parent to hold. It's adorable & she doesn't mind wearing it at all. It gives her a couple of feet of wander room & we don't have to worry about her running away. No way I'd try DLR with her without something like that (she's an energetic little thing).

We got a backpack tether thing in the form of a monkey (she calls it her "Monkey George" -- looks a lot like Curious George) from WalMart -- the tail has a loop on the end for the parent to hold. It's adorable & she doesn't mind wearing it at all. It gives her a couple of feet of wander room & we don't have to worry about her running away. No way I'd try DLR with her without something like that (she's an energetic little thing).

That is exactly the one i mean. We got a puppy one, and my daughter loves it. She named it Ruff Ruff Ruff, and we put some coins in the pocket to make her feel big.

That is exactly the one i mean. We got a puppy one, and my daughter loves it. She named it Ruff Ruff Ruff, and we put some coins in the pocket to make her feel big.

How cute! Ours sleeps in her Monkey George backpack sometimes. She is very proud of the fact that she can buckle the straps all by herself. Luckily, she can't un-buckle them yet. :rolleyes:

I have to second the backpack/tether!!! Our 2 year old has the teddy bear and she always asks to wear her teddy bear. It is a huge help in the park with keeping her from ducking ropes and vanishing! I know they sell them at Target!

Both the Aladdin things...the Oasis in DL and the show in DCA.

Visit the characters. My parents were never into waiting in line just for a hug and pic. My 4 y/o lived for it. (I joke that we drove 6 hours to play in the sprinklers and get autographs. And find the "I changed my mind" exit on half the rides. It was still worth it!)

We took our son for the first time last year - he was almost two at the time. He LOVED every minute of it! We just watched our video from DLR yesterday in preparation for another trip in June. He wants to to Disneyland NOW! :) Time is a hard thing to explain to little ones . . .

Anyway, I think his favorites at Disneyland were "It's a Small World", Mickey's Toon Town - all of it!, riding on the steam train, the Winnie the Pooh ride and meeting characters (He LOVES them!)

At DCA, he enjoyed the Playhouse Disney show a lot since he's really into those shows. Unfortunatly, it's going to be closed for referbishment while we're there this time. I went on Monsters Inc. while he was asleep, and I think he would have LOVED that one too. He really enjoyed the Block Party Bash - fun music and lots of dancing, not to mention his favorite Pixar characters on parade! DCA is nice the second half of the day with small ones since there isn't as much for them to do there and you can relax a bit, have dinner and wait for the Electric Light Parade - very fun too. The Bugs Land is great for little ones and really geared toward them!

If you get a chance and your two-year-old enjoys the characters, do a character dining experience. The one-on-one time is fabulous!! We got lots of photos and autographs . . .

And that's another thing - the first thing we did when we got into the park was buy an autograph book with the photo slots on the opposite page. I brought one of those clickable Sharpies with me and let our son take that up to the characters to get autographs. It was kind of a good ice-breaker between him and the character and then he posed for a photo after. So now, each autograph has a photo and we look at that book and talk about all his memories.

He can't wait to get to Disneyland again. This time, he'll be almost three and thinks he wants to go on Pirates . . . we'll see about that! I little bit darker and scary than most of the rides he did last year. Who knows?? But, the number one thing he must do is see Donald. Gotta see Donald. ;)

Hope you have a blast with your little one! Disneyland was better than ever with a child!!!! Just go at their pace and don't stress about seeing everything. They'll want to go again, I promise! ;)