Family, travel, mom blog | Theme Park Mom (Leigh Caldwell)

A day at EPCOT is fun for all ages, with plenty of sights, sounds, shows and international food to sample. And while EPCOT is really known for these things over the many rides in Fantasyland, there are still a couple of “must-see” rides here for younger children.

Gran Fiesta Tour Starring The Three Caballeros: This gentle boat ride takes families through a tour of many Mexican landmarks. Riders are accompanied by a cartoon Donald Duck, who is trying to catch up with his two Spanish-speaking friends Jose Carioca and Panchito. There’s nothing to fear here, and preschoolers will delight in the indoor “fireworks” at the end of the cruise.

Journey Into Imagination with Figment: The mischievous purple dragon Figment takes over a ride-through tour of the Imagination Institute. This slow-moving ride shows children how all the senses influence imagination. A portion at the end where Figment takes you through his upside-down world uses neon colors, bright lights and loud music, which could momentarily frighten sensitive youngsters.

Living with the Land: This boat-ride shows you how food is grown in the many ecosystems on earth. The real treat is at the end of the ride, when you journey through laboratories where scientists are experimenting with new ways to grow food.

The Seas with Nemo & Friends: Ride in a clamshell under the sea, where you’ll join the hunt for the loveable clown fish Nemo. This is a gentle, ride-through attraction, and it ends with an amazing sight – many characters from Finding Nemo swimming with real fish inside a giant aqaurium.

This post is part of “Under 5 Friday,” a series of posts designed to give advice on taking children ages 5 and under to theme parks.

We moms all know that what’s enjoyable to one 3 year old is terrifying to another. While children all have their own appetite for thrills and chills, here are the “best bet” rides for children under 5 at Walt Disney World’s Magic Kingdom:

Buzz Lightyear’s Space Ranger Spin: This neon-colored ride based on the “Toy Story” movies puts you inside a video game. Use the laser cannons in your space cruisers to shoot at Zurg’s robots. Buzz Lightyear’s space cruisers spin and move quickly, but there are no “roller-coaster” moves here. The ride is immersive and has loud noises and bright colors, which may disturb children prone to over-stimulation.

Cinderella’s Golden Carousel: No theme park visit is complete without a spin on the carousel. This classic, antique version features 90 prancing horses and classic Disney music. Parents can ride standing next to their little ones, and there are benches for those desiring a calmer ride.

Dumbo the Flying Elephant: Ride inside Dumbo as he takes to the skies and circles around a circus ball. Parents can ride alongside their children on this fanciful ride, which turns in circles and rises up and down. Kids afraid of Disney’s indoor “dark rides” may find this outdoors ride more to their liking.

It’s A Small World: This classic ride is all Disney. Hundreds of dolls dressed in international costumes sing while you cruise through in a slow-moving boat. This ride represents children from more than 100 countries, with a message of the common themes that unite us all. The only thing that may cause a little family disharmony is the good chance that “It’s a Small World” could be stuck in your head for the rest of the day.

Mad Tea Party: Whirling tea cups spin around and around on this outdoor ride in Fantasyland. Even the smallest children delight in this easy-going ride, where you can control how fast your cup spins.

The Magic Carpets of Aladdin: Discover a whole new world as a magic carpet ride takes you high above Adventureland. The carpets fly up, down and around on this gently moving attraction.

The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh: Ride inside a hunny pot right into the pages of a Winnie the Pooh storybook. This is a slow-moving “dark ride” that takes you inside scenes featuring A.A. Milne’s classic characters. The “very blustery day” storm section may scare some young children.

Peter Pan’s Flight: Join Wendy Darling and Peter Pan on a flight over Big Ben, London Bridge and more sights of nighttime in London. This is another of Disney’s indoor, slow-moving “dark rides.” Be sure to get a Fastpass, because this is one of the most popular rides in the park.

Tomorrowland Transit Authority: This ride is essentially an elevated train that takes you in and out of the attractions in Tomorrowland. Little ones who are intrigued by Space Mountain, but still too small to ride, will appreciate the dark glimpse inside Walt Disney World’s famous rollercoaster.

Disney is calling 2010 the “Year to Volunteer,” and Disney Parks is rewarding those who serve with free Disney tickets.

This campaign is a big boon for families, because it allows all members of the family to go to Walt Disney World or Disneyland for free on the same day. This differs from the birthday campaign last year, where only the birthday boy or girl got in free.

Disney has teamed up with the HandsOn Network for this promotion. I have worked with the Hands-On Network to volunteer in the past, and I love it. It’s an easy way to become involved in your community and to “sample” different types of community service organizations before committing to volunteer long-term for one.

Here’s how the “Give a Day, Get a Disney Day” campaign works:

1. Sign up for a volunteer opportunity online. Opportunities are offered in communities throughout the United States and Canada. You must sign up for an approved opportunity through this site. There is no alternate way to document volunteer hours.
2. Complete your volunteer service and do some good in your community!
3. The volunteer organization will verify your service and you’ll get an e-mail from Disney with a voucher.
4. Redeem your voucher for a 1-day, 1-park ticket and have some fun!

Some tips about using Disney’s “Give a Day, Get a Disney Day” program for a free ticket:

• Kids ages 6 and up can participate. Be sure to look at the minimum age required for the different volunteer opportunities. When browsing the opportunities in my area, I found several that my 6-year-old daughter would enjoy, including visiting with nursing home residents and making crafts and cards for shut-in seniors.
• You must own a residence in the United States or Canada to be eligible, but you do not have to be a U.S. citizen. Citizens of other countries who own vacation homes here can sign up for volunteer service while they are in the United States and take advantage of this program.
• The Web site lists volunteer activities for the next 60 days. There are new ones being added all the time, so if you don’t see something that interests you now, check back later.
• Disney says that the Hands On Network reaches 83 percent of the U.S. population. I have searched some rural areas and found that the closest opportunities were sometimes 50-100 miles away. If you live in a rural area, remember that you can search and sign up for opportunities anywhere. Perhaps you could combine your volunteer service with a family trip you already have planned.
• You will need a driver’s license, government-issued photo ID or passport to redeem your voucher at the ticket window. Children under 18 who don’t have one of these will need a copy of their birth certificate.
• If you have a multi-day ticket or annual pass, you can use your voucher for a FASTPASS special exchange card or a special ear hat figurine with trading pins. Or you can choose to donate your free ticket to a non-profit organization.
• There are blackout dates for this promotion. You cannot use your voucher to get a free ticket March 29-April 8 or July 4 at Walt Disney World. At Disneyland, the blackout dates are Feb. 13-14, March 21, June 21-22, July 4, Nov. 21 and Dec. 11-12.
• This Give a Day, Get a Disney Day promotion ends on Dec. 15, 2009. You must use your ticket voucher by this date.

Here’s one of Disney’s TV ads about the new program. It features some folks I love, the Muppets. And Taye Diggs isn’t so bad to look at either.

When I was a kid, my family generally traveled to Florida with a babysitter. There were three of us kids, and more often than not, we traveled with another family that had a kid or two. So, my parents would invite one of our regular teenage babysitters from my hometown to come with us.

The adults golfed and went out to dinner without any worry about who was watching the kids, and the moms got a break.

Fast-forward to my adult life. After becoming a mom, I quickly realized that vacationing still required a lot of work from me. We went on a couple of trips that I would classify as anything but relaxing.

And that’s why I recommend at least one night out for mom and dad during a Central Florida vacation. But who’s going to watch the kids? If you can’t bring a babysitter with you, you have two options: A resort childcare center or an in-room babysitter.

Resort Childcare Centers

A handful of Walt Disney World resorts have childcare centers. They include the Neverland Club at the Polynesian Resort, Cub’s Den at Wilderness Lodge, Sandcastle Club at the Yacht and Beach Club and Simba’s Clubhouse at the Animal Kingdom Lodge. While some of the details vary, these centers are generally open from 4 p.m. or so until midnight. They are for children ages 4 to 12, who must be completely potty-trained (no pull-ups allowed). They serve a kid-friendly dinner and children play games, do crafts and watch movies. There are often video game systems available as well.

The current cost is $11 per hour. It depends on the resort, but, in general, you do not have to be staying at that resort to use the children’s activity center there. For example, you and your husband could plan a quiet dinner at Artist Point and drop off your children at the Cub’s Den while you dine, even if you are staying at Pop Century.

My daughter’s personal favorite childcare center is Camp Dolphin at the Walt Disney World Swan and Dolphin Resort. She loves spending evenings there and actually asks when she can go back. And she is enthralled with Miss Thelma, a longtime employee of Camp Dolphin. Camp Dolphin is $10 per hour. One big benefit of using Camp Dolphin is that if you dine at Todd English’s bluezoo, Shula’s Steak House or Il Mulino (all wonderful restaurants at the Swan and Dolphin) OR if you get a spa service at the Mandara Spa, you get two hours of childcare for free. That can really help cut the cost of your date night.

In-Room Babysitting

If your children are too young or you are planning to stay out later than midnight, in-room babysitting may be your best option. There are several services available in the Orlando area, and most hotels have a particular one that they recommend, so check with the concierge at your resort.

While I have not used in-room babysitting, Kid’s Nite Out is the most recommended service. In fact, Kid’s Nite Out is the only service recommended by Walt Disney World, and you know Disney has vetted it very carefully before recommending them.

In general, in-room nannies will come to your room at any time during the day or evening. They will watch your children and keep them entertained, feeding them only as you have authorized and taking them outside the room only if you tell them to. (You can hire nannies to take your children into the parks, etc., if you are comfortable with that.) The employees are screened thoroughly and are required to have first aid and CPR training. Many of the nannies bring toys, games or movies to play with your children.

In-room nannies also allow you to ensure that your children are in bed at a particular time, and the cost can be cheaper than the children’s activities centers if you have multiple children, so be sure to run that comparison.

If you’re looking for a place to go on a date night in Central Florida, my husband and I recently enjoyed a great night out in downtown Celebration, including dinner at the Columbia Restaurant. I wrote about it during my guest-blogging stint at i.seekissimmee.com.