UK First Timer Arriving on 4th August

I hope you have a wonderful time. Tell us about your plans. Where are you staying? Do you have any reservations? Sun screen will be a must. I also suggest having a ziplock bag with a wash cloth from your hotel in it. It can provide a quick refresh in the florida heat. The waterproof bags are also handy for sensitive items like phones and cameras. I always travel with Imodium and pepto. I haven't needed it in years but many people we travel with seem to need it and we are glad we have it. I also suggest some type is aspirin. A few miles of walking and those aspirin can help.

Can't wait to hear more about your trip. Sunscreen is a definite must as are the water proof bags for cell phones and camera in case you do any water rides (which coming in August, I'm sure you'll do to keep cool). Another tip for traveling with a 5 year old is don't be afraid to head back to the hotel for a break in the afternoon. My nephew was 5 when we went, and he needed a little break once and a while. He loved the pool at the hotel.

Welcome! In addition to the other good suggestions, I recommend a poncho in case of rain. If you do not have them already, they can be purchased in the parks. However, you can save yourself a few dollars, and maybe even get a more durable poncho, if you bring them along. You will most likely need them at least once on your trip - it is Florida.

Hi!! Welcome!! Is this your first trip to the US or just first trip to WDW? You've received a lot of really good suggestions. I recommend bringing a refillable water bottle. It's going to be HOT and HUMID and you're going to want to stay hydrated. Refilling a water bottle will allow you to fill up from water fountains for free as opposed to buying bottles of water. If you prefer flavored water, you can bring (or buy once here) some of those crystal light or kool aid single serve packets to flavor your water. A poncho is a MUST and throw a trash bag into your pack so that you can put packages or anything else in it if you get caught in a down pour. Extra camera batteries, phone/camera chargers, and for you, a voltage converter and an adapter to fit our electrical outlets. I recommend even carrying it w/you in the parks so you can charge on the go.

As far as which park comes first your likely to get as many answers as responses. As your traveling with a small child one school of thought is save the magic kingdom for last so it is the icing on any trip. Your going to be the best gave as to how your party is going to feel about the order of visits. In our household we need to hit the kingdom walking down main st to start our trip and all our cares from home just wash away. But that's us.

My advice on which park first is Magic Kingdom. While I think all the parks have their own merits, MK is what people think of when they think of Disney and I really think it's the park where a small child will have the most fun. I suggest Typhoon Lagoon for the water park, but you can't go wrong either way. I remember TL b/c we snorkled w/the fish (probably not for a small child, but maybe for you!).

Hi and

I'm from the UK as well so my first tip is to make sure you have completed your ESTA. Then bring your patience! Assuming you are flying into Orlando Int airport, there could be very long queues to get through immigration which isn't much fun for anyone, particularly children, after a 9 1/2 hour flight! Having said that, last time we went straight through with no waiting, cos we were sitting at the front of the plane so we were the first people off in economy class.

As to which park to visit first, i would look at a crowd calendar ( eg www.easywdw.com) and pick the recommended park for that day.

Have fun!

I'd say do the Magic Kingdom first! Its the true spirit of Disney and the park your little one will probably like most. For me, a trip to Disney isn't official until I hit the Magic Kingdom!

Hello and Welcome, Bilgybabe!

You're in for a really fun, but humid trip!

I have a fan mister that I bring with us to the parks that helps when we're waiting in line and there's no real breeze to speak of. Your son may or may not be interesting in having his photo made with the characters, so I'd suggest an autograph book and a Sharpie marker so the characters can sign his book while he's interacting with him.

Don't forget to ask for your "1st Visit" pins to wear on your shirts. You guys will get lots of extra special attention that way!

And I am seconding everyone's suggestion that you hit Magic Kingdom first...that's Disney for kids at its best!

I would consider bringing multiple pairs of swim trunks for your son, so he can wear those & a tshirt to the parks. The parks have water features (basically fountains of water that come out of the ground) that kids can run through/play in. If he's wearing his swim trunks & a tshirt you can just take his shirt off & let him loose to play in the water. If you're going to do that I would bring an extra pair of swim trunks or shorts & tshirt & a ziploc bag in to the parks with you so you have something dry to change him in to & something to put the wet clothes in so they wont get everything in your bag wet. Some sort of lipbalm/chapstick that has an spf in it & be sure to use it liberally & often. I was just there in January & my lips got a bit sunburned because what I was using didn't have spf in it. Let me tell you; sunburned lips are not pleasant. Oh & be sure to pack your sense humor & patience as I'm sure you'll find need of both during your trip.

Bilgybabe. There is nothing that I can add as far as what to do or bring. But I will say have a super time and remember you won't be able to see it all at one time. Take your time and just enjoy your time there. Disney will always be there.

You're already getting amazing advice, but I just wanted to pop in and say Welcome to the Forums! Sounds like you're going to have an amazing trip!

Hi and To expand on JMUDukz advice about the water bottles, I suggest bringing a water bottle with a built in filter. We brought these Bobble Water Bottles on our last trip and found them so useful (got rid of some of the questionable taste in the water from the fountains) and I'm sure they saved us a ton on buying water in the parks. Plus you can get ice to add to them to keep them cool from any of the counter service restaurants.

You can get them at the guest services counter

You can usually get them at any resort when you check in. You can also get them in front of City Hall at the Magic Kingdom, there is a cart outside and a CM there to assist you with what you need. Also at any Guest services counter like Allie said, in EPCOT go to the left of Spaceship Earth and guest services is just past it on the left. In Animal Kingdom its on the left before you go through the ticket check point. Hollywood Studios guest relations is to your immediate left when you go through the ticket check point

You can also get 32 oz cups of ice water in all of the Disney restaurants for free. Make sure to make use of that.

Get to the parks early and that means when it opens. It's cooler and the queues won't be as long as the afternoon. I would go back to your resort in the afternoon for rest and relaxation and maybe a dip in the swimming pool and then return to the parks around 5:00 for the rest of the evening's festivities or more rides. Others on the blog can tell you which rides are more appropriate for your son since I don't have children. Enjoy your time at Disney!

Lines/ques can definitely be long at Disney, especially for the more popular attractions! It helps to get there at park opening, as they are generally more manageable. Also, there are these wonderful things called Fastpasses that allow you to bypass the long lines for some attractions. There are locations in each park to get these when you arrive using your park ticket. You get a Fastpass to come back to the ride at a certain window of time, freeing you up to go and enjoy other things.

Some attractions, such as Toy Story Mania in Hollywood Studios, Space Mountain in the Magic Kingdom, or Soarin in Epcot even run out of Fastpasses quickly because they are so popular, and the regular que can be over an hour at times. It is a good idea to head directly to those and get a Fastpass as soon as the park opens.

Disney is super friendly to young riders, you shouldn't really have a problem.

Magic Kingdom - Just about everything will be fine - but avoid anything with "Mountain" in it, and probably Stitches Great Escape.

Epcot - The Seas, The Land and Imagination are great for that age, so is the boat ride inside Mexico.

Animal Kingdom - Avoid Expedition Everest and Dinosaur. If the child doesn't enjoy bugs, avoid It's Tough to Be A Bug as it can be a bit of sensory overload.

Hollywood Studios - No Tower of Terror or Rockin' Roller coaster, everything else should be ok. Star Tours could be a bit much, but it really depends on the child at that age. It's a very bumpy ride, but not "major."

Most rides are partially in the dark, but you can usually sit super close if that's a problem.

The worst queues we found were for a couple of our 'must-do' characters - Rapunzel and Tinkerbell - they were about an hour wait. We did all the kid friendly rides and generally waited no more than 20 minutes, sometimes we just walked onto rides. But that's because we arrived at RD a lot of days so rode the popular rides first and we also made use of fastpass.

My DD was 5 when we went and was, and still is, very cautious. So no thrill rides for her! Her favourite rides and other attractions at each park were :-

MK - Its a Small World, Dumbo, Philharmagic, Jungle Cruise
Epcot - Soarin', The Seas with Nemo, Turtle Talk
AK - Kilimanjaro Safaris, Lion King show, Nemo Show
HS - Toy Story Mania, Disney Junior on stage, Beauty and the Beast on stage.

We spent 2 weeks just doing the Disney Parks without going on a single thrill ride and we still had a fantastic time.

For Magic Kingdom, I would suggest getting there early, preferably before the park opens, and be ready to walk straight down Main Street through the Castle towards New Fantasyland. A lot of those rides get packed early on, especially Peter Pan, Winnie the Pooh, and the new Ariel ride. Don't forget to stop and get your pic taken in front of the castle before the parks get super crowded. The Photo Pass photographers, in the khaki vests, will be happy to take a pic with your camera for you.