Getting kids to sleep at Disney World

by Vickie
(St. Louis, MO)

Hey Dad-
I'm back :) I was wondering if you had any tips on getting the kids to sleep at Disney World at night, while still having the freedom (as adults) to stay up and not disturb them. We've heard that bringing a tent is a good option. We're staying at the Polynesian so I know the rooms are fairly big. Thoughts, ideas, suggestions?

Dad's never been a problem Answer

Vickie,

Welcome back :)

Getting the kids to sleep at Disney World has never been a problem for us. We usually have the "I'm too excited to sleep" problem the night before. (Oh, yeah. Mrs. Mom just reminded me that it wasn't the kids that were too excited to sleep, it was me.)



Even on our last trip when the kids were 23 and 19, they went to bed before we did. We found that after a full day in the parks kids are pretty worn out.

We also went one year with my wife's family. One of her sisters has 3 boys that are very hard to get to bed at night. We found that they were ready for bed whenever we got back to the rooms at night.

But, let's think about your suggestion. How do you get the kids to sleep at home? The tent thing is probably an OK idea, but it might make things more exciting. It might make things worse, especially if they have flashlights in the tent.

The big thing is not to let them take a quick nap on the bus or the monorail as you come back from the parks at night. That might make them more likely to stay up for a while.

Dad's Bottom Line

Getting the kids to sleep at Disney World may be the least of your problems. When the Man-Child was 4 the biggest problem we had was getting him to stay awake in some of our favorite rides like the Enchanted Tiki Room or The American Adventure. (Prime sleeping attractions.)

Dad's suggestion - since you are in the Polynesian, put them to bed and ignore them. Do whatever you need to, I would watch TV in one bed, while Mrs. Mom sat at the table and worked on whatever Mrs. Mom's work on. Usually the kids would complain and ask us to turn off the lights.

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