Parents at DLR - how do you room share?

Purerockfury1

Mouseketeer
Joined
Aug 18, 2017
Parents who have taken toddlers - how do you survive without a suite?

Our toddler will be 2.5 when we go and he’s very used to sleeping in a dark room with his sound machine and no other distractions.

We plan on going back to the hotel midday for naps but I don’t want to have to lay there silently as well lol. We also don’t want to have to go to bed when our toddler does.

Does anyone have any tips/tricks for room sharing with a toddler or are we just going to have to bite the bullet and get a suite?
 
On the bright side, you have over a year before your DLR trip and kids do grow and change; and how your little one sleeps today isn't necessarily exactly how things will have to be by the holiday season next year. Our two were both very particular sleepers in different ways. Oldest wasn't a good sleeper, so getting him to sleep at all was a challenge. But he could power nap in the parks. Youngest was a very good sleeper if he could lay flat and have something familiar with him, e.g. favorite blanket. So going back to the hotel worked. But we started working with them in little doses when we knew that we would be taking them to hotels so that we could find things that worked and know what didn't. And in the end, it turned out that oldest (the pickiest child in many ways) was a very good traveler and did well in hotels. And youngest (a good eater and sleeper) was not a good traveler when very little, and we just had to wait until he grew up a bit to start taking him places. The sound machine can be brought with you -- lots of people here bring a white noise machine or use an app. Distractions will be another issue -- hotels at DLR can be noisy, e.g. housekeeping, other guests, excited kids, etc. You're going to get lots of good suggestions here and you have a lot of time to make some plans and try different things to find what works best for your family.
 
We did all those things and survived LOL. Never considered spending the $$$ on a suite because of how little time we're in the room.
It actually feels pretty good to take that nap ourselves.

Your child maybe too old for it now but we were advised to not make things too quite for him at bed time. That has worked out well and he quickly adapted to being able to sleep though just about anything. Now as an adult, he still can.

Hope you have a great trip!
Scott
 
I understand where you are coming from. We felt the same “how does this work?!” back when our kids (now 7&5) were younger. Here are some things we did to solve the hotel/nap/bedtime puzzle:

1. Yes, sometimes it just made sense to get a 1 bedroom suite or get 2 connecting rooms. Of course, the cost of doing that was not always feasible, or sometimes we’d be at a place where those options are not even available. It’s always worth it to check out hotel options. Some places even have special “family“ rooms that have a separated area within the room meant for kids to sleep.

2. When we would be in a regular room, we’d try to find a way to separate the kids sleeping area. Sometimes my wife would bring a small spring rod curtain or a folding screen. There’s almost always a little alcove area, or corner that you can set up. And you can always set up something in the bathroom, although that means you can’t use the bathroom at sleep times.

3. If you don’t want to be stuck in the room during all nap/seep times, you can take shifts with your partner. For example, I’d stay in the room for an afternoon nap time while my wife went out on her own to visit shops or walk around. And then in the evening, she’d turn in early and I’d go out for a bit to do my own thing for awhile. It was a nice way for each of us to get some “me” time.

4. Try the “stroller nap”. This works for some people and some kids. For us it worked when the kids were very little, but we didn’t have as much luck as they got older. If we were out, they were up, so if we wanted them to have a nap, it meant going back to the room.

5. Of course, there’s always the “power through” method. Just do your thing and figure the little one will eventually sleep when tired enough. Attempt at your own risk!

The big takeaway to remember is that this is only temporary. It won’t be an issue forever, or even for that long.
 


I agree with above that the sleep patterns will be different in a year (or when you decide to go). We actually co-slept, which made it very easy to share a king bed (or one parent + kid on one bed, the other on the sleeper pull out couch).

So some concerns/issues I would try to train your kid on would be:

a) ambient noise -- depending on the room, you might get park/DtD noise. This was an issue for us at VGC/GCH as our room backed up against the park and they had F&W/Halloween concerts going during nap time and at early-ish bedtime. Very distracting. I don't know how else to say it, but you might just have to train your kid on having to sleep through that.

b) ambient light -- our rooms at home are pitch black (helps me sleep as well), so the ambient light in the room might be an issue -- I'm talking the little red LED lights on a fire alarm, the light coming through the window/balcony door (they aren't true blackout shades, but they're good enough, usually...it depends on the hotel), etc...


What we did
For ambient noise -- we couldn't do anything, we just had to tire out the kid such that the ambient noise didn't matter.

For ambient light -- I got pro at using the couch pillows to push against the curtains to block light flow from the sides. I brought painter's tape (the blue one) and taped over little points of light (every hotel is different). I had to block a motion sensor which turned on everytime I walked by the bathroom (Radisson in Newport Bch).

We would split "nap with" duties -- one day, toddler would nap with mom while dad (me) got to ride the Millennium Falcon ride 8x in a row in the single rider line (lol). Other days, dad would nap and mom would go chill in the lobby and read a book. Or we would all nap, learn to nap! The other person couldn't return because the noise from the door would wake up the kid... we learned this the hard way.


We weren't in this phase very long -- by the time our kid hit 5, it's usual power through or one good quality nap (no need to deal with ambient noise/light anymore).

Goodluck!
 
Honestly, we took a few trips with shared hotel rooms when my kids were 1.5 to 4-ish that were soooo bad we switched to suites until this past summer. (They are now 5 & 7). There are a few offsite hotels in the DLR area with affordable suite options - Cortana, Desert Palms, Desert Inn come to mind. My kids are similar that they need the dark room & sound machine, and they never ever napped on the go.
 


We never had the option of going back to a hotel for naps, because we always stayed with family and it was too far. The only time my kids ever napped in their stroller was Disney. As for bedtime in a hotel, usually everyone is so tired that we all just go to bed at the same time. Which means the kids go to bed a little later sometimes, but usually we’ve been out all day and everyone is so tired it’s not too hard to sleep.
 
It’s been quite awhile.... but we went back to the hotel for naps from 1-4 and we slept too... the parks are exhausting! I pulled the drapes shut and brought a white noise machine (the days before apps!) and up we got at 4 pm (unless we woke earlier—rarely happened) And back to the parks we went until 10 or so... didn’t make it till midnight in those days.... and we crashed out when we got back the room no problem... there was no staying up later, took an Advil and lights out.
 
Thank you all! I read every reply and for some great input and ideas. I appreciate everyone taking the time to respond!
 
Honestly, at that age we just didn't travel much. My guy was SUCH a bad sleeper when we traveled it was a nightmare. (Sorry to say that, but its true. You can't stay at a hotel with a toddler screaming all night because he can't sleep in a strange place.)
 
I took my kids around that age. I would get a regular room and we did a few different things. One of us sleeping with them at a value resort. Putting the little one in the pull down bed at the moderates. Bunk beds at the Wilderness lodge. I read a tip back then, but didn’t try it- bring a little pop up tent for them to sleep in, cozy and dark. My kids were great stroller nappers so I used bigger strollers and stayed out most of your day. My little guy got croup while we were there and we strolled around the resort most of the night!
 
Every kid is different. My DS, who is now 13, slept through everything in his stroller, I have a great picture of him asleep touching noses with Mickey who happened upon us while I was waiting for my Space Mountain switchpass, he was a little over a year old. He also slept on planes withing a few minutes of take off. My DD is currently 2 1/2. She isn't a great sleeper. If we can't get a suite for that trip, I nap with her. Well, with the pandemic I won't be taking her at all until there's a vaccine or she learns to stop licking everything, whichever comes first. They outgrow this stage quickly, it will pass in the blink of an eye.
 
This is nothing on the parenting, just what my style was. I was a single mom to 4. I enjoyed going places. My kids basically learned at an early age to sleep in strollers, cars, or in hotels even if mom was up moving around, though I usually napped also. My nieces and nephews learned early on if they were with Auntie, naps in strollers or on a bench were better than going back to the room. Once, my nephew was about 3 and was tired, so we got on the train, adn before we even left NOS, he was asleep. We rode 3 laps. At one point my niece commented "Can't we do something else", I explained the options were enjoying the train, or going back to the hotel to let nephew sleep. She opted for another lap on the train. I've had my granddaughter curl up in a chair in Carthay and fall asleep while the adults chatted (she was 4.) The teens offered to take her on a ride, and her response was she wanted to go on the relaxing ride for a while.

Usually, sleeping at night wasn't a problem as they were generally exhausted. For the most part, we kept them out of strollers after 3.
 
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Earlier this year we stayed at the Desert Inn & Suites for the first time. They have a parlor suite (or something like that...you can check floorplans on their website). It had a very small room with a sofa bed and tv that's blocked off with a door from the rest of the room. It was great that our 18 year old could have his own space, but it would also work as a separate spot for napping or watching tv while someone else is sleeping. And it cost less than a larger room.
 
I would probably also do a test run and see if you need to maybe get a suite. DD has always slept no matter how noisy a room is so I have never had an issue.
 
When my son was still sleeping in a pack n play I put it in the closet at the DLH and closed the door most of the way. Dark and quiet! I also brought my sound machine. We had no problems! When he was older (3.5) he loved sleeping on the sofa bed thingy! I clip the curtains closed with a hair clip or chip clip and lay pillows against the bottoms and sides Of the curtain and it’s DARK in the room! 95FE54FD-ECBC-4670-BB56-618C9DA9575C.jpeg
 
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Earlier this year we stayed at the Desert Inn & Suites for the first time. They have a parlor suite (or something like that...you can check floorplans on their website). It had a very small room with a sofa bed and tv that's blocked off with a door from the rest of the room. It was great that our 18 year old could have his own space, but it would also work as a separate spot for napping or watching tv while someone else is sleeping. And it cost less than a larger room.
The only issue here is for younger children, this is the entry to the room. So, if mom and dad are in the bedroom, the child potentially could exit the room without being heard.
 
Earlier this year we stayed at the Desert Inn & Suites for the first time. They have a parlor suite (or something like that...you can check floorplans on their website). It had a very small room with a sofa bed and tv that's blocked off with a door from the rest of the room. It was great that our 18 year old could have his own space, but it would also work as a separate spot for napping or watching tv while someone else is sleeping. And it cost less than a larger room.
I will definitely look into this place! It’s on my list, thank you!
 

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