If you are traveling to the Walt Disney World Resort, chances are you are making it a family vacation and traveling with small children. But, while children of all ages (i.e. grown-ups) do come to Walt Disney World by themselves, if you are planning your vacation with small children, there are certain details that you need to keep in mind and make sure to discuss with your family prior to your visit.
But before you make any additional plans, it is important first to secure your tickets to the theme parks. Families are always looking for ways to save money on vacations, and one of the best ways to do that is by purchasing your discounted Disney tickets here at OrlandoFunTickets.com. We are your No. 1 online source for discounted tickets to all of the top area attractions, and if you are planning on park hopping – or just seeing a local dinner show – you won’t want to miss our discounted prices. Click here to check them out now!
Once you have your theme park and water park tickets taken care of, you will need to start planning your itinerary in the parks. But, more important than what rides you want to ride and what places you want to eat at is what to do if someone in your party gets lost or separated. It happens every day at Walt Disney World, but there are precautions you can take to ensure that it never happens in the first place.
One of the first, and oldest, tricks in the book is to wear matching T-shirts or color-coordinate your clothes. Yes, you may stand out in the crowd, but we can guarantee if you have a lost child that you will WANT to stand out! Also, if you don’t have the time to ensure that everyone matches in the morning, at least take an inventory every day and write down what each member of your family is wearing. One of the first questions you will be asked if you do get separated from your child is, “what is he/she wearing?” Having everything written down will help you in your quest to find your missing loved one should that arise.
Another precaution you can take beforehand is to have an emergency plan that everyone in your family is comfortable with and can easily remember. For example, you can set a specific place beforehand in each park where, if you get separated, you can meet up. Some families might like to designate the Guest Relations station as a meeting point, for example. Any Disney Cast Member can tell you where it is located, and once there, a Guest Relations representative can assist you during all hours of park operation. We suggest that you find Guest Relations as a family as soon as you enter the park each day to ensure that everyone knows its location. We would also like to suggest that you do not pick a meeting point that is the focal point of the park (i.e. Cinderella Castle at the Magic Kingdom Park or Spaceship Earth at Epcot), because these areas are generally crowded during all hours of the day, making it increasingly difficult if you are trying to find someone. In addition to Guest Relations, First Aid is also a good place to find as a family as you enter the park, because if you need it, chances are you need to find it in a timely manner.
It is also important that you point out to your kids who to ask in the event that they are lost. Every Disney Cast Member is dressed in a different costume, but each and every one of them has one thing in common – their nametag! Point out the nametag to your children first-thing in the park (the workers at the turnstiles will have them on), and let your children know that if they get lost, anyone who has on that nametag can help them. All Disney Cast Members are equipped with what to do and who to call when a child is lost, and there are certain Cast Members whose job alone it is to entertain the lost children. Warning, however: Cast Members will not go looking through the park for parents. They stay at one central location, so that parents can go to one place once they discover their little one is missing to try to relocate them.
And finally, as we mentioned above, please make sure that your kids know the plan before you even enter the park. If everyone is educated on the plan, you can be brought back together in a timely fashion. It is up to you to decide whether you would like to designate a meeting place or whether you would like your child to immediately ask a Cast Member for assistance, but if everyone knows what to do should it happen, it will make a stressful situation a lot easier to handle!
