Mama

Visiting Disney World While Pregnant: Our Disney Babymoon

Today’s post is a throwback to nearly two years ago when we took a babymoon trip to Disney World while I was 22 weeks pregnant with my son. I read so many blog posts like this one while we were preparing for our trip, and I thought I might as well throw my own experience into the mix. Even though our trip was a couple years ago, much of our magical Disney World trip is still fresh on my mind.

My husband and I knew we wanted to take a babymoon trip, but honestly we were a little hesitant at first to try visiting Disney World while I was pregnant. Would I actually be able to ride anything? Would I be miserable from the amount of strain on my body? I’m so glad we chose not to let those worries stop us from taking this trip because going to Disney World while pregnant is absolutely do-able and still just as magical as ever!

I think the key to planning a trip to Disney while pregnant or really any time is to determine what type of experience you want from this trip. Disney is way too big for you to be able to cover everything in a single trip. Even if you can do every attraction in every park, you still won’t eat at every restaurant, likely won’t see every resort, won’t experience all the things there are to do outside the parks… You get the picture. (If you do decide to set out on an epic quest to tackle everything Disney World has to offer in a single trip, please document it because I want to see!!)

We determined that this wouldn’t be a trip revolving around thrill rides or running around the parks trying to do everything because that just wouldn’t be a safe or enjoyable option for me while I was pregnant. We wanted to slow down and take in all the magical details, eat some delicious food, spend as much time sitting down in air conditioning as possible, and enjoy a trip with just the two of us before having a baby. We also decided that we only wanted to visit two of the parks because trying to cover all four sounded like it could be too exhausting for me.

While I really believe you could make a great day out of any Disney park while pregnant, we chose to spend a day at Animal Kingdom and a day at Magic Kingdom. We ruled out Hollywood Studios fairly quickly because it had fewer attractions I was interested in that would be safe to enjoy while pregnant. We knew for sure we wanted to do Magic Kingdom because it had the most rides I’d actually be able to go on. Originally we were going to spend our second day at Epcot and enjoy the Food & Wine Festival, but ultimately we knew we would have been sad to miss out on Animal Kingdom.

I’ll walk you through what we did on our trip in case you’re looking for ideas of things to do in Disney World while pregnant. Since I inherited my mother’s love for making a spreadsheet for trips (We call them “flexible itineraries” so people don’t think we’re taking the fun out of everything.), I have pretty good records of how our days went!

An Evening of Resort Hopping

We stayed at the All-Star Movies Resort for this trip, but we wanted to spend our first night at Disney World “resort hopping” and touring some of the other Disney resorts. My husband had never done this before, so I was excited to make a little evening of it.

Buses run from resorts to parks, from parks to resorts, and from parks to parks, but they do not run from resorts to resorts. Because of this, you have to be a little creative with your resort hopping. There is a monorail that runs between the deluxe resorts near the Magic Kingdom, so we made use of that.

We took a bus from our resort to the Magic Kingdom entrance, then took a ferry boat to the Grand Floridian (Alternatively, we could have taken the monorail.) for dinner at the Grand Floridian Cafe. Our server was so sweet to bring us a cupcake with “Congratulations it’s a boy!” written on the plate after seeing the “It’s a boy!” buttons we were wearing. If you’re celebrating anything at Disney World and you’re not shy about it, visit a guest services desk to get a button for it. Cast members are so wonderful about reading what’s on your button and making you feel special!

Celebrating "It's a boy!" at our Disney World babymoon

After dinner, we spent a little more time at the Grand Floridian visiting the shops and listening to the musicians in the lobby. Then we took the monorail to the Contemporary Resort and walked around there for a bit before hopping on the monorail to the Polynesian Resort as the sun was setting.

Oliver has tropical blood, and he decided that the Polynesian is his new dream resort to stay in one day. The details there are so lush and beautiful, and we loved walking around in the evening when all the tiki torches were lit. I’m not going to lie though–my main objective at the Polynesian that evening was to get a Dole Whip from Pineapple Lanai. The frozen pineapple goodness is my favorite Disney treat, and it’s entirely possible that a pregnancy craving for it was exactly what led us to Disney World in the first place.

We took another boat from the Polynesian resort back to the Magic Kingdom entrance (Again, we could have taken the monorail, but the boats are often very quiet and relaxing rides.), then took a bus back to our resort to turn in for the night.

A Day at Animal Kingdom

What I Did at Animal Kingdom While Pregnant

  • Na’vi River Journey
  • Taking in the sights and enjoying live music around Pandora
  • Photo with Minnie & Mickey
  • Gorilla Falls Exploration Trail
  • Lunch at Sanaa (left the park and took a bus to Animal Kingdom Lodge)
  • Festival of the Lion King
  • Wilderness Express Train to Rafiki’s Planet Watch
  • Animation Station drawing class (located at Conservation Station in Rafiki’s Planet Watch, only accessible via Wilderness Express Train)
  • Finding Nemo the Musical
  • Rest and drinks at Nomad Lounge (iced tea for me!)
  • Maharajah Jungle Trek
  • Small dinner at Caravan Road
  • Rivers of Light nighttime show
  • Walking through Pandora at night to enjoy all the lights
Animal Kingdom - Minnie and Mickey baby gender reveal and appetizer at Sanaa, Animal Kingdom Lodge
The bread service appetizer at Sanaa included five types of naan and other breads, plus NINE sauces for dipping. We are both condiment-loving people and thought this was incredible.

Highlights of Our Day at Animal Kingdom

Though there aren’t many rides at Animal Kingdom that are safe to ride while pregnant, there are plenty of other things to spend the day enjoying. Festival of the Lion King is my favorite show at Disney (Beauty and the Beast at Hollywood Studios is a close second.), so I was excited to get to see that as well as Finding Nemo the Musical, which I don’t believe I’d seen before.

I’m so glad we brought the “Oh boy!” banner to take a picture with Minnie and Mickey. They were so fun and acted like they were just elated for us. Definitely a magical Disney moment!

On our walk through Gorilla Falls Exploration Trail, we saw a baby gorilla snuggling with its mother, and it melted my little pregnant mama heart. Oliver had to pull me away so we could get to our lunch reservation in time.

Since Animal Kingdom Lodge is just a short bus ride away from Animal Kingdom park, we were able to have lunch at Sanaa, which I’d been dreaming of eating at for years. They serve African and Indian cuisine, and the windows of the restaurant have a view of the African savanna animals outside. Our meal was amazing, and it was easily my favorite Disney dining experience I’ve ever had.

I was so glad to see that the drawing class had been brought to Animal Kingdom as Animation Station. When my siblings and I were younger, we loved going to the animation class at Hollywood Studios!

A Day at Magic Kingdom

What I Did at Magic Kingdom While Pregnant

  • Sunrise in the park (They started letting people enter Main Street before the park opened at 7 a.m.)
  • Peter Pan’s Flight
  • it’s a small world
  • Prince Charming’s Regal Carrousel
  • Haunted Mansion
  • Waffle Sandwiches at Sleepy Hollow for breakfast
  • Pirates of the Caribbean
  • Jungle Cruise
  • Swiss Family Treehouse
  • The Magic Carpets of Aladdin
  • The Muppets American history show in Liberty Square
  • Liberty Square Riverboat
  • The Voyage of the Little Mermaid
  • Lunch at Be Our Guest
  • Afternoon parade
  • Hall of Presidents (I just wanted to sit inside for 30 minutes, really.)
  • Buzz Lightyear’s Space Ranger Spin
  • Monsters Inc. Laugh Floor
  • Tomorrowland Transit Authority PeopleMover
  • The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh
  • Dumbo
  • Mickey’s PhilharMagic
  • Country Bear Jamboree (Again–did it for the air conditioning.)
  • The Enchanted Tiki Room (A new one for me. If I do this again, it will likely be because I’m pregnant and want to sit down…)
  • Fireworks!
Magic Kingdom - Cinderella Castle gender reveal photo and waffle sandwiches at Sleepy Hollow
My waffle sandwich at Sleepy Hollow had Nutella and fresh fruit. Oliver’s had sweet & spicy chicken with coleslaw. Both were amazing.

Highlights of Our Day at Magic Kingdom

Wow! Looking at how many things we managed to pack in is actually pretty amazing. We also went back and did a few of the rides a second time in the evening. Magic Kingdom has a ton of kiddie and family rides, which means there are a lot of rides that are safe for pregnant women. The railroad was closed for refurbishment while we were visiting, but otherwise it would have been on our itinerary as well.

Entering Magic Kingdom as the sun was rising was lovely and so worth getting up early to take the bus while it was still dark. I’d love to do this again if I have the chance. Getting there early also allowed us to walk onto a few Fantasyland rides with no wait.

Haunted Mansion, Pirates of the Caribbean, and Jungle Cruise are some of my favorite rides at Disney World, so I was really glad they were all things I could enjoy even while pregnant!

Again, the food was a highlight for me. The waffle sandwiches at Sleepy Hollow were so, so good. And I wouldn’t say the food at Be Our Guest was anything spectacular, but the experience of being inside the Beast’s castle was really special! I’d wanted to eat at this restaurant since I first heard they were opening it.

One more sweet little thing we did at Magic Kingdom was visit the gift shop next to The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh and buy a stuffed Tigger for our baby. He still loves his Tigger!

Be Our Guest Restaurant at Disney's Magic Kingdom
Eating at Be Our Guest was such a fun experience, and our server brought us out some of “the grey stuff” (“It’s delicious! Don’t believe me? Ask the dishes!”) to celebrate when she saw our “It’s a boy! buttons. It tastes like cookies & cream icing.

Tips for Visiting Disney World While Pregnant

  • If it’s going to be hot, which of course is the case a lot of the year in Orlando, be prepared for that. I brought a personal fan with me and also planned plenty of time for us to spend at indoor attractions and restaurants.
  • This should go without saying, but comfortable shoes are important. The only time my feet swelled during my entire pregnancy was when we were at Disney World walking miles and miles each day. Schedule time for breaks to sit down.
  • Another no-brainer–stay hydrated! I brought a water bottle in with me, but you can get free cups of water at most restaurants if you walk up and ask.
  • Be intentional about how you plan your day. I made sure to alternate between indoor and outdoor attractions. If we were going to be outside walking around in the heat or waiting in outdoor lines for a while, I would follow that with an indoor show or a restaurant break.
  • Schedule in special experiences! Meeting Minnie and Mickey was a great touch of Disney magic for us. I was also glad we were able to get reservations at some of the restaurants that we’d really wanted to try!
  • I mentioned this earlier in the post, but getting a button from guest services that says what you’re celebrating is a fun touch. Cast members and even other park guests were so sweet to us and made us feel so special!
  • Know ahead of time which attractions are not recommended for pregnant women. The Disney website is pretty clear on their listing for each attraction if it’s not recommended.

Overall, I’d say visiting Disney World while pregnant was a wonderful experience! It was really important that we determined from the beginning of planning that this trip wasn’t meant to be a Disney-til-you-drop type of experience. (I’ve done trips like that before too, and there’s definitely a time for them!) We were careful to take it easy, and I’m so glad we didn’t try to push ourselves past my limits. If you’re planning to visit Disney World while pregnant, I hope this post has been helpful for you!

Visiting Walt Disney World While Pregnant

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