fun vacations with a 4 year old?

My husband has to pick his 5 weeks of vacation for next year by tomorrow so I'm trying to decide what we want to do.

I know DD would LOVE Disney but just saying the word overwhelms me (mentally, physically & financially.)

I wanted to put it off a few years but now that I think of it, next year will be the only year we can go off season without pulling her out of school.

What are your thoughts on Disney with a 4 year old & what are some other places that you would recommend?

She would have fun anywhere so it doesn't have to be geared towards kids, we'd like to have fun too

Re: fun vacations with a 4 year old?

I would suggest doing a split vacation- maybe 3 or 4 days in Disney and then drive to a more beachy part of Florida for another 3-4 days.

Re: fun vacations with a 4 year old?

my older son loved disney at 2yo and 3yo and 5yo. So 4 seems like a good time! Both my boys loved the 4night disney cruise last year they were 2yo and 5yo at the time. We also loved this vacation!

Other vacations less $$
My 7yo keeps talking about how much he LOVED lake george this past summer. spend time on the lake, went to great escape, ride on the mini haha etc.

Myrtle beach
Washington DC
White MOuntains NH (lots to do both amusement type stuff as well as outdoorsy)
Lancaster PA (my kids love it there)
Hershey park
Busch Gardens
Clearwater FL
Cruise

fun vacations with a 4 year old?

4 is the perfect age for Disney IMO. They are still young enough for it to be so magical, but old enough to ride most of the rides and really enjoy them and the characters. It really isn't as overwhelming as it seems at first. My #1 piece of advice is to go at an off time to avoid the crowds.

fun vacations with a 4 year old?

We just went to Lancaster and had a great time. Also Myrtle Beach is a lot of fun.

Re: fun vacations with a 4 year old?

We just got back from Atlantis in Bahamas. Had an awesome time. Running great specials now. Only thing is you need is passports.

fun vacations with a 4 year old?

4 yo for Disney is great. Atlantis, Bahamas is awesome too!

Re: fun vacations with a 4 year old?

My 4 yr old LOVED Disney. He's 5 now and still talks about it. Good age bc he was in awe of everything. Sooo excited to meet the characters and still old enough to walk around all day and into night. We did have a stroller too bc it's a lot of walking and a long day.
Like a PP said... break it up. A few days in Disney then a few at a resort at the pool or beach.
Either way it's a good age and you can't go wrong.

fun vacations with a 4 year old?

My DS is 3 and so far we have done:

Disney
FL beaches (both west coast and east coast)
Camping in Montauk (2x)
PA (for a motorcycle thing)

We are going to visit my parents in Feb and doing Legoland.

fun vacations with a 4 year old?

I think Disney is great for a 4 year old.

Some other ideas are Lancaster (Dutch Wonderland) and Myrtle Beach. My kids love both of those places as well and it's less overwhelming.

Re: fun vacations with a 4 year old?

DS is 4. So far...
We love:
Disney
Florida (beaches)
Cruises (carnival, Norwegian)
Mexico
Boston (short drive & great city)

We did not like:
Disney cruise (too much $ for what you get)
Atlantis (way too $$$ for not that much luxury, I'd go with teens).

Re: fun vacations with a 4 year old?

Dutch Wonderland
Myrtle Beach
Philly (please touch museum)

Re: fun vacations with a 4 year old?

My son loved Williamsburg VA and seeing the white house in DC. He also had a great time in DR and our cruise. He keeps saying he wants to go back on the boat.

I took him to California when he was 3 and we had a great time.

I say if the timing is right for Disney, go for a couple of days and then maybe Miami or Keys for beach fun! I love a vacation with blue water. Lol

Re: fun vacations with a 4 year old?

Thanks for all the comments.
I love hearing all the suggestions!

Re: fun vacations with a 4 year old?

my son just turned 4 on 11/9.

and we just got back from a Disney cruise on Friday night! we all LOVED it!!! it was 4 nights, so not too long... and perfect if you want to combine it with a few days in the parks before or after.
cruises are great with kids bc you don't have to think about anything! food, swimming, etc- all taken care of, and all right there. they clean your room twice a day for you, too! LOL they also have great drop-off kid's club with activities for them- but my son didn't stay :-/ (I'm a SAHM, so hes a mommas boy! HAHA)
the Disney cruise was great, too bc they had a lot of character appearances right on the ship, so you get your Disney "fix" that way.

and I think 4 is a good time to do the Disney parks, too. they have a little more patience for the lines, etc.... and once they're 40 inches tall, they can go on most of the rides there, which is good.
If you want to do Disney, I would talk to a Disney travel specialist- they don't charge you anything, prices are the same.... and they really do help you and do the work for you we used one to book our cruise, and she was awesome!!!

Other ideas:
We we rented an RV when DS was about 2 1/2, and he had an awesome time!! again, its nice bc you have everything you need with you all the time! LOL and its fun to camp, but still have some "luxuries"
Outer Banks in NC- rent a beach house for the week- SO relaxing!!!