Planning Orlando with kids starts with two big resorts, Walt Disney World and Universal Orlando, which run seven major theme parks between them. SeaWorld and LEGOLAND Florida sit on top of that. Your children’s ages and heights will shape the plan more than the calendar does, so this planner starts there and then covers pacing, queues, timing, where to stay and cost.
Quick answer
For Orlando with kids, match parks to height: Magic Kingdom suits under-7s, while Universal’s biggest thrill rides need 122cm or more. Plan 3–4 park days in 7 nights or 6–8 in 14. Villa holidays with return flights from the UK start from £829pp for 7 nights (14 nights from £1,039pp). ATOL 10713 protected.
- Flight time from London
- About 9 hours 40 minutes nonstop to Orlando and about 8 hours coming home. Nonstop flights run from Heathrow, Gatwick and Manchester.
- Time difference
- Orlando is normally 5 hours behind the UK. From 25 October to 1 November 2026 the gap is 4 hours, because UK clocks change a week before US clocks.
- Currency
- US dollar.
- Main airport
- Orlando International (MCO).
Which Orlando parks are best for kids at each age?
Pick parks by the youngest child’s height, not the oldest child’s wish list. A park where half the family can’t ride the headline attractions makes for a long, expensive day.
Walt Disney World
- Magic Kingdom is the park for the youngest children. Many Fantasyland rides, including Peter Pan’s Flight and Dumbo the Flying Elephant, have no minimum height. The castle, parades and character meetings do the rest.
- Hollywood Studios holds Toy Story Land and Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge. It works best from about age 6, when most children clear the limits on Slinky Dog Dash and Rise of the Resistance.
- EPCOT suits older children. World Showcase is a loop of 11 country pavilions around a lake, and Frozen Ever After in the Norway pavilion keeps younger siblings on side.
- Animal Kingdom combines Pandora – The World of Avatar with Kilimanjaro Safaris, a truck ride past live animals that any age can join. Go early, when the animals are more active.
Universal Orlando
Universal is the stronger choice for children aged roughly 8 and over. The Wizarding World of Harry Potter is split between two parks: Diagon Alley in Universal Studios Florida and Hogsmeade in Islands of Adventure. The Hogwarts Express train links them, and riding it needs a park-to-park ticket. Volcano Bay is the resort’s water theme park.
Epic Universe, the newest of Universal’s three theme parks, opened on 22 May 2025. Its five worlds are Celestial Park, Dark Universe, How to Train Your Dragon – Isle of Berk, Super Nintendo World and the Ministry of Magic. Its two headline rides have lower limits than Hagrid’s or VelociCoaster, as the table shows.
SeaWorld Orlando
SeaWorld mixes animal habitats and shows with a set of large coasters for teenagers. For pre-schoolers, its Sesame Street Land is the draw, with gentle rides and familiar characters. It makes a useful lower-key day between the Disney and Universal parks.
LEGOLAND Florida and Peppa Pig Theme Park
LEGOLAND Florida is designed for children aged 2 to 12, and the Peppa Pig Theme Park sits within the same resort. Both are at Winter Haven, about 45–55 miles from Orlando. For a family with toddlers, this is the best-matched day of the holiday.
Ride heights that decide your park days
| Ride | Park | Minimum height | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| Seven Dwarfs Mine Train | Magic Kingdom | 97cm / 38in | Family coaster, a good first test. |
| Slinky Dog Dash | Hollywood Studios | 97cm / 38in | Toy Story Land. |
| Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance | Hollywood Studios | 102cm / 40in | Long, story-led ride. |
| Space Mountain | Magic Kingdom | 112cm / 44in | Indoor coaster in the dark. |
| Avatar Flight of Passage | Animal Kingdom | 112cm / 44in | Pandora. |
| Harry Potter and the Escape from Gringotts | Universal Studios Florida | 107cm / 42in | Under 122cm must ride with a supervising companion. |
| Harry Potter and the Battle at the Ministry | Epic Universe | 102cm / 40in | Ministry of Magic. |
| Mario Kart: Bowser’s Challenge | Epic Universe | 102cm / 40in | Under 122cm needs a supervising companion. |
| Hagrid’s Magical Creatures Motorbike Adventure | Islands of Adventure | 122cm / 48in | Hogsmeade. |
| Jurassic World VelociCoaster | Islands of Adventure | 130cm / 51in | Tallest limit in this table. |
Staff check heights at the ride entrance, so measure your child in the shoes they will wear before you fly.
Rider Switch at Disney: if a child is too small for a ride, one adult waits outside with them while the rest of the group rides. A Cast Member scans the waiting party’s tickets and gives a return time. The waiting adult then boards without joining the standby queue.
How many park days fit into 7 or 14 nights?
Treat the first full day as a write-off for big parks. Children tend to wake before dawn after the westbound flight, and a pool, a supermarket run and an early night beat a 12-hour park day.
Seven nights: plan three or four park days with a pool day in the middle. That is the rhythm our villa itineraries suggest: Magic Kingdom first, then Universal, then EPCOT or Hollywood Studios.
Fourteen nights: six to eight park days is a sensible ceiling. Put a rest day after every two or three park days, and use it for the pool, the outlet malls or a slower morning. Two weeks also leaves room for LEGOLAND or a beach day.
Split the heavy parks. Doing Magic Kingdom and Epic Universe on consecutive days with a five-year-old usually ends in tears by the second afternoon. Alternate a big park with a smaller one.
How do Lightning Lane and Universal Express work for families?
Both resorts sell a way to skip the main queue, but the rules differ in ways that matter if you stay in a villa.
Disney Lightning Lane comes in three forms. Multi Pass lets you pre-book return times for a set of rides. Single Pass covers one headline ride that is not in Multi Pass. Premier Pass gives one Lightning Lane entry to each eligible ride and is limited, so it can sell out. All three are bought per person, per day, and prices vary by date and park.
Guests at Disney Resort hotels can book Lightning Lane earlier than everyone else, and villa guests book a few days before each park day. Disney changes these windows, so check the current ones in the My Disney Experience app. Book as soon as your window opens, because the popular return times go first.
Universal Express works differently. Express Unlimited comes free with three on-site hotels: Hard Rock Hotel, Loews Portofino Bay and Loews Royal Pacific. It is valid on select attractions at Universal Studios Florida and Islands of Adventure only. Epic Universe and Volcano Bay need a separate Express purchase. Villa guests can buy Express by the day, with prices that change by date.
Guests at Universal’s on-site hotels also get Early Park Admission with a valid park ticket. On a short trip that early hour is often worth more than any queue-skip product.
When is the best time to go to Orlando with kids?
Most UK families are tied to school holidays, so the choice is really between half-terms and the long summer break. The Atlantic hurricane season runs from 1 June to 30 November and peaks around 10 September.
| Period | UK school holiday? | Weather for children | Crowds and price |
|---|---|---|---|
| October half-term | Yes (dates vary by council) | Highs around 29°C, drying out after the wet season | Busy half-term week, still within hurricane season. |
| November to mid-December | No | Highs around 26°C, comfortable for toddlers | Quieter parks outside Thanksgiving week. |
| Christmas and New Year | Yes | Mild days, cool evenings | Among the busiest weeks of the year, highest package prices. |
| February half-term | Yes | Highs around 22°C, cool evenings, unheated pools feel cold | Moderate crowds. |
| Easter 2027 | Yes (Good Friday 26 March, Easter Monday 29 March) | Highs heading towards 29°C by April | Busy, with US spring breaks in the same weeks. |
| May half-term | Yes (spring bank holiday 31 May 2027) | Hot but before the peak of the wet season | Moderate crowds. |
| Summer holidays | Yes | Highs of 32–33°C, afternoon storms that pause outdoor rides | Busy, hurricane season, higher prices. |
For a family with school-age children, October half-term and May half-term strike the best balance between heat, storms and school dates.
Where should a family stay in Orlando?
The choice is between a hotel close to the parks and a villa community further out. A hotel cuts driving and, at Universal, can bring Express access. A villa gives each child a bedroom, a full kitchen and a private pool for rest days.
- Windsor Hills villa holiday, Kissimmee: 4-bedroom villas with a private screened pool.
- Encore Resort at Reunion villa holiday, Kissimmee: homes of 4 to 13 bedrooms with a private pool and games room.
- Highlands Reserve villa holiday, Davenport: 4-bedroom villas with a private pool.
For hotel-style stays, and for adding Miami or the Gulf Coast, see our guide to luxury Florida holidays.
How much does an Orlando family holiday cost?
Our Orlando packages are priced per person and cover return flights from the UK, the villa and airport transfers. Windsor Hills and Encore stays can be booked in Economy or Business, while Highlands Reserve is sold with Economy flights. Price moves with the month, the cabin and the number of people sharing the villa.
Budget separately for these, as none is included in any of our Orlando packages:
- Park tickets. These are the largest extra. Buy them before you book restaurants, because the park plan drives everything else.
- Car hire, fuel, tolls and parking. Theme park car parks charge per day.
- Meals. A villa kitchen lets you cook breakfast and pack snacks, which cuts the daily spend.
- ESTA. Every traveller needs one, babies included, at US$40.27 each. CBP now asks for a selfie photograph, so an older ESTA issued without one may need a fresh application.
- Travel insurance. Choose a policy with high medical cover, as treatment in the US is costly.
Lightning Lane and Express add a variable daily cost on top. Decide in advance which days you will pay for them, rather than buying on impulse in the park.
Practical tips for UK families
- Check passport dates. Each passport, including a baby’s, must be valid for the whole stay.
- Download the park apps before you fly. The Disney and Universal apps show live queue times, maps and mobile food ordering, and you need them to book Lightning Lane.
- Use a card without foreign transaction fees. Parks, restaurants and petrol stations are almost entirely card-based, so a percentage fee on every payment adds up over two weeks.
- Pack for sun and rain. Take high-factor sun cream, hats, refillable water bottles and cheap ponchos.
- Agree a meeting point. Show younger children a landmark and a staff member’s name badge on the first morning, and write your phone number on a wristband.
