Close your eyes with me for a moment and envision a perfect day at the Magic Kingdom.
It’s a beautiful June day filled with sunshine and the parks are a bit crowded. You have just experienced Disney magic at its finest, and have gone on many rides and attractions with your children. But that hot mid-day sun is beating down. You’re ready to head back to your Disney resort for a dip in the pool to recharge your batteries.
Near the park exit, you have your children climb out of your rented stroller while you quickly return it. Then, as you approach the turnstile at the gate, you look down and… ONE OF YOUR CHILDREN IS MISSING!!!!!
I have experienced this panic first-hand. It was the most terrifying moment of any Disney vacation I have ever had. I can tell you that ours ended happily, and we were reunited with my daughter after about 5 VERY harrowing minutes (which seemed like hours) thanks to some very helpful Cast Members who sprang into action and then literally showered us all with pixie dust to calm us down.
My article today will help you avoid this situation. If, God forbid, it does happen to you, my tips will ensure a speedy reunion with your missing child.
1)Purchase products in advance to identify your children.
Many companies have come up with incredible products to aid in finding lost children. I highly recommend purchasing one of these products for your young children (or for a disabled child of any age) so that a Cast Member will be able to tell at a glance their name and your phone number.
The first such product is a shoe identification tag. These tags fit easily on a child’s shoe, display your name and contact information, and are bright enough to grab the attention of someone helping your lost child. MyPreciousKid sells a great tag that is water-proof and has ink that won’t fade or wipe off.
If you have a child who, like one of mine, won’t wear tennis shoes in the park, you can use instead the ingenious temporary tattoos from SafetyTat. Not only can you have the company print your contact information on the tattoo, you can also customize it with different messages (such as ‘Please Call My DAD’) and different kid-friendly images.
2). Pay attention to what your child is wearing.
When we approached the gate and realized Lauren wasn’t by our side, panic hit and I began yelling to Cast Members who immediately came to our aid. They closed the front gates while we searched for Lauren. But as I scanned the vast crowd of people, the boat docks, the monorail entrances, I was overwhelmed. “Where is my daughter?!?”
The Cast Members asked me for very specific details about what Lauren was wearing and issued an APB while my husband quickly ran back to the Main Street hub – where we found Lauren in the care of another Cast Member, crying but safe. She was found so quickly, in part, because I remembered what she was wearing.
In this age of Smart Phones, make it easier on yourself and take a picture of your children each morning before you leave for the parks. Then, if you’re separated, all you have to do is show the picture to a Cast Member.
3). Teach children the power of the nametag.
Show older children an example of a Cast Member nametag, and explain to them that if you ever get separated, they’re to find someone wearing one of those nametags and ask for help. Make sure your older children know your cell phone number so they can repeat it to a Cast Member. That’s the quickest way to reunite.
My hope for you is that you’ll never have to put any of these tips to the test, and that together your family experiences Disney Magic at its finest. But please take the necessary precautions.
Fortunately, we had a fairytale ending to our frightening situation, and we’re very thankful to all of the helpful Disney Cast Members who sprang into immediate action that day to quickly reunite our family.
If you have any more we would love to hear them!
“Want to same some money on your upcoming Disney vacation? Contact Lesley(Lesley@pixievacations.com) from Pixie Vacations, she offers Disney gift cards and generous on board credits for DCL !” Check out her website at Destination Magic or Like her on Facebook.
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Great tips! Will start making use of them when doing trips with our little one. Thanks.
We had silicone bracelets made with our “if lost” information on them. When DD was too little to wear them without worry that she’d take them off we put them on her ankles.
I can say with experience that the cast members do a GREAT job if your child is lost.. We lost our youngest at Fantasmic. I thought he was with my wife and she thought he was with me. We left him at the strollers and when we realized he was not there we told a cast member and they calmed us down and immediately used the radios to put out a lost child alert. With in minutes we found him with a super awesome cast member right at the strollers… From that point forward he knew what a cast members name tag looked like.
We actually used several of the above mentioned when traveling a couple of years ago. It wasn’t our first time to the resorts, but we were traveling with a larger group. After leaving TOT we did a quick head count and moved on to Rockin Roller Coaster. I stayed off the ride and glanced around realizing my daughter ( the only one afraid of loops) wasn’t around. A slight panic as I called my sister who was in the RRC gift shop to make sure she’d not headed in there with her. Then I was walking to find a cast member with my camera to find that mornings picture as my daughter came around the corner with a security guard. She was a little shaken up and crying because we’d lost her, but she remembered to go to a cast member and had our cell phone numbers memorized too. She didn’t leave my side the rest of the trip. If they are old enough to remember your cell phone number it’s a good thing!
Cute idea but I wouldn’t recommend putting your child’s name anywhere on them. Both my parents work for the police department and a visible child’s name is the easiest way for the wrong person to become a trusting adult in a child’s eyes. But excellent idea with putting you and your spouse’s names and cell numbers on your children.
I printed up a little name tag and safety pinned it to the back of my children’s shirt. They read. Hi, my name is (child’s name). My mommy is (name) and her number is: (number). My daddy is (name) and his number is (number). I got so many compliments from people on those!