Credit: DisneyMillions of people visit Walt Disney World Resort every year, and many of those visitors are families with young children. Disney knows that parents need a place to feed their babies or a quiet space for some much-needed rest. Because of this, Baby Care Centers can be found in the Magic Kingdom, EPCOT, Animal Kingdom, and Disney’s Hollywood Studios.
Disney’s Baby Care Centers provide a number of services, including quiet rooms with rocking chairs, changing rooms, restrooms, kitchens where they can heat bottles, and feeding rooms with plenty of seating and televisions.
Related: What You Need to Know About Baby Care Centers at Disney Parks
While the Baby Care Centers can be lifesavers for families with babies and toddlers, one guest felt that Disney and its cast members do not do enough to make sure that breastfeeding moms feel comfortable while using the facilities.
Reddit user ForsakenPianist9310 shared that she recently vacationed at Walt Disney World Resort for her birthday. The OP (Original Poster) is a new mom and needed to pump while she was in the park. She went into the Baby Care Center and said that a cast member led her into a room that was meant for mothers who were breastfeeding or pumping.
Unfortunately, the experience was not what she was hoping for.
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The OP said she felt very uncomfortable when she saw an entire family and a grown man in the breastfeeding area. She also confirmed that the area she was taken to was specifically for breastfeeding and pumping mothers.
This past weekend my husband and I went to disney to celebrate my birthday. While there I had to use the baby care center to pump for my baby. When I went into the nursing room, there were a few moms breastfeeding but there was also a whole family, including a grown man sitting in there. I do not feel comfy pumping or breastfeeding around a lot of people, especially in front of someone that is not family. I went to the cast member and she told me there was nothing she could do, so i went back in and turn the chair around so i can pump and leave. Am i wrong for feeling uncomfy here?
Edit: when i was there i asked the cast member where the lactation room was and she guided me to the room spoken about above. She verified it was in fact the room for moms to breastfeed/pump in
Am i wrong for feeling uncomfy
byu/ForsakenPianist9310 inDisneyWorld
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Commenters were surprised and confused as to why an entire family would want to be in the room, especially a grown man. This became an even bigger point when the OP clarified that the area was designed for nursing moms.
One commenter thought that maybe the cast member didn’t realize that men and families were not supposed to be in the lactation/nursing rooms. Of course, men are allowed in the Baby Care Center, but not in rooms meant for nursing.
That’s weird the cast member said that. The first time I went into the nursing/pumping room my husband and I had no clue (or we were overwhelmed and didn’t realize) what room we were about to enter and a CM stopped my husband in time. Once she told us what the room was we were grateful she stopped us. My husband would have been mortified to make any mother feel uncomfortable like that.
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However, some defended the man, saying that maybe he was from another country where breastfeeding in public is more normalized than it is in the United States. So, it’s possible that the man didn’t think about being in the room, since it’s not really considered “taboo” where he is from.
You’re not wrong for feeling uncomfortable, that should be a safe space for you to go and pump but I think also that some of the other commenters should take a beat before demonizing that man who was probably there to help his wife and help with his kids and most likely wasn’t there to perv on breast pumping women or be a creep in any way.
Also, a lot of Disney guests are not from the US (or at least that’s how it was) and so their views on modesty or what is and isn’t appropriate in public may not be aligned with ours. It doesn’t make it right or make anybody feel better but perhaps it can offer a different perspective to the situation and how the CM was trained on how to handle it.
In addition to rest areas and nursing rooms, Disney Baby Care Centers also sell a number of products for parents who might have forgotten some of the essentials. Guests can purchase things like diapers, baby food, juice, baby wipes, over-the-counter medication, sunscreen, clothing, and even formula.
If you need to utilize the Baby Care Center during your Disney vacation, but feel like you are in an uncomfortable situation, do not hesitate to speak to a cast member. They should be able to help you find a space where you can relax and be a present parent.
Do you think the cast member was wrong to allow a man and his entire family into the nursing room at the Baby Care Center? Should there be strict rules about who is allowed in nursing rooms? Have you ever used Disney’s Baby Care Center? Let us know your thoughts in the comments!