Minimum age of 14 to enter parks alone: Starts March 23rd

[Chuck S]

I agree with you; however I do think tickets should be priced based on these rules. If someone is old enough to need an adult ticket, then they are old enough to be treated as an adult. I don't think Disney gets to say 9 and older need an adult ticket, but you have to be 14 before we treat you like an adult. All that I am saying is that there needs to be consistency between the policies.

So, if Disney were to charge the same for all tickets, adult and child like they do with an AP, you'd be OK with it, as long as the actual ticket had Child/Junior printed on it for anyone under 14? Or if they simply didn't designate whether a ticket was child or adult, just a ticket?

Just asking, since that seems like a really easy way to address those that say that kids 10+ pay the same as a 14 yo, just charge the same but call the ticket a different name.

 

[CoasterDadof2]

I think we're missing one of the bigger points that will make this policy difficult for Disney. Having a random CM verbally determine if a child is 14 is near impossible.

Here's the scenario. A child, who is 14, goes to a Disney park. The CM at the gate stops him/her for being too young, then contacts said parent. Said parent insists they are 14, but Disney disagrees and denies entry.

While I don't believe the scenario is illegal, it screams a PR nightmare for Disney.

 

[tjkraz]

Here's the scenario. A child, who is 14, goes to a Disney park. The CM at the gate stops him/her for being too young, then contacts said parent. Said parent insists they are 14, but Disney disagrees and denies entry.

Under those conditions, why would Disney deny entry?

If they child can quickly answer questions like their Date of Birth and current grade level in school, the screening will probably not go any further than that. If a parent is contacted and confirms the age, the encounter will definitely be over.

The only time Disney would press it further is if there is some behavioral issue which violates park policy. If a 14 year old is guilty of improper dress, language or overall park behavior, he/she will be asked to leave for that reason.

This policy change is little more than a deterrent. By publicizing the age 14 minimum, 95% of those under age will willingly comply. Or rather, their parents will.

Some will still try to cheat the system. Some will succeed.

And Disney will probably turn-away some children who are under the age limit. But I can't see it turning into a PR nightmare. A parent who knowingly violates park rules--AND thinks it's appropriate to send a 12/13 year old to a theme park unsupervised--isn't going to garner a lot of public sympathy.

 

[bearloch]

we have aps my DD is 13 and 8 mos. she and her BFF who is 13 also walk around alone all the time.. They know the parks and what to do in a Emergency I am always in the same park as them but often watching shows or riding rides! I think Disney is just enforcing the already in place rule that kids need someone 14 older to escort younger kids on ride! Not to ride alone themselves I believe the current alone age to ride is 8?? anyway under 14 is kinda young to be arriving and leaving such a busy place alone in my opion!

 

[Tekneek]

I personally think that the policy should be based on the age that adult tickets are required. Bottom line is if someone has to pay the adult price, they should be treated as an adult.

I am 100% in agreement with this. If 11-13 cannot be allowed in as adults, then they shouldn't be charged like adults. Bring back the Junior ticket. Any behavioral/safety issues out there are not addressed by a policy that simply requires an adult to enter the gate (who then could leave and never return). The only thing this policy can realistically accomplish is padding revenues by making it twice as expensive for someone that age to enter the park.

 

[cleverclovers]

I think it's a great idea to make the parent accompany the under 14 crowd into Disney! What happens if a child is injured at Disney and the parent is not at the park (work, shopping, etc)? Who is liable? What if the parent claims that they did not give the child permission to go to the park? What if the child needs to be removed from that park and the parent is nowhere to be found? Better for Disney to err on the side of caution.

As for asking the child's age, I always make my nieces get a state ID before flying. What's wrong with them carrying their ID in the park? ID in case of emergency. ID if they have to cash traveler's checks. You never know what can happen.

 

[manning]

Require the parent buy the ticket and declare the age. If something happens to the child and there is no parent then that should relieve Disney of responsibility.

Let's start cranking in more parental responsibility.

 

[Tekneek]

Require the parent buy the ticket and declare the age. If something happens to the child and there is no parent then that should relieve Disney of responsibility.

Let's start cranking in more parental responsibility.

There is already a waiver of general liability attached to the use of the ticket. Only through negligence by Disney as a company do they become liable, and that would have to be proven in court. That would still be true regardless of the age of the ticket user and whether or not anyone of the required age entered the park with them.

All this policy does is require an adult enter the park with them. It doesn't require them to stay.

 

[Alice Royal]

I can see this working with the new Magic Bands. Make kids 14 and older purchase 'adult' tickets, and keep the DOB/age info stored on the RFID bands so that when a child under the age of 14 scans for entry, the CM at the turnstile is reminded to make sure that someone of adult age is accompanying.

I don't think I could have handled being alone in Disney at 14. Obviously, some children are different and Disney has to set a reasonable standard. I'd rather see kids unaccompanied in a place like Disney than in the middle of a large city.

 

[Tekneek]

I don't think I could have handled being alone in Disney at 14. Obviously, some children are different and Disney has to set a reasonable standard. I'd rather see kids unaccompanied in a place like Disney than in the middle of a large city.

I agree with you. What I will say is that it isn't unusual for us to send a child through the queue with another parent already inside the park waiting, or for us to enter in separate lines. My son knows what to do, and is about the same height and size as me anyway (at the age of 12), so we don't always enter in the same queue (but we do enter together, as in he is never in the park for more than a minute or so without one of his parents).

 

[smitch425]

I am 100% in agreement with this. If 11-13 cannot be allowed in as adults, then they shouldn't be charged like adults. Bring back the Junior ticket. Any behavioral/safety issues out there are not addressed by a policy that simply requires an adult to enter the gate (who then could leave and never return). The only thing this policy can realistically accomplish is padding revenues by making it twice as expensive for someone that age to enter the park.

It is not an "adult" ticket. It is a "guest ages 10+" ticket. It is based on the average age at which most people reach all ride height requirements, thus giving them full access to all rides within the parks. The "adult" reference is for the dining plan, which again is the average age that most children stop eating kid's meals.

There is no need to create a ticket for juniors. Last year we aged up our daughter so she could have mor options on the dining plan. It costs a whopping $19.17 between her guest 3-9 ticket and her guest 10+ ticket for a 9 day hopper. The current tickets are fine, IMHO. The only thing a 10-13 year old can't do is enter the park alone, but once they are in, they have full access to everything. Creating a ticket for the very few kids this new rule could affect is a bit over the top.

Personally, I think 7 is way too young to be riding alone. With ride break downs and evacuations, a 7 year old could be afraid or not understand instructions well, but since it is Disney's rule, there is nothing any of us can do to change it. You either accept their rules or you spend your money elsewhere.

 

[Lewisc]

Would it make people happier if Disney didn't call it adult admission? The admission price is XXX. We are pleased to offer a discount to guests age 3-9.

Full price is charged to guests able to enjoy most attractions. Nothing to do with the age you're an adult or allowed to enter the park without a parent.

 

[smitch425]

Would it make people happier if Disney didn't call it adult admission?

It isn't an "adult" ticket. See my post above.

 

[Tekneek]

It is not an "adult" ticket. It is a "guest ages 10+" ticket. It is based on the average age at which most people reach all ride height requirements, thus giving them full access to all rides within the parks. The "adult" reference is for the dining plan, which again is the average age that most children stop eating kid's meals.

For people who are late to the party, that is what they would think. People who remember the Junior ticket range see it differently.

There is no need to create a ticket for juniors.

I wasn't talking about them creating a junior ticket. I was talking about them bringing it back. You do know they used to have that, right?

With ride break downs and evacuations, a 7 year old could be afraid or not understand instructions well, but since it is Disney's rule, there is nothing any of us can do to change it. You either accept their rules or you spend your money elsewhere.

Perhaps. We might be able to get Disney to honestly explain their reasons for it, regardless of whether that changes anything or not. The idea that this has to do with unruly children roaming parent-less throughout the parks doesn't work, since the requirement is only for entry. If they wanted to solve that problem, they would require the adult stay.

 

[smitch425]

For people who are late to the party, that is what they would think. People who remember the Junior ticket range see it differently.



I wasn't talking about them creating a junior ticket. I was talking about them bringing it back. You do know they used to have that, right?
.

Sorry...I was not aware of the "junior ticket" history. In my defense, I was only 7 when they got rid of them.

 

[Lewisc]

I wasn't talking about them creating a junior ticket. I was talking about them bringing it back. You do know they used to have that, right?



Perhaps. We might be able to get Disney to honestly explain their reasons for it, regardless of whether that changes anything or not. The idea that this has to do with unruly children roaming parent-less throughout the parks doesn't work, since the requirement is only for entry. If they wanted to solve that problem, they would require the adult stay.

MYW tickets never included junior tickets. Junior MYW tickets would be brand new. Didn't Disney discontinue junior tickets almost 30 years ago? JMO but that's long enough to justify calling junior tickets brand new, in the very unlikely event Disney decided to offer them.

It's not clear if the new policy is in response to real problems or just a way to have a definite rule instead of leaving it to CMs at the gate to decide if a child appeared way too young to enter on his own.

I agree if the problem was unruly kids running wild the new policy might not be sufficient.

 

[Tekneek]

MYW tickets never included junior tickets. Junior MYW tickets would be brand new. Didn't Disney discontinue junior tickets almost 30 years ago? JMO but that's long enough to justify calling junior tickets brand new, in the very unlikely event Disney decided to offer them.

I'll grant that, to a degree. Just because it has been a long time doesn't make it a brand new invention, though.

It's not clear if the new policy is in response to real problems or just a way to have a definite rule instead of leaving it to CMs at the gate to decide if a child appeared way too young to enter on his own.

I agree if the problem was unruly kids running wild the new policy might not be sufficient.

That's the problem I have. It is unclear to me what the purpose of this is. It can't be to handle other problems with kids throughout the park, because nothing about this entrance policy addresses that.

Whether or not any of us would have ever sent an 11 year old in by themselves, the fact remains that, during the previous decades where an 11 year old was paying the same price as a 25 year old, they were allowed to enter the park equally. Now, for reasons unclear to anyone but Disney, they suddenly cannot. That constitutes a significant change. For at least 35 years, it appears that those buying the 10+ tickets have been able to enter the park just the same way. Now, a portion of those ticket holders have to bring another fare with them.

I'm left wondering what this "good reason" was that took them decades to arrive at...

 

[java]

Just a guess but could it be related to the tour groups? I wonder if this will expand to be only x number of under 14s per adult.

 

[Tekneek]

Just a guess but could it be related to the tour groups? I wonder if this will expand to be only x number of under 14s per adult.

Doesn't appear to be part of the policy. I don't think there is a cap on that. Besides, regardless of what some guests and front line CMs might think, I don't believe Disney has a problem with tour groups. They usually stay on property and Disney likes their money as much as mine and yours.

 

[EagleScout]

Doesn't appear to be part of the policy. I don't think there is a cap on that. Besides, regardless of what some guests and front line CMs might think, I don't believe Disney has a problem with tour groups. They usually stay on property and Disney likes their money as much as mine and yours.

My guess (and clearly just a guess) is that the recent drowning of the pre-teen at pop century - and the related negative publicity (it made lead story on cnn.com at one point) - may have prompted an overall review of safety/adult supervision policies.