Age for Tower of Terror?

[famy27]

My DDs both rode it at age 3. The older one, who is not quite as adventurous, was pretty ambivalent about it. The little one is already planning to ride again next month.

What was entertaining is that other parents in line would use my girls to bolster their children's spirits. "If that tiny little girl will ride, how bad can it be?" That made my DD feel very important and brave. Even if she had been terrified, I doubt she would have admitted it.

 

[Belle83]

I was 30 when I finally went on it, so.....

The drop sequence changes and there can be a bunch of small drops and usually at least one big drop. It's not as scary as it looks from watching the ride. Dinosaur is loud and dark but totally different. If she does well on drops, she should do ok. I would have her watch the ride and see how she feels about trying it?

 

[mickeyfanachey1999]

My oldest rode it at 5 and hated it but he loves it now, my youngest rode it at 4 and we rode 5 times that trip. On the other hand my nephew is 10 and won't go near it.

 

[helenb]

My son was 3 when he first rode it at DCA, and then the next summer, at age 4, he rode it at WDW. He loved it, and now (at age 13) it's one of his all time favorite rides. To be fair, my husband has always been very 'active' when playing with our kids. When they were only a couple of m,onths old he would toss them into the air and they would get 'air time' before the caught them again. They also loved being swing round faster and faster when they were babies/toddlers. So it wasn't surprising when my 24 month old son went to WDW for the first time and his favorite ride was the teacups... with my husband spinning the thing at centrifuge speed. The drops in ToT (once he got tall enough) were similar to other fun times with Daddy, so no big deal.

As for the dark rides, when my kids were small, I would bring along a packet of glow bracelets. I told the kids that it was pixie dust inside the bracelets and it would keep them safe. So if they were scared on a dark ride, they could look at their bracelet and know they would be okay. I never had one complaint about the darkness on any ride.

 

[sachilles]

I think the ride mechanism would be find for my 7 yo, as he'll ride anything. I'm concerned about whether they are actively trying to scare before you are on the ride mechanism. Last year at 6 we did haunted mansion, and another rider was adding the screaming effects which terrified him. Also didn't care for the black during the stitch attraction.

Is the ride mechanism jarring, or are the drops and change in direction fairly smooth?

 

[PrincessWithABlaster]

I have been reading this with interest since DS3 will be tall enough and just shy of 4 for our trip and loves rollercoasters but this feels too big. Showed him a video and he didn't make it to the actual dropping part before getting scared. That answers that. Although I will say, the on ride videos are pretty useless for determining what is going on during the ride. If I didn't know, I would have had no idea what was happening. I don't think either DD really did even after my explanation.

 

[Canuck16]

Our youngest was 6 the first time he went on and he loved it!

 

[Hannahinwonderland]

I'm 22 and you cant' make me go on it. LOL.

In terms of my siblings, the first time they had the courage to go on it they were about 11 and 8. They loved it then and would never dare to miss it.

 

[crazylady]

How young were your kids when they enjoyed or didn't enjoy TOT? My daughter didn't ride it last time, well none of us did but she loves the roller coasters. BTM, EE and Mine train. She did not like Dinosaur but she was 5 about to turn 6 in a month. This next trip she will be well over 7 years old and my son if he's tall enough to ride the 40'' rides will be 4. Would they freak out? Is it mean for me to have them ride it? I've watched videos and it doesnt seem to bad. But I honestly can't really tell. Do they drop you all the way down at any point or is it gradual the whole time? Thanks!

One of my favorite rides.

My younger son rode as a young 4. It was just the two of us and when the lights came on he was clutching the man's hand next to us. It was so funny. I'm sure his family is still laughing about that memory. Of course, he wanted to ride it again right away.

My older child finally rode it at 12 and he said never again! He doesn't like drops and the drops are pretty intense. I would not call it gradual at all.

 

[bball15fan]

I rode it for the first time when I was 27...and I have been to Disney a bunch of times before! It is dark for a lot of it.

If you want maybe watch the video and get a feel for how you think it is?

 

[Carrie Gruber]

I rode it when I was 11 and was terrified. My son rode it for the first time in October, at the age of 6 and he loved it! My 8 year old daughter refused to go on, but my son is much braver than she is. He went on it twice, as I did as well. I got over my fear of it and we both found a new favorite ride. I definitely suggest showing them videos of it on YouTube so they know what to expect.

 

[Crystal824]

My daughter was 4 and rode it during our last trip. She knew what it was going in and wanted to ride. She says she doesn't ever want to ride it again. She loves roller coasters. I think it was the story/preshow that scared her more than the actual drop.

 

[HM]

My 4 and 6 year old didn't like it.
They wouldn't ride again until they were in middle school and had the guts to try it again. Then they liked it.

 

[MHDTS]

My five year old niece loved it -- made me standby with her after we rode for her first time. On the other hand, my 28 year old son won't go near it.....

 

[PurpleKomodo]

I think it depends on the kid and how they react to scary ambiance. For example, DS (who is not quite tall enough, but will be within the year) would not do well with scary ambiance right now, even though I don't think the actual motion would bother him. He is pretty sensitive to being scared. I was the same way as kid. I didn't ride TOT until I was 17 years old because I was nervous about the backstory freaking me out. I am a pretty big chicken when it comes to scary stories and such. So, I would consider how your kids react to that as well as the drop part.

 

[FlightlessDuck]

I think my son was somewhere between 9 - 11 the one time we suckered him onto the ride. He hated it.

So, your mileage may vary.

 

[Stacymarie1216]

When we went last year our daughter was barely 7. It was her favorite ride! We ended up adding a second HS day just so she could ride again. Our 3 year old (he's a big 3, but still...) had to be consoled so many times because he wanted to ride too :/. Crazy kids .

 

[scrapquitler]

How young were your kids when they enjoyed or didn't enjoy TOT? My daughter didn't ride it last time, well none of us did but she loves the roller coasters. BTM, EE and Mine train. She did not like Dinosaur but she was 5 about to turn 6 in a month. This next trip she will be well over 7 years old and my son if he's tall enough to ride the 40'' rides will be 4. Would they freak out? Is it mean for me to have them ride it? I've watched videos and it doesnt seem to bad. But I honestly can't really tell. Do they drop you all the way down at any point or is it gradual the whole time? Thanks!

My son was 4 and he loved it. At 12, he hated it. I think that when he was younger, he didn't know enough to be scared.

 

[hollygolitely93]

How young were your kids when they enjoyed or didn't enjoy TOT? My daughter didn't ride it last time, well none of us did but she loves the roller coasters. BTM, EE and Mine train. She did not like Dinosaur but she was 5 about to turn 6 in a month. This next trip she will be well over 7 years old and my son if he's tall enough to ride the 40'' rides will be 4. Would they freak out? Is it mean for me to have them ride it? I've watched videos and it doesnt seem to bad. But I honestly can't really tell. Do they drop you all the way down at any point or is it gradual the whole time? Thanks!

Both of my kids rode when they turned 4 and hit the height requirement. Neither of them have had issue with any ride--though Dinosaur is not one they "want" to ride.

My son LOVED it! I told him if he gets scared to yell "WHEEEE!!!!" and the scaries turns to funnies! At the point of the ride where everything is quiet and we are entering the "twilight zone" all of a sudden you hear this little four-year old yell "WHEEEE!!!!"

and surprised us that trip as he was a thrill seeker on all the rides. When it was my daughter's turn she says she loved it too...however, all the ride pictures show she spent the entire drop time with her head in her lap

 

[bigbabyblues]

My youngest was 4 when he rode it the first time, and he has loved it ever since. My oldest was 9, I think, when he rode it thr first time, and he hates it. Will not ride it again, still, at 15. They are all differrent.