How scary is Dinosaur?

[TNC924]

I'm leaving for WDW in 9 days, I was there about 5 years ago when I was 16 and went on what was once called Countdown to Extinction now called Dinosaur...I'm taking my 9 year old sister who is a bit of a scary mary (although she's willing to go on EE), OK TO MY POINT! I was reading in one of the many guide books I purchased, a testimony from a 24 year old male saying he's a thrill seeker but will NEVER go on Dinosaur again!...I remember the old ride and it wasn't terrifying, just wondering if maybe they changed it drastically and if taking a somewhat timid 9 yo on the ride would be a wrong decision?

 

[Robo]

I'm leaving for WDW in 9 days, I was there about 5 years ago when I was 16 and went on what was once called Countdown to Extinction now called Dinosaur...I'm taking my 9 year old sister who is a bit of a scary mary (although she's willing to go on EE), OK TO MY POINT! I was reading in one of the many guide books I purchased, a testimony from a 24 year old male saying he's a thrill seeker but will NEVER go on Dinosaur again!...I remember the old ride and it wasn't terrifying, just wondering if maybe they changed it drastically and if taking a somewhat timid 9 yo on the ride would be a wrong decision?

They changed only the NAME.
It is really, by far, the "scariest" and one of the roughest attractions at WDW.
It is designed to be full of "jump out at you" surprise events.

I really LIKE to ride this attraction,
but if someone in your party frightens easily, beware.

 

[sassyredhead]

I found it scary, and I'm a "perpetually" 25, full-fledged adult. The whole "dinosuar chasing the car" storyline was a bit too Jurassic Parkesque for me!

However, I have a daredevil of an 8 year who LOVED the ride and wanted to go again and again . . .

 

[teamagic]

My 4 1/2 year old daughter could not get enough of this ride. We explained to her that the dinosaurs were going to me after her and at times they may pop up and surprise her. Then, we add that we are at Disney and it is all in fun and they would not do anything that was going to harm you. She is still talking about the ride and how she can't wait to go back and ride it again.

 

[polkadotladybug]

My dh and 9 yo went on this last month - although my dh thought this was a very cool ride, he said he almost knocked his teeth out trying to get away from the dinosaurs - he said it nearly scared the you-know-what out of him......then he said he wished I had gone on it - LOL!! My 9 yo thought it was scary, but she didn't cry or freak or anything. She also wasn't begging to go back on it (unlike R&R Coaster, Exp.Everest, Tower of Terror, and Space MTn).

 

[carolinagirl]

My DD went on when she was 7. She is now 9 and still won't go back on. Even I get scared, and I'm an adult and know that nothing is going to get me. This is one of the scariest rides at WDW to me!

 

[Mickeygotmymoney]

Well, at the end of our last trip we came to the conclusion that on disney rides when it got very dark you needed to plan to take a sudden dip down on the ride, or something scary was going to jump out.

My 22 y.o. ds loved the ride, but will admit that it scared her. However, the 7 year old in front of us was more than happy to tell her that he was only 7 and was not scared. It has all of the disney basics jumping out at you, but if you sister knows not to take things too seriously, she would be fine. However, if she is likely to be scared and refuse to go on any other rides I would avoid.

As for me, I still wish I had the picture of my sis ducking with the 7 year old in front of her waving to the T-rex.

 

[ChrisFL]

I've been on it once and it was a bit intense even for me...whats funny though is I thought to myself "do kids really go on this ride and like it?", then I noticed 2 girls sitting in front of me who couldnt' have been older than 7 or 8 years old who seemed to love it.

 

[BlindTyldak]

I rode it a couple of months after it opened and again two years ago. The only difference is it is darker now than it used to be, but I think they did that to hide some of the effects (you used to be able to see the mechanics on some of the compys, the pterodactyl, and exactly how the meteor shower worked). There is no doubt that it can be a very scary ride to some people. My DD6 was extremely nervous about going on it but wanted to try it because she is a dino fanatic and won't be tall enough to ride Primevil Whirl, so she felt like she would be missing out on a huge part of Dinoland. I let her listen to a ridethrough and gave her some goofy explanations about Imagineering some of the scarier parts, and now that she has a good idea of what it will at least sound like and some ideas of what she might see and how it might work, she's all excited. Maybe giving her a heads up about some of the things that happen might help?

 

[nightowlky]

They changed only the NAME.
It is really, by far, the "scariest" and one of the roughest attractions at WDW.
It is designed to be full of "jump out at you" surprise events.

I really LIKE to ride this attraction,
but if someone in your party frightens easily, beware.

Rough as in jerking you into a whiplash headache?

 

[BlindTyldak]

Rough as in jerking you into a whiplash headache?

Put it this way, take the neck and back warnings very seriously.

 

[TheDoctor]

It is a great ride. It has some points where they try to scare you but is not too bad.

 

[nightowlky]

Put it this way, take the neck and back warnings very seriously.

Guess I'll have to skip that one, then. I can handle most coaster rides but if it's that bad, my back/neck (from a couple of car wrecks) wouldn't fare too well. :-(

 

[NCDisneyMom]

My 6yo scares easily, but on our last trip, dh talked him into trying it. We hadn't been on it in years, but I reminded him that even *I* was scared on. But, dh insisted it wasn't that scary, and took ds on it anyway. Well, ds came off in tears. Dh had a lot of making up to do that day!

 

[BlindTyldak]

Guess I'll have to skip that one, then. I can handle most coaster rides but if it's that bad, my back/neck (from a couple of car wrecks) wouldn't fare too well. :-(

I hate to say it but I think it would be wise. It simulates a Jeep ride over extremely rough terrain at what feels like very high speeds, in a vehicle with no suspension to speak of, with some very sudden accelerations and stops. If you've done some extreme 4-wheeling and can handle that you may be fine, but if you think that would be beyond you, stay clear.

 

[nightowlky]

My chiropractor would love it if I did!

 

[BlindTyldak]

My chiropractor would love it if I did!

yeah, I think my own is going to be getting a couple of extra sessions in his pocket when I get back . . . I've had a back injury since my last trip myself, but dinosaur is by far my favorite ride in the parks and (bad BT, BAD BT!) I just can't bring myself to pass it over this time!

 

[corrinna]

My son who is 12 was leary about going on the ride, but a cast member near the ride overheard us and began telling him step by step what the ride was about. When he still didn't believe her, she took our whole family back to the room where all the moniters are to show him how the ride works and what to expect. Then, guess what!!!! He went on it !!!!!! I would try this when you go! I hope you have lots of fun on your trip!

 

[TNC924]

Thank you all so much for the helpful tips, I will definetely use them since I really want to go on (even more now!) and would hate to have her waiting off to the side (unsafe and unfair). So thank you thank you thank you!

 

[pigby]

Dinosaur for us is a weird one. DD(12) and DH have both ridden it and both would take some persuading to ride again - find it very scary - they ride everything else including all the coasters at WDW, US and SW. I quite like it and don't find it too scary (if a little bumpy) and usually I'm much more 'chicken' than they are.