Is Fantasmic scary?

[DisneyVC]

Do you think Fantasmic would be to scary for a 3 year old? I've never seen the show, so I'm not totally sure if we should include it in our plans of things to do.

Thanks!

 

[civileng68]

Do you think Fantasmic would be to scary for a 3 year old? I've never seen the show, so I'm not totally sure if we should include it in our plans of things to do.

Thanks!

It depends on the tolerance of your child. I think it's irresponsible for anyone to tell you "no", when they don't know your child.

I've been to Fantasmic and could definately see where a child would be scared. The music itself can be scary at one point. I've seen children get scared. However, I think you should still go. I've noticed that typically a parent will turn the child towards them if they get scared and just put ear plugs in and all is good.

The "scary" part is only a few minutes long as well. It's truly not anything bad but, some kids are more sensitive than others.

Let's put it this way, there are villains in the show, and they act their part.

 

[orljustin]

Fantasmic is loud, and there are large fire effects, that may affect a younger viewer.

I'm sure if you search on youtube, you'll be able to find a video of Fantasmic that will help you make a decision.

For the most part it is relatively benign - the volume would probably be the main issue.

 

[kldmom2000]

Yes, there are some scenes that are scary since it's Mickey's "imagination" and nearly all of the villains are featured.... BUT when we took our girls for their first time 2 yrs ago, they were 2 and 4. I thought for sure we'd have to leave during the show because my then 4 yr old was terrified of ALL characters.... she surprised me in that Fantasmic was her favorite show/ride/attraction the entire week we were there!!!! We took them back again a few weeks ago (they were now 6 and turning 4 on the trip) and neither was afraid.... you could also go to www.youtube.com and seek out some Fantasmic video clips to show your 3 yr old to see what the reaction might be???

Good luck!

 

[Robo]

I'm sure if you search on youtube, you'll be able to find a video of Fantasmic that will help you make a decision.

Fantasmic!- In 3 Parts:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0A0tE3jOjYw
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AuutOB1hHOE
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lNy5BuTkyd0

The quality of the originals is very fine, but when I must compress the heck out of 'em to "fit" on the web, they begin to look (and sound) pretty bad.

 

[kj2mom]

I took my 4 years olds a couple weeks ago. My son can be scared easily, earlier that day he cried at the Muppets and Voyage of the Little Mermaid so I was fully prepared for some issues at Fantasmic but knew he would enjoy the majority of it so definitely wanted to give it a try. I talked to him alot about the story line and the villains and Mickey's imagination etc etc. He decided he was going to be Super Kyle and help Mickey. He loved every second and now after being home for a couple weeks he still says that Mickey and the 'bad guys' was his favorite part.

I agree, only you know your child, but for me setting up what would happen and preparing him made it the best night of our trip!

 

[bsmandi]

We are going for the first time this year too. I was worried about it being scary for our son, but I read somewhere to let him watch the fantasmic movie before so he would know a little more about it. I am interested in what others have to say!

 

[Trini]

My kids are older and it was not scary for them, however, we had a group of young families sitting by us and probably half of the toddlers/preschoolers were crying, hiding and 'not' enjoying the show for some of the louder/scarier portions.

I know some people love that show, but my family didn't think it was that great & would not do it again. Watch the itube videos that others recommended, and I would say if you are even a little apprehensive, skip it.

 

[whogirl'smom]

My DD5 was not scared, but I think she would have been at age 3. We sat a few rows from the front and you could really feel the heat from the fire on the water, which caused us all to jump. If I were you I would definitely get ear plugs and think about sitting farther toward the top maybe. It's a wonderful show and there are so many parts that DD loved, it outweighed the somewhat scary parts. We didn't see any kids crying around us, but then again we seemed to be in the middle of dozens of Brazilian teens!

 

[tkd lisa]

I've only seen this with my kids when they were teens. But I know they wouldn't have tolerated it as young children. They are 13 and 14 now, and they still cover their ears. It's VERY loud. Some of the villians are huge! and menacing. It is a wonderful show. However, my belief is that if you are asking if your child will be afraid, then it's because you know they have issues with loud or scary things. Fantasmic has loud and scary things, so it's probably not a good idea.

 

[JerseyGirl114]

Our son was 3 1/2 last time we went & he saw a sampler of this on the DVD planning video & he kept telling me he did not want to see it, so since it wasn't that big of a deal to the rest of us we didn't go.

This time around he will be 6 1/2 & he has already asked if we can see it this time because he doesn't think he will be scared. So hopefully we will be able to catch it this time around.

If after seeing it on youtube & he doesn't want to see it, then don't force him & just think, you already have your next excuse to plan another trip

 

[mill4023]

It really just depends on the child.
We were worried about our 4 yr old the first time we went because she was easily frightened on rides. But she enjoyed it and wasn't scared at all. For her, watching a show where she could close her eyes if she wanted wasn't scary but being on a dark ride where she couldn't get off was very scary.

 

[EEYOREMAMA]

I haven't seen it myself, but my 13 and 14 year old finally saw it for the first time. They both told me that they could see where it would scare a younger child and there were some little ons, who didn't handle the show too well. My boys said there was a lot of screaming and crying. Parents didn't leave with those children, so I hope the little guys don't wind up traumatized.

I think it's up to each parent to decide if your kids can handle something like that. We had to run out of the It's Tough To Be A Bug theater when the boys were 4 & 5. They still have photos of my 2 sons in the lobby with a circle and a line through their faces. I don't think they'll be allowed back in, until their 21.

 

[QuickGold]

I just wrote a page about the scariest attractions at the Studios: http://www.mgmstudios.org/scary.html

With the 3 year old, you'll want to know it will be dark, loud and some scenes could be scary with the fire and very large characters.

 

[MermaidMommy]

DD saw it for her first time when she was not quite 4, and she loved it. I think the fact that, like another poster said, it's a show and not a ride you're stuck on made it less threatening for her, as did the fact that the action takes place across the water, so there aren't any scary characters right in front of you -- it's more removed.

I think the part that could scare kiddos the most is where Maleficient turns into a giant (and I mean really, really big) dragon, so if you do go I would warn your child about it -- the youtube idea would also work well, too. I would explain to him that Fantasmic is like Mickey's having a dream about all the good and bad characters, but that, of course, the good guys beat the villains in the end.

 

[kimberh]

I held my 3yr old granddaugher. At the scary parts I covered her eyes and talked her through it. She did great. She gets bad dreams if she watches all of the Little Mermaid so we edit it for her. She did not have a bad dream so we were good to go.