is haunted mansion scary?

[jbrnhrt]

this sounds like a dumb question, but i'm asking it anyway. is hm scary, or is it more about the illusions? I'm asking because we have a ds6 and dd2 and don't know if we should do this attraction with them. dh dragged us on the haunted house at knoebels and the poor kids were terrified...ok, and me too! thanks for your thoughts

 

[flicx]

I love the ride,it is more of a whimsical haunted house,but it has it's moments.Depending on how outgoing your kids are is the true answer to the question.I took my son on before he was three and he liked it alot.This is the same kid who was scared of sweetums at the muppet movie.I think with a little coaching from mom and dad they will like it.By the way we were on the one at knoebels and in our opinion it is scarier than the mansion at disney.It is a not miss for our family and we always go on multiple times!

 

[Nadjalu]

I would say you are going to get more "it isn't scary" from the disers here, but I think it holds a "nostalgia" for most everyone and that influences the answer.

That said, I don't think it is too scary now, but I am 40. LOL

As a child I was petrified of scary things and it would've scared me to death! I can "rationalize" it all away now, but as a child I wouldn't have been able to.

So I say if your children were scared at another haunted house, it would be a good idea for you to ride it without them (while they stay with dad) and you make the call. You know your children best.

Have a safe and happy trip!

 

[ValinWV]

I don't think it is scary. I don't do haunted houses, but I like this one. My DD's 4 and 6 both like it. They liked it even when they were two and they didn't find it scary.

 

[GaPaige]

We took our then 9 and 7 year olds on it last year and they were both terrified. Granted, they scare pretty easily, but they absolutely refuse to consider ever riding it again.

I don't find most it very scary, nothing jumps out and touches you or anything like that. It's one of my favorite rides (without the kids ).

 

[g-dad66]

My grandson is afraid of ghosts and the dark, but he really wanted to do the Haunted Mansion two years ago (age 4).

Big mistake.

After emerging from the ride, he burst into tears and uncontrollable trembling. Needless to say, we didn't let him go on any other dark attractions that trip, and he still won't do the Haunted Mansion to this day.

 

[comedyclaire]

This is my favourite ride in WDW because of the illusions - but I do find it sort of funny-creepy. As Nadjalu says, it might be better if you ride first and see what you think. I've seen little kids come out laughing and wanting to go on again, and then I've seen some who couldn't get away from the place quick enough.

 

[fabmic]

I have seen many kids who are around 5 crying and scared but rarely do I see a toddler scared. You need to know you kids and go with that. If your child gets scared in the two rooms before you get on the ride I would take them out the "chichen exit".

 

[dacky041208]

I recommend watching the ride on youtube and make the decision for yourself. It's obviously a lot different in person, but it can help to give you an idea of what the ride is like.

Nothing will jump out at you or touch you or anything...you sit happily in your little doom buggy relaxing in the air conditioning.

One thing to do on the ride is to look for "hidden mickeys". That could help your older one. They can focus on looking for something fun when something scary is happening.

HTH!

 

[tefrench]

Knobel's Grove haunted house is really scary! Even my 11 ds doesn't quite like it, althought he won't admit to being scared; he calls the ride "weird."

You know, I went to WDW a few times as a child, and the Haunted Mansion has always been my favorite ride; in part, because as one point, the cars turned around, and tilt just a little backwards.

Knobel's house is loud, totally dark, etc. The Haunted Mansion isn't like that.

We rode it twice, and the second time, did the Hidden Mickey thing; that kept the kids looking, and then they decided they liked it

 

[Tiffany]

this sounds like a dumb question, but i'm asking it anyway. is hm scary, or is it more about the illusions? I'm asking because we have a ds6 and dd2 and don't know if we should do this attraction with them. dh dragged us on the haunted house at knoebels and the poor kids were terrified...ok, and me too! thanks for your thoughts

I find nothing scary about the HM, but there are some that do. I have a friend who has been to WDW many many times and will not ride the HM. I good example of to each their own.

 

[kaligal]

I have a friend who was scared to death of HM after riding it when she was five years old. Totally freaked her out. She still tells her mom that someone should have called CPS. Her mom just says she was a big baby, which really is true.

Some kids, like her, might be freaked, but I think most 6 year olds would be okay.

You just never know what is going to freak a kid out.

 

[Moonlight_Wolf]

It's not quite scary as it is creepy. Nothing jumps out at you... If anything did I wouldn't be such a fanatic. hen again my 26 year old sister rode it once and refused to ride it again, calling me weird for wanting to do it the I think 30+ times I did on that trip. (More to irk her since she was being a pain in the rear that trip.)

When I ride it with my mom we try to more figure out how they do several of the scenes so I can put that in my school project since the Ride is mostly about the illusions.

 

[PghLybrt]

I think the scariest element is when the lights go out in the stretch room. My nephews freaked out over that a little, I told them not to worry we are in the house that mouse built nothing will happen to you. They continued to the ride and loved it!

 

[nytimez]

I don't think it's scary for most adults, but I can see how it might frighten a child, especially a small child. It could also lead to questions about ghosts and death, so if you haven't answered those yet, you might want to have an answer prepared.

 

[stm61]

none of my kids have ever been scared of HM, and they all rode it, except oldest ds, when they were toddlers/preschoolers. My niece is another story! That child is afraid of everything, even refuses to be in any room of her own home alone, and no, she's never been in any situation that caused this, she's always been this way. Last fall she totally freaked out before ever getting inside the mansion, to the point that another niece became hysterical along with her. She's 7 now and still works her way into hysterics if anyone even asks if she wants to try it yet. Unless you have a child who over reacts like my niece, you probably won't have any problems.

 

[ML_LovesDisney]

We just took our 5 and 2 year old on yesterday and they both were fine. DH had to give our 5yrold his sunglasses to "protect" her, but she came out and wasn't scared and slept just fine. The little one didn't even flinch.

 

[figmentgirl]

Watch it on YouTube. That's what we did for my kids who were 8 and 11 at the time. They got comfortable with the idea and of course loved it. I rode that ride again and again as a small child. However, your kids will take cues from you. If you are nervous, they will be too.

The ride is not scary, but if they think it will be, they will be scared... know what i mean?

 

[I-Bike]

I don't find Haunted Mansion scary at all but I can see where a small child would be frightened (the graveyard scene can be creepy). Dinosaur was scary to me though but I think it was the surprise Dino in my face.

 

[Lowell317]

My first trip was when I was 6. I was not exactly an adventurous boy. The neighbors used to chase after me on Halloween removing their masks yelling "ITS US! HERE TAKE THE CANDY!!!!!" So I feel I'm well qualified to speak to the more timid child.

Haunted Mansion was always one of my favorite rides. A couple times I may have squeezed Mommy's hand a little tighter than necessary but I just loved the ride.
I wouldn't watch scary movies as a kid, I would never do haunted hay rides or anything like that, but HM is a must do