At what age...

[FlameGirl]

We're heading to DLR in 30 days (woohoo!) and my husband and I are tossing around the idea of allowing my daughter (she's 10) a little bit more freedom this trip than in the past.

Meaning, telling her we will meet her back in a certain spot in say, 15 minutes. She will have her cell phone with her. She certainly won't be allowed to roam freely all day, or even an hour.

At what age have any of you began allowing a little looser grasps on your kids inside the park? Is there a minimum age for kids to ride alone?

It's funny because in theory, I think it's good to get her used to being more responsible and accountable for her whereabouts. I'm sure that when we are there, I'll probably hide behind trees and in bushes when we tell her we will meet her someplace, so I am really curious as to what others have experienced.

Thanks.

 

[rszdtrvl]

I don't think I would let my son off on his own unless he was at least 16.

We always stick together as a family at the parks.

He will be 13 in December, and even if he was with a friend, I doubt I would let them out of my sight.

There are too many crazies out there, and I consider myself a super protective parent.

Even if I had the urge to let him "run a couple of stores down to buy a caramel apple" I doubt I could mentally allow him to.

 

[aandjmama]

It's hard to say...I suppose depending on crowds, time of day, specific boundaries you'll give her etc. It might be ok. I would suggest having a plan B in case she couldn't find you--asking a cast member for help, for example. If it's super busy, it probably wouldn't be a good idea though. But if it's early in the morning, maybe allowing her to go to a specific ride or two, and then come back to meet you. I think you'll have to trust your gut on this one--when you're there you'll know if it's the right thing to do or not.

My 11 year old son thinks that when we go in December that I should just sit on a bench while he goes on the rides-not a chance!!!

Have fun!

 

[hlbtimes2]

Depends so much on the child and how well they know the parks, IMO. Our dd is 11, we will be going in Dec. I think its her 8 or 9th visit. The last trip was about 6 months ago. She knows the park very well. She knows where every bathroom is, where to buy the best food, how to get fast pass, etc. On the last trip we let her go to the bathroom by herself while we were waiting for parades, fireworks, etc. We also let her go buy snacks or drinks a couple of times. This trip we will allow her a little more free time, if she wants it. I can't see her wanting to go off on her own for very long, unless she does it just to prove she can.

 

[disneynerd420]

It wasn't until I was about 15 when my father let me go off on my own at DL. However, we had not been there in a long time at that point, so I'm sure he probably would have been ok with me going off by myself when I was a little bit younger.


While I am a bit liberal, I can't say that I would be comfortable with letting my 10 year old child go off by themselves. I would wait a little longer personally. But only you can decide this, since only you know your child and whether or not she is mature enough to handle it.

 

[PinkBudgie]

I have twin boys and at 15 years we let them go off together with cell phones. They had to stay in the same park as us. It even happened that once while they were off a medium sized earthquake happened. They were still in the area though, so we found them. This year they will be 16, almost 17 when we go and we will let them go to whichever park they want. Maybe also back to the room, if we end up staying close enough. Anyway, that was our comfort zone.

 

[ballarinamom]

In this day and age, it's dangerous to do anything by yourself- especially girls. If she had a friend, it may be a little different but not by herself until she was maybe in 8th grade or so. and we had been to DL so many times that she knew it like the back of her hand. Even then, I would be freaked out. Too many crazies out there

 

[jory29]

I would have a lot of concerns about my child going alone anywhere in Disneyland. Mind you, our son is 12 now, and I can see that girls tend to mature faster, but if I did have a 10 year old daughter I would have a lot of reservations about allowing her to go off on her own should something of an emergency nature take place, etc. I also think it is not as fun for a child to be on their own, as they can't talk to their family about cool things they see, etc. I guess I believe that Disneyland is best when shared with people we love.

 

[lulubelle]

I would say a few years older, too - more of a teen.
Enjoy every minute with them you can, they grow up so fast.

Have a magical trip.

 

[seetheworld]

I would never let my 10 year old daughter alone in Disney and I have a 10 y/o daughter myself who is very mature for her age. A teen, no problem, but a 10 y/o no way. W/a friend or older sibling maybe at 10, but alone is not going to happen. No matter how responsible she is, it's just not "safe" to let her go alone. That's just my opinion though. HTH!

 

[onelilspark]

When I was about 12 I was allowed to go off with my brother, but always together, never alone. Even today my parents don't like it when I'm by myself

I can see if she wants to go on a ride that you don't, watch her go in the entrance and waiting for her by the exit. Especially on a ride that has an entirely outdoor line!

 

[WebmasterMaryJo]

When my kids were 10 I would let them go off by themselves for short periods at a time, however, I have a boy and girl, and they were always together. I'm not sure that I would let my 10 year old daughter go off by herself, although I would let her go on rides unaccompanied, with me behind or in front of her.

 

[Krissy Marissy]

I personally wouldn't let her do it until she was at least 14! Too many strangers and too many sick people in the world today. A cell phone doesn't keep her from getting lost or keep her safe. Of course this is your decision...I just wouldn't feel comfortable doing it.

 

[KCmike]

I agree with 15. My oldest just turned on this past trip but she had her twin brother and sister with her as well. I can't let go. It is just too scary of a world nowadays.

 

[PinkBudgie]

I just had another thought. You could put her in charge for a while. Give her the map, let her read it, and direct where to go. If you all decide to go on Pirates, then let her show you how to get there. This would be giving her a little more freedom and if she did accidentally get separated from you she would know how to use the map to find her way to your designated meeting point.

Another tip for families that do split up:
After that 5.4 earthquake hit, we always had plan for if another one hit while apart. We had a meeting place that we would all head to if another quake hit. We didn't want to depend on the cell phone in case they were all busy. We will do the same thing this summer too. We've been to DLR many times and never had an earthquake there, but it happened to us once and it is California, after all. So now we are prepared.

 

[schewy]

My son is now 18. Being an only child, we always let him invite a friend to WDW with us when we go. We never let him go off on his own until his was 16. The friend's parents had to agree to let there son go out on the own prior to leaving for the trip. We always met for meal times. They were given times to meet and check in. If they were late or failed to check in they lost the priviledge (did not happen more than one time).
One thing I would recommend. If you allow your child to charge on their room key I would discontinue it if they go out on their own. If they lost thier key, maybe using to get fastpasses, then someone may run up charges before they relaize the key is gone.
Disney is a safe park but I would alway make sure I had a way to get into contact, either by cellphone or two-way radio.

 

[Leofoenget]

Would I let my 11 year old go on rides alone? Yes, I have. I wouln't let him run all over the park alone, butI would let him do some stuff alone. Cell phones have helped us parents relax a LITTLE knowing we can always call.

 

[QueenDoOver]

I think it depends entirely on the kid and how well they know the parks and where they are going. My oldest was going off a few attractions away to get fast passes from the age of 10. He is going with his cousin in a couple of weeks at the age of 13 and they will probably go off by themselves and do some riding. I am okay with that, but primarily because he knows the park so well, and is a really sensible kid.
Our last trip with just me and my 6 turning 7 year old's birthday trip, we wanted to do single rider, because it was super crowded and then he also wanted to go on Screamin' one more time than me. It was actually pretty cool. I always got to see who he was riding with, and never had any concerns at all. One time a kid in front of us got to ride with an imagineer that had helped design the park. He was there alone and riding. How cool is that? The CM's did ask him how old he was each time. Sometimes he would say 6 and they would start to turn him away, but I always reminded him that he was on his birthday trip and was really turning 7, and then they let him go. So apparently 7 is the magic number to ride alone?

 

[wannagoback]

My kids are too young (3 & 4) for me to answer this as the parent, but I was there with my 10yo sister and 13yo brother last year (their parents were also there). While we were all sitting by the flagpole in DL, my brother ran to get me a caramel apple at the store on main street. I remember feeling that it was okay, but not 100% comfortable with the idea, but maybe 98%. I couldn't imagine my sister going off on her own. But if, for example, I was sitting by the castle and she wanted to go buy a Dole Whip, I would have felt okay with that and would even let her take my DD4.

I am not an over-protective parent and I encourage independence in my children and I want them to go explore, but I also like to know what's going on when they are doing that exploring. I think that 10 is a great age to begin exploring a little further away, but I think that I would stay put while they are doing the exploring so that I can be easily found.

 

[The Orchid]

In this day and age, it's dangerous to do anything by yourself- especially girls. If she had a friend, it may be a little different but not by herself until she was maybe in 8th grade or so. and we had been to DL so many times that she knew it like the back of her hand. Even then, I would be freaked out. Too many crazies out there

I respectfully disagree. Hundreds of thousands go to Disneyland every year. I don't recall hearing about many (if any) children being harmed by strangers. It's a public place with lots of security and if a child is seen struggling or screaming, I am quite sure that there would be a hundred people jumping up and down on the person responsible.

At ten, IF the child knows the parks well and if she has been given all the stranger danger talks, then yes, it's perfectly safe to let her go ride a ride by herself and meet her parents in 15 minutes. The odds of somebody hurting her must be about one in a million. You take greater chances when you drive a car or when you let your child walk to school without you. In fact, your child is more likely to get molested by a teacher than she is a stranger at Disneyland. You hear of things happening at school all the time. Disneyland? I don't recall hearing anything about a kid getting hurt there. And if it does happen, the odds must be incredibly low.

So no, I wouldn't hesitate to let my ten year old go off as long as she knew the park and understood stranger danger. When I was that age, I wandered around at Cedar Point alone, sometimes for hours.