"Boys" Advise

[TinkKel]

Hi, I'm a single mom taking my two sons to Disney World next year (May 23-29, Shades of Green).

Can anyone recommend the parks/events they think a 10 & 13 yo boys would be particularly interested in? I know they will have NO desire for character meals or anything like that.

Thanks!

Kel

 

[deadheadbelle]

I have an 11 year old nephew who I have traveled with twice to Disney, and some of his favorite rides are:

Magic Kingdom: Space Mountain, Big Thunder Mountain, Peter Pan, Splash Mountain, Alien Encounter, Buzz Lightyear, Pirates of the Carribean, Haunted Mansion

Animal Kingdom: Primevil Whirl, Dinosaur, Kilimanjaro Safaris, Kali River Rapids, It's Tough to be a Bug, Maharaja Jungle Trek

Epcot: Test Track, Spaceship Earth, The Living Seas, Honey I Shrunk the Audience, Body Wars, Universe of Energy, Maelstrom (Norway), Innoventions

MGM: Rock N Roller Coaster, Tower of Terror, Star Tours, Indiana Jones, The Great Movie Ride, Fantasmic!

Needless to say, there is plenty that they will enjoy! Hope this helps! !

 

[llebrekniT]

You're right deadheadbelle, he does like all those rides. (FYI deadheadbelle's nephew is my DS). However, you left out the waterparks! BB and TL are definetly on his list of things to do and since all the hotels have great pools you should utilize those if you don't have WP passes. He still loves the character meals since they all have All U Can Eat pizza, hot dogs and chicken fingers. He still likes getting his picture with most of the characters, just not so much the princesses.

BTW - my son does not like AE or HM at MK! Deadheadbelle - you know better than that. For an 11-year old, he still gets freaked out by that type of attraction.

No doubt - they will both have fun!

 

[Dan Murphy]

Welcome to the DIS, Kel!!!! Hope you enjoy it, nice place here.

I would think the Mountains in MK, Haunted Mansion, Mickey’s PhilharMagic, Pirates, Alien Encounter, Buzz and Jungle Cruise.

AK, Kali, Safari, Festival of the Lion King, It's Tough to be a Bug, Primeval Whirl and Dinosaur.

MGM, Rock n' Roll, Tower of Terror, Star Tours, Indiana Jones, Muppet Vision 3-D, and Sounds Dangerous.

Epcot, Test Track, Body Wars, Ellen's Energy Adventure, Spaceship Earth, The Living Seas, Honey I Shrunk the Audience, Journey Into Your Imagination, Mission: Space.

All the parades and Illuminations.

That is enough to keep you busy for a bit. I must tell you though, those two boys will be like 6 year olds if you let them do anything there. I know I get that way. Enjoy.

 

[Dan Murphy]

Oh, almost forgot, Disney Quest!!!!!

 

[funhouse8]

I second DisneyQuest My guys love this, their ages are 13,19 & 44

 

[kilee]

My DS is 10. He still likes character meals. Especially Chef Mickeys (second that for my big kid too.. DH). He still does the photo autograph thing, but I think he may stop that soon (who knows). As for rides my son is a daredevil and will do any of them. His biggest goal right now is to ge me to the waterparks.


Just remember (I am really paranoid about this), when they go into the bathrooms. Some of them have more than one exit. Be sure to tell them to watch which one they came in. Otherwise you may get separated from each other.

 

[TinkKel]

Thanks for the bathroom advise!! That's being prudent, not paranoid. I NEVER let my sons go to the restroom unless they are with each other...you're never sure when there will be a "Chester the Molester" around....even at Disney World!

Disney Quest sounds like a place they'd both love, but it's not included with the park-hopper is it?

Thanks for the advise!

 

[iwannabeminnie]

Just one thing, please do NOT underestimate the power of the characters on your boys, no matter how big, old, or macho they are. My boys still enjoy greeting the characters (they are 21, 23, and my BIG boy, DH, is 44). You might want to plan at least one character meal. We really enjoy the breakfast at Chef Mickey's. It is also a great meal to eat before going to the water parks that don't open until 10:00 am. We usually have our PS for 8:00 and then head for the WP afterwards. Your boys will LOVE Disney Quest. It is a great place to head on a rainy day.

 

[Doc and Family]

tinkkel,
We will be there that same week. Youngest DS turns 5 and we will have his birthday breakfast at Chef Mickey's. My older nephews really enjoy this (12 and 9, I believe).
Also, if they like Splash Mountain, Thunder Mountain, Space Mountain, Buzz Lightyear, Astro Orbiter, then by all means do an E-ride night. It really is awesome. Limited tickets are sold, and only certain rides are open, (also Haunted House, Country Bear Jamboree, Tomorrowland Transit Authority (People Mover for us older folks) and maybe Aliens?). The average wait on these rides is less than 2 minutes, and we often get to ride again without getting off the ride.
My boys (6 and 4) LOVE E-ride nights. They run from ride to ride and love not having to wait.
Try this if you find that they enjoy those rides during the day.
Have a GREAT TRIP!

 

[tar heel]

My boys like most of what's been mentioned. Absolute favorites for the two near your boys' ages are Space Mountain for the 9-year-old and Tower of Terror for the 15-year-old (was also his favorite when he was 14). They also like Muppet Vision 3D at MGM and several Epcot World Showcase shows, especially Imaginum (living statues) in Italy, Miyuki (candy maker) in Japan and A Chair Act and Le Mime Roland in France. Their favorite sitdown restaurant is Teppanyaki and counter service is Pecos Bill's. They also all like Boma, Whispering Canyon and Prime Time Cafe. They like character meals fine.

They would be perfectly happy if we skipped Fantasyland all together and, in fact, only spent about an hour there in 10 days at WDW this summer. They like Illuminations, SpectroMagic and Fantasmic but don't think they are worth scouting out a place two hours in advance.

 

[GoofysPrincess]

I'll add a couple of things...

My boys have always enjoyed is the video game section in Innoventions. Your call on whether you want to tell them it's there... They also love to go out on the "water mice." Most of the rides have been covered, but I have to give a big "I second that!" to the water parks.

If they're sports nuts, you might see what's going on at Wide World of Sports while you're there.

My kids have always been okay with the LTT character dinner as they love the food and Goofy is well, goofy. They're other favorite places to eat at that age were Germany's Biergarten, 50's (of course), and SciFi Drive In.

Have a great time!

 

[currycook]

Great thread. My son, "all boy", likes all the things mentioned. There is A LOT of fun stuff for boys that age at disney. I'm also glad someone mentioned Disney Quest which is a big hit with many boys, Even those of us over 19.

 

[shakespear]

Tom Sawyer Island

 

[tjkraz]

If they are sports fans, schedule a lunch or dinner at the ESPN club. It won't be the best (or worst) meal that you have during your stay, but the atmosphere is worth a visit. In fact, they often have sports figures appearing live in the evenings, so you may want to call ahead and find out who will be there during your stay.

 

[TinkKel]

Thanks for all the great advise everyone! We've been going through the PassPorter each attraction at a time to see who would be interested in what, and it's giving me great insight as to what they are REALLY interested in. (Or maybe they are just so jazzed they want to do it all!) This planning business is FUN.

P.S. I've already informed them that if I go to all the attractions they want to go to, they HAVE go ride "Small World" with me...haha, you should see the look of horror on their faces....but I know they will enjoy it too.

 

[Pin Wizard]

Wow! I wish my 10 year old were more like your kids. Since he was 9, he doesn't want to go to Disney any more. Just Universal/IOA.

He thinks Disney is for little kids.