Can kids go off on their own?

[klinlin]

Have been to WDW many times, going back to trips with a sports team in high school in the mid eighties. In those days we always had complete freedom to do whatever we wanted as logo as we made it back in time for all check ins.

We are headed back in November. We will have three boys with us, ages 16, 14, and 12 1/2. Thoughts on letting them go off on their own, as long as the three of them stay together? Because we will have three Disney adults, we are not doing the dining plan this trip. I was considering planning one of two sit down meals with my husband as it is our anniversary , and letting the boys get a counter service of their choosing. (Which they would probably enjoy more than a sit down meal.)

 

[supersnoop]

Official policy states that a child must be 14, or accompanied by someone who is 14, in order to enter the parks. There doesn't seem to be any specific policy after you're inside.

 

[jillgunter]

Our daughter is almost 9 and we got her a cell phone just for vacation etc. we sat in fantasy land and let her go do a few rides while we sat. They have to be 7 to ride a ride on their own. That seems to be the only rule in the park. I think at those ages they should be fine for limited outings in the park on their own if someone has a phone and you make a plan on when they are to meet you etc.

 

[mom2rtk]

Any one of your kids is old enough to babysit someone else's kids. Why wouldn't they be ok for a while in a Disney park?

They will love the chance to spread their wings.

 

[tobikaye]

At those ages, it should be fine. I know that my mom and aunt let my cousin, sister and I split up from them for a bit when we were 14, 12, and 11. It was my aunt and cousin's first time visiting or we probably would have went off on our own for most of the day.

If anything, set up some check-in times to see how it goes the first day.

 

[disneyfantotheend]

Policy wise, yes it is fine. People in the parks and on the boards, opinions will vary. I say yes, go for it.

 

[mom2AidanAndEli]

This past summer was the first time we let our guys go off on their own for a bit--they were 14 and 12. This was our fifth trip so they knew their way around the park and are very responsible kids. They wanted to the play the Sorcerers game in MK and DH and I had enough of just following them around. They had a cell phone; we had a cell phone.

We set it up with a check-in every 1.5 hours or so. Just a call that "Hey, we're at such-and-such a spot. Still playing. Everything's okay." That was it. But we also set up a backup plan. If we didn't hear from each other at the appointed time, we had a meeting place set. Just a concern that phone reception isn't always 100% or batteries run out or whatever. So if we were to phone check in at 1:30 and we don't hear anything, we all meet in front of HoP by 1:45.

I know it may sound excessive, but it just made me more relaxed. Next time we go, it will probably be even less so. But little steps are better than none!

 

[BuckeyeBama]

Our boys have been going off on their own since they were age 13 and 10, respectively. They had been going off on their own within the park that we were all in together for a few years at that point. We go every year and they know WDW very, very well. My oldest was almost 6' tall for that trip, so they had no problems getting into parks or riding without us taking them into a park.

Our only rule - they have to stay together at all times, even on bathroom breaks.

 

[davkata]

This past summer was the first time we let our guys go off on their own for a bit--they were 14 and 12. This was our fifth trip so they knew their way around the park and are very responsible kids. They wanted to the play the Sorcerers game in MK and DH and I had enough of just following them around. They had a cell phone; we had a cell phone.

We set it up with a check-in every 1.5 hours or so. Just a call that "Hey, we're at such-and-such a spot. Still playing. Everything's okay." That was it. But we also set up a backup plan. If we didn't hear from each other at the appointed time, we had a meeting place set. Just a concern that phone reception isn't always 100% or batteries run out or whatever. So if we were to phone check in at 1:30 and we don't hear anything, we all meet in front of HoP by 1:45.

I know it may sound excessive, but it just made me more relaxed. Next time we go, it will probably be even less so. But little steps are better than none!

Doesn't seem excessive to me at all! We did a similar thing with our kids when on a cruise. If they couldn't be at the meeting place at the designated time they needed to have left a note in the room for us. Worked every time! Teaches them responsibility too. Texting/calling wasn't an option on board a ship at sea...

I think, if you would allow them freedom out with their friends at home, then it is ok at Disney within your family's agreed upon limits.

 

[luvdisney00]

We celebrated our 20th at Narcosees in 2012. My kids at the time were 16 14 and 9. We brought them to MK , and told them they could do rides and eat wherever they wanted while we had our date. They loved the freedom and did just fine. They had cell phones and knew the parks very well. They ended up coming over to the GF to meet us and loved watching wishes from there. You know your kids, if you think it's ok then it probably is.

 

[Dawnlight]

They'll be fine.

I let my 3 oldest boys- 17, 15, 13- go about the parks a bit on their own. Their favorite time was riding Expedition Everest 5 times in the single rider line while we went with the 3 younger ones to see Nemo.

 

[madelyn]

Just make sure you have a "back up plan". Our last trip was in the summer of 2012 when my boys were almost 14 and 10.5. They wanted to ride Splash Mountain, my daughter did not and we were hungry so wanted to grab something to eat while the boys rode. I got back to the ride and my boys weren't there and figured they weren't done with the ride yet. Turns out the ride broke with a few cars stuck in it! I didn't know if my boys were stuck on the ride or not. My older son had a cell phone but my phone had gotten wet from the rain and wasn't working. I tried to find out whether my sons were stuck on the ride but the Disney workers couldn't tell me. My husband was also in the park and he ended up finding them on Main Street during fireworks. Turns out Splash Mountain broke before they got on so they exited the ride before I expected them to be done. They assumed I would just text or call them about when and where to meet up.

 

[TillyMarigold]

Official policy states that a child must be 14, or accompanied by someone who is 14, in order to enter the parks. There doesn't seem to be any specific policy after you're inside.

When the minimum age to enter alone was 10, it was also the minimum age to wander around unaccompanied. As far as I know, it still is. (The minimum age to ride a ride without an adult is 7.)

 

[Jennasis]

Our parents let us go on our own at 16/12/6 well before the invention of cell phones. Left us in Epcot and off we went...hopped to MK on the monorail...and met them back at our cabin at FW later that night.

 

[BroganMc]

We are headed back in November. We will have three boys with us, ages 16, 14, and 12 1/2. Thoughts on letting them go off on their own, as long as the three of them stay together? Because we will have three Disney adults, we are not doing the dining plan this trip. I was considering planning one of two sit down meals with my husband as it is our anniversary , and letting the boys get a counter service of their choosing. (Which they would probably enjoy more than a sit down meal.)

They're fine. Cut 'em loose and they'll have a blast.

Only thing I'd advise is make certain you agree on when & where to meet up and each kid needs a cell phone so they can reach each other and you.

We let our 16, 15 and 13 yr old nephews go off with each other during NYE. That had a blast. We let their 17, 15, 13 cousins do the same. The only child who needed constant supervision was the 7 yr old. His older teen cousins looked after him, even carrying him about in the park on their shoulders.

There's no good reason to helicopter parent teenagers. They need your trust to go explore the world on their own. It's not like you're letting them stay home alone while you fly to another state.

 

[disnut8]

I would wager that all three boys of that age have their own cell phones and know how to text and call and have a ton of contacts in those phones. Mom and Dad would be number one, the other two siblings would be three and four. That should be enough for that age group.

 

[ttintagel]

My sister and I were cut loose in the MK at 12 and 13, and it was great! One of the most magical memories of my youth. And this was before cell phones!

We did have pre-arranged meetup times, and we knew that missing a meetup meant instant loss of our new independence, so we made darn sure to be on time for each one. Cell phones would probably ease up the need for being quite that strict.

 

[EvilQueenLiz]

We will have three boys with us, ages 16, 14, and 12 1/2. Thoughts on letting them go off on their own, as long as the three of them stay together? Because we will have three Disney adults, we are not doing the dining plan this trip. I was considering planning one of two sit down meals with my husband as it is our anniversary , and letting the boys get a counter service of their choosing. (Which they would probably enjoy more than a sit down meal.)

My DD16 and her friend/s have been off on their own for 2-3 years now when she needs some "teen time" away from the family. I usually say, "Have fun! Be polite! If you get banned from the parks you can watch me having fun from the other side of the gates!"

 

[klinlin]

Thank you everyone. I was thinking it would be fine, but needed a little reassurance I guess. The times I spent with my friends in WDW as a teen are some of my best high school memories!

 

[MomofKatie]

We started giving our DD some freedom gradually. At age 10, she could be alone for short periods if she didn't want to ride an attraction or go in a shop with us. She had her cell phone, so we could stay in touch.

At age 12, she was allowed to roam around in the same park we were in as long as we had a meeting time and place. She and her friend spent a lot of time "on their own" with no problems. They knew they weren't allowed to leave the park and stayed reachable on their phones.

When she was 14, we let her and her friend go to the parks without us (we were staying on property and the girls used Disney transportation). Again, they had to have a meeting time/place set, and they needed to be reachable by cell phone. There were no problems and the girls loved having freedom to roam.

She is now 16, and I am sure the next time we visit, she will have full freedom to go wherever she wants around the parks. In a year and a half or so, she might even go without us on a graduation trip with friends.