DD is 39" and we are going in a month and a half!!

[mulanrouge]

My DH and I are planning a surprise vacation for our DS and DD (who is 4, going to be 5 in March). Poor thing, she is very petite for her age. She is 39" tall, and can talk about nothing but going back to WDW and going on ALL the rides. I know most of the height restrictions are at 40" tall. It she has on running shoes or sandals, she would probably be at the 40" mark. How do they measure kids for this? Do they make them take off shoes etc? I would really hate for her not to be able to go on the rides she is so looking forward to!

 

[flyingenie]

I've never seen anyone take off shoes for height measurements at any theme park (I guess unless they wear platform boots or high heels!)... I've heard people suggest putting thicker insoles in the child's shoe so they'll be a bit taller.

good luck!

 

[swilphil]

I had the same problem with my son, but he did manage to make the height cut off by the time we got there. I couldn't find any boys sandal with a high enough heel and was seriously tempted to buy him some GIRLS sandals that had a little bit of a wedge on them. They don't have the kids take off their shoes, so you could bring a pair of sandals in a backpack and have her put them on for that ride.

 

[tjmw2727]

I hope your son spurts an inch or so as the measuring sticks are adjusted slightly to allow for shoes.

I have also seen children asked to remove the shoes on two separate occasions. One was wearing slip on sandles with a very high platform type heel and the other a type of skeaker with an unusually high platform heel for a 3-4yo.

If your child is wearing a normal type sneaker or even a sketcher type with a bit of a sole they most likely won't make him remove them.

They always make the child remove hats and the head must stop the T from sliding over the head. Make sure you tell your ds to sand flat, take a deep breath and sand tall. Some children have a natural instinct to duck when the t comes around so be sure he knows his head should touch it and that it won't hurt.

TJ

 

[POOH&PIGLET]

They do not make anyone take their shoes off.

When they measure, tell your DD to stand up straight and stretch. That and a pair of running shoes should get you an inch!

 

[Stimpy]

Yes they do make kids take off their shoes! But only if they are obviously thick soled or high heeled. I have seen it may times.
With normal shoes she will probably make the height restriction on some rides.

Be aware that each ride and CM is different. If the child is right at the cut-off, she may be allowed to ride on one 40" ride but not another. Also, the CM in the loading area has the final word. If the greeter lets you on line, the loading area CM's still can refuse to let your child ride even after standing on line for a long time. It's really a good idea to explain this to your child beforehand. I've seen quite a few kids turned away really disappointed.

I know it can be disappointing but remember this is for your child's safety.

Good Luck, I hope she makes it. I have 2 young kids myself so I know how stressful that 1 inch can be!

 

[LoriLea]

Beware! Not all measuring sticks are created equal!! This past August my DD7 who is 47and 15/16 inches tall was measured on a Wednesday in MGM at Rock 'n Rollercoaster. She was wearing sandals without heels and stood up straight. She was just under the mark. The CM even tried using another measuring stick. Same result. No problem as we had prepared DD for this result. Better to be safe.
Two days later at AK, she wanted to go on Primeval Whirl. Another ride with a 48" height requirement. I told her that she was too short but the CM motioned her over to be measured. She was wearing the exact same shoes but this time she was about 1/2 " above the mark. I'm sure she didn't grow from Wed to Friday but she was one happy little girl. She was measured again before we boarded the ride. No problem.
I think the important would be to prepare your DD for the possibility of not being able to ride. This is what we did with our DD. We told her that if she wasn't tall enough this time, she certainly would be the next time. Prior to our trip we had made a 48" mark on the wall and she measured herself against it before we went. She knew she wasn't quite there.

 

[dreaminofdisney]

mulanrouge

The measuring sticks aren't even the same at a ride from one day to another! This past Feb I took my 3 yo DD on Kali with half an inch to spare. two days later she had shrunk!! She was at least an inch under. I swear she had on her same sandles!

We leave in only a couple of weeks and she is now just under 40". I have been on the look out and have found some great tennis shoes at Target! They are Disney princesess with a thick sole. And I mean a thick sole! I just went and measured and from the outside it would appear to only be an inch but from the ground to the bottem of my daughters heel on the inside is a total of....

AN INCH AND A HALF!!!!!!

They look like regular shoes, so I wont worry about her being asked to take them off. Now we can try some of the 40" HR rides if she wants! (I think I might even pack a tape measure to check some of those measuring sticks for myself )

 

[mulanrouge]

Thanks for all your ideas and encouragment. The one I would really like her to make it on is Splash Mountain. I think she would really enjoy it. I'll keep my fingers crossed that she either grows some more, or that she makes it on at least that one!!

 

[fizz13]

I have the same problem. My DD is 421/2" and my DS is 381/2". Both of them are going to be dissapointed in some way. We go in January. Hopefully my DD will be gracious to DS about the rides she is allowed on. At least they can ride the Barnstormer together!
Claire

 

[HM]

Sketchers makes many sneakers with pretty thick soles (and not all that expensive)....you might want to look at buying some of them. -HM

 

[Brian Noble]

You should also consider going to splash early in the day. As the day wears on, one's spine compresses, and you get shorter.

 

[Simba's Girl]

I have a similar problem...except when I measure dd at home she's over 40" but at her 5 year physical last month she was 39&3/4 . She has been warned that she may not make it on some rides...

 

[ksc37]

Just a comment about the measuring sticks...

They now have fixed measuring stations at some of the rides (Splash Mtn, BTMRR) that make the measuring more consistent from ride to ride and day to day.

We took our son (just at 40" barefoot) in September, and he got on those rides no problem. He had regular sneakers that gave him an extra 3/4", and he cleared the 40" mark by about that much. We were never even questioned in the loading area.

 

[Harley-Mouse]

We got her mesured at the CM out side Tower. She was so happy CM said she is tall enough . But whe we got in side they put her by the wall and she was about 2" short

 

[Tinkim]

It is hard to say if the measuring sticks are all exactly the same. I don't think they are though. My DD7 went on RNRC no problem and then we came around to do it again not 10 minutes later and they said she's too short. She was pretty insulted and told the CM she already went on and she was tall enough. He let us on after measuring her again. At AK we had the same thing happen with PW. We got in line and DD was tall enough and then we had to get out of line because my DS changed his mind about riding. When we got back in line they said she wasn't tall enough. Again, they re-measured and let her on. The measuring sticks are incosistent at best. I am just glad DD will be about 50" on the next trip and probably won't need to be measured but if she does she should be plenty tall.

 

[MateasMom]

This is why I like the wrist bands they used to do at Disneyland. I wonder why they stopped doing that???? You could measure your kid in the morning, they get a colored 'band' for their height measurement and then they didn't need to keep getting measured.

OP....my daughter has a pair of Skecher 'Shin Digs'. They have a high sole, but not ridiculously high. They only make them in 'girls' sizes (not toddler), and I think start at a size 10 or 10.5. She can get on the 40" rides (we frequent DL) with her ShinDigs, but can't with her converse all stars (learned that by mistake!). Anyways...they are comfortable and trendy and do the trick for us...they sell them just about everywhere (though I think they start at size 11 at most non-Skechers owned stores).

 

[chipnwendy]

Originally posted by dreaminofdisney
I think I might even pack a tape measure to check some of those measuring sticks for myself

That's a great idea. I've got one that attaches to your keychain, and it goes to 48" long. This might just end the issue of the measuring sticks.

 

[TraceyL]

I measured my DD yesterday and she makes between 39 1/4 - 40 1/2 " in her bare feet depending on how she stands.

Fingers crossed she's tall enough on the day for Splash Mountain

 

[hellooothere]

I have twin daughters and one is 40" and the other is 37". We are just not even going to go there with the 40" rides this time. I know life isn't always fair but I am not going to rub it in.

My daughters main concern when the older kids are measuring her is, "Am I tall enough for Dumbo?".




I CAN'T BELIEVE WE WILL BE IN FLORIDA IN 12 DAYS!!!!!