Enforcement of 14 yr old restriction

[UConnJack]

I was wondering what, if any, expience people have had with enforcement of the 14yr old age restriction at WDW? We are going in a couple weeks staying at the Poly, and was thinking about letting our 13 yrs old daughter and 10 yr old son take the monorail over themselves on occasion.

Before I get flamed, I am not asking if people think that's too young, I do not considering what I know their maturity level to be. I am just wondering if anyone has experienced ages being checked or entry being questioned/denied due to age?

Thanks!

 

[Oswin]

I can say that as of January, my 13 year old sister, 11 year old cousin, and 10 year old nephew all went on the monorail from Poly and into MK by themselves and they were never questioned or denied entrance. They would head over early sometimes when the rest of us were taking too long to get out the door. They'd also head over to meet me and my other siblings/cousins when we were there at night and they wanted to catch up and join us.

 

[JustMeFran]

On our last trip we were there at rope drop and followed 2 boys right to Splash. Once we got there the boys talked about how their mom/aunts let them come to rope drop without them so the ladies could get a sleep in. They were NO MORE THAN 10 (I out DD was 8 at the time and they were not far off from her...). Annoying little buggers, just talkers and yellers on the ride and trying to high-five every castmember they saw. They were let in easily at the get and none of the Splash castmembers batted an eye at them.
For what it is worth...

 

[Pixie Dust ✨]

A CM may ask their ages. More likely, nothing will happen.

 

[baler31]

As long as they do not look really "young" they will have no problems. My kids have been using the buses and monorails and going to the parks on their own at younger ages. However, within the last 6 months I had to change my 13 year olds age to 14 to book FP for him and friend. That was new.

 

[siskaren]

They were let in easily at the get and none of the Splash castmembers batted an eye at them.

But since 10 years old is old enough to ride by themselves, why would the CMs have asked if they were in the park by themselves? I'm sure they just assumed the parents were nearby and just didn't want to ride.

 

[K_Jordan]

A long time ago my sister and I split off from our group at Disneyland (we were 10 and 13 I believe). Nobody said a thing to us. I would assume as long kids aren't running wild, CMs don't say anything.

 

[rastahomie]

I've seen so many unaccompanied tweens and even younger on the monorails, at rope drop, and elsewhere around the parks that I've lost count. Unless Disney has seriously clamped down on unaccompanied minors since I was last there, they'll be fine.

 

[meghanh216]

We stayed at the Poly last Spring with our kids 12, 4 and 2. The 12 year old was NOT into rope drop and we let him relax at the hotel a little in the mornings and meet us at MK using the monorail. I knew about the 14 year old age restriction and went to meet him at the front gates and they had already let him in and not questioned his age at all. He does look and act much older than his age but from the previous posts it looks like you wont have an issue!

 

[mom2rtk]

A long time ago my sister and I split off from our group at Disneyland (we were 10 and 13 I believe). Nobody said a thing to us. I would assume as long kids aren't running wild, CMs don't say anything.

I'm thinking the "14 to enter the park" rule is somewhat recent (last couple years?)

 

[Pixie Dust ✨]

I really think the rule was developed more for DL than WDW, anyway. Parents were buying annual passes to DL for their children & using it as daycare (drop off in morning, pick up in evening).

 

[gtpoohbear]

It's always so chaotic going through the gates, and families don't necessarily end up going through together, that I doubt anyone would notice or say anything. More often than not when we go in, DD ends up going through a different one than me, just because of the way the lines move. The CMs wouldn't have any way of knowing who she was with at that point, but no one has ever questioned it.

My guess is that as long as they act like they know what they are doing, it won't be an issue. There's always the risk that they will end up with a particularly strict CM and get questioned, of course.

 

[loveyb72]

On our last trip in 2014 my DD were 12 & 5. Our girls wanted to ride the Little Mermaid ride together but the CM asked my DD how old she was and then wouldn't let them ride together because she wasn't 14.

 

[wilkeliza]

You will most likely only be stopped if the kids are acting up. As long as you trust the entire group then it'll be fine but if a CM asks them their age and the say the truth and say their parents aren't in the park then they'll get in trouble and you'll get in trouble.

Not just Disney rules but I would check the rules for Florida CPS. Do you really want to take the chance of you having a CPS investigation opened for child endangerment? Riding a ride by yourself is one thing but getting on a monorail and going to a park completely unsupervised is a different story.

Also just throwing it out there the Disboards is not suppose to encourage anyone from actively going against Disney's rule so since it is a written rule and not just a suggestion I would say it is best to have an adult go with the kids or make them wait for everyone to be ready for the day.

 

[Julylady]

We are here now with my 14 and 11 year old nieces. They both look young for their ages. They love the coasters, we do not. The 14 year old says the ride cast member often asks her age. So, make sure your kids are ready to lie about their age or they might be refused.

 

[siskaren]

We are here now with my 14 and 11 year old nieces. They both look young for their ages. They love the coasters, we do not. The 14 year old says the ride cast member often asks her age. So, make sure your kids are ready to lie about their age or they might be refused.

I'm curious as to why the 14 year old was questioned about her age unless the 11 year old looks younger than 7, because a child can ride alone as long as they're at least 7. (A child under 7 has to be accompanied by someone at least 14 years old.)

 

[wilkeliza]

I'm curious as to why the 14 year old was questioned about her age unless the 11 year old looks younger than 7, because a child can ride alone as long as they're at least 7. (A child under 7 has to be accompanied by someone at least 14 years old.)

If it is CM review/safety audit time, many CMs will ask any child ridding with other children or alone. The reason behind it is that it is better to ask all than it is to miss the plant and get a safety reprimand.

 

[Julylady]

Both girls are very petite for their age, it bugs them to no end to be treated as younger than they are, especially the 14 year old. They have been going on rides alone all week and said they are often asked their age,

 

[Hibiscus]

You will most likely only be stopped if the kids are acting up. As long as you trust the entire group then it'll be fine but if a CM asks them their age and the say the truth and say their parents aren't in the park then they'll get in trouble and you'll get in trouble.

Not just Disney rules but I would check the rules for Florida CPS. Do you really want to take the chance of you having a CPS investigation opened for child endangerment? Riding a ride by yourself is one thing but getting on a monorail and going to a park completely unsupervised is a different story.

Also just throwing it out there the Disboards is not suppose to encourage anyone from actively going against Disney's rule so since it is a written rule and not just a suggestion I would say it is best to have an adult go with the kids or make them wait for everyone to be ready for the day.

Oh please. CPS is not going to investigate kids alone in a theme park. Do you also think babysitting is illegal in the state of Florida? Good lord.

 

[baler31]

Oh please. CPS is not going to investigate kids alone in a theme park. Do you also think babysitting is illegal in the state of Florida? Good lord.

Yes, unlike some states the Florida Dept of Children and Families does not have hard and fast rule for children on their own. They rec'd 12 as the age for self supervision and 15 to supervise younger children.