Expedition Everest Question

[hallen4]

Good morning everyone,

So my family is planning a trip this December 6-13 to the world. We will be spending some extra time in AK due to all the new exciting things going on there. One question I did have while starting to plan was do you think Expedition Everest would be ok for a fairly brave 5 year old? I have not been on EE due to having not enough time or no FP scheduled in the past, so I have not experienced it myself. My son did try ToT last October, which he did while gripping onto my arm pretty tight (only for the fall), and afterwards was all excited about the drop "whooshing" him up and down. My worry is more in how scary/not the Yeti is. Thoughts?

 

[ChloesDaddy]

As long as he meets the height restriction (44 inches) I would try it. If you're concerned about the Yeti, watch a ride through on YouTube. Then you can decide if you want to have him watch it so he knows what's coming.

 

[tsme]

My DD rode it at 5 yrs old & loved it! It's her favorite ride.

 

[efam]

Everest was my oldest daughter's first roller coaster and began her love for them. She was 5 when she first rode it and can't wait to ride it again (2 years later). The yeti is brief and fake-looking so it didn't scare her. And I can't pay her enough to go to the Haunted Mansion.

 

[BuzzyBelle]

My DD rode it at 5 yrs old & loved it! It's her favorite ride.

Same here!
I think ToT is "scarier" than EE. More psychological. I agree with showing YouTube vidoes of any questionable rides. We've done that and then DD knows what to expect. The only ride she's afraid of/ doesn't like is Dinosaur. EE she'll ride as many times in a row as we can get in at RD and then a FP later

 

[cgattis]

As PP said, you zoom by the yeti so fast, there's not much time to be scared of her. It's not like HM or TOT where you're slowly moving along and the "scary" stuff is right there staring at you. If he liked the TOT drop, he should love the backward portion of EE

 

[PamNC]

I've seen kids that age ride EE and love it. In fact, I was doing a solo line ride and sat next to a kid about 5 and he was lovin' life on EE. I say yes as long as he meets the height restriction. As you have read above - the yeti is quick and painless.

 

[RedStars]

I took my now 7 yo on it when he was 5 and he liked it. The Dark backward section was the hardest part for him.

We're going next month and my youngest is going on it. He's 4 (turns 5 in May). I showed him a couple of videos on YouTube to prep him.

 

[Mousemommy1]

I hardly ever see the Yeti when I ride. I'm usually screaming my face off instead.

Our oldest DD has been riding Everest and Rock n' Roller Coaster since she was 5. She loves both.

 

[hallen4]

Awesome, thanks everyone!

 

[msdroz]

My adventurous son rode it at 7 and the backwards park spooked him the most. He had ridden several roller coasters at different parks previously but nothing really prepared him for that backward sensation.

 

[Micca]

I'm not a big coaster guy, but EE is so awesome. But honestly, the backwards part is pretty intense for me. A lot of kids are fearless though, they probably handle it better than many adults. See example: Mad Tea Party

 

[Duckiedee]

My daughter at five I would say was "outgoing brave." We did not watch Youtube before - but I did tell her excitedly we would see the Yeti and he would roar! She was still nervous when she did see him, but immediately wanted to go back on! Now Dinosaur.... nope - didn't like it. LOL.

 

[LostMason]

I would warn your son beforehand that it goes backwards in the dark for a little bit -- not too long, just enough for it to be a really neat, special ride.

My fraidy cat 5 year old rode it, didn't love it, but was willing to ride it a second time later in the same day.

 

[gap2368]

I went on it about 10 times before I even saw the yeti with that said I think if he can do TOT he should be able to do EE

 

[anniemae]

I went on it about 10 times before I even saw the yeti with that said I think if he can do TOT he should be able to do EE

This was my thought as well.

 

[IrishNYC]

My then 5 y/o DD loved EE. She's a roller coaster nut, and I think that's one of the wildest she'd been on at that point. Like someone else's DD above, she hates the Haunted Mansion. She'd gladly ride nothing but EE and ToT all day long, and I'm sure we can add RNRRC next time, as she should be tall enough. Our rule is if she's tall enough and wants to ride, she rides and one of us adults suffers with her. Usually me. :'(

 

[krm222]

EE is like BTRR or 7DMT+ so only a bit more wild and scary. My four year old went on and liked it but decided not to go again (we had rider swap) because it made his tummy too loopy but he did enjoy the ride he did.

 

[kiford]

My worry is more in how scary/not the Yeti is. Thoughts?

After we'd ridden it 3-4 times, DH asked me why they had a yeti on all of the t-shirts because there wasn't one on the ride. I thought he was kidding but he wasn't. He totally did not see it at all. Now that he knows it's there, he looks for it but until he knew he had no idea it was there.

 

[karasmom]

My now 7 year old only didn't enjoy the backwards part of it. She however did want to ride it again during the next trip (same result - not a fan of the backwards part). She finds the Yeti "silly" but said she barely got to even see him. She wants to ride again in September and I fully expect her to tell me she hated it going backwards

From how you describe your son - I think he will be just fine