"Fright Factor" on rides for Preschoolers

[tidoublegger]

We just got back from WDW with our 4 year 4 month old daughter. I thought I'd let you parents of preschoolers know how she fared on some of the different "non-preschooler" rides:

AK: Liked the safari ride and loved Kali River Rapids. She *hated* the Bug's Life movie. I wasn't even going to do this with her after reading the Unofficial Guide, but it seemed to cutesy to me. Well, I should have listened! She freaked out when they blasted the air and sprayed the water. We had to make a speedy exit with her crying! She did enjoy the Lion King show a lot.

MGM: She lasted about 2 min. in Muppet 3D, [think Bug's Life flashback]. Dh returned solo to enjoy this! I felt with the exception of Playhouse Disney and The Little Mermaid, this was the least fav. park for her. She didn't want to go on the Backlot tour or see Indiana Jones and with the heat, it wasn't worth trying to convince her.

MK: Ok, big mistake here...DH and I forgot how creepy the Haunted Mansion was. My hand was plastered over my dd eyes for the duration of this ride. She went on Splash Mountain twice. The first time she buried her head in Dh's arm for the big drop but wanted to try it another day. She liked it and said she'd go on it again the next time we return to WDW. She liked both the Jungle Cruise and Pirates, probably the Jungle Cruise more. She did get a little apprehensive on Pirates, but I talked to her and told her they were like robots, not real pirates so that relaxed her.

Epcot: Surprisingly, she loved Epcot! The movie in Canada enthralled her with the 360 technology. She liked Figment, Spaceship Earth and loved going through the CocaCola taste station. She liked both the Maelstrom and the boat ride in Mexico. We opted to skip Honey I shrunk the Audience (3D?). SHe loved the food rocks show and the Living Seas too. THe scuba divers were high-fiving her through the glass. We actually spent as much time here as we did MK!

For her, in order of favorite parks:

MK, Epcot, AK, MGM.

 

[eeyore0062]

That sounds about right, and you were wise to skip Honey, I Shrunk the Audience. It is right up there with Bug's Life in the preschool fright factor. Perhaps you can get her to go to the Muppets next time? It really is a cute show!

How did she do on Snow White? I have heard that some preschoolers get a bit frightened of the witch.

 

[laurie31]

Thanks so much for posting! My dd will be just turning 5 on our trip and I had also thought (after reading the Unofficial Guide) that ITTBAB would freak her out. My sister insists that she would be fine, because her dd8 loved it. But there's a big difference between 4 and 8! I think maybe if we watch the Muppet 3D first and if she does okay there we can consider the other 3D movies. Thanks for confirming that this may be too much for some preschoolers. I'm sure there are some who love it, but I don't think my yourger dd will be among them.

I was also wondering about Haunted Mansion for her. She is terrified when her sister (dd6) watches the video of Snow White. She is also scared of Scooby Doo! I think we'll have to baby swap the HM. Does anyone know if HM is a baby swap attraction? DD6 will love it, but I think it would do my little one in.

I also expect my kids to love Epcot DH and I traveled to Europe BC (before children ;-) and they love to look at our pictures. We will take them there when they are older. For now, I think they will have great fun pretending they are in all those countries! Plus the Living Sea and Journey to Imagination are sure to be big hits with my dds It drives me nuts when people think little kids won't like Epcot just because it's educational as well as fun.

Laurie

 

[BethC1952]

Thanks for the comments! I'll have my then 3 1/2 year old, extremely bright, DGD with me in December, and I had a few concerns about what she'll enjoy. It's been a VERY long time since I was three (actually, even Disneyland wasn't open then, so it wouldn't have been an issue LOL!!).

I don't think I could do ITTBAB (I don't like anything at all about bugs and I can't imagine them being "cute") but I think she'd enjoy Muppet 3D. What upset your DD there--was it the multi-sensory experience or something else? DGD is a big fan of the Muppets.

I'm glad to hear the Epcot was a success. We've told her that it's like traveling around the world, only it doesn't take as long! And, we're going at Christmas time, so she (and all the rest of us) will love all the Christmas decorations.

Beth

 

[shakespear]

I was wondering what rides would be good for my (at that time) 2 year old. I figured HM would be too much, just form the opening scene.I think pooh would be good.

 

[jacksonsmom]

Thank you for your reviews.

This is an issue close to my heart since my 3 yr 10 month old son thinks he is the world's bravest kid!

I have been thinking alot of ITTBAB & I just don't know. Can a child leave the 3D glasses off? Would that make a difference at all?

He wants to go on all these rides & I just don't want him to freak out in the middle of it.

What to do??? what to do

 

[dw123]

We just got back with my 5 year old daughter, and followed a similar pattern - pretty much the same reactions.

AK: Kilamanjaroo Safaris, Pocahontas and Friends, and the Lion King were big hits

MGM: Playhouse Disney, Voyage of the Little Mermaid, Muppets 3D, and Honey I Shrunk the Kids Playground were big

MK: Didn't do Haunted Mansion. She wasn't quite sure about Pirates, but made it through ok. Snow White was ok, but the witch made her a little uneasy (not enough to stop her from going on it twice though!)

 

[ZerasPride]

I really appreciate this thread. My two nieces will be 5 and 1-1/2 in August when we go to Disney and I don't want to frighten either one. We'll only have three days for parks so I decided on 2 days at MK and one at Epcot. I'm happy to hear how much the OP's daughter liked Epcot. It's my favorite park and I wouldn't want to miss it. I know there is so much for both girls to do there and this post just confirms.

Did you find you needed a stroller? Just curious. My sister is bringing her own from home but I am wondering how much of a hassle that will be on the plane if we should just rent one at the parks. Any comments? Did you take midday breaks? Thanks!

 

[justjen]

I was so glad to see this thread. I am taking my DS (4) next month and was concerned about what rides he would like. Loud noises, ect, frighten him easily, but I am thinking that the enviroment will have a lot to do with his reaction too. I will also have my neice and nephew with me and DS is always up for anything they are doing.

We are only going to be in the parks for 3 days and I expect most of that time will be at MK. I was suprised that Epcot was a fave of pre-schoolers. I hope my son enjoys it too.

 

[mommystieg]

If you are considering a 3-D attraction with a preschooler I would use MuppetVision as "warm-up"--it is really cute and the 3-D effects are really silly. The thing that freaked my 9 y/o dd out the most was the mice effect in HISTA--which was the first 3-D we did. She wouldn't wear the glasses in MV and absolutely would not even consider ITTBAB!! As a matter of fact, even after watching the vacation planning video she still will not consider ITTBAB I think HISTA traumatized her for life

 

[Dagny]

I have a three (soon to be 4 year odl) and he thought ITTBAB was great! Obviously, what frightens one child may not frighten another. The first time we took our son (where he could remember) to see ITTBAB, we sat at the end of the row near the exit that way if he "freaked out", I could quickly exit with him. Fortunately, he giggled the whole way through.

My son didn't care too much for the canons firing into the water on POTC, but once I told them they were just pretend, he pretended to shoot back at them

The one ride that actually frightened him was the Enchanted Tiki Room. There is a scene where the birds "upset" the Tiki Gods and I think he jumped 10 feet off his seat!! I am kinda glad he doesn't like that one - now I can avoid it and not feel guilty

And just for the record, HISTA scares ME, LOL - I really hate the mice effect - ewwwwww. Of course, I know now when to lift my legs to avoid it, LOL.

 

[tidoublegger]

We decided to just skip Snow White based on the Unofficial Guide's stating that the witch scares some of the younger ones. My dd likes the movie, but I think the element of surprise is what gets her. I think if we had done Muppet 3-D first, maybe the Bug's Life 3-D would not have been an issue.

I bought a stroller before I left at Sears for about $28.00. I checked it at the gate when we boarded onto our flight. It was lightweight, had a canopy and a basket. She basically got in it after each ride....didn't walk too much. It was really hot and muggy, a huge difference from here in Mass. I think that zapped a little out of her. I would highly recommend either bringing or renting a stroller for the 5 and under crowd!

 

[Clover9990]

I have a 4.5 year old and a 2.5 year old. They are not scared of a single ride they've been on at MK. Granted, of course they're not tall enough to ride Alien Encounter, Space Mountain, or "drive" the racecars themselves, but they both love every single ride at the Magic Kingdom! DD (the 2.5 year old) is still not tall enough for BTMRR or Splash Mountain yet, but I have no doubt she'll love these rides when she is...the ONLY ride she came off of, completely excited and exclaiming, "That was FUN! I wanna go on that AGAIN!" was Goofy's Barnstormer. She's a thrill-seeker in the making!

In our opinion, Snow White isn't scary, and my kids haven't ever had any issues with the Haunted Mansion. I think that when parents cover their child's eyes during this ride, it makes the child MUCH more apprehensive and gives them something (the unknown) to fear...we simply laughed at the ghosts the first couple of times each of our children went on the ride (age 2 for DS, and age 1 for DD), so they have no fears of the ride whatsoever. They are also not afraid of the dark, which I'm sure helps.

The only rides we ever have issues on are the loud ones, and that's because DS and I have sensitive ears. JIYI at EPCOT was a little too loud for our tastes, and the "Snooty Judy" ride at EPCOT (name escapes me right now)...that ride was WAY TOO LOUD! We haven't taken our kids to see the HISTA show, nor the ITTBAB show, so I can't comment on those...but I think fear is really what you make of it. If your kids sense apprehension on your face/in your actions, they are going to THINK they have a reason to get nervous, and usually will. I hope that made sense!

 

[eeyore0062]

If you would like your preschooler to enjoy the Muppet Vision 4d, just have them watch it without the 3d glasses, and the effects shouldn't bother them. It is too cute for them to miss!

 

[MrsMud]

It's very hard to decide what your children will or won't like based on what others' experience has been. Like some posters said, every child is different. Our daughters were 3 1/2 and 5 1/2 on our last (and first!) trip. They really loved both ITTBAB and HISTA (I knew enough to have them sit on our laps during the bee scene in ITTBAB). On the other hand, they don't like anything remotely "spooky". We didn't even attempt Snow White, and I would not for a million years take them on Haunted Mansion, I know they would have nightmares for weeks!
My Dds favorite parks were:
MK
MGM
AK
Epcot

 

[jacksonsmom]

I have been talking to my son (3.5) about the rides at Disney.

He really wants to go on all rides he can (he's 42.5" so he is pretty tall)

I have took him to parks & rides before & he is a dare devil. He has never been on a 'spooky' ride just thrill rides.

I have been researching all the rides & I will inform him of what the ride will be like before we get on there. Let me make the decision if he wants to go on or not, either way will be fine with me.

I might try ITTBAB if he really wants too. So it is better to have them on your lap during that show?

I have a feeling he will enjoy most of the rides & shows at Disney. There are a few I am questioning but I guess we will just play them by ear.

This thread has been really interesting to read

 

[MrsMud]

So it is better to have them on your lap during that show?

I don't think you need to have them on your lap the WHOLE show, just when the bees come out. I would also suggest that YOU lean away from the seat back if you don't want to get "stung". My husband was arguing with me during this show that there was nothing in the the back that could sting you, well he sure found out otherwise! How dare he doubt my fellow DISers!

 

[jacksonsmom]

Originally posted by MrsMud
I don't think you need to have them on your lap the WHOLE show, just when the bees come out.

Thanks! I will remember that for sure if my son decides he wants to try it.

LOL about your husband, guess he will believe you now