Height Requirements

[Tink&SquirtsMom]

I have a dd who is just about 40" tall (barely if she stands super straight) and a major thrill seeker. She was crushed on our last DL trip when she wasn't allowed on Splash and TOT. She just sat there watching the people drop and really wanting to go on. I know some people would not take a 4yo (turning 5 during trip) on these rides (particularly TOT), but I know she would love it. At 2 I really didn't think she should go on Haunted Mansion but after seeing the previews on the tv back at our hotel she begged and begged and it ended up being her very favorite ever. And after the drops at POC in DL (DL has 2, I think WDW has 1?? shorter one) she wants to skip the rest of the ride and do the drops again.

Anyways, my question is how true to number is the 40" guide? The reason I ask is dd's friend (4yo triplets) just returned from DL and one of the girls who is about 2 inches taller then dd, was only allowed on TOT 2 out of the 3 times they tried and only 1 out of 3 times on SM. Even when they showed the CM the pictures of her on it before they wouldn't let her back on, she was very upset as it had been her favorite ride (TOT). Now I measure my dd, as I said at exactly the bottom of the 40" line when she is barefoot, hair down and standing straight. She will have her hair up and sandals with a wedge type heel those both will add an inch or two, but I am concerned that her friend who really is well above 40" was turned away.

Since our last trip I have had a piece of tape up in her room at 40" so she can see for herself (and be prepared) if she will or will not make it onto these rides. If the mark they use is actually a bit taller then the 40" they say I want to know to prepare her that she won't be able to try these rides. It was big downer on our last trip.

Also any experiences with exactly 40" kids on the rides (whether they got on or not) would really help. The only other thing I can think of is making sure she gets vitamins and eats her veggies everyday to help get an in or two before July.

Sorry this is so long.

 

[FishNette]

Try buying her some of those 'platform' shoes (with the really thick soles), but make sure she breaks them in before you go!

Also, if she has long hair, try putting it up in a bun to give her some additional height.

When my daugher was 4, we did both of the above strategies & didn't have a problem. That was 4 years ago though, so I don't know if CM's have gotten pickier now.

Good luck from a Mom with a fellow daredevil daughter!

 

[Kapp]

if they are really checking height and if the "checker" is strict. My daughter was tall enough for some of the 40" rides and than suddenly shrank to below 40" all in about 20 minutes! I know they are doing their job but when they have to get down on their knees to see or have to move their hand around to see if there is any space between the child's head and "ruler"...that's too much! We even warned her to stand up straight before the rides where she was too short.

Good luck!

 

[sarahg311@hotmail.co]

The CM's are really cracking down on the height requirements. My Ds is 39" and we are preparing him to not be able to get on a lot of the rides. Also the hair and platform shoes don't really work anymore. The CM's know every trick in the book and the shoe and hair things are some of the most obvious ones!! But since your DD is 40" she shouldn't have any problems.

 

[mowsluver]

My daughter was 4 when we went last year to DL and she BARELY made the 40". What we did is get her some snadals--NOT the platform type--but some plain white ones from Target that have about a 1" sole. Not really noticeable as "big shoes" and they were comfy because the whole sole was thick, not just in the heel. We told her to stand as straight as she could, chin up.
She rode SM and ToT and BTM with no problems but when we got to Star Tours, the older CM said 'no'. We told him she had ridden SM etc (and even had pics to prove it) but the ground is the tiniest bit unlevel at the height sign and her head JUST missed hitting it....
Another thing to do if she will be wearing sneakers...put in 1" lifts just before going on the ride. They cannot be seen and can be taken out right after the ride and the sneaks will be comfy for walking in!