How old before you let your child go off alone?

[Hikergirl]

I can't believe people wouldn't let their kids go off alone before the age of 18. My God, kids can drive cars at 15 and get jobs but they can't navigate a theme park without adult supervision? That is just crazy. Even Disney feels 14 is old enough to be in the park alone.

For my kids its 12-13

 

[T_O]

It may be noted that there has never been a child abducted by a stranger from any Disney park. It isn't that different a world, but it is perceived to be. There's also cellphones, so you can ask them to check in if you have a phone and they have a phone.

I would only be worried about abductions for someone under 10 who has not been reported as lost. But my biggest concern for kids any age would be horsing around/rough-housing on rides or going into restricted areas and potentially getting hurt. This obviously wouldn't apply to kids who are responsible and don't get disoriented easily.

 

[KristiMc]

On our trip this summer we are planning on letting our boys 15 & 12 spend the evening in Epcot on their own while we have dinner at Rose & Crown.

 

[mjkacmom]

I'd say around 13 alone, 11/12 with a friend. Heck, once they turn 18, they can fly to Europe alone if they want!

Actually, DH just took dd13, dd15, and ds17 to Scotland, and ds spent s lot of time mucking around Glasgow either alone, or with one of his sisters. He says he knows it like the back of his hand now.

 

[JennaDeeDooDah]

I have twins who just turned 12 and I would let them spend time in the parks alone with a cell phone and a time limit. I'm kinda surprised at the 14 year old age limit, but I guess Disney is trying to be safe. It depends on the child, I think.

I think I remember reading somewhere that the 14 year old age limit was done more for California because parents were using Disneyland as a babysitter in the summer. Don't know how accurate that is, but I can see it making some sense, as well.

 

[Magpie]

I have twins who just turned 12 and I would let them spend time in the parks alone with a cell phone and a time limit. I'm kinda surprised at the 14 year old age limit, but I guess Disney is trying to be safe. It depends on the child, I think.

My parents let my sister and me do that when we were 13 and 11 respectively. I do think that there is a difference in kids being in the park with another kid versus being in the park by themselves and would probably allow my child to go around with a friend or cousin before I'd let her roam free. I interpret Disney's rule to mean that a child 7 and older can ride alone, but isn't supposed to really be roaming the park by themselves until they are 14 (if I have that wrong, please let me know). Because of this, I wouldn't let my daughter walk around the parks alone unless she was 14. And, as another poster said, it would completely depend on the maturity of the child. My daughter's babysitter is 13 about to be 14. If she were my daughter, I'd have no problem with her going around the parks on her own. I have to remind myself that she is only 13 now. My nephew, on the other hand, is the same age and there's no way I'd let him go around on his own were he my son. If my daughter is more like her babysitter, 14 for sure. More like my nephew? Then we are looking at 15 or older.

I think the only thing Disney is saying is that there needs to be a person aged 14 or older accompanying the child into the park. But once they've entered, that person doesn't need to be tethered at the waist to the child for the entire visit. In other words, if you want to bring your 8 year old in, and go have an ice cream while he runs around riding everything his little heart desires (or, more likely, standing in line for an hour), Disney has no problem with it.

That said, I do think that theoretical 8yo should have a cellphone. The parks are large and it can be hard to meet back up with your family, even if you've all agreed on a time and place.

(And truthfully, neither of MY kids were ready for that kind of freedom at 8, so I'd never have allowed it! But at 12? No problem.)

 

[Anesthesia Fine]

My oldest is 16; she and her (thirteen year old) cousin went off on their own at MK this past trip, and I also let her wander off in Epcot with her nine-year-old brother. I would have felt quite comfortable letting her do that a couple of years ago, as well. My middle child is also pretty responsible, so once he hits 12-14 I'm not worried.

My youngest, on the other hand...well, he's a lively one. I don't even know. I'll play that one by ear.

 

[NewbieMouse]

I think I remember reading somewhere that the 14 year old age limit was done more for California because parents were using Disneyland as a babysitter in the summer. Don't know how accurate that is, but I can see it making some sense, as well.

My parents certainly did that for me at Canada's Wonderland; for all you GTA folks that will make sense.

 

[KaSe]

It hasn't been unusual that our older daughter, who loves rides like ToT, would go ride something on her own (starting from about age 12) while my younger daughter and I stood in line for a character meet or something like that. By the time they were about 12 & 15, they'd go off together for a short time while I watched the Nemo show or had an ice cream break or something like that. They'd have a cellphone and we'd have a meet up place and time. It's always been some time on their own within the same park. This past trip last fall was the first one our older daughter left the park, rode the bus back to the hotel and we met up again a few hours later for dinner, but she was a few months shy of 18 at that point, and I guess if I have to allow her to head off to college, then taking the bus back to the hotel shouldn't be a big deal.

 

[aggiedog]

By themselves, maybe 13-16 depending on the kid. Paired with a friend or sibling, 12-13. I chaperoned a HS band trip last year. The kids were allowed to go freely without an adult, but always in groups of 2 or more.

 

[JustCallMeMommy]

DD is an only child and isn't really interested in going off completely alone very often. When we did a friend trip at 13, they asked if they could go off together. That only lasted about 30 minutes before they were ready to meet up with me again. I was kind of enjoying sitting down having a drink alone. Oh - and the two of them were allowed to get themselves back from Universal CityWalk to our hotel (on site at Universal) when they finished dinner much faster than my friends and me.

For us, I think it is a progressive thing. When she was 8, she started browsing different sections from us in stores - I'll never forget looking around for her at the big Japan store and finding her at the register making a purchase. By the end of that trip, she was also often asking if she could be the one of the three of us who rode alone on 2 seat rides.

At 10, she started doing some rides alone - for instance, I only want to do Space Mountain once or twice, while she could do it all day long. At first, I would drop her at the entrance and meet up in the store at the end. After a while, I stopped dropping her at the entrance. A while after that, I went and did PeopleMover or another attraction in the area whole she rode. Around the same age, she dared me to ride Hulk at Universal (which I was happy to do), so she waited for me while I rode.

I would be perfectly comfortable letting her go off for a few hours now (still 13), but I don't think she would really want to unless she had a friend with her. I wouldn't let her go to the park all alone for selfish reasons - I want to go, too!

 

[Mikie]

Assumptions:
- parents have tried lots of little freedoms like this at home first
- kid is "average" maturity
- kid can tell left from right and knows their way around WDW
- kid has demonstrated an ability to think on their feet when unexpected things arise
- everyone has a cell

I'd do:
- 11-12 if with a trusted bigger kid, OR they are the big kid and I'm in the same park
- 13-14 to get a head start to a park I'm going to or to stay a bit after I'm leaving
- 15-16 pretty free reign with check-ins. I base this on them being trusted to be responsible for an automobile at home. Wouldn't be an all day thing, simply because I expect to see them on our family vacation!

 

[MomofKatie]

DD and her friend were allowed to go off and explore on their own within the same park as me when they were 12.

When they were 14, they had free run of the resort (staying on property, using Disney transportation and keeping to a set curfew time).

Never had any problems or issues. Of course, they had their cell phones with them at all times and were pretty responsible young ladies in general. YMMV.

 

[Roxyfire]

I wandered around many European cities for a few hours at a time during free time on tour group vacations from the ages of 14-17. Well before cell phones or anything like that. Beyond the discussion about maturity level and so on, teenagers need the life skills to be able to navigate getting around on their own. WDW is probably the best place to practice.

 

[Betty Rohrer]

At what age would you let your child go ride their own rides and meet you back up for say a couple of hours?

14?
16?
21?
Not until they move out?

It's definitely a different time. When I was a kid, my parents let me run off alone for the entire morning and meet them for lunch at 12. i don't think I would do that now! And I know each kid is different and has to be judged independently, yaadaa yaadaa. Just in general.

our girls were 10 and 13 when we started letting them have a couple of hours to do their thing and meet us. younger one was special needs and the girls had to stay together. when younger one was 17 she went with her high school choir to WDW. her group was one of three out of 16 that were allowed to visit what ever park they wanted as a group for 4 hours on last day because they had been to every check point on time. yes that early training paid off. and this was before cell phones

 

[kangamangus]

If they were completely alone probably 13 or 14. But if they are a pair then 12. Meaning if I had a 12 and 11 year old I would let them off on their own for a little while. This October I'll have no problem letting my 14 and 12 year old going off in the parks and meeting up after a couple of hours.

 

[bbak30]

I'm thinking around 14 or so. Will depend on maturity though so we shall see.

 

[KrazeeK120]

I think to go alone, 14 is a good age. In my state, children under 14 are not allowed (legally) to be left home alone.

 

[PrincessV]

I was fine with my son doing things on his own from maybe 9 or 10 on. We're WDW regulars so he knows the parks like the back of his hand, he's trustworthy and he's responsible. He's turning 14 soon and his interest in going off on his own has waxed and waned over the years: back when he was 11, he took off to do some Sorcerers things in MK while I chilled on a bench for a while, but I had to push him to throw away his own darn wrapper at a trash can 20' away not too long ago. 5 minutes later, he had no problem taking off to the gift shop while I rode TOT solo (he won't ride.) So yeah - gotta work with what you've got on any given day lol!

 

[niffer5150]

it depends on the kid. my kid, if she had wanted to, could have gone off at 12. we've left her for a few hours in the hotel at 14. now at 16 i'm quite sure she only needs me because i'm the over 18 yo who has to check in.