How old would your child have to be to be alone at the parks?

[rolshan]

To parents of teens (or even older preteens). At what age do you let your child go off on their own in one of the parks for an hour or so agreeing to meet up with you later (say in a few hours)? At what age would you let them go into the park by themselves (taking a bus from the resort and back)? I bet you see this is a family "discussion" currently....

 

[taratony]

We're going the first of April. We have a ds (18) and a dd (15), they are on they're own, if they want to be, from the hotel and back. We think they will hang with us most of the time to help with our nephew and niece. I'm hoping our cell phones will work down there, if so, then away they go!

 

[cabanafrau]

I would say it's legitimate to consider it at about 13 & up, the bigger variable being the maturity & responsibility level of your kids.

We had no problems w/ our Cingular service in the world & most people seem to report their cell service works as well.

Oh, and to the DIS. The very great majority here are friendly & are willing to share what they know about Disney.

 

[addicted_to_WDW]

I'm cool with my 12 year old disappearing into Innoventions for an hour without me. He's 5'9" so I can't imagine him being anyone's target.

He'll be 14 or 15 before I let him go to parks alone. I figure by that point we'll all need a break from each other!

 

[Hannathy]

7th grade or 12 whichever came sooner for going off in a park or going to the pool/arcade alone. 14 for taking the bus to a park alone, My DD at 11 would occasionally go into a store alone and meet us at the next store or go get a drink and come back if we were waiting at a show or parade.

 

[Anna114]

I think it's up to the child. My now 17ds I would allow to do things earlier then I will with 11ds. My 11yo is like an absent minded professor. I can't trust him to use good judgement, he's done some pretty dopey things.

 

[MaeDaisy]

Wow, you guys are way more trusting than me. My kids are now 10 and 7, and currently, I can't imagine letting them wander the parks by themselves at age 12! No way! I might let them go off together for a few hours when they're 15 & 13, but only if they promised to stick together.


I never considered myself an over-protective parent either. Guess maybe I am after all.

 

[TMTIP]

Wow, you guys are way more trusting than me. My kids are now 10 and 7, and currently, I can't imagine letting them wander the parks by themselves at age 12! No way! I might let them go off together for a few hours when they're 15 & 13, but only if they promised to stick together.


I never considered myself an over-protective parent either. Guess maybe I am after all.

I don't think you are over protective. I would not even dream of letting my kids go off or even in a store by themselves (they are 11 & 13 now). Some people just seem to let their kids act like adults too early.

 

[wiskband]

what a great Q! My older 2 are now 13 and 11, and honestly, they havent approached us YET about this. Not sure how comfortably I would feel however. Here at home we have jusr recently been letting the 13 year old start to walk to stores with her friends etc. Although I know disney is for the most part safe and they have been going since birth and know their way around still freaks me out! I have to tell you in my deepest dark thoughts, I dream of the day when just me and hubby can go off on OUR own! lol
long way to go though, my 2 little ones are only 4 and 8! Perhaps, Ill dabble with it (the two older ones) you know, a few minutes at a time.

renee

 

[ms_mckenna]

Not sure about age mine are currently 11 and 13 and I would not be ok with it. In 2 years I might reconsider as long as the park was not too very crowded.
Another note our Sprint service worked really well there... better than it does at home. DH has an Altel work phone and he had a great signal as well.

 

[Crazy4mandms]

I don't think you are over protective. I would not even dream of letting my kids go off or even in a store by themselves (they are 11 & 13 now). Some people just seem to let their kids act like adults too early.

Just because you do not agree with others about the age is no reason to criticize the way people parent. I would allow my 2 ds's (11 and 15) to wander together in the same park I'm in. Why would that be acting like an adult? They are streetwise, intelligent and well-behaved. So what's the problem? I would NEVER turn to someone who wouldn't allow this and say, "some people just continue to be overbearing parents who won't allow their children to grow up". Parents understand the (IMHO narrowly possible) 'bad' things that go with this type of freedom and have to make a decision based on their child.

 

[java]

hmmm. Well I have almost 13,9,4 and almost2 year olds... the only girl is the 9 year old. I don't think I would let mr. almost 13 wander off alone But I can see when my dd is 13 and he is 16. maybe that happening. I think it would depend on the child and I would like a pair rather than a single. But in the back of my head I will have the story that I read here last year about the girl that got her foot stuck on Splash mountain(3 kids in the park alone- teens) but when the accident happened- They had to cut part of her shoe off. All the while the parents are frantically trying to get there from the hotel- the description of it all and the freaked out mode just slapped me in the face. It will stay with me a loooong time and I think will keep my kids with me as long as I can.

 

[Donald is #1]

Since I don't have kids, I can't add anything to the age discussion. But, as for cell phones, I had great Verizon reception throughout the 4 parks in October.

 

[addicted_to_WDW]

I don't think you are over protective. I would not even dream of letting my kids go off or even in a store by themselves (they are 11 & 13 now). Some people just seem to let their kids act like adults too early.

Huh? You really wouldn't let your 13 year old shop by herself (or himself) for a few minutes? I don't think allowing a little independence is letting them act like adults. It's preparing them, little by little, for life.

 

[2giddy4wdw]

I have to say that we have let our then DD12 and her bestfriend14, walk around the parks together. The same park that we were in. Both are very well behaved and mature, and we had rules. They were never to leave each other, even to go to the bathroom (they waited inside, not outside). Also every 2-3 rides they would call and find out where we were. The following year (2005) same girlfriend came with us and we did let them go to a different park then us. They were actually back at the resort before us cleaning up and we didn't even have to ask. When we go back to the room they even had the latch over the door. We were just there in January and DD didn't bring a friend (it was such a short trip) we were about to leave AK and she wanted to go wait in line at Expedition Everest, DS and his girlfriend wouldn't wait in line because it was too long. DD asked if she could wait by herself and meet us back at the resort...the answer was NO!!!! We do not allow her to go by herself...she always has to have someone with her. I believe in safety in numbers...even if it's just 2!

I don't think it's a matter of letting your kids grow up too fast, or being over protective. It's giving them their independence and trusting their judgement. I know that when my daughter wants to go to the movies and pizza with friends, I am not the type of mom to follow behind. I believe in never letting her go alone, we will always pick up at least one friend and bring them home so that they are never by themselves.

 

[simba928]

I am 16. Last January (I was 15) was the first time I was allowed to go off by myself in the parks. They were eating in Mexico so I was allowed to go a couple countries over (that sounds weird). Then come back. We actually talked about this that trip. My mom said she would have no problem letting me go to the parks and then meeting somewhere in the parks, or even letting me take the bus back and meet them at the hotel. Of course I have been to Disney many times and I have a cell phone, so they are more willing to do that. If neither of those were the case, they definitly would not let me go by myself.

 

[DisneyWisher]

My girls were 11 and 13 the first time we let them go to the MK alone while we stayed at the hotel(me, my ex, and DD3). It was about 3pm in May and told them to be back by 6:30pm, this was 10 yrs ago so cellphones were not the norm or as cheap as they are today. The girls showed up at 6:00pm. My oldest said we didn't want you to worry so we came back early. We live in FL and 90% of the time our vacations are to Disney(we had gone 5 times that year, Love APs). The girls knew where everything was very well. The only time I "freaked" was during the worst day in American History during our lifetime, September 11, 2001. The girls were 17, 15, and 8. DD8 and I got up earlier to go to MK, my other girls were thinking about going to BB(it would be their first time), but they knew they wanted to go to MGM and ride ToT. I never turned on the TV that morning so I had no clue what had happened. MK was empty. We had just gotten off of HM and decided to get a drink. MK made an announcement to head for the park entrance (I thought it was a test drill). When we got on the bus, thats when I found out what happened. Immediately I thought about my older girls. Where were they and were they ok? I rushed back to our room at POR and there they were, They had taken the bus to MGM where the bus turned around and took everyone back to the resort. After that day my girls never wanted to stay at POR ever again. It was back to the Values for us.

I gave my daughters some freedom, didn't mean I was treating them like adults(now they are 23, 21 and 13). Heck, I never let them get their full Driver licenses, they did it after they turned 18. Flame if you want but no one knows your children as well as you. My kids were responsible enough to go to Disney Parks alone. LOL I've never let them go to the beach alone, it was always ok I'll sit 30 ft behind you but I am going too. My girls still talk about the time they went to the parks alone. Worst thing they did, pretend they were babyswapping (they didn't give you a pass back then as they do now). They still get a kick out of that.

 

[snowman]

DNephew will be almost 14 on our August trip and his friend will be 14. We have already decided to allow them to seperate from us for a ride or two if they want. Both boys are well versed in the Buddy System (Boy Scouts, both) and are experienced in being allowed to be on their own for periods of time. They both attend Boy Scout camp and move about camp with a Buddy - and there are plenty of places to get lost, injured or in trouble at camp (think fire, knives, axes, water and mountain trails). In the world outside of camp they are allowed (together) to walk down to the grocery store and back, during daylight hours only (crossing Main St at night would be less safe). We talk about what they will do if they get misplaced (Boy Scout guideline is STOP - Stay Put, Think, Observe, Plan), who they can approach for help (Someone at a cash register, a CM in uniform or a mother w/ an infant ONLY), etc. We discuss the whys and how comes for these rules.

However, what works for our family may not work for yours. I would never consider "criticizing" another parent/guardian because their methods and standards are different than mine. Because I give him a small, earned amount of freedom doesn't mean I'm trying to make him an adult too soon - IMHO, it shows him that I trust him to make a few choices on his own and also trust him to be capable and competent. Again - as with everything involving our children we all only want what we feel is best. You may hold yours a little closer than I do - it doesn't make either of us wrong, we are just different.

 

[diskids2]

We were just having this "family" discussion yesterday.....My DD - 16, DS, 12 .... want to go off on their own.

I would let them do it.....I have no problem saying meet me at....keep in mind, they have cell phones, are responsible and they are TOGETHER.

I would NOT let my 12 year old go alone. I would allow my 16 year old. In fact, last year when she was 15...it was the reverse....she wanted to stay in the hotel room longer and sleep......we coordinated that we would meet at the Dolphin boat dock.....we came in on the boat from Epcot and she jumped on as we went to the Studios.

While I have no problem with meeting up with them at a park that we are also inside of....I am still nervous. I let them do it, but I am always checking my watch.....fighting the urge to call them every minute. I agree with another poster.....preparing them for life a little at a time.....but it's never easy.

Everyone must feel comfortable. Keep talking about it together and maybe by the time your trip comes you will make a good decision for everyone.

 

[MichelleVW]

My girls were 12 and 14 (7th and 9th grade) when they were allowed to tour by themselves. They had a cell phone and strict orders to stay together. They even stayed at Epcot while we went to the AK and they rode the bus back to AKL and were fine.

I see nothing wrong with allowing a middle schooler and a high schooler to go to the parks by themselves. When I was in middle school our parents would drop us off at King's Island for the day and that was long before cell phones!