How Scary Is The Hm?

[IWANNAGOBACK!]

I have a dd 7yr and a ds 3yr old who both want ot go into the haunted mansion but my dd has reservations, she is spooked by most things and is worried she will be too scared? Any thoughts?

 

[disneysteve]

Only of couple of spots that could spook the little ones, IMO. The room with the skeleton bride with the heart beating and the graveyard when things pop up unexpectedly. Other than that, I think if you keep your own mood light and joke with them, they'll be fine. My DD is 8 now, but has been going to WDW once or twice a year since she was an infant and never had a problem in HM.

Steve

 

[jellydisney]

In my experience with HM, children often psyche themselves out thinking that the HM will be terrifying before they even reach the front of the line. And before you get onto the ride itself, there is a "holding area" with a mini show that kids might find to be scary because it is dark with typical thunderstorms/creepy music and the narrator has a deep, sinister voice.

I have been in many situations with my younger siblings, cousins, friend's children, etc where the kids just FREAK OUT before they even get inside so be prepared for that.

The ride itself is just a slow moving car that takes you on a tour of the mansion and the deep voice talks from the speakers in your car and acts as your tour guide. Nothing jumps out at you or comes near your personal space inside the vehicle.

I highly recommend getting a video of the ride and explaining to your children that the ride is supposed to be more humorous than scary. If you can get your kids to go on it once, they will realize that it's not scary at all and will probably not have problems going on it again.

 

[IWANNAGOBACK!]

thanks jellydisney, the video idea is a good one. Have fun on your spring break, since you're from my neck of the woods I'm sure like myself you can't wait to get there!!!!! 30 MORE DAYS FOR US! Thanks again!

 

[EmmasGrammy]

Just so you know, things DO pop up unexpectantly. There are witch torsos that jump up ( Not exactly at you, but up from behind things) in the graveyard scenes. They aren't really "scary" , but they can startle you!! I know they are there, I know they are gonna pop up, and I still jump everytime!!! They could possibly frighten children. Just so you know.

 

[EsmeraldaX]

http://www.grimghosts.com/wdw/page2.html

Take a virtual tour That should help you decide if dd's can handle

 

[stinkerbelle]

our doombuggy stopped in the bride scene for a while once on our last trip...I knew when things were going to 'pop-up'...but it still unnerved me a bit!

now why couldn't we have gotten "stuck' in the ballroom scene?!?!

 

[WDW Fun]

The very first time our two DSs went on they were 6 and 9. Believe it or not, we had to talk the OLDER one into riding it. When we were done he said "we have to go on again, I had my eyes shut through it all!" The doom buggies feel very nice and protective around you so I think that and snuggling up to a parent makes the little ones feel safer.

And, yes, I would love to have the ride break down so I could sit and watch the ballroom scene, too!

 

[jellydisney]

Oh yes, I did forget about the witch things that pop up and yelp from behind a gravestone. They're not very near the vehicles, but they can be startling. I believe that's the only thing that jumps out though. Good luck, I'm sure you'll enjoy it! It's one of those special rides with a lot of creative detailing and magic. I never miss it!

 

[jellydisney]

That link Esmeralda gave is great--it is for the Disneyland HM though, isn't? Although I came across this passage, for you HM veterans:

"Before too much time has passed, the lightning stops and we hear a woman commit suicide by falling down the room. We hear her scream as she falls, and finally hits the ground with a crash."

I don't remember that at all!! I vaguely remember a faint scream? This is kind of morbid!!

 

[iloveeeyore]

We spent many, many months preparing, listening to the music to desensitize the kids. DD7, who LOVES thrill rides such as Space Mountain and BTMRR (rode again and again) was TOTALLY freaked out in the HM and SplashMountain (not for the plummet but for the story line, fox, buzzards, etc.). DS5, who wouldn't go near the above-named thrill rides (including SplashMountain because of the plummet) adored HM.

HM has very loud, sudden shrieks, esp. in the graveyard. I think this room is what did her in. She'll be 10 when we go next, and can't wait to try it again.

 

[petula]

Being a total HM freak fan, I'm all for kids going in as early as possible. (My parents say they brought me as an infant and I slept through it. So *that's* how I got this way!) Really only you know your kids. I've seen kids freak out in the beginning just from walking into the place and from the "preshow" part but then are completely fine once they get to the ride part. The atmosphere is probably scarier than anything else about the ride, and that doesn't really come across very well on the videos. But you may as well watch them to prepare. If your kids want to go, I'd bet they can probably handle it. I think a lot of the freaked-out kids don't want to go in at all and are taken anyway.

By the way, I can't remember where I read this, but someone was talking about how he takes his kid in and pulls his hat over his eyes through the whole ride. That seemed a little strange, but it seemed to work for them!

 

[gctong]

I think the ghost riding back "with you" at the end was the freakiest part when we younger.

 

[daystar]

Hi,
Over Christmas we took our five year son through it....He wasn't frighten yet until we got into the ride, it was dark....He doesn't like the dark so he did not like that ride at all....I guess it depends on your kids....My son loves fast rides and is pretty brave but when it comes to spooky rides the darkness he does not like......

 

[dcentity2000]

It'll be fine

Yes, there are moments where you could be startled, but it is built for the enjoyment of all and in the end I guess all you can do is try it out.

After all, if you don't like it there's nothing saying that you need repeat the experience but if you don't, well, you'll always wonder, won't you?



Rich::

 

[EsmeraldaX]

Originally posted by jellydisney
That link Esmeralda gave is great--it is for the Disneyland HM though, isn't? Although I came across this passage, for you HM veterans:

"Before too much time has passed, the lightning stops and we hear a woman commit suicide by falling down the room. We hear her scream as she falls, and finally hits the ground with a crash."

I don't remember that at all!! I vaguely remember a faint scream? This is kind of morbid!!

The site actually gives virtual tours for all 4 worldwide HM attractions.

The woman does scream and the dead body hangs from the ceiling on your trip in the elevator...

"This chamber has no windows and no doors...which makes [you ponder the question] ...to find a WAY OUT! (lightning crash...scary laughter...lights on) Of course...there's always MY way out...(scream; body drops from ceiling...door to Doom Buggies opens)."

As long as you don't look straight up , you will not see the body , which is kind of realistic and very unsettling.

www.doombuggies.com

that's the main site just in case the prior one leads to the DL version of the HM.

 

[jann1033]

I can take TOT, any of the mountains, RNR ,ANY thing BUT HM... I hate it! it gives me the creeps espc. when the "ghost " gets in the car with you...YUCK

 

[MickeyHereWeCome!]

We rode the HM with all three of our children (age range from 6-6 months), and they all did fine. The kids had watched the Disneyland sing-a-long video millions of times, so once they realized that there weren't really going to be bad characters walking around, they seemed fine. My 3-year-old did have her hands covering her eyes at times the first time through. It must not have scared her too much because she eagerly went on a second time later in the trip!!

The only "scary" part was the one room when things pop up and make a screaming sound, but we were able to help the kids make light of it all.

Good luck deciding. I'd say, after explaining that there could be scary parts that they may choose to cover their eyes for, if they still want to ride, go for it!!

 

[jellydisney]

Originally posted by EsmeraldaX
The woman does scream and the dead body hangs from the ceiling on your trip in the elevator...As long as you don't look straight up , you will not see the body , which is kind of realistic and very unsettling.

I was aware of the body that hangs from the ceiling, but the part I was referring to comes AFTER that apparantly. Here's the more complete description:

"The lights in the room are quickly blown out by some unfelt wind, and guests can see hanging directly above them the rotting corpse of the Ghost Host... hung by his neck in the previously invisible attic. Thunder and lightning illuminate this scene through broken windows. Before too much time has passed, the lightning stops and we hear a woman commit suicide by falling down the room. We hear her scream as she falls, and finally hits the ground with a crash.

The candles in the room are relit. Looking around, guests can see no sign of the corpse, and the ceiling is once again in place. A door slides open, revealing a dank hallway.

GHOST HOST: "Ohh.. I didn't mean to frighten you... prematurely, hmm hm hmmm.... The REAL chills come later. Now, as they say, look alive and we'll continue our little tour. And let's all stay together, please."

 

[EsmeraldaX]

Originally posted by jellydisney
I was aware of the body that hangs from the ceiling, but the part I was referring to comes AFTER that apparantly. Here's the more complete description:

"The lights in the room are quickly blown out by some unfelt wind, and guests can see hanging directly above them the rotting corpse of the Ghost Host... hung by his neck in the previously invisible attic. Thunder and lightning illuminate this scene through broken windows. Before too much time has passed, the lightning stops and we hear a woman commit suicide by falling down the room. We hear her scream as she falls, and finally hits the ground with a crash.

The candles in the room are relit. Looking around, guests can see no sign of the corpse, and the ceiling is once again in place. A door slides open, revealing a dank hallway.

GHOST HOST: "Ohh.. I didn't mean to frighten you... prematurely, hmm hm hmmm.... The REAL chills come later. Now, as they say, look alive and we'll continue our little tour. And let's all stay together, please."

Not sure, I don't recall much except the woman screaming. Maybe they've changed it since this was written?