How strict is height requirements?

[drogerstn]

What difference does it make how old the child is; the rides are restricted based on height It seems to me that Disney has made an effort to have major attractions with fairly low height requirements so that most family members can enjoy. That may be part of the reason why it took so long before WDW put in a ride like RoR.

 

[Tay N Evie's Mom]

Here's the problem we had with the height restriction. I have twins but DS is taller than DD. We got in line for the Alien ride and they measured DD and she was told she was tall enough. I told DD that she would be tall enough to ride Space Mountain too and she was thrilled. The CM even wrote up a fast pass for us since she was now tall enough. The fast pass CM at Space Mountain measured her and she was tall enough and we all rode. I had regular fast passes for 10 minutes later, again DD was measured and again we all rode. We got in the regular line for Space Mountain for what would have been our 3rd ride in a row. That CM measured DD and told us she wasn't tall enough by over and inch! We had that problem both days at MK. Every time we were in the regular line-too short, but in the fast pass line she was tall enough. Do you have any idea how frustrating it is for a parent to try to explain to a 5 year old that even though she just rode the ride, she's now not tall enough. I wouldn't have had a problem if they would have said that she wasn't tall enough from the beginning, but it was frustrating to have such a height discrepency when the lines are side by side (DD was always around an inch too short in the regular line). I feel that there should be a place that you can go and get your child "officially" measured for the day and have the child wear a wrist band showing the height restriction and if the child doesn't have a band on then he would be subject to discretion of the CM at the ride.

 

[LauraAngel]

Tay N Evie-

It's my understanding that there is such a place. As I've heard on numerous posts of this sort before you take your child to city hall first thing in the morning, they can measure them officially there and give them just such a wristband. I agree that that is a very frustrating situation and if that is indeed the case, I think that would be a great way to hopefully avoid just such a situation in the future.

In response to some of the other stuff...I don't want to get flamed again about this. I'm not trying to start a fight. It just seems like we get posts like the OP left *all* the time on here and it's really really frustrating. I know you want your kids to be able to enjoy all the magic of Disney rides, but as a previous poster noted, they aren't trying to ruin your or your child's day. They just want to keep you and your family safe. It's not a matter of age, or scariness...it's a matter of safety from restraints and again, as a previous poster noted, just adding poufy hair and thick shoes doesn't actually make your child any taller, hence they aren't any safer. The rules are there and enforced harshly for a reason....nonethless, I wish everyone a wonderful (and safe!) trip.

 

[Tay N Evie's Mom]

LauraAngel, thanks for the info about DD being measured at city hall. I learn something new from this board every day!

 

[Elk34]

I'll play devil's advocate here then. If Disney's only reason for height restrictions is the safety of children then why is there a height restriction on AE: Extraterrorestrial? You don't actually go anywhere on the ride so there is no possibility of being phsically injured no matter what your size. Now getting emotionally injured is another story and that is exactly why the restriction exists. Because, let's face it there are a lot of parents out there who can't restrict themselves.

So, I think the main reason for the restrictions is safety but there are also some parenting issues going on. I guess it's the same reason movies have ratings on them. You just know some parents would be taking kids to R rated movies if the theaters didn't prevent them.

I still don't understand why Primeval Whirl has such a high height requirement though. It must have areally bad restraint system because the ride isn't that aggressive.

 

[GAIL HAYDEN]

Originally posted by Elk34
I'll play devil's advocate here then. If Disney's only reason for height restrictions is the safety of children then why is there a height restriction on AE: Extraterrorestrial? You don't actually go anywhere on the ride so there is no possibility of being phsically injured no matter what your size. Now getting emotionally injured is another story and that is exactly why the restriction exists. Because, let's face it there are a lot of parents out there who can't restrict themselves.

So, I think the main reason for the restrictions is safety but there are also some parenting issues going on. I guess it's the same reason movies have ratings on them. You just know some parents would be taking kids to R rated movies if the theaters didn't prevent them.

I still don't understand why Primeval Whirl has such a high height requirement though. It must have areally bad restraint system because the ride isn't that aggressive.

AE is because of the restraints they place on you during the attraction. Primeval does not have a bad restraint system, it is the way the ride works that calls for the restraint system they use. A lot of minds, greater than ours, go into the design and safety issues involved. That would account for the many warnings on some rides as well as the height requirement.

 

[justcruisin]

Where can I get a list of the height requirements for different rides?

 

[GAIL HAYDEN]

http://wdwig.com/rr.htm

or any guide book, also, you can probably find them here if the search function is up and you do a search.

 

[GAIL HAYDEN]

Originally posted by drogerstn
What difference does it make how old the child is; the rides are restricted based on height It seems to me that Disney has made an effort to have major attractions with fairly low height requirements so that most family members can enjoy. That may be part of the reason why it took so long before WDW put in a ride like RoR.

I agree with you. I often wonder if people think that if they tease the kids hair and put shoes on them with 2 " heels ( so comfy for the child to have to wear all day) think this would work for a child that still needs to be in a car seat or booster but, chooses to put them in a regular seat belt, cause, now with the hair and shoes they are taller. Sorry folks, it don't work that way. The rides are designed in approx. the safety manner they make their recommendations for car seats and children.
I sure hope this post makes sense, cause, I simply cannot get this analogy out of my head and onto this board.

 

[Stimpy]

Did they bring back the wrist bands at Town Hall? We went in January 2003 and asked about them. The CM said it was only a trial run and they discontinued using them. That would be great if they decided to bring them back.

 

[swanmom]

My DD does make the height requirement ... only by about 1/2 inch. However, she is extremely thin - about 45 pounds. Just like some of the other kids mentioned, she does love the thrill rides and was wildly excited that she could ride RnR Coaster this year! However, she was too thin for the shoulder harness and therefore wasn't held tight back against the seat. Of course, this wasn't obvious until we took off. Throughout the ride, she kept banging her chest hard against the harness. Left the ride really scared and very bruised - was complaining of pain for a couple of days after. So, I learned a lesson the hard way..... not only are those rules there for a reason but I don't want to even think about what would have happened had she been a little smaller.

 

[lexiluke]

Okay - so tell me this - if my 3yo just meets the 40inch height requirement when we go in Nov., but he has his regular tennis shoes on, should I let him get on since he's not 40 inches w/o shoes? I don't want to put him at risk.

 

[LibertyBelle]

Originally posted by lexiluke
Okay - so tell me this - if my 3yo just meets the 40inch height requirement when we go in Nov., but he has his regular tennis shoes on, should I let him get on since he's not 40 inches w/o shoes? I don't want to put him at risk.

I can tell you from working at height restricted attractions that if your child is in normal tennis shoes, they are not going to question his height if he "just" makes it. It is when they have on the really high platform shoes, or think soled sandels, to "stretch" to the height. that the shoe issue becomes a problem, at that point when they sit down the possibilites exist that they are not going to be restrained properly. But if your child has on reasonable shoes (tennis shoes, sandels, etc...with a normal sole) they will be ok. At that point it is up to you to make the decision on whether or not you as a parent want them to ride.

 

[sm4987]

My daughter was 39 when we went. She was 40 with her shoes on and they let her ride. ALthough it was a pain that even after riding BTMR 3 times, a new CM would come and we would have to measure all over again. Some CM looked at her and let her go, other's insisted on measuring her. I think it depends on the CM. That being said, everything that she wanted to ride on they let her. Test Track, Splash Mountain, BTMR, Body Wars, Star Tours. We could have done TT, but I didn't think she was ready!

 

[campingcorgi]

We have a 39 inch 3 year old who fell in love with Goofy's ride in June and really wants to ride 'the big train, the splashy ride, and the up and down ride (TOT) in October. She is drinking lots of milk, and her constant question is "am I bigger nuff now?" I hope so!!! If not, she'll just have to wait.

 

[lexiluke]

I really hope our son will grow enough by Nov.!! He drives you absolutely insane with repetitive requests to go on rides that he's not tall enough for. At 2yo, he just doesn't get the idea of height requirements and refuses to accept that he's not tall enough. He'll soon turn 3yo, and he tells us that he'll be bigger then and can ride the BIG coasters! Wish he was tall for his age!!

 

[nativetxn]

This thread is being closed at the request of the original poster.

Katholyn