Is Fantasmic too scary for a 3 year old??

[cyndisue]

My 3 1/2 year old son has seen the Disney planning video, and decided that he doesn't want to see "that mean dragon" in Fantasmic.

However, I think me and my husband and 11 year old would love it.

Does anyone have any experience with young children at Fantasmic? Is it worth it to bring them if they are scared? I don't want him to be terrified of dragons for the rest of his life.

Any advice would be appreciated!

Cyndi Sue

 

[jiminyfan]

This is a question only you can answer for your child. Why?

My son has grown up in amusement parks and WDW (first trip at 6 months old, 8th trip in a few weeks) and he loves Fantasmic
(he is now 3) and always did. My niece's child at 5 years old was terrified, he closed his eyes and held his mother close as he could all show.

Only you know your child's fears and fear limits. As a general rule, I have seen many young toddlers enjoy the show, I have also seen quite a few leave early.

I know that this doesn"t really help, but it is an honest of an answer as I can give.

Each child reacts differently to each ride. In fact, I have seen my son go from loving an attraction to being afraid of it back to asking to go on it again and again. Children are very fickle.

I can only suggest going to see the show and sit near the top, it will be less threatening up high and if need be you can make a quicker exit.

Good luck. Remember to be patient and allow the child time to grow into WDW and the magic. Do not write off any ride as too scary or assume any ride to be good.

Try to go into your trip with an open mind and allow your child to make suggestions of what to see and do. Many people forget that their child is a big part of the trip and the main reason they chose Disney as their vacation destination. You will be surprised how much a child does understand and know what they like to do. Get maps for all parks and look over them with your child. My son picks out what he wants to do at each park. sometimes what we find BORING (Dinoland dig up the bones!!!) they will love and remember for a long time.

Hope you and your family enjoys the trip.

 

[Eponine]

My husband and I have opted to leave Fantasmic out of our touring this year, because we think that it might be too intense for our son, who will be 3 less than a month after our trip. It's a great show, but also loud with many sudden noises and realistic effects. Since it's his first time there, and his only experience with theme parks at all is one day at Disneyland, we'd like to "break him in" as gently as we can. We'll reevaluate the situation, as well as the intensity levels that we feel our son can handle, just before our next trip in December.

As for your son...if it were me, I'd take his statement about not wanting to see the dragon seriously. Children usually understand their limits better than we think they do. Maybe one of you could take him for some one-on-one time, and the other could take your older child to the show. With any luck, he might hear how great it was, and change his mind about seeing it!

 

[sara]

Hi!
I'd say it depends on the child, too. My DD thought parts were scary, but she didn't mind watching it anyway. Now, my DS didn't like it at all. He ended up falling asleep. (probably to avoid it) Even though he is 5 1/2 now, it will probably be years before he agrees to see it again.

Sara

 

[QuickGold]

Couldn't have said it better myself Jiminy...You know your kids the best, so keep testing them. Also, keep in mind that the commercials embelish what actually happens

Also, you can download a video of Fantasmic! and let your child see if it is too intense or not. You can download it here: http://www.wdwmagic.com/fantasmic_video.htm

 

[cleo]

If he didn't like it on the video, I'd honor his request and not subject him to the real thing. It IS pretty intense, and more than a little frightening for tots. If he hadn't seen it and asked not to go, I'd probably say 'take him and try it out', but he's saying it's too much and I'd tend to believe him.

Is there any possibility you could do a child-swap scenario? If there are two showings the night you're there, one of you could take DD to the first show while DS does something special in the park, then meet up and swap (maybe take him back to the room). DD could see it twice that way (if she's so inclined) and both you and DH would be able to go. Alternatively, go on two nights. It's not overly convenient, but it would honor what DS is telling you is too much.

 

[ToyStory Fan]

My DS (3 1/2) surprised me (in a bad way) at Fantasmic, earlier in the day we did the Star Wars (which I thought he would not like, but he loved it) ride about 8 times (he refused to leave, so we kept getting back on). Also, no problem on Goofy's Barnstormer. At Fantasmic, during the villain/dragon sequence he FREAKED out, crying, terrified climbing all over me to "hide" and saying he wanted to go home.

 

[K P & J's Grandma]

We were just at WDW with 2 of our grandchildren. They have been going since they were 2 yrs old - this was their 5th trip & they had been to Fantasmic everytime without any problems. This time our Granddaughter who had just turned 5 was scared of the loud noises - Grandson who turned 5 since we returned loved it. This trip our Granddaughter was afraid of a lot of things that she had been on before - we always had commented on how she 'had no fear' of the big rides!! Half way through the trip she was even afraid of the automatic flush toilets - one 'flushed' before she was done!!! Our Grandson was picky this time with which characters he wanted to see - didn't want to see the 'bad guys'. It is really hard to tell what a child will think or do - their likes & dislikes can change quickly. Whatever you decide to do - I hope that you will have a great vacation. It is a 'Whole New World' seeing Disney through the eyes of a child!!!!!!!

 

[sconstantz]

The first time he was just 4. He saw the Disney planning video as well and stated very clearly, he did not want to see the mean dragon. Well, we went anyway with the dinner package. We were seated far to the side, but down low and waiting for the show to begin. We talked to him about the show all the time. We did not hide that we were at the "dragon" show, and that he could decide if it was ok or not. Well, right before the show started, he said I am not staying. We moved up high, close to the exit and asked him if we could just "try" it. And leave if it was too scary.

We made it through the show, and he "loved" that Mickey won. He went on and on about how "magical" Mickey is. And he was very proud that he made it through the show.

Fast forward another year. he still wasn't sure he wanted to see the "mean' dragon again. This time we had front row, center seats. He loved seeing all the princesses, didn' t like seeing Malificent, but enjoyed the show.

I would say, if you are going to try it, be prepared for anything!!! We ready to leave if we needed to. and don't hide anything, and talk him through any situations. It helped in our case. And, like I said, he was very proud of himself and told everyone at his pre-school that the dragon show was his favorite (although he didn't need to do it again).

shelly

 

[TeamMom011]

We saw Fantasmic at Disneyland 8 yrs ago when DS was 3. About 20 minutes before the show started -- that would be after waiting in a reeal good spot for over an hour -- he decided all the hullabaloo was just too much and started screaming he was scared. In my ongoing quest to win the "Mother of the Year" award, we ran to a nearby shop, bought a Lion King sweatshirt, went back to our designated spot, put the sweatshirt over his head and that's the way we experienced Fantasmic with a 3 yr old hunkered down between my feet. Since he didn't actually have to watch any of it, he was just fine and peeked out when told to look at appropriate parts. I can't say that I'd recommend this solution, but he doesn't seem to bear any lasting scars. I will admit that the following year, we hired a babysitter at the hotel and DH and I went by ourselves.

 

[christophfam]

We went to Fantasmic! with my 3 1/2 year old in Decebmer. She is a pretty tough little girl since she has a big brother, but Fantasmic! scared her to DEATH! She cried and grabbed us begging to leave which we quickly did. After we got out, she said she NEVER wanted to go there again. It is very intense and if your child is ever scared in any of the Disney movies then I would most definitely avoid Fantasmic!. The movies are nothing compared to the show.

You mentioned that you were worried he would be scared of dragons forever if you took him. Well, my daughter didn't even make it to the dragon scene before we had to leave, but when we went to the IMAX this weekend to see the Lion King she was scared and wanted to leave. I believe in her mind that she was afraid she was going to see something like Fantasmic!. We almost had to leave, but I convinced her to stay until the movie started and if she wanted to leave after that we would. Once the movie started she was fine.

My advice is a definite NO! Skip it, do a trade off if you can because it is enjoyable for older kids, but don't take your son. Especially since he already said he thought it was scary.

 

[Cmbar]

We are off to Disney for the first time with our 3 yr old and 5yr old. Did I see that there was a Disney planning video? My children don't watch the Disney Video's all that much, mostly because some of the scary parts really scare them. I very rarely get a "mommy can we see that again" with the Disney movies. They however are into the Bear in the big blue house, and rolly polly ollie and such so we are excited to bring them to MGM. However I would love to have some kind of video to show them before we go so that they can be familiar with the attractions and characters.

Could you tell me where to get this video. I would really appreciate it.

We also are skipping Fantasmic this year with the kiddies. My DH and I loved it but we knew when we saw it last year that our kids would not enjoy it. I would definitely try to let your older child see it though because it is enjoyable. Good Luck

 

[cyndisue]

Hey thanks everyone for your advice. It confirmed what I was already feeling, which is to skip Fantasmic! (at least with our little one). He's brave about some things, but I think I will wait a few more years until we take him.

As far as the question about the planning video, you can order it free from Disney, but it does take a while to arrive. When are you leaving? I can mail you ours if you would like--it would be no problem.

Thanks,

CyndiSue

 

[TLinden16]

I went to see Fantasmic with my five-year-old nephew Matthew a couple of years ago. He saw the dragon on a map, and said he didn't want to see the show. We had a dinner package already booked, so we decided we would still go through with it. Matthew was still a bit uneasy about going to see the dragon, so I slipped away for a few minutes and bought him a Mickey light. When I met up with my family again, I told Matthew that I ran into Mickey, and he gave me this magic light. I told him that Mickey said if Matthew got scared, all's he had to do is hold up the light, and Mickey would make sure that Matthew would be OK.

Well, when we were at the show, Matthew loved most of it, but there were a few parts where he held that light high in the air. But the light definitely helped him, and he talked about how much he loved the show for months afterwards.

Karen

 

[sm4987]

My DD had just turned 3 in April. Our trip was towards the end of June and early July. She loved it! There was no scare at all to her. She watched with rapt attention and we were in the front because we had paid for the dinner package.. She was thrilled. She had no nightmares and she begged to go back. My son who was six, made us see it like 4 times. Everytime she was like Mickey watch out!! I think you have to know your child. Mine is pretty fearless. She enjoys pretty much everything and cried everytime she missed a roller coaster! Enjoy your time and just see how your child is. You might be surprised!!