Is my 2-year old too short for the rides???

[pearland1]

Hi everyone, I think my petite two-year-old is about 33" tall right now. We are thinking of going to Disney in about 4 months so she'll grow slightly I guess by then.

Will she be able to ride the rides in the Magic Kingdom? I'm hoping she is not too short...don't want that to ruin the good time!
Thanks!

 

[Em_in_FL]

She'll be able to go on MOST of the rides...
The only height limits (that I KNOW of) are...

36" for BarnStormer
40" for Big Thunder Mnt, Splash Mnt
44" for Space Mnt...

And you have to be pretty tall to ride the Indy Cars by YOURSELF... but she can ride WITH YOU, no problem!

I don't remember if there are any others with height limits...
But other than that, she can go on EVERY ride!

 

[ncmomof2]

Many of the rides in MK do not have a height requirement. You can it check out on the Disney webpage by looking at the attractions. There is a list of Fun for Little Ones that she will be able to ride. The ones she is not tall enough for would probably be too scary anyways.

My youngest turned two on our trip last year and he had a great time. It did take him to the end of the week to get use to the big characters.

Have fun!

 

[Lisa loves Pooh]

They need to be 36" for barnstormer I believe..then 40" for the mountains..and on up.

I wouldn't worry--your 2yo will have lots of fun.

We have all the heights marked on their growth chart--we've been doing this since my oldest was trying to get to 36". She just now passed the Space Mountain marker and is excited. We just don't have a trip planned back right now.

 

[laceemouse]

Hi everyone, I think my petite two-year-old is about 33" tall right now. We are thinking of going to Disney in about 4 months so she'll grow slightly I guess by then.

Will she be able to ride the rides in the Magic Kingdom? I'm hoping she is not too short...don't want that to ruin the good time!
Thanks!

Disney is made for little kids! I have severe motion sickness and don't do any of the coasters or anything wild, but I still have a gazillion things to do at WDW. It is not like Six Flags or IOA where everything is for teens and adults. She really won't feel like she is missing anything, unless she has older sibs making fun of her for riding the "baby" rides. We also love all of the shows and parades, you really could make a whole trip out of that stuff.

 

[THESCHULTZFIVE]

Hi everyone, I think my petite two-year-old is about 33" tall right now. We are thinking of going to Disney in about 4 months so she'll grow slightly I guess by then.

Will she be able to ride the rides in the Magic Kingdom? I'm hoping she is not too short...don't want that to ruin the good time!
Thanks!

My DD2 is about the same height. She'll be three in January. People always think she's younger and then she starts talking and they're amazed. I have to explain that she's 2 1/2 to everyone she starts talking to. We went last year and will be going again in just under 2 months. You're DD will have a great time. Most Mk rides are fine. If she's your only child I would try not to let her see the Barnstormer, b/c my DD wants to ride but can't. Even at the other parks there are things she can do. Have fun

 

[gbrogers]

The big height breaks are:
35" - Barnstormer
38" - Kali
40" - Soarin, TT, ToT, Splash & BTM
44" - SM, MS, RR, EE
48" - PW, RR

When we went in 03, my then 2.5 year old DD was just barely tall enough to ride the Barnstormer (which she loved). She was never upset about the things that she wasn't tall enough to ride.

My now 2.5 year old DS just hit 36.5". I don't see anyway that he hits 40" by December. I think he would love Splash Mountain. He rode and loved the Log Ride at Six Flags this summer.

 

[brandylouwho]

My DD is 33" too. She is such a teeny thing, and wouldn't you know that the first ride she showed any interest in was Goofy's Barnstormer

But she got over it quickly enough. We did all the fantasyland rides, she LOVED It's a Small World (much to her father's dismay). She was a little apprehensive at times, but ended up liking just about everything. The 3D movies sort of scared her, but not enough to cry or scream...she just cuddled real close to her dad.

I am so glad we did not wiat until she was older. Sure it was harder to do all this with a 2 year old, but she loved it. The look on her face was so priceless, she was in awe of the beauty and the wonder of EVERYTHING at Disney.

 

[LAL77]

Hi. We took my DD2 and DD1 to DW in January last year and they were able to do so many things they had no idea there were even things there that they couldn't do!

By the way, before we left I measured my two year old and I thought she was an inch too short for the Barnstormer. On a lark, we walked her over there while her sister played in Minnie's house and wouldn't you know it, she was just right to ride! Seems our measurement was off and she was tall enough after all. If she's borderline when you go, definitely go give it a shot. My DD absolutely loved it and we rode again, and again, and again. Fun!

Lesley

 

[flortlebap]

Barnstormer is 35".

And go in the morning, it's true that your spine compresses during the day so you really are taller in the morning!!

 

[HooKooDooKu]

If they are really close to the height limits, you can find some shoes with taller heels. They don't require you to take the shoes off for measurements.

 

[needabreaknow]

I took my son in February at roughly 32" tall. We rode It's a Small World, Pirates of the Caribbean, Haunted Mansion, Aladdin's carpet ride, the Buzz Lightyear ride, the Mad Hatter's teacups ( don't know if that's the actual name), and he rode the Indy cars with my husbands.

He had a blast and we did too. Basically if it didn't have a height restriction, we were on it. He is not a fearful kid and was not scared at any of the rides, although every time a ghost popped out on the Haunted Mansion ride we yelled " peek a boo!".

For most of the rides, he just sat on our laps. He is a very active kid, and I was worried he wouldn't want to sit, but he was just amazed at all the action, so it worked out well. We are going back in 10 days, and I hope he is just as amazed this time and just as fearless

Also, a friend of mine suggested my son wearing a hat if he was right at the height restriciton. She said it always worked for her son.

 

[tomker]

The reason there are height restrictions is because the seat belts are designed to hold only a certain height, I watched a child fall out of a roller coaster because she was 3" smaller than the height restrictions and fooled the attendant into believing she was tall enough. Be Safe!! there is a reason for everything.

 

[Marla Hellwig]

You can use the handy dandy calculator located right here

http://www.wdwinfo.com/wdwinfo/height.htm

 

[puffkin]

I believe their is a height restriction for Stitch as well.

Reading these posts really puts things into perspective for me. Our son is huge, but it is hard to realize how big he is until I read the heights of other people's kids....He was 28.5" at his six month appointment!!!! I think we will have the opposite problem; he will be tall enough to go on rides but not old enough.

 

[tjmw2727]

If they are really close to the height limits, you can find some shoes with taller heels. They don't require you to take the shoes off for measurements.

Actually I have personally seen the CM's ask children to take off obviously high shoes, boys and girls!!

In our experience the CM's are very strict about the height restrictions and will measure to the head not the hair or ponytail and have hats removed. The measuring stick is an upside down L and the head must stop the L from passing over. If your child is borderline he/she will be measured at the entrance (to save you from waiting for nothing) and most times again at boarding.

Instruct the child to stand up tall but not on tippie toes, some shy away from the stick naturally so explain that they want to hit it!

Its tough when they are "this close" I know, we had one trip with my youngest just a hair under 40" and another with my oldest just under the 48" mark. Honestly though, compared to the many rides, attractions and shows the few rides a child may miss are nothing in comparison. We try and separate so that everyone can do something special. DH will take older dd on RnRC while I take younger dd to Beauty & The Beast for example.

Have a great trip
TJ