Leaving kids @ DQ

[glewis1123]

Have any of you ever left your kids at Disney Quest for a couple hours while you went to do something else.

DH and I have been wanting to check out the Comedy Warehouse but what to do with the kids. They are very well behaved ages 10, 12 & 15.

But, we're not sure if this is a good idea or not. What has everyone else done?

Thanks all

 

[melissa180]

As a teacher, I couldn't imagine leaving kids that young anywhere with out your supervision in todays society. It may be disney, but that doesnt mean there aren't creeps there too.

Maybe it's because i dont have children, but I feel as though the mall or in this case Disney Quest isn't your babysitter. You should take into consideration how responsible your 15 yo is...

But thats just my 2 cents

 

[disneydiz]

I see no problem leaving them in DQ. The 10-yr old will have the two older ones if any problems. We have left DS 12 and 13 in DQ many times -- no problems. The kids will love it. Just make sure that you tell them to meet you downstairs at a certain time. They won't let you in to get the kids without a ticket. DQ is pretty crowded at night -- it seems that they always want to stay about four hours. No problems ever!!!

 

[georgina]

My children have been in DQ several times and know their way around well. I would leave them, but insist that they stay together at all times, and don't leave the building.

 

[WDSearcher]

Well ... do you do that at home? If you normally drop your kids at the mall or the arcade for a few hours while you do something else, or if you're comfortalbe letting them go to the movies without you or you feel secure dropping them off at the fair or other similar event, then having them spend a couple of hours together at DQ won't be any different.

However, if you wouldn't feel comfortable sending them out to an arcade or mall without adults when you're at home, and wouldn't let them go to an arcade or similar location without you in your hometown, then you probably shouldn't do it at Disney either.

Of course ... you can always take them to Comedy Warehouse with you. The early shows each evening are "family friendly."

 

[ThwTwinsMom]

My babysitter is 13 years old. I'd think most 12 and 15 year olds would be old enough to be left at DQ. The 10 year old is more questionable. I was babysitting at the age of 10. However, I know other 10 year olds I wouldn't trust alone for 5 minutes. It totally depends on your kids. Is the 15 year old responsible enough to watch the 10 year old in that environment?

DQ is closed off. By that I mean, it isn't like leaving them in a park. There is one way in and one way out. You exit into a gift shop. It is also 5 floors. Five pretty busy floors. There are a lot of little rooms and alcoves. It would be easy to lose each other inside it. If you feel that your kids are all responsible, I think they would be fine there alone. I would suggest getting some FRS radios so that they were always connected to each other and you. (Let them practice at home with them.) One other thing, there is a sign posted saying that children under a certain age have to be accompanied by an adult. Unfortunately, I don't remember what age that was, and what they consider an adult.

Good luck.

 

[Samirella]

Originally posted by glewis1123
Have any of you ever left your kids at Disney Quest for a couple hours while you went to do something else.

DH and I have been wanting to check out the Comedy Warehouse but what to do with the kids. They are very well behaved ages 10, 12 & 15.

But, we're not sure if this is a good idea or not. What has everyone else done?

Thanks all

Walt Disney World policy is the youngest a child can be left to wander the parks without parental supervision is 8 years old. I can't imagine why a parent would want to drop a child off and let them wander around at that age. There are plenty of unstable individuals who see WDW as a prime area. I would be more worried about that than if the children were well behaved or not.

 

[thumperjr9]

I could be wrong , but I thought I read somewhere that kids have to be 12 to be left unattended at DQ. However if the 10 year old is with the 2 older kids then they may allow this.

 

[Samirella]

Originally posted by thumperjr9
I could be wrong , but I thought I read somewhere that kids have to be 12 to be left unattended at DQ. However if the 10 year old is with the 2 older kids then they may allow this.

I was recently told by a manager that the age is 8 years old. We were having a conversation about how he wouldn't let his 12 year old go with a friend without supervision.

 

[ThwTwinsMom]

I was just looking at the DQ information on WDW's site:

http://disneyworld.disney.go.com/wd...stIndoorInteractiveThemeParkEntertainmentPage

It says that children under the age of 10 must be supervised at DQ. You should be ok with the age requirements.

Samirella, I don't know if you meant your response the way it sounded. There is a HUGE difference between leaving an unsupervised 8 year old alone at one of the parks and the OP's question. (Leaving a 15, 12 and 10 year old together at DQ.)

 

[clkelley]

I think my boys were 12&13 when we allowed them to go to DQ by themselves. They were with their cousins who were 11&12. The four of them had a great time!!

When my boys were 15&16, we gave them free reign of WDW. They both had cell phones. They had a great time, we had a great time, and we did meet up four a couple of hours each day for a nice meal and the evening fireworks or parade.

Carol

 

[harleyquinn]

I think the biggest issue is that they have a way to contact you if they need to.

As a public librarian I have to deal with unattended children every day. I'm basically a free babysitter at times. Leaving kids in this particular age group in a place like DQ doesn't sound like too much of a problem with me, though you never know what could happen. What if one of them gets hurt and needs medical assisstance? I've seen kids bust lips open as they are running through different rooms. They just trip on the carpet and down they go. Now this could happen whether you are there or not, but are you comfortable with letting the CMs handle it?

Leaving them at DQ is very different from dropping at the library EVERY day so they can play games on the computers and knowing that they have been so bad in the past that they were asked to leave!

Can you tell I had a bad day?

Sorry for venting!

 

[Kermit]

Will you have some way that they can contact you, like a cell phone or at least a beeper? If not, I wouldn't consider it. But if they can call you, and you know that you can trust them, it shouldn't be a problem.

 

[glewis1123]

I want to thank everyone for all you opinions.

With the last 6 months, we've left the kids at home while we went out to dinner or shopping - with very strict rules. Plus we've got cell phones. So far, knock on wood, we've been blessed with very well behaved kids. We've never been gone longer than 3 hours. And, not far from home either.

After reading some of your posts and other threads I've seen where some people will bring them to the Comedy Club or Adventurers Club's early shows - I was under the impression that PI didn't allow kids. I'm thinking they might enjoy this as long as it's family friendly.

Thanks all