Magic Kingdom with a fearful/nervous child

[KickassPrincess]

You could ride the train around the park. It's slow, it's open, you see lots of fun stuff, and for kids it's exciting.

 

[jormom1030]

Enchanted Tales with Belle

 

[DugandSquirrel]

I think starting with things like the Carousel, Teacups, Dumbo, Speedway, Aladdin are great ideas. My only concern with the People Mover and Buzz are that they are in the dark. She might be ready for them part way through the day but possibly not at the beginning.

My parents took my 6yo brother on Pirates at the beginning of our trip and that was it. He was done for all water rides! (Mind you, this was 40 years ago so nobody knew what we were in for.)

Anyway, I agree with videos if you're able to show her, choosing rides you can fully see and then letting her lead the way. She might enjoy Swiss Family Treehouse if heights are okay with her.

Two years ago, I made the mistake of making Pirates our first Disney ride when we took my then five year old.

Up until that point he had been really adventurous with rides at other some local theme parks, even haunted houses, so I just assumed he’d be fine.

Nope....he was completely terrified. After that, any ride that was either a boat ride or a dark ride was a no go.

We’re going back again in this May. We’ve been watching ride videos to prepare him, but he still seems very hesitant to commit to trying anything he skipped last time.

 

[TinkSassy]

I even have some adults that I travel with that have issues with the unknown. I agree start with what she can see and let her choose. POV videos before might help you get a feel - she can see the ride without danger to help you get a feel of what the fear points are.

Does anyone know if the kids books about the rides still exist? 35 years ago - dating myself here - my parents bought me some. They were about the Haunted Mansion, Small World, Peter - and followed the ride. I loved those books and they were the best thing because I was excited when I got to the park to ride those. Although we were doing a 4 day cross country drive to LA - so they were smart to get me prepared as it was a major trip for us.

 

[piglet1979]

How did the day go?

 

[kj2mom]

Just came back to look for an update as well, hope you had a fabulous time!

 

[Verstehen]

Hey guys! I'm so sorry, I ended up not being able to get back here right away because of work stuff but I wanted to update everyone since you were so kind and generous with your suggestions. We actually ended up postponing the trip until this previous Sunday because her mother had forgotten she had another obligation during our original day, so I would have had to have her back too early for us to really make good use of the day.

We had an absolute blast. I had talked to her ahead of time and she agreed to try some rides. What I figured out was when she said she "doesn't do rides," she meant she doesn't like thrill rides, specifically because of the sensation of going up and down very fast. She described going on the Mine Train some months ago and it made her cry. But she was okay with the milder stuff.

So here's a list of the stuff we did. Maybe it'll help other Dis'ers plan trips with their kids!

• As soon as we got there, she wanted to go on the Main Street Vehicle. I had actually never done this before, so it was a first for both of us. It took FOREVER to get to the front because of the crowds, and by the end I think she was bored and over it, but it was fun to watch people look at us and think we were celebrities.
• I used our first Fastpass on Winnie the Pooh. She seemed to like it. Loved seeing Tigger.
• We did standby for Ariel's Grotto, who ended up being the only character of the day. I am not a big character person myself, but I like seeing them interact with kids. This Ariel was SO nasaly! I took a video and looking back her voice was pretty cringey, but she was super sweet and engaging. I'd bought Little Sis the Ariel bubble wand, so they played with that together.
• She remembered Philharmagic from the last time she visited, so she wanted to do that again. It was awesome seeing her try to grab stuff on the screen.
• Second FP was for Small World. She seemed to find it a little boring, asked a few times if our current room was the last one.
• We did standby for Haunted Mansion. I honestly thought she wouldn't like this, especially after she showed me a Youtube video on the monorail of a "demon summoning" she was convinced was real. But she knew this was all pretend, even figured out how the ballroom scene worked, and for the rest of the day declared that the Haunted Mansion was "the best thing here." I have a Haunted Mansion tattoo, so hearing this was the highlight of my day.
• Third FP was for Jungle Cruise. I was worried the tunnel would scare her but it didn't. I don't think she was too interested. It was hard for her to see the animatronics and hear the skipper and a lot of the jokes went over her head. She also got mad at me because when the skipper asked how you can tell the elephant is an African elephant, I shouted, "Because we're in Africa!" and she wanted me to tell her so she could have said it
• We saw Festival of Fantasy. She hadn't sounded too interested at the start of the day, and I don't think it was that groundbreaking to her, but she liked pointing out what movie each section represented.
• Standby for magic carpets. It was alright.
• Tiki Room. I got them to have her help wake up Jose. I don't think she really got what that was about, but she likes being the center of attention so it worked. She thought the show was cool but was eager to move on after.
• Got another FP for Under the Sea. She liked it. Said it made her want to see the movie again.
• Last I got a final FP for Monsters Inc. She really wanted to be picked but never did. Still, she laughed the whole way through.

All in all, a very successful day! I have one more ticket to use soon, and I think we'll do Animal Kingdom.

 

[kj2mom]

Thanks soo much for the update, soo glad it was a great day! You rock!

 

[rstevens333]

Sounds like you did great!