MK Rides for a Four-Year-Old

[Disney Dining Dad]

We are planning to spend our first two days at Magic Kingdom when we go to Disney World next month, and I have used Fast Passes (in this order) on Jungle Cruise, Big Thunder Mountain Railroad, Tomorrowland Speedway, Peter Pan's Flight, Enchanted Tales with Belle and Seven Dwarves Mine Train.

I know that all children are different, but I was wondering if anyone thinks that either of the two roller coasters may be a bit intense for my four-year-old daughter (she does meet the height requirements). I haven't been to WDW in about 20 years so I don't really remember intensities, but I thought it would be better to have FPs for the coasters and risk not using them than waste them on rides such as The Magic Carpets of Aladdin and Dumbo, which were the alternative options that I've been told you really don't even need a FP for.

I've been thinking about swapping out Jungle Cruise for Splash Mountain, though my wife worries about scaring my daughter on the first ride on the morning that we arrive. Just based on the videos I've watched though, Splash Mountain seems tame compared to the coasters.

Any thoughts on Jungle Cruise? I've heard that it can be a little lame if you don't have a good "captain" providing the narration on your boat, but my daughter may enjoy it regardless of what's being said.

Any feedback that anyone can provide would be greatly appreciated. Thanks very much.

 

[KidaniZen]

Honestly, it's a person to person thing.
The BTMRR and 7DMT are tame in comparison to many other rollercoasters. I personally prefer BTMRR to 7DMT. I will not ride Splash though because I am terrified of big drop flume rides.

Good luck!

 

[Ladyandthepuppies]

My DD wasn't quite 4 yet and we were amazed at how much she loved the roller coasters last year. She's actually a pretty shy child but it turns out she is a roller coaster queen! 7DMT was her absolute favorite ride and she also loved the Barnstormer. I would definitely keep your FPs for 7DMT, it almost always has the longest lines.

DH and I enjoyed Jungle Cruise a lot, my kids thought it was fine. They loved Peter Pan and Buzz Lightyear. Every kid is so different though, my friend's daughter is older than mine and she didn't like the coasters nearly as much.

 

[pitpat]

Jungle Cruise is a must do. Big thunder is fairly intense if she's never ridden a coaster. I might save it for next time and just see how 7DMT goes. Princess Fairytale Hall or Winnie the Pooh might be worth a FP.

The good news with a 4 year old is it is easy to get 4th, 5th FPs for rides that she will like such as Under the Sea, Dumbo, Small World, Barnstormer, etc

 

[GoldenOwner]

My older was 4.5 last trip and loved 7DMT, BTMRR and Splash. And I would say she's particularly daring.

 

[3DisneyFanz]

Our 4 year old loves coasters. He even likes Splash right up to the Splash part. It isn’t the drop that gets him as much as he just hates getting wet like that. The only way to know for sure is to let them experience it and see how they do.

 

[Jetta8300]

My son was 4 last year when we went and he hated anything with water, or anything that was particularly dark. He was totally fine on Seven Dwarfs Mine Train, Barnstormer, and Big Thunder Mountain, but would have never gone on Splash Mountain (wouldn't have even attempted that with him) and was he terrified to death of Pirates of the Caribbean. It's a person to person thing. His favorite ride in all of Disney was Test Track, but says he'd even rather not go back to Disney at all so he doesn't have to see that "scary terribly ride with the cannons and the yelling pirate men".


Splash Mountain has a much larger and steeper drop than the others as well... not to mention the water factor. just something to keep in mind.

 

[Wubar]

We took my son for his first time this past January when he was 4. He LOVED 7DMT and BTMRR. Loved them. We rode them multiple times each day we were in MK. He also loves Jungle Cruise, HM, PP, Pooh, and IASM. He hated Aladdin. Thought it was boring. He didn't think much of the barnstormer and dumbo either. I guess if you are introduced to BTMRR and 7DMT first, then barnstormer would feel like a tiny kiddie ride.

 

[JAMIESMITH]

At age four, we put our older daughter on Barnstormer first because it is such a short ride. She loved it so we let her try BTMRR. We rode it over and over that day! 7DMT didn’t exist at that point, but it’s tamer than BTMRR.

 

[MomOTwins]

BTMRR rattles a lot and is fast the whole time so it feels like a rougher ride. 7DMT is very smooth and has slow bits mixed in where you go through the mine and the cottage to break up the speedy parts. I would keep 7DMT so she can try a coaster and drop BTMRR. What about Pirates of the Caribbean as a fastpass instead? That is pretty tame but it can get a longer longer line. Same with Buzz Lightyear.

You can always show her splash when you get there (the big drop is visible from the walking path) and if she seems excited to try it you could try changing one of your FPs to it or get it as a 4th fastpass for the day.

 

[ttintagel]

There isn't anything in the Magic Kingdom that's inappropriate for the average four-year-old who's tall enough to ride.

The only things to be concerned about are the individual child's personality. (e.g., a kid who's afraid of the dark might not enjoy the Haunted Mansion.)

 

[lunasea]

I was four when I went on Space Mountain the first time, my very first roller coaster. I was a tall little kid. It made me addicted to amusement parks in general and made Space Mountain what I compare all rolker coasters to, even 30+ years later. It all depends in personality.

 

[Caseheidi]

As pp say, it depends on your child. Mine just finally decided to ride BTMR at age 9, and loved it, even though at age 8 she hated Barnstormer. Loved 7DMT at firs tide age 8.

We have found that having DD watch YouTube videos of the ride helped determine if she was ready and prepped her for the ride. That is how we got her to agree to BYMR and Splash.

 

[Mousemommy1]

ODD was 5 when she first went on Rock n' Roller Coaster. She's 14 now and it remains her favorite. I couldn't get YDD to ride it until last year (she was 10). It all depends on the kid.

 

[Mousemommy1]

I was four when I went on Space Mountain the first time, my very first roller coaster. I was a tall little kid. It made me addicted to amusement parks in general and made Space Mountain what I compare all rolker coasters to, even 30+ years later. It all depends in personality.

Space Mountain was my first roller coaster too!!! But, I was 7....gah, almost 33 years ago....

 

[PrincessWithABlaster]

If she hasn't been on other rollercoasters I would take her on Barnstormer first and see how she does. If she likes it, she will probably like 7DMT. If she doesn't like it, I would still give 7DMT a try because it is smoother and has the dark ride elements. We took DS on it when he was just about to turn 3 and have the ride pictures of him grinning like a loon. He's not super adventurous but not afraid of coasters either. I would say he's a middle of the road kid.

If she doesnt like Barnstormer I wouldgive BTMR a pass for this trip. It's rougher as others have said. The lift also starts out in a tunnel which amplifies the metal chain sound so much even I find it uncomfortably loud. My kids did not like that and oldest still won't ride it in part because of that. They have all decided for various reasons they no longer want to ride BTMR.

I agree with the other poster about having her watch splash from the walkway and she what she thinks. Also agree that some kids are fine with the drop but don't like getting wet. DS was like that.

My DS did not like Pirates. At 3 and 4 he was very afraid of it and even this year at 6 didn't want to go on. He did the second time we rode it and was fine. Maybe try the Little Mermaid ride first and she how she does with the Ursula scene to see how she does with dark rides.

If you can, start with the lower intensity rides first to get an idea what she likes and doesnt like about them before considering higher intensity rides.

But overall I think you could keep the FPs you have and change them day off if you think a ride isn't going to work for her. Better to keep the harder to get ones in case you do end up wanting them.

 

[clutter]

I first took my dd when she was 3 (and 41"). Since she was a baby, she could not swing high enough or fast enough, so I pretty much pegged her for a ride kid. We started with Barnstormer. She loved it! Next was BTMRR. Came to the end with a three year old voice yelling "again!" So like the others, you know your kid. I had mine pegged at an early age. In fact, that first trip, I'm sure she would have loved Splash, but I didn't care to get wet. (Also held off on Space a few years because of the single seats. Again, my hangup, not hers.) I think there were two things that helped. First, I assumed she'd love rides, so the thought of maybe she wouldn't like it was never presented to her in advance. Second, we went with some cousins. Frankly, by the time we got there, everything was so much fun that by the time we hit rides she was in full fun-acceptance mode!

As for your fastpasses, you can always switch out that day once you know more. I've only done 7DMT once, and I don't remember much, but it is a smoother ride than BTMRR, so I would try to do the one before the other since you don't know. That would be my only recommendation. Have fun! Four is a great age for a trip to Disney!

 

[DisneyLove2015]

My daughter had just turned three when we went in April. She rode everything at MK except Space Mtn since she wasn’t 44”. She is a thrill seeker and loved all of the rides- Big Thunder, Splash, 7DMT, Test Track, Soarin, Star Tours, etc. not too intense at all for her. We didn’t do ToT that trip because of an injury but I had sustained. I wanted to be able to ride with her on that one. Only you know your child and what they can/can’t handle.

 

[christmasmagic]

My daughter was 4.5 when she went on 7DMT and HATED it! But she gets scared pretty easily and even refused to go on PotC and HM. So it really depends on your child!

 

[Maggie'sMom]

As mentioned by previous posters, every child is different. I would agree with the advice to take your DD on the Barnstormer first and see how she does. I'd try to rearrange your fastpasses so the 7DMT one comes before the BTMRR one. If she does well on Barnstormer, take her on 7DMT, and if she still does well, then try BTMRR. BTMRR isn't particularly intense, but it is a pretty jerky ride compared to 7DMT. 7DMT is much smoother. I'm afraid if you take her on BTMRR first and the rough ride scares her, she won't be willing to try the others.