Rides and Claustrophobia

[Dreamer24]

I am heading to Universal for the first time in many years. I am extremely claustraphobic. In WDW, I can do everything except Mission Space, Star Tours and Stitch's Great Escape. What should I plan to avoid at Universal and IOA?

Thanks!

 

[damo]

Avoid Simpsons, probably Forbidden Journey--although you aren't in a little room but you are in very close quarters in your seat, also probably Dr. Doom.

 

[the Dark Marauder]

Sit in the Front & Center if you want to ride the Simpsons ride. It's completely open. Sitting on the sides, especially in the back, are the most claustrophobic seats. The same applies to Spider-Man: Front & Center = less claustrophobia.

For rides with special harnesses/lapbars, there are test seats. Try them out to see how you feel. All the rides with said harnesses/lapbars, except Forbidden Journey, are very open. Forbidden Journey is a bit restrictive, but is so fun!

 

[itsrachelhere]

I am in quite a good position to answer this, seeing I have recently been, and like you, I am very claustrophobic!

Simpsons I actually found fine, rode it twice. They do ask you before they start it off if you are feeling claustrophobic. Spiderman for me was the worst, but then I have heard about how much it breaks down!! It was so enclosed... I am normally fine on stuff like that, as long as the ride is exciting enough to distract me, but that ride it realyl wasnt distractful enough, and I just wanted to get out.

As for forbidden journey, it wasn't quite as bad as I thought it would be. As soon as the restraint went over I was like 'oh crap, this best not break down!', but when you go through the ride it's quite open. It did actually stop at one point for a minute, but it was nice and cool in there and I coped ok.

Oh, bizarrely I didn't like jurassic that much. The bit where you are being dragged up the hill before the drop, it's really dark inside, and because the slope is so steep you are really being pressed back in your seat. I was thinking 'if this stops here, I won't cope at all!'

Oh, and last thing to be prepared for as I imagine you wouldn't like lifts? In men in black you go into a fake lift. That nearly put me off going, but its a massive open lift and it's all over very quickly.

 

[Dreamer24]

Thank you!

 

[phamton]

Oh, and last thing to be prepared for as I imagine you wouldn't like lifts? In men in black you go into a fake lift. That nearly put me off going, but its a massive open lift and it's all over very quickly.

The elevator (lift) is a fake elevator. You can skip it if you do the single rider line.

 

[inkkognito]

Have you asked your doctor about prescribing a couple of low dose Xanax pills? That might allow you to do the rides that normally bother you. I have a form of claustrophobia that causes me problems with flying, but Xanax takes care of it.

 

[itsrachelhere]

The elevator (lift) is a fake elevator. You can skip it if you do the single rider line.

sorry yes, should have said fake elevator rather than fake lift. but believe me, if you go in it, it really does feel like it's real. At the end of the day the issue with an elevator is that the doors close and you feel like there's no way out, rather than the fact it's actually moving, and you still get that with the ride. I hadn't realised that you could skip it to do the single rider. That's interesting to know!