Strict On Height Requirements?

[abby4]

We are heading to Disneyland in two weeks and my 6 year old is 47.5 inches tall. Will this be a problem for rides with a 48" height requirement or are they a little flexible? Also, should a 6 year old even ride California Screamin'?

 

[jemilah]

Hiking boots! The next door neighbor claims to have used a baseball hat , did not work for my little one. Both mine refuse California screaming , and my 6 year old is still way too short for it anyway. If you child is very skinny I would worry about the ride holing them in properly.

 

[hlbtimes2]

They are very strict with heights. But, they are heights WITH shoes on. I'm not saying you should get heals, but find some good sturdy shoes, with a nice sole. Dont be surprised if they measure the child at the enterance, and at the loading area- and dont be surprised if one says ok and the other doesnt! Or the child that was ok in the morning, isnt in the afternoon. It happens.

As for screamin', depends on how they do on the other coasters. Screamin' is my 7 year olds fav. ride. She LOVES it.

 

[Disneymooners93]

DS was 47.5 inches as well and had to wait until the next trip. Luckily we lived close enough that is wasn't that long off. He was 5 when he first rode it. He loved it, but didn't want to ride it again right away.

DD is now 47.5 and we have another trip planned in a couple months. Since we moved away, we're really hoping she can sprout that last little bit.

 

[caimakale]

It just depends on the CM running the ride. My 2 year old got on several rides all day because she was so close. I think gadgets coaster and a few other rides have a 35" height requirement (if I remember correctly). But when we got to the bugs land bumper cars, they wouldn't let her on because she was too short. She ended up being about 1 cm, if even that much (they measured her about 3 times, it was that close, they weren't 100% sure), too short to ride and they wouldn't let her on it....even though she measured fine on the height marker entering the ride. Everyone behind us in line was mad at the CM because of how close she was, they were all yelling to let her on the ride, but no, her and I had to go watch mom and her sisters ride it.

 

[DisQueen]

Have your child practice standing up straight for the measurement. I have seen kids crouch down when a CM measures them. I don't know whether they are timid or worried or what. Every little bit helps

 

[stampinshauna]

I was there a few years ago with a neighbor and he put folded up napkins and guidemaps in his son's shoes to give him the little bit of extra height he needed to get on Soarin'. It worked out fine. There were a few 42" rides that he was tall enough for, but at Soarin' they said he wasn't. It was nice that this little trick worked because he would have been sad if he couldn't have gone.

Last year I was going on Splash Mountain and a mom was mad that her son couldn't go on it (he was only a tiny bit too short). I told her to fold things up and put them in his shoes and she looked at me like I was crazy. Oh well, she should have taken my suggestion and then her son could have gone.

 

[DLcastmbr]

on my attraction its forty inches we have a rule of thumb if i can stick 3 fingers between the child and the bar theyre too short. Also dont try spiking the hair like what alot of parents try to do to pass us by. I say the shoe idea is your best bet unless its high heels we wont notice. also as a rule of thumb for parents if your child isnt taller than the poles for our chains there gunna be checked. Also as a personal request from me plz dont yell at me if your childs not tall enough im only doing my job

 

[undertheradar]

Don't try to "cheat" the height limits. They are there for safety purposes. Trying to "sneak" your child onto a ride by adding a wedge to shoes is a foolish risk. People are hurt at theme parks everyday, why take a risk with your child? The cms have a hard enough time without "blaming "them when a child is not tall enough. Wait until your child is tall enough without having to "cheat" the system!

 

[Chicago526]

And if you do get turned away for not being tall enough, please don't argue with the CM, they are just doing their job, and are looking out for the safety of your child!

 

[WatchinCaptKangaroo]

Height requirements are there for a reason. Adding things to shoes to make your child taller will not give them the proper height to sit in the ride vehicle properly. If there was an accident they could be injured because they were not the correct height.

 

[amw]

The key is to know the rides and restrictions ahead of time so there is no disappointment at the park. This shouldn't only apply to height restrictions. I went to WDW shortly after the 4-year-old died on Mission Space. He was tall enough, but I would never have put a child that age on that particular ride. Know your child.

Not only should you be aware of what they cannot go on, make sure they are well aware too. If they happen to be close enough that it warrents a measurement at the ride, let them try and if they get on, consider it a bonus.

 

[yipee]

This shouldn't only apply to height restrictions. I went to WDW shortly after the 4-year-old died on Mission Space. He was tall enough, but I would never have put a child that age on that particular ride.

I hear what you're saying, but how do you make that judgement if not by the height restrictions? My 7 year old wants to ride California Screamin', and she's 51 inches tall. The height requirement is 48. She is not a big 7 year old though. Very slight. How do judge if she should ride it if I can't trust the height guidelines? I've been on it, I know it's a wild ride, and I have concerns about her riding it, but she's well above the limit. Can't I trust the limit? Thanks.

 

[caimakale]

When the CM wouldn't let my daughter on a ride, I turned around and walked away...no arguing, no comments about it. I knew she was doing her job and arguing is going to get me on the ride. It was the people in line behind me who were yelling...mostly because of how minor a difference it was.

As far as adding things to the shoes, how does it make a difference? 48" is 48" no matter which way you slice it. Compare two kids without shoes on. Kid one can be taller than kid two. But if kid two is wearing the right shoes, they may end up being taller than kid one. Don't you think disney takes these kinds of things into account? They do, otherwise you would be required to take your shoes off before getting on the ride. Adding a quarter inch in the shoes would be no different than (if it were possible) adding a quarter inch in the shins. There are many different body types out there and long legs are common in my family. Adding a quarter inch of stuff in shoes...or even a shoe insert for that matter, isn't going to make my kid fall out of a ride any easier than if they really were a quarter inch taller. Chances are when they really grow that extra quarter inch, it will be below the waist anyways. So the foot to hip measurement will be the same anyways. How is this a big deal? They are the proper height either way. 48" is 48".

Now I'm not saying run out and stuff your childrens shoes with stuff to make them taller, but don't call people foolish and other names for doing it. I would hope and agree that parents need to recognize if a child's body type is proper for a ride.

 

[amw]

I hear what you're saying, but how do you make that judgement if not by the height restrictions? My 7 year old wants to ride California Screamin', and she's 51 inches tall. The height requirement is 48. She is not a big 7 year old though. Very slight. How do judge if she should ride it if I can't trust the height guidelines? I've been on it, I know it's a wild ride, and I have concerns about her riding it, but she's well above the limit. Can't I trust the limit? Thanks.

You're doing exactly what I would recommend. Try the ride out first (do a child swap if necessary), and know you're child. You've already done that step, so I would recommend riding the next "lesser" type of thrill ride with her and gaging how your she does on that.

I only used the terrible Mission Space example to show that parents need to be aware of what the rides are, and never force a shild to go on something just because they make the height requirements. I had my DH go on Mission Space on his own. He generally is a thrill-seeker. However, it may be due to his aging body but he came out of the ride more than a little green. I knew it wouldn't be good for the rest of us.

 

[dletz]

I don't think all hight measures are the same. My daughter easily passed a lot of the same height limits, but only passes soarin's about half the time. They have since changed that one, so I don't think I'm the only one who had a problem.

It is really up to the individual CMs on the ride as to wether or not they can ride. Some seem to be more strict than others. Also just because you pass in one place doesn't mean they won't measure you again in another.

When my daughter was 2 they changed matterhorn from having no hieght limit but an age limit of 3, to having a height limit of 35 inches with no age limit. Just for fun we decided to see if she would make it, as she had measured 32 inches as the dr 2 weeks prior. Well to our amazement with shoes on she passed. So we got in line, got back to the place where they measure and they measured her again, she still passed. Got to the front of the line and they measured her again. Go in the car to ride, and the CM in the control booth called down, and had them stop the ride, get her out and remeasure her so he could see. She still passed and got to ride.

One trick for heigh measurements where there is a stick or pole that you go under (as opposed to a line that you must reach). Make sure you let your child know that in order to ride them they must hit their head on the stick (or in other words their head much touch the top part, and not to walk under it). My daugher would walk up to it, and then duck down and walk under it. We finally caught on to this and told her if she wanted to ride she must hit her head on it. We were at Universal one time, and she walked up to one and ducked and I told her this is just like Disneyland you must hit your head on it. The lady yelled at me that she wasn't allowed to stand on tippy toes or crane her neck. I said don't worry, she won't, she'll just stand up instead of duck, and at that moment, my daughter stood straight up and surpassed the height limit by a lot.

I have been told my cms when my daughter was just a bit too short to wear taller shoes next time.

I am sure that when they create height limits for rides they do it knowing that there are different sized shoes. Otherwise they would make everyone take their shoes off to test them. We once helped to test the ride restraint system for California Screamin. Our daughter was just 48 inches at the time with shoes on.

 

[rsjj]

i think it is up to the individual cm that's working the booth. we just got back. our youngest is 4...and just a finger (literally!! so that would be like a centemeter or less) shy of 40". we went to soaring over california, (our first ride, w/height requirement), and the cm out front said ok, since his head didn't "touch" the bar, but he was "right there", and he warned us that inside, they might tell us otherwise. but they didn't even measure him inside. so we thought, good, he's ok w/40" rides. so we went to star tours, but the cm wouldn't let him in. so DH had to take him to astro blasters, while i took our oldest to star tours.

we pre-warned our children about the height requirement, and that if they aren't tall enough, they just can't ride it, and that is the "rule" at disneyland! and we reminded them that they just need to drink more milk (threw in eat more vegetables!!), and they will grow taller faster! luckily, they are young enough to take our reasons at face value right now.

 

[SunshineOR]

We brought a kiddo just BARELY below 40 inches. The only time we had problems was at Soarin, and we used the folded map in the shoes trick to get her on. Note to those who might freak out at this confession: she was a big, solid girl and we only gained a quarter inch with the folded map. We also had problems with her slouching under and when we'd tell her to stand up straight, cms would accuse us of trying to have her be on her tiptoes. My dream for DL and DCA is that they'd measure your child who's close to the height at the front gates and give them a stamp that you could just show CMs. We got so tired of the constant measuring on that trip. Sometimes she'd get pulled aside and measured three times for a ride. I know it's a safety precaution, but it gets tiresome throughout the day!

 

[amw]

My dream for DL and DCA is that they'd measure your child who's close to the height at the front gates and give them a stamp that you could just show CMs. We got so tired of the constant measuring on that trip. Sometimes she'd get pulled aside and measured three times for a ride. I know it's a safety precaution, but it gets tiresome throughout the day!

That's funny you mention that because I read in a guidebook that was a few years old, that they were trying out a new height measurement system at the entrance to DL. It used a laser beam to measure, and then the child was given a coloured bracelet.

Either they tried this out and it was a nightmare to administer, or it was an idea in the clouds that got published as fact in a guidebook -- as if that would happen

Does anyone remember experiencing this? I think the book was a 2003 or 2004.

 

[iceskatejen]

Actually, they briefly, back in the late 90s or early 2000s had that. It was located next to the information board at the end of Main Street. I thought it was a great idea, but it was experimental at that point and CMs at the rides were still supposed to remeasure the kids that looked like they might not make the height requirement. I guess they either decided it wasn't accurate enough or something, because I think it lasted less than a year.

As for the comparisons to Mission Space and CA Screamin (for the parent who's not sure if her 7yo should ride Screamin')--they're completely different rides. On Mission Space, the G-forces are tremendous and the restraints actually tighten up on it and that's probably what killed the 4yo that rode it--he got crushed by the shoulder restraint during the ride. That won't be an issue with Screamin'--the restaints will stay at the same position throughout the ride that you put them in initially.