Toddler on Pirates?

[Punchy]

Has yuor toddler been on Pirates of the Carribbean?

How did he/she handle the little drop? My son will be 17 months and I wonder if the drop is too scary for him. I will be clutching him tightly!

Also, how about Maelstrom?

I love these rides but I'm on the fence whether or not to take him. I'm not all that interested in riding alone as it's so nostalgic my husband and I.

 

[Pumpkingirl7]

My DS was 24months when we went. He wasn't scared of anything! In fact now that he is 3 I think he will be more aware of things. We did not ride Malsetrom but I think you will be ok on Pirates. Just have him sit in our lap.

 

[clairemolly]

I took my DD on both of those at 10 months and again the week she turned 3. She didn't have problems with the drops on either one. She barely noticed the one on POTC and loved the one on Maelstrom. WE also took my DS at 14 weeks on both and he was fine with the drop.

 

[imthatgirl]

My kids all went on it young and none of them even noticed the drop. It's really not much of a drop.
I think the darkness of the ride is worse then the drop.

 

[growinupdisney]

My dd3 rode it when she was 8mo, 1, 2, and 3. She loved it.

 

[hannahdrewmom]

We've taken both our kids when they were under 2 on POC. We always talked to them before we went down the hill and told them it was going to be dark and we were going down a "slide" together in the boat. We would hold them close and say "WHEEEE!" as we went. Neither had a problem. I think to some extent at that age as long as you are close to them they aren't going to get too scared.

We didn't do Malestrom either. I think that I read they needed to be 3 for that but who knows where I saw that or when. I might be confused.

 

[Ava]

We didn't do Malestrom either. I think that I read they needed to be 3 for that but who knows where I saw that or when. I might be confused.

I have seen that posted on these boards, but don't know where the information comes from. There's no restriction for Maelstrom indicated anywhere on Disney's website, at least not that I can find.

 

[joemess]

My little one had no issue with Pirates at 9 months...but then again he didnt have a problem with anything at WDW at that age. We were lucky. When we went back atfter he turned 2...it was a different story. He was aware of how dark it was and cried the first time we went on it. We tried again, with a small flashlight. It helped a little. The third time he didn't have a problem and was aware that nothing was scary and it was quite fun.

Sometimes...all they need is to get used to it.

 

[Macduffy]

We had our 20 month old son with us on POC and he was great but I knew his personality and wasn't worried. If they are okay in other "dark" rides I don't think there would be any problems.

 

[ColoradoK]

We've taken both our kids when they were under 2 on POC. We always talked to them before we went down the hill and told them it was going to be dark and we were going down a "slide" together in the boat. We would hold them close and say "WHEEEE!" as we went. Neither had a problem. I think to some extent at that age as long as you are close to them they aren't going to get too scared.

That's what we did/do. We went when our boys were 4 and 23 months and again when our daughter was 8 months. They were warned and it was the family's favorite ride. I'm not completely sure how my daughter did because she was in the baby carrier and it was dark and I couldn't see her...but she didn't cry.

 

[Geeky]

We took DD on POTC when she was 22 months and she loved it - asked for "MORE!" afterwards. I think it just depends on your child!

 

[pooh4evr]

We took our youngest on both POC and Malestrom at just under a yr and she was fine on both - is there even really a drop onPOC?

 

[CandleontheWater]

I took DS on both Pirates and Malestrom at 4, 6 and 10 months and there were no problems.

Pirates will always be special to me because it was DS's first ride!

 

[McDuck]

My DD was almost 14 months when we went and she did fine on Pirates in my lap. There was a teensy bit of gripping when we started down the drop but she relaxed before we hit bottom. No crying at all. We also made a point of saying "wheeeeeeee!" on the drop. She had also played on slides before, so not sure if that made any difference.

 

[tartemis]

We had the opposite experience of most posting on here -- we took our then 2 1/2 year old on POC and she was scared and didn't like it. In fact, she didn't want to get on another boat ride the entire trip, so it was a definite mistake that we took her.

And this is a kid that on that same trip went on soaring and several waterslides -- she isn't timid by any means, but she definitely didn't like the dark and pirates.

We are heading back next week (she is now almost 3 1/2) and we will probably skip POC again. She is very excited about our trip, but keeps mentioning that she doesn't want to go on the "pirate ride."

 

[kwitcherkicken99]

DD went on it at 6mo and 2 years.

DS went on it at 2.5, 3, and 4 years.

Several times. And they loved every minute of it.

 

[LCoulter]

Each child is different. We have taken DD five times from ages 20 months to 3.5 years old and she is fearless. Pirates is still her favorite ride. I was nervous that she would be scared of some the rides so I would whisper to her during the ride pointing things out, even the scary things, so that she would no I wasn’t scared. With Davy Jones in the mist, I would whisper, “isn’t that cool, let’s see if we can touch it” and we both lifted our hands to touch it and she still does this without prompting.

As for the little hill, I told her it was fun and I would whisper, wheeee to her as we went down. It helps that she sits on Daddy’s lap, makes her feel safe. She rode Pirates again and again. One of the times, an older couple sat in front of DH and DD3, the older woman turned to DH and said to him that the ride was too scary for his DD and there is a big drop. DH told her that DD has been on this ride a dozen times already. When we came to the drop, the woman turned around with a concerned look and said here comes the big drop, DD response was “wheeeeee”.

Our last trip, DD3.5 and DH wanted to go on ToT but I just couldn’t let her go on….that one scares me. I’ve tried explaining the ride to her but she said she wants to go on it next time we go to Disney which is very soon. Has anyone let their 4 year old ride ToT and how did it go?

 

[kappyfinn]

I think it really depends on your child. My DD went on POTC and Maelstrom at 13 months. She loved them both. She just giggled. When we took DS, he was 10 months. He cried at each drop but quickly recovered. My DD loved Haunted Mansion too while DS hated it.

You really won't know until you try. Go for it.

 

[dragonfly08]

DD #1 went on Pirates at 17 months, 5 years, and again when she was almost 7. The dark bothered her more than the drop, but as long as I had my arm around her or held her hand she was fine each time. DD #2 wasn't bothered by it at all at 4.

 

[DZNEE4US]

My kids were all fine on those rides when they were little, and didn't know what they should or shouldn't be afraid of yet! My advice would be to start off easy- It's a small world, Dumbo, Pooh, and gradually work up to Pirates or something more potentially scary. That way, if he does have a fear, he will still had some good times on other attractions, and not ruin the entire trip by not wanting to ride anything at all. My kids didn't develop real "fears" until they were about 2 or 3. I don't think they realize threats or dangers as young toddlers.