Waaaaah!! Tired of missing out on "cool" rides!

[Dionnemay]

My son is seven & 44" tall---my daughter is nine.

Both of them love to swim and are excited to go to the water parks.

I havent been to WDW since 1992 so I havent been to BB or TL.

Im a single mom and at past trips to WDL I have been limited to to rides my kids are tall enough to ride. ( At WDL last year: missed out on Indiana Jones, Tower of terror and two rollercoasters in California Adventure because son wasnt tall enough. )

I have three questions:

1. My kids and I saw alot of cool water slides on the WDW vacation planning DVD but it doesnt specify how tall you have to be to ride them. My son is the shortest (44 1/2 inches) will he be able to go on any of the cooler water rides or will he (along with me and daughter) be limited to the tamer kiddie water activities?

2. Which water park has the best rides that kids AND thrill seeking parents can enjoy?

3. Disney seems to accomodate almost any situation...what about when there is a ride my daughter and I want to go on (ex: Rock'in Roller Coaster-MGM ) but my son dosent meet the height requirements ? Its frustrating having to skip so many rides and "wait until next year" hoping he will be big enough then. WDW is expensive for me and no guarantee they will have this chance again.
Does Disney have any options for single adults with kids? Like maybey letting me and my daughter ride while a Disney castmember waits at the end of the ride with my son?

Has anyone ever been in this situation?

 

[momsully]

I just took a solo trip with DS7 and DS4 for DS 7th birthday. He is tall for his age (51 inches) and is able to ride everything. DS4 is only 43 inches. He just missed the height requirement for Everest. Although I did not get to ride DS 7 was allowed up the single rider line by a CM and I met him at the exit. You could use that method to allow your daughter to ride although you would have to wait.

At the water park the only ride we had a height issue on at TL was Crush and Gusher. DS 4 was really disappointed he was not tall enough for that. They would not let older DS ride that alone as they said he had to be 8. There were still lots of other fun things to do at TL and we rode almost every other slide that was there. They both thought the coolest part of the day was swimming in the shark reef.

 

[pezpam]

Been there. All of my recent WDW trips have been just DD and me. She was 5 when we started going, plus the first year she was tall enough to ride everything, she was too scared to do it. Now she rides everything.

Anyway, I thought our first WDW would be the one and only. We don't get to go 3 times a year, but if I save, we can go every now and then. Chances are that you'll be able to save enough for another trip in a few years - you won't have the kids at this age ever again....... My advice would be to just enjoy what you can all do and not stress out or get them feeling bad or guilty for being the reason you can't go on some rides. I **love** thrill rides, but our first 2 WDW trips had not a single thrill ride - we still had a truly wonderful time and even if we'd never gone back, my daughter and I would still have amazing memories.

Enjoy your trip!

 

[Dionnemay]

"My advice would be to just enjoy what you can all do and not stress out or get them feeling bad or guilty for being the reason you can't go on some rides."

Though I do admit, I love the feaster more thrilling rides, I Would and Have happilly givem them up in the past when my DS could not ride them. In those intstances I would redirect his attention to abother "cool' ride and (not hard to do, there are so many options at WDL).

Mostly I feel bad for my DS and DD. For the past 3 years at WDL they BOTH have run excitedly to an attration only to be dissappointed when DS isnt tall enough.

Thanks for the "single rider" advice. The only obstacle to that would be that DS will be hesitant to go on without me.

But on the other hand, IF disney CM 's allow would allow me to ride with her and wait with DS at the queqe, DS may feel left out!

AAAARGH! well, I guess since no one has mentioned ever being allowed to ride with bigger kid while CM waits with little kid, I guess if DD wants to go on a ride bad enough, she will have to go alone.


One good thing, DS LOVES the previews of Everest...at least he is big enough to ride that!

 

[MickeyMonstersMom]

Another single mom here - I feel your pain! On our first WDW trip when DD was 8 and DS 4, we made a "pact" ahead of time to skip the rides that DS was unable to do, with the plan that we would all enjoy them for the first time together once he was tall enough. That way we avoided disappointment or feelings of being left out, plus got to look forward to another trip. As it turned out, I had to make a quick trip to Florida the following year, and included a day at MGM to celebrate DS's ability to ride RnRC. DS is now tall enough to go on everything, and we're looking forward to our next family trip!

 

[SueM in MN]

Another option would be to have your younger child go to one of the kid's clubs for the evening while you and your older child hit some of the rides he can't go on.

 

[Dionnemay]

Another option would be to have your younger child go to one of the kid's clubs for the evening while you and your older child hit some of the rides he can't go on.
__________________

HEY!!! YEAH!!! Thats a GOOOOOD IDEA!!! My DS would love the activities and the "Independance" too!

I just may do that.......
BTW, what activities do you recommend , where are they, and when do they start and end?

 

[all4fun]

Hi, no tips here. Just thought I would point out the height calculator hear on the Dis: http://www.wdwinfo.com/wdwinfo/height.htm

You just enter your dc's height and it tells you which rides he'll be restricted from (including the water parks). Pretty cool.

 

[all4fun]

Another option would be to have your younger child go to one of the kid's clubs for the evening while you and your older child hit some of the rides he can't go on.
__________________

HEY!!! YEAH!!! Thats a GOOOOOD IDEA!!! My DS would love the activities and the "Independance" too!

I just may do that.......
BTW, what activities do you recommend , where are they, and when do they start and end?

Check out the Childcare FAQ (click here) and the Grand Adventures for Children info (click here)