What is Disney policy on intervening when children panic?

[rwdavis2]

From the mouth of WDW security to me several years ago, "we are to observe and report". So I think their default position is to not do anything unless someone's safety is compromised.

 

[leeliani]

With my 4 year-old son we had a similar experience. We were going on soarin and he wanted to go on it. We went through the line and he was excited to go. When we got into the room with the hang gliders he freaked out. I was ready to take him out, but my husband wanted him to ride it even though he was scared. He was screaming pretty loudly and a cm came up and told us that we would have to take him out. In our case I think it was because the noise he was making would ruin the experience for others. I was actually relieved that they intervened because I didn't want to put him through that. So I guess it depends on the ride, but in this instance the cm wouldn't allow a frantic child to be forced onto a ride.

 

[PIRATEGIRL007]

I have read that Disney does have a policy, one that I have seen used, but not applied here.

The Policy is to ask the child if he or she wants to ride, if they say no they are let off the ride usually with the parents screaming bloody murder behind them.

Maybe they have pulled back due to to many complaints from parents who force their kids on a rides.

Disney is not trying to be a parent here, they just want to make sure the kid doesn't make even a bigger scene while on the ride or worse try to escape the car and cause a bigger problem. Soaring

The last time I saw this was on Ellen's UoE. The kid was obviously fidgeting in her seat and the CM over heard the kid say I don't want to ride this in a scared way. They asked the kid and she said no. No matter how much the parents said she will be OK it didn't matter.

Again Disney doesn't want an incident, on UoE if the kid jumps out the car. It shuts down and it takes like an hour to reset.

I don't think the policy has stopped we saw it at EE and Space Mtn in May. We have seen the policy in action several times. At EE the kid stayed on and rode, he was just scared looking and crying a little. At Space Mtn the kid was almost screaming and crying hard they were escorted out the chicken exit but the mom didn't look mad just disappointed.

DS is a scaredy cat and whines some but we know he will like stuff so we push him or make a deal with him if he rides once and hates it he doesn't have to again (he has loved everything everytime but we dont try Stitch or Dino I know my kid would freak on that). I've been concerned that CMs would say something to us but DS always whines quietly and has never full on freaked out. He did see the kid freaking out on BTMRR in the stall next to us last year and that spooked him. I thought he was going ot lose it then too. The attendant refused to give the all clear until the kid said they were ok. Mom kept saying he will be fine shut up. The CM refused and told them they would not start the ride till the kid calmed down and they said they were ok. The didn't so the CM un did thier lapbar and escorted them off. The mom looked livid.


Thrill seeking DD at 6 melted down a few years ago outside Haunted Mansion she had rode it before and had just rode Space Mtn like 5 times ina row when we went back to ride Hm she refused to ride and started whining and crying. Full on melt down. Wasn't the ride, that had nothing to do with it. We made her ride she whine and cried quietly most of the time and threw another git when she got off telling us how bad she hated it and would ride nothing else ever again and we couldn't make het, etc. In 10 minutes she was on Big Thunder and fine. I never get involved with others parenting issues when I see that stuff going on b/c I dont know thier kid and what thier situation is.

 

[bookgirl]

Not Disneys place to have a policy.

FWIW, I have forced my child on a ride before. I never used such language and said he was ruining anything, but DH and I picked him up and got him secured. I got lots of dirty looks, but wish those people could have seen my child's face when he got off the ride. I o ly did it because I knew he would like it...and I was right. I would never do it if I had any doubt.

Totally Disney's place.

Just like an airline, if you have a customer that may cause harm to himself or others due to behavior they are within thier rights to remove that customer.

 

[GillianP1301]

But they have to here since it can directly effect the safety of the child. They don't care if a kid has a meltdown not getting a Mickey Bar, they do care if the kid tries to escape a moving ride vehicle. Not all the ride restraints lock you into a ride.

Agreed, which is why my next line said they should if there is a situation of personal harm happening. I would have to assume that the CM did not see this potential.

The whole situation sounds horrible and I think the OP made a really nice gesture in trying to help. But, the parents obviously had no interest. They sound so charming.

I haven't taken our DS4 to WDW yet, but any amusement park or fair rides that he balks at, we don't force at all. I will take the time to talk to him about what he's afraid of and see if there is a way that I can help to address it for him and calm him to where he wants to try. But if it's still a no, then we move on. I expect I'll do the same once we're there. At this point, I'm doing lots of explaining that you can't actually fall out the window of an airplane , since our trip there in August will be his first flight.

 

[RachaelA]

There is a difference between a child that is screaming/yelling, but still willingly getting on the ride and a child that is being shoved onto a ride and forcibly restrained so someone else can buckle them in.

 

[NLD]

I have seen a CM at boarding area ask a child if they wanted to ride. The CM spoke directly to the child, not the parent.

 

[Luv Bunnies]

My DS has some... well, we will just call them special issues. When he was a toddler I had to literally fold him in half as he kicked and screamed just to get him in the car seat and I have been approached by police more than once in those situations because some well meaning person calls it in. And he has started to meltdown getting onto rides. I have never been belligerent toward him, and would never physically force him onto a theme park ride, but I do get firm. I can tell though when it's him trying to be difficult, which he excels at, and when he's genuinely scared. I get him on the rides because I know he will like it and if I don't then as soon as his dad and sister come off he will be very upset that he didn't ride.

My point is that a situation isn't always what it appears to be. Sometimes it is parents going over the line and forcing kids to ride something that genuinely terrifies the snot out of them. And sometimes it's not. Which is why it's hard to intervene when it's not your kid.

I get your point, but I think forcing a kid into a car seat and forcing a kid onto a ride are totally different (I know you said you don't force your son, but other have stated that they have). You have no choice but to get the child into a car seat. It's for their own safety, and it's against the law to drive if the child isn't secured.

My oldest son has Asperger's and anxiety. We didn't ride the Haunted Mansion or Indiana Jones ride at Disneyland as a family until he was 12. He was too freaked out and refused to try them. DH and I took turns riding alone, so one of us could stay with the kids. When he finally got on the rides, he loved them! But it was his choice. If he said no, we respected that. Personally, I don't think it's ever OK to be firm or forceful in getting a kid on a ride at a theme park. Sitting in a car seat - yes. A ride - no. Just my opinion.

 

[kylmac]

With both of our kids-son is 10 and autistic and daughter is 13 and "normal"-we have learned to roll with the flow. Our son has gone on ToT in the past but now refuses to ride it. He is thinking about riding it again at Christmas. Our daughter would not ride California Screamin because of the loop but finally gave it a try this past week and loved it! You just have to make sure you have a great sense of humor (as we have learned to with our son) and if they say they do not want to ride then just go do something else.
Elizabeth

 

[NLD]

And as far as parents forcing kids onto rides....

I've learned my lesson. I never forced dd onto a ride, ever. NEVER would have put her on a ride while she was full-out crying or saying she didn't want to go.

However, I did push her to do Splash Mountain her first trip. And by "push" I mean... encouraged her to try it, told her the drop was over quickly, told her I thought she could handle it, and talked up how fun it was. She was still unsure. She had been on the log flume ride at home (Hershey Park), with a similar sized drop at the end, and had been fine on it. So I continued talking it up and got her to agree to try it.

She got on the ride of her volition (I mean, I didn't have to physically put her on) and she looked apprehensive but was not crying or protesting.

Within moments after launching, she was crying. It was a looooong ride through Splash! Just a different the log going down the drop, which splashed us as we passed by on our way into the mountain (at the beginning of the ride), sent her into sobs. She full-out sobbed through the entire ride.

I felt so, so bad for her.... and so, so bad for the other guests in our log.

What I didn't realize at the time was that, between her last Hershey Park experience and that first trip to Disney World... she'd developed a fear of water and floods. We'd had a bad rain storm that summer, at home, and she'd gotten REALLY nervous seeing some flash flooding in the area. On top of that... I hadn't bothered to explain the thorns at the bottom of the drop on Splash. So she was terrified the whole ride that the log would flood, and then she was terrifeid the whole ride that we were literally going to land in a patch of thorns. But she hadn't verbalized those concerns to me--probably because she could tell how much I wanted to ride and how much I wanted her to try.

NEVER again. With my kid, if it takes "talking up" the ride, we don't ride. It has to be 100% her decision, and something she does because SHE wants to--not because she's worried about disappointing mommy.

Other kids are different. I wouldn't judge a parent for the same kind of talking up I did with dd.... their kids might have different personalities. But with dd? Nope.

 

[goofy4tink]

A few years ago, we were waiting, in line, to board our Dinosaur car. They were using both sides that day. Well...there was a youngster, a girl of about 5ish, who obviously didn't want to ride!!! She, quite literally, jammed her feet up against the side of the car and locked her knees when her dad tried to 'help' her into the car. She was ballistic!!! That kid was terrified. A CM walked up to the family and asked if she could help in any way. The mom just sighed and said, 'Well, I guess we're not all riding it this time.' and the dad took the little girl and walked through the car (poor kid was terrified they were going to make her sit down) and out the other side to the chicken exit!!! The CM helped calm the situation, and allowed the family an alternative....they did a child swap.
So, sure, a CM can help out but it won't mean anything if the parents are dead set on terrifying their child.

Now..having said that...back when my dd was 6, we decided to ride Star Tours. She was terrified. She sobbed all the way through the line....which was backed up. I kept telling her that she had nothing to worry about, that I would not make her go on something that would be scary for her. But, I have to tell you..for some reason, that walkway scared the bejeebers out of her. So...we get on the ride, her white faced and sobbing. When we got off??? 'Can we go again, please???' Move ahead a few years...she was 8. We were in line for TT. Yep, again, she is not so very happy. I kept reminding her of Star Tours....which she rode over and over again. My dh??? Man, I'm surprised he didn't call Child Protective Services right there, on the spot. But, I know my dd. And yep, again, when we got off...'Can we do it again???'

Now, ToT was the one ride I wouldn't force her on. She asked to ride it when she was 10, and we did. And she was pleasantly surprised. So, we did it again...got a whole different sequence and the result was that she didn't ride ToT again for 5 years!!! Now??? At 18 it's one of her favorites!!!

I guess each family has to know what their child can handle. Now, on the other hand, I don't condone any manhandling of any kind. Even yelling or shouting is wrong. If your child is that upset about it, and you really want to ride??? Then do a child-swap.

 

[chartle]

Agreed, which is why my next line said they should if there is a situation of personal harm happening. I would have to assume that the CM did not see this potential.

The whole situation sounds horrible and I think the OP made a really nice gesture in trying to help. But, the parents obviously had no interest. They sound so charming.

I haven't taken our DS4 to WDW yet, but any amusement park or fair rides that he balks at, we don't force at all. I will take the time to talk to him about what he's afraid of and see if there is a way that I can help to address it for him and calm him to where he wants to try. But if it's still a no, then we move on. I expect I'll do the same once we're there. At this point, I'm doing lots of explaining that you can't actually fall out the window of an airplane , since our trip there in August will be his first flight.

OK by personal harm I thought you meant the parents were going to harm their kids if they didn't ride.

My sister has it easy, my DN6 rides everything. Two years ago she ran back to the line for ToT. At our local park, Kennywood, my sister thought for sure she was not tall enough for the next step up, but no she was an inch over.

No problem even for the Exterminator which is the same ride as Primeval whirl but indoors and you are the rats the exterminators are trying to "kill" you as you ride through a basement in the dark.

 

[BernardandMissBianca]

Yes Disney has a policy and no not every CM enforces it.
We were on RnR one year, the very first time DS10 (then 5) was tall enough to ride and he was dying to go. I was pregnant with DD at the time so I skipped the ride and was waiting outside.
Well about 20 minutes after going in, here comed DH with DS. Apparently DS was all gung-ho about riding up until the time he saw the car take off. He freaked! They got to the front, DS was crying, DH was trying to convince him it would be ok. The CM said he had to hear from DS himself that he wanted to ride or they would have to leave. So DH left the other 2 boys to ride and brought DS10 back to me. The CM's gave DH a child swap and let him take the boys on a second spin.

 

[NLD]

They got to the front, DS was crying, DH was trying to convince him it would be ok. The CM said he had to hear from DS himself that he wanted to ride or they would have to leave.

That's exactly what we heard a CM say to a child and parent. And in fact, I think it was also on RnR.

 

[kerriemiller]

Not Disneys place to have a policy.

FWIW, I have forced my child on a ride before. I never used such language and said he was ruining anything, but DH and I picked him up and got him secured. I got lots of dirty looks, but wish those people could have seen my child's face when he got off the ride. I o ly did it because I knew he would like it...and I was right. I would never do it if I had any doubt.

I can see this point having pushed my child into things before. It gets harder when they are older but if you are forcing them because you know that it will be ok once they get on then do it with kindness. Dont manhandle the poor child try to be comforting and reassuring. I know easier said then done right

 

[LaurieN]

I get your point, but I think forcing a kid into a car seat and forcing a kid onto a ride are totally different (I know you said you don't force your son, but other have stated that they have). You have no choice but to get the child into a car seat. It's for their own safety, and it's against the law to drive if the child isn't secured.

My oldest son has Asperger's and anxiety. We didn't ride the Haunted Mansion or Indiana Jones ride at Disneyland as a family until he was 12. He was too freaked out and refused to try them. DH and I took turns riding alone, so one of us could stay with the kids. When he finally got on the rides, he loved them! But it was his choice. If he said no, we respected that. Personally, I don't think it's ever OK to be firm or forceful in getting a kid on a ride at a theme park. Sitting in a car seat - yes. A ride - no. Just my opinion.

My thoughts exactly!!

My DS10 also has Aspergers & anxiety, there are many things DH & I (mostly me) want to do that we don't because of the situation. DS' anxiety over the Rockin Rollercoaster and Tower of Terror was so bad that we couldn't even walk down that end of the park. Did we force him to go near them? No, it just would have made his anxiety worse and probably ruined the rest of the day. Was I sad that I couldn't ride what I wanted to? Sure, but I'm an adult and I got over it. He still will not ride those rides and probably never will (which is fine, not everyone likes thrill rides) but at least he can walk in that direction. I think if we had forced him to go near that area when he wasn't ready he would NEVER go near it again.

Laurie

 

[Lees3rwe]

Just back from a fantastic trip to the world, but still troubled over an awful incident we witnessed. The family in front of us in line at Dinosaur had two small boys, one of whom went into a full-on panic attack over going on the ride. The parents were, honestly, hateful, telling the boy he was ruining their vacation, squeezing and jerking his arms, and bodily forcing him into the seat and restraining him. The poor child was beyond tears, screaming, flailing, kicking. It broke my heart. If you could have seen the truly ugly looks on these parents faces....it was astonishing.

At one point, as quietly and politely as I could, I offered to have my son (12 years old, and doesn't like the ride but goes through the queue with us) sit with her son so the rest of her family could go on the ride. She barked at me that I "Have no idea what we're going through" and refused my offer and continued to manhandle the child.

We got on the ride, only to have it stop right after the loading area. The lights came on and this poor child continued to scream and kick and fight, while everyone looked on, not knowing what to do.

My question is this: doesn't Disney have a policy for situations like this? Shouldn't some Cast Member have intervened? I'm curious how this should have been handled and if the Cast Members were correct to just let the child suffer. (Not to mention the suffering of all the guests in the area.)

Not sure about Disney, but at Kings Dominion, we witnessed an awesome ride attendent help a kid out of the Stunt Coaster car and escort him to a waiting area. The parents were also being complete jerks and trying to force the kid onto the ride.

I felt like cheering for her as she went over and got him off of the ride.

We also, on our last trip noticed quite a large amount of parents bullying small kids into getting onto rides. Especially Tower of Terror.

 

[TavieP]

I am so horrified at these stories. I can't understand the concept of forcing a kid to ride something they're terrified of.

Encourage, coax, yes. But if they're so scared they're crying? It's just a ride - it's not worth it. Have a little empathy. I don't ride any upside-down coasters at all (except RnR!) and I know exactly the terror the kids are feeling when faced with riding a new, scary ride I don't think I can handle.

Sure, sometimes it turns out fine and I'm glad I went on it, but it took me yeeeears of experience to get to that point!

 

[ghtx]

My oldest son has Asperger's and anxiety. We didn't ride the Haunted Mansion or Indiana Jones ride at Disneyland as a family until he was 12. He was too freaked out and refused to try them. DH and I took turns riding alone, so one of us could stay with the kids. When he finally got on the rides, he loved them! But it was his choice. If he said no, we respected that. Personally, I don't think it's ever OK to be firm or forceful in getting a kid on a ride at a theme park. Sitting in a car seat - yes. A ride - no. Just my opinion.

And as far as parents forcing kids onto rides....

I've learned my lesson. I never forced dd onto a ride, ever. NEVER would have put her on a ride while she was full-out crying or saying she didn't want to go.

NEVER again. With my kid, if it takes "talking up" the ride, we don't ride. It has to be 100% her decision, and something she does because SHE wants to--not because she's worried about disappointing mommy.

Other kids are different. I wouldn't judge a parent for the same kind of talking up I did with dd.... their kids might have different personalities. But with dd? Nope.

I respect both of these opinions , and perhaps they are best for your families, but I disagree.

Parents often (frequently) know what is best for their kids, even better than kids themselves. It is valuable and educational to give kids autonomy, but it can go too far. Even in theme parks on family vacations.

If you obey your kids' demands to skip rides all the time, without even an attempt at coaxing or persuading, then you're harming your kids in a way, as well. Your kids are missing out on rides that they would enjoy. They are just too young to realize they would enjoy it.

There is nothing wrong with being paternalistic when you are the parent!

Having said that, back to OP's case, it is probably unreasonable to force or coax a young child onto Dinosaur, which can terrify adults (myself included). When my son was 3, he was reluctant to get onto Winnie the Pooh (seriously). We coaxed and persuaded. Crying was involved. But he rode and loved it. We were the parents and we knew best.

 

[Fire14]

With my 4 year-old son we had a similar experience. We were going on soarin and he wanted to go on it. We went through the line and he was excited to go. When we got into the room with the hang gliders he freaked out. I was ready to take him out, but my husband wanted him to ride it even though he was scared. He was screaming pretty loudly and a cm came up and told us that we would have to take him out. In our case I think it was because the noise he was making would ruin the experience for others. I was actually relieved that they intervened because I didn't want to put him through that. So I guess it depends on the ride, but in this instance the cm wouldn't allow a frantic child to be forced onto a ride.

I had more or less samething happen to me with niece on Soarin. Cm said they didn't let crying kids fly or something along those lines. I got to wait outside doors and than ride once Dh got off. In my case I know she'd like it as she had ridden swings that basically did samething in past.