What was the biggest Disney meltdown you've witnessed?

[MickeyPretzel15]

About ten years ago, a family sitting in front of us at the LMA show at Disney Studios got into argument while we were waiting for the show to start.

One of the family members, a woman in her fifties or sixties, went into full blown meltdown mode complete with tears and foot stomping because the rest of the family wasn't agreeing with her plans for the rest of the day.

She finally stood up and threatened to leave, and a man in their party (who I'm assuming was her husband) shouted at the top of his lungs "SIT DOWN LINDA!!"

She sat down, and people in the audience around us actually started to clap. It was incredibly, incredibly awkward.

To this day my sister and I still say "SIT DOWN LINDA!" to one another if one of us starts getting overly dramatic about something petty.

 

[Pawpsicle]

We saw a little girl run into the gift shop in France, grab a Remy stuffed animal, and immediately start crying before her parents even arrived in the store to tell her "No."

 

[SunnieRN]

Near the que for Peter Pan, a woman laid her daughter down on the cement, in front of God and Disney guests and started changing her diaper. On the cement. In the sun. The little girl started crying that it was hot. Her mother, term used loosely here, was yelling at her, saying "if you would have started using the toilet at home, you wouldn't be lying in front of these people showing off your privates".

A cast member went up, directing her to the nearest bathroom. The woman completely lost it. Yelling, swearing, throwing the dirty diaper at the cast member. She said something about doing what she wanted, stood her daughter up and walked away with her diaperless.

A few minutes later, the woman and her daughter were being escorted by two security cast members toward the exit. Poor little princess was crying and her mom was too busy arguing to pay attention to her daughter.

 

[Amanda999]

Two adult men getting into an argument and then throwing fists at TSMM, on the steep "down" staircase right before you get on the ride, and the staircase was full of people (as always). CMs cleared the place. (So, sometimes there's an additional reason for long wait times!)

 

[anneboleyn]

Near the que for Peter Pan, a woman laid her daughter down on the cement, in front of God and Disney guests and started changing her diaper. On the cement. In the sun. The little girl started crying that it was hot. Her mother, term used loosely here, was yelling at her, saying "if you would have started using the toilet at home, you wouldn't be lying in front of these people showing off your privates".

A cast member went up, directing her to the nearest bathroom. The woman completely lost it. Yelling, swearing, throwing the dirty diaper at the cast member. She said something about doing what she wanted, stood her daughter up and walked away with her diaperless.

A few minutes later, the woman and her daughter were being escorted by two security cast members toward the exit. Poor little princess was crying and her mom was too busy arguing to pay attention to her daughter.

Aww that hurts to hear Poor little thing.

 

[Misha72683]

My 2.5 year old had a screaming fit after the CM at 7DMT made him get measured (I already knew he was too short, he was only 36") and he realized he didn't get to go on the ride. He ended up kicking my bff in the face as she tried to get him back in the stroller, so she was also unhappy.

 

[revdon64]

We saw a little girl run into the gift shop in France, grab a Remy stuffed animal, and immediately start crying before her parents even arrived in the store to tell her "No."

OK, this one is hilarious!

Near the que for Peter Pan, a woman laid her daughter down on the cement, in front of God and Disney guests and started changing her diaper. On the cement. In the sun. The little girl started crying that it was hot. Her mother, term used loosely here, was yelling at her, saying "if you would have started using the toilet at home, you wouldn't be lying in front of these people showing off your privates".

A cast member went up, directing her to the nearest bathroom. The woman completely lost it. Yelling, swearing, throwing the dirty diaper at the cast member. She said something about doing what she wanted, stood her daughter up and walked away with her diaperless.

A few minutes later, the woman and her daughter were being escorted by two security cast members toward the exit. Poor little princess was crying and her mom was too busy arguing to pay attention to her daughter.

This might be the worst park behavior I've heard yet. That mommy needs a timeout... very badly.

For my part, I guess the worst I've seen were either me or my kids. I don't do well with crowds bigger than I expected and that was how our last trip started out. On our second full day we were in DAK and somehow my glasses had fallen out of the stroller and I stepped on them. (They were in there while I had been on Everest with two of my kids) After both my DSs had been misbehaving, having a less than magical experience at MVMCP the night before, the crowds pressing in... breaking my glasses was my breaking point. I looked at my DW with tears streaming down my 51y/o face and said, "I'm ready to go home." She said, "Back to the hotel?" I said, "No, back to New Jersey." Thankfully, she's the reasonable one in the family. A half hour break in the shade, a big cup of free ice water, and a tube of super glue got me through that day and an evening attitude adjustment got me through the rest of the week.

 

[damskipi13]

Not a fit per se, but I agree that men are pouty. My DH gets low blood sugar and so should really carry a snack with him. But does he? No. To make matters worse he can't eat gluten. So after choosing to not bring a snack, we get to the park and he decides that he feels shaky and needs to eat. I do all of the planning but always remind him that he needs to research the food because he is the one with restrictions. Does he? No. So we end up walking around searching for suitable food rather than riding rides. He almost always ends up saying something along the lines of "well I guess I just won't eat" in a woe is me tone. Drives me nuts because it's so predictable and I really don't think I should have to carry his snack.

Ugh...I know someone like that who has been dealing with diabetes for about 25 years. If a grown man can't figure out after 25 years that he needs to carry a snack, I have no pity for him. He can go search for one while I go on a ride and we'll meet up afterward, thank you very much!


My story may not be a meltdown so much as a story of a mean old woman. I don't remember what the attraction was called, but I was in a room with a bunch of Star Wars memorabilia set up sort of like a museum. It was not very busy. A teenage boy was standing about three feet away from a Darth Vader costume looking at it. An old woman on a scooter drove up to him and beeped her horn. When he didn't move, she started screaming at him. Mind you, she could have driven either in front of him or behind him and there wouldn't have been a problem - there was plenty of room. Anyway, she's screaming at this kid and his parents come rushing over, telling the woman he's deaf and autistic and doesn't understand what's wrong, and could she please stop screaming at him. Her response was that she could scream if she wanted, he shouldn't be standing where she wanted to drive. The whole time, this poor kid looks confused and like he wants to cry. I couldn't believe how mean she was, especially after hearing that he was deaf and autistic!

 

[merrick]

i saw a dad lose it because his son didn't want to go on test track. he was literally grabbing the kid's arm and trying to force it up to so the magic band could be read. the son got more and more upset.... finally the dad snapped and said "fine, forget it... this is ********" and walked away. the mom tried to convince him she would wait with their son so he could ride but he wasn't having it. saw them later in the park, dad still glowering.

other one was a toddler who was having an epic tantrum. the dad looked lost and mom looked completely overwhelmed. she actually turned to him and said "i am done... i gotta go.... you deal with him and i will be back in 20 mins". the dad sputtered "well what am *i* supposed to do with him????". he may still be standing there... wracked with indecision. lol!

 

[elmoandzoey]

I once had a meltdown at MK apparently. I remember only part of it because I was 3 and it was over 30 years ago. So here's my tale: My parents took me on BTMRR. Loved it, loved it, loved it! My mom HATED it! From here on, I do remember everything: we come back later in the day and I see the train going round and round and round and I tell my mom I want to go again. Except my mom keeps telling me the ride isn't working because she doesn't want to go on again. I keep telling her, no, the train is running, see? And she keeps telling me, no, that's just testing. And I keep telling her, but there's people going in and out of the ride. And she keeps telling me, yes, they are testing as well. Now from this point on I don't remember anything but my mom keeps telling me this every time it comes up: apparently I really started arguing with her about how she was wrong and I was right (at 3 years old!) and then she just picked me up and walked away. Which was when I apparently had a major meltdown and started screaming and kicking. My dad then took me from her and walked off into what he thought was the entrance to a store but he somehow ended up in the entrance for Country Bear Jamboree and was ushered inside, even with me screaming her head off. End of story, a minute later I was sitting mesmerized in front of a dozen singing bears and had the best time of my life!

 

[gwek]

Certainly not the worst, but I still think this one is funny:

When my wife and I were dating, we went to Disney (she claims I did it before I proposed to make sure she could handle Disney). The trip went well but near the end she was obsessed with finding matching shirts for her two nieces (who, unfortunately, were in different size/age categories, so there weren't really matching outfits). After a few days in various parks, she couldn't find anything and wound up going up and down Main Street U.S.A., desperately looking for anything. Meanwhile, I was in the bakery, sipping lemonade, eating a pastry, and reading a young adult Jack Sparrow novel. (If someone could have cut back and forth between us, I'm sure it would have been very funny.)

When we got back together, she had not found anything and I think she just wanted to go back to the hotel. I was planning to go back into the park for more rides. When I tried to do that, she dropped to the curb on Main Street like a little kid, crying, holding her hair, and screaming "It's so hot! My head is so hot!"

(Eventually, we went to Downtown Disney for the evening and she was able to find something in the big princess store. So, happy ending.)

 

[Parker Clan]

We were waiting outside to get in BOG and in front of us there was a family whose son was just not feeling like waiting outside in the hot August heat. He really wanted to eat and was crying and yelling at his parents. They were so embarrassed and kept apologizing to us. Then finally they screamed back at him " this is the last time we bring you on holiday, you're spoiled, next time we will go by ourself!"

 

[buzznina]

I love and hate this at the same time.



Alas, the breakdowns are usually ME. I try to not be loud, but my face does project my feelings so...

But I work so hard to include my family in decisions, I try to make things the perfect blend of planned and spontaneous, I try to really make things nice, and *every time* they suddenly act like they had NO say in things and they get all weird.

I've finally concluded, after our most recent cruise where the above scenario happened again, that they just are incapable of comprehending a question about a vacation until they are ON the vacation. They prefer to just be told where to go and when. (I despise doing this; I hate how it must look to others and I just don't like it, but it seems to be 2 to 1 at this point) They tell me they trust me to make decisions, they trust that I'll take them into account. So I either have to just do what they are asking me to do (even though I hate it) or just have every bit of trips as "go with the flow". And we've done that before, and it doesn't turn out very well.

Anyway, I'm generally the one having the meltdown. Sad but true.

I also have "the look that could kill" as my DW would say And it has come out a couple of times at WDW, mainly at rude people. i.e. trying to barge their way in front of us at a parade, or trying cut in front of us and tripping over our stroller and then having an attitude about it etc. Since we have gone a bunch of times, we have seen our fair share. Parents making kids go on rides and actually lying to them on what to expect. In line at TOT and there is a man and son in front of us, son did not want to go on the ride and was crying and scared. Dad keeps pulling him along and actually tells the son that it is not dark and it is no different then riding the elevator at the mall I do see a lot at the end of the day exiting the park or in the transportation line, where the young child is crying because they are exhausted and their feet hurt and the parents yelling at them to keep up and refusing to carry them or the parents carrying the child and complaining their to heavy Our DDs have 'yet'(knock on wood) to have this type of melt down and I think it's because we still bring a stroller.

 

[Meech Loves Mickey]

My DH, Mother's Day 2014. It was our last day of the trip, our flight was later in the afternoon, so I decided that I wanted to go to the MK for the morning and just ride a few things, grab some lunch and head out. DH was pushing my 4yo DS in the stroller and my 6 yo DS was walking. We had stopped at the restrooms by the baby center and older DS was walking around on the curb. DH told him several times to stop and get down, but he wouldn't listen. DH then proceeded to throw the biggest mantrum I have ever seen, screaming at my older DS. Both kids were crying. People were staring.

I was trying to diffuse the situation, but instead of listening to me and what I wanted to do (on MOTHERS DAY) DH proceeded to grab the stroller and just take off, in the opposite direction of where we were headed. No amount of me calling his name would get him to stop. I had no choice but to run after him. Completely ruined the rest of the day for me, as all he did was pout the remaining time we were there. (DH was pouting that is....not the kids LOL.)

 

[Tattylou]

2014 during a crowded Easter week, my husband and I saw a mother and a little girl who had just got ice creams. The little girl dropped her ice cream cone on the pavement and the mom looked so angry. Then the mom yelled something and threw the ice cream she was holding to the ground. We were leaving at that point so not sure what happened next.

 

[anniemae]

I posted this before, but we were in Epcot and a family was having a very heated argument. It was mom, dad and two teenagers. Dad was yelling at kids, mom was yelling at dad to stop yelling at kids etc. They were making quite a scene. Then dad yells at the top of his lungs "WE NEED TO HIT THE REWIND BUTTON!" Then they all huddled in a circle and were whispering to each other, presumably apologizing for the way they were yelling at each other. Then they all put their hands in the middle and yelled, "ANDERSON FAMILY!!!!" and walked off happily.

It was both strange and kind of nice. They realized they were losing it, and took a step back to calm down and move on.

 

[BeerMe]

My dad heard a drunk guy who was getting escorted out of POFQ shout something about Mickey Mouse being a crook

and he is........

 

[Anesthesia Fine]

I posted this before, but we were in Epcot and a family was having a very heated argument. It was mom, dad and two teenagers. Dad was yelling at kids, mom was yelling at dad to stop yelling at kids etc. They were making quite a scene. Then dad yells at the top of his lungs "WE NEED TO HIT THE REWIND BUTTON!" Then they all huddled in a circle and were whispering to each other, presumably apologizing for the way they were yelling at each other. Then they all put their hands in the middle and yelled, "ANDERSON FAMILY!!!!" and walked off happily.

It was both strange and kind of nice. They realized they were losing it, and took a step back to calm down and move on.

I remember this story! It's still a favorite.

 

[Meech Loves Mickey]

I posted this before, but we were in Epcot and a family was having a very heated argument. It was mom, dad and two teenagers. Dad was yelling at kids, mom was yelling at dad to stop yelling at kids etc. They were making quite a scene. Then dad yells at the top of his lungs "WE NEED TO HIT THE REWIND BUTTON!" Then they all huddled in a circle and were whispering to each other, presumably apologizing for the way they were yelling at each other. Then they all put their hands in the middle and yelled, "ANDERSON FAMILY!!!!" and walked off happily.

It was both strange and kind of nice. They realized they were losing it, and took a step back to calm down and move on.

Love this! Have to file this away in the memory bank for future use........

 

[mdsouth]

My DD (now 10) at age 3. We were at MK and were getting on the boat to take it back to WL to get on ME to go to the airport to fly home. As we were getting on the boat: 1. She had the realization that she was totally leaving WDW and 2. DH had the audacity to pick her up to set her on the boat instead of letting her walk onto the boat herself. As a result she started throwing the loudest crying screaming fit I think I have ever seen and she continued it for the ENTIRE boat ride back to WL. I was mortified. We were trapped on the boat with a screaming toddler - but worse a lot of people that were not us were trapped on the boat with OUR screaming toddler. Some wonderful lady came up to me as we were exiting the boat and said "It's okay, we've all been there and I cry when I have to leave Disneyworld too". I don't know who that lady was, but I love her.

We had a family meltdown at the Animal Kingdom Park. It was day 3 of our week long trip and it was hotter then hot out. Our day started out bad because my youngest had to use the bathroom right before we were going to board the safari. We sent the older kids on the ride and me and my husband went in search of a bathroom. We got back and of course the line was huge! We finally got through the safari and found the other kids who were now a bit grouchy from waiting around for us.

We managed to do most of the park but it was so hot! The kids were cranky we were cranky and the place was crowded. (It was the year Animal Kingdom first opened) So right in the middle of the park my husband announced we were done for the day and we left. We spent the rest of the day at the hotel pool and everyone was refreshed!

So on any vacation if things start to get tense my kids ask if it the day 3 curse!

I'm afraid that the largest melt down I ever witnessed was made by my own DD. She's an only child and we brought her cousin with us that that trip. My DD was jealous of the attention her cousin was getting and my niece, being a middle child, was very good at pushing her buttons. My DD had her epic meltdown at MGM Studios. I eventually picked her up bodily and carried her out of the park to the bus and then back to the resort. We were exiting the park to the horrified looks of a pregnant woman and her mother. I believe I may have mumbled, "Just you wait!" on my way past them.

I just had to quote these stories and share my own since they are similar. It happened on the first trip with my own kids. My son was 8 and my daughter was 2 and a half at the time. We went in mid May but the heat was unbearable! On the third day I think, we headed to MGM Studios. We had decided to head back to the resort to cool off a bit in the pool but stopped for a family photo just outside the gates. Well, my DD was having none of it! She threw the BIGGEST fit. And here is the photo to show you.