Which Rides Do Your Kids Refuse to Try

[KrazeeK120]

And sometimes, it's as bad as it looks.

I was on the Tower of Terror with a family who forced their 4 year old son on it, crying and pleading the whole line to not make him ride it. He was so scared. The jerk parents were laughing at him and berating him for being a "fraidy cat" (their words) and his older brother was joining in as well. This poor little boy was SO scared he THREW UP just after the ride started (before any drops) and we all had to endure the ride with the smell and the parents yelling at the boy for vomiting. It was the worst thing I have experienced at WDW. I told the first CM I saw what those parents were doing to that child and it bummed me out the rest of the day.

Two women behind us in line for Dinosaur last week were carrying a little boy (maybe 4) who kept saying he didn't want to go on it and was sobbing. They just laughed at him and carried him on. I felt so bad for him and had to bit my tongue from saying something. I know I shouldn't tell someone else how to parent, but that little boy was so scared.

My heart hurts for those poor kids. Why would it ever be fun or funny to terrify your child? I'd probably punch someone in the face if they attempted to purposely frighten my precious little boy. Being a parent doesn't give you a right to terrify your children. Would you want someone to do that to you?

 

[juxtapose]

After our last trip I wouldn't force a kid onto a ride. My DD was 4.5 and wanted to ride Soarin' so we went. The second it started she freaked out and cried/screamed the entire ride, I felt so awful but nothing I said to her could calm her down during the ride, she thought she was going to fall from the sky. She road 7DMT the day before it and said she loved it. After Soarin' she really didn't want to go on any rides again.

 

[robndani]

Mine won't do ToT either!!! They both like drop rides (just did the new big one at Hershey) but won't try it. I'm pretty sure they would love it

 

[quandrea]

Ahhh, where to start? Dd, 13 is not a thrill seeker. She won't ride any of the roller coasters, Splash Mountain, Tower of Terror, Dinosaur, she barely tolerates Pirates (hates the drop). We don't push her. The point is to have fun and it's not fun when she is crying and hyperventilating. It's nice now that she's older. She waits for us at the exits. Her younger siblings, 7, love the thrills.

Dd's favourite rides are Small World, the People mover and the Speedway.

 

[quandrea]

DD (almost 10) refuses to go on ANYthing that's even remotely like a roller coaster or has any kind of drop - Tower of Terror, BTMRR, 7DMT, RnRRC, Barnstormer, EE, Space Mtn, Primeval Whirl, Kali River, Dinosaur......I think that about covers it. We forced/bribed her to go on Splash Mtn. once and she refuses to do it again. I don't force her. I'm not above bribes, but she won't go for it.

I think we have the same kid.

 

[StraightToDumbo]

I always tell my kids that regret tastes worse than being terrified and lasts longer. DS isn't for ToT but we'll try again in September. Generally we ask them to try anything and if they don't like it, never again.

 

[EverafterKat]

When my son was 4 he went on Tower of terror he flew up so high off the seat that he never went on again and we've been six times since then, 10 years ago. Lol

 

[Mambo Junkie]

My DGD5 rode Tower of Terror on the last trip, but we were on one where there were a lot of people screaming, and that scared her. I think she would have been fine otherwise. She refuses to try 7DMT.

ETA: she happily agreed to try TOT. Once again, it was the screaming, and not the actual ride that she didn't like. She didn't cry, but she told us it was too loud and she didn't want to ride it any more.

 

[Mambo Junkie]

I also remember bribing my son (at 12) to ride ExtraTerrorestrial Alien Encounter. He loved it. We got a kick out of watching "first timers" ride it. He still talks about how much he enjoyed it.

 

[Planogirl]

I never forced DS to ride anything but I did talk him into the Haunted Mansion. I carried him through the stretching room and he was most scared of those who screamed when the lights went out. The only part that worried him on the actual ride was the ghouls who pop up in the attic. He was ok though because we rode it many times after that first ride. I would not have taken him on the ride if he cried or seemed really frightened.

We had a bit of role reversal in later years. I never liked the Tower of Terror (hate drops) or Space Mountain (don't like a coaster in the dark). DS tried to talk me into riding both of those and then was kind enough to tell me that I only had to ride one and I could choose. I had to go along with that!

By the way, I chose the Tower of Terror. I still hate the drops but it's otherwise amazing.

 

[Sleepy425]

My younger son was 4 when we went in October. It was just my sister, him, and myself in the Magic Kingdom for the first day. I was so excited to take him on Splash Mountain (something I wasn't brave enough to get on until at least age 12). I know him and knew he would love it, he just hates the idea of new things.
So I didn't tell him what we were doing, and we distracted him as we went past the big drop to get into line. Unfortunately, I had watched too many YouTube videos with him - he saw the entrance and screamed "I'M NOT GOING ON SPLASH MOUNTAIN!!!!" He then proceeded to run like the Roadrunner into the park, all the while screaming that he wasn't riding and I couldn't make him. A lady had to corner him for me so I could catch up to him.
Fast forward to two days later, when my husband is with me. He told my son he could have ice cream for breakfast, $1, and a picture frame to put his ride photo in. My little devil happily walked onto the ride and came off laughing.
He has pulled the same thing for 3 trips in a row with Kali River Rapids. And every trip he ends up insisting on riding it at least 3 times.
So don't judge the parent every time - some of us know that are little actors feed off of drama and love to have an audience. That boy could have gotten an Oscar for his performance that first morning.
However, ToT, RnR, Space Mountain, and Dinosaur are all rides that if my kid didn't want to ride I wouldn't force the issue. I'm a ride chicken due to pretty bad claustrophobia. My 7 year old has ridden so many rides that I won't even consider. I don't want my kids to end up like me, so yes I will try to bribe the two more timid kids to get them to do things out of their comfort zone.

 

[Klayfish]

So don't judge the parent every time - some of us know that are little actors feed off of drama and love to have an audience. That boy could have gotten an Oscar for his performance that first morning.

Exactly.

 

[Figment Mom]

My son (age 9 when we were there) hates roller coasters.

I convinced him to try 7DMT. (Didn't force but strongly encouraged because I thought it would be mild enough). He didn't like it.

We did not attempt any other coasters. Big Thunder is my favorite ride of all time and I had to skip it since just the two of us were on the trip. I briefly considered leaving him sitting on a bench so I could ride it. He actually suggested that. But of course I decided to be a responsible adult and didn't do that.

Later in the trip I did try to encourage him to do Test Track. He refused on our first Epcot day. On our second day there he did it and it turned out to be his favorite ride.

 

[Delirium]

Our daughter rode RNR when she was 7 and liked it. We went back when she was 10, and we mentioned to her that it went upside down, at which point she refused to ride it.

 

[1st*toright]

I don't understand parents who don't respect their kids' choices. There is no reason a kid should have to ride something that scares them - it isn't like eating veggies or having to go to school. The only downside is that they might miss out on some fun, if it turns out they like the ride.

I'm not talking about the gentle encouragement that people have talked about - encouraging your kids to try new things is fine- I'm talking about kids being legit upset by the prospect of going on a ride and the parents disregarding that.

We found out that our LO doesn't mind heights or spookiness (Splash was her favorite, Pirates & Haunted Mansion were also popular (although we skipped the stretching room). But she doesn't like going fast - we did 7DMT and although she wasn't absolutely terrified or crying, she wasn't a fan. I had thought that BTMR would likely be OK for her, and had another 7DMT FP, but we just adjusted so that she didn't have to go on any more rollercoaster type rides.

I get that it can be inconvenient if its a trip with one adult and a kid (or kids) that are too little to be left alone, but as the PP said, sometimes you just have to be a responsible adult.

 

[flortlebap]

My daughter is 12. She won't go on Splash, EE, ToT, HM, Space Mtn, Primeval Whirl... etc etc. She has been on both splash and EE in the past but hated them.

My twins are 10 and one is similar but will ride Splash, but the other is slightly more adventurous - he hated ToT when he was 5 but wants to try it again in case he likes it this time lol. They BEGGED me to ride ToT when they were 5, it was all they talked about for months, I warned them off and said we could leave when we were at the front of the queue if they'd changed their mind but they were adamant, and they both cried all the way through after the first drop!!

 

[Klayfish]

I don't understand parents who don't respect their kids' choices. There is no reason a kid should have to ride something that scares them - it isn't like eating veggies or having to go to school. The only downside is that they might miss out on some fun, if it turns out they like the ride.

For me, it's got nothing to do with respect. It's about making the kids try things in life and experience things, even if they "think" they're afraid of it. If I always abided by my kids wishes, they'd have never eaten vegetables...and yes, to me this is somewhat similar. I could argue that what's the worst that's going to happen in a WDW ride? They don't like it. Very absolute disaster case, they throw up. Not the end of the world. They won't be hurt, they won't die. And I don't see them being "emotionally scarred for life" from a WDW ride. What's the worst that happens when they try a new food? They don't like it, they "gag" (real or fake). Heaven forbid, they have an allergic reaction. If I had abided by their choices, DD9 wouldn't be a lacrosse player today (and she now loves it and begs for a personal trainer, camps, etc...), none of our kids would be running 5ks, DD9 wouldn't be riding a scooter (not motorized, one you push), etc...

Each to their own, but if in our judgment we think our kids may like something, we make them try it whether they think they're scared/won't like it/whatever. If they don't like it, fine. If they do, they've just expanded their world.

We still poke fun at DS13 about Stitch. We made him try it when he was about 5 or 6. It frightened him pretty good. He kept saying for the rest of the trip "I don't want to go on it again". And we didn't. Fast forward 4 years and he decided to try it again because he had conquered much scarier rides than that. He to this day laughs at himself and says "What was I scared of?"

 

[Minnesota!]

None, thus far.

I hate Dinosaur - scariest ride ever. But, they force me on every trip..

 

[KrazeeK120]

I don't understand parents who don't respect their kids' choices. There is no reason a kid should have to ride something that scares them - it isn't like eating veggies or having to go to school. The only downside is that they might miss out on some fun, if it turns out they like the ride.

I'm not talking about the gentle encouragement that people have talked about - encouraging your kids to try new things is fine- I'm talking about kids being legit upset by the prospect of going on a ride and the parents disregarding that.

This this this. A million times. There really just isn't a point to forcing someone on a amusement park ride. I just really can't see where it's fun to have a kid be that upset or why you would purposely frighten your kid. I just can't imagine doing that to my child.

 

[Mimifree]

I think you have to use your judgment based on what rides your kids have liked in the past. Our last trip the girls were 6 and 7. While there we discovered our youngest was afraid of all 4D rides. We unfortunately tried It's Tough to be a Bug first. I could never convince her the other 4D movies would be fine. We did them but she was so scared. This upcoming trip (2 years later) I will let her decide if she wants to ride any. Both girls will not ride Haunted Mansion. The ghosts scare them. They can't even watch previews for movies that might be slightly scary so I don't see HM going well. I do encourage them to ride thrill rides that don't have scary elements. If it is something I'm almost positive they would like, I strongly encourage them (maybe even bribe them- lol).