Would you let your 15 and 13 year old...

[adisneyaunt]

It depends on the kid. For my child, I would probably say yes. I was being dropped off and picked up at our local amusement park with friends by the time I was 13. I went to WDW with school in high school, and we were allowed to venture out on our own.

I hear ya.. but...Sadly, there are just many more issues now than when we were kids.. it's a different world out there now.

It's def a personal decision OP..
here's to fun independence coupled with a Safe time! Enjoy ur visit.

 

[GillianP1301]

I definitely would. I may be reluctant if there was just 1 child, but 2 can watch her out for each other and at 13 and 15 the should be more than capable of riding a bus and touring a park. Loads of ways for them to get help if they need it.

 

[AmyA]

Yes, definitely as long as they have cell phones and are responsible kids in general.

 

[Allison]

Yes.

 

[FortForever]

Yes, I would. And I have way before the days of cell phones.

They were not familiar with things, either. It had been 11 years since our last trip and they had to just figure it out. Everything was fine. At 16, kids drive and we turn them loose on the world. At least at Disney they were just bus hopping if they got off at the wrong place.

 

[Elle23]

I would have no problem with this. My daughter is 14 and goes to Six Flags often with just her friends.

She turns 15 in a few weeks and I would be fine with her and her 13 yo brother going to the parks alone if they felt comfortable doing so.

 

[Allison]

I hear ya.. but...Sadly, there are just many more issues now than when we were kids.. it's a different world out there now.

It's def a personal decision OP..
here's to fun independence coupled with a Safe time! Enjoy ur visit.

I don't think it is all that different. I think the difference is the news at our fingertips and we find out information almost instantly.

 

[bumbershoot]

With Magic Bands there is so much less to worry about. They have their ticket and the ability to get food and drinks. I let my boys go off together at 13, before MB and I was worried. The next year they had bands and I was fine.

What did you worry about? With lanyards you could carry giftcards and cash. Since I started using a hard plastic case (vs the flimsy things Disney sells) on my lanyard I never worried about the stuff in my lanyard case. But my MBs have fallen off or started to fall off.

If you asked me this 20 years ago I would say yes...today, no way, Jose!
My answer does not stem from the maturity of my daughter, but instead the world we live in today.

According to people who know such things, we are *safer* now than we used to be. We just hear about more, in more areas, now. But the crimes were actually more prevalent when we were kids. (or your parents; depending on how old you are)

So the OP's teens are way safer than I was when I was going with friends to (the then) Marriott's Great America all day with friends.

 

[famy27]

I don't think it is all that different. I think the difference is the news at our fingertips and we find out information almost instantly.

You are 100% correct. The world is no more dangerous now than it was when I was a kid. It's only the perception of the danger that has changed.

To the OP, I would definitely allow it if the kids want to do it.

 

[Jfsag123]

I'll echo the same answer of yes, depending on your kids. I would think about how your kids may react if something were to go wrong. For example, we were on the monorail once when it broke down and there was a teenager by herself in the car with us. We weren't stuck for very long, but I think she started to freak out a little bit and started crying. She was fine on her own and then she wasn't. Since yours would have each other it may be less of an issue, but just thought I'd mention it.

 

[thumper88]

Another yes here. We are staying on-site for our upcoming trip so our older kids (17 and 14) can have a little more freedom exploring the parks.

 

[FelisLachesis]

My kids were 17, 15 and 14 when we let them go on their own. It wasn't as much as letting them completely loose on their own, but their mom and I were in the same park. We did our thing, they did their thing.

We met up for fast passes and meal times, but other than that, I let them be.

Now, during Christmas, if you're not within 30 feet of someone, it feels like you're 2 countries away.

 

[ChuckNFM]

My brother and I did it at that age in the 70s. My children did it in the 90s.
I do agree with the comment on the transportation system being the thing
To worry about.

 

[DisneyOma]

I hear ya.. but...Sadly, there are just many more issues now than when we were kids.. it's a different world out there now.

It's def a personal decision OP..
here's to fun independence coupled with a Safe time! Enjoy ur visit.

Actually there aren't more issues now than in the past - it's just that in the past you were too young to know about them, or the news didn't spread as quickly as there was no internet, or the topic was considered taboo and no one talked about it. But there were rapes, abductions, killings, muggings, etc, back in the "Good Old Days" too.

Well, since I let my 18 year old and 16 year old go to WDW alone, from MA, I'd say my answer is yes, two teens can handle going to a park together. Of course, I sent my 15 year old with a 17 year old to Norway, and traveled alone myself to Hawai'i in my late teens. (We're all females, BTW.)

 

[NMAmy]

Yes, I let dd and a friend do just this during their teenage years. DD could navigate the bus service here in our town (with various routes, transfers, and constant stops) at that age. I had no problem letting her navigate a bus that goes directly from one location to another.

 

[Karl66]

When I was 12 my parents let my 15 y/o sister and I go to MK by ourselves. It was great. We rode the monoraiI by ourselves from CR to the park. This was the in days before cell phones. We checked in with them as we were told and had no problems. So I would definitely let my 15 and 13 y/o kids take a bus to the parks by themselves. However, as others have stated, you know your kids best. This choice is ultimately yours.

 

[mom2rb]

What did you worry about? With lanyards you could carry giftcards and cash. Since I started using a hard plastic case (vs the flimsy things Disney sells) on my lanyard I never worried about the stuff in my lanyard case. But my MBs have fallen off or started to fall off.

My boys refused to wear a lanyard and left their tickets in a few fastpass machines. They have also lost their cash and room keys before. Typical teenage boy stuff. I still let them go by themselves, I just worried a little bit. Once their room key, ticket, and charging ability was strapped to their wrist, I felt better.

 

[momof2gr8kids]

We let our 15 and 12 yr old go into mk alone for a few hrs while we went to tambu lounge and they also did an emh at ak alone while we packed up to go to our next resort. We didn't do it until we had been at the parks at least one and they refamiliarized themselves with everything and the busses. They loved it and so did we!

 

[Dug720]

Actually there aren't more issues now than in the past - it's just that in the past you were too young to know about them, or the news didn't spread as quickly as there was no internet, or the topic was considered taboo and no one talked about it. But there were rapes, abductions, killings, muggings, etc, back in the "Good Old Days" too.

This! When I was in 3rd grade we moved to where we were right on the line between provided bussing and being able to walk or ride my bike to school. In 4th grade my parents started letting me do that occasionally. One day I had walked but my mom came and got me to drive me home - she made it into a fun "treat afternoon" but only when I was older did my parents tell me it was because there had been an attempted abduction elsewhere in our city. It was not on the news until later that night, but one of the youth counselors my dad worked with was a cop and she knew they sometimes let me walk to school, so she called and notified him. Otherwise I might have walked home with none of us knowing anything and the guy not apprehended. (He was a few days later and no one was harmed.)

 

[Disneylover99]

Yes, when my kids hit the ages of 15 and 13 I will let them take a Disney bus to the parks if they want.