Young Elementary Age Kids and Attraction Scary Factor

[Dr.Mickey]

My 8 yo twins just flip-flopped in courage on our last 2 trips just 6 months apart. One was a daredevil while the other passed on most everything. Then on the second trip, the other one got his courage and loved every roller coaster while the daredevil suddenly got cold feet and refused every intense ride - even though he listed them all as his favorites on the drive to FL.

So the moral of the story is...you never know what you're going to get with kids. We don't push it either because they have plenty of years to grow into it.

 

[JessicaW1234]

Hi Everyone! I'm taking my niece (age 8) and nephew (age 5) on our next trip to WDW in 2016!!! That being said, I've never traveled with young children before to the world, so I would like some input from others with children in this age group that have actually experienced the attractions with these children already. I know I'll get a variety of "not scary" or "scary" answers, so if you could give me a bit of feedback on the child's demeanor such as "the ride was scary for him, but he scares easily" or "my daredevil 5 year old had no problems with the ride!", I would be especially appreciative.

Specifically, I'm wondering about
1) Haunted Mansion (even more specific-the lightning/scream in the stretching room)
2) Pirates of the Caribbean
3) Dinosaur
4) Great Movie Ride
and for the heck of it, 5) Tower of Terror

My twins are both 9. My DS still finds Dinosaur scary, but is ok with HM and POC.
He is the less daring of the two.
My DD does not like HM, and she generally will go on anything. She actually wanted to go on ToT (DS did not even want to try) and she got physically ill from it (vomited). I would not recommend it. She is not a girl who ever gets motion sick. She also likes POC.
Both of them had no problems with the great movie ride.

 

[Mainemama]

Hi Everyone! I'm taking my niece (age 8) and nephew (age 5) on our next trip to WDW in 2016!!! That being said, I've never traveled with young children before to the world, so I would like some input from others with children in this age group that have actually experienced the attractions with these children already. I know I'll get a variety of "not scary" or "scary" answers, so if you could give me a bit of feedback on the child's demeanor such as "the ride was scary for him, but he scares easily" or "my daredevil 5 year old had no problems with the ride!", I would be especially appreciative.

Specifically, I'm wondering about

1) Haunted Mansion (even more specific-the lightning/scream in the stretching room)
2) Pirates of the Caribbean
3) Dinosaur
4) Great Movie Ride
and for the heck of it, 5) Tower of Terror

I have kids at both ends of the easily scared and daredevil spectrum. My DS started on all of these rides at age 4-5 and has never flinched. TOT would be listed in his top 3 (EE and SM rounding out list). My ODD was not able to watch a Disney movie until age 9, because shows like Snow White were terrifying. Okay, Disney films do actually have scary parts, but still, she has really been fearful of books, and very non-threatening experiences in real life. That said, she was only bothered by Dinosaur on your list. It is startling. Everything else, we just set up that it was a story and was not real. She was fine. Entering with laughter and silliness always helps. We also went into the World with her explaining that characters are just people dressed up, or she would freak. She knows not to tell anyone this secret, and constantly wonders why people wait in line to meet people in costumes!

 

[*Experiment626*]

We just took our first trip with our 6 y/o daughter. We did all of the major headliners including RnR, ToT, Everest, 7DMT, BTMRR, Dinosaur, etc. We went totally expecting to do rider swap on some if not all of them. I was shocked when she agreed to ride each and every one of them. She also loved the Great Movie Ride (she closed her eyes during the Alien part), HM, and counts PoTC as one of her 2 favorites. The other...ToT! My child is no daredevil that's for sure. I agree with previous posters about looking ahead of time at YouTube videos. It gave her a chance to see what would happen on the rides. If we hadn't done that, I'm not so sure she would've gotten on some of the rides! Good luck and have fun!!!

 

[caracarn]

Yes I am.

@caracarn - Wheel of Time fan?

Used this username for about 15 years at this point.

 

[Joltin Joe IV]

Plenty of commentary from previous posters on the rides that you asked about, so I'll throw my $0.02 in. It's Tough To Be A Bug is the scariest attraction in WDW. No experience with kids (though I heard plenty of legitimate cries during my last visit earlier this month), but it still freaks me out as a mid-twenties male!

 

[ksinniger]

Since you're looking for different perspectives, here's the reaction from my daughters aged 6 & 7 (at the time they first tried the ride):

1. Haunted Mansion - neither really liked it (stretching room or the ride); 7 year old only rode it a second time when she could ride with me (as opposed to any other adult), and she was less scared, but is not in a hurry to ride again; 6 year old will ride again so long as we cover her eyes and ears during stretching room
2. POTC - Same 7 year old will not go on this one again; 6 year old loves it
3. Dinosaur - everyone was fine with this one
4. Great Movie Ride - both willing to ride this one, but we usually tell them to close their eyes during the alien scene; not a favorite simply because they don't know so many of the movies
5. ToT - again, neither liked the pre-ride film. 7 year old refuses to ride again. 6 year old loves the actual drop, so we cover her eyes and ears in the film and she's fine.

 

[mickeyfanachey1999]

Hi Everyone! I'm taking my niece (age 8) and nephew (age 5) on our next trip to WDW in 2016!!! That being said, I've never traveled with young children before to the world, so I would like some input from others with children in this age group that have actually experienced the attractions with these children already. I know I'll get a variety of "not scary" or "scary" answers, so if you could give me a bit of feedback on the child's demeanor such as "the ride was scary for him, but he scares easily" or "my daredevil 5 year old had no problems with the ride!", I would be especially appreciative.

Specifically, I'm wondering about
1) Haunted Mansion (even more specific-the lightning/scream in the stretching room)
2) Pirates of the Caribbean
3) Dinosaur
4) Great Movie Ride
and for the heck of it, 5) Tower of Terror

1. DS13 has loved it since his first time when he was 5. DS4 didn't have any problem with HM and he's been on it several times.
2. Neither had any trouble with POTC
3. DS13 took some great pictures on Dinosaur...he literally looks really scared in the first one when he was much younger. DS4 rode Dinosaur for the first time in May. He never opened his eyes and left fingernail imprints in my arm from squeezing so tightly.
4. Both have loved the Great Movie ride since the first time they rode it.
5. DS13 rode TOT for the first time when he was 7. The look on his face in the ride picture is great! His eyes are as big as saucers and his mouth is hanging open! He never cried but he told me he was scared to death. When we went the next year he woudln't ride it. Now it's one of his favorites.

 

[Baklava]

Hi Everyone! I'm taking my niece (age 8) and nephew (age 5) on our next trip to WDW in 2016!!! That being said, I've never traveled with young children before to the world, so I would like some input from others with children in this age group that have actually experienced the attractions with these children already. I know I'll get a variety of "not scary" or "scary" answers, so if you could give me a bit of feedback on the child's demeanor such as "the ride was scary for him, but he scares easily" or "my daredevil 5 year old had no problems with the ride!", I would be especially appreciative.

Specifically, I'm wondering about
1) Haunted Mansion (even more specific-the lightning/scream in the stretching room)
2) Pirates of the Caribbean
3) Dinosaur
4) Great Movie Ride
and for the heck of it, 5) Tower of Terror

My answers are based on DL, so I'm leaving out 3 and 4...

1) My cream puff was sketchy until about 10, my daredevil was fine at 3.
2) Cream puff was nervous but enjoyed it at 5, Dare devil giggled at both 1 and 3.
5) The cream puff still won't ride it at 17. The dare devil at 5 is super excited to try it. Thank goodness she's tall!

 

[ms tom morrow]

My 5 year old niece COMPLETELY freaked out on GMR. Even though we watched different versions on youtube and spent awhile telling her about the actors we might see and prepping her for what we kept saying was a show we would be a part of, she burst out crying when our car was "taken over." The CM playing the gangster tried to make her feel better saying something like "Don't worry about me, doll" but it only freaked her out more that he was addressing her! She SCREAMED the entire rest of the ride... I've never seen her do anything like it before or since.

That's all to say that you never know how kids will react to things in person - she loved Dinosaur, BTMRR, Splash, etc but something about the "show" in GMR really spooked her. Now we always have a plan B just in case (play "I spy," or have an iphone game ready for example). And to anyone that shared our car on GMR that day... I'm sorry!!!!

 

[JoshuaShaw]

Yes I am.

Used this username for about 15 years at this point.

The wheel weaves as the wheel wills.

 

[LiveToTravelNicely]

Thank you, everyone, for your input and personal experiences! I know everyone is different, but it's nice to see all the different personal takes on these five rides. It sounds like the key might be 1) Youtube, 2) Being honest and upfront before the ride about what will happen and that it's all pretend, and 3) respecting the child's wish whether to go or not.

I think my biggest fear is that one of them will courage up to going on one, get terrified, and then miss other attractions for fear of it being like the terrifying ride. So, we'll start out on a bunch of "safe" bets, that way we will hopefully build a level of trust. I remember being scared of Haunted Mansion at age 10, not because of anything IN haunted mansion, but because I had this idea in my head that it was going to have a fast drop in the dark similar to Space Mountain. But, no one told me ahead of time that this wasn't a dark coaster, but just a gentle ride.

 

[caroline1851]

Specifically, I'm wondering about
1) Haunted Mansion (even more specific-the lightning/scream in the stretching room)
2) Pirates of the Caribbean
3) Dinosaur
4) Great Movie Ride
and for the heck of it, 5) Tower of Terror

My daughter is typically scared less than my son. These were their ages and how they felt.
DD2 Didn't go on Dinosaur, fine with GMR and POTC, scared of Haunted Mansion
DD5 Didn't go on Dinosaur, fine with all others
DS6 Terrified of Dinosaur, rest were fine, though he believed the gangster was real in GMR and got a little freaked out.
DS9 All were fine

I have heard of Stitchs' Escape being scary to kids. but mine didn't go on it.

 

[smiths02]

Watching YouTube videos and doing the isn't this silly thing mentioned before helped ours be less scared.

My 9 year old liked Thunder Mountain when he was 5. But, at 5, I had to beg him to go on Haunted Mansion and Dinosaur scared him as well. So I got a FP+ for 7DMT this last trip...he was terrified! Huh? We ended up conquering all the mountains (and he got a pin for each one, like a PP mentioned), but he did not want to do them again.

I didn't like rollercoasters for a long time, and I still don't like drops. I have no desire to do EE ever or ToT ever again. Splash Mtn is also not one I like but I did it to help my son conquer the mountains.

My 2 year olds were scared of videos of the Tiki Room (it gets dark and loud at the end) BUT they knew it was coming, so it was easier to explain.
I still saved the Haunted Mansion for one of our last rides of the trip.

 

[LiveToTravelNicely]

I have heard of Stitchs' Escape being scary to kids. but mine didn't go on it.

Good point on Stitch! Honestly, I didn't mention Stitch because I'm hopeful to stay clear of that ride altogether. I am game for riding any and everything at WDW except that ride. On my first trip as an adult in 2011, my DW and I went on Stitch with no prior research on what it was. When it ended, we both looked at each other and said "is that it?!" We wasted all that time to be spit on, at least that was our take.

 

[smiths02]

Oh, and I don't know if this spoils the magic, but my older son saw Michael Jackson's Thriller (I guess it was when MJ died)...he was terrified. So we then watched a behind the scenes showing how MJ got his make up, etc. It helped A LOT. So if the kids seem scared, showing them behind the scenes stuff can help. Again, I know for some that ruins the magic, but it helped us.

 

[juliekzp]

I know it's not very helpful to say that it depends on the kid, but it totally depends on the kid. My daredevil 5-year-old loves all those rides, but my scaredy-cat 8-year-old will only do Pirates (while whimpering through the beginning) and Great Movie Ride (also whimpering) but wouldn't be caught dead on those others.

 

[Imaginique]

Even with the YouTube videos, I couldn't get DD5 on any of those rides. But, that is her personality. I'd definitely show the YouTube videos (though let them know that some of them look much darker on film than they do with our own eyes; Haunted Mansion and Pirates specifically).

 

[Baklava]

My 5 year old niece COMPLETELY freaked out on GMR. Even though we watched different versions on youtube and spent awhile telling her about the actors we might see and prepping her for what we kept saying was a show we would be a part of, she burst out crying when our car was "taken over." The CM playing the gangster tried to make her feel better saying something like "Don't worry about me, doll" but it only freaked her out more that he was addressing her! She SCREAMED the entire rest of the ride... I've never seen her do anything like it before or since.

That's all to say that you never know how kids will react to things in person - she loved Dinosaur, BTMRR, Splash, etc but something about the "show" in GMR really spooked her. Now we always have a plan B just in case (play "I spy," or have an iphone game ready for example). And to anyone that shared our car on GMR that day... I'm sorry!!!!

My teen heard "Alien" when I described GMR and went, "Nope." We got that reaction to GMR, Expedition Everest (youtube video) and the Frozen Singalong. He knows what scares him and he's perfectly happy to go ride Star Tours again instead.