Is child swap only for kids who don't meet minimum heights?

marcais

Mouseketeer
Joined
Feb 22, 2018
I've a family trip coming up later this year.

I have a 7-year-old son who I know won't want to go on FoP. I also have a wife and two daughters who can't wait to go on it.

Will we be able to do child swap with him?

I take it if I sit out the first ride and let my wife and daughters go then I'll be getting on on my own after the swap?

When we did Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey at Universal last year there was nobody keeping track of people doing child swaps, so my daughters each got 4 goes on it.
 
I've a family trip coming up later this year.

I have a 7-year-old son who I know won't want to go on FoP. I also have a wife and two daughters who can't wait to go on it.

Will we be able to do child swap with him?

I take it if I sit out the first ride and let my wife and daughters go then I'll be getting on on my own after the swap?

When we did Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey at Universal last year there was nobody keeping track of people doing child swaps, so my daughters each got 4 goes on it.
You may be able to do a version of swap similar to how HP works where you will all enter the que and then you will stay with your son while your wife and daughters ride and then you will be able to ride after “swapping” your son to them. It may or may not be alone. My best recommendation is to have fp for everyone and ask the cm at the entrance to the fp que before scanning
 
We have been able to do this with RNRC because I have a tall enough kid who won’t ride.

I’m not sure about FOP though - they seem extra strict about that one.

Here’s the issue - Wife and daughters scan FP+ and ask for swap for you. Then you and son could come back another day and ride with RS. There was actually never a non-rider. I know you are not doing this - I’m just explaining why they have to be strict.
 
You may be able to do a version of swap similar to how HP works where you will all enter the que and then you will stay with your son while your wife and daughters ride and then you will be able to ride after “swapping” your son to them. It may or may not be alone. My best recommendation is to have fp for everyone and ask the cm at the entrance to the fp que before scanning
This. Since your son is tall enough to ride but not brave enough to ride he will still need a FP to enter the line and swap closer to the ride. The CMs at FOP are sticklers for the rules and are very unlikely to give you a "baby swap" FP at the front of the queue like @Gentry2004 suggests.

ETA: the "baby swap" rider-switch FP is generally for children who are too short to ride. It allows up to 3 people to ride on it at another time. Sometimes CMs at rides will hand one out for kids who are tall enough but not brave enough but usually those types of kids are expected to go through the queue and swap near the ride. Since FOP is so popular and overloaded it is very unlikely that they would hand out "baby swap" passes for kids who are tall enough.
 


We were in line with someone before who told us her son had gotten to go on twice that day because of rider swap so there's a chance they'll let another party member go with you. I would imagine it depends on the CM. We have done some swaps before with my daughter (for both height and fear reasons) and they always let my son ride again but FoP is so packed that it might be a different story.
Just being nosy here but why does your son not want to ride? If you haven't been it's not scary at all, just kind of exhilarating. My daughter is six and scared of most coasters but she loves this ride. The only thing I can think of as being a little unnerving for kids is the seat back coming up to hold you in place.
 
We were in line with someone before who told us her son had gotten to go on twice that day because of rider swap so there's a chance they'll let another party member go with you. I would imagine it depends on the CM. We have done some swaps before with my daughter (for both height and fear reasons) and they always let my son ride again but FoP is so packed that it might be a different story.
Just being nosy here but why does your son not want to ride? If you haven't been it's not scary at all, just kind of exhilarating. My daughter is six and scared of most coasters but she loves this ride. The only thing I can think of as being a little unnerving for kids is the seat back coming up to hold you in place.

He's just very nervous on anything that he thinks might be fast or has drops.

It doesn't even matter if they do or not, just if he thinks they might.

He loves Star Wars, but didn't like Star Tours as he was so nervous before going in that he just couldn't enjoy it. I've tried explaining to him how simulator rides work and told him that it's just like a big video game. I might finally be getting through to him as he says he wants to do Star Tours this year.

It's an odd one. The first time we went he loved Barnstormer, then we went on 7DMT and he hated that, and then he wouldn't go on Barnstormer afterwards. Yet he went on Dinosaur after that and loved it, but wouldn't go on PW. The first time we went he loved the Buzz Lightyear ride and rode it multiple times over the trip. So much so that we made it our first stop the second time we went. He hated it on that second trip. He was 4 the first time we went, and 6 when we went last year.

He started screaming when the Astro Orbiter started moving last year, and screamed the whole way through it. He wouldn't even contemplate doing it again even after we stood on the ground watching it and showed him that it's basically the same as the Aladdin and Dumbo rides, which he loves.

He's talking about doing Barnstormer this year and he wants to do the Stitch ride, which he hated the first year he went. It's really only once he's faced with the prospect of getting on the ride that we'll know whether he'll do it or not.

Last year he loved designing the car at TT in Epcot, but I had to skip the ride with him once he was faced with actually boarding.

He gets really nervous with Soarin', but he'll do it. So I'll try explaining to him that FoP is a bit like Soarin' and see if he'll get on.
 
Stitch’s “ride” has closed - I believe permanently.
 


It doesn't even matter if they do or not, just if he thinks they might.

It's really only once he's faced with the prospect of getting on the ride that we'll know whether he'll do it or not.

Oh man, that must be hard. You really have to be flexible, don’t you?!

Unfortunately, you won’t know for sure what the CM will do till you get there either. You will all get to ride. The advantage of the rider swap would be you and your wife would each get to experience the ride with both daughters.

If you all get FP for FoP, and the CM will give you a rider swap pass, your wife can ride with your daughters, and then you can use the swap to ride with your daughters. It’s good for you plus two more any time that day. (Other rides you can use them later days, but FoP has to be same day.) If the CM won’t give you a rider swap because your son is tall enough, your wife can ride with your daughters with FP, and then you could ride and one of your daughters could take your son’s MB and use his FP. If that’s going to cause a big sibling rivalry problem, you could also have mom take one daughter and dad take the other. I’d plan to go at the beginning of your window in case you have to do the latter.

FoP is intense, even though it doesn’t actually move a lot. I could see it being tough for people with anxiety.
 
I thought it had gone seasonal?

He'll not be happy with that.

I thought they only kept it seasonal for this past season but was now permanent. You’d think a busy week like Presidents’ Week would be “seasonal” but it was not open this trip.
 
The Great Movie Ride was one of the other ones he loved, and that's gone as well. He's going to start taking this personally. :mad:
 
He's just very nervous on anything that he thinks might be fast or has drops.

It doesn't even matter if they do or not, just if he thinks they might.

He loves Star Wars, but didn't like Star Tours as he was so nervous before going in that he just couldn't enjoy it. I've tried explaining to him how simulator rides work and told him that it's just like a big video game. I might finally be getting through to him as he says he wants to do Star Tours this year.

It's an odd one. The first time we went he loved Barnstormer, then we went on 7DMT and he hated that, and then he wouldn't go on Barnstormer afterwards. Yet he went on Dinosaur after that and loved it, but wouldn't go on PW. The first time we went he loved the Buzz Lightyear ride and rode it multiple times over the trip. So much so that we made it our first stop the second time we went. He hated it on that second trip. He was 4 the first time we went, and 6 when we went last year.

He started screaming when the Astro Orbiter started moving last year, and screamed the whole way through it. He wouldn't even contemplate doing it again even after we stood on the ground watching it and showed him that it's basically the same as the Aladdin and Dumbo rides, which he loves.

He's talking about doing Barnstormer this year and he wants to do the Stitch ride, which he hated the first year he went. It's really only once he's faced with the prospect of getting on the ride that we'll know whether he'll do it or not.

Last year he loved designing the car at TT in Epcot, but I had to skip the ride with him once he was faced with actually boarding.

He gets really nervous with Soarin', but he'll do it. So I'll try explaining to him that FoP is a bit like Soarin' and see if he'll get on.

I totally get this - our daughter was much the same way after she got scared on 7DMT! She is finally expanding out and we even got her to try EE this past week. It's hard because you want them to try stuff with the whole family but you don't want something that is supposed to be fun to turn out scary for them.
If you don't mind "spoilers" you could have him watch a YouTube video of the ride.

Just as a heads up, if you are going to try to persuade him to go on FoP I would make sure he tries out the seat first. One time (thankfully it was not the first or I don't think she would have gone back) our daughter felt that the seat was way too tight and started yelling that she couldn't breathe. It was seriously awful; the ride started and I couldn't move out of my seat to help her and she completely panicked. The whole ride was just her crying and saying she couldn't breathe while I had a little panic attack of my own trying to figure out what to do. She obviously could breathe at least a little because she didn't pass out but for some reason on that go around the seat just went up tighter on her. So, if your son has anxiety about rides this might be an issue.
 
We tried the Youtube videos last year, but that didn't work.

This year I've been using Google Cardboard and an app called VR Thrills, which includes a couple of rides that I think are at Universal, but they've just given them different names in the app. I think that's what has him more accepting of the simulator type rides, so maybe by August he'll be ready to give FoP a go.
 
We've done rider swap at Space Mountain, Splash Mountain, and Tower of Terror with a tall enough, but too scared child. At Splash Mountain, my younger (and shorter) son rode while Daddy and older son waited, then Daddy used rider swap and took our littlest guy again.

We did not have to do this for FOP because older son is in love with that ride, but we did do a rider swap anyway because little guy was too short. That said, they didn't seem to even glance in the direction of me and little guy when they gave my husband the rider swap pass, so at least some attendants aren't all that strict about it. We did the reverse on another day (I rode first with older son), and, similarly, the attendant paid little attention to the qualifying rider swap child. Can you count on this? Probably not; some cast members are going to be really anal about it. However, the way rider swap is portrayed on the Disney site makes it sound like a non-rider can be tall enough to ride and still qualify for a rider swap.
 
So I have a 12yo son who is on the autistic spectrum. We knew early on he wasn't a "ride kid" like his older sister and used child swap often...much to the delight of the older sister! Turns out he has pretty severe vestibular issues so it basically rules out almost all coasters or anything w/ a severe "dip." He has done both Big Thunder Mountain Railroad and Splash Mountain...once, but has no plans to get on either again anytime soon. All the major coasters, Tower of Terror, & Dinosaur are all on the list of never gonna happen. We don't know yet if he will ride FoP.

We haven't been to WDW since he was 6yo, but have been to both Disneyland and Universal (Florida) in the last two years ...using child swap successfully. Thus far, we have never seen a need to use a DAS pass. Ds does okay and we haven't had any issue w/ using the child swap to allow the rest of the family to enjoy attractions he isn't interested in.

Reading this, I'm wondering if it would be worthwhile to get one for our next visit in July. I wonder if it could be noted to allow us to use child swap in spite of him being within the height requirements.
 
We haven't been to WDW since he was 6yo, but have been to both Disneyland and Universal (Florida) in the last two years ...using child swap successfully. Thus far, we have never seen a need to use a DAS pass. Ds does okay and we haven't had any issue w/ using the child swap to allow the rest of the family to enjoy attractions he isn't interested in.

Reading this, I'm wondering if it would be worthwhile to get one for our next visit in July. I wonder if it could be noted to allow us to use child swap in spite of him being within the height requirements.


Doubtful... DAS is for accessibility issues concerning those who cannot wait in the standard queue for whatever medical reason. Being tall enough to ride, but too scared is a totally different thing. Plenty of adults chicken out from some of the rides (including me!) and can't do certain rides... should Disney start awarding "Scaredy-Cat FastPass+" ? Yeah I'd love to triple up on FP+ on all the rollercoasters for my DH, ok, thanks.... ;) If he's too scared to go on the ride, pick a different one. If NOT going on FOP absolutely ruins your WDW vacation, gotta scale back the expectations there!
 
Doubtful... DAS is for accessibility issues concerning those who cannot wait in the standard queue for whatever medical reason. Being tall enough to ride, but too scared is a totally different thing. Plenty of adults chicken out from some of the rides (including me!) and can't do certain rides... should Disney start awarding "Scaredy-Cat FastPass+" ? Yeah I'd love to triple up on FP+ on all the rollercoasters for my DH, ok, thanks.... ;) If he's too scared to go on the ride, pick a different one. If NOT going on FOP absolutely ruins your WDW vacation, gotta scale back the expectations there!

Actually, this is not a case of being afraid of a ride and has everything to do with my son's disability. Autism is a multi-faceted disability where one person on the spectrum may be non-verbal and need a rigid schedule, have sensory issues with foods and a well developed vestibular system...another may be extremely verbal, adapt to change with some support, be auditory sensitive, limited diet, and an underdeveloped vestibular system. They both are on the spectrum but are on it in very different spaces. My son is the latter. Most people don't even realize he is on the spectrum

The challenge with roller coasters and similar rides have to do w/ his underdeveloped vestibular system. Your vestibular system is how your body and brain work together to navigate the space around you. It is why you can put your hand into a glove and know where your fingers are even though you cannot see them, or why you can back down a ladder without having to look at each rung. For those that have faulty vestibular systems, their brains are unsure of where their bodies are in space. This makes it so anytime their feet aren't planted firmly on the ground, their brain kicks in w/ a message that there is a threat/danger.

So, basically when every other toddler was happily paddling around pools w/ floaties, my son was clinging to us for dear life because his brain was telling him he was going to die.

After 4 years of weekly occupational therapy that taught his brain how to read some of his body's signals, my son can now swing on a playground swing and float in a pool...but a roller coaster is waaaay outside basic body signals and his brain would going into overdrive sending danger signals.

Again, this isn't a choice or a case of being afraid but a DISABILITY issue.

So until my son is old enough to wait by himself while the entire rest of the family rides something (and no, 12yo is not old enough) I will try and figure out how Disney can work w/ us to accommodate his disability.
 
Actually, this is not a case of being afraid of a ride and has everything to do with my son's disability. Autism is a multi-faceted disability where one person on the spectrum may be non-verbal and need a rigid schedule, have sensory issues with foods and a well developed vestibular system...another may be extremely verbal, adapt to change with some support, be auditory sensitive, limited diet, and an underdeveloped vestibular system. They both are on the spectrum but are on it in very different spaces. My son is the latter. Most people don't even realize he is on the spectrum

The challenge with roller coasters and similar rides have to do w/ his underdeveloped vestibular system. Your vestibular system is how your body and brain work together to navigate the space around you. It is why you can put your hand into a glove and know where your fingers are even though you cannot see them, or why you can back down a ladder without having to look at each rung. For those that have faulty vestibular systems, their brains are unsure of where their bodies are in space. This makes it so anytime their feet aren't planted firmly on the ground, their brain kicks in w/ a message that there is a threat/danger.

So, basically when every other toddler was happily paddling around pools w/ floaties, my son was clinging to us for dear life because his brain was telling him he was going to die.

After 4 years of weekly occupational therapy that taught his brain how to read some of his body's signals, my son can now swing on a playground swing and float in a pool...but a roller coaster is waaaay outside basic body signals and his brain would going into overdrive sending danger signals.

Again, this isn't a choice or a case of being afraid but a DISABILITY issue.

So until my son is old enough to wait by himself while the entire rest of the family rides something (and no, 12yo is not old enough) I will try and figure out how Disney can work w/ us to accommodate his disability.

I think what the poster was saying is that the DAS pass is for people who are physically unable to wait in line. Your son for sure has some physical issues, but it doesn’t sound like (from what you’ve described) standing in line would be physically difficult for him (it’s the ride at the end of the line that may pose an issue).
 
Actually, this is not a case of being afraid of a ride and has everything to do with my son's disability. Autism is a multi-faceted disability where one person on the spectrum may be non-verbal and need a rigid schedule, have sensory issues with foods and a well developed vestibular system...another may be extremely verbal, adapt to change with some support, be auditory sensitive, limited diet, and an underdeveloped vestibular system. They both are on the spectrum but are on it in very different spaces. My son is the latter. Most people don't even realize he is on the spectrum

The challenge with roller coasters and similar rides have to do w/ his underdeveloped vestibular system. Your vestibular system is how your body and brain work together to navigate the space around you. It is why you can put your hand into a glove and know where your fingers are even though you cannot see them, or why you can back down a ladder without having to look at each rung. For those that have faulty vestibular systems, their brains are unsure of where their bodies are in space. This makes it so anytime their feet aren't planted firmly on the ground, their brain kicks in w/ a message that there is a threat/danger.

So, basically when every other toddler was happily paddling around pools w/ floaties, my son was clinging to us for dear life because his brain was telling him he was going to die.

After 4 years of weekly occupational therapy that taught his brain how to read some of his body's signals, my son can now swing on a playground swing and float in a pool...but a roller coaster is waaaay outside basic body signals and his brain would going into overdrive sending danger signals.

Again, this isn't a choice or a case of being afraid but a DISABILITY issue.

So until my son is old enough to wait by himself while the entire rest of the family rides something (and no, 12yo is not old enough) I will try and figure out how Disney can work w/ us to accommodate his disability.
In order to use a DAS, the person with the disability needs to ride.
 

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