Kids and roller coasters?

[Auntof2]

I am taking a 7, 5, and 4 year old (all recent birthdays) to all 4 parks (wish me luck).

I assume the 4 and 5 year old are too short and too timid for any of the thrill rides, but torn on if the 7 year old (my nephew) could handle Slinky Dog, 7 Dwarves, or even Tron or Guardians of the Galaxy. I have been on the first two and don't like roller coasters but can handle them (but I'm 40, lol), the newer two I haven't been on yet. Any recommendations?

 

[SkyGuy]

My almost-4-year old (very tiny niece) just met the height requirements for Slinky and Mine Train last time we were there. She’s very timid in real life, but she absolutely loved both of those rides. We did both multiple times. Even if she met the requirements for Guardian and Tron when we go again in Sept (pretty sure she won’t), I don’t think she’d like either of those. They are in the dark and much more intense. They aren’t the “happy” roller coasters that the other two are (if that makes sense). I’d compare Tron and GotG more to RocknRoller Coaster.

 

[StageTek]

I am taking a 7, 5, and 4 year old (all recent birthdays) to all 4 parks (wish me luck).

I assume the 4 and 5 year old are too short and too timid for any of the thrill rides, but torn on if the 7 year old (my nephew) could handle Slinky Dog, 7 Dwarves, or even Tron or Guardians of the Galaxy. I have been on the first two and don't like roller coasters but can handle them (but I'm 40, lol), the newer two I haven't been on yet. Any recommendations?

I recommend you try 7 Dwarfs first with your nephew. If he enjoys it then Slinky will be fine.

 

[Tonberry]

Good luck!
I tried to ease my kids into coasters.
We started out with the Barnstormer and my daughter (7 at the time) loved it. Then 7DMT and that was no problem. I pushed my luck and did Everest with her the next day, and she didn't like it at all. It was years before she went on that again.
Now she's a teenager and even Velocicoaster at Universal is no problem for her.

 

[Haley R]

My 3 year old liked riding 7DMT. He’s tall enough for slinky but we haven’t had a chance to ride it yet

 

[midwestdee]

My grandsons loved Slinky before they were 7.

 

[kdka421]

My VERY petite girls were tall enough for most rides by age 4.5. At age 4.5 she loved Big Thunder, Splash, Soarin, etc. We did skip Tower of Terror and Dinosaur at that age even though she was tall enough.
At 6 my youngest rode Space Mountain 4 times in a row!
The best advice is to work up to it and gauge how they react. Start with what you know is tamer. My 8yo had a bigger issue with 3D effects in Mickeys Philharmagic and Remy, than the fast speed/thrills of roller coasters. At 4yo they were more upset by dark rides, so while we did simple coasters, we had to skip things like Peter Pan and Pirates.

It’s really hard to predict, so there’s. A good amount of “try and see” you have to expect. Watching videos beforehand was a helpful strategy for us to gauge what they wanted to try or not.

 

[HopperFan]

I am taking a 7, 5, and 4 year old (all recent birthdays) to all 4 parks (wish me luck).

I assume the 4 and 5 year old are too short and too timid for any of the thrill rides, but torn on if the 7 year old (my nephew) could handle Slinky Dog, 7 Dwarves, or even Tron or Guardians of the Galaxy. I have been on the first two and don't like roller coasters but can handle them (but I'm 40, lol), the newer two I haven't been on yet. Any recommendations?

Do you say this because you are judging how bad they will be OR are you saying you will handle riding them with him? Is there another adult going who could possibly ride with him?

Assuming there are two adults, one who will ride with him (I know he is just old enough to ride alone but I don't know that I would let him) ...

... I think he'll be fine on Slinky, 7DMT and Guardians. I likely would not take him on TRON unless you sit in the back "car" and that could be iffy depending on his personality.

I guess the big factor is - has he every been on a coaster before? And what is his fear level?

 

[Betty Rohrer]

I am taking a 7, 5, and 4 year old (all recent birthdays) to all 4 parks (wish me luck).

I assume the 4 and 5 year old are too short and too timid for any of the thrill rides, but torn on if the 7 year old (my nephew) could handle Slinky Dog, 7 Dwarves, or even Tron or Guardians of the Galaxy. I have been on the first two and don't like roller coasters but can handle them (but I'm 40, lol), the newer two I haven't been on yet. Any recommendations?

I remember a trip with my then 4 year old grandson. I was blessed with riding with him. his favorite 2 rides from the trip were Tower Of Terror and Dinosaur. rode both as much as he could. people were sure I was forcing him on Terror, they could not believe how much he loved it. so be ready for anything to happen including all of them loving coasters

 

[Donald Duck Family]

My then 6 year old loved Slinky. He is becoming my rollercoaster buddy. He also loved Big Thunder Mountain Railroad, he sat between me and my wife and I can still remember his squeals of delight at it. He can't wait to do both again next summer.

He also did Everest and that was a little too much for him back then (he didn't like the part in the dark), but I think next year he will be fine on it. He wanted to do Space Mountain, but after Everest we were worried that sitting by himself on a dark coaster would be too much for him. If it were tandem seating I would have taken him. Next year we plan to let him ride if he decides he wants to.

 

[Auntof2]

Do you say this because you are judging how bad they will be OR are you saying you will handle riding them with him? Is there another adult going who could possibly ride with him?

Assuming there are two adults, one who will ride with him (I know he is just old enough to ride alone but I don't know that I would let him) ...

... I think he'll be fine on Slinky, 7DMT and Guardians. I likely would not take him on TRON unless you sit in the back "car" and that could be iffy depending on his personality.

I guess the big factor is - has he every been on a coaster before? And what is his fear level?

Totally projecting - I just fear taking them on a roller coaster, them hating it, and then refusing all other rides (mainly because this happened to a friend of mine).

 

[scrappinginontario]

Something that hasn’t been discussed, are you the only adult? If so, you could face challenges in that my understanding is the 4 and 5yo both need an adult to ride with them. I’m not sure the 5 and 7 yo would be allowed to ride together. Can anyone clarify?

Also, for the 7yo to ride any of the bigger attractions even by them self, the younger 2 need to meet the height requirement even to wait in the line.

I’m moving the thread to the families board as there is a lot more experience there of others who have travelled in groups like yours.

 

[Psymonds]

Something that hasn’t been discussed, are you the only adult? If so, you could face challenges in that my understanding is the 4 and 5yo both need an adult to ride with them. I’m not sure the 5 and 7 yo would be allowed to ride together. Can anyone clarify?

Also, for the 7yo to ride any of the bigger attractions even by them self, the younger 2 need to meet the height requirement even to wait in the line.

I’m moving the thread to the families board as there is a lot more experience there of others who have travelled in groups like yours.

yes, this may be an issue, our 6 yo had to ride with our 14 syo or an adult, couldn't ride slinky with our 12 year old (or Pteranaon flyers at IOA.

our 6yo did dwarves and loved it. BTMRR and loved that. Expedition Everest and hated it. he balked at Tron (and I think he was too short) and guardians.

 

[ArielDreams]

My now 4 year old is very tall and last summer (a little over 3), he rode everything he met the height requirement for (40”) by the end of the trip. We started with Slinky and built up. We rider swapped ToT on the first day thinking it would be too scary but when we returned to HS in the last day he wanted to ride it and it ended up being his favorite! So my advice is start small and see where it goes.

 

[Jacq7414]

I don’t think the 4 and 5 year old are too short. My niece is 4 and she was able to ride Slinky, Mine Train, Big Thunder Mountain, etc. And at 5 my daughter was 44 inches and was able to go on Space and Everest as well. She also did Tower of Terror but it was kind of scary for her.

 

[Jacq7414]

... I think he'll be fine on Slinky, 7DMT and Guardians. I likely would not take him on TRON unless you sit in the back "car" and that could be iffy depending on his personality.

My 7 year old did Tron, front row. It was awesome. Also Guardians as well.

I guess it depends on how adventurous the 7 year old is but my 6 year old nephew also loved guardians.

 

[notatallmagic]

I would double check the height requirements and see who's tall enough for each ride. IMO, personality of the child is the deciding factor once they're tall enough - not really age (my brother who is 6'5 could ride adult coasters at 4; my son who is 5'9 couldn't even ride the kiddie motorcycles until he was 8...lol). With that in mind, most of the "coasters" at Disney are designed for kids of all ages, so they can ride. We live 30 minutes from a large amusement park with tons of coasters, so I see SO many parents acting scared and freaked out, so then of course the kid is scared (my SIL did this with her kids too). If a parent is calm and matter of fact, the kid has a much better change of trying new things (coasters, food, life in general ).

With that in mind, if you are going to all the parks, good "starter" coasters would be any of the ones mentioned. If you want to start with a shorter line (less time investment if it doesn't work), then Barnstormer is a good bet - it is a little "jerkier" but solid and simple. 7 Dwarves and Slinky are also awesome but longer lines. Everest, Rockin, and Space Mountain aren't likely little kid starter coasters for both height and thrill factor. I'm also a big fan of distraction for nerves, so there is plenty in the lines that's cute and interesting for 7 Dwarves and Slinky to make the wait fun. Lastly, if you have the chance to low key try a small coaster before your trip at a local park that might be a good test drive. Have fun!

 

[Auntof2]

Something that hasn’t been discussed, are you the only adult? If so, you could face challenges in that my understanding is the 4 and 5yo both need an adult to ride with them. I’m not sure the 5 and 7 yo would be allowed to ride together. Can anyone clarify?

Also, for the 7yo to ride any of the bigger attractions even by them self, the younger 2 need to meet the height requirement even to wait in the line.

I’m moving the thread to the families board as there is a lot more experience there of others who have travelled in groups like yours.

Thankfully the adults outnumber the children on this trip - but the kids have never been so there isn't a baseline understanding of what they'll like and dislike. I am also the paranoid worriwart of the group.

 

[DL1WDW2]

From my personal memories of not liking the drop on Pirates
Do they like to swing on a swing set because I remember not liking that feeling in my stomach as a child …and also Pirates.
I always avoided Roller Coasters until I went on one at DCA when it first opened and kept my eyes closed the entire time .
I have been alright ever since . Weird , right?

 

[theMoreDisneytheBetter]

All kids are different. DS did every ride as soon as he was *just* tall enough and loves thrill rides. DD was terrified of her own shadow at 4 and took a long time to warm up to anything, but now finally loves them as well. As others have suggested Barnstormer is a great introduction. From there try Mine Train. If they can handle that Slinky is next, then Thunder. Tron, Guardians, Everest, and Rockin are huge progressions from any of those, but if I had to pick the next easiest may be Tron. Guardians and Hagrids are my favorite roller coasters ever (I’m not a coaster person), but I think it helps to build kids up to that. Eg I had a friend who took their kid on pirates, and the kid got so freaked out that when they tried to go on small world she started screaming. There’s no race to “conquer” all the big rides in Disney.