Tall 4 year old to ride roller coasters ?

[Coffee Bean]

We are going to all the parks this November. Our 4 year old will be tall enough for some rides like Space Mountain. I do not care much for rollers coasters but my other son and husband do. I do not believe our 4 year old is old enough to endure a thrill ride such as this one. He has never even been on Slinky Dog or other smaller ones because we have not been to the parks in 2 years. Our families are on different sides of the fence: I think we should start him off on the kiddie ones first and see how he reacts. The other side thinks that if he’s tall enough, why not let him? Please chime in…

 

[John park hopper]

Start the 4 year old on the smaller kid roller coasters

 

[meggo819]

Start the 4 year old on the smaller kid roller coasters

Agree. Definitely start with something like Barnstormer or 7 Dwarves over Space Mountain.

That said, my 3.5 year old loved 7 Dwarves, Slinky, & Thunder Mountain last year. This year she is very excited that she’s tall enough for Guardians and possibly Space Mountain.

 

[RememberWhen]

Start with the smaller ones. Even if the kid thinks they will love it, sometimes they don’t.

For example, a couple summers ago I took my then 5yo on guardians. Granted I hadn’t been on it, but we had watched videos of the ride and the queue. She was SO excited. And she hated it. She wasn’t sick. But she absolutely hated it. And she continues to hate thrill rides. Even the baby ones.

On the opposite end, my son (now 12) was tall at 3 and LOVED all the thrill rides. His favorite was Tower of Terror. And he still loves all thrill rides.

Space mountain is a tricky one to start on because of the seating. I would start with something where an adult can sit next to him.

 

[Weather_Lady]

My daughter was tall enough for most coasters at age 4, too, and ended up loving them! I concur with the progressive approach mentioned by others. See how they do on Barnstormer, then Dwarfs, then Slinky or Big Thunder...

 

[Back!Elbow!Shoulders!]

Another vote for starting with smaller coasters.

Preschoolers tend to do better with knowing what to expect with new scenarios. Starting with Barnstormer or 7DMT they can at least see the track ahead of time and see what it looks like to be on those coasters.

Also the low lighting and noises in SM are something to consider.

There’s a small chance doing SM first would go fine. I think there’s a large chance it would be traumatic and scare him off of thrill rides.

 

[Purduevian]

What's the youngest anyone would consider acceptable for trying Barnstormer? Assuming the child was the proper height.

 

[meggo819]

Agree. Definitely start with something like Barnstormer or 7 Dwarves over Space Mountain.

That said, my 3.5 year old loved 7 Dwarves, Slinky, & Thunder Mountain last year. This year she is very excited that she’s tall enough for Guardians and possibly Space Mountain.

As an update, we’re currently at WDW and my (now) 4.5 year old loved Space, Everest, and barnstormer. Guardians scared her, but I honestly think it was just because of the “bad guy”.

What's the youngest anyone would consider acceptable for trying Barnstormer? Assuming the child was the proper height.

2 to 3 years old? I don’t think my 2 year old is tall enough, but she’s also not ready anyway.

 

[Purduevian]

As an update, we’re currently at WDW and my (now) 4.5 year old loved Space, Everest, and barnstormer. Guardians scared her, but I honestly think it was just because of the “bad guy”.

2 to 3 years old? I don’t think my 2 year old is tall enough, but she’s also not ready anyway.

My 21 month old is ~35.5inchs and we are currently debating it... Will have to see how he reacts to me dropping dumbo first haha.

 

[meggo819]

My 21 month old is ~35.5inchs and we are currently debating it... Will have to see how he reacts to me dropping dumbo first haha.

yeah, mine got scared by the turbulence on the airplane and has been clinging to me on every ride, including the busses.