Toddler Rides

[TrentMom]

I have a 2yr old son. He will be 2 and a half when we go in May. I am just trying to figure out what the best rides at each park would be for him. I am curious what rides people have had personal experiene with little kids where they were frightened. I was particularly curious about Haunted Mansion and Pirates for the Caribbean. They are two of my favorite rides and wanted to know if anyone had ever taken a toddler on them and how did they react?

Any Help would be greatly appreciated!!

Trentmm

 

[Nemo14]

The first time we took my son on PoC, he was almost 2, and he cried all the way through it muttering "I don't like the pirates, I don't like the pirates!"

My DH and I were in line behind a set of 2-year old twins who were really pretty rambuncuous in line. They screamed in terror through the whole ride.

There are plenty of rides to do at WDW that will not terrify a young child, so I would recommend that you stick to them with a toddler and then take him again when he's a little older. JMHO!

 

[mdisney]

best advice anything that is dark and loud noises stay away from. also you know yr child better than we do. Also never force yr child on anyride they dont want to go on. it makes you look like a bad parent.

 

[loribeth]

I go to WDW all the time with my cousin's almost two year old. A couple weeks ago we took her on Pirates for the first time. The only thing she didn't like was the dip. Through the rest of the ride she was clapping along and pointing at the pirates. She went back a few days later with her parents and she asked to go on it again.

 

[maharet97a]

Feb will be my first time at WDW with my 2 1/2 year old, but we've been to DLR several times and she likes most anything. She liked Dumbo and the Jungle Cruise. All three times she's been on PotC she's fallen asleep, but then again DLR's is a longer ride. She isn't fond of the carousel horses (she doesn't feel secure sitting up there by herself), but likes sitting in the sled seat. It's a Small World is another good one for the little ones. And the railroad as well. It all depends on your child and what he's up for . We've never been able to do the Haunted Mansion with her and will attempt it for the first time at WDW (it's always been down for various reasons when we go).

 

[SewIn2Disney]

In the MK, I'd also say to leave some time to explore Tom Sawer Island and Pooh's Playful Spot. Toontown is another great spot to explore....a great chance to meet some characters!
Your 2 year old would probably enjoy most of the indoor rides in Fantasyland: Small Wold, Peter Pan (Get a fastpass!) Pooh, Dumbo, Carousel, and possibly Snow White.
Don't forget the other parks too....MGM is pretty much all stage shows, so that should be a hit, I can't see anything in AK (besides Dinosaur and Primeval Whirl) that a 2 year old wouldn't like...definately hit up the safari, kids love the animals! As far as Epcot is concerned, I don't know how long you could keep a 2 year old occupied there. I guess I'd have to say the Living seas would be fun, and the live entertainment in all of the countries in World Showcase.

I hope this helps...have a great trip!

 

[e4ymod]

You need to make your own decisions on PotC and HM because no one here knows your child like you do. Personal experience, I used to love PotC and HM when I was small. And I've been taking my niece to Disney since she was 9 months old (she just turned 3)and those are two of her favorite rides. It all depends on how much your child can take. The way I see it though... You'll never know until you take him. So give it a try.

 

[Nicole]

My daughter's first trip to WDW was just after she turned 3. She liked PotC but we did warn her about the drop, told her it would be "scary fun" and we'd hold on tight to her.

Buzz Lightyear is fun, lots of bright colors and a toy gun to shoot. We like TTA just to have an overhead view of Tomorrowland. I personally think that pretty much anything your son is tall enough to ride would be okay, unless he is afraid of the dark.

The only thing my daughter was scared of was the Enchanted Tiki Room and It's Tough to Be a Bug.

 

[GenerationX]

On our first trip as a family, my youngest son was 2. His favorite attractions were Buzz Lightyear, Pooh, Tom Sawyer's Island, The Boneyard, Kilimanjaro Safaris, Honey I Shrunk the Playground, and Muppetvision 3D.

As to PotC and HM, he didn't like either. He held onto his mom the whole time waiting for them to be over.

 

[lamarvenoy]

When you bring yourbaby you will be surprised just how LOUD the rides are. We had to plug the ears of our 1YO son when on 1/2 the rides. At 2 1/2 my sons favorite ride was the barnstormer,he even did the rollercoaster arms! The funnything was the only ride that scared him was the TTA! When taking pictures with the characters at the tent in Mickey's area I'd suggest going at night,everytime we go late we have no line and lots of time with characters.

 

[Fran98765]

As others have said, you know your child best. We took my son at 19mos, 28 mos and just recently he turned 3. He loves all the dark rides. He loved pirates and HM and SSE and so on. My son is not afraid of the dark at all, and is very adventurous. If yours might be afraid of the dark, you might want to get a small light for your son, but remember that it can't be anything too big that would disturb the others.

If you aren't sure how your son will react, you can take him on one and let that guide your further ride choices. You will also want to explain to him before the ride, if you feel he's getting nervous: It will be dark, it might look spooky, but it's pretend and mommy is here and you will be safe, etc.

 

[Heatherbell]

We have a very adventurous child. We took her when she was 2 1/2. We brought her on all the rides that she could get on including Pirates and Haunted Mansion. She loved it. I will tell you though we sat next to this family at one of the parades and started chatting with them and they were telling us how their 4 year old wouldn't go on anything because the first ride they took her on was Snow White, it terrified her and she was REFUSING to go on anything else. They said she was kicking and screaming and refusing to go on anything else. So my suggestion would be that if you are going to try something a little scarier build up to it, try other kid friendly rides first (Small World, Winnie the Pooh, Peter Pan). Then try Snow White, then Pirates and then Haunted Mansion.
Like people have menitoned before only you can determine how they will react. Like my little one is not scared of anything so I knew she'd be okay...

Have fun!!!:wave:

 

[JESTER]

I completely agree with Heatherbell. During my first trip to DW when I was little, my parents took me and my siblings on Space Mountain. It was only our 2nd ride of the trip. After that, my little sister and I were scared to go on any other ride. My mother had no idea that SM was "fast" and in the dark. She felt really bad about it. She had a hard time getting us on rides after that. I would do the rides that you know are kid friendly and for sure your child will enjoy. After riding a few, maybe try one or two you are unsure about. Just be honest with your child. If your child doesn't want to do it, save it for another trip. I hope you enjoy your trip.

 

[TrentMom]

In the MK, I'd also say to leave some time to explore Tom Sawer Island and Pooh's Playful Spot. Toontown is another great spot to explore....a great chance to meet some characters!
Your 2 year old would probably enjoy most of the indoor rides in Fantasyland: Small Wold, Peter Pan (Get a fastpass!) Pooh, Dumbo, Carousel, and possibly Snow White.
Don't forget the other parks too....MGM is pretty much all stage shows, so that should be a hit, I can't see anything in AK (besides Dinosaur and Primeval Whirl) that a 2 year old wouldn't like...definately hit up the safari, kids love the animals! As far as Epcot is concerned, I don't know how long you could keep a 2 year old occupied there. I guess I'd have to say the Living seas would be fun, and the live entertainment in all of the countries in World Showcase.

I hope this helps...have a great trip!

I wanted to say Thank You for all of the great advice. I will keep everything everyone told me in mind. I will take him on rides I think he will enjoy and then late in the day, when we are getting ready to leave,I will consider trying Haunted Mansion or Pirates of the Caribbean. He always goes into his room in the dark and hides as a game. I don't think he would be afraid of the dark part.

I just had one more question. I think he would like the actual ride part of Haunted mansion,but I am not sure about the pre-ride section where it looks like the walls are shrinking. Do you think if I asked a cast member to bypass this, they would let us just do the ride part?

Thanks

 

[JaclynR]

We just got back and I'll tell you what my almost 2 year old ds did.

<p>
At MK:
Jungle Cruise
Pirates of the Caribbean
Winnie the Pooh ride
Peter Pan Flight
It's a small world
Tommorrowland Transit Authority
Snow White's scary adventures
Country Bears

<p>
At Epcot:
Imagination Figment ride
Spaceship Earth
Universe of Energy
Mexico boat ride
Maelstrom


<p>
We only spent a couple hours at both MGM and AK, so I have no answers for those.

 

[coltow]

My son was almost 2 when we went a few months ago. He loved the Magic Kingdom. He enjoyed just about every ride, though he too was a bit afraid of the drop part in Pirates, mainly because of the darkness. He loved the Haunted Mansion, though I think it was mostly because it was very hot outside and the ride was very cool.

He also loved the Animal Kingdom especially Rafiki's place where the petting zoo is. He also very mush enjoyed seing all the different kinds of animals there especially the tigers and elephants

Playhouse Disney is a must for all preschoolers at MGM Studios. The parade there was also one of his favorites. This is where he was able to see all his favorite characters, Buzz and Woody, Mike and Sulley, JoJo, Bear, Stanley, and Rolie Polie Olie.

My son was not a fan of EPCOT. He was really too young to care about the Kidcot stops and most of the attactions, besides Spaceship Earth and Imagination were just not for him. HE got very bored and very cranky. But I know he would have loved the Living Seas had it been open.

He also hated ay ride where he was not able to sit on my lap, like the Flying Carpets and Dumbo.

 

[ypcat]

I just had one more question. I think he would like the actual ride part of Haunted mansion,but I am not sure about the pre-ride section where it looks like the walls are shrinking. Do you think if I asked a cast member to bypass this, they would let us just do the ride part?

Thanks

The room stretches, not shrinks. I'm not sure if you could bypass the stretching room or not, but doesn't hurt to ask. The only scary part of the room are when the lights go out and there is shrieking and thunder (just don't have them look up). I warned our son about the dark a couple weeks ago, and he did fine. Also seems like the noise wasn't as loud either, which would have helped.

 

[Dragonrider1227]

I would reccomend It's a Small World, Peter Pan's Flight, Jungle Cruise, and anything slow and doesn't have things attack you.

 

[Noah&Emily'sMom]

I took my toddler son in October, we prepared him for the Haunted mansion by going to doombuggies.com, it walks you through the entire ride, music, voiceover and all, and for pirates I bought the movie, Johhny Depp version and we watched it together. He loved both of them. So when it was time to go on the rides he was excited because he knew what to expect. I sat him between my husband and I and he loved both rides. The only caution, we had to spend a small fortune at the pirate gift shop because now he wants to be a pirate when he gets big!