My oldest is almost 6 years old and a solid 44 inches tall. This means she can ride almost all of the rollercoaster/thrill rides in a Disney Park. We started her on the smaller rollercoasters and have worked up to the bigger ones. She has never met a rollercoaster she didn’t like… even if her initial reaction was to say she’d never ride a fast ride again. She loves when my husband and I can do a rider swap and let her ride twice. With that said, there are some rollercoasters we are holding off on taking her on until she is a little older or until she’s done more of them just to be sure her experience is positive.
Let me tell you what rides we are holding off on taking her on or which we will do after she has done all of the other rollercoasters available:
Hollywood Studios
Ride: The Twilight Zone Tower of Terror
Height Requirement: 40 inches
Why: Usually this spot would be reserved for Rock ‘n’ Rollercoaster featuring Aerosmith, but it is down for a refurb and I am unsure when it will reopen. Rock ‘n’ Rollercoaster featuring Aerosmith is fast and an intense experience so while I know she will like it, we want her to have as much rollercoaster experience under her belt before going on it. So because Rock ‘n’ Rollercoaster featuring Aerosmith is down for the foreseeable future, this spot goes to The Twilight Zone Tower of Terror. Why? The premise of the ride is spooky and creepy – an old hotel hit by lightning and transporting those in the hit elevator (that you eventually get into yourself) to the Twilight Zone… creepy right? The queue is full of spiderwebs and the creepy, old hotel vibe is very well done. Be on the look out for secret messages about avoiding the elevators on the signage – the ghosts are warning you! The line is also typically pretty long for this one since it is so popular, so the build up to the creepy is intense. Plus, in the outdoor queue you can clearly hear the people currently in the experience screaming on their drops, which just adds to the build up. The drops on this one make you feel like you’re free falling and with the unpredictability of the drops, it is an experience you need to build up to.
EPCOT
Ride: Mission: SPACE – Orange Side
Height Requirement: 40 inches
Why: This experience is quite possibly the most intense experience I have ever been on. There is a ‘green’ version of the attraction that my 5 year old has been on, but the intensity is up like 100 notches (really a scientific explanation there, lol) on the ‘orange’ side and I would hate to have a parent discover their child has motion sickness on one of the most intense attractions of all time. Honestly, I love rollercoasters and thrill rides, and I typically do the ‘green’ side of this ride.
Animal Kingdom
Ride: Expedition Everest – Legend of the Forbidden Mountain
Height Requirement: 44 inches
Why: Expedition Everest – Legend of the Forbidden Mountain is an intense, immersive experience as you attempt to find a yeti. The ride goes backwards for a portion which adds to the disorienting factor and it goes very fast down multiple drops. The large yeti animatronic, which does not actually function as Disney Imagineers intended it to, is lit up with strobe lights to give the illusion that you are about to be hit by it and just adds to the scary factor. My oldest was having a great time on Expedition Everest – Legend of the Forbidden Mountain before her first encounter with the yeti and then decided she didn’t want to ride again with my husband on rider swap. She has ridden many times since, but that big yeti really did spook her.
Magic Kingdom
Ride: Space Mountain
Height Requirement: 44 inches
Why: While I don’t think this is the most intense rollercoaster at Magic Kingdom, the vehicle itself is what gives me pause on taking my oldest on this attraction for a while. Why? The vehicle only seats one, so she would be all alone. I know that having an adult close by is still comforting to her even though she’s been on many rollercoasters but knowing she would be without that physical contact worries me.
What last rollercoaster did your little ones go on in each of the Disney parks?!
