Kids That Don't Like Rides

[Tpeila]

I have a 12 year old - that will get on anything
And a 7 year old that wont get on anything! She does not remember Disneyland 3 years ago but she had no fear. But even our yearly State Fair - won't go on anything but the kid rides.
This is our first trip to WDW and Universal.
What should we completely avoid for her? I am hoping that Disney rides even though slightly scary may be different?

 

[kmb584]

I have a 12 year old - that will get on anything
And a 7 year old that wont get on anything! She does not remember Disneyland 3 years ago but she had no fear. But even our yearly State Fair - won't go on anything but the kid rides.
This is our first trip to WDW and Universal.
What should we completely avoid for her? I am hoping that Disney rides even though slightly scary may be different?

Load up YouTube and show her videos of rides that could possibly interest her: It's a Small World, Winnie the Pooh, Buzz Lightyear, Dumbo, Peter Pan's Flight, Under the Sea, etc. Perhaps even show her videos of Haunted Mansion, Pirates, 7DMT, etc. That way she'll be able to see the variety of what's offered and you'll be able to gauge from her reactions which rides will be suitable for her.

 

[Queen of the WDW Scene]

Never use a fair ride as a comparison to an actual theme park ride.
Heck I won't go on many rides at the fairs because well first they are dang expensive but second they can fall apart at any time. They scare me!

You know your child best so I would suggest watching the more thrilling rides on youtube and see what you think she could handle and not handle.

In my personal opinion I think the only ones that I'd avoid at WDW if she really doesn't want to go on anything too intense are Tower of Terror and Rock N Roller Coaster.

At Universal you may want to consider avoiding quite a few more.

I also feel like if you think she can handle a ride then try to get her on it once and then if she hates it don't make her do it again.

 

[PrincessWithABlaster]

I have a child who doesn't like rollercoasters. It kinda depends on what your daughter doesn't like. Mine does not like big, real drops (fine with simulated ones though). So she does not go on Rockin Rollarcoaster, Space Mtn, Everest, Tower of Terror. She will only do Splash Mtn and BTMR once per trip. She does do Soarin, Test Track, 7DMT, Primeval Whirl, Star Tours, and Mssion Space green. But if your daughter can narrow down what she doesn't like it would make it easier to determine which rides are options.

 

[JustCallMeMommy]

This won't be a popular answer, but I bribed my DD when she was 8. I lovingly call her a chicken with the heart of a daredevil. She is terrified of every ride...until she does it once. Then, it is her favorite ride ever, and she wants to do it again immediately. By the end of that trip when she was 8, she had tried everything at Disney and everything except the outdoor roller coasters at Universal.

 

[Corbinator]

This won't be a popular answer, but I bribed my DD when she was 8. I lovingly call her a chicken with the heart of a daredevil. She is terrified of every ride...until she does it once. Then, it is her favorite ride ever, and she wants to do it again immediately. By the end of that trip when she was 8, she had tried everything at Disney and everything except the outdoor roller coasters at Universal.

Oh don't worry, you aren't alone. We did the same thing to our kids last month. We played it cool and said just try it without telling them too much. Result? My 8 yr old will now report his favorite ride was RnR and my 4 yr old will say ToT. Seriously, 4!

But OP I hear you. As a child I was timid about rides, esp like someone mentioned about fair rides (holy unsafe!! I had very mature fears). BTMRR and Space were actually good 'medium' rides for me to achieve since you don't go upside down. And everything else in Mk is fun. Pirates is a good one with a tiny drop (No seat belts, even a toddler can sit on it). The teacups and flying rides like dumbo and Aladdin are good because you can control them. Peter Pan is fun to fly too. You'll find ways to have fun and it's totally within normal feelings.

 

[Corbinator]

Load up YouTube and show her videos of rides that could possibly interest her: It's a Small World, Winnie the Pooh, Buzz Lightyear, Dumbo, Peter Pan's Flight, Under the Sea, etc. Perhaps even show her videos of Haunted Mansion, Pirates, 7DMT, etc. That way she'll be able to see the variety of what's offered and you'll be able to gauge from her reactions which rides will be suitable for her.

Yep all of that!

 

[DaisyD3]

We had a similar challenge on our most recent trip, except both kids were not willing to do some rides. Our eight year old has usually been more adventurous in the past but was timid about some rides on this trip. Our 12 year old has been timid in the past but warmed up to a few rides that surprised me (Test Track, was one). We did fastpass for any rides we didn't think they would want to do and offered them the opportunity to do so before each ride! The little one said towards the end of our trip that she thinks next time she would like to try more. Disney is an overwhelming place and I think she needed to become more comfortable with the lay of the land before committing to bigger rides!

Likely no-Space Mountain, Everest, Rockin Rollercoaster
Possibly no-Tower of Terror, Thunder Mountain
Possibly Yes-Mine Ride, splash mountain, Test Track

 

[Bob Dolewhip]

My seven year old told me she wanted to do "All the Mountains!" And then just over this weekend has been reconsidering. Of course in the new world order of 180 day advance planning I have fast passes for all these rides.
I showed her videos on YouTube and she is back on board

 

[BigAlsGal]

Dinosaur is the only one I think of.

 

[bumbershoot]

The nice thing about Universal is that their rider switch takes place inside the line just before the seating area. So the family doesn't have to split up as early as they split up to switch at WDW.

 

[Tpeila]

Thanks everyone. We are trying to keep this a secret as long as possible. Last time we went she went on Pirates several times but not Haunted House. Defiantly no rollercoasters. I have no shame in bribing either LOL

 

[lpizzuro123]

My stepson was really into pin collecting when we took him many years ago. He was reluctant about Splash Mountain. We said if he went on Splash Mountain we would get him a SM pin. Well that worked and now he goes on anything. Getting a pin from each ride they do not want to ride can get expensive. Maybe start a Pressed Penny collection and say they can get the pressed penny once they have ridden the ride. Just make sure there is a pressed penny from that ride. The machines are usually after the ride near the gift shop that almost every ride lets you out into.

 

[GillianP1301]

I have a very timid 8 year old when it comes to rides. He's especially tricky because some more thrilling rides he's fine with and others he's terrified. For example, he loves BTMRR, Splash Mountain, 7DMT & Test Track, but is terrified of Everest & Tower of Terror. I have never pushed him, but always encourage to try it once and some times he's game and others not. I figure he'll go when he's ready and really, the vast majority of rides and attractions at WDW are not high thrill stuff, so even the most timid will have tons to enjoy. I would avoid the mountains, rockin' roller coaster & Tower of Tower, if you're really nervous about them being too scared.

 

[JJsmama]

I have one child with anxiety and he avoids a decent amount of rides. Luckily he is 16 now but this has been going on for years. Since he was 12 or so, he would wait outside certain rides for us if it wasn't going to take too long. Some rides are not very scary once you have done it (7DMT) but others are scarier than you would think. I will list the ones that I would avoid for her not only because of speed or spinning but also dark and or trapped feeling. This Ds still Loves WDW and there is plenty to do!
Probably Avoid with nervous 7 yr old:
Space Mtn
Splash Mtn
Haunted Mansion
Stitch (but does that even exist anymore?)
possibly Thunder Mtn (this is between kiddie and real coaster)
possibly Pirates (depending on the specific fear)
Dinosaur
It's Tough to be a Bug (This one scared my Brave kid!)
Kali is a toss up
Everest
ToT
RnR

The following could be considered scary by some, but he loves them:
My scaredy cat LOVES Test Track and is fine with Soarin. He loves 7DMT, Pirates and Kali is his favorite. The Barnstormer is a great ride for testing the roller coaster waters. That said, he WAS afraid of these at one point, but having been on them, I pressured him to try them. He learned to trust me that I would not pressure him for anything that was really possibly frightening, which is what I included on the top list. I took young children into HM one year thinking it wasn't too bad. It took 5 years or so to get past that parenting failure...

Then there are all the ones which you should not worry about at all (unless there are specific sensory issues which you did not mention.) All of Fantasyland, most of TomorrowLand and adventureLand should be fine.

 

[klmall]

We did the bribery thing with our tween who wouldn't ride TZTOT; any t-shirt of his choice and of course, he got one with something to the effect of "I survived the TZTOT". Now he loves it and rides at 2x each visit.

And I have a DH who proudly proclaimed in 2014 "I didn't ride anything at all" at the end of our 5 day trip! He used to ride when DS was small and then only PoC and People Mover etc. I doubt that he will ride anything this spring either.

 

[caroline1851]

There is PLENTY to do if she doesn't like roller coasters and similar rides. She can do:
MK: Peter pan, pooh, under the sea, small world, haunted mansion, tomorrowland speedway, buzz, monsters inc, pirates
AK: Safari, tough to be a bug, the shows
EPC: Living with the Land, Nemo, Turtle Talk, Spaceship Earth, Frozen
DHS: Frozen sing a long, beauty and beast, little mermaid, maybe great movie ride, toy story mania, muppets 3d

 

[disnut8]

The thing is, no person, younger or older should made feel to "sit it out". If your daughter is of the height requirement, she can just go through the queue with all of you. Then, one adult can exit with her right before boarding. That way, she can see everything you are seeing but not experience the actual ride and she might change her mind in the queue. Some call it the "chicken exit" but I prefer the "alternative exit" and you might want to use that with your daughter. If she knows she doesn't HAVE to go on the actual ride, I think she'd be more than willing to see what the queue holds.

 

[Babs1975]

And the great thing about Disney is that all are family rides. You don't have to just put your child on something and hope for the best. You experience it together, which can help kids with the fear factor.

 

[Calirya]

Oh don't worry, you aren't alone. We did the same thing to our kids last month. We played it cool and said just try it without telling them too much. Result? My 8 yr old will now report his favorite ride was RnR and my 4 yr old will say ToT. Seriously, 4!

But OP I hear you. As a child I was timid about rides, esp like someone mentioned about fair rides (holy unsafe!! I had very mature fears). BTMRR and Space were actually good 'medium' rides for me to achieve since you don't go upside down. And everything else in Mk is fun. Pirates is a good one with a tiny drop (No seat belts, even a toddler can sit on it). The teacups and flying rides like dumbo and Aladdin are good because you can control them. Peter Pan is fun to fly too. You'll find ways to have fun and it's totally within normal feelings.

Yep! My 6.5 year old is always "a little nervous" as she tells me but once you bribe her and she finally breaks down and gets on the ride she absolutely LOVES it and like someone else wrote that ride is now her favorite.
She swears she's going on the 7DMT. We'll see. I promised her Mickey ice cream bar (no matter what time of day) and pick a pearl along with a few others. She can pick what she wants AFTER she rides a new ride.