Which rides to avoid with 4 year old

[BellaO]

My DD is 4yr old and 40". I know she "can" go on a lot of rides, just not sure what to avoid. Test track? Dinosaur? Splash Mountain?
Which rides should we attempt/not attempt?
Thank you!!

 

[BuzzyBelle]

It's tough to say because every child is different. When DD was 3 she was terrified of the Pooh ride. The next year we took her on all the 40" rides and she loved them. Her favorite was Tower of Terror and she rode it 3 times in a row. The only one she was kind of frightened of was Dinosaur but other kids love it. We watched YouTube vidoes of the rides before we went so she would know what to expect. Only you know your child's personality. We never forced DD onto a ride, it was always her decision. I would show the videos, talk about the rides and then ask your DD what looks like fun to her.

 

[Klayfish]

That's a question only you can answer, and it's all about your DD4. What she likes, doesn't like, etc... Personally, I have taken my kids on any and all rides as soon as they are tall enough, but that's just me. I dragged my kids onto rides where DD was literally in tears because she said she was afraid. I knew it was just fear of the unknown, so I made her at least try. Now she's a roller coaster demon and rides everything. So my answer is attempt them all, but only you can decide.

 

[Mousemommy1]

I put them on every ride they are tall enough for. I wouldn't purposely skip anything.

 

[Disney Khaleesi]

Why try and avoid anything? If she's tall enough for it, let her try it. If you're that anxious about it, you can watch YouTube ride videos beforehand to let her get a feel for the ride. I find that with most kids they only become super nervous about a ride if their parents give off the vibe that they should be or are afraid of the ride.

I went to Disneyland when I was 9 and was bound and determined to not ride California Screamin', because I had never been on an upside down rollercoaster before. And I cried a lot. But eventually an ice cream bribe pushed me onto the ride and I loved it. She's too young to really have a great idea of what she will/won't like, and the only way to really know is to have her try it out.

 

[kohlby]

It really depends on the kid. We waited on Space Mountain until we felt really comfortable due to how the seats are - since we couldn't put an arm around a scared child. My eldest was super tall for his age so we worried he might try to stand up and leave the ride so we had to wait for him. (Middle child was ready when she made the minimum height). I think that one is above 40" though. My kids were 40" with sneakers at 3. My kids were on Test Track at 3 without issue. Actually, it was two of my kids favorite ride at 3. My daughter did Tower or Terror at 3 and hated it - but loves it now several years later. We skipped Dinosaur since we thought that one would be too much for a 3 year old and they weren't interested when we explained it. We learned to skip It's Tough to be a Bug after a freak out by the eldest at 3. He's a kid who didn't get scared easily but that attraction was too much for him. Two of my three have sensory issues and the splash part of splash mountain means that my boys still haven't gone on it - at 8 and almost 14. So - it really depends on the kid. I do suggest to not start with a questionable ride though. We've made that mistake before and it took a while before the kid would go on more rides. (For my youngest, that questionable ride was The Great Movie Ride. He refused to do rides for the next few days!)

 

[KrazeeK120]

It really depends on the kid. Personally, I'd let my child try anything he wants to go on that he is tall enough for. I'd also never, ever force my child to ride something he didn't want to. I wouldn't want someone to do that to me, so why would I do it to my powerless child? After all, it's just an amusement park ride. Their life won't be adversely affected by not riding. Far more damage could be done by making them ride if they don't want to or are afraid.

 

[Crystal824]

When my DD 40 inches, I let her ride everything she was tall enough to ride. If she really didn't want to ride, I wouldn't make her. She agreed to ride everything. She hated ToT, but she loved Dinosaur. Go Figure.

 

[Calee]

My son was 4 when we went. I didn't pre decide what to do or not to do. He did test track and loved it. Did splash and liked it all but the big hill. Dinosaur was closed. There were a couple he didn't want to do and I didn't force it, but I didn't purposefully keep him off anything he was tall enough for.

 

[Tink_83]

Last year DD was just tall enough for barnstormer (3 at the time) I thought she would be terrified but she loved it and turns out to be a total coaster junkie. We now have kings dominion season passes (we live in northern va) and she is on all of those coasters over and over again! You won't know until you put your kid on one and find out. My understanding although I've never been on it is that 7 dwarf mine train is a good starter coaster along with barnstormer so I'd start there and see how she handles it

 

[Taylor F.]

My 4yo is 44in. She's going on everything this September. She doesn't know what she does/doesn't like. We've been discussing that butterflies in her tummy are a GOOD thing when on a ride and that it means the butterflies are having fun. Screaming makes rides fun. If you're scared just close your eyes. No big deal. We go over that the rides can't hurt you. You can't fall out or die (I mean - ya know....). These rides are created for fun and mommy wouldn't let you get on something that would severely hurt you.

 

[Dakota731]

My four year old twins rode everything they were tall enough to. They loved DInosaur and went on again and again. However there was a ten year old boy crying and hysterical in front of us so every child is different.

 

[Helene_C]

It's so individual, and it's not just about the speed and motion. My son rode BTM as soon as he was tall enough (age 4) and loved it, but the next year when 7DMT had opened he initially refused to ride because he heard there was a witch involved. (He did end up riding 7DMT and loving it.)

 

[caliope]

At 4, DS loves Splash, BTMRR, and Test Track. He's not tall enough for Space and had no interest in ToT, so we didn't force that. We let him tell us what he wants to do.

 

[DisneyRegulars]

When my son was three and four he willingly rode everything. Even went on Tower of Terror multiple time at age three. Age seven? Not so much, now he's terrified of everything. Won't step foot on Tower of Terror, star tours which he's ridden many times is a no go, space mountain absolutely not. Everest? Nope! So take your little one on everything because who know what fears they will develop when they get bigger. Just be honest about every ride so there are no surprises. Dinosaur is VERY scary, let her know, and she can decide if she wants to go on it. As long as she knows you're honest about the rides she'll be able to choose for herself what to go on.

 

[Kuzcotopia1]

Even I, as an adult, close my eyes during Dinosaur. LOL.

 

[brockash]

My DD is 4yr old and 40". I know she "can" go on a lot of rides, just not sure what to avoid. Test track? Dinosaur? Splash Mountain?
Which rides should we attempt/not attempt?
Thank you!!

How adventurous is she? Unless she's really adventurous and doesn't scare very easy at all, I'd probably avoid Tower of Terror, but that's really the only one I can think of. Dinosaur is loud, and can be scary to young kids, but there are also many who ride with no issues. We've always done Splash and Thunder at least once once a kiddo hit 40 inches...some loved it and 1 said they didn't want to ride it again, but then on our 2nd MK day decided to ride it again lol. Test Track isn't too bad.

It really depends on your kiddo, but I would say an average 4 year old would probably be okay on most, if not all of the 40 inch rides (possibly not Tower of Terror).

 

[DisneyWorldbuff]

Even I, as an adult, close my eyes during Dinosaur. LOL.

I was going to say the same thing. That's the only ride I would avoid with a four year old, but more for me than the kid, lol. Let your kid drive the directive. That won't know what they like unless they try it!

 

[Lupeix]

It is hard to say at that age. I will try everything she is willing, except Dinosaur, if scared of dark definitely skip it. What I would not do is force or bribe, if hesitant to go in the line just skip it. Yes some kids end up liking something they hesitate doing, but a lot of them don't. They are supposed to make magic memories not traumatic ones.

 

[jvz82]

My 4 year old loved Thunder Mountain, and pretty much all the rides he went on our first couple days at the parks, so our second day at MK he desperately wanted to try Space Mountain. He was just barely tall enough, but was able to go on. Well it really freaked him out, and he basically refused all other rides the rest of the day. He would do shows and things like Carousel of Progress, but he wouldn't go on any other coasters or faster rides. Haunted Mansion also scared him quite a bit.

I don't regret letting him try though! If he had said he didn't want to go on Space Mountain, that would have been fine but he wanted to try and he was proud of himself for going. After his Space Mountain freak out, when he said he didn't want to go on Splash Mountain and other rides, we didn't force him and it was fine. I think just let your 4 year old be in control and go with the flow a little bit.