Intense attractions??? About This Page:

[Steph A]

My girls can be a bit timid. As such I am sure there are certain attractions at each park that we might consider skipping. What are they in your opinion. I am already questioning the following:

MK - Haunted mansion

Epcot - Honey I shrunk the audience

AK - It's tough to be a bug

If anyone has a different opinion I would love to hear it!

TIA
Steph A

[stretch2864]

At MK, I would definitely skip Alien Encounter. That is scary even for adults who know it isn't real. The Haunted Mansion is not extremely scary. There is a part in the beginning where you are in the stretching room (the walls appear to stretch upwards) and all of a sudden they plunge you into total darkness. The lights come back on and then you are loaded into the doom buggies. Once on the doom buggies, you ride through the mansion and see Disney's version of scary--it is dark but there is nothing that really jumps out at you or actually touches you. Most of it is done in a relatively humorous manner.

At Epcot, "Honey I Shrunk the Audience" is a 3-D show. There are a couple of scenes that might be a little scary (e.g. a snake appearing to come out of the screen,) but the rest of the show is cute and a lot of fun. Your kids could always close their eyes if a scary part appears to be coming. Test Track is fun, but it is a fast ride once you get out on the track.

At AK, "It's Tough to be a Bug" is another 3-D show. It is based on the movie "A Bug's Life" as far as the characters go. There are some special effects that can be a little intense. They also use a special effects fog in one part which can be a little irritating if you have any sort of respiratory problems. It is all done in good fun, though. The Dinosaur ride might be too much if your kids are a little on the timid side. It is a dark and rough ride through the prehistoric world where you encounter some larger than life dinosaurs. Not to give too much away, but there are some intense moments where even the adults were screaming. I thought it was great fun though!

At MGM Studios, I wouldn't recommend the Tower of Terror for anyone who is less than ready to tackle it. It is a very dark ride (the special effects are cool, though [img]images/icons/grin.gif[/img] ) and the 13 story drop is a bit scary. It took three trips to WDW before DD would attempt it. She loved it once she finally tried it and is looking forward to doing it again. I was queasy after my last time on it so I'm not planning on a return visit to ToT. [img]images/icons/shocked.gif[/img] Rock n'Roller Coaster is another ride for the brave of heart. If you love roller coasters, you will love it. If you are like me and prefer tamer amusement park rides, you might not want to ride it. It is very cool as far as the theming and special effects. It is all in the dark and all these neon signs etc pop up along the way. It starts out very fast and incorporates many twists and turns. DD loves this ride! I was green [img]graemlins/dizzy.gif[/img] when I came out...!

I would definitely read through the Passporter Guide and maybe a book like Birnbaums Official Guide to WDW along with your kids so that they know what to expect on the rides. Maybe if they know a little bit more about the rides before they get there, they might be willing to try them.
Hope you have lots of fun! [img]images/icons/smile.gif[/img]

[kadterp]

Id be cautious with Test Track. DS went on it 2 years ago and wont go on it again, maybe I can sucker him into it this year. Also if youre not sure, dont forget to do a kid swap and have dad go try it out first and then go on with the kids!

[Grumpygal]

Not sure exactly what you mean when you say timid. If you mean not really liking the big fast rides than I think the ones to make second thoughts about are kind of obvious: Tower of Terror, Rock n Roller Coaster and those types of things.

If you mean timid like being freaked out by things (this is how I am even as an adult) then I would definitely thing twice about Its Tough to be a Bug. I've done this one once and have no desire to do again. Haunted Mansion kind of freaks me out but I do go on it once a trip.

[Joy J]

A lot depends on what you mean by an "intense" attraction - whether you mean something that is a wild ride motion-sickness wise or a little too intense visually and emotionally. I've divided my list into two groups.

1) Rides that can and have caused intense motion sickness: Big Thunder Mountain Railroad (although many people think of this one as calm relatively speaking when it comes to coasters, this one literally made me lose my lunch), Mad Tea Party, Astro Orbiter, Space Mountain, Body Wars, Tower of Terror, Rock'n'Roller Coaster, Primeval Whirl. I have yet to ride either Mission Space or Test Track but suspect they might also possibly fall into this category.

2) Rides that can prove to be too visually and emotionally intense for some people: Alien Encounter, Honey, I Shrunk the Audience, Tower of Terror, It's Tough to be a Bug, Dinosaur. I didn't include Haunted Mansion on this list because from what I've noticed, the majority of children do not seem to be intimidated by this ride. It's definitely done very humorously and very lightheartedly.

Joy

[LuckyPup]

It all depends on what your kid get freaked out by. Disney is particularly evil when it comes to playing with your emotions (ex. Bambi's mom's death, Mustafa's death, Malificent the witch, etc). Moments may not be scary per se, but rather linger in your psyche. Or, something you never thought would freak a child out does--like a clown (in my case, I never realized I was scared of fish until I went snorkling at Typhoon Lagoon)

I'd add Snow White's Adventures (even though have have been de-scarified) and the caves at Tom Sawyer's Island to the list. Be careful on the Jungle Cruise (there's a bit where you go into a cave.). Also, the Great Movie Ride has a scene where the movie "comes to life" (gunfire and real flames are involved). I've seen kids break down crying on that one sometimes. Remind them that it is only make believe, and nothing at Disney would ever hurt them.

Also, some rides have "courage" awards--at GMR there was a certificate that they will give the kid if the ride was a little tough for them. Look into that too--or even get your own pack of stickers and awards from home (like gold stars or the like) to give a timid child a boost of courage! Sometimes your child may change his/her mind midway on a ride, and you want to reward them for at least trying it!

[Bert & Sully]

I'd definitely stay away from Dinosaur!