Haunted Mansion at MK for 4 ys old?

[mom2morgan]

You just never know. I have a then-10 year old who has sat through movies like Harry Potter and Lord of the Rings without blinking, and who rides the biggest roller coasters she can get on. BUT Haunted Mansion FREAKED her right out. She barely road, and even then clung to dad whimpering. Over at Universal we tried the Mummy - she would have been FINE with the ride, but the first time through the queuing area she got so wigged out she ran screaming past all the people trying to get IN. It's actually pretty funny looking back on it :-) For the record, the ride that scares me is "Dinosaur" at AK. We should have bought the picture...they snap it just as that big animatronic dinosaur makes a lunge at you. There is my 10 year old, sitting up looking almost bored...and there *I* am, hunched over, clinging to her, and screaming.

[tkdmom]

One of my fondest memories of Disneyland was in the Haunted Mansion with a friend and her 5 year old daughter. As we walked from the stretching room, the daughter was starting to cry.

My friend bent down and said quietly to her daughter "Shh..It's okay. This isn't real, someone just made this up."

The daughter replied, for all to hear:
"Well don't they know it's not nice to scare little kids!!"

I still laugh like crazy remembering that. A 4 year old may find HM a little to scary!

[Kenny1113]

My DSs, 8 and almost 6, love this ride! DS8 has always loved it, I think he was 3 the first time he rode. DS6 (in a week) however did not like the ride the first time he attempted to ride it. I think he was 4 we were at WDW with some friends, we all got in line for HM but I got out to buy something ,of course the line moved quickly and everyone went in,(my friend with four kids, one of them has never ridden before). Well they get started in the stretching room and DS loses it which gets my friend's DD4 crying as well, while my friend is holding both of them! I can imagine the sight that was.
Anyway DS was afraid of the dark and still is, we have explained that after that part the ride is alot of fun. He has ridden several times since then and agrees! We hold onto him in the dark so that he knows we are there. We try to make it fun by looking at the pictures as well.

[WDW Addict]

We took our son when he was 3 and he loved it and watched everything as we passed by. We went again when he was 4 and he pretty much kept his head buried for about half the ride. However, once we were off the ride he talked about how "cool" it was...lol i think it depends on the child and the mood they are in at the time.

[javamama]

Mine was a bit afraid at some parts especially the first part in the lobby! After that he was better, love the hitch hiking ghost Our 3 year old liked it from the word go, I guess the difference between boys and girls. We'll see who does better in May at 6 1/2 and 3 3/4's

[BrerGnat]

Is she scared of the dark? Does she have any other "fears" that might be issues?

My kids both rode this ride at DL many times before they were 3, but then once they each turned around 3 and a half, it became a "banned" ride by them. They won't go on it now (they are 5.5 and almost 4). Both boys. The little one is afraid of EVERYTHING lately (this is a new phase) and was also completely freaked out by POTC a couple months ago (he had ridden it about 10 times prior to that).

So, what I'm saying is, even if a ride isn't inherently "scary" in the typical fashion, it can scare a 4 year old, simply due to that being an age where lots of fears make their appearance in their lives.

Proceed with caution. The stretching room part is pretty terrifying for kids. Complete darkness. LOUD thunder, lightning crack and then the skeleton that's hung from the ceiling being illuminated...if anything, distract her during this part.

[minnie-mouse]

Thank you everyone for your replies. I think we will just stick to Fantasyland rides for our girls then. Nothing like riding Small World 10 times! LOL

[AndrewJackson]

We took our 4 yr old son on it last spring and he loved it. He cannot wait until this spring to ride it again.

I really I liked it as well when I was young. Believe it or not, I was petrified of Pirates. I rode that ride with my head in my mom's lap until I was about 6 or 7 .

[wdw_bound]

We took my daughter on it when she was 3. We tried making light of the ride, saying that it was all pretend. IT DID NOT WORK. She HATED it. To this day, she refuses to ride. (She's nine now.) My son had no problems. It just depends on the child.

Ditto for us. DD 11 went on this ride with me when she was 5. She is VERY adventurous - doesn't have a problem with any other ride, and, except for ToT, she's gone on them all. She WILL NOT go back on HM. She was fine with the actual ride, but the hitchhikers at the end completely freaked her out. She even had bad dreams that night (and there is just something wrong about bad dreams at WDW). We haven't taken our 5yo DS on it yet, because, really, with all the other great stuff to do, why risk ruining the mood?

[LoriMistress]

Again, depends on the child. If you explain to the child that the HM is a bit scary, but in a fun way. Just explain that none of the ghosts can hurt her in any way.

[bringbackhorizons]

When we next go our kids will be aged four and a half and two and a half and I want to take them on this ride. The youtube thing is a really good idea, I've already started showing my DD (who's 2) some of the things we will see. I was watching MK opening ceremony this morning and my DD came running over saying "here comes the choo choo mummy!". She's well trained.

[finaldynasty]

My 6 year old who is the scariest of my 3 has riden it almost everytime we have gone to MK. She will say she is scared of it until we are in the park then she ask us when she we are going to ride HM.

[emmatink]

We took our 4 yeard old DD on it last october during halloween and she loved it. We played the music for her over and over the weeks leading up to the trip so all she could think about is "hearing the funny ghost sing that song".

[rpayton]

My 4 year old (he was 2 when he went on the "ghost ride" as he calls it) loves the ride. He was scared the first time he went on it, but we made him go anyway (I know bad parent ) After he got through the queue he was fine. Got off the ride when it was over and wanted to go again, and again. Depends on how your child is around "scary things". We made it a game the first time we rode it (he likes Jack Skellington from Nightmare before Christmas). We kept asking him to try and find "Jack" when we were on the ride.

[TinkerBell-Bell]

Unless your child is particularly scared of horror or anything, they should be absolutely fine. Although admittedly I'm almost too scared to go on it, and I'm 16. The horror is more cute rather than terrifying, however, so it's more to do if they're scared of the dark, or sudden noises.

[scootch713]

I think it depends on the kids. My girls, age 8 and 10 have NEVER ridden it. I have tried and tried and tried. I can't get them even into the entrance. At 4, they would have been too scared.

[AJ Springfield]

My youngest girls were 3 and 4 when we first rode on it with them. They loved it -- and I believe that it was because we talked about how "fun" it was going to be and how "silly" the ghosts were. We knew that the stretching room would go black for a few seconds, so we told them it would happen and we held them. Yes, I agree that it also depends on the personality of the child...some kids are just more scared than others, but it's also dependent on your outlook. Good luck deciding.

[Disneyfirsttimer]

We first rode this when my daughter was 4 and my son was 6.5. They both loved it. It is a fun ride. More funny scary than scary scary .

I agree it is dark, but not pitch black. Worst case you try it once and they don't go back on.

[Disneyfirsttimer]

Nothing like riding Small World 10 times! LOL

Too funny. My husband cannot stand Small World. I have to say it is a little painful. It is a classic and we must ride once each trip. Funny thing is the ride is closed during our upcoming trip. My husband is so disappointed .

[MidnTPK]

Nothing like riding Small World 10 times! LOL

So instead of scaring them, you're going to torture them? Boy, you are awfully cruel.