We all know what its like to talk to a child about roller coasters: they start off so confident and excited, wanting to ride the biggest, baddest monsters. Then, as the date approaches it seems they get more and more withdrawn until finally they're terrified at even the mention of the word coaster.
Okay, okay. So maybe that was just my experience when i took my nephew to Disney for the first time. He was all about the rides until we landed at Orlando airport, and he finally admitted he was a little nervous. When we got to the park he tried to act macho (as 11-year-old's do) but when we stepped into line at Seven Dwarfs Mine Train, he started asking me about every drop, every uptick in speed, and every twist or turn. Each time the coaster full of screaming people would zoom within ear shot, his face became an even more delicate shade of green.
Of course, he ended up adoring the ride and every single one we went on afterwards (except Splash Mountain, he was okay only doing that drop once). I do wish, however, that I would've slowly revved him up to the big dogs. I think it wouldn't been a less terrifying experience if he had started slightly smaller.
In this post, I'll list out every "coaster" in Disney World in order of roughness and tell you how to prep your kiddos for them! For every ride you do, the easiest way to calm a kid down is to let them watch a ride through. They're all over YouTube and it eases a LOT of nerves. The most important thing is just to listen to them. If they say they're afraid, and you force them on anyway, there's a good chance they will forever be terrified of roller coasters because of that one traumatic experience. I usually find that after they ride a few smaller rides and realize there's nothing to fear, they're begging to hop on Space Mountain by the end of their Magic Kingdom day!
For my roller coaster hierarchy, just keep reading!
1) The Barn Stormer in Magic Kingdom
This coaster is a grand total of 60 seconds long and goes a whooping 25 miles per hour at the fastest speed. It has one little drop and one little turn and then it's over! Its a great start up for a couple of reasons. Firstly, its not super popular because of how tame and short it is, so its usually a walk on. You don't have to worry about wasting time standing in line for something your kid might chicken out of riding. Second, it's so short that if your child flips out at the top of the drop, they don't have to be freaking out very long because its over right after. The Barnstormer is a really cute and easy-going coaster. It has the feel of a big kid ride without the terror of one. If you kid reacts how my nephew did, (asking to ride it 4 times in a row) then you can absolutely move on to option 2!
2) Slinky Dog Dash in Hollywood Studios
Slinky dog is a super cute ride! It has a couple of drops but it goes relatively slow, making it an ideal next step. It has a couple of ups and downs and one or two turns but its beautifully done and not at all intense. Kids will love the look of the track and feel comforted by slinky's familiar face. Even the most afraid child on earth would be tempted by this bright and colorful ride!
3) Seven Dwarf Mine Train in Magic Kingdom
This is ride is very similar to Big Thunder Mountain Railroad with some small key differences making it number 3 on this list. First, the height requirement is a couple inches less making it easier to get the little ones onto. It doesn't have nearly as many drops and it begins and ends with a 10-20 second slow moving story-telling section, so the "thrilling" part of the ride isn't very long at all. Most drops are made less intense by a gentle curving of the track instead of a straight shot down. Lastly, the story-line actually helps to distract kids from the imposing ride itself. They're so focused on the dwarfs they forget they're climbing up a high incline preparing for a drop.
Pro tip: If you'd like them to have an even LESS intense ride in most track coasters, riding in the very front will be better than the back. The back is much more whippy, and a ride in the front will have them slowly broaching over every drop about halfway before the coaster finally releases into the drop, making it feel much shorter.
4) Big Thunder Mountain Railroad in Magic Kingdom
Big Thunder is Seven Dwarf's faster sister. It's little more whippy, less story-involved, and tends to be faster start-to-finish. It doesn't have any big drops, though. Most drops are mild or turn into turns halfway through, like Seven Dwarfs. Sitting in the front will likely give you a much tamer experience.
5) Splash Mountain in Magic Kingdom
Splash has one very large drop, but that's basically all. It has a couple of minor drops to trick you into thinking it's the big baddie, but trust me, you'll know when it's that big boy. Besides the one drop, though, it's a very slow log boat ride through a colorful stream. It has a little story-line to it so it's interesting for the kids, as well. I say its worse than BTMRR and SDMT only because you can see the largest drop from the outside and that might make it seem scarier for your child. It might take more coaxing to get them on, and the fear of that big drop might cause a bit of anxiety throughout the queue and boat ride.
6) Space Mountain in Magic Kingdom
Space Mountain is not a scary ride. It's an indoor coaster that goes kind of fast and has a lot of twists and turns. It is only this far down on the list because it is pitch black throughout the ride except for pin prick lights made to look like stars. If the dark scares your kiddo, you might want to skip over this one. it has a few minor drops only made to feel farther and steeper because you can't see the track. The only bits of the track you can see are the lights hovering mere inches from your head which is the only scary part about this coaster to me personally. If your kiddo loves the dark and thinks this sounds fun, you could probably ride this prior to Splash Mountain.
7) Mount Everest in Animal Kingdom
Mount Everest is your basic, true-to-form, roller coaster. It has a huge drop, lots of twists and turns, and it goes BACKWARDS. This is not for the faint of heart and definitely takes the cake for Disney World's highest roller coaster. Even my nephew, who was practically screaming for more thrill by the time we got to Animal Kingdom could only ride it twice before needing a break. I will say, after rising a couple times, it ceases to be scary. You know what to expect and can just enjoy the ride by then.
8) Rock n' Roller Coaster in Hollywood Studios
THIS RIDE IS CRAZYYY!!! It is my absolute favorite thrill ride at Disney, but my 11-year-old nephew rode it once and said, "no more, I'm good..." It shoots you off at 65 mph immediately, blares rock music from speakers on either side of your head, and loops upside down (the only coaster currently in Disney World to do this). Most of the coaster is in a dark room with fluorescent street signs everywhere so it's technically in the dark, but isn't as bad as Space Mountain. It's a short coaster as well, only about 90 seconds long, but this is probably because it's incredibly intense, so you couldn't handle much more of it. Though many amazing and new rides have opened up in Hollywood Studios, this ride almost always has a 40-60 min wait minimum, and that's with a single rider option! Not for scared or queasy kids (but definitely a good rider swap option for thrill seeking guardians!)
Coming soon in the world of coasters is the Tron Lightcycle Power Run roller coaster in Magic Kingdom and the Guardians of the Galaxy roller coaster in EPCOT. The only thing we know about Guardians is that it'll be a backwards launch, and each car will spin and move separately of each other. It sounds fairly intense, but I will wait on any judgement until learning more. Though Guardians is completely new, Tron exists in Shanghai Disney. Its a front-laying coaster that is said to be fairly intense. Based on height restrictions, testimonies, and position of the riders, I'm going to go ahead and say chances are this will be worse than Everest, but maybe not as bad as, or right on par with, Rock n' Roller Coaster. I'm sure it'll include rider swap, though, if you're wanting to leave the kiddos behind and try it out for yourself!
And that's all folks! Disney has lots of thrilling, fun options for the entire family, and some geared more for teens and adults. If you have frightened little ones only, don't worry! Disney World has WAY more calm, slow, kid-geared rides than coasters, and you can still have a ton of fun on them. Remember, the easiest way to get your kid used to coasters is to start small and give plenty of warning. If yours are anything like my nephew, they'll only need a couple of rides to be begging for bigger, faster, better coasters to try!
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