Let me start by saying that the term “kids rides” doesn’t really exist at WDW. Why you ask? Well, as an adult these rides can be just as exciting as they are for our minis. And personally, I’m looking forward to most of them myself.
Now that we’ve been spending some time on what we really want to do and see at our Walt Disney World vacation this summer, I wanted to sort of outline some of the kids stuff that we’ve been really eyeing up.
My son is two years old, and he’s probably about three feet tall (or 36”). The greatest thing about WDW is that it’s designed to be magical for all guests. If you recall from my first blog or vlog about this vacay, we have a reservation at Magic Kingdom for our first day out at the parks. There actually are quite a few rides and attractions here for kids. Here’s our list and some snippets about the rides.
The Tomorrowland section of the park has some great attractions, arguably the best. With that being said we expect it to be pretty crowded there most of the day. It is home to Space Mountain, one of my favorite rides overall. Space Mountain is basically an indoor roller coaster which is set in outer space. Pretty cool, ill leave it at that. However, Teddy is too short to ride on this one, and being as how most of the ride is inside and in dark outer space, I honestly think it would be a little too much for him to handle at two.
The people mover is one I’m looking forward to the most. I’ve never been on and don’t recall if it was open or not the first time we visited MK. I think this Is a great ride for Teddy to be one of his first. It’s basically a cart that you sit in that takes you around the Tommorland section of the park and even passes above the top of some of the attractions in Tommorowland. It’s what I refer to as an “A&A”, or “any and all.” Any height and all ages!
Buzz Lightyear’s Space Ranger Spin, is another A&A. You ride in a moving cart with laser shooters and you shoot at The aliens surrounding the walls and rooms of the ride. It’s really fun actually and the card has screens that keep score so you can even compete against your cart mate, or others in your party. Just compare scores afterwards.
Astro Orbiter, another A&A, or any height and all age. Where you sit in a car and it sort of rises up and down as it twirls around. Think of a carnival ride. Simple enough and not too fast from what I understand.
Tommorowland Speedway Is a racetrack with go karts on a track. The cars are gas powered I’m pretty sure so they can be a little noisy. But I really think my son will like sitting in the car and racing by all the others. I wonder if we can get into a 95 car. The height requirement on this one is 32″.
Prince Charming’s Regal carousel is fun for the whole family and is another A&A. So nothing to worry about here if you have children even under the age of two.
Seven Dwarfs Mine train is actually a very popular ride and come sometimes have extended Queue times. This is a little more thrilling than some of the basic kids rides. And there also is a 38″ height requirement.
Little Mermaid Under the Sea Journey ride is another A&A. Its a cart ride on a track system that takes you under the sea to meet Ariel and friends. There is a lot to see and even sing along songs for all the kiddos to enjoy no matter the age.
Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh is another A&A that I have not personally been on. We probably will try and get it in, because my son has liked the Pooh characters. I’m pretty sure thats a cart ride along similar to Buzz, or Little Mermaid.
Dumbo’s flying elephants is a ride similar to Astro Orbiter. Think of that classic carnival up and down, twirly ride. Any height and all ages will enjoy this one.
Madd Hatter’s Tea Cups is another one I’m really looking forward to for Teddy. You sit in a tea cup and it spins round and round around a carousel like pavilion. The speed at which the cart spins is determine by how fast the riders spin the wheel in the center of the cart.
Peter Pan’s flight is also another one of the more popular rides and attractions at MK. Usually extended wait times and I’ve never actually ridden it myself. Its an A&A so I’m hopeful when we come upon it the queue times aren’t more than twenty or thirty minutes. Which is actually very wishful thinking.
It’s a small world is another great one for small small kids. It’s essentially a boat ride with lots of small towns, villages to see as you ride along. Lots of singing if your little ones are into that. But beware, you absolutely will be singing “it’s a small world, after all” the entire rest of the day. Any height and all ages welcome here. Just an all time classic Disney World ride.
Haunted Mansion was surprisingly listed Any and All. I personally thought it would be a tad bit frightening for small kids. But the more I think about it I think it’s totally fine. The “scariest” part if you will is in the pre show, the room sort of goes dark and you descend into the basement as if the floor is falling out from under you. But the rest of the ride is more of a ride along inside the mansion seeing ghosts party, sing, and communicate with you. It really isn’t a frightening attraction at all.
Pirates of the Caribbean is another all time classic Disney ride. It’s open to any age and all heights. More of a river ride than anything, slow paced and lots of cool pirates and animatronics along the way. The smells will give you the feels, as odd as that sounds.
Aladdin’s flying magic carpets is another one of those traditional carnival type rides. I hope to ride it if Teddy enjoys Dumbo and/or Astro Orbiter. I never have been on it before, but it looks very similar to those, with a different theme obviously. Any and all are open to Aladdin’s.
Jungle Cruise, problem the ultimate all time classic Disney ride. Board a boat and tour through the Jungle, with all sorts of large animatronics, nooks and crannies along the way. Keep your eyes peeled for some hidden gems! Any and all are welcome to board the Jungle Cruise.
This doesn’t include every ride at MK, or even all the A&A rides, but it more or less resembles sort of what we have in mind on our upcoming trip. Rides that I think my son will enjoy and have fun on his first trip to WDW. I also know that depending on the crowd and other factors like weather, we may not even get around to all of these. A few are interchangeable just based on their similarities. Others like Peter Pan and Seven Dwarfs may just have ques that are too long to keep a two year old excited for. We’ll just have to see how it goes.
Did I leave out any of your favorite rides or attractions? Let me know in the comments!
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