Tips for 10 yr old who doesn't like rides and a 4 yr old

[essnce629]

So we're going to Disneyland this Thursday with DS2 who is 4 and DS1 who is 10 today! Even though it's DS1's birthday, we're actually going for DS2's birthday which was back in May! We bought tickets then but never got to go due to a last minute trip we had to take to CT. So this trip will be about what DS2 wants to do mostly (we're going to Legoland for DS1's birthday next weekend).

We live in LA, just 50 minutes from DL, so I really haven't done any planning at all. The last time we went was 7 years ago right before DS1 turned 3. The only plan we have so far is to stay at the Howard Johnson Anaheim Hotel, which is right across the street from DL, on Wed night so we don't have to deal with LA traffic on Thurs morning and we can get there right when it opens. I'm not a morning person at all so if we were coming from our house we probably wouldn't arrive till after noon! I know everyone says August is the busiest time and to never go then, but my best friend went 2 weeks ago, on a Saturday, and said it wasn't bad at all. All the LAUSD schools started last week and we're going on a Thursday so I hope it's not too crazy.

So any tips on what rides/shows/attractions are best for a 4 year old? And DS1 who is 10 but isn't a fan of most rides in general, especially any that can be at all scary, go too fast, have drops, etc. We are just doing the one day pass at DL only and we will probably stay till closing. Oh, and should I bring a stroller for DS2? He hasn't ridden in one in over a year and was never a stroller child once he could walk, but I would bring one (Britax B-Agile) if necessary. Maybe just to hold all our stuff?

[SnuggleBuggles]

Does he like any rides, just opposed to thrill rides?

[essnce629]

He's like an 80 year old man LOL! No thrill rides at all. He did go to Universal Studies with camp and liked the Jurastic Park and Transformers ride if that helps. No pitch blackness, no drops at all, etc.

[SnuggleBuggles]

I wonder if CA Adventure would have more options? I think there are more shows there and he'd probably do well on Soarin'. But, I'm sure Nemo, Pirates, some Toon Town stuff would be great too. I think my 10yo could have spent the whole day in the Innovations exhibit!

[sariana]

Pirate's Island? When I was 10, I could spend hours there.

Jungle Cruise. Either train (Casey Jr. in Fantasyland, or DL RR). Carousel. Winnie the Pooh. Maybe Pirates of the Caribbean? Submarines. Monorail. Small World. Buzz Lightyear's Astroblasters. Treehouse. Canoes. Mark Twain and/or Columbia.

Autopia!!

[PZMommy]

We went to DL last month for my son who just turned 4. He hasn't ridden in a stroller in over a year, but he definately needed a stroller at DL. My DH was reluctant to bring it, but by the afternoon, he was so glad we brought one. I would definately bring your B Agile.

[lalasmama]

Just wanted to make sure you knew you'd still have to walk about 10 minutes when staying at HoJo. It's technically across the street, yes, but about 15 businesses (restaurants and hotels) between HoJo and the pedestrian entrance.

You said DS1 is afraid of drops. How afraid? I'm thinking most kids love Pirates of the Caribbean, but it has 2 or 3 drops. Indiana Jones has one drop at the end. Would he do better if he knew they were small, and where they are in the ride? For example, Indy has a drop at the very end of the ride, at the boulder, but that's it. Maybe watch YouTube videos to see what he thinks? I'd guess he'd like just about anything without a height limit :) Are you doing just DL, or over to DCA too?

[Tondi G]

I would take your stroller. At the end of a long day your 4 year old will probably be begging to be carrier, you will be happy to have the stroller along. You can carry all of your stuff (hoodies for the evening, bottled water etc.)

There are a lot of rides that are not scary. By the way the Jurassic Park ride at universal has a HUGE drop at the end!!! If he was ok with Jurassic park he will probably be fine with the small hills on Pirates of the Caribbean. The ride is in the dark though .... not pitch black but it is darkened (you can always turn on a cell phone for a little light if you need it). It is a water ride but you won't get wet like a wet ride. In adventure land ,you have tarzan treehouse walk through, Jungle cruise, your little guy might not be tall enough for Indiana Jones, Pirates of the Caribbean... then a little further to the Haunted Mansion... in critter country beyond the haunted mansion is Splash Mountain (log ride with a drop) and then beyond that tucked in the back is the Winnie the Pooh ride. Across the bay from haunted Mansion you have the Pirate Island (used to be Tom Sawyers Island) and my boys can spend a LONG time over there... in and out of the caves and across the bridges etc. In tomorrow land you have the rocket ships (astro orbiters), Buzz Lightyears Astro blasters (you must take them on this one!) and Star Tours. I would definitely go into the large building called Innoventions. You can watch a show/exhibit about the Asimo robot and then browse around at the house of the future stuff. They had all of the Iron Man suits on display the last time we were there. They have lots of fun interactive game things for kids! When you come out you will be close to Autopia and the Nemo Submarines. Then into fantasy land you have much more tame rides ... Alice in wonderland, tea cups, snow white, Pinocchio, casey jr. train, Storybook land boats, dumbo, peter pan (which ALWAYS has a long line) and Mr. Toads Wild ride. If you carry on towards Toontown you will hit It's a Small World and in toon town you have Roger Rabbits cartoon spin, mickey and Minnie's houses and the little go go coaster.

You guys will have a great time. While August is still busy with some families who have kids who haven't gone back to school yet but a Thursday shouldn't be too bad.

[twowhat?]

Well, that might be perfect that your 10yo doesn't like thrill rides because then you can choose rides for your 4yo and your 10yo should be OK with it:) There are lots of rides that you can do. My girls particularly liked California Adventure though - there are really a lot of rides there that are great for younger kids...Luigi's Tires, the flying food boxes, the ladybugs (spin-off - no pun intended - of the teacups), the caterpillar ride, Mater's ride (this was our absolute favorite, for the adults too!), the little mermaid....So I'd consider hitting that park as well if you can!

[bisous]

DS1 will be 10 in October. He will ride "scary" themed rides but not with any drops or hills or speed of any kind. He likes Indiana Jones and the Haunted Mansion but will NOT do Pirates. The drops on pirates are pretty mild but they are in the dark and they scare DS1 to death! Tondi has some excellent suggestions upthread about rides your kids will probably like. I cannot recommend Buzz Lightyear highly enough for kids that age who are otherwise afraid. It is fun! Star Tours has lots of "virtual" drops but DS1 is fine with it. It is a different adventure each time you go on and it can be really fun--especially if your DSs like Star Wars stuff at all.

Lots to do in DCA too, if you're interested. Toy Story Midway Mania always has a line but is worth the wait. Soarin' is great. Carsland has that new ride, Radiator Springs racers. It is a little bit fast for my DS1 to be quite honest but I think it would be worth trying. Nobody else I've ever met seems to mind it. There are no drops but you do "race" during part of it and the car goes fast. My kids LOVE the Redwood Challenge Trail exhibit there too. It is an outdoor play area that has slides, rock climbing walls, those netting climbing walls like at Sea World, etc. It is loosely themed around the movie "Up". My kids would honestly spend hours there if they could.

I do think that your 4yo will probably like most of these rides too and that is the big bonus. :)

[essnce629]

Thanks everyone for all your suggestions! Are there any must do's that we should do since we're technically celebrating DS2's birthday? What about those character dinners? DBF doesn't want to be tied to having to get somewhere for dinner at a certain time, but I think DS2 would like it. And I think we will take the stroller along.

We are only going to DL and not DCA. We were originally going to just go to DCA, but because DS2 has never been before we thought DL would be more magical/special, especially since we won't be going back for a long time. We bought our tickets way back in May and they are just the 1 day non-hopper tickets.

Oh, and should we bring food/snacks in?



Just wanted to make sure you knew you'd still have to walk about 10 minutes when staying at HoJo. It's technically across the street, yes, but about 15 businesses (restaurants and hotels) between HoJo and the pedestrian entrance.


We had planned on driving from the hotel to DL. Especially since we'll probably be staying till closing and are driving home afterwards and not staying in the hotel for a second night.



By the way the Jurassic Park ride at universal has a HUGE drop at the end!!! If he was ok with Jurassic park he will probably be fine with the small hills on Pirates of the Caribbean. The ride is in the dark though .... not pitch black but it is darkened (you can always turn on a cell phone for a little light if you need it). It is a water ride but you won't get wet like a wet ride.

Well, he went with camp and didn't know there was a drop at the end. He said he was really scared. I don't think he'd go on it again now that he knows about the drop! I'll ask him though.



Well, that might be perfect that your 10yo doesn't like thrill rides because then you can choose rides for your 4yo and your 10yo should be OK with it:)

Yes, that is what I was thinking! Especially since we're going to DL to celebrate DS2's birthday and will be going to Legoland this weekend to celebrate DS1's birthday.

[SnuggleBuggles]

My super thrill rider went to DL when he was 5yo and was terrified on Buzz Lightyear's Astroblasters, Winnie the Pooh and Mr. Todd. Totally unexpected. I'd factor your ds2 into some of those- maybe there are videos online about them? Eta- ds2 just went at 5yo and hated Peter Pan...too dark. We didn't try him on any of the rides listed above either.

[twowhat?]

My super thrill rider went to DL when he was 5yo and was terrified on Buzz Lightyear's Astroblasters, Winnie the Pooh and Mr. Todd. Totally unexpected. I'd factor your ds2 into some of those- maybe there are videos online about them?

Yeah my 4yos (who admittedly are really wussy) really freaked out on Mr Toad (and after that we avoided the inside rides)...the inside rides can be overwhelming for sensitive kids. They are loud, with lots of banging and lights flashing and "can't see what's coming next...", so I'd definitely do the outside rides first!!

[sariana]

Yeah, I did not recommend any of the "dark" rides in Fantasyland because some of them are scary to ME. (Um, Snow White? No thank you!)

We never do any special meals, and my kids still love DL. We hardly ever go even though we live in OC, so just being there is special to them. No need for character meals and whatnot.

DH insists that we take our own lunches even though technically you're not supposed to. But we never have had anyone question our taking in food. The last couple of times they have checked our bags, including those in the stroller, pretty thoroughly. So yeah, take some snacks. And water.

If you pick up a paper schedule at the gate (in addition to the color map), you can find of where the scheduled character meet-and- greets will be. We always run into some random ones, too, without even trying. So you should have opportunities to meet characters. I wouldn't waste the time or money on a meal, especially for a one-day trip.

Be sure to check the parade schedule too. Unless your DC love parades, that can be a good time to hit some of the more popular family rides. But you'll want to make sure you are where you want to be before they block off the roads. That can be a problem on busy days--they might not let you through to get from one "land" to another.

[essnce629]

Thanks everyone! Just arriving in Anaheim now!

Do I need to bring the kids' bathing suits and towels tomorrow? Are there any water play areas in DL?

[elektra]

Thanks everyone! Just arriving in Anaheim now!

Do I need to bring the kids' bathing suits and towels tomorrow? Are there any water play areas in DL?

in California Adventure, there is a water area in Bugsland and you can also get wet on the Grizzly Rapids. In DL you may get wet on Splash Mountain. But we never bring towels. I do usually bring a change of clothes for the kids though in case they get drenched or have some other kind of mishap.

[Tondi G]

Thanks everyone! Just arriving in Anaheim now!

Do I need to bring the kids' bathing suits and towels tomorrow? Are there any water play areas in DL?

No, the only water play areas are in DCA. Have a great time!!!