Roller coasters and 6 year olds

Our FPP day is fast approaching, and it is our 6, closer to 7 yo, triplets’ first trip to Disney. They’ve seen the POV videos and want to ride them all (minus ToT).

Real life experience with this and kids this age? Are POV videos good enough for a kid who hasn’t ever ridden coasters?

Make our plans as if we won’t need (most of the) rider swap options and see how it goes?

Anyone have to rework plans on the fly?

Older kids (9 & 12, did Busch Gardens last year) watched the POV videos too and my oldest did voice rides she doesn’t want to do, tho I think I’ve talked her into Splash and Space (should I try harder on RnR and ToT?).

Also. Confirm. Rider Swap. Both parents do not need FPP when using a rider swap?

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RnRC was my 7yo’s first ever coaster. He preferred Universal because he thought Disney was full of baby rides.

If they did any of the major coasters at Busch (Kumba, Montu, Sheikra, Cheetah Hunt, Scorpion, Tigris) nothing at Disney World should scare them. Maybe ToT because of the drop, but it’s comparable to Sheikra or Falcon’s Fury.

And in Dec. we did rider swap with only party-1 having FP about 10 times and never had any trouble at all.

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My kids were 2 and 4 so a bit younger. DD4 saw POV of 7DMT and SDD and wanted to ride. We did Barnstormer first though and hated it. It’s actually higher and more exposed so don’t do that first. We ended up not riding the others. I think 7DMT is a good one to start since it’s not too high or fast.

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My theory was start small (kids and rollercoasters). Both my sons (separately) rode Barnstormer as their first coaster at 2 years old. The older one who is now 7 rode 7DMT, BTMRR and Splash when he was 3.5. At 6, last fall, he rode everything including ToT,except EE, because it was shutdown on our AK day.

I tried not to give them more than they could handle too soon. You know your kids and will have to judge what you think they can handle. It makes picking FPP tricky, but it’s easier to get FPP for the mountains in advance and then change them to something else later if they are scared. If you can get a FPP, 7DMT is a good one to start with.

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I think ToT is a slight drop compared to that craziness!

Sure. But if they rode Falcon’s Fury and got off with clean underwear, then ToT should be cake.

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Completely agree!

Ok. So I have a PPO at BOG to get to SDMT first (okay, it’s currently only for 5 of us, but I have res. finder and hope. And will get FPP for all of us for the mountains.

Thanks for the reassurance!

my 5 year old did SDMT at 4 years old, liked it. This year (5) she did SDD, Splash and Thunder and Soarin. LOVED THEM ALL.
I decided against TOT as well as i feel the theming is a bit scary and the drops with her tiny petite body make me nervous. Maybe when she’s 6.
Turns out my kid is a thrill seeker… awesome!

My 9 year old is all in on the coasters. Maybe one of my trips will be 48” by August, so rider swap will still be a must for the wildest coasters.

Depends on the kids I’m sure. Last trip my 6 y/o rode everything - RnRC, EE, ToT, etc. my
8 y/o won’t go near any of them.

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And super short!

Both my kids rode all Disney rides as soon as they met the height requirement. My husband and I purposely didn’t prep them with videos (well not as many videos in the 2000’s). We didn’t talk about an individual attraction. We just got in line and said this is something fun we’ll experience as a family.

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I am regretting watching a video of SDD. Because now there will be disappointment if we don’t get a FPP for it. It’s a late start day for us after MNSSHP so no rope drop. :woman_facepalming:

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As others have said, it depends on the child, not their age. And I don’t think POV videos really capture what it feels like to go down a drop or whatever else, so that may give them a false sense of what they can handle. I think your plan to start with 7DMT and take it from there is perfect.

I have a 15 year old who isn’t a big thrill ride fan and won’t ride anything more intense than 7DMT. (And even that, he rides once per trip and has no desire to ride again.) My younger 2 (ages 10 and 13) will ride more coasters, but they don’t like bigger ones like Expedition Everest and won’t ride Space. On the other hand, my sister’s kids are 5 and 7 and love all the coasters that my kids won’t go near!

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Our first trip my daughter was 5 and I didn’t plan on any of the roller coasters. I have a very physical but quiet kid…turns out she LOVES them! We rode barnstormer over and over! After that she rode everything!

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My then 6 yo rode (and loved) every ride he was tall enough for, so SDD (first roller coaster ever!), 7DMT, SM, BTRR, and EE. He can’t wait to go back and be tall enough for RnR. My then 3 yo also rode SDD and 7DMT. He wasn’t as excited as his brother, but still enjoyed them. He’s excited to try the 40" rides next time we are there. We did not look at any videos beforehand. We did read a Berenstain Bears book about roller coasters though.

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Yep, when my DD10 was 6, she rode anything and everything. She was upset she wasn’t tall enough for the Hulk coaster. DS6 will do the 7DMT, SDD type rides, but hates EE and ToT. My 7-year-old nephew won’t even ride the Barnstormer or Woody Woodpecker.

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Agree, I think it really depends on the child. DD5 is a daredevil. She will go on anything she’s tall enough for, and always has done. The only thing she wasn’t overly keen on was Mission:SPACE Orange which she rode when she was 4. We’ve been sticking to Green since, even though she says she wants to try it again (DH won’t do Orange anyway so he’s happy). My sister’s DD (one year younger) won’t go on anything even mildly exciting.

As far as POV videos, I’m not sure they really help since the actual sensation of the ride isn’t replicated at all, i.e. any g-forces or how your tummy feels during a drop.

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