Why Age and Height Matter - The Easy Guide to Your First Walt Disney World Visit 2015 - page 9

CHAPTER 2
Why Age and Height Matter
Children of all ages enjoy Walt Disney World in their own ways, whether by meeting the
characters, riding the thrill rides, or blending both roller coasters and princess breakfasts in-
to an overall itinerary. When deciding whether it's time to book a trip, consider the ages and
heights of the kid(s) and what they can and will be able to experience once they arrive. If
one or more of the kids are under 48 inches tall, they will run into attractions they aren't
able to experience due to height restrictions. If they don't have the intellectual and emotional
maturity of the typical eight year old, other rides for which they are tall enough may be too
frightening, or just a little too sophisticated for them to fully enjoy.
If your kids aren't eight or older and over 48” tall, and this is a once-in-a-lifetime trip,
you need to decide whether you should wait until they are tall enough and mature enough to
enjoy everything Walt Disney World offers. Even with height restrictions and the possibil-
ity that the content of an attraction like Ellen's Energy Adventure will fly over their heads,
younger and shorter kids typically have as much fun as their older counterparts. With a little
planning, it's easy to design an itinerary around the unique needs of kids of any age.
This chapter first discusses trips with kids of various ages. It then covers handling a single
visit with kids of wildly different ages.
Visits by Age and Height
Preschoolers
Preschool age children especially delight in the magic of meeting the Disney characters.
They are young enough that they still believe they are meeting the Cinderella and the Winnie
the Pooh. Pictures of the kids entranced with characters like Snow White and the Seven
Dwarfs will turn into memories that last a lifetime. Some kids remain shy or apprehensive
about meeting the characters. Mickey is, after all, an alarming five feet tall. Goofy, with his
oversize top hat, stretches over six feet. With apprehensive and shy kids, run a search on
YouTube for “Disney World characters” and watch some interactions leading up to the trip.
This will familiarize the kids with what to expect and reduce many of the first-time jitters
and the tears that accompany them. While preschoolers will be too short or young for many
of the premier attractions, there's still plenty for them to experience, especially at Magic
Kingdom.