Age restrictions on rides?

[andre8]

Do you believe that there should be age limits on rides?

 

I'm kind of tied between yes and no, as if you have a tall 6 year old, he/she might not be mature enough to understand how to be safe on a roller coaster. I also think no, because I also kind of think height is the only thing that matters when riding a roller coaster.

[Tanks4me05]

I agree. You can't really tell how old a person is unless you have everyone bring a copy of their birth certificate into the park, which obviously is kinda stupid.

 

And the real issues are with people who are in their teens and twenties who end up doing the most stupid crap.

[XYZ]

I think that if you are tall in enough to ride, you're fine. Also, 6 year-olds can understand safety better than teenagers.

 

Also, it is the parent's decision to let the child ride, if they don't think that they should, they would not let them on. I have a 5-year old cousin who is 52" tall and I would never let him ride by himself on a ride.

[niiicolaaah]

I don't think there should be rules like that, I DO think that parents should take responsibility for their children, since different children react differently to situations and no one knows your children better than you. But, this IS America, so I'm sure a lot of people need the rules.

[MayTheGForceBeWithYou]

They'll be brushed aside. How many parents do you think ignored Alien Encounter's numerous warning signs?

[RCT3Bross]

I always found age restrictions a bit stupid. I never found a good reason for age restrictions what are those attractions that they have a age restriction?

Alright I heard of the English coaster Saw the ride, don't know if it has a age limit but if there is I would say yes because some things at the ride and queue are probably better to be unseen if you are 6 year old. But Black mamba at Phantasialand has a age limit I know for sure, but there I think of: Why because its intense or something?

So I think you should look at each attraction as a individual and look at the theme for most of it. Like i said about Saw and 6 year olds, a 6 years old could be very traumatized seeing a dead body covered in blood.

[imawesome1124]

I agree that it should be up to the parents. If I had a child that was 6 years old and 54" tall, I wouldn't be taking him/her on anything like I305 or Kingda Ka. If the parents don't think their child is ready for a ride they are tall enough for, don't let that child ride.

[spinning man]

SAW alive as well as SAW-The ride at thorpe park, has an age limit for 12 year olds, but the public ignore it. From my opinion some attractions should have age limits depending on what theme they have even if the public ignore it.

[SoCalCoasters]

The only time I think attractions should have an age restriction is haunts.

 

While yes, I understand younger children may not be afraid of mazes or monsters, I'm sick and tired of seeing parents with freaking strollers going through haunt mazes with their 2-3 year olds. That's just not appropriate parenal behavior.

[dylanreich]

I think it should be up to the parent. I have a 3 year old brother who's already reached the 42'' mark and will probably be 52'' by the time he's 5 or sooner, but my family will probably not let him on, say almost any ride at Magic Mountain because he would probably get really scared. But then again, there's tons of younger kids that love "scary" rides and I don't have any problem against letting them on because they would be fine.

[donkeyman18]

The only time I think attractions should have an age restriction is haunts.

 

While yes, I understand younger children may not be afraid of mazes or monsters, I'm sick and tired of seeing parents with freaking strollers going through haunt mazes with their 2-3 year olds. That's just not appropriate parenal behavior.

I recently saw someone doing this and i felt horrible with the screaming kid finally one of the chainsaw man said to come with him and took them out of the maze I thanked him as he "attacked" me

[Commando]

You cant ride in the back tow cars of Cyclops @ Mt. Olympus unless you are 18. But since there ride ops don't speak English, I don't think it is enforced.

[DougMJr]

I guess I understand the age restriction based on themeing... but for the most part I don't think there should be age restrictions. Really, teenagers cause the most problems at the parks.

[the ghost]

I like Disney's "Standards" which I know applies to the Fantasyland rides and potentially all rides around the resort. You must be 7 or older to ride rides ALONE but as long as you meet specified ride requirements anyone can ride any ride, regardless of age.

[adamico2]

^I totally agree with this and would love to see this implemented for wave pools.

[rcdude]

I generally agree with the Disney method on this. Rides don't need an age requirement to ride, but should have one to ride alone, especially on rides without restraints. Someone defined as a "responsible person" should also have to be a certain age as well. It's okay for parks to suggest minimum ages, but they shouldn't bar those under them from riding.

 

Maximum age restrictions, on the other hand, might make sense for particularly intense or rough rides. However, whether or not the rider is in good health is more important than how old they are.

[triggernel]

The only time I think attractions should have an age restriction is haunts.

 

While yes, I understand younger children may not be afraid of mazes or monsters, I'm sick and tired of seeing parents with freaking strollers going through haunt mazes with their 2-3 year olds. That's just not appropriate parenal behavior.

I recently saw someone doing this and i felt horrible with the screaming kid finally one of the chainsaw man said to come with him and took them out of the maze I thanked him as he "attacked" me

 

I can't say I'm of the opinion that there needs to be an age restriction in Haunts. We had plenty of younger kids come through this year, who I swear could have stayed stone faced if I'd of murdered their parents. Similarily, my sister has been going in Haunts since 4. She loves 'em! She'll even sit and watch flow-throughs for an hour online. I don't have any problem with parents taking little kids into Haunts. What frustertes me though, are the strollers that clog up foggy areas and the parents that feel the need to finish the maze with a screaming kid buried in their shoulder.

[MayTheGForceBeWithYou]

^True. I've had 6 year olds going through that were obviously having fun, but I've also had grown men that were extremely frightened (I had a few who quit in the first room!)

 

It really depends on the emotional maturity of an individual. Know your own limits before doing any attractions like that.

[Angry_Gumball]

Unless the forces are that dynamic, I think it should be at the parent's discretion. If their child's tall enough but feel that they aren't mature enough (Let's say, a splash boat/chute ride, especially one with the double dip), then they could/should deny them. On the other hand, the parent should explain the ride safety to their kids as well, especially if that list of warnings are too much for them to read and comprehend. Lastly but not least, unless mature enough/old enough to ride solo, young kids should be supervised by somebody older because you never know with anyone these days.

[E1ticket5]

Age Limits become pointless when the GP don't follow them. If they are implemented, they should be for more intense attractions, and they should be strictly enforced. Even if a park doesn't have one in place, If you're gonna bring your shy 5 year old into a Class 3/3 Haunt Maze, then that's just bad parenting.

[Hurricane]

Well, I know at my work we have age restrictions on the KIDS rides. Basically an adult can't ride on the Frog Hopper, Kid's Dodgem Cars / Go Carts etc if they are over 14 years old. Mostly because the frog hopper has a maximum weight of 300kg per ride. So instead of saying your too large to ride... we just say no adults (which is classed as someone over 14 as they pay adult entry tickets)

 

As far as minimum age goes, I guess it depends on the theming more than anything really if you ask me.

[SharkTums]

Japan has min and max age restrictions on rides. If Japan is doing it, there must be a very good reason, cause they're awesome.

 

Last year KT learned to recognize when the ride ops were asking how old she was and she learned how to respond to them all in Japanese!

[donkeyman18]

The only time I think attractions should have an age restriction is haunts.

 

While yes, I understand younger children may not be afraid of mazes or monsters, I'm sick and tired of seeing parents with freaking strollers going through haunt mazes with their 2-3 year olds. That's just not appropriate parenal behavior.

I recently saw someone doing this and i felt horrible with the screaming kid finally one of the chainsaw man said to come with him and took them out of the maze I thanked him as he "attacked" me

 

I can't say I'm of the opinion that there needs to be an age restriction in Haunts. We had plenty of younger kids come through this year, who I swear could have stayed stone faced if I'd of murdered their parents. Similarily, my sister has been going in Haunts since 4. She loves 'em! She'll even sit and watch flow-throughs for an hour online. I don't have any problem with parents taking little kids into Haunts. What frustertes me though, are the strollers that clog up foggy areas and the parents that feel the need to finish the maze with a screaming kid buried in their shoulder.

Yes that is wrong if you ask me this kid was screaming get me out! so the actor did what was right.

[Tomes1225]

I don't think an age restriction on actual roller coasters should be allowed. But as some have said, rides like Saw, or Alien Encounter should have age limits. If a video game, or movie can have an age limit because of disturbing images, then why shouldn't a ride? I rode Alien Encounter when I was 5, me and my dad had no clue what it was. I was absolutly terrified and it almost ruined my first trip to Disney.

[molemaster43]

I don't think an age restriction on actual roller coasters should be allowed. But as some have said, rides like Saw, or Alien Encounter should have age limits. If a video game, or movie can have an age limit because of disturbing images, then why shouldn't a ride? I rode Alien Encounter when I was 5, me and my dad had no clue what it was. I was absolutly terrified and it almost ruined my first trip to Disney.

 

Yeah. Certain rides should have age and height restrictions just to be safe. Some rides don't really need age restrictions, but SAW should as it can be pretty scary for younger riders. The Mummy also could use some age restrictions, as maybe some taller, younger riders may be a bit frightened by some of the parts of the Mummy.