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View Full Version : Anyone else have a child that is still afraid to go on Haunted Mansion??



Mickey'sIrishPAl
02-08-2011, 09:52 AM
I have taken my son, 9 now, to Disney World every year since birth. Every year he goes, he has become more brave and is willing to try new rides that in the past he would never go on (RRC, TTOT, SM to name a few in recent trips). The one ride that he still REFUSES to go on is Haunted Mansion. I don't know what it is about that ride. I remember when I took him on it at like 4 or 5 years old, we made it as far as the elevator trip down when he started to scream and cry and exclaimed that "I don't want to be a ghost". Well after hearing all riders say" Awwwwwwww, poor kid" I quickly made my way to the EXIT sign at the exit of the elevator down. Now, Haunted Mansion is nowhere near as scary as RRC, TTOT, or any other attraction, but does anyone have a child that refuses to go on a ride, whether it be HM or any others? What is some advice to get him to at least try it? September is nearing and I would like for him to be able to enjoy this attraction officially for the first time. My DD is going to be 3 for this trip and I would like to be able to at least attempt to take her on it.

Buttercup
02-08-2011, 10:13 AM
My son is 6. Same as yours, he loves Tower of Terror, Space Mountain, etc. But NOT the Haunted Mansion!
When he was an infant and even a toddler (up until he was about 3 actually) he couldn't have cared less about going on Haunted Mansion. Obviously didn't understand what "scary" was.
But somewhere between 3 & 4 years old, that place became a living nightmare for him. He would scream and claw and climb up me in the stretching room so we stopped taking him in there.
Even now, if I even SUGGEST taking him in there on our next trip (THIS WEEKEND! YAY! :cloud9:) he gets very upset. Until a few days ago. :)
I just non-chalantly was looking at pictures of the interior of the Haunted Mansion, and I happened to show him the hidden Donald face in the chair. I told him that Disney was filled with hidden Mickeys and other treasures, and that the Haunted Mansion was also filled with these things. He became intrigued. I started to show him pictures of hidden things on the HM ride, and how certain special effects are done... and he's now interested in going on HM this trip. But his stipulation: he'll go ONCE.
:thumbsup:
I'm hoping that gets him over it, seeing as he will know how the special effects are done. Yes, it takes some of the mystery away, but I think it calms him to know that those really aren't ghosts.

Jared
02-08-2011, 10:38 AM
My parents first took me inside The Haunted Mansion on my family's first trip, when I was about 3 years-old. I started to cry and scream the moment I stepped into the main foyer -- the small area prior to the stretching room. I still remember the moment vividly, of being frightened by the little goblins on the wall holding the candles that lit the area.

We jumped out before the doors closed, and I refused to ride again until I turned 8 or so. I don't know why those little ghouls scared me so much, but I have such a clear memory of the event that it must have been mortifying.

anneo
02-08-2011, 10:42 AM
Do you think showing him videos of the ride will help? You can find footage online, and I think I've seen some too where the people used a night setting so you could make out everything. Maybe if he knows what it's all about first it won't be so scary for him.

Mickey'sIrishPAl
02-08-2011, 10:58 AM
Do you think showing him videos of the ride will help? You can find footage online, and I think I've seen some too where the people used a night setting so you could make out everything. Maybe if he knows what it's all about first it won't be so scary for him.

I was thinking of doing that. I knwo that Youtube has videos of many of the rides. Maybe I will go on there and find one that shows in great detail what to expect and as mentioned above how it is not real. I am glad to hear that my boy is not the only one. :mickey::D

btharvey
02-08-2011, 11:02 AM
My DD refuses to go into Haunted Mansion. I think she always will. Certain movies she refuses to watch (Lord of the Rings), yet she will watch Harry Potter and -- especially -- she watches all the Star Wars (including episode 3), and ESPECIALLY episode 1 where Quai Gon Jin is run through by the bad guy (she goes back and forth in slow motion to see the light sabre's effects).

I don't get it, but I respect her wishes.

Mickey'sIrishPAl
02-08-2011, 11:02 AM
One problem I just thought of. i am surprising the kids close to our September trip and probably won't have much of an opportunity to get him into the HM. Maybe will have to reveal the surprise a week or two prior to when we were initially planning to surprise the kids.

EeyoresBestFriend
02-08-2011, 11:26 AM
I think as adults we forget how scary something can be to a child. They are young! Like an earlier poster said ~ you don't have to understand it but I think you should respect it.

Rather than trying to convince them by watching videos, or such, maybe you should just respect their feelings and let them pass on it. Let them take it at their own pace. Is it really worth making them feel so uncomfortable?

Just my :twocents:

Scott C
02-08-2011, 12:00 PM
hmm -- ds21 still will not go on It's Tought to be a Bug...............

I don't guess he ever will

Thanks
Scott C

BrerGnat
02-08-2011, 02:06 PM
Rather than trying to convince them by watching videos, or such, maybe you should just respect their feelings and let them pass on it. Let them take it at their own pace. Is it really worth making them feel so uncomfortable?


I totally agree with this! My kids are scared of a LOT of rides. They are almost 6 and 4 years old and have practically grown up living at Disneyland.

Right now, Haunted Mansion, Pirates of the Caribbean, Matterhorn, and Big Thunder Mtn. are OFF LIMITS to both of them. They are terrified of those rides (these are rides that they both rode with no fear many many times prior to turning about 4 years old). Now, my son is SO scared of these rides that he averts his eyes when we pass by them and has a mini panic attack. This is the same kid who MADE me take him on ToT a few months ago (he was curious, mostly). Once was enough for him! He says he never wants to ride it again. I don't blame him...if my parents had taken me on a ride like that at 6 years old, I'd probably never go to a theme park again. I was a good 13 years old before I braved "Freefall" at Six Flags, and that was mostly due to peer pressure. ;)

Do I wish my kids were willing to ride all the rides? Sure. Am I upset that they won't. Not at all. Everyone has likes and dislikes, and who am I to tell my kids that there is something wrong about the fact that they don't like some rides that other people do?

Heck, my younger son used to love TSMM, and now he refuses to ride it! He doesn't like the air cannons in the balloon popping scene. That's enough to make him not want to ride it, even though he enjoys other parts of it.

We just work around it. There's still plenty to enjoy. My kids have the option of sitting out a ride that they don't want to go on, while me or DH ride while the other waits with the kids.

Jared
02-08-2011, 02:35 PM
hmm -- ds21 still will not go on It's Tought to be a Bug...............

I don't guess he ever will

Thanks
Scott C
When my 14 year-old sister was younger, my mother had to take her out of the theater because that show scared her so much.

My family is going through this exact situation with my sister now. She refuses to ride Splash Mountain, Tower of Terror and a few other of the thrill rides. My brother and I are convinced she would love them if she just tried, but she is paralyzed by fear. We've learned that trying to force or coerce her just makes the situation worse. We hope one day she musters up some courage.

johnO
02-08-2011, 04:29 PM
My DD (12) doesnt like the drop on ToT

Scott C
02-09-2011, 12:43 PM
When my 14 year-old sister was younger, my mother had to take her out of the theater because that show scared her so much.

My family is going through this exact situation with my sister now. She refuses to ride Splash Mountain, Tower of Terror and a few other of the thrill rides. My brother and I are convinced she would love them if she just tried, but she is paralyzed by fear. We've learned that trying to force or coerce her just makes the situation worse. We hope one day she musters up some courage.

I am soon to be 47 and I wont ride those rides either -- I just don't like the drop. I will ride Splash on occasion - since it is such a neat ride. Perhaps I should write a blog on WDW Chicken exits and neat places to wait while the rest of your group rides - I know them all. There is so much more to WDW than rushing from thrill ride to thrill ride - soak it all in.

Thanks
Scott C

Disney4us2
02-09-2011, 01:03 PM
I am soon to be 47 and I wont ride those rides either -- I just don't like the drop. I will ride Splash on occasion - since it is such a neat ride. Perhaps I should write a blog on WDW Chicken exits and neat places to wait while the rest of your group rides - I know them all. There is so much more to WDW than rushing from thrill ride to thrill ride - soak it all in.

Thanks
Scott C


I am the same way. I don't like drops or rollercoasters. I will ride Thunder Mountain and (Disneylands) Matterhorn. I have never been on Splash Mountain. I almost got on it but at the end just used the seat to cross over to the exit.

I could help write the Disney Chicken Exit book...lol

Jared
02-09-2011, 01:24 PM
I am soon to be 47 and I wont ride those rides either -- I just don't like the drop. I will ride Splash on occasion - since it is such a neat ride. Perhaps I should write a blog on WDW Chicken exits and neat places to wait while the rest of your group rides - I know them all. There is so much more to WDW than rushing from thrill ride to thrill ride - soak it all in.

Thanks
Scott C
Certainly there is more to Disney than rushing to various thrill rides. I imagine people interest in that strategy find the Disney theme parks rather boring for their taste.

That said, I truly believe my sister would enjoy the rides she currently skips. Could I be completely wrong? Am I being unfair? Perhaps. We'll know in time. But it seems her fear of certain attractions is one she should overcome at some point.

If not, I will respect that all the same.

PopPhan
02-09-2011, 03:00 PM
I am soon to be 47 and I wont ride those rides either -- I just don't like the drop. I will ride Splash on occasion - since it is such a neat ride. Perhaps I should write a blog on WDW Chicken exits and neat places to wait while the rest of your group rides - I know them all. There is so much more to WDW than rushing from thrill ride to thrill ride - soak it all in.

Thanks
Scott C

If you DO write that blog, please let us all know about it!! Always good to know that info!!

With the exception of (maybe) AstroOrbiter (since I have a distinct fear of heights) I can ride just about anything at WDW without fear, but that does not go for DW!!!!

PETE FROM NYC
02-09-2011, 05:13 PM
Back 20 + years ago, we did a multi-family trip. The youngest was my niece Tina, at 2 1/2. Prior to the trip, we showed her some Super 8 movies of MK, and of some indivdiual attractions that we had bought at WDW on earlier trips. I did not have a movie screen at the time, so I projected on the living room wall.
Every time Tina came to visit she wanted to see Uncle Pete's ghosts on the wall. When we finally got to WDW she could not get enough of the Haunted Mansion.
Too bad that WDW does not offer DVDs like those super 8 movies they used to sell.

wedway76
02-09-2011, 05:27 PM
hmm -- ds21 still will not go on It's Tought to be a Bug...............

I don't guess he ever will

Thanks
Scott C

My son never had a problem with the Haunted Mansion, but It's Tough to be a Bug freaked him out and he would never go into another 3D show again.

luvdiznee
02-09-2011, 07:23 PM
DD13 is not crazy about it. But she will do it. :mickey:

tundramom
02-09-2011, 07:37 PM
DD is almost 16 and still closes her eyes thru the cemetery- she hates the "pop-ups":hmghost::blush:

brownie
02-09-2011, 10:08 PM
Haunted Mansion is a different kind of scary from Rock 'n' Roller Coaster and Tower of Terror. Our oldest son and our niece, who were both 6 at the time, would not ride Haunted Mansion. The two three year olds did. Our son is now 13 and did ride Haunted Mansion this past trip. Every child is different. Our oldest won't go on roller coasters because he doesn't like how they make him feel. Don't force your child; let him decide to ride when he's ready.

Mousefever
02-11-2011, 09:51 AM
@OP: Could your son handle watching the movie, The Haunted Mansion? I don't remember it being very scary, although I do remember it being tedious as an adult. If he gets to like the movie, perhaps he will want to go on the ride. I remember that my son loved the singing heads in the graveyard.

Amy

Disdad13
02-11-2011, 04:55 PM
[QUOTE=EeyoresBestFriend;2140492]I think as adults we forget how scary something can be to a child. They are young! Like an earlier poster said ~ you don't have to understand it but I think you should respect it.

Rather than trying to convince them by watching videos, or such, maybe you should just respect their feelings and let them pass on it. Let them take it at their own pace. Is it really worth making them feel so uncomfortable?

While i agree with the spirit of this, I think there is more to it than this. First, my DS9 refused to go on HM for the first 3 years we were at DW, and if he didn't want to go on something, that meant either none of us went on it, or my DW and I had to take turns going alone. Neither option is great. So in the spirit of not having to miss a favorite attraction becuase a young one doesn't want to go on a ride, I can certainly understand trying to encourage them to go on it. Also, my DS is very reluctant to try new things (rides), but generally loves them once he does try them. His defense mechanism is to automatically say he doesn't want to try something new. But rather than always just "respecting his feelings", we try to encourage him to try it anyway. We do this for his benefit as much as anything. Due to finances, etc., you nefer know how many chances he will have to experience some of these things. And I would hate to know that he missed out on the fun and joy he would get out of many of the rides at DW if we always just respected his feelings and let him pass and adapt at his own pace. I don't think there is anything wrong with gentle prodding or encouragement to try something - as long as it doesn't cross the line to where you are dragging a kid kicking and screaming all the way thru - and we've all seen that before. With our DS, I know he would have missed out on countless fun rides on HM, POC, even SE had we not been a little persistent in our encouragement for him to try. So I say, pull out all the stops you can think of to get him to try it that first time. If he hates it, at least you and he know. And if he loves it, you won't miss out on any other fun rides!

Momto3littlemice
02-12-2011, 01:20 PM
I think it is completely fine to show him video etc if you really think he would enjoy it. However, I agree with pp that all of us are afraid of something and the fear of a dark ride like HM is different than a roller coaster etc.

I for one will ride ToT, RnRC, SM, everything else EXCEPT Tough to be a Bug. Did it once, almost had a heart attack and will never go back! And if Alien Encounter were still there I would never ride that again either! I just don't like scary dark jumping out at you things!

So, if he still isn't in to it, I wouldn't make a big deal about it. He will probably eventually come around, and if not... no big deal! So much more to enjoy at WDW than one or two rides :) :mickey:

Marionla
02-12-2011, 04:55 PM
RR & SM make me sick. Maybe because of loops. I love ToT, SM,. Cannot talk myself into going on MS or EE. I am 63 years old and hope to overcome these fears before I am too old.

Scott C
02-12-2011, 05:27 PM
RR & SM make me sick. Maybe because of loops. I love ToT, SM,. Cannot talk myself into going on MS or EE. I am 63 years old and hope to overcome these fears before I am too old.

Think twice about M:S -- it caused me to spend a day and a half in bed. Other people handle it fine--but if the other two made you sick--I wouldn't take the chance.

Thanks
Scott C

spoiled
02-13-2011, 09:50 AM
:DMy DS who is 10 years old is still afraid of the part in the room with no windows or doors. He says theres no air and you are smusshed. And he HATES when the lights turn off.

Narawen
02-14-2011, 10:31 PM
I'm 20, went on HM for the first time when I was 15. I can stand it if the ride progresses normally, but I get a little uneasy if it stops (which it often does, to let guests in wheelchairs board, or the like). Twice I've gotten stuck in the graveyard scene for several minutes and HATED it.

Marionla
02-14-2011, 10:42 PM
To Scott C: thanks, it ruins my day when a ride makes me sick. Thanks for responding!

hokies4life
02-15-2011, 07:45 AM
Think twice about M:S -- it caused me to spend a day and a half in bed. Other people handle it fine--but if the other two made you sick--I wouldn't take the chance.

Thanks
Scott C

I agree. I don't think I was as bad as Scott C but we went on M:S in the morning and I felt sick the rest of the day. This was before they made the Green and Orange sides, but even the Green side makes me feel off sometimes.

crltkcagle
02-17-2011, 09:29 AM
My middle son is extremely scared of the shrinking room. This wasn't always the case. We had no problem with previous visits but on our last trip it started. We were in the shrinking room with a bunch of college kids who started screaming and freaking out (just being typical college kids) but it scared the heck out of my middle son. Since then he is scared to go in the room. He still likes the ride though. So I have to hold him and let him close his eyes so that we can ride it.

Snow's Mom
02-18-2011, 08:23 PM
My daughter went on the HM ride at age 9, but she kept her eyes tightly closed and held my hand the entire time. Now, at 12, she'd still rather not go. Have to admit, I close my eyes through parts of the cemetery, too.

The little kids that aren't scared of Haunted Mansion scare ME. :hmghost:

tmz814
02-19-2011, 09:25 AM
I went on HM with my family when I was 8-9yrs old. I was scared to death!!! We had a tape of park music at home and even hearing the song from HM or looking at the pictures of the ghosts on the back of the case would terrify me. I wouldn't ride again until I was around 18yrs old and now it's my favorite ride at MK. I usually ride it numerous times every trip.

My advice would be to try not to force the child onto a ride if they don't want to go, if u can. I know that when I was little if they tried to force me to do something it only made it worse! Maybe then they'll try it again when they are older and love it like me!:mickey:

ibelieveindisneymagic
02-19-2011, 09:47 PM
My DD, now 12 has always been wary of HM. I always figured that it was just because, HM is meant to be a little scary. But, we got to talking on the last trip, and it turns out that she's only scared of the stretching room, and when the doombuggies go backwards into the graveyard.

This was great to know, since I can hug her tight in the stretching room (she usually closes her eyes), and the same thing when we go down.

She loves the rest of the ride, and it is one of my favourites, so I'm just glad I get to go on it!

Meteora
02-20-2011, 10:31 AM
That said, I truly believe my sister would enjoy the rides she currently skips. Could I be completely wrong? Am I being unfair? Perhaps. We'll know in time. But it seems her fear of certain attractions is one she should overcome at some point.

Stranger things have happened! I refused to go on pretty much all those rides when I was younger, and that was always respected by my family. When I got older (think early 20s) I started trying some of them. I still won;t do RnRC or TOT, but I've done pretty much anything else. But I'm glad that my family and friends let me find the resolve to try in my own time. If they had forced me on, I would have worked myself up so much during the wait that chances are fifty-fifty whether I actually ever would have made it onto the ride.

I don't think nine is an unreasonable age to still not want to do the HM. And even if it's not something that would necessarily be scary to someone of his age, I think there's an extra-scary element to something that you remember really scaring you as a child. My advice would be to try to appeal to him if it's really important to you, but to be respectful of his decision if he says no. It's a theme park, and the point is to have fun. If he ends up going on a ride he really thinks he doesn't want to go on--well, at the very least, the wait for the ride isn't going to be very enjoyable for him, and if he goes in with a less-than-excited demeanor, the stretching room might frighten him. As might some of the well-meaning, but still sort of scary cast members. And nine is still young; chances are when he's older he'll make the decision to try it again in his own time.