Disney’s number one concern is profit. Their number two concern, however, is guest safety. Disney goes to great lengths to keep their guests safe inside their parks. From security to not running in the parks and especially on-ride safety. Sadly, there has been a rise in safety issues with Disney rides. Because of this, Disney is increasing the minimum height requirement for all Thrill Rides.
If you have ever been to Disney World, you know it doesn’t come without risk of injury or loss of life. At every attraction you ride, Disney warns you for your safety just stay seated with your hands, arms, feet, and legs inside the log and be sure to watch your kids. Have a zip-a-dee-doo-dah ride. Then of course they say it in Spanish as well to ensure maximum safety compliance. The safety spiel varies by ride, but you get the gist.
Now, Disney is changing the minimum height requirement for thrill rides at Disney to 65”, which is also 5’5”. The definition of thrill rides is loose. Because of that, we have a list of all of the rides impacted. Disney will be increasing the minimum height requirement for Mad Tea Party, Seven Dwarfs Mine Train, Space Mountain, Splash Mountain, Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind, Mission: Space, Soarin’, Test Track, Millennium Falcon: Smugglers Run, Rock ‘n’ Roller Coaster, Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance, Tower of Terror, Avatar Flight of Passage, and DINOSAUR.
This is quite an extensive list of attractions getting a new minimum height requirement. The minimum height requirement for these rides was around 40-48″, so this is a big increase. This comes after many concerns about guests potentially getting injured on the rides due to the current height requirements. While the minimum height for these attractions has been set for quite some time, it was that Space Mountain accident we reported on here that got Disney reevaluating these requirements.
Why is Disney Changing the Minimum Height Requirement for Rides?
Disney does extensive safety testing on their rides prior to opening. Also, they go through safety checks every morning before the parks open. However, even when they do this, accidents still happen. For example, the man that suffered a serious injury on Space Mountain. This is rare, but can, and does happen, unfortunately.
One of the biggest safety measures Disney implements is the minimum ride height requirement. Every single ride at Disney has a minimum height requirement. The level of thrill and type of ride dictate this. The minimum height requirement sets how tall someone needs to be to ride a specific attraction. It primarily depends on the restraint keeping you in. Essentially if someone is too short, they may be able to get out of the safety restraint and get injured on the ride.
Many guests are outraged by this decision, however, Disney chalks it up to guest safety, which as we noted, is their number two priority. This decision wasn’t made lightly and has the potential to change down the road. With that being said, this concerns a lot of guests. The average US female height is 5’4”. With this new height requirement, many guests are going to be banned from riding these thrill rides. In fact, Kevin Hart is a big Disney fan and has already spoken out against this change.
Disney understands that this will bar a lot of people from riding many attractions. They don’t seem to be backing down. The calculation is that an injury on a ride is less of a PR nightmare than increasing the minimum height requirement for these rides. While Disney expects many people to be upset, they think the long-term play for guest safety is worth the change. Of course, Disney can always backtrack this decision. The good news for taller folks is the wait times will be less.
What do you think about Disney increasing the minimum height requirement for rides to 5’5”? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below!
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When is this change going to be occurring??
Any day now probably
by the way this is fake
Increasing the minimum height requirement is ridiculous. The problem with the space mountain is that there should be a maximum height restrictions!! Ever since they changed the cars on space mountain I have been scared that my husband 6’4” would be too tall for the ride. I’m sorry that the person got hurt on space mountain, but this would confirm my concerns about a height maximum restriction!!
Is this a BS article? I’m not able to find anyone else talking about this.
Why is this fake news getting everyone worked up? Do they like causing trouble. I heard a story about the having to have a child to get in and a weight limit, is all if this fake ?