Disney World height requirements (& what to do if kids can’t ride)

Though Disney World is intended to be enjoyed by the whole family, some attractions have height minimums to keep kids safe.

Here’s an overview of the attractions with Disney World height requirements, plus some tips on how taller people in your group can still enjoy the attractions even if you have too-short-to-ride members in your party.

Let’s dive in…

What are the height requirements at Disney World?

Although the vast majority of the attractions at Walt Disney World are available for guests of any height, there are a few in each park (including the water parks) that have height requirements.

If you are planning a trip for your family, knowing which attractions may be off limits before you leave home can help avoid frustrations and heartbreak when you are in the parks.

Height Requirement Chart

Below, we are going to go park-by-park and break down exactly which attractions do, and do not, have any sort of height restrictions on them.

Magic Kingdom

Not counting character meets and a couple of minor attractions, Magic Kingdom clocks in with over 30 attractions (the most of any park).

Attractions with Height Requirements

Out of all of those attractions, only 6 rides (soon to be 7!) have height requirements:

• Barnstormer – 35″ (89 cm) or taller
• Big Thunder Mountain Railroad – 40″ (102 cm) or taller
• Seven Dwarfs Mine Train – 38″ (97 cm) or taller
• Space Mountain – 44″ (113 cm) or taller
• Splash Mountain (40″) – 40″ (102 cm) or taller
• Tomorrowland Speedway – 32″ (82 cm) minimum to ride, 54″ (138 centimeters) minimum to drive
• TRON Lightcycle Power Run (TBD)

Attractions with No Height Requirements

The remaining Magic Kingdom attractions can all be enjoyed by guests of all heights (including little ones and babies!).

• Astro Orbiter
• Buzz Lightyear’s Space Ranger Spin
• Casey Jr. Splash ‘N’ Soak Station
• Country Bear Jamboree
• Dumbo the Flying Elephant
• Enchanted Tales with Belle
• The Hall of Presidents
• Haunted Mansion 
• “it’s a small world”
• Jungle Cruise
• Liberty Square Riverboat
• Mad Tea Party
• The Magic Carpets of Aladdin
• The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh
• Mickey’s PhilharMagic
• Monsters, Inc. Laugh Floor
• Peter Pan’s Flight
• Pirates of the Caribbean
• Prince Charming Regal Carrousel
• Swiss Family Treehouse
• Tomorrowland Transit Authority – PeopleMover
• Tom Sawyer Island
• Under the Sea ~ Journey of the Little Mermaid
• Walt Disney’s Carousel of Progress
• Walt Disney’s Enchanted Tiki Room
• Walt Disney World Railroad

Epcot

Epcot is home to 2 of the newest attractions at Walt Disney World: Remy’s Ratatouille Adventure (which has no height requirement) and the brand-new Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind (which has a 42″ height requirement).

Attractions with Height Requirements

Aside from character meets and some of the galleries or displays in the World Showcase, Epcot has about 19 attractions, with just 4 of those having height requirements:

• Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind– 42″ (107 cm) or taller
• Mission: SPACE (orange, more intense side) – 44″ (113 cm) or taller
• Mission: SPACE (green, less intense side) – 40″ (102 cm) or taller
• Soarin’ – 40″ (102 cm) or taller
• Test Track – 40″ (102 cm) or taller

Attractions with No Height Requirements

The remainder of the attractions at Epcot have no height requirement:

• Advanced Training Lab
• The American Adventure
• Awesome Planet
• Beauty and the Beast Sing-Along
• Canada Far and Wide!
• Disney & Pixar Short Film Festival
• Frozen Ever After¹
• Gran Fiesta Tour Starring The Three Caballeros
• Impressions de France
• Journey Into Imagination With Figment
• Living with the Land
• Remy’s Ratatouille Adventure
• The Seas with Nemo & Friends
• Spaceship Earth
• Turtle Talk With Crush

¹Although this attraction does not have a height requirement, there are a few elements in it that might be frightening for small children and because of that, Rider Switch is available here.

Hollywood Studios

Hollywood Studios has a lot of thrill rides, all of which have height requirements. Plus, many people are often surprised to see that Alien Swirling Saucers also has a height requirement (32″, 81 cm).

Attractions with Height Requirements

• Alien Swirling Saucers – 32″ (81 cm) or taller
• Millennium Falcon: Smugglers Run – 38″ (97 cm) or taller
• Rock ‘n’ Roller Coaster – 48″ (122 cm) or taller
• Slinky Dog Dash – 38″ (97 cm) or taller
• Star Tours – 40″ (102 cm) or taller
• Tower of Terror – 40″ (102 cm) or taller
• Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance – 40″ (102 cm) or taller

Attractions with No Height Requirements

• Beauty & the Beast – Live on Stage
• Disney Junior Play and Dance!
• Frozen Sing-Along
• Indiana Jones Epic Stunt Spectacular
• Lightning McQueen’s Racing Academy
• Mickey & Minnie’s Runaway Railway
• Muppet*Vision 3D
• Star Wars Launch Bay
• Toy Story Mania!
• Vacation Fun – an Original Animated Short
• Voyage of the Little Mermaid

Animal Kingdom

Animal Kingdom has lots of animal exhibits to see, paths to explore, shows to experience, and several fantastic attractions to ride.

Attractions with Height Requirements

Out of all there is to see and do here, only 4 of the rides have height requirements:

• Avatar Flight of Passage – 44″ (113 cm) or taller
• DINOSAUR – 40″ (102 cm) or taller
• Expedition Everest (44″) – 44″ (113 cm) or taller
• Kali River Rapids – 38″ (97 cm) or taller

Attractions with No Height Requirements

There are lots of animals to look at (too many to list below), and those plus the remaining rides and shows are all available to guests of any height:

• Affection Section
• Animation Experience
• The Boneyard
• Conservation Station
• Discovery Island Trails
• Disney KiteTails
• Festival of the Lion King
• Finding Nemo: The Big Blue…and Beyond!
• Gorilla Falls Exploration Trail
• It’s Tough to be a Bug!
• Kilimanjaro Safaris
• Maharajah Jungle Trek
• Na’vi River Journey¹
• TriceraTop Spin
• Wildlife Express Train

¹Although this attraction does not have a height requirement, there are a few elements in it that might be frightening for small children and because of that, Rider Switch is available here.

Typhoon Lagoon

Typhoon is one of 2 water parks at Walt Disney World, and it has a few big slides that have height requirements. However, there are lots to see and do here (including a large area for kids):

• Crush ‘n’ Gusher – 48″ (122 cm) or taller
• Humunga Kowabunga – 48″ (122 cm) or taller

Typhoon Lagoon also has 2 attractions with height maximums:

• Bay Slides – Must be 60 inches (152 cm) or shorter to ride
• Ketchakiddee Creek – Must be 48 inches (122 cm) or shorter to play

Blizzard Beach

Blizzard Beach is the other water park, and much like Typhoon Lagoon, it also has a few slides that have height requirements:

• Chair Lift – 32″ (82 cm) or taller
• Downhill Double Dipper – 48″ (122 cm) or taller
• Slush Gusher – 48″ (122 cm) or taller
• Summit Plummet – 48″ (122 cm) or taller

Blizzard Beach also has an area with a height maximum:

• Tike’s Peak – Must be 48 inches (122 cm) or shorter to play

Disney Springs

• Marketplace Carousel – to ride alone (42″)
• Marketplace Train Express – to ride alone (48″)

Can you take babies on rides at Disney World?

The great thing about going to Disney World with little ones is that you can take your baby with you on any attraction that doesn’t have a height requirement.

For those attractions, you’ll be able to hold your baby on your lap.

Just how thrilling are they?

If you’re just looking at pictures, it may be hard to tell just how intense some attractions really are. 

After all, looks can be deceiving.

If you’re debating giving an attraction with a height requirement a try, we recommend you read our overview on the thrill rides of Walt Disney World as well as checking out ride videos on YouTube.

Are Disney World height requirements enforced?

In short (so to speak), yes. Cast Members will measure guests who appear to be close to the height requirement for that attraction and will not allow kids who fall under that height to board. This is for safety reasons.

Children will be measured at every single ride where they appear to be close to the height requirement. And, they are sometimes measured twice: once when you first enter the line, and then they may double-check when you get closer to boarding.

No hand stamps or wristbands are given after being measured.

They’ll be measured every time.

The measurement is done with shoes on. The exception to this is if high heel shoes are being worn, in which case, Cast Members may ask that shoes be removed.

What if my child isn’t tall enough to ride?

If you have somebody in your group who doesn’t meet the Disney World height requirements, you can still ride using Rider Switch (also sometimes called Child Swap) pass.

Rider Switch

Rider Switch is a special pass that allows your group to easily split into 2, where the first part of the group rides (while at least 1 adult waits with the too-small-to-ride child) before switching to allow the 2nd group to ride via the Lightning Lane.

Here are the steps for using Rider Switch at Walt Disney World:

1. At attractions offering Rider Switch, look for Cast Members standing at the entrance. At some attractions, you may even see a sign with a Cast Member stationed nearby holding an iPad.
2. Decide how you will be dividing up your group. Group 1 will ride first while Group 2 waits with the child not riding.
3. Both groups (including the ones not riding) will need to approach the Cast Member stationed at the entrance. Group 2 will be issued a Rider Switch entitlement in My Disney Experience.
4. Group 1 rides while Group 2 waits with the child who is not riding. We recommend that instead of just waiting, you do something fun nearby to pass the time.
5. After Group 1 exits, they take over the supervision of the child not riding, and Group 2 enters the attraction via the Lightning Lane queue. You’ll need to have your Rider Switch validated by scanning your MagicBand or by using MagicMobile on your phone.

Important note: Disney has stated that “if the person in Group 2 waited alone with the child or non-riding Guest, the number of Guests who may join him or her and ride again is limited.”

That means only 1 person from Group 1 will be able to re-ride with Group 2. This is different from how things worked in the past.

What to do while waiting for others to ride

If part of your group plans to skip any of the attractions with height requirements, or you plan to use Rider Switch, make sure you have a plan for how you’ll spend your time waiting.

Here are some of our favorite things to do:

Note: attractions and experiences can go down for repairs or refurbishment, so be sure to check in the My Disney Experience app for the most up-to-date availability.

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Any other thoughts or questions about Disney World height requirements? Feel free to leave those in the comments.

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Heather Thomas

With 15+ years planning Disney World trips, Heather joined WDW Prep in 2014 to help others plan for their own families. As the WDW Prep Editor, she travels monthly to stay current and has helped propel the site to millions of views per year. Email Heather

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