Disney’s Hollywood Studios
Purpose of our park coverage
This book’s coverage of the Disney’s Hollywood Studios should be treated like a “with little kids” supplement to a guide book covering the park. There is so much you need to know about the Hollywood Studios that this book doesn’t cover.
But other guides neglect many of the questions parents with little kids have and this chapter zooms in on those questions.
Short Overview
The Disney’s Hollywood Studios is a movie studio attractions park with old Hollywood theming.
This park is the bottom of my list for having lots to do with little kids because so many attractions have a frightening element.
Attractions
The major attractions are broken up into 3 sections:
- No worries for little kids
- Borderline for little kids
- Bad for little kids
No worries for Little Kids
Disney Junior - Live on Stage!
Stage show for young kids, no concerns.
The Magic of Disney Animation
9-minute movie on animation, then interactive activities. No scary concerns.
Walt Disney: One Man’s Dream
Walk through exhibit and movie about Walt Disney. No scary concerns.
Jedi Training Academy
Watch from the crowd as older kids (age 4-12) are taught Jedi skills from Star Wars.
Possibly scary when Darth Vader and two stormtroopers appear. The trainee kids on stage sword fight Darth Vader. You can just walk away if your kid gets scared.
Beauty and the Beast - Live on Stage
Seated musical stage show. I don’t really think there’s any expectation for a child to get scared, but if they do you can just get up a leave.
Honey, I Shrunk the Kids Movie Set Adventure
Kid’s playground, but from perspective of an ant so everything is huge. No scary concerns.
Borderline for Little Kids
The American Idol Experience
It’s like being in the audience of American Idol the TV show.
No height requirement, and shouldn’t be scary, but little kids might not want to sit through the whole thing.
Lights, Motors, Action! Extreme Stunt Show
Outside seated driving stunt show. Some explosions and fire. Probably not too scary for kids.
Indiana Jones Epic Stunt Spectacular!
Stage show. Possible scary parts include explosions, intense music, big rolling boulder, whip and sword fight, simulated violence, people falling from heights, machine gunfire, woman gets kidnapped on stage, big propeller plane with actors nearly getting caught in propellers spinning.
Show last a long time (40 mins)
If there’s a kid problem, you can always leave.
Toy Story Mania
Ride with lots of games on the ride. This ride might have the longest wait/lines in all of Disney World.
The ride has some fast jerks/spins of the car you ride. You have to wear 3-D glasses. Some air blasts and water squirts at you.
Voyage of the Little Mermaid
Seated musical performance. Has possibly scary Ursula appearance, but you can exit if it’s a problem.
Jim Henson’s Muppet-Vision 3-D
This is a 3-D movie with loud noises and a couple of in your face moments. Your kids might like it, or it might freak them out.
Fastasmic!
Seated nighttime performance in ampitheater. Kinda scary parts with villians, 40-foot-tall dragon that breathes fire.
This show usually closes the park, so you’ll also have to deal with big crowds exitting while trying to get your kids home.
Studio Backlot Tour
Show then tram ride of intense movie effects. Catastrophe Canyon could easily frighten kids. They demo a flood, fire and earthquake on a movie set.
The Legend of Captain Jack Sparrow
Scary pirate stuff, gunfire, cannon fire, animated skulls and skeletons.
Bad for Little Kids
Star Tours: The Adventures Continue
40 inch height requirement.
Space ride, bumpy, loud. It’s possible if you kid is tall enough they might like this ride, but there’s lots of opportunities for them to get scared and then you’re stuck inside the spacecraft until it’s over.
Adults can rider switch1
The Great Movie Ride
No height requirement, but will probably scare kids under 4 who are old enough to know what’s going on. It’s a slow boat ride through a variety of movie scenes. You’ll end up in the middle of multiple gun fights. The Alien movie part is pretty scary. The Indiana Jones part has snakes. There’s creepy mummies. The Wicked Witch of the West appears. And the environment surrounds your boat which magnifies the frightfulness.
Other parents disagree with my assessment, take their little kids on the ride, and the kids do fine. If you might be in this camp, I recommend you test your kids out by watching the Youtube movie of the ride first and also testing kids on other dark boat rides that have scary elements like Pirates of the Caribbean at Magic Kingdom.
The Twilight Zone Tower of Terror
40 inch height requirement. Ride designed to definitely be frightening. Do not ride with little kids.
Adults can rider switch2
Rock ‘n’ Roller Coaster
48 inch height requirement
Adults can rider switch3
- Rider switch allows parents to wait in line with their kids and swap which parent watches the kid while the other parent rides the ride.↩
- Rider switch allows parents to wait in line with their kids and swap which parent watches the kid while the other parent rides the ride.↩
- Rider switch allows parents to wait in line with their kids and swap which parent watches the kid while the other parent rides the ride.↩