We've seen it all too often — a wide-eyed child with a fresh MagicBand and Mickey ears eagerly walks up to the entrance of an attraction ...
"Whoa, partner, let me measure you before you head in there," says the cast member.
The eager toddler bravely stands against the measuring pole, wondering if THIS is the year they finally get to experience ... well, I'm sure you know how this story ends.
The joy of a Disney World vacation is seeing the tadpoles have the time of their lives — braving thunderous mountains or soaring over famous landmarks. No parent or family member wants to step into the queue of a toadally awesome attraction, only to find out that their little one is not tall enough to ride. Having an idea of which rides your little one will and will not be able to experience goes a long way. Preparation can avoid devastation. At the same time, there may be others in your party who meet the height requirements. Should they miss out on the thrills because one person can't ride? (Skip Space Mountain?! Are you kidding me?) Not to worry — Disney has a solution.
In this post, we'll walk you through all of the Disney World height requirements and outline the details of the Rider Switch service, sometimes called child swap. We'll also go over how Rider Switch operates with the Disney Lightning Lane system. Let's hop in!
Complete Guide to Disney World Height Requirements
While the majority of attractions at Disney World are suitable for all heights, some do have minimum height requirements. At the front of each of those attractions, a cast member will check any tadpoles who are close to that height to see how they measure up.
We've also created hopful infographics for you to reference, which you can even download and save for use in the park!
Magic Kingdom
Magic Kingdom Park has more than 30 attractions with only six requiring certain heights, making it ideal for families with small tadpoles.
- The Barnstormer: 35 inches (89 cm) min. height
- Big Thunder Mountain Railroad: 40 inches (102 cm) min. height
- Seven Dwarfs Mine Train: 38 inches (97 cm) min. height
- Space Mountain: 44 inches (113 cm) min. height
- Tiana's Bayou Adventure: 40 inches (102 cm) min. height
- Tomorrowland Speedway: 32 inches (82 cm) min. height
- TRON Lightcycle Run: 48 inches (122 cm) min. height
EPCOT
About a quarter of EPCOT's attractions have height requirements, including the popular new Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind (a virtual queue may be in place; if so, all rider swap participants are required to be in a boarding group).
- Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind: 42 inches (107 cm) min. height
- Mission: SPACE: 40 inches (102 cm) min. height
- Soarin': 40 inches (102 cm) min. height
- Test Track: 40 inches (102 cm) min. height
Disney's Hollywood Studios
At Hollywood Studios, the majority of attractions do have height requirements (we find this park ideal for teens and tweens!).
- Alien Swirling Saucers: 32 inches (81 cm) min. height
- Millennium Falcon: Smugglers Run: 38 inches (97 cm) min. height
- Rock 'n' Roller Coaster Starring Aerosmith: 48 inches (122 cm) min. height
- Slinky Dog Dash: 38 inches (97 cm) min. height
- Star Tours - The Adventure Continues: 40 inches (102 cm) min. height
- Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance: 40 inches (102 cm) min. height
- The Twilight Zone Tower of Terror: 40 inches (102 cm) min. height
Disney's Animal Kingdom
About a third of the attractions at Disney's Animal Kingdom Theme Park have height requirements.
- Avatar Flight of Passage: 44 inches (112 cm) min. height
- DINOSAUR: 40 inches (102 cm) min. height
- Expedition Everest - Legend of the Forbidden Mountain: 44 inches (113 cm) min. height
- Kali River Rapids: 38 inches (97 cm) min. height
Disney's Typhoon Lagoon Water Park
- Bay Slides: 60 inches (152 cm) maximum height
- Crush 'n' Gusher: 48 inches (122 cm) min. height
- Humunga Kowabunga: 48 inches (122 cm) min. height
- Ketchakiddee Creek: 48 inches (122 cm) maximum height
Disney's Blizzard Beach Water Park
- Chairlift: 32 inches (82 cm) min. height
- Downhill Double Dipper: 48 inches (122 cm) min. height
- Slush Gusher: 48 inches (122 cm) min. height
- Summit Plummet: 48 inches (122 cm) min. height
- Tike's Peak: 48 inches (122 cm) maximum height
Disney World Attractions Without Height Requirements
The majority of attractions at Disney World have no height requirements, providing a lot of options for families. Magic Kingdom has the most attractions without a required height, ideal for those with young tadpoles.
Magic Kingdom
- Astro Orbiter
- Buzz Lightyear's Space Ranger Spin
- Casey Jr. Splash 'N' Soak Station
- Country Bear Musical Jamboree
- Dumbo the Flying Elephant
- 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 Seas – Journey of the Little Mermaid
- Walt Disney's Carousel of Progress
- Walt Disney's Enchanted Tiki Room
EPCOT
- Advanced Training Lab
- The American Adventure
- Canada Far and Wide in Circle-Vision 360
- Disney & Pixar Short Film Festival
- Frozen Ever After (Rider Switch is offered)
- Gran Fiesta Tour Starring The Three Caballeros
- Impressions de France
- Journey Into Imagination with Figment
- Journey of Water ~ Inspired by Moana
- Living with the Land
- Reflections of China
- Remy's Ratatouille Adventure
- The Sea with Nemo & Friends
- Spaceship Earth
- Turtle Talk with Crush
Disney's Hollywood Studios
- Beauty and the Beast — Live on Stage
- Disney Junior Dance Party
- For the First Time in Forever: A Frozen Sing-Along Celebration
- Indiana Jones Epic Stunt Spectacular
- Lightning McQueen's Racing Academy
- Mickey & Minnie's Runaway Railway
- Muppet*Vision 3D
- Toy Story Mania!
- Vacation Fun – An Original Animated Short with Mickey & Minnie
Disney's Animal Kingdom
- Affection Section
- The Boneyard
- Conservation Station
- Discovery Island Trails
- Gorilla Falls Exploration Trails
- It's Tough to be a Bug!
- Kilimanjaro Safaris
- Maharajah Jungle Trek
- Navi River Journey (Rider Switch is offered)
- TriceraTop Spin
- Wildlife Express Train
Disney's Typhoon Lagoon Water Park
- Castaway Creek
- Gangplank Falls
- Keelhaul Falls
- Mayday Falls
- Miss Adventure Falls
- Storm Slides
- Typhoon Lagoon Surf Pool
Disney's Blizzard Beach Water Park
- Cross Country Creek
- Melt-Away Bay
- Runoff Rapids
- Ski Patrol Training Camp
- Snow Stormers
- Teamboat Springs
- Toboggan Racers
Disney World Rider Switch Service
So now that you know about height requirements, let's learn more about the Rider Switch service offered at Disney World.
When I visited Disney World as a young froglet, I was nowhere near tall enough to experience some rides. My siblings were plenty tall, and they were not going to miss out on all of the fun. The solution? My mom and I sat out while my dad and siblings went on the big rides. When they were done, mom would get back in line and wait by herself. Hey, mom loved watching Country Bear Jamboree with me (and now, there's a new musical version we get to enjoy together!), but she'd rather be on Space Mountain with her entire family.
Disney World Rider Switch allows grown-ups to take turns enjoying the thrill rides without having to wait in line twice. So everyone gets to ride who wants to! It works just as well for tadpoles who don't meet the height requirements or don't want to ride. Say your child is tall enough to ride Twilight Zone Tower of Terror, but — NO WAY DROPS, FORGET IT — they may wait with an adult using the same Rider Switch procedure.
All attractions that have height requirements typically also offer Rider Switch, plus a select few that offer it even with no height requirements.
Using Rider Switch
Even if you've visited the parks before, please note that Disney World's Rider Switch policy changes from time to time, so read up before your visit. You can use Disney World Rider Switch at all four theme parks. Not every attraction offers this option, but cast members have the discretion to help you out.
When you're ready to use the Disney World Rider Switch service, just hop to the attraction's entrance with your entire group present and let the cast member know you'd like to switch off. The cast member will scan the MagicBands or park tickets of those who will ride second. You'll be known as "Party 2" and will see the Rider Switch passes added to the plans section of the My Disney Experience app. The rest of your group will be known as "Party 1" and will ride the attraction while Party 2 waits.
The return time for Party 2 will reflect the attraction's current wait time minus 10 minutes, and there will be a one-hour window of use. So, if you arrive at 10 a.m. and the current wait is 40 minutes, then your Rider Switch pass will show that Party 2 may return to experience the attraction between 10:30 a.m. and 11:30 a.m. and enter the Lightning Lane. You can only have a Rider Switch pass for one attraction at a time, so you must use it before you get one for another ride.
Here's how we use it. I usually wait with Lily while Leap and Tad experience the attraction first, then Leap will take my spot with Lily and I'll ride! Tad can even enjoy the attraction twice if he wants (and he usually always does). We just scan his ticket as Party 2 before he rides with Party 1 and then he hops along in Party 2!
Keep in mind that with a recent change, the rider is allowed only one guest on the second ride through. So when the non-riding guest switches parties, there can only be a total of two guests per Rider Switch pass. This way, everyone can still enjoy the ride and no one has to ride alone (plus, someone gets to ride twice, lucky them!)
Using Disney Child Swap with Disney Lightning Lane
With the new Disney Lightning Lane Passes, guests can purchase either Lightning Lane Multi Pass or Lightning Lane Single Pass to bypass the standby wait and utilize the Lightning Lane. So you may be wondering how this affects Rider Switch? Never fear, Rider Switch is still toadally in use. If you do not want to purchase anything additional, you will use Rider Switch as normal with Party 1 entering through the standby line.
If you purchase Lightning Lane Passes, you can use both Lightning Lane and Rider Switch together. Note that if you want your entire party to use the Lightning Lane, everyone who is riding must have purchased and selected the arrival window. For attractions using a virtual queue, everyone must have a boarding group. Once at the attraction, let the cast members know you are also using Rider Switch.
Have a question about Disney World height requirements? Are you a Rider Switch pro with stories to share? Let us know in the comments below.
Related: Our Magical Overview of Disney Lightning Lane
Related: The Best Theme Parks in Orlando for Every Age Group
Hoppy planning!