Rider Switch Program
From Magic Maker® Aimee Fleming
You have finally arrived at the Walt Disney World® Resort! There you are standing in front of that thrill ride you have been waiting your whole vacation for…and realize that someone in your party is not tall enough to ride. What do you do?
My family ran into this same situation during our last visit this past April. We have five members in our group. Mom, Dad, our ten year old son, six year old daughter and three year old son. My ten year old is now tall enough to ride everything so he was not a problem; not so for my six and three year olds.
Our first encounter happened at the Expedition Everest – Legend of the Forbidden Mountain attraction in Disney’s Animal Kingdom® Theme Park. The height requirement is 44 inches or taller. Everyone in our family could ride except the three year old, so we used Disney’s Rider Switch Program.
What is Rider Switch? It is a great feature for families or traveling parties to use when you have a wide variety of ages and heights for some of the more thrill seeking rides.
Here’s how it works:
- Locate a Disney Cast Member, there will always be one stationed at the beginning of the queue.
- Explain to the Cast Member that you need to do a Rider Switch.
- Next, you will be asked who is riding first (ex: Husband and Son).
- The Cast Member will hand a ticket to another member of the party which looks similar to a FASTPASS® ticket.
- Our daughter, three year old son and I were asked to step out of the line and wait for the rest of our party.
- Once my husband and son returned, my daughter and I entered the FASTPASS® line to go straight to the ride without waiting in the regular queue again.
Rider Switch is a great advantage to use for any thrill rides where the waits can get hours long. This way the complete party or family only wait in the long lines once and everyone gets to ride. We also used Rider Switch for Rockin’ Roller Coaster starring Aerosmith (height requirement: 48 inches) at Disney’s Hollywood Studios™.
Not sure if a particular ride has Rider Switch? Just ask a Cast Member, they are always ready to help! Talk to your Magic Maker™ about other ways to make the trip as smooth as possible for the entire family.
Leave us a comment and tell us what tips you have to make a Walt Disney World® vacation smooth and enjoyable for the entire family?
Click here to see the Walt Disney World® Height Restrictions Chart*
*Height Restrictions subject to change at any time without notice.