Is this correct?

[nadira36]

A rider swap is for if a child canNOT ride a ride. So height is the issue. It has nothing to do with one parent enjoying the ride with the child followed by the other parent.

If the child is too short for the ride, then the entire family approaches the CM at he entrance to the ride (in the case of 7DMT that means a bit of a line wait prior to picking put he rider swap). At the CM, the CM will usually just hand you the rider swap and the parent and non-riding child will go somewhere else. The riding adult will then enjoy the ride, and met up wight eh rest of the family at the end.

Then the non-riding adult will get his/her turn.

If the child is tall enough to ride the ride, then all of he family members will wait in line together and ride together. If, like in 7DMT, there are 2 seats and you want to both have a chance to ride with your LO, then you will wait in line twice so you can have that opportunity.

 

[Mousemommy1]

Ok, let me make this more clear because you seem to be upset with the answers I'm receiving. Heehee61 is actually the EXACT situation I'm describing, she just happens to have one more child who didn't ride.

My child is 2. He is almost 40inches. There are rides that only 2 people can sit on (parent and child). We are a family of 3. I'm asking if this is the scenario for ride swap: We wait in line as a family OF THREE. The 3 of us reach the ride, only 2 people can sit on the ride (let's say Dumbo). Myself and my son ride Dumbo while my husband waits. My husband ALSO wants to experience the ride with our son. ARE WE ABLE TO THEN SWAP ONCE THE RIDE IS OVER (or get a pass to come back) SO THAT MY HUSBAND AND MY SON (who just rode the ride,with me) CAN EXPERIENCE IT TOGETHER?

Nope.

Dumbo wouldn't have rider swap first of all. There are no height restrictions. Rider swap is for rides with height restrictions that a child can't ride, allowing one parent to ride at a time while one stays back with the child. And yes, if you have another child that can ride, they do benefit from being able to ride with both parents.

 

[Raenstoirm]

My husband ALSO wants to experience the ride with our son. ARE WE ABLE TO THEN SWAP ONCE THE RIDE IS OVER (or get a pass to come back) SO THAT MY HUSBAND AND MY SON (who just rode the ride,with me) CAN EXPERIENCE IT TOGETHER?

Nope, In that scenario you stand in line twice. Mom and kid ride in one dumbo, dad by himself. Stand in line again, dad and kid ride, mom rides by herself. Rider swap is only for a child that cannot ride the ride due to a height issue. As others said, Dumbo does not have rider swap anyway. Rider swap is only for rides with a height restriction.


In your case, here is an example. All three of you approach rock and roller coaster. Your son is too small to ride, so your husband gets to ride and you and the boy stay behind (the child cannot enter the line). They give you a rider swap pass. Later you take that pass and enter the fast pass line and get to ride without a wait while dad and boy do something else.

 

[Angie_T]

At all the amusement parks around us (Detroit area), you have to go to Guest Services and get a sheet for the parent swap. We used it a lot over the summer. One parent waited in the line and the other one did other things with the kids. Usually what we did was wait in line with one or two kids, depending on line length, and then the other parent came up the exit ramp with the extra kid, we were usually able to swap me and the kids who waited in line for the parent and kid who didn't. They always let the parent and child ride together if the child wanted to ride. I've never used it at Disney, just info on how it works here. You were only able to do it once or twice, depending on the ride as the rider operator had to sign the sheet. It helped us if we had a kid who had to use the bathroom in the middle of a long line.

 

[Raenstoirm]

Usually what we did was wait in line with one or two kids, depending on line length, and then the other parent came up the exit ramp with the extra kid, we were usually able to swap me and the kids who waited in line for the parent and kid who didn't. They always let the parent and child ride together if the child wanted to ride. I've never used it at Disney, just info on how it works here.

In most Disney rides where ride swap is needed, the entrance and exit are at different locations, so even if Disney wanted to do something like that it would be impossible

 

[StitchesGr8Fan]

Someone said Dumbo has 2 rows. It does not. There is 1 row. There are 2 rows on Aladdins carpets. You can fit 2 adults and a child on Dumbo. We did it, and saw lots of others doing it.

Child swap is not for odd numbers in parties. I get what you are saying, but if they allowed what you want it would make long lines longer and be a target for abuse.

 

[clambert1273]

lol we have to use ride swap for my fraidy cat 7yo... tall enough for everything... just won't ride anything except the lame rides... like she will visibly start shaking and crying even thinking about the line for roller coasters or ToT... so for us we do HAVE to swap because she just will NOT do it..

But we have also just staggered FP's to alternate instead of swapping.

 

[Angie_T]

Yeah, we've only been once and didn't have to use it. The system works pretty well at Cedar Point and Kings Island. I do like the system for a kid who has to use the bathroom, it saved us a lot of grief and evil eyes.

 

[heehee611]

Ok, let me make this more clear because you seem to be upset with the answers I'm receiving. Heehee61 is actually the EXACT situation I'm describing, she just happens to have one more child who didn't ride.

My child is 2. He is almost 40inches. There are rides that only 2 people can sit on (parent and child). We are a family of 3. I'm asking if this is the scenario for ride swap: We wait in line as a family OF THREE. The 3 of us reach the ride, only 2 people can sit on the ride (let's say Dumbo). Myself and my son ride Dumbo while my husband waits. My husband ALSO wants to experience the ride with our son. ARE WE ABLE TO THEN SWAP ONCE THE RIDE IS OVER (or get a pass to come back) SO THAT MY HUSBAND AND MY SON (who just rode the ride,with me) CAN EXPERIENCE IT TOGETHER?

Oh sorry, I misunderstood and assumed you had another child you wasn't old enough to ride. No, you cannot use rider swap so that both parents can sit with the child and the child rides twice. It's only when you have someone with you who isn't able to go on the ride. If I were in your situation, I would just take turns with who gets to sit with child on each ride.

 

[Claire&TheBoys]

I've been to Disney World with just one toddler, and also with one toddler and one older child. (Now, two older children - everyone rides everything all together!) I've used child swap more times than I can count, so I think I'm pretty much an expert on how it's handled.


Situation ONE:

Two adults, one toddler.
-- Ride WITHOUT height requirement (Dumbo, Pooh, Peter Pan, etc): Everyone waits together, everyone rides together. No child swap available.
-- Ride WITH height requirement (Space Mtn, Thunder Mtn, etc): Everyone approaches the CM at the ride entrance to show that there is an under-height child in the party. CM gives a child swap pass. One parent enters the line while the other parent waits with the toddler. After the first parent exits, the second parent may ride via the FastPass line. NEVER in many many years of using child swap, was my child allowed to enter a queue for an attraction for which he did not meet the height requirement.


Situation TWO:

Two adults, one toddler, one older child.
-- Ride WITHOUT height requirement: Everyone waits together, everyone rides together. No child swap available.
-- Ride WITH height requirement: Everyone approaches the CM at the ride entrance to show that there is an under-height child in the party. CM gives a child swap pass. One parent and older child enter the line while the other parent waits with the toddler. After the first parent and older child exit, the second parent AND the older child may ride via the FastPass line with the child swap pass. In this way, the older child gets 2 rides, one with each parent, and the parent does not have to experience the attraction alone.


The child swap passes are provided as a courtesy so that adults may experience attractions that their children may not be tall enough for. It's for parents, not children, which is the situation that the OP references.

OP, if you and your husband really wanted to each be able to take your child on Dumbo, Pooh, etc, independently, get your FP+ times separately and at different times. If your child is under 3, he/she will not need a FP+ (no ticket) and could go with each of you.

 

[Oakenshield]

I've been to Disney World with just one toddler, and also with one toddler and one older child. (Now, two older children - everyone rides everything all together!) I've used child swap more times than I can count, so I think I'm pretty much an expert on how it's handled.


Situation ONE:

Two adults, one toddler.
-- Ride WITHOUT height requirement (Dumbo, Pooh, Peter Pan, etc): Everyone waits together, everyone rides together. No child swap available.
-- Ride WITH height requirement (Space Mtn, Thunder Mtn, etc): Everyone approaches the CM at the ride entrance to show that there is an under-height child in the party. CM gives a child swap pass. One parent enters the line while the other parent waits with the toddler. After the first parent exits, the second parent may ride via the FastPass line. NEVER in many many years of using child swap, was my child allowed to enter a queue for an attraction for which he did not meet the height requirement.


Situation TWO:

Two adults, one toddler, one older child.
-- Ride WITHOUT height requirement: Everyone waits together, everyone rides together. No child swap available.
-- Ride WITH height requirement: Everyone approaches the CM at the ride entrance to show that there is an under-height child in the party. CM gives a child swap pass. One parent and older child enter the line while the other parent waits with the toddler. After the first parent and older child exit, the second parent AND the older child may ride via the FastPass line with the child swap pass. In this way, the older child gets 2 rides, one with each parent, and the parent does not have to experience the attraction alone.


The child swap passes are provided as a courtesy so that adults may experience attractions that their children may not be tall enough for. It's for parents, not children, which is the situation that the OP references.

OP, if you and your husband really wanted to each be able to take your child on Dumbo, Pooh, etc, independently, get your FP+ times separately and at different times. If your child is under 3, he/she will not need a FP+ (no ticket) and could go with each of you.

Thank you! Clearest and best explanation of everything! I like your fast pass suggestion, too! Totally going to use that.

 

[jesseybell]

Is child swap only available if the child doesn't meet the height requirements?

DS (5) is 45" but I am not sure if I want to bring him on Expedition Everest and Space Mountain - he technically can go on it but probably would be too afraid to enjoy it.

 

[Raenstoirm]

Is child swap only available if the child doesn't meet the height requirements?

DS (5) is 45" but I am not sure if I want to bring him on Expedition Everest and Space Mountain - he technically can go on it but probably would be too afraid to enjoy it.

It gets a little sticky. technically it is only for a child that doesn't meet the requirement, so a CM can refuse to give you the pass, however in most situations it is not an issue. Another poster referenced a 7 year old that was too afraid to ride the big rides and they were given a pass at each ride. You can always ask, but don't expect them to do it.

 

[Claire&TheBoys]

Is child swap only available if the child doesn't meet the height requirements?

DS (5) is 45" but I am not sure if I want to bring him on Expedition Everest and Space Mountain - he technically can go on it but probably would be too afraid to enjoy it.

Technically speaking, yes. And we have been denied the child swap pass when our child was tall enough to ride. HOWEVER, it never hurts to ask. You should ask the first CM at the entrance what the options are if you have a child that is tall enough but doesn't want to ride. Sometimes you will get a child swap pass; other times they will have another option for you. I have heard that at Tower of Terror, they sometimes will have you all wait together in the queue, then one parent goes out the "chicken exit" with the non-rider, waits there, and when the first parent gets off, then goes back up that service elevator to the loading platform to ride.

Just as an aside, my kids have been riding Space Mtn and EE since just before or just after turning 5 and loved both rides. My youngest's first words in the unloading zone for each attraction: "I gotta do that AGAIN!" Neither of my kids was ever particularly wary or cautious, though; both were fearless at an early age, so YMMV.

 

[VDrolet]

What about a family of 3 adults and one baby for rides with height restrictions?

2 adults ride, 1 adult stays with baby.

Will the one adult who stays with baby have to ride alone or will they be able to have one of the other adults ride with him?

 

[slzer0]

What about a family of 3 adults and one baby for rides with height restrictions?

2 adults ride, 1 adult stays with baby.

Will the one adult who stays with baby have to ride alone or will they be able to have one of the other adults ride with him?

My understanding is that the return ticket is for 2, so the other adult may ride again.
This is our plan, two parents traveling with DD18 and ds2

 

[WantToGoNow]

We have never been able to get a child swap once they were tall enough. My ds13 is not nor was ever willing to ride any of the 40+ rides except BTMRR. Now he waits off but when he was little someone missed rides. I wasn't even offered a child swap when he was 5 and we had to get out of Splash Mtn after boarding because he started crying and we had stood in the line.

 

[Claire&TheBoys]

What about a family of 3 adults and one baby for rides with height restrictions?

2 adults ride, 1 adult stays with baby.

Will the one adult who stays with baby have to ride alone or will they be able to have one of the other adults ride with him?

My understanding is that the return ticket is for 2, so the other adult may ride again.
This is our plan, two parents traveling with DD18 and ds2

Yes, the child swap ticket allows at least 2 riders - every time we used them, it allowed 3, but it may have changed since the advent of FP+. And there is no restriction on who the riders may be - it could be a parent and older child as in my example above, or it can be two (or three) adults.

 

[DopeyDame]

I've been to Disney World with just one toddler, and also with one toddler and one older child. (Now, two older children - everyone rides everything all together!) I've used child swap more times than I can count, so I think I'm pretty much an expert on how it's handled.


Situation ONE:

Two adults, one toddler.
-- Ride WITHOUT height requirement (Dumbo, Pooh, Peter Pan, etc): Everyone waits together, everyone rides together. No child swap available.
-- Ride WITH height requirement (Space Mtn, Thunder Mtn, etc): Everyone approaches the CM at the ride entrance to show that there is an under-height child in the party. CM gives a child swap pass. One parent enters the line while the other parent waits with the toddler. After the first parent exits, the second parent may ride via the FastPass line. NEVER in many many years of using child swap, was my child allowed to enter a queue for an attraction for which he did not meet the height requirement.


Situation TWO:

Two adults, one toddler, one older child.
-- Ride WITHOUT height requirement: Everyone waits together, everyone rides together. No child swap available.
-- Ride WITH height requirement: Everyone approaches the CM at the ride entrance to show that there is an under-height child in the party. CM gives a child swap pass. One parent and older child enter the line while the other parent waits with the toddler. After the first parent and older child exit, the second parent AND the older child may ride via the FastPass line with the child swap pass. In this way, the older child gets 2 rides, one with each parent, and the parent does not have to experience the attraction alone.


The child swap passes are provided as a courtesy so that adults may experience attractions that their children may not be tall enough for. It's for parents, not children, which is the situation that the OP references.

OP, if you and your husband really wanted to each be able to take your child on Dumbo, Pooh, etc, independently, get your FP+ times separately and at different times. If your child is under 3, he/she will not need a FP+ (no ticket) and could go with each of you.

Oh my goodness! Thank you! Finally someone on this thread who got it right.

We were there a few weeks ago (and last year and the year before that). This was our first trip with a tall-enough and a too-little. What you described is exactly how it worked.

One other clarifying note. The return pass was good for up to 3 people and had an expiration date of the end of the month. Those people can be all adults, adults and tall-enough kids, or a random family that you give the pass to on the way out. Doesn't matter.
And the expiration date worked great because we actually were able to use the pass on a different day when we weren't able to make it back to the ride the first day.

 

[Raenstoirm]

Oh my goodness! Thank you! Finally someone on this thread who got it right.

We were there a few weeks ago (and last year and the year before that). This was our first trip with a tall-enough and a too-little. What you described is exactly how it worked.

One other clarifying note. The return pass was good for up to 3 people and had an expiration date of the end of the month. Those people can be all adults, adults and tall-enough kids, or a random family that you give the pass to on the way out. Doesn't matter.
And the expiration date worked great because we actually were able to use the pass on a different day when we weren't able to make it back to the ride the first day.

Just curious when the last time you used the pass was? All reports coming back say it is only good for 2 people now. We have never used the system, but with twins on the way we will get very familiar with it soon.