Rank wdw roller coasters from least scariest to scariest

Wilsonfamily4

DIS Veteran
Joined
Aug 29, 2006
My kids haven’t been on roller coasters since they were middle schoolers. They think they liked Splash and that’s it.
Can you rate the roller coasters from tamest to scariest for me? I want to start them off on some of the tamer ones and work them up to see how many they’ll actually ride. (I love them all but haven’t been to wdw for a very long time.)
Thank you!
 
Barnstormer, Seven Dwarfs Mine Train, Slinky Dog Dash, Thunder Mountain, Space Mountain, Expedition Everest, Rock N Roller Coaster.

Based on what I’ve read, Guardians of the Galaxy will probably slot between Space and Everest, but I haven’t ridden it.

Splash Mtn to me isn’t a roller coaster, it’s a dark ride with drops. Also don’t count Test Track.
 
Barnstormer, Seven Dwarfs Mine Train, Slinky Dog Dash, Thunder Mountain, Space Mountain, Expedition Everest, Rock N Roller Coaster.

Based on what I’ve read, Guardians of the Galaxy will probably slot between Space and Everest, but I haven’t ridden it.

Splash Mtn to me isn’t a roller coaster, it’s a dark ride with drops. Also don’t count Test Track.
If scariest is the same as intensity (not sure if that’s how OP sees it) I’d put Everest ahead of rock n roller coaster. But the launch on rock n roller coaster can be intimidating, which would probably make it seem scarier
 
If scary is the same as intensity, I’d rank it barnstormer, thunder mountain, seven dwarves, space mountain, slinky, rock n roller coaster, Everest.
 


Regardless of order, there is a big gap between the others and Everest/Rock
N Roll. I would think, generally speaking, someone who can do any of the first 4 can do the other 3. I have Space higher than the others because the darkness could be an issue for some.
 
Regardless of order, there is a big gap between the others and Everest/Rock
N Roll. I would think, generally speaking, someone who can do any of the first 4 can do the other 3. I have Space higher than the others because the darkness could be an issue for some.
Yeah it really depends on what one considers “scary”. Space can definitely be up there because of the darkness, and I find seven dwarfs to honestly be more intense than that or thunder mountain because of how quick it is with the tight turns. But none of them are crazy intense
 
When we were in your same situation, we started in MK and did them in this order:
1) Barnstormer
2) Seven Dwarfs
3) Big Thunder
4) Space

Agree with others that Splash isn't a coaster. It just has the one very large drop. Some kids hate it but are fine with the MK roller coasters, none of which have a large drop like Everest.

Other kids who are scared of the bigger roller coasters may be fine with Splash (and Tower of Terror) drops.

It's hard to know in advance which kids will be in which category.

And one of the grandkids' friends was terrified of any kind of drop (including Pirates), but..... she loved Rock N Roller Coaster (no real drops).
 


I was just there with my 5 yo and she deemed ToT, Slinky and Space as "too scary" after riding them, but completely adored Big Thunder, Splash and 7DMT. We didn't have her ride Everest or RnR.
 
Barnstormer, Seven Dwarfs Mine Train, Slinky Dog Dash, Thunder Mountain, Space Mountain, Expedition Everest, Rock N Roller Coaster
This is exactly how I would have ranked it, but would just add that Barnstomer, 7dmt, & SDD are all really close and not very scary at all. Really none of the coasters at Disney are that intense except for RNR Coaster and maybe EE.
 
I was just there with my 5 yo and she deemed ToT, Slinky and Space as "too scary" after riding them, but completely adored Big Thunder, Splash and 7DMT. We didn't have her ride Everest or RnR.
My 4-year-old loved Slinky (and Thunder, Splash, Mine Train and Barnstormer) last month. Not tall enough for space, and we opted to not let her do ToT, although I suspect she’d have loved it.
 
My opinion in order to least intense to most intense. Barnstormer, Seven Dwarfs, Slinky Dog, Big Thunder, Rock N Roller Coaster and to me Everest is the most intense.
 
Slinky was surprising to us, it looks like only preschoolers should be riding it.
 
My oldest hated the Barnstormer, because with me sitting next to him, the lap bar couldn't be pushed down enough to make him feel secure. He hated it so much at age 5 that he refused to ride it again when he was 8.
He also hated the Mine Train, because of the swinging cars.
He loved Thunder Mountain and Space Mountain and Expedition Everest. His favorite is Test Track, which isn't a rollercoaster, but it's fast.

DD wouldn't go on anything more intense than Winnie the Pooh for days, then all of a sudden, she pointed in the distance and said "I want to ride that mountain." We rode Expedition Everest, and she loved it. She was 4 years old.

So, while a least to most intense rollercoaster list is helpful, I'd pay close attention to your kid and go from there.
 
OP- if your kids haven’t been on roller coasters since they were in middle school, my guess is they are adults or nearly adults now?

If they enjoyed coasters then, they should be fine with most if not all the coasters at wdw now. Maybe have them watch some YouTube videos of the rides to see what they think.

It seems like the tamest coasters are at MK so maybe start there and see how they feel about them. Save space for last since it’s the most intense there.

Hope you all have fun!
 
I’m an adult (and not a big coaster person) and have only been to WDW as an adult. I actually consider 7DMT less “scary/intense” than Barnstormer because Barnstormer is on a “bare metal track up high in the air” and the small footprint makes for some tight turns. 7DMT is built into the mountain so it feels like you’re never far off the ground. That’s one of those personal “what do you consider scary” things. (I was a tad nervous about Slinky for the same reason, but loved it.) I’m good with Thunder, and the only thing I really disliked on my 1 Everest ride was the bit inside the mountain where you do drops in the dark that felt waaaay too steep! (Have never done Space or RNRC because of the darkness factor.)
 
I think a lot of it depends on what you/your kids see as "scary." My daughter was 8/almost 9 on our last trip, and she would NOT go on Expedition Everest because of the drop, but was (mostly) ok on RNRC, which is in the dark and goes upside down. She's fine with fast and even upside down, she's not ok with big hills. I think RNRC is more intense than EE though.

I haven't been on SDD (or GotG obviously) but outside of those two, I'd say 7DMT, Barnstormer, BTTM, Space, EE, RNRC.
 
My kids haven’t been on roller coasters since they were middle schoolers. They think they liked Splash and that’s it.
Can you rate the roller coasters from tamest to scariest for me? I want to start them off on some of the tamer ones and work them up to see how many they’ll actually ride. (I love them all but haven’t been to wdw for a very long time.)
Thank you!
This is really a personal question especially when you get to the widely considered intense coasters since everyone has a different idea of what's scary. Here's my scare ranking, I am a mom of teens. I do feel like everyone just has to ride and figure it out for themselves what they like/don't like.

Barnstormer, Seven Dwarfs Mine Train, BTMR, Space Mountain, Slinky Dog Dash, Expedition Everest, Rock N Roller Coaster. I have SDD as scarier than most since I don't like seeing how high up I am. I get that it's a kiddie coaster but the height and the launch get me. I have a good time but I'm braced the whole time like a baby.

I do think your kids just need to ride a few and gather their thoughts and see what they like and don't like.
 
I am assuming they are older teens since they haven't been since middle school? It depend on what they find scary. DD is scared of the open sides, so barnstormer was one and done at 5 where she cried for 20 minutes. at 11, she has still not gone again. She likes 7DMT ok, but loves BTM. She refuses to even try Space, evert and rocks'. Slinky dog.... well, she screamed to get off almost the entire time we were on... But its the open sides that bother her the most. Something else to keep in mind if they have not been to disney before, is that disney rides are smoother than most "roller coasters". They are missing the jerkiness I associate with most coasters at say, 6 flags. If you look at the speeds of the rides, they are not that fast (except rockn ), they are what they claim- family rides.
 

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