Teenagers

My DGD 13, is going with me to Paris this summer for a month. We have been discussing how much freedom to give her. She and I have been traveling together every since she was 2 1/2. One or two Disney trips every year plus trips to San Francisco, Hawaii. She is a pro in airports and has flown by herself with an airline escort. At 11 she went back to our Beach Club resort from EP to retrieve something. She did well. She stays with me in parks because we are there to be together! And she helps me with navigation... After going to SF twice with me and staying in an AirB&B a block from her beloved Aunt and Uncle's, she begged to go alone. She told her parents she knew the way to their apartment and "the grocery store is right across the street from the B&B. She was eight - and of course she was denied!

This fall she will be flying in to MCO alone because of school schedules and coming to MK to join me and her uncle's family. She wanted to use Uber but in the end we decided to have her met at baggage claim by the limo we use sometimes and brought to the Contemporary where she will drop her bags and take the monorail , which she loves, to the park for the MNSSHP. She is 5'6 and self assured. I will meet her at the entrance and go in with her. I told her I would meet her at the Contemporary but she insisted that would be "silly".

I think it is all in the familiarity a child has with her surroundings. I am always so stunned by the restraints put on kids nowadays. My husband and I often talk about taking off on our bikes as kids for the whole day with a bagged lunch and no cell phone. Japanese kids ride the train to school alone at age 7! She and I always use safe words when we travel so she wouldn't go with someone who didn't know the word - and she knows to ask pregnant or mothers with children or staff if she needs help and gets separated from me.
 
My DD is 13. If she had someone with her close to her age, and if they both had phones, I would let them explore some areas of the park without me being right with them. I would have a meeting spot and time set in case there were any issues with the phones.
 
My DGD 13, is going with me to Paris this summer for a month. We have been discussing how much freedom to give her. She and I have been traveling together every since she was 2 1/2. One or two Disney trips every year plus trips to San Francisco, Hawaii. She is a pro in airports and has flown by herself with an airline escort. At 11 she went back to our Beach Club resort from EP to retrieve something. She did well. She stays with me in parks because we are there to be together! And she helps me with navigation... After going to SF twice with me and staying in an AirB&B a block from her beloved Aunt and Uncle's, she begged to go alone. She told her parents she knew the way to their apartment and "the grocery store is right across the street from the B&B. She was eight - and of course she was denied!

This fall she will be flying in to MCO alone because of school schedules and coming to MK to join me and her uncle's family. She wanted to use Uber but in the end we decided to have her met at baggage claim by the limo we use sometimes and brought to the Contemporary where she will drop her bags and take the monorail , which she loves, to the park for the MNSSHP. She is 5'6 and self assured. I will meet her at the entrance and go in with her. I told her I would meet her at the Contemporary but she insisted that would be "silly".

I think it is all in the familiarity a child has with her surroundings. I am always so stunned by the restraints put on kids nowadays. My husband and I often talk about taking off on our bikes as kids for the whole day with a bagged lunch and no cell phone. Japanese kids ride the train to school alone at age 7! She and I always use safe words when we travel so she wouldn't go with someone who didn't know the word - and she knows to ask pregnant or mothers with children or staff if she needs help and gets separated from me.
DGD will join us for a trip to Central Europe late this summer to visit friends and family. She's been studying French in anticipation of meeting and hanging out w/ her cousins so she won't be touring alone per se but the "old people" won't be hanging around every second either. In Zurich, she'll be welcome to climb the Uetliberg on her own or with similar aged companions; I won't even take the train to the top due to newly acquired height issues.

I completely understand you on the changes in childhood freedom. My experience was much like yours with the only difference being I lived in the city. Every Saturday, my older sister and I took an 1.5 hour subway ride for dance and music classes w/o an adult escort. Our first year, she was 11 or 12 and I was 7 or 8. Unfortunately by the time my kiddos came along the city was too dangerous for a long trip but they could still walk 10 blocks up to our shopping area solo.
Once again the city is a kinder gentler place and if it wasn't for her suburban raised step grandfather DGD would've started exploring the city earlier.
 
Not yet (mine were 12 and 9 last year when we went, and did not ask to do anything alone). I remember being 12 or 13 and walking all over the park alone with a friend. No cell phones back then. We had three hours on our own and then had to meet for dinner at 6:00, no exceptions. I am 50. I think things are actually safer now, but we hear about them more often so we worry more. At least, I worry.

Our now 13 year old still does not have a cell phone, but I would consider getting him a pre-paid phone and letting the boys roam for a bit. As they get older, and on-site stay with the bus transportation (or monorail resort) would be ideal.
 
FWIW, I sometimes get negative feedback just for letting my 10 year old play at the school playground with his friends unsupervised. The playground is within view of my front porch but I don't stand on the porch and watch them. "Back in the day" we just went and played and were told to be home by dark.
 
Ours are 12 and 14 (15 next week) and I think on our next trip we’ll be letting them go off together. We actually just got back last week seeing our older child march with the band at Magic Kingdom. She’s a freshman and went down with them on the bus, they did all 4 parks and Universal. Myself, DH and DS flew down to see them and also do all 4 parks but we barely saw her. She was on her own with her friends the whole time.

So after that experience plus with how comfortable our kids are in the parks we’ll be ok with them on their own next trip. Which they’ll probably be 14 and 16 then.

Honestly I think it depends on your child’s maturity and how comfortable they feel on the parks and on their own.
 
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At 9 and 10, I insisted my two start learning a bit of independence. So DH and I left them in Innoventions (with strict instructions not to leave the building unless there was an emergency) for an hour while we strolled to Boardwalk Bakery for a snack. They managed just fine.

Last trip DS was 15 and when he was aching for a room break, we put him on a bus back to the resort by himself while we moved on to another park. We were there for 2 weeks and allowed him several days to chill by himself in the room. He would go down to the pool to get food with his magic band. He was definitely more than old enough to move around by himself.
 
Absolutely. The week of my 13th birthday my parents let me take the monorail from the Poly to MK for the evening. I had a 4 year old sister and I'm sure they were just toast. It was one of the best nights of my life! Of course, that was many years ago so no cell phones or anything. I'd definitely be fine with allowing a sibling pair that age to go off in the park, especially if I was in the park somewhere.
 
It is a few years off but we are planning a trip with our 2 boys who will be 17 and 16 at the time of travel. We are planning on letting them have their own vacation type of deal. As long as they agree to stay together, they can see us as much or as little as they want during the day. I think they will like the freedom to roam the parks and decide what to do and when to do it. We will have the meal plan so they can choose to eat and snack on their own schedule. Right now, we are leaning to all being in the same park but we may decide to let them use the transportation system as long as they tell us when they are leaving and going to where. We have all been to Disney multiple times and they generally know how it works. I think it will be a good experience for them.
 
We go over Easter and as a single mom to two separate crew as I call them the bigs 17/13 and the littles 5/6
I’m perfectly ok with going back to the hotel and leaving the bigs or even leaving a little with the bigs if one conks out before the other..
It always totally amazes me how much the big kids fight (ds17, dd13) at home but on the road when we travel it just stops it’s our family vs the world ..and I absolutely love it
 
Last trip my kids were 12, 12, and 7, and we let them do the Agent P missions in the countries alone while we sat at the entrances (of the country they were in). That was their 4th trip.

This trip the twins will be 14, almost 15, and the youngest 9. The twins will definitely get the freedom to go off in the same park. I’m hoping they’ll take the 9 yo in HS and Epcot for a couple of hours so my husband and I can get some adult time. I’m not comfortable with them leaving the park though.

However, my disclaimer: I can track their phones with GPS so I’ll always know where they are.

I’ve also let them go to the park and bike to friends homes alone since 5th grade.
 
I may travel with two 13 YO girls. I asked their parents if they could wander a bit alone, and was told that was fine. I woudl add find my phone or that find your friends app so I knew exactly where they're were.

Both girls are extremely responsible or I would not have considered letting them explore at all.
 
Just back from our first trip with wannabe teens (both aged around 13) or as the man and I have started to call it "7 Days of What the What?!".
First observation-they are not aware of time unless they want to be;). Oh they were pretty good with arriving within 10 minutes of the already arranged meet or leave time (with leave the hotel time being closer to 30 minutes; sighhhhh) but I suppose I'm too old for that kind of flashback behavior. Whispered fervent convos with father of DGD about how his DD was becoming more and more like him as she aged and that the "I wish one just like you" curse had somehow boomeranged back on me what with me raising her and how I still wish him another just for fun:lmao:.

I learned one of the reasons why they had time issues was they would set their phone alarms for the exact time we were supposed to meet as opposed to including travel time to the meeting point. Dinna figure this out until 2 days before the end of trip but will be useful for the future since obviously I'm a glutton for punishment and will take them again.

Rides and food enjoyed in the past might not be anymore if 2 mini maniacs put their brain power together. They both still like sushi and sashima but argue about brown vs white rice. Alien Twist ride at Toyland is for babies but Slinky Dog ride is not even after 2-3 visits to ToT and Rock and Roll Coaster. SDD dinna happen because I wasn't waiting in an 85° tree-less standby line for 65 minutes ( yes there are now umbrellas strategically placed on the standby line over the bridge but really I wasn't feeling that either) that they had the opportunity to FP earlier in the day.

Errr they forget to let me know they accepted a package that included discounted gift cards used to subsidize the cost of food but had no problem ordering filet mignon as opposed to a NY strip steak with 'scuses to go with it.

I'm fully "armed" for the next trip but boy oh boy was this a whirlwind.
 

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