Disneyland was designed by Walt Disney as a place where parents and children could have fun together, rather than being a place where kids go on rides while the adults watch. However, there is one advantage that adults have over kids when it comes to many rides, adults are taller. Many Disneyland and Disney World rides have height requirements that keep small children from riding them, but it turns out that Disneyland has something special available for some kids who aren’t quite tall enough yet. It’s a really sweet gesture that may actually run into problems now that people know about it.
A TikTok video recently went viral that revealed something that many people, myself included, probably didn’t know existed. It turns out that Disneyland Cast Members have access to cards they can hand out to children that aren’t tall enough to go on certain rides. The cards give the child the ability to skip the line when they return in the future and have reached the minimum height requirement.
@themeparkauthor ♬ Bibbidi Bobbidi Boo （Instrumental Version) - Healing Energy
Disneyland and Walt Disney World Cast Members are empowered in different ways to help guests have a magical experience in the parks, and this is one way that is really nice. It’s easy to imagine a kid being upset when they realize they’re just not quite tall enough to go on a ride. This little card could completely change their attitude, giving them a reason to look forward to that special time in the future. Disney Cast Members do it all, including snake wrangling, and we don’t appreciate them enough.
But a lot of people in the comments of the video are actually quite upset that this secret is now out. There are two potential issues being recognized, one is that there are going to be people who want to get the card as a souvenir rather than actually use it. The other problem is that clearly Disneyland doesn’t usually give this card to every kid who comes up short on the height bar. It would be more well known if that was the case. It’s used in special cases, but now a lot more people will know they exist, and they’ll start asking for them, perhaps even trying to get kids on rides they know they’re too small for just to be able to ask for the card.
It’s a problem we’ve seen with other “hacks,” which is a word that has become a shorthand for “people taking advantage of the generosity of Disney Cast Members.” After one woman’s TikTok went viral after she got a free shirt for being “dress coded” at Walt Disney World, a lot more people started wearing inappropriate clothing to Disney Parks on purpose in an attempt to get free shirts. Fewer people at Disney World are having success with the dress code move now, likely because the park is trying to discourage the behavior.
One can easily see something similar happening here. If people start asking for these cards all the time, or making a fuss if they don’t get them, then it’s not hard to imagine this benefit being taken away, meaning it won’t be available for the kids for whom it could do real good.
So while it’s nice to know this special item exists, lets not over do it, ok? Let the Cast Members decide when to use it and when not to. It will make that experience extra magical for those that could really use it, and someday that might be you.
