Disneyland Resort has rides for visitors of all ages from preschoolers to grandparents! Our preschooler Traveling Mom, Britni, has put together a guide to all of the rides at Disneyland that everyone can ride regardless of height or age. It’s the ultimate list of Disneyland rides for all ages!
The Storybook Land Canal Boats is a surprisingly great rides for all ages! Photo Credit: Britni Vigil, Preschooler Traveling Mom
What Makes These the Best Disneyland Rides?
One of the best things about the rides at Disneyland is that there is really something for everyone, whether you’re looking for thrill rides, themed rides, and even water rides! I’ve been to Disneyland four times in the past year with various groups of people – kids, adults, kids who love rides, adults who don’t. You name it, and I’ve probably visited Disneyland with those people.
Based on my visits, I put together what I consider the best Disneyland rides for everyone – grandparents, kids, and everyone in between!
When putting together this list, I took into consideration three main things – height limits, scare factor, and comfort factor. If anything had a height limit (at all), was too scary for young kids, or wouldn’t be comfortable for young kids or older adults, it didn’t make the list. The only exceptions are included in a “ride with caution” list for Disneyland – rides that I personally love and recommend riding but that might be a tad bit scary for the littlest kids.
Since standing in line with young kids and older grandparents isn’t fun, I’ve made a note on this list which rides accept fast pass and which ones don’t. Since Disneyland offers fast passes for fewer rides than Walt Disney World, you may still want to ride some of these rides and just use these ways to entertain kids in line instead of skipping them altogether.
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Anything in the lists below that is marked with a * has a fast pass option available. I always recommend getting MaxPass to make the most of your fast pass selections.
Best Rides at Disneyland for All Ages
There are way more rides at Disneyland than there are at Disney’s California Adventure, so I’ll start with that park. There are also tons of great shows at Disneyland, not to mention amazing Disneyland snacks to try, if you can’t find enough rides to fill your day.
Tomorrowland Rides
Buzz Lightyear Astro Blasters*
Disneyland Monorail
Finding Nemo Submarine Voyage
Disneyland Railroad (also stations in Main Street, U.S.A., New Orleans Square, and Mickey’s Toontown)
Guests go into these submarines for a fun Finding Nemo inspired voyage. Photo Credit: Britni Vigil, Preschooler Traveling Mom
Mickey’s Toontown
Roger Rabbit’s Car Toon Spin*
Fantasyland Rides
Casey Jr. Circus Train
Dumbo the Flying Elephant
It’s a Small World*
King Arthur Carousel
Peter Plan’s Flight
Storybook Land Canal Boats
Look for Disney inspired characters on the It’s A Small World Ride! Photo Credit: Britni Vigil, Preschooler Traveling MomOnly the entrance to Storybook Land canal boats is scary. Photo Credit: Britni Vigil, Preschooler Traveling Mom
Critter Country
Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh
Adventureland
Jungle Cruise
Frontierland
Mark Twain Riverboat – this is more a boat ride than a ride, but it’s still a fun option
A ride on the Mark Twain Riverboat is a great way to cool off on a hot day. Photo Credit: Britni Vigil, Preschooler Traveling Mom
Disneyland Rides to Ride with Caution
There are a handful of Disneyland rides that would be okay for all ages other than they are a bit frightening and dark. I’ve included those in their own list here so you can make a judgement call based on your child’s maturity when it comes to movies and rides. If you’re concerned about any of these, I highly recommend searching YouTube for ride videos to watch the ride in full before you go.
Haunted Mansion* (New Orleans Square) – if your kids like ghosts then go for it. It’s one of my son’s favorites! It’s more Disney spooky than scary. The version during the Disneyland Halloween Party is less frightening and a must-see!
Pinocchio’s Daring Journey (Fantasyland) – similar to the movie, the part where Pinocchio is at the carnival and starts turning into a donkey can be a bit scary
Snow White’s Scary Adventures (Fantasyland) – parts of this can be frightening and dark with the Queen and some haunted trees but it’s not any scarier than the movie
Alice in Wonderland (Fantasyland) – parts of this where the Queen of Hearts is after Alice can be a bit frightening and dark, should be okay if kids have seen the movie
Pirates of the Caribbean (New Orleans Square) – Unlike the Walt Disney World counterpart, Disneyland’s Pirates of the Caribbean has a number of fast drops (you may get wet) that may scare younger kids; I know they scared my 5-year-old.
Haunted Mansion can be frightening for young kids but less so during the holidays! Photo credit: Leslie Harvey / Frequent Flyer TravelingMom
Disneyland Rides to Skip
Astro Orbiter (Tomorrowland) – lines are often long and no fast pass is available. It also goes pretty high which might scare young kids and the seats are a bit tight for larger guests
Mad Tea Party (Fantasyland) – the spinning can make both adults and kids nauseous or as my son puts it, make their tummy hurt.
Mr. Toad’s Wild Ride (Fantasyland) – this ride is dark, creepy, and not really appropriate for young kids. It scared my 5-year-old
Davy Crockett’s Explorer Canoes – Paddling canoes may not be the best fit for all ages and you may get wet if someone paddling splashes you.
Squeezing into the Astro orbitor might be a challenge for larger guests and grandparents. Photo Credit: Julie Bigboy Photo Credit: Julie Bigboy/DayTrips TravelingMom
Best Disney California Adventure Rides for All Ages
The rides at Disney California Adventure for all ages are a little harder to find, especially once A Bug’s Land closes late this summer. That being said, it’s still worth buying a Disneyland park hopper ticket to be able to check out these rides and the amazing Pixar Fest food available throughout the summer!
A Bug’s Land Rides (closing late summer 2018)
Flik’s Flyers
Francis’ Ladybug Boogie
Heimlich’s Chew Chew Train
Kids will love the Disneyland rides in A Bug’s Land | Photo Credit: Britni Vigil, Preschooler Traveling MomFlik’s Flyers takes guests of all ages for a fun flight! Photo Credit: Britni Vigil, Preschooler Traveling Mom
Paradise Pier (becoming Pixar Pier June 2018)
Golden Zephyr – the heights may scare younger kids
The Little Mermaid
Toy Story Midway Mania
Mickey’s Fun Wheel (currently closed and being changed to Pixar Pal-A-Round for Pixar Pier’s opening in June 2018)
King Triton’s Carousel (currently closed, being changed to Jessie’s Critter Carousel opening in 2019)
King Triton’s Carousel will become Jessie’s Critter Carousel in 2019. Photo Credit: Britni Vigil, Preschooler Traveling MomIn Toy Story Mania guests try to win 3D carnival games! Photo Credit: Britni Vigil, Preschooler Traveling Mom
Hollywood Land
Monsters, Inc. Mike & Sulley to the Rescue
*Indicates that this ride has fast pass available.
Anyone who is a fan of Monsters Inc. will love the Monsters Inc ride at Disneyland. Photo Credit: Britni Vigil, Prescholer Traveling Mom
Britni grew up in a fun-loving family that went to amusement parks on the weekends and played games at night. From canyoning in Switzerland to sky-diving over the Las Vegas airfields, Britni’s best memories are from family adventures together. Those memories have inspired Britni’s love of travel and desire to find the most unique and memorable things to do in every destination she visits. She is also the mom of a preschooler boy and while her travels have changed, she now just finds memorable things to do with a preschooler as well instead of focusing on adult-friendly activities.