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Credit: DisneyIt’s no secret that several years spent socially distant or attending school or work remotely during the pandemic has had an effect on everyone.
Whether it’s for that reason, or technology, or a different generation, things are different. In a recent Reddit post, one user posed the question of whether kids at the Disney Parks are a big problem. Reddit user, u/UncleWaltSentMe, started the discussion by claiming that kids seem to have gotten “worse and worse”, with several others chiming in with mixed responses.
Some agreed that it was a kid problem. User u/dr3w_be4r recalls a recent experience they had,
“Don’t even get me started. I experienced a kid hit a waitress in the back with a bubble wand. She then proceeded to come to our table and start smashing one of chairs with it. After my wife put her hand on the chair to get her to stop, the girl started hitting my wife!
As others mentioned, it’s really the fault of the parents, who were completely oblivious to the entire situation.”
As mentioned above, most people actually argued that it was a parent problem, that parents didn’t pay close attention to their children or even outright ignored them.
One commenter, u/ClaimOk8737, responded,
“It is not the kids. The problem is the parents. They don’t watch their children anymore and they don’t discipline them. They want someone else to do it and then they want to yell when someone has an issue with said child.
A kid doesn’t know any better.”
Many commenters told stories of their own, watching unsupervised children playing in dangerous areas or hanging out of ride vehicles without being corrected by a parent or guardian. A handful of responses mentioned that even if the parents noticed their children doing something wrong or disruptive, many times they didn’t bother reprimanding them or even apologizing. Other users pointed out that kids are often hot, bored, and exhausted from long days of events planned by parents with more energy.
However, as u/pianomanzano, put it,
“Let’s be real, everyone is annoying in the parks. Entitled Karens, the drinkers at world showcase, parents who use strollers and people in ECVs who treat these devices as battering rams when going through crowds, crying kids, cheerleading/sports team teens that cut lines, influencers who take 15 million pictures while others are waiting to take their own, and the list goes on. Luckily, despite the exhaustive list they make up a small minority of park goers.”
Unfortunately, it’s probably a combination of several things. With so many children spending their formative years at home during a pandemic, unable to learn valuable social skills or mannerisms, it’s become a problem in other situations. Children haven’t learned how to regulate their emotions or communicate their desires easily, causing frustration all around. Parents are also often stressed about being on a long, hot, and expensive vacation. Their attention is elsewhere, grabbing Lightning Lane passes, making dining reservations, or checking wait times.
Even at the “most magical place on Earth,” people can still get stressed, bored, or distracted. Unfortunately, sometimes this has a way of becoming disruptive or dangerous. While Disney is marketed towards children, it doesn’t mean they get to do anything they want.
The opinions expressed in this article are written by Guests and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of Inside the Magic. No two Guest experiences are alike.Â