- 6/19/2025
Not all family attractions are created equal! Join us as we explore the most unsettling rides that were meant to be kid-friendly but ended up causing childhood trauma instead. From creepy dolls and demonic aliens to terrifying animatronics and haunted elevators, these attractions definitely missed their mark.
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00:00It's a small world after all.
00:03No! No! Anything but that.
00:05Welcome to Ms. Mojo, and today we're counting down our picks for the most traumatizing children's rides at amusement parks.
00:12Boy, what an eerie place.
00:15Hey, this is scary.
00:18Number 10. The Cat in the Hat
00:20As if the movie about a disturbingly intrusive oversized cat wasn't horrifying enough for children,
00:26the eponymous ride at the Universal Islands of Adventure is even more unhinged.
00:31Children, this cat is currently in violation of 17 of your mother's rules.
00:36City morgue!
00:3718!
00:37It takes the chaos of the film and turns the dial up a few notches until it's borderline psychedelic.
00:44The restlessness that comes with losing control over one's surroundings can be excessive for kids who tend to feel overstimulated easily.
00:51To add to that horror, Thing 1 and Thing 2, with their dead animatronic eyes, are downright diabolical.
00:57It's a Thing thing you wouldn't understand.
01:00Okay, enough!
01:02You are quickly turning into one of my least favorite things.
01:05Besides all that, the dizzying effect of the bright colors in the dark can easily leave little ones feeling unsettled.
01:12That's one too many red flags for comfort.
01:14Where's the brakes?
01:16I'll get them!
01:16I think there's something wrong with your brakes.
01:21When's the last time you had them checked?
01:23Number 9!
01:24It's Tough to Be a Bug!
01:25Whose idea was this?
01:28Huh?
01:29Contrary to the wholesome moral lessons of a bug's life,
01:32the ride it inspired at Disney's Animal Kingdom was a menace.
01:36Not only did it leave kids screaming, but even grown adults couldn't fight the heebie-jeebies.
01:41What's the matter?
01:43You scared of grasshoppers?
01:45The five-dimensional nature of the attraction offered immersion by way of shockingly realistic effects.
01:52This included fake spiders descending from above,
01:54children being sprayed by what they probably thought was actual poison,
01:58and at one point, even feeling the bugs crawling under them.
02:02It is a waking hell for anyone, unless you're Robert Irwin.
02:06I think it's really cool for the conservation of these animals to have them at Australia Zoo,
02:12for people to appreciate them and love them.
02:14Number 8!
02:15The Twilight Zone Tower of Terror
02:17Hollywood Tower Hotel?
02:19I'm sorry.
02:20We don't have any vacancies.
02:22When will we?
02:24Let me check.
02:25We can't really blame this ride for being a fear fest when it has the word terror in its name.
02:33Still, it wouldn't be unusual for first-time visitors to walk into the Hollywood Tower Hotel
02:38at Disney's Hollywood Studios expecting a family-friendly experience.
02:42How scary could a Disney ride be, right?
02:45Well, they'd be in for a gut punch.
02:48If anyone needs help...
02:49It's you.
02:55Checking in.
02:57A malfunctioning elevator in any normal building is enough to bring on claustrophobia.
03:02Now, imagine that happening in a haunted hotel,
03:05where every drop unlocks a new level of horror.
03:08The thought alone sends chills down our spines.
03:11Young fans of the Twilight Zone clamoring to get on this ride
03:14might just come out of it
03:15not wanting to lay eyes on the show ever again.
03:18He called it!
03:19He really called it!
03:22What happened?
03:23There was...
03:24There was this green rain!
03:25I was coming down!
03:26And then there's singing!
03:28There was singing!
03:28And there was this guy with his head cut off!
03:31His head cut off!
03:33Number 7!
03:34Pinocchio's Daring Journey
03:35What's happened?
03:38What did he do to you?
03:39Well, he was mad!
03:41He said he was gonna push my face in everybody's eye!
03:43Yeah!
03:43And just cause I'm a gold brick,
03:46he's gonna chop me in the firewood!
03:48We get it.
03:49Pinocchio is supposed to be a cautionary tale for little children
03:51warning them against moral wrongs like lying and disobeying their elders.
03:55Why does it have to be so stressful, though?
03:57Give a bad boy in the throat
03:59and he'll soon make a check off of himself!
04:03Pinocchio's Daring Journey at Disneyland
04:05is just as uncomfortable,
04:07giving the most jarring scenes from the film
04:09an even greater dimension.
04:11The depiction of Pleasure Island
04:13is far more disturbing than the original 1940 film,
04:16even more so because of the shadowy atmosphere.
04:19The ride seals the deal with Monstro showing up,
04:22burning an unnerving image into the little retinas
04:24because of unsuspecting kiddos who will never be the same.
04:28We gotta get outta here!
04:36Woo hoo hoo!
04:37Come on Pinocchio!
04:38Don't wait for me!
04:39It's dark, but at least it's dry.
04:44I like dry, it's the dark part I'm having trouble with.
04:48On paper, this ride in Disney's Animal Kingdom appears harmless,
04:52even educational.
04:54However, the execution is where it all goes wrong.
04:57When they opened Disneyland in 1956,
05:00nothing worked.
05:01Yeah, but John, if the Pirates of the Caribbean breaks down,
05:04the pirates don't eat the tourists.
05:05The experience is far from kid-friendly,
05:08especially if the tots are easily spooked.
05:10The dinos appear predatory and pop out in the dark,
05:14which may be historically accurate,
05:16but make for an alarming jump scare nonetheless.
05:19The danger of a catastrophic asteroid hitting Earth looms large,
05:23and to a child's brain,
05:24the concept of running out of time might feel a little too real.
05:28Let's leave the existential crisis for their 20s, shall we?
05:31But why doesn't he let them accept their fate?
05:35I've accepted mine.
05:38And what is your fate?
05:40To die here.
05:43It's the way things are.
05:44Number 5.
05:46Snow White's Scary Adventures
05:48And now,
05:50a special thought of death
05:54for one so fair.
05:57Even Disney couldn't deny
05:58that there was something off about this attraction.
06:00So, in 2021,
06:02it was revamped into Snow White's Enchanted Wish.
06:05However,
06:06the damage had already been done
06:08to countless children
06:09who rode the previous version.
06:11They went in expecting a fairy tale,
06:13hoping to meet the titular princess,
06:15and left crying.
06:17I know the very moment
06:18that I peed a little.
06:21No.
06:21How old were you?
06:22I was a little.
06:23I mean, I was...
06:2410.
06:2510.
06:28All right, I was 15.
06:29The frightening look of the evil queen
06:31as she appeared out of thin air
06:33must have made their hearts sink.
06:35However,
06:35the worst part
06:36had to be
06:37the needlessly realistic skeletons.
06:39The so-called adventure
06:40was not just scary,
06:42but chilling.
06:43Although well-made,
06:45this ride should never
06:46have had children on board.
06:47I have to check.
06:49I'll crush your bones!
06:52No.
06:534.
06:54Mr. Toad's Wild Ride
06:55Come along,
06:56hop up here,
06:57and we'll go for a jolly ride.
06:59The open road,
07:00the dusty highway.
07:02Come!
07:03I'll show you the world!
07:05Travel!
07:06Change!
07:07Excitement!
07:08Walt Disney picked this ride
07:10based on The Wind in the Willows
07:11as an alternative
07:12to a similarly-themed
07:14rollercoaster at Fantasyland.
07:15In it,
07:16Mr. Toad is charged
07:17for his rash driving,
07:19gets hit by a train,
07:20and is sent to hell.
07:21It isn't.
07:22He hasn't.
07:24It is.
07:24And he has.
07:25How Disney concluded
07:26that giving toddlers
07:27a taste of the underworld
07:29would be a fitting grand finale
07:30to this journey
07:31is beyond us.
07:32It wasn't even in the original
07:33Disney movie
07:34that inspired the ride.
07:36What is even more baffling, though,
07:37is that the hellscape
07:38has remained an unchanging part
07:40of this attraction
07:41throughout its several versions.
07:43Now that's a Disney conspiracy theory
07:45for another video.
07:46We'll us.
07:47Then he was
07:48to the best of your knowledge
07:49without prudence.
07:51We'll us.
07:52That is all.
07:54Gentlemen of the jury,
07:56the crown rests.
07:58Number 3.
07:59The Haunted Mansion.
08:00Dad?
08:01Yes, ma'am.
08:02I see dead people.
08:03Not all children are the same.
08:05Of course,
08:06some enjoy horror.
08:07The Haunted Mansion
08:08could have been
08:09an ideal Disneyland ride
08:10for such brave little ones
08:12if it had lived up
08:13to its promise
08:13of being age-appropriate.
08:15Unfortunately,
08:16the fear factor
08:17is just not tame enough
08:18for kids to come out
08:19mentally unscathed.
08:21The stretching room
08:21gets creepier
08:22by the second
08:23until the ghost host
08:24is revealed
08:25to have taken his own life.
08:26Such imagery
08:27has no business
08:28being in a kid's ride
08:29and adds little
08:30to the experience,
08:32besides acting as a trigger
08:33even for adults.
08:34As the ride carries on,
08:36it does get slightly
08:37less shocking,
08:38but we still wouldn't
08:39recommend this
08:40for tiny humans.
08:49Number 2.
08:51Extra-Terrestrial
08:52Alien Encounter.
09:03Outer Space
09:04never fails
09:04to capture human fascination,
09:06regardless of age,
09:08so an alien-themed ride
09:09at Magic Kingdom
09:10had the potential
09:11to be the most popular.
09:12In reality, though,
09:14it was fated for infamy.
09:15The extra-Terrestrial
09:17Alien Encounter,
09:18conceived with the help
09:19of none other
09:20than George Lucas,
09:21probably left young guests
09:23shaking in their little boots.
09:25A demonic alien
09:26on a rampage
09:27is no joke.
09:28Nah, this is Disney.
09:29There couldn't be
09:30a real alien inside.
09:31I'm told they're doing
09:32some testing
09:33and teletransportation
09:34through space.
09:36Maybe I'll get sent to Mars.
09:37The ride was dark,
09:38intense,
09:39and way too believable,
09:41especially with its use
09:42of practical effects
09:43and spatial audio,
09:45which gave the illusion
09:46of a close encounter
09:47with the creature.
09:48In the 90s,
09:49when the ride opened,
09:50such technology
09:51was new enough
09:52to cause genuine panic
09:53and paranoia
09:54among visitors.
09:55Ultimately,
09:56catering to the wrong crowd
09:58was its undoing.
09:59Joan, any idea
10:00where I can get
10:01a new sweater?
10:03Hey, stop it!
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10:20Number 1.
10:22It's a Small World.
10:23If there's anything
10:31we've learned
10:31from horror movies,
10:32it is to not trust dolls.
10:35So adults might
10:35naturally steer clear
10:37of this ride.
10:38However,
10:38kids wanting to experience
10:40the diverse cultures
10:41of the world
10:41and the happiest place
10:43on Earth
10:43don't know better.
10:44Since they were opened,
10:467 million people
10:47have enjoyed them.
10:49So we'd like for you
10:50to see and enjoy them too.
10:52It's a Small World
10:53relies heavily
10:53on its audio animatronics.
10:56Unless a child
10:57has a dislike for dolls,
10:58it's a safe ride
10:59to hop on.
11:00However,
11:01the large number of them
11:02gets overwhelming fast.
11:04Besides,
11:05park goers often complain
11:06about the ride acting up
11:08and pausing abruptly,
11:09while the dolls
11:10continue moving
11:11due to the attraction's
11:12mechanics.
11:13Now that's freaky,
11:14especially during nighttime.
11:16Instead of Chucky
11:17or Annabelle,
11:18this ride might have been
11:19the origin of several
11:20children's fear of dolls.
11:21Come on,
11:22let's get on board.
11:23You will enjoy it.
11:25Did any of these rides
11:26traumatize you as a child?
11:27Tell us your stories
11:28in the comments section.
11:30How are you doing?
11:31Get me out of here!
11:34Oh, crazy.
11:35It's just a ride!
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