Mother Documents A 'Realistic' Day At Disneyland With Her Toddlers That Has People Wondering If The Theme Park Really Is For Kids
The "happiest" place on Earth is home to some of the most epic toddler meltdowns.
@chrys_marie1 / TikTok Disney theme parks are dubbed “the happiest place on Earth,” especially for young children and their families. However, when we think about it, the reality may be anything but when you consider the crippling heat, endless walking, missed naptimes and hours-long lines to meet characters and get on attractions.
One mother documented the brutally honest reality of taking young children to Disney, and we are living for her unapologetic bluntness.
The mother's day with two young children at Disneyland has her calling it ‘the unhappiest place on Earth.’
Chrys Marie, a mother of a four-year-old daughter and three-year-old son and pregnant with her third child, decided to take her family for a fun day at Disneyland in California. However, their day quickly turned into a relatable disaster.
“Let’s go to the happiest [expletive] show on Earth,” Marie says in a TikTok video depicting their day that has gained over 3 million views. Upon arriving at the park, Marie and her husband were told by security that the wagon they brought to put their children in was not allowed into the park. They were allowed to take it back to their car and swap it out for a stroller or the security team would “kindly dispose of it.”
Once they got into the park, the summer heat quickly became unbearable, and Marie ended up purchasing $75 fans for her children.
“And surely, some kid had to use the restroom, which was a 25-minute line,” she says.
Two hours after arriving at the park, the family finally got on their first ride after waiting in line for 55 minutes.
After the ride was over, the children got “bored” so Marie and her husband bought them $12 popsicle sticks. After the snack break, they ran into Mickey Mouse, but Marie says that her daughter was outraged since she wanted Minnie Mouse instead.
While waiting 70 minutes in line for their next ride, Marie’s son woke up from a nap and was less than impressed they were in a line again, with his mother pointing out that he’d “rather be watching his iPad.”
The next ride on the spinning teacups was no better since his dad “made him get on the [expletive] pink teacup cause sister always gets what she wants.” Upon exiting the ride, Marie warns other parents that their children will likely beg for a $62 specialty Mickey-shaped balloon inside of another balloon.
After two rides and five hours later, Marie and her family decided to get some food, but first, they had to park their stroller half a block away in a stroller parking area. “You know, the stroller they never want to [expletive] sit in anyway,” Marie points out.
Since most of the restaurants had long wait times, Marie wound up buying her children a bag of candy corn while they watched a character parade, which her son then dropped and was eating straight off the ground. Eventually, Marie was able to find a restaurant that “didn’t have a seven-hour wait,” where her son vomited on the ground, the children did not touch the dinner they paid for, and they played “rock-paper-scissors” and had “the most fun they had all damn day.”
Ironically, the mother says that the 10-minute loud fireworks show at the end of the night was “the most peaceful part of the day.”
However, the day would not be complete unless one of the kids asked for a $400 lightsaber from Star Wars Land upon leaving the park. “And that’s a wrap on the most unhappiest f–king place on Earth!” Marie says, noting in her video’s caption that the baby in her stomach was crying too.
Other parents could not help but hilariously relate to Marie’s Disney experience with her young children.
“It’s such a painful experience! But we force ourselves to say we enjoyed it because we spent so much money!” one TikTok user commented.
“Two rides in five hours… sounds about accurate,” another user wrote.
Others shared that they were much happier going to the Disney parks solo and child-free.
The mom's experience highlights elements of kid-oriented theme parks that aren't actually kid-friendly.
Although the Disney theme parks are marketed toward young children, many people (especially parents) are questioning if a trip to the parks will push them past their limits into a meltdown.
While it is surely exciting for children to catch a glimpse of their favorite Disney characters in person and ride “It’s A Small World,” they are brief moments in an entire day where the temperatures are well in the 80s, the lines wrap around the entire park, the food costs an arm and a leg, and the exhaustion of it all will surely result in a meltdown where they end up screaming to go home instead.
Mickey Mouse won’t fix missed naps, overstimulation, and sweat-soaked clothing.
This does not necessarily mean that parents should never take their children to Disney. It just may be a better idea to wait until they’ve reached an age where they no longer rely on a stroller, naptime, and constant snacking to make it through the day and an age where they will be able to remember and appreciate all of the magical details.
Megan Quinn is a writer at YourTango who covers entertainment and news, self, love, and relationships.