Motion Sickness at Disney World: How to Avoid Motion Sensitivity

I love rides that spin and drop and zip me around. Especially at Disney World.

My husband on the other hand, gets motion sickness fairly quickly.

If you suffer from motion sensitivity you might want to plan your day accordingly. So which rides are prone to causing motion sickness? What can you do to prevent motion sickness on these rides? Here I'll talk about all of these things and more.

Come Prepared

If you know you are prone to motion sickness there are things you can pack in your park bag that can help if you suddenly find yourself queasy.

1. Tums or other antacids: If your sickness is due to eating before a ride or maybe having one too many Mickey Bars, having a few antacids on hand could be just the thing to calm your stomach.
2. Dramamine or other motion sickness medicine: If you are prone to severe motion sickness you might want to have this on hand. Be sure to read the label carefully so you don't take too much and find yourself accidentally light headed or drowsy. For younger children you may even want to ask your Dr before your trip.
3. Ginger Root Capsules: This is a great natural alternative to motion sickness medicines that you can buy. If you are worried about Dramamine making you feel loopy or drowsy you may want to try this instead.
4. Peppermints or other hard candies: If sucking on a hard candy helps calm your stomach, make sure you throw a handful in your bag before you head off to the parks
5. Ginger Ale, Pepsi, or 7-UP: If you know that one of these fizzy drinks helps calm your stomach, you may want to pack one in your bag. You could purchase one at the park, but if you suddenly find yourself feeling ill the last thing you'll want to do is stand in line at a food kiosk.

Know What Makes You Feel Sick Before You Go

Do certain types of rides cause you to feel ill, while others don't seem to bother you at all? It's important to know which rides might set you off.

Here are the rides that typically cause motion sickness so you can plan ahead:

Rides With Sharp Turns And High Speeds

These are rides that move quickly, have jerky motions, or move at high speeds. Here is where you'll see thrill rides, rides with big drops, and rides that might move you back and forth quickly.

Magic Kingdom

• Big Thunder Mountain Railroad: This ride is full of quick twists and turns
• Space Mountain: This fast moving ride not only jerks you around quite a bit, but you are also in the dark
• Splash Mountain: This ride mostly isn't bad. The majority of the ride is a slow moving boat. But the big drop at the end can definitely turn stomachs
• Seven Dwarfs Mine Train: This is a family friendly coaster that speeds up and slows down quickly

Epcot

• Mission: Space:You can pick your track on this ride, and the orange track is one you'll want to avoid
• Test Track:This ride will mostly jostle you around. It is a quick ride with sharp twists and turns

Hollywood Studios

• Rock 'n' Roller Coaster Featuring Aerosmith:This rollercoaster shoots you off like a slingshot. If quick motions like this make you queasy you may want to skip this one
• Twighlight Zone Tower of Terror:This ride will take you up the Hollywood Hotel in an elevator... and drop you. You rise and drop multiple times, and the rise is equally powerful as the fall
• Slinky Dog Dash:Be prepared for lots of jerks and turns, and even a slingshot type take off at one point

Animal Kingdom

• Dinosaur:This ride is incredibly bumpy and jerky
• Expedition Everest:This rollercoaster goes BACKWARDS for a portion of the ride, which can cause issues for some

Rides With 3-D Flight Simulation

These are rides at the park that have large screens that transport you to another place. Your seat will move along with the action on the screen as if you are really there.

Epcot

• Soarin':This ride has you flying in the air through various scenes playing on a large screen

Hollywood Studios

• Star Tours:This ride has you battling the First Order in a space ship. The ship moves as you watch the battle on screen in front of you

Animal Kingdom

• Flight of Passage:This ride has you flying through Pandora as it's portrayed on a large screen

Rides That Spin

While these rides usually aren't terribly intense, the spinning motion can often cause sickness.

Magic Kingdom

• Astro Orbitor:This ride is similar to the Dumbo ride. Not terribly fast, but a slower spinning motion. What makes this one different is that you are much higher up
• Prince Charming Regal Carrousel:While this is going to be slow moving and pretty tame, if you know spinning of any kind causes you sickness you might want to avoid
• Dumbo the Flying Elephant:This spinning ride isn't terribly fast, but the spinning of the elephants combined with the up and down motion can cause issues for some
• Mad Tea Party:Probably the most well known spinning ride in existence, this ride has you spinning quickly in your very own tea cups (sickness bags not included)
• Magic Carpets of Aladdin:This is a slower moving ride, but the combination of spinning and the rise and fall of your carpet can cause issues for some

Animal Kingdom

• Triceratops Spin:Another ride similar to Dumbo. Slow spinning in your very own dinosaur
• Kali River Rapids: There CAN be spinning on this ride. But it usually isn't terrible

Bottom Line

If you are prone to motion sickness, being prepared can make all of the difference. Come prepared with things that will help ease your stomach, plan around rides that might cause issues, and don't push yourself past your limits.

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See you at the parks,
-Julie

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