Getting motion sickness at Disney World is no fun. Getting a Dole Whip and watching the fireworks? Magical. Turning green because you went on the wrong ride? Not so magical.
Motion sickness can turn a vacation of a lifetime into a something you’ll remember for all the wrong reasons. But Guide2WDW is here to help! We want to give you the tools to know which rides you can ride, which rides to avoid, and the tips and tricks to help alleviate the symptoms of motion sickness.
This guide will tell you all the rides that can cause motion sickness at Disney World. We have breakdowns of every park, as well as in-depth guides for the most asked about rides, such as Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance and Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind.
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ToggleWhat causes motion sickness?
In a very general sense, motion sickness occurs when there’s an incongruity between what your brain perceives and what your body experiences. If you’re on a ride and your body moves in a way your brain wasn’t anticipating or couldn’t process, then you could feel sick. That’s why experts advise to look out to the horizon while riding on a boat: it helps orient you to the motion that you are experiencing.
Motion sickness is very subjective. Everyone has a different experience, and a different threshold for what makes them sick. You might be fine on a roller coaster, but screen-based rides could trigger you. Or vice versa. The only way to really know is to experience it for yourself. However, you probably already have a good idea of what types of rides you have issues with. This guide will help you know which rides fit into which categories.
What Disney World rides cause motion sickness?
In general, here are the types of rides and experiences that can cause motion sickness at Disney World:
- Spinning Rides, like the Tea Cups
- Roller Coasters – with drops, launches, banked turns, and inversions
- Motion Simulators – where your seat moves along synchronized to a movie screen
- Carousels – These don’t spin you in tight circles, like the tea cups, but they do move you around in a large circle
- 3D – Rides and movies with 3D glasses can give some guests issues
- Large Screens – Even without a motion simulation element, large movie screens can trigger motion sickness in some guests
- Darkness – Space Mountain isn’t a particularly fast or intense roller coaster, but because it’s in total darkness, it can induce motion sickness.
- Drop Rides -Certain rides will drop you faster than the speed of gravity, which causes you to have a floating sensation in your stomach. Tower of Terror and Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance are the only rides with drops, although Tower of Terror’s is much bigger and repeated.
For a breakdown of which rides fit into these categories, check out our in-depth motion sickness guides.
Motion Sickness Guides by Park
In these motion sickness guides, we break down every ride in each park and categorize them into the following categories:
- High Risk: These attractions have the biggest chance of making guests feel nausea. These rides will feature the most intense movement.
- Medium Risk: These rides have some sort of pronounced movement that could trigger motion sickness. Most guests will be find the intensity of these rides tolerable, but if you’re sensitive to the attraction type, you may want to skip it.
- Low Risk: The vast, vast majority of guests will have no problem on these rides, but there’s still a small chance it could make some guests feel woozy.
- (Almost) No Risk: Almost every guest should have no issues with the type of movement on these rides. However, I say this with a caveat that sometimes I get lightheaded standing up after tying my shoes, so I know that there’s still a chance some guests could feel sick from these.
Magic Kingdom Motion Sickness Guide High Risk Rides: Mad Tea Party
EPCOT Motion Sickness Guide High Risk Rides: Guardians of the Galaxy, Mission: SPACE Orange
Disney’s Hollywood Studios Motion Sickness Guide High Risk Rides: Tower of Terror, Rock ‘n’ Roller Coaster
Disney’s Animal Kingdom Motion Sickness Guide High Risk Rides: Expedition Everest.
Click the links above to see a complete list and categorization of every ride in each park.
Motion Sickness Guides by Ride
For certain rides, we’ve made in-depth guides on whether you can expect to get motion sickness on them. These break down exactly how intense the ride is, what aspects of the ride could cause motion sickness, and how to avoid feeling sick on each ride.
Will Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind give you motion sickness?
Will Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance give you motion sickness?
Will Soarin’ give you motion sickness?
Will Avatar Flight of Passage give you motion sickness?
What makes motion sickness worse?
There are a few things that can make motion sickness worse on Disney World rides:
- Riding on the back row of a roller coaster increases the feeling of intensity. This also applies to the front row of Expedition Everest, as there is a backwards drop through the dark (which is most intense from the front row).
- Staring at a fixed object while in motion. The “goat trick” on Big Thunder Mountain is where you stare at the goat as you pass by it in order to induce a feeling of dizziness and make the ride feel more intense. This same principle applies to really any ride.
- Screen distortion. Don’t sit on the end of the rows of Soarin’, as the distorted screen can make motion sickness worse.
- Going on an empty stomach. Many people make this mistake! There is a logic to thinking if you don’t have anything in your stomach, then you are less likely to feel nauseated or throw up after a ride. However, the opposite is true! Having something in your stomach will help reduce feelings of motion sickness, especially if it’s something bland and filling, like bread or a banana. Of course, you also don’t want to go on an intense ride immediately after eating a ton of food.
Tips to Avoid Motion Sickness at Disney World
- Request the right seat. – If you are worried about motion sickness, talk to the Cast Member loading the ride and mention On roller coasters that only go forward, request a seat toward the front. On roller coasters that move in different directions, request a seat in the middle. On Soarin’, request the middle section. On Star Tours, request a seat in the middle of the middle.
- Look at the track ahead of you. A good way to reduce motion sickness is to anticipate
- Eat a small meal 30-60 minutes before riding.
- Pack Dramamine, motion sickness bands, and ginger chews.
Dramamine – Less Drowsy
$3.77If you struggle with motion sickness, you should pack some Dramamine when you head to Disney. Take this at least an hour before going on the ride you're worried about. This is the less drowsy version, which can still cause some drowsiness.
Dramamine – Non-Drowsy
$5.88Another option for motion sickness if traditional Dramamine makes you too drowsy is the non-drowsy Dramamine. The active ingredient is ginger, which does work for some people in eliminating motion sickness.
Sea-Band Anti-Nausea Acupressure Wristband
$10.44The Sea-Band, and other motion sickness bands like it, helps relieve nausea through acupressure on your wrists. It's a good option if you do not want to consume any medicine, but it can also help in addition to those remedies if you're especially prone to motion sickness.
Ginger Chews by Dramamine
$9.21Ginger is a natural motion sickness reliever. Ginger chews, gum, lozenges and essential oil can help. I personally have had luck with these ginger chews.
Ginger Essential Oil
$8.99A motion sickness tip I learned the hard way on a really choppy boat ride: ginger essential oil can really help relieve the woozy feelings. So you don't overwhelm yourself with the smell of ginger, place a little on your wrist or the back of your hand, and then you can choose your moments to breathe in the ginger smells.
What to do if you experience motion sickness at Disney World
If you are feeling sick, find a bench outside and take a break. Sometimes just sitting still and breathing some fresh air can help the sensation of nausea pass.
Drinking water or having a small, bland snack like a banana can help if you don’t have enough in your stomach.
While Dramamine is best taken at least an hour before you go on a ride, taking one or a ginger chew after you’ve already started feeling nauseated can help.
If you are feeling sick and need supplies, go to the First Aid. They are well equipped to help you.
Magic Kingdom: The First Aid is located between Casey’s Corner and the Crystal Palace, to the left of Main Street as you get near the hub.
EPCOT’s First Aid is located near the Odyssey building, on the path between World Discovery and World Showcase.
The First Aid at Hollywood Studios is located immediately to the left of the entrance as soon as you get into the park.
Animal Kingdom: The First Aid is located near Creature Comforts (aka the Starbucks), right before the bridge to Africa from Discovery Island.
We want to hear from you!
Do you have any tips on avoiding motion sickness at Disney World? Let us know in the comments below!
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James Grosch
James is a lifelong Disney Parks fan. While at the parks, he loves finding new details, learning more about Disney World history, and taking pictures. His favorite WDW attractions include Rise of the Resistance, Spaceship Earth, and Tower of Terror.
James is a filmmaker and writer based in Atlanta, GA.