California native, lots of DL trips, first time in WDW, which park?

[Loveofgage]

Hi all,
We are Disneyland pros, been there more times than we can count. In two weeks we will be boarding a plane for Orlando for our first Disney Cruise. Prior to the cruise we have two days...one we have to do the Wizarding World of Harry Potter at Universal....the next day we want to do WDW. I'm having a hard time choosing which park....is Magic Kingdom different enough from Disneyland to make it worth it? Is Animal Kingdom a better bet? Any thoughts appreciated. Thanks-Megan

 

[Marionnette]

Hi all,
We are Disneyland pros, been there more times than we can count. In two weeks we will be boarding a plane for Orlando for our first Disney Cruise. Prior to the cruise we have two days...one we have to do the Wizarding World of Harry Potter at Universal....the next day we want to do WDW. I'm having a hard time choosing which park....is Magic Kingdom different enough from Disneyland to make it worth it? Is Animal Kingdom a better bet? Any thoughts appreciated. Thanks-Megan

Asking this question is like asking whether chocolate or vanilla ice cream is better. Some people will prefer the chocolate, others will choose vanilla, there will be some who think you should do another flavor and a few who will tell you to get pie instead.

Most people who do only 1 day in Disney World will choose the MK. It is different enough from DLR to be worth it to spend the day there. If you like to compare and contrast parks, then you will be interested in the ways that they have done things differently from Walt's original creation. The new Fantasyland expansion is a big reason to visit the MK.

Of the 4 Disney World parks, AK is my least favorite and the one in which I spend the least amount of time. But if you love animals and want something completely different from your DLR experience, this could be the park for you. It does close earlier than the other parks, so make sure that you get there early. It can be difficult to fit in all of the shows, the parade and the headline attractions if you don't.

 

[momofrrr]

If I only had one day I would hit the highlights at EPCOT. The "highlights" in the other parks are either at DL or CA. AK is my least favorite as well so I don't think I would budget any time for it.

 

[ChitownFamily]

I would second epcot, but as the previous poster- everyone will have a different answer.
Have fun at Harry Potter! Will you be doing a park to park universal ticket. If crowds are low enough, & add in a little commando- you might be able to do the highlights of both parks in 1 day.

 

[Loveofgage]

Thanks all. Less than a week to go and still haven't decided and sure enough I am starting to think of doing MK for the comparison. We may end up flipping a coin that day.

We have base single park tix for universal, so will be solely at the islands.
Thanks again.

 

[laceemouse]

Another vote for Epcot.

 

[mm1971]

Our personal favorite park is EPCOT. I have this nagging thought though...If you have never been and want to experience the Disney touch, MK is where you want to go. The rides are a little different than DL and the New Fantasy Land is now open so I would suggest there. I'm not sure you could go wrong either way.

 

[bumbershoot]

Asking this question is like asking whether chocolate or vanilla ice cream is better. Some people will prefer the chocolate, others will choose vanilla, there will be some who think you should do another flavor and a few who will tell you to get pie instead.

I recommend the pie. Upgrade the Universal ticket to a two-day, and enjoy yourself there!


Take a future trip and give yourself enough time to properly enjoy WDW. One day is just going to be bewildering and full of jet lag. (and MK will nearly make you dizzy, since it's similar but not quite the same, and can get really confusing...just the lack of New Orleans Square messes with my jet lagged head!)

Of course, if you like Universal as much as we do, you'll have upgraded the 2-day ticket into an AP, and the two places will still be warring for your attention.



ETA....if you really must do WDW, I say Epcot. Buy some jewelry in Mexico, get a cloudberry horn or school bread in Norway, if you indulge in adult beverages enjoy a Grand Marnier slushie in France (and by then it might be time for a chocolate croissant as well). See the sights that are entirely different from DL and DCA.

 

[bopper]

Book a Universal hotel for the night between the two days...go to both Universal parks with front of the line access!

If you want to do Disney, i would choose another of the parks and I would say Epcot.

 

[Loveofgage]

So, we had our trip and the birthday boy decided we would do epcot and we loved it. I loved the world showcase and found my new perfume there and the boys had a blast doing Agent P world showcase, the Perry the platypus adventure. Test track and mission space were big hits too. We've been back less than two weeks and can't wait to do another cruise and epcot. Thanks for all the advice

 

[RodBelding]

I'm going to jump on the bandwagon and say Epcot. I think World Showcase is unique and awesome enough to warrant the trip.

 

[101disneyfan]

Personally, any one-day trip to WDW, I would go to the Disney Studios Theme Park, as I feel that it has the most variety: Thrill rides, classic attractions, parades, live shows, nightlife, tram tours, Disney characters, Pixar, Star Wars, The Muppets, Disney Channel, Playhouse Disney... Not to mention, it is the easiest to fit into one day.

Just my opinion.
I'll be there for our March 2013 trip to Universal Studios, Islands of Adventure, and the Disney Studios!

 

[3BoysRDisneyFreaks]

So, we had our trip and the birthday boy decided we would do epcot and we loved it. I loved the world showcase and found my new perfume there and the boys had a blast doing Agent P world showcase, the Perry the platypus adventure. Test track and mission space were big hits too. We've been back less than two weeks and can't wait to do another cruise and epcot. Thanks for all the advice

Good choice on epcot. They don't have anything that dl has.

Sarah

 

[Timandalicia]

Hi all,
We are Disneyland pros, been there more times than we can count. In two weeks we will be boarding a plane for Orlando for our first Disney Cruise. Prior to the cruise we have two days...one we have to do the Wizarding World of Harry Potter at Universal....the next day we want to do WDW. I'm having a hard time choosing which park....is Magic Kingdom different enough from Disneyland to make it worth it? Is Animal Kingdom a better bet? Any thoughts appreciated. Thanks-Megan

This is very easy. I'm at DL right now, and am a wdw pro. Go to Epcot. Being a DL'er you appreciate Walt's dream at a deep level and need to see what was next. I'm so tired of people saying not to compare Disneyland with Magic Kingdom. They are enough the same that if you have one shot at this you should go to Epcot. I even dare to say, Hollywood studios is enough like California Adventure to not go there. Epcot is your answer.

 

[wallawallakids]

Hi all,
We are Disneyland pros, been there more times than we can count. In two weeks we will be boarding a plane for Orlando for our first Disney Cruise. Prior to the cruise we have two days...one we have to do the Wizarding World of Harry Potter at Universal....the next day we want to do WDW. I'm having a hard time choosing which park....is Magic Kingdom different enough from Disneyland to make it worth it? Is Animal Kingdom a better bet? Any thoughts appreciated. Thanks-Megan

Hi!! I was in your position a year ago. We lived in the Pacific NW until last year and had been to DL many times but never to WDW. We went for the first time last May. I LOVE DL and IMO it is hard to beat. The MK in WDW has much fewer rides than DL and it is much more spread out. If I only had one day there I would choose Epcot because it is so much different than anything in DL. It was actually our favorite park in WDW which I wasn't expecting at all. There is some great food plus Soaring and Mission space for rides. You can easily spend the day walking around the countries and shops. Plus some of the best food can be found in Epcot. That makes it worthwhile right there. The food is superior to that in DL. My second suggestion would be to try DHS. It reminds me of DCA but DCA still wins IMO! However, there are some fun rides there and shows. It is a fun place to hang out. Jedi training academy, Tower of Terror, Star Tours and Toy Story Mania are there. Plus some great ones that are not in DL. Also you can watch Fantasmic! there. To be fair we went during Star Wars weekend so it was insane and hard to really appreciate all that was offered at DHS. But I did like it and plan on spending a lot of time there on our next visit. We are going to DL this year because we just love it so much but plan on visiting WDW again in 2014. Have a great trip. It is really fun to see the differences and be able to visit both parks. WDW is so huge it is amazing. Plus they both offer such different experiences. I can see why WDW has some huge fans. If I hadn't grown up on DL, I think I would be one of those fans too. DL just has so many memories for our family I think it sways the vote.

 

[Lisa71]

We are California natives too and our kids loved Epcot (our fave too) and AK. Disneyland is too similar to MK to be worth your one day. Our last trip was a week and the kids voted out MK for more Epcot time and because the new fantasyland was not done. Hoping to be back soon for longer but do Epcot!!

 

[DSNY4ever]

I recommend the pie. Upgrade the Universal ticket to a two-day, and enjoy yourself there!


Take a future trip and give yourself enough time to properly enjoy WDW. One day is just going to be bewildering and full of jet lag. (and MK will nearly make you dizzy, since it's similar but not quite the same, and can get really confusing...just the lack of New Orleans Square messes with my jet lagged head!)

Of course, if you like Universal as much as we do, you'll have upgraded the 2-day ticket into an AP, and the two places will still be warring for your attention.



ETA....if you really must do WDW, I say Epcot. Buy some jewelry in Mexico, get a cloudberry horn or school bread in Norway, if you indulge in adult beverages enjoy a Grand Marnier slushie in France (and by then it might be time for a chocolate croissant as well). See the sights that are entirely different from DL and DCA.

This is probably good advice. 2 days would give you such a small glimpse into WDW, I would save it for a future trip when you can do it right. If you are going though, do Animal Kingdom and Epcot (the most different from Disneyland).