AK - must do???

[FLAgirl73]

Planning a four day trip to WDW with no hopper passes and wondering if AK will be exciting enough to spend an entire day on. My boys will be almost 8 and almost 4 for this trip. Worth it?

 

[LuvBug1977]

In my opinion... I would skip AK if I only had 4 days... My son is 7 and daughter is 5. They didn't enjoy much at AK, and complained about being hot the whole time.

 

[JoShan1719]

I'm the complete opposite! Last September we only spent one day and we wished we had more time. I think you may have to just judge it when you get there.

 

[MickeyHereWeCome!]

Our kids are 12, 9, 6 and 4, and AK is their favorite park! My two little ones could ride the safari all day! The older two love EE, PW, KRR... Our last park day for our last trip, we let the kids decide which park we would hit. They all decided, unanimously (which never happens) that it would be AK.

 

[ratlenhum]

We love it and usually spend one full day, then park hop over either before or after a water park on a second day. My son loves it there. We do the safari several times because you see different animals at different times of the day. Rafiki's Planet Watch is a favorite and takes time, we love the shows, and could probably spend 2 full days there if we had the time.

 

[Lisa loves Pooh]

When it originally opened, I might have suggested it to be a pass...

But it is such a wonderful park to hit for at least one day. The shows are great, the rides are great, the animals are great. And to quote an old ad campaign, it's "Nat-a-zu" (however they spelled it...but it isn't a zoo!)

 

[lovndisney]

I personally like AK...It really does not require an entire day. It's a shame you don't have the hopper pass, you could do that in the am and Epcot later. I think you really have to look at the attractions with the kids and see which ones they really want to do. Obviously MK and HS are not to be missed.

Good luck with your decision.

 

[kehlyrsmom]

Our kids now ages 10 & 8 really enjoy AK but there is little that they really enjoy at HS. Usually we only spend a half day at HS, my kids are also on the autism spectrum and have sensory issues, so loud noises bother them greatly as well as 3D. So we have not taken them to any of the Stunt shows at HS which does not leave much there to see.

AK has the Safari, they both love the Lion King Show and Little Mermaid. We have always been able to spend an entire day at AK, but the park does close early so it may be a good day for you to go to DTD in the evening.

 

[MSSANDRA]

We too love AK. I would consider skipping HS instead and have two days at MK. They will love a lot at AK. The safari ride is great, Kali River ride is great too. The Lion King is our favorite show at WDW. The 8, and maybe the 4 can do Mt Everest and that is a very cool ride. The parade is good and it is fun to just walk around this park. The donald duck character meal is good as well as Rain Forest Cafe.

 

[drinkme]

We usually go to AK on our departure day. We get a late flight home. On the eve of our departure, I make sure everything is mostly packed. We wake up the next day and store our luggage at the resort's luggage services, then head to AK.

 

[perfectparanoia]

We go on the safari a lot. Kali River Rapids. Festival of the Lion King is a must see. As is the Finding Nemo musical. I love the bird show, Flights of Wonder.

And, of course, the animal trails and all the people who are just waiting to talk about the animals.

(I also love Expedition Everest but not sure if your kids will be brave enough.)

We are going for 7 park days and spending two days at MK, two at AK, one at MGM and one at EPCOT (last day is a 'favourite' day, we vote and will probably end up back at MK.

We love AK! It's like a tropical paradise with animals and Disney quality attractions.

 

[RDM83]

We just got back from our first trip to Disney World one week ago, and let me just say that we absolutely loved animal kingdom! We thought it would be a short day, but we got there at rope drop and left when the park closed and STILL left tons to do behind. We loved it!

 

[MyMagicKingdom]

Animal Kingdom is tied (with MK) for my favorite park!! Granted I'm not 7, but my brother really enjoyed when we went a few years ago and he was 11. Its awesome there, I think there's a lot to do and see. The Festival of the Lion King is phenomenal and the safari is amazing and EE of course!! I'd definitely recommend it, but as one PP said, maybe you should kind of go with the flow and decided more or less once you're there. Either way, have fun!!!!

 

[sk8jdgca]

My kids are also 4 years apart- last time we went they were 6 and 10- they love AK. They had a choice of the park o go to on the last day and they chose AK. HS is our least favorite park

 

[FLAgirl73]

Hmmmm.....decisions, decisions. Now I'm thinking this might be a great park after all!
I didn't want to go with the hopper passes because that will be an additional $200+, and since we live in Florida (and in fact are going down for a day trip to the MK just a couple months before our four day trip) I don't think it's necessary for us.
I was wondering about DHS, too, but thinking that the playhouse Disney would be fun as well as the Star Wars interactive show.
Actually, now I'm thinking maybe we should leave Epcot for when they're older and just hit MK, AK, and DHS.
Wow. DISNEY INDECISION.

 

[ms_missy66]

With kids ages 8 and 4, skip the hoppers. A full day in one park will wipe them out and if you get to another park in a day, it'll be just for a short amount of time.

As far as to AK or not to AK...AK. It's a great park with lots to do and fantastic animals. If I was going to skip one, it would be DHS. We tend to spend half days in that park.

Have a great trip!

 

[DanG07]

If you live in FL, maybe you should consider an AP, as it would automatically get you the hopper option and free parking. If you are planning on returning within 12 months of this trip, AP's are definitely worth it. I would recommend getting a Disney Visa card and charging the AP, as I believe (although I am not 100% positive) that you get 6 months interest-free to pay off your Disney tickets. As an added bonus, AP holders get all sorts of discounts on food, merchandise and rooms. Last time we were at WDW in February, Disney had a 20% discount for all of its AP holders at most of its stores, even the ones in the parks.

As for your original question, it depends on your sons' preferences, but I can tell you that my son who just turned 8, loves AK. Have a great trip!

 

[Greenfield1984]

I'm going to agree with a lot of the people here and say DHS would be the one to skip instead of AK. Now, my daughter is much younger than your kids (she was 2 on our last trip) but the animals, the rides and the shows (lion king and nemo!) are fantastic at AK and she loved it there. I see you're now considering skipping Epcot, but again my DD really loved the rides and all the shows around the world at Epcot. It all depends on what your kids like. If your 8 year old enjoys thrill rides, then don't skip DHS (TOT and RNR are fun) but of course AK has expedition everest too...oh choices, choices. I'd hate to have to leave one park out, but for our family it would be DHS.

 

[khkabowski]

We went in September with 7 children ages 1 through 8. They were not at all interested in AK. It was extremely crowded and hot. There wasn't a lot of shade. The kids were too short to go on most of the rides. I have to admit that there are a few really nice shows. The kids loved DHS. We actually went there for two days. We are headed back to Disney in two weeks, and we are going to skip AK this time around. We are just not impressed, but I guess everyone has their own opinion.

 

[2binak]

We love AK too! I think the park is what you make of it. If you're only wanting to go on rides, you won't like it. If your kids are really into animals, they will probably love it. We never have trouble finding shade or places to cool off at AK and we always find plenty to do to fill a day. We also find that DHS is the park to skip.