Animal Kingdom vx Epcot

[debchard]

Can you please give me some advice. We are going for the first 2 weeks of December and we usually visit MK and one other Disney park. We have been to MGM and are now torn between Epcot and AK. Which do you think would be best? We have 3 children ages 8, 7 and 4 and obviously want to keep them occupied. To be honest seeing animals as in going to a zoo does not get them too excited. Is AK still worth a visit or is that it's main attraction?

Thanks very much.

Debbie

 

[rob@rar.org.uk]

AK is our favourite Disney park in Orlando, and I would guess that your kids would find it a more interesting park than Epcot. AK is rich with detail and atmosphere and great attractions, as well as providing the opportunity to get up close to amazing animals. Kids will love the Lion King Show, Tarzan, the safari, boneyard, the Grandmother Willow thing, Bug's Life show, etc, etc. It is different to the thrill-a-minute experience that the Magic Kindom offers, but I think that is one of its strong points. We find it very rewarding to do AK at a slower pace and absord all of the little things that we normally rush past in the other theme parks.

Regards

Rob

nahtazu!

 

[mkingdon]

I'd tend to agree with Rob, and if you really *can't* get to all Disney parks this trip, I would say AK over EPCOT for your party.

My girls are 8 and 6, and although they enjoyed making the mask, the World Showcase tends to leave them a little bored.

AK is more "action packed" for the younger ones, especially now they have Primeval Whirl etc.

Don't dismiss it as "just a zoo", as that is like comparing Alton Towers to Magic KIngdom

Whatever you do, you WILL love it

Cheers

Craig

 

[Sue & Co.]

On our last trip ours were 9,7 & 7 and they preferred Epcot over AK. So much so that this time we are pencilling in 2 days at Epcot and one at AK. I guess all children are different.

Sue

 

[AlisonB]

Our 2 DDs (10 & 8 this trip, 7 & 5 last trip) preferred Epcot both times. It's their favourite Disney park!

 

[UKDEB]

Debbie,

Our girls were 7 and 5 when we first visited in 1992. They <i>loved</i> Epcot (although Future World much more so than World Showcase). There is a lot of interactive stuff in FW which kids love.

As they got older, they went through a phase of total boredom with World Showcase. Now they're 18 and 16 they're beginning to appreciate it more.

We've been visiting AK since it opened and we all love it. As Rob says it is rich with atmosphere and detail. As well as those attractions he mentions, Mickey's Jammin' Jungle Parade (assuming it's still showing) is the best of Disney's current offerings IMHO. It often shows quite late in the day (4pm), so you might want to arrive a little later in the day and stay around for that. Dinosaur is a fantastic ride, although maybe too intense for little ones, and Kali River Rapids is great fun too. I find Chester and Hester's Dinorama a tad incongruous, but your kids might enjoy it. AK is definitely so much more than a zoo. In fact you could easily occupy yourselves for a day without needing to see an animal.

I can't imagine visiting WDW and not doing all the parks. I think whichever you choose you won't be disappointed. There's always next time!

 

[mike230652]

Debbie

I agree with Craig re: AK. Much, much more than a zoo, it has great rides and great entertainment.

Our 2 kids ( 10 & 12 ) have asked that if we do WDW this visit can they miss Epcot out except for World Showcase. Personally I found Epcot past its sell-by date in a lot of areas and most things there are done much better in other parks ( Disney or otherwise ).

I'd always go for AK over Epcot...........mind you Epcot would always be the bottom of my list of Disney parks. It doesn't have the magic of MK, the brilliance of MGM-Disney and the huge variety of AK.

Just my opinion

mike

 

[debchard]

Thanks for your opinions everyone. I'm still as confused as ever!! The rest of the family are going to have a look at the websites and decide from there. Someone mentioned AK not being a 'thrill a minute' place and to be honest I think that's what my kids like - their favourite theme park is Islands of Adventure. In a way I'm tempted to stick to just MK this time, naturally with Sea World, IOS and Universal.

Thanks again for the food for thought. We only told the kids yesterday that we were going in 4 weeks time. My 4 yr old didn't know what to do with herself. She didn't smile, she looked quite shocked and then buried her head laughing in my 7 yr olds tummy!

Best wishes
Debbie

 

[Beejayjay]

Ok, another differing opinion coming !

I did AK once, wont bother again. Despite having the shows, rides and other attractions aside from the zoo aspect, the fact is the largest part of the park is the zoo, and you can go to a zoo anyday back home.

I didnt intend to go to AK for that reason, but a friend said I should so I decided to give it a go, and I wished I hadn't used a day of my holiday on it . Unless your young ones are especially keen on animals, I think you might be better off going with another option

Epcot isn't exactly thrill ride central, but I still think your kids will find plenty of stuff to keep them interested. The down side of it is that it can be a long tiring day if you take in all Epcot and WS have to offer.

 

[rob@rar.org.uk]

Originally posted by Beejayjay
Ok, another differing opinion coming !

I did AK once, wont bother again. Despite having the shows, rides and other attractions aside from the zoo aspect, the fact is the largest part of the park is the zoo, and you can go to a zoo anyday back home.

Boy, I wish we had zoos like AK back home. I'd be a happy bunny! While I agree that the animals are an integral part of many of the attractions, I'm not sure that you have to be a budding zoologist to enjoy AK for at least half a day.

If you have a hopper pass why not start the day with AK, then head across to Epcot for the late afternoon and evening. I think you get to see both parks at their best this way - AK when the animals are at their most active, and Epcot when FW's ride queues are shortest and rounding the day off with Illuminations. Bliss!

Regards

Rob

 

[Mike Jones]

..Rob, I agree about the hop option.. we like AK but we LOVE Epcot. We can now 'do' our fave things at AK by 1130-1200 ish (early start, folks, that's Early Start!) and we invariably move on to Epcot for the rest of the day.

Deb.. you must have a lot to fit into your 2 weeks.. can you not find time for all the parks? ..(here's where I get pilloried).. if we are struggling to choose between parks we usually bin MK.. I still need to go at least once per visit, but it is SOOOOOOO busy that we just soak up the vibes, do a couple of favourite rides and then escape to sanity at Epcot. (did I mention we quite like Epcot?)

Mike