Best park for a partial day in July?

[HunterRose13]

I may have an opportunity to visit a park for a partial day (either 1PM-close or 5PM-close) and would like input on which park would be the best return on the short amount of time available. I am going to be careful to avoid park days with extra magic hours or Disney after hours events.

My thoughts so far are....
MK, the park has too much to try and cover the whole thing in such a short time frame. Focus on one or two lands(recommendations welcome) and work to maximize attractions in those.

HS, smaller park and if avoiding Toy Story Land there is the potential for hitting several attractions and walking the majority of the park.

AK, I am not a fan of this park, but would welcome input on what I might be missing.

Epcot, big park with a lot of ground to cover between attractions. Seems like lots of stuff on the front side is down for refurb. Illuminations is pretty epic. Is there something more that would make this a worthwhile park with limited time?

 

[KenHutch]

I know Magic Kingdom is very large and that's why you should consider it. When we go we easily use our 3 Fast Passes but have had a lot of luck getting good 4th,5th and even a 6th fast pass one at a time and if your alone you will probably find it even easier.

 

[Praying Colonel]

IMHO it depends on what you're wanting to do. I like EP in the evening for strolling around World Showcase and hanging out. I like MK in the evening for attractions we like to do that aren't headliners but we still enjoy (TTA, CoP, HoP, etc.)

 

[jade1]

AK, I am not a fan of this park, but would welcome input on what I might be missing.

Not sure what you meant about not a fan, but a couple weeks a go I took 2 coworkers to AK from 5PM to close.

They got tix for a conference they were in at CSR.

They loved it, but did score FoP that am (and later got EE and Safari) so that really helped. The beauty at night was their favorite part actually.

Also the trees provided a lot of shade for the hot evening hours.

 

[CartyGirls]

I would second above with AK. I think it is a lovely park specially if you can score some FP for the rides.

 

[StarSpeckledSky]

AK is my family’s favorite park and we particularly enjoy pandora at night.

 

[HunterRose13]

I will have to reconsider AK. It might be a better park in the evening. I have only gone there during the day and by mid afternoon have done most of what I wanted to do and was left wanting. With a shorter window of time it might be a better play.

 

[ember1205]

Not really sure what you're thinking you'll be able to do with only a partial day in ANY park. If you don't have FP+, you'll be lucky to tackle one attraction every two hours unless you go for the ones that aren't terribly popular and crowded.

If you go 1PM to close, you're also going to be there in the dead heat of the day which will slow you down, regardless of the park (although I feel like AK has more shaded areas).

AK has a lot to "just look at" and you can take that stuff in while you're meandering around. If somehow manage to get on Flight of Passage, that's the best attraction Disney has right now (IMHO). The Safari probably won't be great because the heat will have a lot of the animals hiding in the shade and late-day tends to be very slow as well.

Rafiki's is reopening in July, so you'd have that option if you go after that opens back up.

Expedition Everest is great if you love coasters and the Single Rider line gets you on in a reasonable amount of time (even if there are a few of you, you can typically at least all get on the same train).

See the shows!

 

[sponica]

I like fantasyland at night because a lot of the stroller brigade tends to clear out...or the international bar crawl in Epcot.

 

[Luxurious_Lumiere]

I think this really depends on what type of experiences you like best at Disney.

My first inclination is to say Hollywood Studios, because you could definitely get everything in the park done within your time frame. Slinky Dog fastpasses will likely be gone now, but you could still get one for one of the other Toy Story attractions. Then you can still have a leisurely paced day and accomplish most everything the park has to offer.

Animal Kingdom is similar to this: you wont get FP+ for Flight of Passage, but you can definitely check off the other major attractions in the time allotted without stressing. Pandora at night is gorgeous and its nice to see it transition from the daytime. It has a good mix of rides (Everest/Dinosaur) and shows (Nemo/Lion King).

One thing to keep in mind: Illuminations is ending forever at the end of summer. So this could be your last chance to catch it. EPCOT is too large to accomplish absolutely everything in a half day. But if you focus on your preferred experiences, it would make a nice trip. Spaceship Earth wont have long lines in the afternoon, so you could get that signature attraction done and a couple other rides, then have fun wandering World Showcase, having a nice dinner in one of the countries, and catch Illuminations for the last time.

Magic Kingdom would be similar to the above, you would have to really hone in on specific lands or attractions. I would wager that this might take a bit more planning than other parks to get what you want done.

Ultimately I think of it like this: If you want to go to a park and accomplish EVERYTHING in your half day, Id go with either Hollywood Studios or Animal Kingdom.
If you are able to focus on specific areas/experiences without getting disappointed that you wont go on every attraction, do Magic Kingdom or EPCOT.