Better Half-Day Park: DHS or Epcot?

[NaptownMVP]

Thoughts?

 

[BrianL]

Well, it depends on what you like. Epcot certainly has "more" when you include World Showcase, but World Showcase may not appeal to everybody. Do you like shows or rides more. HS has a lot of shows that take a good chunk of the time to see them all. HS also has two of the bigger thrill rides in Tower of Terror and Rock-n Roller Coaster.

Also, is this a half-day morning or an half-day evening? There it would depend on what night time experiences you prefer.

Anyway, my gut says HS, but it is really going to vary person to person.

 

[Kkb0517]

Thoughts?

As in better one to spend only a half day and you'd spend a full day at the other?

It's really hard dhs has some good shows that make it hard to do a half day, Epcot has the big three rides that are best to hit first thing (and fp one) and all of world showcase

 

[shanew21]

Well, it depends on what you like. Epcot certainly has "more" when you include World Showcase, but World Showcase may not appeal to everybody. Do you like shows or rides more. HS has a lot of shows that take a good chunk of the time to see them all. HS also has two of the bigger thrill rides in Tower of Terror and Rock-n Roller Coaster.

Also, is this a half-day morning or an half-day evening? There it would depend on what night time experiences you prefer.

Anyway, my gut says HS, but it is really going to vary person to person.

Perfect answer. Personally we treat HS as a quarter to half day park and Epcot as a half to three quarter day park.

At HS you canfastpass 3 out of the 5 major rides and if you rope drop it you can ride the other 2 with zero wait.

 

[JodyLynC]

HS is a half day park for us. We love Epcot and exploring World Showcase. Epcot is easily a 1 1/2 to 2 day park for us.

 

[NaptownMVP]

Yeah. We have a three day Park Hopper pass. When we originally booked we weren't going to go to AK, but now GF has to go see Avatar World, so we're looking to split off a day. I'm totally interested in Epcot and could spend all day there, but she and the kids seems to want to do everything at DHS (and I wouldn't be unhappy there, either). I guess that because I know DHS has a lot stuff under construction, is there enough to warrant an entire day there? Then again maybe we do half days in BOTH Epcot and DHS and then a full day in AK. Ugh, I can't decide, and ADRs open Sunday!

The planning part of this is fun, at times, but trying to min/max all the possible combinations of things to do to make sure the money spent is worth it is stressful!

 

[Praying Colonel]

Thoughts?

My thoughts are I'm getting trolled.

EP may be a half day park for some, but we spend 2 full days there each trip.

 

[StraightToDumbo]

If it's your only time during your trip in that park, DHS all the way. With all the construction, it's pretty easy to half-day it.

 

[luvmy2boyzz]

We have 4 day park hoppers and plan to do 1/2 day in the morning at Epcot to do Soarin and Test Track at rope drop. I scheduled our fast passes at Animal Kingdom for the evening that day. The next day I scheduled our fast passes at Hollywood studios in the early afternoon. (will get there at rope drop for Toy story) then we plan to go to Epcot in the evening and do the World Showcase. My son just turned 21 and wants to do a drink in every country! LOL Not sure I will be able to keep up! We haven't been to Epcot in years because it never appealed to us until now. For us a half day at Hollywood Studios is enough since we only do the thrill rides. We may return one other day in am just to do Toy Story as it's one of our fav's.

 

[Hopefully]

Yeah. We have a three day Park Hopper pass. When we originally booked we weren't going to go to AK, but now GF has to go see Avatar World, so we're looking to split off a day. I'm totally interested in Epcot and could spend all day there, but she and the kids seems to want to do everything at DHS (and I wouldn't be unhappy there, either). I guess that because I know DHS has a lot stuff under construction, is there enough to warrant an entire day there? Then again maybe we do half days in BOTH Epcot and DHS and then a full day in AK. Ugh, I can't decide, and ADRs open Sunday!

The planning part of this is fun, at times, but trying to min/max all the possible combinations of things to do to make sure the money spent is worth it is stressful!

Just as an FYI. It is NOT Avatar World . It is "Pandora - the World of Avatar". Epcot to us is a 2-3 day park. DHS IS A 1/2 day park

 

[BrianL]

Yeah. We have a three day Park Hopper pass. When we originally booked we weren't going to go to AK, but now GF has to go see Avatar World, so we're looking to split off a day. I'm totally interested in Epcot and could spend all day there, but she and the kids seems to want to do everything at DHS (and I wouldn't be unhappy there, either). I guess that because I know DHS has a lot stuff under construction, is there enough to warrant an entire day there? Then again maybe we do half days in BOTH Epcot and DHS and then a full day in AK. Ugh, I can't decide, and ADRs open Sunday!

The planning part of this is fun, at times, but trying to min/max all the possible combinations of things to do to make sure the money spent is worth it is stressful!

Honestly, the construction actually closed very little at HS. We have essentially lost the Backlot Tour, Lights, Motors, Action! Stunt Show, and The Honey I Shrunk the Kids playground. The space is more constrained, but there are still many attractions open (or new ones replacing some that left - unrealted to the construction). Consider that they added the Star Wars Shows and the new Pixar Music show, and HS is a pretty healthy park. Actually, once Toy Story and Star Wars open, it's gonna be phenomonal!

 

[Takket]

Thoughts?

are you in disney for many days or just one? if many days, use your half day at studios. there honestly isn't a lot to do there with half the park closed for construction. if you are only there for one day, i'd go to Epcot.

 

[Spacecow]

Yeah. We have a three day Park Hopper pass. When we originally booked we weren't going to go to AK, but now GF has to go see Avatar World, so we're looking to split off a day. I'm totally interested in Epcot and could spend all day there, but she and the kids seems to want to do everything at DHS (and I wouldn't be unhappy there, either). I guess that because I know DHS has a lot stuff under construction, is there enough to warrant an entire day there? Then again maybe we do half days in BOTH Epcot and DHS and then a full day in AK. Ugh, I can't decide, and ADRs open Sunday!

The planning part of this is fun, at times, but trying to min/max all the possible combinations of things to do to make sure the money spent is worth it is stressful!

In reply to the bolded: I think doing a half day at DHS and then the other half of the day at Epcot could work. DHS is barely a half day park imo, especially if you get there at rope drop and aren't too interested in seeing all the shows (we're not really show people and just prefer going on rides). I think with Pandora AK is easily a full day park. I'm assuming your other full day is the Magic Kingdom? So you'd have MK, half day at DHS/Epcot, and a full day at AK hypothetically.

 

[amberpi]

I literally go to Epcot for a part of every day I'm at WDW - 30+ trips in the last 15ish years. DHS is fine - I can do everything I want in just a couple of early morning hours.

 

[WestieCrazy]

Epcot is 2 days for us.

DHS is currently a 1/2 day park - this past April, we planned to stay all day but around lunch, we got a bit bored and went back to the hotel to swim and eat lunch. We returned later in the afternoon for a couple more rides and the Star Wars dessert party and fireworks show.

 

[barbliny]

I'm totally interested in Epcot and could spend all day there, but she and the kids seems to want to do everything at DHS (and I wouldn't be unhappy there, either). I guess that because I know DHS has a lot stuff under construction, is there enough to warrant an entire day there?

At this point in my Disney 'career' I can do HS in 1/2 a day because we only do the headliners (except Star Tours), and maybe catch one show if it fits in the plan. However, when we were at the stage where we wanted to see many of the shows, there is no way to do HS in half-a-day because of the show schedule. I would suggest looking up the shows your gf and kids might be interested in and see what times there are - sketch out a plan with those times. I have a feeling it wouldn't be just a few hours spent at HS.

I don't know how old the 'kids' are. If they are very young, World Showcase is a tough place to entertain them If most of World Showcase is eliminated, Epcot is definitely doable in less than a day.

 

[goofyernmost]

Epcot is a minimum 1 day park if you want to see anything at all, but, it is more likely a 1 1/2 day parks, but you still won't see everything. I was curious with the title. If you are looking for that the comparison in my mind would be DHS or DAK. They are the only ones small enough to make a half day decision about.

 

[Zippa D Doodah]

I think the answer can be different depending on what your goals for the trip are. For us, Epcot is easily broken into two half day experiences. Half for FW and half for World Showcase. I did not come to disparage Epcot, but it really is the lamest and most unchanged park right now.

 

[Planogirl]

We've been to Epcot countless times so it has definitely become a half day park for us. We do like many things there but we've seen it all so often that it just isn't particularly compelling nowadays. If you are not as familiar and would enjoy World Showcase I would say to let DHS be your half day park. DHS is a bit of a mess nowadays.

What about the evening shows? There is more at DHS but many people love Illuminations. This is also something to consider.

 

[Felicis]

Can you guys split up? They go ride some rides and you go check out some stuff at Epcot, then meet up at one or the other parks to go on together?