Disney w/ kids ages 6,5,3 &2 - which parks should we go to?

[Susie(NC)]

We plan to go to Disney in mid November and stay for 3 or 4 days (we think). We will definitely go to MK and AK - should we try for another park or stick with those 2? I'm sure we could spend 2 days at MK; what about AK - is that a 2 day park or can you get most done in one day.

And if we should pick one more park, which one?

Last time I was at Epcot I was 16 (20 years ago!) and I thought it was dull (you know, those teenage attitudes) - will little kids like it? And is MGM geared more towards older kids - our 6 year old wouldn't even go on Goofy's barnstormer, so rides faster than that are out of the question.

Thanks for your opinions!

Susie

 

[DisneyMomx7]

I would go with MGM. My little kids loved Playhouse DIsney, the Muppet Show and Voyage of the LIttle Mermaid. They also loved the Sci-FI for lunch.

 

[turnlisa]

I have two children -- ages 7 and 2. Definitely do MK -- but you already knew that. You can do AK in a day. MGM is a must. The kids will love Playhouse Disney, Little Mermaid, Muppets 3D, and there are a lot of characters there. My kids love Epcot. There are craft stations in World Showcase where the kids can make their own masks. The boys love it and have a great time trying the different foods. We also make a point of doing fun things in each country -- such as looking for candy or a pastry that is served there. The kids think this is great fun. You might want to give it a try for a couple of hours.

 

[cmcvean]

I have dd's 5,4,3,2 and we always do MK, AK, and I agree with the other posts, they will love mgm. My girls loved the parade, it has a lot of the movie characters that they love. Playhouse Disney is a hit and they all loved Fantasmic! as well. I thought they might be scared, but they just loved it.

Have fun!!!

Christine

 

[disneychrista]

I am assuming you will have park hoppers so there is no need to "tie" yourself to a park.

A full day (at least) for MK. A day at AK but since it closes early you could do the evening at Epcot. Then you could so MGM.

 

[Jordan's MOM]

My DS has always liked Epcot more than MGM. Assuming that you have park hoppers and that you can stay 4 days, I would spend 1 1/2 days at MK, 1/2 at AK and one each at MGM and Epcot. In November, unless its Thanksgiving, parks close easly except for WS at Epcot and spending eveings there would be nice. If you only get three days, one a MK, one at Epcot and split the one left between MGM and AK would be my best plan. HAve fun and don;t forget to enjoy the trip with out trying to see it all. Don't think that could happen in less than a month anyway.

Jordan's mom

 

[Susie(NC)]

Not sure why I hadn't considered "hopping" since we will definitely get the park hopper passes. I also didn't know that AK closes early (although that does make sense), so I like the idea of doing Epcot that evening.

Thanks so much for the input. I had really sort of written MGM off, but I know better now!

susie

 

[sn00zn]

I would just add one other bit of advice. If you are pretty sure you are going to hit all the parks, then save the Magic Kingdom for last (and probably do Epcot first). I did this with my kids and was glad I did. I think, at least in my case with kids age 9, 4, and 2, that if we'd done MK first, they wouldn't have wanted to go anywhere else! Of course all kids are different, but you might want to think about what your kids will probably like best and save that to the last. I know you'll have fun however you work it--your kids are all at great ages for WDW!

snoozn

 

[kelscross]

My girls were two last year and they loved everything!! Well, the WS in Epcot would not have been that interesting to them if they didn't have the funstops for the kids.

One loved all the character greetings (the other was terrified!)

Playhouse disney, Honey I shrunk the kids playground in MGM were a hit. (I would suggest doing the playground last, I had to pry my girls out of there screaming)

EPCOT - They would have stayed in the Living Seas all day. No complaints from us...it's airconditioned...lol Actually they liked pretty much all of the attractions in Future World that had activities to go along with it. One of them thinks spaceship earth is the "Treasure Planek" ride (treasure planet..lol)

MK - EVERYTHING!! One loved all the rides, one was terrified. They couldn't go on the big rides though.

AK - we didn't get to explore much and it was too darn hot. This year we are hoping to do more here and a bit less at MGM (their least favorite)

 

[dijid]

Epcot is my kids (almost 5, almost 3 and 9mo) second favorite. They love Spaceship Earth, Living with the Land, Living Seas, Test Track (oldest only) and doing the Kidcot mask stations in the World Showcase. DS considers the boat ride in Mexico his favorite. 1/2 day in MGM is more than they can handle as Playhouse Disney is really the only one they like. Little Mermaid has some scary scenes and they HATE the 3-D movies. I say this just because I think people underestimate how much their kids might like Epcot. I was quite surprised by how much they enjoyed it and if we hadn't given it a chance, they would have missed out on a bunch. Our only regret from our first trip was that we didn't allocate more time for Epcot. Luckily we went back and made up for it!

 

[cmcvean]

dijid - That is really interesting, I may have to try and explore EPCOT more than we have. I have a question, I see you stayed at the cabins last time. How did you get around - to the different parks and such?? Did you rent a golf cart??? I would really like to try out the cabins, but we have gotton so spoiled with the monorail at the Polynesian. We usually drive to AK/MGM anyway.

Thanks for your input on Epcot.

Christine

 

[Suzanne74]

I agree w/ Jordon's mom on how to do your days.

I have never gone to Disney without doing Magic Kingdom on my first full day. I just can't wait!!!

I would probably do...

MK Day 1
Epcot Day 2
MGM Day 3
AK and then MK at night Day 4

This way - you start and end in MK.

Also - I would probably try to do Chef Mickey's for late breakfast or dinner on my Epcot Day to break it up (hop on monorail) - or even the Ice Cream Social at Epcot if you don't want to leave. Kids would probably love a character meal and I think Epcot day would be the easiest time to do it without missing out on good fun. Keep in mind, under 3 are free.

I would also suggest the Fantasmic Dinner Package for your MGM day - eat at Hollywood & Vine. Kids under 3 are free too and the others are only $9.99 for a huge buffet and make your own sundae bar. It is a nice break on the day plus you don't have to wait in the 60-90min line for the show - which you DO NOT want to do w/ that many kids - you get priority seats.

HTH

 

[emsmom]

The people that have posted have great ideas. my dd6 LOVED mgm - playhouse disney was her favorite. Be sure to schedule in NAPS for everyone or you will be exhausted by day 2 !! We didn't do much in the evenings - cam back and napped from 4 - 6ish and then just went to the pool in the evenings.
Personally - I'd do 2 days at MK(first and last day of your trip) and skip Epcot this time - they will enjoy it much more in a few years when they are a bit older.
have fun!