For WDW and DL Visitors - which WDW Park would you skip, and why?

[thenicefamily]

Hi, This question was just asked on a WDW FB forum and it's exactly what I want to know. I've been planning our first WDW holiday. Background: My adult daughter, her friend, and I are the 'Disneyland Princesses'. We do a sort-of annual (not every year but close) trip to DL. LOVE IT! Husband has come a couple of times, pre-girly/princess group, but he's had his fill of Disney.

SO, I'm treating this upcoming 6-night DW trip as a land-based "cruise" - i.e. we can enjoy multiple "stops/resorts", just chill at our home resort (we're splitting stay between POFQ and AKL),we can take in shows/music at DS/Epcot/Resort and I can sneak in some Disney for my daughter and myself with our 5-day Park tickets. I keep changing my mind about what to skip, if anything. I'm leaning towards not doing MK - heresy I know! - because I'm pretty sure I'll just keep comparing to DL and will come up disappointed. Plan to do Epcot once, maybe twice - because I feel DH will enjoy it and happy hubby happy Disney trip. Also planning to do AK once, maybe twice - again, because completely different to DL and DH will enjoy. Going to HS Jollywood Nights - which will give me my 'Caliifornia Adventure' and Galaxy's Edge fix.

I'd really appreciate feedback from those to go to both WDW and DL. If you were going to World but planned on skipping a Park, which one would you drop? And, if you were going to visit one park multiple times, which one would you choose?

Reminder - this is an adult trip. YMMV in choice if you were doing a trip with children. I know mine would.

 

[crystal1313]

AK is my absolute favorite park at WDW. Absolutely love the theming there. Everest is my favorite attraction. We tried nomad lounge last trip, last minute, and loved it. All of us agree that was our favorite. Even my teenage boys loved it and didn’t want to leave nomad lounge. Lol.

I love comparing MK to Disneyland. It’s fun to see the differences between the two. I get why you would want to do Epcot and AK twice though and skip MK, especially as an adult trip.

I feel like our last trip I was finally able to see a bit more details at Epcot. I never get to try the food and drinks I want there though! Lol. And I do with there were more shady spots to sit and relax. We went this past august and it was insanely hot. We knew it would be hot, but florida was having a heat wave. Guardians was amazing and we absolutely loved it! If you can swing it and like steakhouses, we had a delicious meal at Le Cellier. One of the best meals and service that we have had at Disney.

Maybe if you skip MK, you can make a dining reservation for California grill at the contemporary and watch the fireworks from there? Killer view from the restaurant!! We didn’t eat their last trip, but did in 2021 and it was amazing!

Have a fun time!

 

[irlandaise]

Your plan sounds good to me. Lean in on Epcot and AK, spend less time at HS and MK. If you have to actually skip one, I would choose MK.

I know that many people consider AK not worth a lot of time because there aren't that many rides (and Indy at DL is better than Dino at AK). But the walking trails are fascinating and you could do the Safari multiple times and see somewhat different animals. Also there's Conservation Station; the train ride there is fun and you might even see some sort of veterinary procedure in progress. Even if not, you can spend time asking questions of the wildlife CMs.

AKL is such an interesting hotel. Be sure to check on times for activities such as CM tours of the artwork and crafts, or food tastings. And of course it's great to just sit on your balcony and watch the animals!

 

[bwvBound]

As a DL-semi-local ... when we visit WDW we skip MK unless we need to visit a specific attraction (Dwarves?) or dining experience (Be Our Guest?).

 

[skellinton]

I wouldn’t skip any of them. I would just make EPCOT a 2 day park and power through AK in one day. I LOVE AK, but I don’t think it requires 2 days if means going to all 4 parks.

 

[thenicefamily]

Thanks for the excellent feedback everyone. Is it weird to be looking forward to returning to DL while at the same time planning WDW - oh, wait, look who I'm asking....I'm thinking here, in the safety of Disboards, it's perfectly acceptable .

@irlandaise - I'm definitely taking on board your AK suggestions. @crystal1313 what an excellent idea about Contemporary/fireworks. Adding to my growing trip Note!

 

[OKW Lover]

I'd really appreciate feedback from those to go to both WDW and DL. If you were going to World but planned on skipping a Park, which one would you drop?

Being a WDW local but also visiting DL several times (most recently early August) I'd say skip Hollywood Studios if you must. That's because the most interesting parts of DHS can be found on the west coast in either DL or DCA.

 

[Tinkaboo]

Au contraire to OKW

Being a WDW local but also visiting DL several times (most recently early August) I'd say skip Hollywood Studios if you must. That's because the most interesting parts of DHS can be found on the west coast in either DL or DCA.

politely agree to disagree…you will miss Toy Story Land, RNRC, TOT, the Little Mermaid show (which I just learned is CLOSED perhaps due to mold in the building?), the Indy show, the Beauty and Beast show which were all really well done productions, albeit it’s been years ago. However, that is precisely why my hubby wants to go toWDW, MORE SHOWS he says, not just rides.

Frankly, I’d try to find a way to visit all but IF I HAD TO..I’d give up MK. You’ll miss the Mine Train and Tron but that’s about it. We only plan to spend half a day there in addition to MVMCP where we’ll probably get our fill.

 

[starry_solo]

I wouldn't miss any park.

MK = um, Country Bear Jamboree is still alive and playing!
AK = love the safari and the animals
EPCOT= yummy food booths during the time we go
HS = Star Wars, Toy Story Land, MMRR, and more!

But, if I had to give it up, maybe EPCOT or AK.

 

[bwvBound]

MK = um, Country Bear Jamboree is still alive and playing!

Ooooooh! Good point! I forgot about Country Bear Jamboree! Indeed ... I so miss it from DL.

So reasons to visit MK, thus far, include:
* Country Bear Jamboree
* Carousel of Progress
* Tron (I totally forgot about this one, too!)
* 7 Dwarves Mine Train
* The People Mover (we enjoy it every visit ...)
* The queue for Arial
* ... and more ....

 

[irlandaise]

Forgot to ask: will you have hopper tickets? Even though hopping is, of course, not nearly as easy at WDW, it would help you do the activities you want at all four parks. And it's fun to take a boat or the monorail or the Skyliner.

(You mentioned that you're staying at POFQ part of the time. I really loved the boat ride to Downtown Disney [Disney Springs] when I stayed at POR, especially at night.)

 

[TCRAIG]

I’m not an AK fan - it’s the park I skip 75% of the time - too hot, too crowded, not enough rides…I can go to a zoo to see animals…

 

[Minnie1222]

Ooooooh! Good point! I forgot about Country Bear Jamboree! Indeed ... I so miss it from DL.

So reasons to visit MK, thus far, include:
* Country Bear Jamboree
* Carousel of Progress
* Tron (I totally forgot about this one, too!)
* 7 Dwarves Mine Train
* The People Mover (we enjoy it every visit ...)
* The queue for Arial
* ... and more ....

Don't forget Cinderella's castle

 

[ofcabbagesandkings]

I love AK, but it can be done in one day. Half a day if you get Genie+. Will you have hoppers? I would add hopping to Epcot for an evening to your AK day, or if not maybe finish up with an early dinner at Sanaa when you’re staying at AKL. Then you don’t have to cut MK.

 

[thenicefamily]

Forgot to ask: will you have hopper tickets? Even though hopping is, of course, not nearly as easy at WDW, it would help you do the activities you want at all four parks. And it's fun to take a boat or the monorail or the Skyliner.

(You mentioned that you're staying at POFQ part of the time. I really loved the boat ride to Downtown Disney [Disney Springs] when I stayed at POR, especially at night.)

No hoppers - again, spoiled by DL where it's literally a few short hops from one park to another. I really don't fancy spending a lot of time on/waiting for/finding busses or other DW transport options. Don't plan to do Genie+ either. Unlike DL, where we are on a morning mission to get all faves done, and we do, before 10:00a.m. this trip will be more about R&R, Disney-style. Read: sleeping in! Will be getting ILL for a few things (FOP, Rise) not into coasters/drop rides in any way. Daughter will no doubt single-rider some coasters/thrill rides and ILL/VQ others though.

100% going to enjoy the rides to/from DS during our POFQ stay - it's that type of thing I'm really looking forward to! Unique to WDW.

p.s. We are staying at AKL (i.e. Deluxe) for 3 nights and, hopefully, there will be Extended Evening Hours at at least one park in that time. Maybe AK, rumours have it. So, we'll get that, maybe, plus the After Hours/Jollywood experience as well. Should get a decent number of must-do rides in with just those two things. Fingers crossed.

 

[bwvBound]

Don't forget Cinderella's castle

Hmmm. Would that be specific to dining ... or is there something else to that castle? We enjoy the Sleeping Beauty Walk-through at DL and the dragon under Paris ... but is there something at Cindy's? I s'pose the lovely mural?

(We generally skip MK ... and it has been a rather l-o-n-g time since we've visited that park ... thx for your insight/comments!)

 

[starry_solo]

Ooooooh! Good point! I forgot about Country Bear Jamboree! Indeed ... I so miss it from DL.

So reasons to visit MK, thus far, include:
* Country Bear Jamboree
* Carousel of Progress
* Tron (I totally forgot about this one, too!)
* 7 Dwarves Mine Train
* The People Mover (we enjoy it every visit ...)
* The queue for Arial
* ... and more ....

I really loved it when they switched over to the Christmas music at DLR.

 

[brightlined]

I'll nudge that I frequently skip MK for the obvious reasons - pretty much everything there is better at DL.

Having said that, I rarely skip a holiday season visit there.

Apart from the stuff already mentioned - I always enjoy the Jingle Cruise.

I'm torn on the recommendation for a full day, though. If it were me, I'd spend the $60 on the park hopper and, even if you didn't use it anywhere else, use it to spend a half day (or a single evening) at MK - it's such a beautiful park on holiday nights, and is usually the last park to close. (That'd be lot cheaper than a Christmas Party ticket, which would be the other thought.) I might get G+ that day, and use it to stack rides for the evening, so it can kind of be my personal "Christmas Party" where I do everything in a few hours (Jingle Cruise will "sell out" mid-afternoon).

Or, maybe start MK one day (to get Tron via VQ), spend the afternoon at Epcot, then close MK.

Or, if not the park-hopper, spend the afternoon resort-hopping around the monorail - I love stopping over and grabbing some gingerbread at the huge display at Grand Floridian and grabbing a beverage at Trader Sam's at Poly.

Hmmm. Would that be specific to dining ... or is there something else to that castle?

I would add the projection stuff - especially during the holidays.

p.s. We are staying at AKL (i.e. Deluxe) for 3 nights and, hopefully, there will be Extended Evening Hours at at least one park in that time. Maybe AK, rumours have it. So, we'll get that, maybe, plus the After Hours/Jollywood experience as well. Should get a decent number of must-do rides in with just those two things. Fingers crossed.

The one thing about AK - the holiday season is the best, since you get to be there at night. It's such a lovely park at night - Pandora is at its best, night rides on Everest are amazing, the tree projections are fun, etc. And, weirdly, people seem to leave that park around dinner time, so it can sometimes feel a bit empty.

 

[thenicefamily]

@brightlined - EXCELLENT suggestions! You're right about Christmas Decorations at DL/MK. I would miss those. I've now tentatively made a reservation for MK for the 17th. It's one of the Mickey's Christmas Party days so from what I understand it should be relatively quiet. That may be a way to enjoy the park without G+ but I'll also consider using that and stacking.

Exploring the various Resorts via the Disney transport is definitely on the list.

Thanks again everyone for your input. It's really helping by reinforcing some of my plans but also inspiring re-imagination of others.

 

[Aladora]

Our first WDW trip in 2015 we had 6 day 1 park/day tickets and our original plan was 1 day at AK and Epcot plus 2 days each at MK and HS. After our first 4 days there where we hit each park once, we did a complete 180 and did a second day at AK and Epcot. Now, DS was 10 so he LOVED doing the Wilderness Explorer badges at AK so we had to do a second day there for sure. Epcot was so big that we needed a second day there as well. now, this was before either Toy Story Land or Galaxy's Edge so HS was a half day park for us at the time.

On our Nov 2022 trip, we just added on 3 days at the end of a business trip. We did a full day in HS and Epcot, most of a day in AK, and added on the Christmas party on our AK day so we could do MK as well. We did SO much at MK, most rides were walk ons.