Help me schedule for my 3-year-old.

[jeannagripper]

This is my first post, so please stick with me here. I'm loving all the info I m getting here, I figure it can't hurt to ask! You all have so many great tips!

We are going for 4 1/2 days. It's the longest trip we've done.
Our first day, which is the 1/2 day, is Super Bowl Sunday. (Feb 2-6)
We have a 3-year-old and the trip revolves around her, so characters and animals are the things she loves most. She's been to MK twice last June.
We'd like to do one day at each park , if you all think our three-year-old would dig them all. We aren't interested if she isn't.

We thought all the parks once and double up on MK. But I think she may dig AK and not EP. So may skip EP and go AK twice, too??


Any suggestions on which park to visit and when?

Thanks for all your help in advance!

 

[WDGPCFR]

Each park has things to do for young children. I would suggest going to Animal Kingdom day 1 or 2 to see how she reacts. Dinoland has a dinosaur dig area and rope climbing. There are a lot of hands on things for the kids to do too. I would skip Hollywood Studios if I was going to skip a park.

 

[Team Bunch]

We have a 6, 3, and 2 year old and just went in August. Our kids also love animals but we did not love ak as much as I thought we would. Like previous poster said maybe be flexable. The park we liked least was hs.

 

[cjbcam]

I have a DD10, a DD8, a DD5 and a DS3. We went last year and Our HS came on the day my son and I got food poisoning and had been getting sick all night and morning (unfortunately we were on DDP and my son was two and had to share my meal and not have his own) so my husband decided he would brave HS with the three girls. He came back to the hotel a couple hours earlier and said it sucked and was for older kids than ours and refused to go back on our ten day trip. I went one of the nights with my oldest daughter to ride Rockin roller coaster and didnt see a ton for little ones. So I would skip that one.

 

[MrInfinity]

We have a 3-year-old and the trip revolves around her, so characters and animals are the things she loves most. She's been to MK twice last June. We'd like to do one day at each park , if you all think our three-year-old would dig them all. We aren't interested if she isn't.

We thought all the parks once and double up on MK. But I think she may dig AK and not EP. So may skip EP and go AK twice, too??

Is Thursday a full day with night afterwards or is that your checkout? If that is your checkout, then it does not count as a full day IMO. In that case, you're really talking Feb 3, 4, 5 as your cornerstone days.

I would use those 3 days to do MK, AK, MK, in that order.

Hate to say it. But I would nix both Epcot and HS. That is considering your goal of appealing to the 3-year old.

Pick up Epcot on your leaving day. Get there early, do a half day to hit Imagination w Figment, the Little Mermaid, and Turtle Talk w Crush, then pick up lunch at a nice place of your choice in the World Showcase (this will be a nice way to end your trip for YOU) then head out when Epcot gets hot and busy. Pick up the Spaceship Earth (the ride in the big ball) on your way out, just to say you went up in the big ball thingy.

I rarely suggest skipping a park altogether, but w/o anyone over 7 to enjoy Rockin Roller Coaster, you just can't justify HS on its own solely for Toy Story Mania when you could get a 2nd day at the MK. It's cool and all, but your 2 days at MK will give you plenty of Space Ranger Spin which is equally good plus comes w a million other great rides. Likewise Epcot won't justify more than a half-day since your child isn't old enough to do the Phineas and Ferb quests (to truly enjoy the World Showcase) and you're not interested in Soarin / Mission / Test Track.

That's what I'd do if going with ONLY a 3-year old and my wife.
-mike

 

[etrenne]

I agree with the general consensus to skip Hollywood. We took our 4-year old nephew last September. He totally dug MK and Epcot. He liked Animal Kingdom well enough, but we just couldn't find enough to do at HS that interested him. We rode Star Wars twice and saw Little Mermaid, and then he was done. We didn't even stay long enough to use our TSM fastpasses-- we gave them away on the way out!

 

[MSSANDRA]

Do you have hopper passes? They are so worth it with kids. If you are making ADRS, you will want to firm up your plans enough to know where you are eating. You will also want to look at crowds counters and what days are EMH. Hit the AM ones only if you can hop to another park later, otherwise choose a non EMH park.

I would do something sorta like this:
Sunday 1/2 day- Epcot- Plan dinner here and call it an early night.
Monday- All day at MK
Tuesday- AK--its an early close park, so if you are up to it, head back to Epcot that evening, maybe after a nap.
Wednesday-If she is dying to return to AK, go back....otherwise go to HS. break for a nap and hop to HS if that was not the am park, or hop to MK to see the night time activities.
Thursday -Back to MK. Hop to Epcot if you have time and energy.

There is enough at all the parks to keep every age happy. We found that younger kids LOVE epcot too, but do better in smaller time frames.

 

[jeannagripper]

Is Thursday a full day with night afterwards or is that your checkout? If that is your checkout, then it does not count as a full day IMO. In that case, you're really talking Feb 3, 4, 5 as your cornerstone days. I would use those 3 days to do MK, AK, MK, in that order. Hate to say it. But I would nix both Epcot and HS. That is considering your goal of appealing to the 3-year old. Pick up Epcot on your leaving day. Get there early, do a half day to hit Imagination w Figment, the Little Mermaid, and Turtle Talk w Crush, then pick up lunch at a nice place of your choice in the World Showcase (this will be a nice way to end your trip for YOU) then head out when Epcot gets hot and busy. Pick up the Spaceship Earth (the ride in the big ball) on your way out, just to say you went up in the big ball thingy. I rarely suggest skipping a park altogether, but w/o anyone over 7 to enjoy Rockin Roller Coaster, you just can't justify HS on its own solely for Toy Story Mania when you could get a 2nd day at the MK. It's cool and all, but your 2 days at MK will give you plenty of Space Ranger Spin which is equally good plus comes w a million other great rides. Likewise Epcot won't justify more than a half-day since your child isn't old enough to do the Phineas and Ferb quests (to truly enjoy the World Showcase) and you're not interested in Soarin / Mission / Test Track. That's what I'd do if going with ONLY a 3-year old and my wife. -mike

We are actually leaving on Friday. So we have 1/2 day Sun, and full days Mon, Tues, Weds, and Thurs.
you advice is exactly what am looking for! Thanks!

 

[kohlby]

I would not skip EP. EP was my kids' favorite park - all three kids and all when they were 3 as well as older. However, for many years, we only had one day at EP so we just did Future World. They loved World Showcase too, but we had many trips with just FW since that took an entire day. We went to AK three years in a row and it was a flop three years in a row - but some kids love it. I think mine had been to the zoo too much. If you're going to skip a park, HS is the one I'd skip of the four for a child that age. My kids do start to love HS by 4 years old - but at 3, it was a shorter day so I'd only do it if you had the time and had park hopper.

We were going to skip EP our first with-kids trip, with a 2 month old and barely 3 year old. But headed over to EP since we had hoppers. We hadn't realized how much stuff they had there for that age! Now it's the park that we plan the most days for.

 

[jeannagripper]

Do you have hopper passes? They are so worth it with kids. If you are making ADRS, you will want to firm up your plans enough to know where you are eating. You will also want to look at crowds counters and what days are EMH. Hit the AM ones only if you can hop to another park later, otherwise choose a non EMH park. I would do something sorta like this: Sunday 1/2 day- Epcot- Plan dinner here and call it an early night. Monday- All day at MK Tuesday- AK--its an early close park, so if you are up to it, head back to Epcot that evening, maybe after a nap. Wednesday-If she is dying to return to AK, go back....otherwise go to HS. break for a nap and hop to HS if that was not the am park, or hop to MK to see the night time activities. Thursday -Back to MK. Hop to Epcot if you have time and energy. There is enough at all the parks to keep every age happy. We found that younger kids LOVE epcot too, but do better in smaller time frames.

Thanks!!

 

[myhouseofmouse]

I'll throw my 2 cents in here, We have gone with both a boy and a girl at 3 years old (and younger)
If you have not done the other parks yet, do your plan, hit all 4 parks and double up on MK. I totally don't agree with the other posts to skip HS. Take a few moments to review the park info (AllEars is a good spot) There is plenty to do there for a 3 year old to keep you busy and her happy. You will need to do the same for Epcot. It's huge!!! But if you know where to look, Epcot has some of the best Character Experiences out there. Innovations also has so many hands on fun things for little kids to do.
Because you have a small kid, I would also disagree with wasting money on the park hopper. You don't want to wear her down, running from park to park. The park hopper is for maximizing thing to get in, being able to run from park to park.
Again, I would just take some time to get to know the parks, plan ahead on things you want to do. Maybe even check out something like Touringplans.com to help maximize your time at the parks.

Have a great trip.

 

[PEC]

I have gone when my DD twins were 3 yo and 5 yo, and then took DGD 5 yo. All parks have something that a 5 yo will enjoy, so I would keep the plan of all 4 parks. Especially if you have not been before. HS has Playhouse Disney and the HOney I Shrunk the kids Playground which all children I have brought enjoyed. They have several characters throughout the day that you can meet. AK has the boneyard playground and my children liked the Safari, Conservation Station (petting Zoo) and the two animal trails. Plus there are several Character places. EPCOT has Nemo that goes to to a large Aquarium, Figment and a Character Meet and Greet. Then all the Countries in WS have Kidcots where your child can color and stuff. Plus most of the Countries have Character meet and greet.
Some of the days may end of a little short but that could be a good thing. A 3 yo is not going to be able to do the RD through a full day with a couple of EMH evening hours anyway. The short days will help keep your child from getting very whiny after a while.
I would highly recommend doing all the parks and if some of them do not end up being very long days then understand the shorter days will help keep you and your 3 yo rested.

 

[PEC]

I'll throw my 2 cents in here, We have gone with both a boy and a girl at 3 years old (and younger)
If you have not done the other parks yet, do your plan, hit all 4 parks and double up on MK. I totally don't agree with the other posts to skip HS. Take a few moments to review the park info (AllEars is a good spot) There is plenty to do there for a 3 year old to keep you busy and her happy. You will need to do the same for Epcot. It's huge!!! But if you know where to look, Epcot has some of the best Character Experiences out there. Innovations also has so many hands on fun things for little kids to do.
Because you have a small kid, I would also disagree with wasting money on the park hopper. You don't want to wear her down, running from park to park. The park hopper is for maximizing thing to get in, being able to run from park to park.
Again, I would just take some time to get to know the parks, plan ahead on things you want to do. Maybe even check out something like Touringplans.com to help maximize your time at the parks.

Have a great trip.

Agree. You try to go Park Commando with a 3 yo, you will have a whiny child.

 

[Happyjen27]

I agree with all the other posters that every single park does have value, and every single park has something a 3 yo would enjoy.

However, you're working with limited time. Not only the 4 1/2 days, but, the fact that you're going with a 3 year old. You want her to enjoy every minute, and at least for my kids, enjoying anything at all requires giving them rest in the form of breaks, naps and good night's sleep.

So, I would happily cut out Epcot and DHS. Yes, there are things to entertain them, of course there are. But, there is a magic in the MK that really aims at the target age group of your DD.

Even this trip, at age 6, we're only doing 1/2 day at DHS. Ride one ride, catch a couple of shows, and we're outta there. Epcot will also be just a 1/2 day, ride a few rides, play at innoventions, grab a bite to eat, and we're gone. I'm fully aware we're not seeing everything there, and I'm fully aware there are joys to be had that we are missing. But, I also am fully aware that the place they find truly magical (MK) won't hold that magic for them in a couple of years, so I want to spend as much time there as I can while it's still magical in their eyes. Also, the countries aren't a big draw for me, I would rather, and have, visited the actual country. So, I'm not as big an Epcot fan as most people.

 

[Gracie09]

I disagree with the skip hs group. The Disney junior show, indoor character meets (nice when it's hot out!) tsm of course, the shows - beauty and the beast, little mermaid were fun for them.

We're a fairly go with the flow family but we tend to be early risers so being at the parks at close to rope drop helped. We usually planned a table service dinner around five and grabbed quick service lunch on the early side 11:30ish. This gave us a chance to take a break and regroup if needed. Knowing we would be back, we didn't push for long nights. Most nights we were out of the park soon after dinner. A quick dip in the pool and a quick shower and every one was in bed asleep early.

 

[msmama]

If it were me, I would splurge on the hoppers so that you have the option of trying every park.

There IS stuff that littles will love at HS and Epcot, but probably not a whole long days worth. AK, for us, is a half day park at most and the first we'd skip all together. For me, it's not worth the maybe of seeing animals doing something cool, but most likely they'll be lying around not doing much. If your daughter is into shows, though AK is cool. And my son loves Rafiki's planet watch.

My son's favorite park is Epcot (mine, too). He loves the world showcase and could probably spend a whole week walking around there. To me, it's one of the best places in WDW to let a kid wonder on their own (I mean, not on their own, but with no direction from you, you just follow, there's not a ton of lines, little waiting, etc). Of course, you have to be able to say NO in the gift shops (which I have no problems doing, not that he asks for much).

My son also likes to spend a lot of downtime in the room. He has to have time to play with his toys (either new or from home) every day so we don't do long days.

Have fun!

 

[MouseMama11]

We took our 2.5 year old in July so I'm just speaking from experience. Definitely visit MK at least a couple times, as MK is WDW for little kids. My DD wasn't impressed with AK. I think it was BC it was hot and crowded there and she was under the impression it was a zoo, whereas the only place you see a lot of animals is the safari ride. So we only spent a half day there. She looooooved Epcot! We grabbed a schedule for all the princess meet and greets and they have a Duffy passport activity where you color a passport and stop at each country and get a stamp. We could've spent a full day there easily if we didn't have ADRs else ware. HS was the only park we didn't visit, mainly BC of time but they do have the Disney Junior characters

 

[Gracie09]

Also at Epcot don't forget the innovations east and west. My girls loved them but we didn't plan on being there and we cut it short because we were hitting the wall so to speak. But the piggy bank challenge and playing with the other exhibits was really great

 

[PEC]

We took our 2.5 year old in July so I'm just speaking from experience. Definitely visit MK at least a couple times, as MK is WDW for little kids. My DD wasn't impressed with AK. I think it was BC it was hot and crowded there and she was under the impression it was a zoo, whereas the only place you see a lot of animals is the safari ride. So we only spent a half day there. She looooooved Epcot! We grabbed a schedule for all the princess meet and greets and they have a Duffy passport activity where you color a passport and stop at each country and get a stamp. We could've spent a full day there easily if we didn't have ADRs else ware. HS was the only park we didn't visit, mainly BC of time but they do have the Disney Junior characters

In AK you can see lots of animals on both the walking trail in Africa and Asia (guerilla's, Hippos, Tigers etc). Also though they are more farm animals Conservation Station has a petting zoo. Around the Tree of life there are also some Animals and the Oasis has some. Sure it would probably be a short day if only viewing animals but I also believe with a 3 yo, that may not be such a bad idea. Save the long days for MK.

 

[jacknsally19]

If your child is into Disney Junior, I would include HS in your trip. There is the Disney Jr show and meet n greets with Princess Sofia/ Jake. Also, you can do breakfast at Hollywood n Vine with the Disney Jr characters. My child is really into Disney Jr so Hollywood Studios is going to be a part of our trip. (Also, we are going at Xmas time and the Osborne lights are a must!) If your child isn't into Disney Jr, I think I'd recommend skipping HS and dividing your time between Epcot, AK & Magic Kingdom.

Personally, I think Epcot is a lot of fun for little ones (as well as grownups!) There are a lot of unique character experiences like Mary Poppins, Aladdin, Mulan - that are not as easy in other parks. There is a lot more open space to kind of roam with a little ones. We've really enjoyed the fountains that are in Epcot too. There is a lot of hands on activities too for kids... like coming out of the Figment ride & Spaceship Earth, Innoventions & at the World Showcases. Also, the aquarium is pretty great too. We spend a lot of time there!

I think one day is enough though for Animal Kingdom. I really like AK but I feel like it might be a little too much to book 2 days there. However, if your child still needs an afternoon nap - 2 days might work.

Btw - if you plan right, you really don't need a park hopper with a small child.