Hollywood studios

[lbatesetc]

going to parks,no hopper, 4 days in February. Have heard to not waste a day at Hollywood because of all the construction. What do you think? Kids are 10 and 13

 

[Klayfish]

This is a very often discussed topic (not flaming you, just saying there's a lot of talk about it). In short, it's really up to you. The construction concern, in the opinion of some (myself included), is really overblown. The Great Movie Ride recently closed, which stinks...though it desperately needed an overhaul anyway. Beyond that, nothing really popular closed. With GMR exception, all the big ticket attractions are still there...RnR, ToT, TSMM, Star Tours, Muppet 3D, Voyage of Little Mermaid, Launch Bay, Indiana Jones, Beauty and the Beast, Frozen Sing a Long (very funny...even if you don't like the movie), plus the night shows.

So if those things appeal to you and the kids, then go. If they don't, then skip it. For us...and our kids are also 13 and 10 (we have 10 year old twins)...they LOVE the park because they love the rides and some of the shows.

 

[hllb]

HS is a must do for us. My kids are 7, 13, and 14. We love RnR, and frankly, it might be worth it just for that LOL. But ToT, Star Tours, all the Star Wars stuff are all worth it. And, we love Fantasmic! We will definitely be going - most of the stuff that is gone, we wouldn't really miss.

 

[cassie58]

Is this a first trip to WDW for you? If so, you would have to decide which you want to spend most time in with only 4 days and no hopper - for example, many people like more than one day in MK with so much to do there. That said, we love HS and wouldn't miss it - there is still plenty to do, just depends on your interests. As PP mentioned, several rides and many shows to see, including Fantasmic, great night show. Toy Story is a must-do for us, more than once if possible, and kids love Tower of Terror(I however am one and done!). Indiana Jones show is DD's fave, and looking forward to checking out the Frozen show this time - supposed to be fun even if you are not into "Frozen". And if anyone in your party is into Star Wars there is the Launch Bay with meet and greets and memorabilia, Star Tours ride, and Star Wars fireworks show(guessing it will be scheduled during your timing). We enjoy eating at Sci-Fi as well, 50s drive in theater restaurant with great milkshakes. If we had to skip a park it would be Epcot as it has the least must-dos for us, although we love Soarin(we will see about the new one this time). Since we always have hoppers, we could run over there for a few hours and get done our faves and then hop over to MK or HS. We are animal lovers, so we do not skip AK!

 

[juliekzp]

Rock-n-Roller Coaster and Tower of Terror are two of the best rides in all of Disney for older kids (if they like that sort of thing). And Fantasmic is my favorite show. Not to mention Toy Story and Star Wars, which are super fun too. So we never miss HS!

 

[sharonabe]

My teen boys would never skip HS. We're spending two partial days there this next trip, because we want to see both F! and the Star Wars Spectacular, and I'm still having trouble fitting in everything.

As others have said, it's really up to your family and what you want to do.

 

[Klayfish]

We love RnR, and frankly, it might be worth it just for that LOL.

Amen to that. I've always said if they were ever to announce that RnR is being reimagined, closed, rethemed, I would make the 7.5 hour drive down for just one day and get FP+ after FP+ after FP+ and ride it until I'm dizzy.

 

[BriLovesDisney]

We are skipping HS for the first time this year - in the past we have just done a 1/2 day there. If Tower of Terror and Rock-n-Roller Coaster are can't-miss attractions then I would go. If not, then I wouldn't recommend it.

 

[2Gma]

It's our favorite park even with it's unsightly appearance right now. All of our favorite attractions are there: RnR, ToT, Star Tours, Launch Bay, Indiana Jones show, TSMM plus the mom in me likes the other princess shows too. We've been to WDW 5 times and still can spend a whole day there.

 

[Anabelletoronto]

I hate it when people say this to my questions but I will say I think anyway.
Can you add another day? Tickets for a 5th day would be cheap to add on. Obviously changing flights, more time off work and extra hotel nights means $$$$$$$&$$&

 

[dprincessmom]

I'm with the HS is a must for us. TOT, RNRC and TSMM are higher draws for my DD than Epcot . Everyone has an opinion but you have to decide what is best for your family.

 

[RUDisney]

We are skipping HS for the first time this year - in the past we have just done a 1/2 day there. If Tower of Terror and Rock-n-Roller Coaster are can't-miss attractions then I would go. If not, then I wouldn't recommend it.

This is how I feel about it for this year. We're only going to be there for 4 park days and we're going to do 2 days at Epcot. I love RnR, but not enough to spend a whole day in that park. It was a tough decision, but I decided that Epcot is more important to us.

FWIW, I'm going with a 10 and 13 yo, too.

 

[DWillowBay]

IMHO, it is not a waste of time. There are still many rides, shows and activities to fill however long you want to stay. I don't know what people are talking about, but the only thing not there now, which was there in the past year or so, is the Lights! Motor! Action! car show and the Great Movie Ride. Everything else is still there. ????? ...oh, and the Honey I Shrunk the Kids playground, but I think that's been gone for a while now. Again, ?????

 

[Flamingeaux]

You have three of the best attractions - RnRc, ToT & TSMM; one good one in Star Tours; two decent shows Indy & B&tB and the second best night time show. I still rank it better than Epcot.

 

[hllb]

I'm with the HS is a must for us. TOT, RNRC and TSMM are higher draws for my DD than Epcot . Everyone has an opinion but you have to decide what is best for your family.

Us too. We would never skip Epcot, but could probably do it in half a day. I've never really gotten the huge appeal of WS. Yes, we go, but we don't spend a ton of time there. I'm sure we're missing a ton that I don't know about LOL. Now, as an adult only trip, I could drink my way around the world and that would be awesome...but with the kids? Eh...not a ton of stuff.

 

[GlennN]

All depends what you like. My family uses Park Hoppers every time we go, so we always go to DHS, but only for a couple of hours. If we did not have PH, we would skip DHS (but that is just us). It isn't just the attractions that have closed recently, it is the attractions that have closed in the past few years and not been replaced. In addition to the Great Movie Ride, we have lost the Stunt Show, American Idol, Streets of USA (not an attraction, per se, but I always liked taking pictures there), Sounds Dangerous and Backlot Tour (just to name a few). Many folks don't mind, and enjoy what is left. For my family, it is worth stopping by for TSMM, RNR and TOT (and maybe ST), but we're done in a couple of hours. We just could not justify a full day there. Depending on the time of year one goes, maybe you could combine DHS with a resort day.

 

[3gr8boys]

Don't envy your decision.... Four days no hopper.... MK is easily a 2 day park, but what to cut?

We were last there February 2014. The boys were 7, 11 and 15. ToT, Star Tours, Fantasmic, and RnR were hits. 7year old was so bummed that he was too short for RnR....he is tall enough now and HS will be our first park day in April 2018. So looking forward to seeing the galactic spectacular. Even if we weren't SW fans, I would have trouble missing ToT and RnR. Are the kids into thrill rides?

 

[DollBabyKG]

We are questioning the same. Planning on 4 day non-hopping tickets that come with one free day, so a total of 5. My husband wants to pay for park hopping upgrades if we don't skip it just because of the HS issue. But with a group of 6, that's a steep ask in my book. My son would definitlely be sad to miss SW And my girls would like Frozen, but I'm not sure that justifies a whole day here or not. No one in our party likes roller coasters of ToT though. (Well except me)

 

[mamamelody2]

My sons were 10 and 13 last year. They would have been ticked if we skipped HS. They love Star Wars, so we spent a decent amount of time in Launch Bay and meeting Kylo Ren. Rode Star Tours 3 times. ToT 3 times. RnRC a few times. My youngest and the other young cousins did Jedi Training. A couple rides on TSMM, and lunch at 50s Prime Time Cafe made for a fun day!

 

[Queen of the WDW Scene]

I would never skip it.
I think there's plenty to do.
This is what I do...
-RNRC 2x
-TOT 3x
-BATB
-VOTLM
-TSMM
-Muppet Vision 3D
-For the first time in forever a Frozen sing along
-Sci-fi

Only thing that has closed that I did was GMR.