How many days at each park?

[Pooh Crew]

Hello! This is my first time posting here, but I have been lurking for a few weeks. You guys are a wealth of information! Thank you!

Our family (dh, myself, 15 yr old daughter, 5 yr old triplets, 4 yr old and my parents) are going to WDW in October for seven days, six nights. We have the six day park hopper tickets. I know the kids will love MK, but how many days do you suggest we spend at each park? I have read that AK and DS are not full day parks, so if we spend one day at each of those, how should we divide up the remaining four days? Two at MK and two at Epcot or three at MK and one at Epcot? I am trying to get a game plan in place so that I can arrange our dinners and shows. Thank you in advance for any and all suggestions!

 

[BettyCv]

I'll be able to give you a much better answer in a few weeks... We are taking our 5-year-old triplets to WDW 5/15 - 5/21!!

We are tentatively scheduling 2-1/2 days at MK, 2 days at MGM, 1 day at Epcot, and then possibly 1 day at AK. If we decide that there is still a lot that we want to see at one of the other three parks, we may skip AK altogether. We do not plan on buying the hopping feature, so I'm not sure we'd want to use a whole day's admission at AK, since I too have heard that AK is not an "all day" park. I've never heard that about MGM, though...

Betty

 

[newholidayx2]

DS13 & I are planning in 1/2day blocks
totaling about (2) full days at AK, MK & MGM and about (4) full days at EpCot

 

[wdwgoofeeee]

Hello and WELCOME!
You have a tough situation because the younger kids will love MK, as will your 15 year old. But she is likely to really enjoy what my almost 15 DS enjoys.......Rock N Rollercoaster (I go on but could do without) and TOT (now my absolute favorite) at the Studios. She will enjoy Mission: Space and Test Track at Epcot.
Keep reading these boards and also check out the info on allearsnet.com and mousesaver.com.
Don't worry about doing as much as you can. WDW is just too large and everyone gets tired during the day with all the walking. Plan as much as you can to satisfy everyone.....tough task but just do your best. You will soon discover why so many of us go back, and back, and back......you get the idea. Every trip to WDW is different than any previous trip. I never get tired of WDW. It is such a special place. Thank you Walt!

 

[Evil Queen]

You will want at least want 2 days at MK.

We are going for 6 days, and are including the water parks this year, along with DTD.

So each park is only getting 1 day each this trip.

 

[Pooh Crew]

Thank you all for replying and for the welcome. I am sure my husband will take our 15 yr old to ride stuff while the grandparents and I keep the younger ones entertained. I have just never (some of you might want to sit down before reading the rest of this) been to MK (gasp!) and did not know if three days there would give us enough time to really enjoy it or if two days there and two days at Epcot would be better.

Bettycv--Please post how your trip went when you return. I would love to get a feel for what I can expect.

Thanks again!

 

[crisi]

I've never thought AK was a half day park - we can spend a full day on the trails alone (but we have zoo kids). On the other hand, with our little ones, the Studios were a half day at best park - but may be a full day with teens.

I'd consider spending some time split up. Your parents might want to poke through Epcot World Showcase - and your kids probably won't enjoy that. Your fifteen year old will want to ride coasters and your four year old won't. The little ones might be zoo kids. Plan your meals and have everyone meet up for them, then divide and conquer.

 

[Suzanne74]

Well I can't give you info particular to your family size but we went this past Sept between hurricanes. Most of the parks were pretty empty. We opened AK and left right after the parade at 4:30pm. I feel like we missed so much. There is a lot to do at AK. The Lion King show and the safari alone will take about 2hrs even if the lines are short. We did it the very last day because I heard it doesn't take long. If we would have done it sooner in the trip, we would have went back again.

I would suggest starting at MK, it is great walking down Main Street your first full day there. The rest of the days I would try and split them up - like AK in AM, Epcot at night. I personally feel this rejuvinates the whole crowd, even if you don't take a long break between parks. The one thing, I think people do when they are first there is rush rush and it is the little things at the parks that are so fun - don't stress yourself out, the kids will do that for you, LOL!! Go there with an open mind and soak it all in.


When planning your days in advance, take into consideration, the parade times, the fireworks, Extra Magic hours and regular park hours - you won't know those times for a few months so don't worry too much at this point. Utilize FASTPASS - you will get more done. Also, go early in the AM - even if it means you need to take the 4 and 5 yr olds back for a rest in the afternoon. They will last longer overall, esp at night. My 3 yr old dd closed all the parks with energy after her daily rests/naps. The one thing I would probably do is have your 15 yr old dd go with one of the adults on rides during any of the day parades at AK, MGM or MK, unless she truly loves the characters. The lines are so much shorter then and she can ride while the younger ones are resting and watching the parade. Same if you take the kids back during the day, let someone keep your 15 yr old out to enjoy grown up time. Maybe you can go with her and enjoy some of the rides too one day. Let DH and/or parents watch the younger ones one afternoon or night!!

Also - split up Epcot, if not you will be walking A LOT!! Personally we like doing Future World one day then heading back to MK at night, resting on the monorail. Then go back another night, usually after AK to do World Showcase/Illuminations. The yonger ones probably won't like World Showcase that much, we took our dd there one night for about 3 hrs and that was plenty for her! She was also scared of how noisy Illuminations is and she normally likes fireworks. Keep that in mind.

My main suggestion is to leave your last day there open for wherever you decide you need to visit again. Depending on crowds, hours and times it could really be any park - it is subjective to your needs. Try and go back to MK the last night though. We always start and end there EVERYTIME. It just feels right.

I could go on and on - you will find so many suggestions here. I love this board. Feel free to PM me for anything specific...

Good Luck!!

 

[bigbabyblues]

This year we'll only have 6-day tickets, and we are doing 2 days at MK, 2 at Epcot, one at AK and one at MGM. We know AK won't take a whole day for us, we may hop somewhere else when we're done, maybe not. We might do 1/2 day at MK, rest, and go somewhere else for the evening, but will pretty much work out to the above.

Last year we went for 9 park days and it was great, but this year will be fun too!

Steph

 

[DisneyMomx7]

If you're splitting up I would suggest for the littler ones 3 days at MK, 1 Epcot, 1 AK, 1 MGM plus the leftover time from the AK day. I really don't think AK takes a full day - a bit of advice go to AK early in the day because it does get hotter than the other parks. MGM has a lot for the little ones - Beauty and the Beast SHow, Playhouse Disney, Muppets, Ariel show etc.

 

[rt2dz]

We had heard so much about how AK is only a half day park we didn't plan on spending much time there the first time we went there. DH and I both remarked that anyone who thinks of AK as a half day park isn't doing it right. There is sooooo much to see and do, it's just not full of thrill rides (A plus for little ones--this is ds4 favorite park; rates above MK for him). I would plan AT LEAST a full day there. Epcot is kind of the same day. I remember the first several years Epcot was open that most people didn't think of it as a full day park either, and now many people spend several days there.

I wouldn't start with MK. It's a fantastic park (maybe the best), but it can make you think less of AK and Epcot. We start with AK; it's fun, upbeat, there is a lot to see & do there, and it is the perfect pace when we've been traveling the day before. We then do MK, then MGM (sometimes reversed depenidng on WDW schedules) and then Epcot. We TRY not to repeat a park until we've done all once. Each trip can be so different and one trip you may find yourself wanting to go back over and over to MK, but then Epcot a different one. If I were you, I'd schedule 1 day MGM, 1 day AK, 1 day Epcot, 2 days MK, and leave the other day up to whim at the end of your trip. But that is just me.

Also as a bonus, you are going in Oct. which is a slow season so you can get a lot in on each day.

 

[cheyennemama]

We're going with our 3.5DD and 20mo DS. We have 3 days allotted to Disney. (Other 3 days- visiting friends, SeaWorld, shopping). We're trying to take the kids at a slow enough pace that they don't flip out. (DS is the big worry here. DD is very flexible!) I really want to get to Epcot just to see the newer attractions DH and I have never seen. Plus the kids will probably love the Living Seas. Oh! And I'd love to just pay for 3 days WDW instead of 4. What do you think MGM- 1/2 day, Epcot- 1/2 day. MGM seems to just be a lot of shows (DH and I want to catch a couple rides, but we've been before and it's not a priority).

Cheyenne

 

[cheyennemama]

Another question- how easy is park hopping with little kids? Again, mine are 3.5 yo and 20 mo. I can't recall how easy/fast the transitions are. I don't want them to feel like their heads are spinning! Any 2 parks easier to hop back and forth compared to others?

Cheyenne