How Many Days In Parks?

[EagleG17]

We are staying 7 nights (3/6-3/13) at Poly with a 12 month old and 4 year old.

While I know we won't be spending a full day ever in any of the parks, I'm trying to decide how many days to spend in each park. Also, is it worth even going to AK since there's not too much for m 12 month old to do?

I was thinking 3 days MK, 2 Days Epcot, 1/2 Day HS?

 

[MSSANDRA]

My suggestion is to have a park ticket for each day you are there and then add on the hopper option. Some people say that it is a waste with toddlers and preschoolers but we found it wonderful. You can spend a morning in a park and then head back to the resort for a rest or nap and then head out to a different park (often Epcot for us) for the evening. Our boys loved Epcot when they were little but two whole days there did not work as well as 2 or 3 part days. They loved it when we did dinner and spent some time in WS to end our day. If you don't do a hopper, I would do two days at MK, one or two at Epcot, one at HS and one at AK. Our boys enjoyed AK very much as little guys. The Safari is great for everyone. The animal trail are fun and both show are fantastic for kids. Triceratops spin is cute and the train out to conservation station and the things out there are a big hit with kids. My oldest will never forget seeing them do surgery on a duck there. My little guy loves the parade there. EE has a single rider line that makes it possible for both parents to ride quickly. If I had to leave any park out, it would be HS over AK for a family with little ones.

 

[amyren]

I second the idea of a park hopper. We have a 7yo & 2yo and we've always started at one park, gone back to the room after lunch for swimming / a nap then spent the evening at another park.

My kids both really enjoyed AK from a young age. They both like the shows (Nemo & Lion King) and enjoyed seeing the animals especially on the safari! For us it's a nice half day park.

I would opt for park hopper and plan to have one day totally off of the parks. It's always nice to have one relaxing day when you can swim, go to DTD, visit other resorts etc...

Have fun!

 

[Emacneil]

I did the same with hoppers. Since we went back for naps each day, we would break up the days at each park. We also did 7 nights and we did 7 days for tickets. The last day, with ME picking you up about 3 hours before your flight, makes that last day tough. So we opted to not do a park on the last day. We returned the stroller, hung out in the lobby and pool area and then has to get the bus. We has some rain, so we ended up doing 3.5 days at MK, 1 day AK, 1 day HS, .5 Epcot. We needed more Epcot

 

[SweetMissy]

We always spend the days at the parks...luckily when younger, our kids napped in the stroller or carrier, so didn't have to go back to the resort. We always make sure to spend 2 days in MK. I would still do AK (it's my 2nd favorite park, lol), your 4 year old I'm sure would enjoy it and even babies at a year old love animals. EP and HS you can easily do a half day and either go back to the resort or spend a little extra and buy the hopper and go to MK. Have fun!

 

[Feberin]

We also did park hoppers tickets. We mostly stayed in the parks all day then headed back to the hotel after dinner. Day one we did HS from rope drop until around 11 then Epcot (we took the boat) and headed over to MK for the electrical parade at night. Day two we did AK followed by a break then HS for dinner and another ride on TSM. Day three was Magic Kingdom with dinner in Epcot. Day four was just Magic Kingdom. Day five was HS then heading over to MK for dinner and staying late for fireworks. We drove so having the kids exhausted was our hope that last day.

My four-year-old LOVED HS and Magic Kingdom the most. But there was plenty at Epcot that he enjoyed. My nearly two-year-old mostly liked MK but she enjoyed some things at Epcot as well. Neither kid was a big fan of AK. They liked the Safari well enough and the Boneyard was fun but compared to the other parks they didn't seem to enjoy it that much. We did skip the shows though but our toddler had trouble sitting through any shows so I doubt they would have gone well.

 

[ABCastillo]

We've done it with both with a park hopper and without. We didn't use the park hopper because we found that they would sleep in the stroller or we would come right back to the same park (last trip we were 9 months and 3 yo).

I would still venture to animal kingdom especially if you like zoos or farms. Kids loved rafki's planet watch and looking for different animals.

I'd recommend keeping a flexible day if you go without park hoppers - a day when you can wake up and visit any park the kids want or seem to like the best.

Have fun!

 

[chekhovgirl]

For as long as you are going to be there, I would definitely go to AK. With all the people who say it's a half day park, I didn't think I would care for it, but it's actually quite lovely. We rarely go to shows at theme parks, but the shows here are great, the safari is great and so is the atmosphere. I skipped it for the two trips I was there since it opened and then finally went last February and wish I went before!

 

[nugov2]

I'll be the one voice that says not to get tickets for every day since you can add on once you are there for the same price. We did 4 park days on our last 7 day trip. This trip we are planning 7 out of the 9 days as park. We like down time between park days, but this time they will be 4(turning 5 on trip), 8 and 10(almost 11) vs 2, 6 and 8 so I think they will be able to hang a little more. My youngest was done by 2ish every park day(and said no to coming back later) with my mom and my middle child left one day too and wouldn't even come back for our Tommorowlnad terrace dessert party that night. He said he rather swim. So I guess all kids are different so I would think about how they are when you go places.

 

[chekhovgirl]

For as long as you are going to be there, I would definitely go to AK. With all the people who say it's a half day park, I didn't think I would care for it, but it's actually quite lovely. We rarely go to shows at theme parks, but the shows here are great, the safari is great and so is the atmosphere. I skipped it for the two trips I was there since it opened and then finally went last February and wish I went before!

 

[SouthFayetteFan]

We're in the group of people that buy a park ticket for every day we're there. If we're going for 6 nights We take the earliest flight in and the latest flight out and have park tickets for 7 days.

We also get the park hopper. We find that to be the most flexible thing for us - others may see it differently. Basically we can go to any park we want any day at any time.

 

[Mcterry]

We are planning a trip for September for 7 nights and i am planning to get 5 day park hoppers. I plan to have one non-park day and then do MNSSHP one day where we don't use park tickets. We are driving so our last day we will do a few hours in one park before leaving. My thought of dividing up parks is MK - 1 day plus MNSSHP, Epcot - 2 days, HS - 1 day, AK - 1 day. This could change depending on what my kids enjoy most! We are staying at Poly and my kids will be 4 and 2.5 at the time of the trip.

 

[Miumiu4me]

We are staying 7 nights (3/6-3/13) at Poly with a 12 month old and 4 year old.

While I know we won't be spending a full day ever in any of the parks, I'm trying to decide how many days to spend in each park. Also, is it worth even going to AK since there's not too much for m 12 month old to do?

I was thinking 3 days MK, 2 Days Epcot, 1/2 Day HS?

My toddler loves Animal Kingdom. The lines for characters tend to be shortest there. The petting zoo was a huge hit too. THey also have a great baby center.

 

[501]

The next time we go will be for 7 days and we plan on 5 days of standard park tickets.

 

[MandiC]

I agree with the others, Animal Kingdom was better than I expected, we really enjoyed it. We did not care for HS, other than TSM and Disney Jr there isn't much for little ones.
It is hard to say what each family will want but for a stay a week or less I would do parks everyday.

 

[TWK]

We did park hopper the first time we went, and thought it was a big waste. We tried to go back for naps (we had an 18 month and 4 year old) but they were way to amped up, so it was just a waste of several hours, plus having to sit and wait for buses, and get back to the resort. We found if they napped, they just fell asleep in the stroller and we parked it in the shade for a bit, and rested.
When we went this summer (2, 4 and 7 year old) we stayed at the parks all day, and it worked out so much better. It was much less stressful for us to just plan to be at one park, and not try to jam more stuff in. We did 6 days in the parks, and did 2 MK, 2 AK, 1 Epcot, and 1 HS. We love animal kingdom, and my kids loved doing their little book thing they do to get stickers (can't remember what it is called all the sudden!) Our 4 year old didn't "get" it that much so it might not be a bit for you.

 

[squirrel]

We did park hopper the first time we went, and thought it was a big waste. We tried to go back for naps (we had an 18 month and 4 year old) but they were way to amped up, so it was just a waste of several hours, plus having to sit and wait for buses, and get back to the resort. We found if they napped, they just fell asleep in the stroller and we parked it in the shade for a bit, and rested.
When we went this summer (2, 4 and 7 year old) we stayed at the parks all day, and it worked out so much better. It was much less stressful for us to just plan to be at one park, and not try to jam more stuff in. We did 6 days in the parks, and did 2 MK, 2 AK, 1 Epcot, and 1 HS. We love animal kingdom, and my kids loved doing their little book thing they do to get stickers (can't remember what it is called all the sudden!) Our 4 year old didn't "get" it that much so it might not be a bit for you.

I also found it a waste going back to the resort for a nap. After trying twice I gave up and let her crash in the stroller.

Unless you need to hop, stick with day passes. You can always add hopping on but why pay up front and never use it.

I have to agree with other posters that AK is better than HS for little ones.

 

[msmama]

Usually I would agree with the PP said about adding when you're there (if necessary), but with the discounts out now, it may actually be worth buying more now.

I like having park tickets for every day, even if I only go to the parks for a little while (I don't mean arrival or departure day). I don't think resort days are bad, but if we're at the resort all day, often we'll hit up Epcot for dinner and a could of rides before bed.

Also, if you do go to AK, when you go into the boneyard and turn immediately to your right there's a small slide perfect for new walkers. I would also think there's a ton for little ones to look at there, too. (That said, it's the first park that I'd drop if I couldn't do all 4).