If you had a 2 1/2 ds, which 2 parks would you visit and why?

[carter28]

I have a 2 1/2 ds, 9 month dd, trying to decide which 2 parks to visit with them that they will enjoy and be able to take advantage of the most. I being a certified diver thought it would be cool for ds to see me through the glass waving at him swimming with sharks, don't know what else at Epcot for him. We are planning sw, but as far as Disney we are trying to decide on 2 or 3 parks if its worth it for him.
Thanks
dd

 

[Grumpy's Wife]

OK, if I only had two parks to go to I would choose Magic Kingdom and Animal Kingdom. MK because you can't go to Disney and not go to MK. Animal Kingdom because you have a 2 1/2 year old. I think he would enjoy the animals. Good luck with your choices.

 

[debbiedoo]

when my DD was that age(she is now 6)--we took her to all the parks and she loved them all for their own reasons. It would be hard just to pick two.

I know One would definitely be MK.

I would then go with Epcot or AK

 

[patsal]

MK and MGM--the most that that age group is familiar with. AK is great and the animals are awesome, but if I have to limit it to two parks I think I would go with what my child is most familiar with. With Fantasy land, the character meet and greets, train ride, parade, buzz, country bears,etc. MGM has Beauty and the Beast, Great Movie Ride (Mary Poppins and Wizard of Oz), Little Mermaid, Playhouse DIsney, parade,etc.

 

[tink2]

I've taken both of my children at 2 1/2 and both of them loved MK #1 and then MGM. MGM has Playhouse Disney, Voyage of Mermaid, Muppets 3D, great parade, and lots of characters- Woody and Buzz, Mike and Sully, Incredibles, and many others- I know all the parks have characters- but Mike and Sully and the Incredibles aren't anywhere else- plus a 2 1/2 year old boy probably loves Woody and Buzz and they can be seen together at Al's Toy Barn. They will probably love any park, but these are my children's favorites. MK is a MUST for any small child though!

 

[cheyita]

Definitely, positively, absolutely MK. There is so much for young children to enjoy (and us big kids too!).

For my second choice I am torn between MGM and Epcot. MGM has a few great things for a young child, but I love Epcot and so do my kids. You can go to Imagination with Figment and Living Seas, watch the fountain, try a few things in Innoventions, ride the boat in Mexico, make a mask at the Kidcot stations.

We aren't huge fans of AK - it's fine but it's our least favorite of the four parks.

 

[twinsmom&dad]

We would vote for mk and mgm. MK is a must, and mgm for the shows and characters(playhouse disney,mermaid, muppets)

 

[mommytutu]

Another vote for MK and MGM.

 

[LibertyLover]

Definately MK and AK. That's pretty much what my DH and I did with our 2 and a half year old DD in January. We did go to EPCOT for us and she enjoyed Maelstrom and Rio del Tiempo, as well as being made much of in China (she is adopted and came from Hubei province), but for real fun and enjoyment for her it was MK and AK.

 

[BroganMc]

I don't know. I was just in MGM with my nieces and nephews last week (ages 3-7) and they got a little bored with it all. A little kid can only sit through so many shows without getting restless. It strikes me more as a film buff park. Playhouse Disney was cute and Muppets is a fun 4-D show, plus Woody & Buzz were there at the Toy Barn. However the BackLot Tour and Animation Tour does get a little long n the tooth. And under 3's won't be able to ride Star Tours or ToT. The wait time for Fantasmic is insane, even in the off season. The Great Movie Ride is really a snoozefest, even if the Wizard of Oz sets were gorgeous. MGM has become our least favorite park.

Animal Kingdom has the animals (safari, petting zoo, conservation walk-thru, two other walk-thru zoos), two shows (Lion King involves the audience and drafts some kids for a musical parade, Tarzan is a high-flying show with lots of action). You have a 4-D show in the Tree of Life (Tough to be a Bug), but that may get scary for some little ones. My then 1.5 yr old nephew cried when they turned off the lights and dropped stink bombs on the audience. But DinoLand has a whole carnival kiddie ride set including a Dumbo-esque ride and carnival games. And it features the Boneyard Playground which is cool for kids. The can slide, dig up fossils, climb, etc.

EPCOT has the Living Seas and show with Crush the Turtle. The Imagination Pavilion has the Figment ride and the 4-D show, Honey I Shrunk the Audience. Universe of Energy takes a tour through Dinoverse with animatronics but is not scary like AK's Dinosaur. Mexico has its boat ride ala It's A Small World. The countries have various performers to entertain (the Chinese acrobats are a blast) and the KidCot stations for making crafts.

Magic Kingdom is a given, but be warned that FantasyLand gets crowded fast. Usually you have 45-60 min waits for rides between 10am-3pm or later. Many kids want to ride it NOW!!!! and don't understand why it takes so long. I usually hear the most parent-child fights weaving through there. Get there early, do a few rides, then skip to another park section. Return during parades and fireworks, or try another morning.

If I only had 2 park days, I'd probably do MK and AK for the kids. Personally, I'd do MK and EPCOT. MGM is becoming my "Oh, do I have to" park.

J

 

[mom2triplets]

Took my three at 2 1/2 this past December. They are still talking about everything they saw and did at MK. We could of spent the entire week there if it was up to them. They also enjoyed AK.

 

[joliesmom]

I'd have to say definately MK for all of the obvious reasons- Dumbo, Peter Pan etc. The my other choice would be Ak. My DD (3.5yrs) loved the animals, the boneyard (which was great for re-grouping), and the shows (besides Lion King- Pocahontas was excellent. MGM was boring for her, besides Playhouse Disney and Honey I Shrunk playground she didn't enjoy much else. Ariel is a bit frightening and she wasn't gonna try Muppets after Ariel.

 

[minmate]

I agree with MK. It sounds like you really want to do Epcot, so obviously that... and maybe if you get a parkhopper, you could do MGM that same day. At Epcot, you can also try: Turtle Talks, Living Seas, El Rio del Tempo, Spaceship Earth and Figment... also catch the Characters on Holiday bus meet and greet.

At MGM, Playhouse Disney and the Honey I Shrunk the Kids Playground... maybe the Muppets, maybe The Great Movie Ride (might be to startling though) and the afternoon parade of Stars and Motorcars... cool cars and lots of characters. If he can sit through shows, then try Voyage of the Little Mermaid and Beauty and the Beast.

At MK, Fantasyland, Toon Town, Buzz, Jungle Cruise, Pirates would be the main ones I believe. For eve entertainment at this age, I'd choose Spectro and Wishes at MK.

Sea World will be fun too!

 

[MinnieM21]

I would say Magic Kingdom because you just have to go to the MK while at Disney.

Then I would pick Animal Kingdom because I think your kids would really love seeing all of the animals, going on the safari ride, the Boneyard playground, the exploration trails where you can see different kinds of animals, Mickey's Jamin' Jungle Parade, Festival of the Lion King, etc.

 

[oogieboogie]

I'd do MGM and MK. MGM has many shows that a toddler would love (ie Playhouse Disney) I know my son loved Playhouse Disney, he loved playing Millionaire (although all he did was push the buttons), he loved Muppetvision, and the HISTK playground.

But then again, Epcot is so much fun for a toddler too. The Journey into Imagination play area is so much fun, as is the Turtle talk with Crush at the Living Seas.
Then you also have the Mission:Space play area that's just for toddlers. Man, my son loves playing in those jungle gym tunnels.

 

[iLoveEeyore2]

DEFINITELY MK! My 2nd choice for that age would be MGM, followed by AK.
My Bro & SIL just took their 6, 3, and 10 mo. old and they were the two parks they liked best. They didn't even go to EPCOT.

 

[PamNC]

but if I were going for 2 1/2 days with a child (which I don't have I must caveat that) I would definitely pick the Magic Kingdom and for the second park, I might have some trouble picking. Goodness gracious. I think MGM has some great stuff for little kids. That's it - I would pick MK and MGM.

PamNC

P.S. Those picks aren't bad for kidless couples either.