Is DHS worth it?

[CincyMom]

Hello. My husband and I will be taking our two girls, ages 7 and 6, to Disney World for the first-time in the Spring of 2016. My husband's last trip was when he was only 3 and I've never been, so we are all basically first-timers. Our plan is to stay 6 nights, but only go to the parks 4 of those days. From my research, two of those days need to be MK and then we want to do Epcot. We don't want to pay the extra for the park-hopper. Question is where to go for the 4th day? Is DHS worth it?

 

[bc7ate9]

Are you considering AK too? You should - it's a very nice park...but for either HS or AK, I'd say that it depends on what your family enjoys doing.

 

[PatsGirl]

FWIW, we almost always do a 4-park ticket and hit each park one day. We have never needed a second day at MK. If you plan it right, neither will you. I think each park has something to offer and you should do all four in four days. If you are early risers, you might find that AK and/or HS are 3/4 day parks, which leaves time for a stroll and dinner at the Boardwalk or Disney SPrings or pool time. The biggest obstacle in doing everything you want in one park in one day is a wide gap in ages or a wide gap in "need for speed" lol. Will your girls want to do Space Mountain? Thunder Mountain? Or will you spend most of your time in Fantasyland and shows? That sort of thing.

 

[dvcmom14]

I wouldn't skip AK for a first time trip, but that's just my family. Both of my daughters absolutely LOVE animals and Kilimanjaro Safari alone is worth going to AK for us. If I were in your shoes, I would want to do all the parks if you don't think you'll be back any time soon. However, if you think you'll be back in the next 5 years or so, I would skip DHS and go for Animal Kingdom. There isn't a ton of construction announced, but I've got to guess that DHS is going to be a mess (or at least a Disney mess) until after the Star Wars stuff is done.

 

[tlmadden73]

I would pick both AK and DHS over Epcot any day, but DHS is my favorite park though and I think most kids that age would find World Showcase pretty boring due to lackof attractions (Though the new Frozen ride MAY be open by then).

If your girls aren't interested in shows or thrill rides, then DHS could be skipped. But if they happen to like Star Wars, Muppets, Frozen and Beauty and the Beast, maybe DHS would be for them.

Do your girls like zoos? A lot of AK is zoo-like with only a few rides .. and a few shows beyond that. THe park closes early (unless the new night show is open), so it is always a good night to go out to a dinner at one of the resorts.

 

[5kidsmommy]

Honestly if you are there for four days I would do all four parks. One each day. Look at a crowd calendar and pick the most recommended day for each park during your stay. On your MK day I would plan on rope drop so that you can get the most done since that park is the hardest to get everything done. But honestly all four parks are worth a day.

 

[ArwenMarie]

I would stick with the two days for MK so you have plenty of time to enjoy it and go back and do some repeats of favorites, a day at Epcot and then pick between DHS and DAK. I would look at the list of attractions and entertainment and see which park would offer more for your family.

 

[sharadoc]

At their age, DHS offers a days worth for sure.

Beauty and the Beast show
Little Mermaid show
Frozen Sing-along
Muppetvision 3d
Indiana Jones show
Toy Story Mania
Star Tours
Jedi Training
Do your girls like Disney Jr? ! There's a show for that too.

Plus unique characters from Pixar movies, Disney Jr. Sorcerer Mickey

Definitely enough to do for a day.

 

[Average Joes]

HS is worth doing over going to Epcot twice or MK 3 times. I agree with bc7 that you should definitely consider AK. I would pick it over HS. It is a very nice park.

 

[MrInfinity]

The first time we went... (as adults)... we planned 6 days... 1 at each park, an extra at the MK, and one extra day to go wherever we wanted to do again. We ended up picking the Animal Kingdom because we loved it so much. It's a great park. Best theming of all parks everywhere... cool, relaxing, nice mix of rides and things to see. HS is great for Toy Story and Rockin Roller Coaster... but you're probly too short for the RR so it's really Toy Story and a few peripheral rides. For now, given most of what they're building at HS is a few years off, I would suggest the AK.

 

[ScarletBegonias]

I am personally not a fan of DHS. We went this past September with our 15 mo and didn't really do that much. Other than TSMM, I could skip it. We had a FP for Disney Jr. Live on Stage but missed it, so we will probably try to do that next time. I only plan on being there for a few hours.

 

[jvncnt]

I would pick both AK and DHS over Epcot any day, but DHS is my favorite park though and I think most kids that age would find World Showcase pretty boring due to lackof attractions (Though the new Frozen ride MAY be open by then).

If your girls aren't interested in shows or thrill rides, then DHS could be skipped. But if they happen to like Star Wars, Muppets, Frozen and Beauty and the Beast, maybe DHS would be for them.

Do your girls like zoos? A lot of AK is zoo-like with only a few rides .. and a few shows beyond that. THe park closes early (unless the new night show is open), so it is always a good night to go out to a dinner at one of the resorts.

Agree with the above! My son is 8 and this is our 5th time there. He likes Soarin at Epcot, but really doesn't much care about the rest of the rides, or the world showcase. He enjoys it, but not nearly as much as he likes AK or HS. At AK, he loves the expedition everest, kilimanjaro safari, dino land, festival of the lion king, etc. At HS, has to do star tours, indiana jones show, stun show (forget the name), and Toy Story midway mania. Honestly, for the age of your kids, I think HS and AK beats Epcot hands down (although if it was just for me, I prefer Epcot.)

 

[Jfsag123]

I think your plans are right on. For a first time visit, I would absolutely think you would need two days at MK to really do it right. Epcot is my family's favorite park (kids included), so I would obviously never skip it, but it will likely be a bit of a mess with Soarin' out of commission. If Frozen is open when you go, it should relieve some of this. Contrary to popular opinion around here these days, I think DHS has plenty to do for first-timers. The shows are great, especially for kids the ages of yours. I think the problem with the park as it currently stands is that it doesn't hold up well for repeat visitors. While ideally you wouldn't skip any parks, I think Animal Kingdom is the most easily skipped, and I would definitely chose a second day at MK over a day at AK as a first-time visitor. Of course there are people who love AK, and you can't know for sure if you will be one of them until you visit for yourself.

 

[Ladcassidy]

Have you considered planning for 5 park days, with the understanding that you will only spend 1/2 day at one or more parks (DHS, EP or AK, depending on what catches your girls' attention?) Adding a fifth day park ticket (for about $10 per person) is cheaper than adding park hoppers. You will still only be able to visit one park each day, but you will get to see everything.

BTW, my 7 year old daughter loves MK, and yours will, too, so don't give up your plan to spend two full days there. We always have park hoppers, and usually spend a portion of each day at MK. We start every morning at a different park, then find our way back to the Magic Kingdom.

 

[DisneyMandC]

I would recommend DHS and AK over Epcot based on your girls' ages, especially if you're not doing a parkhopper. DHS will offer more in terms of shows they may enjoy, where I don't see them getting as much out of Epcot. Also, Soarin will be closed during your visit so that will be a major headliner down, meaning Test Track (if they're tall enough to ride it/not too scared) will be PACKED.

AK also offers the Festival of the Lion King show and the Finding Nemo show, in addition to seeing all of the animals.

 

[jolene63]

I would buy tickets for a fifth day. It doesn't cost that much after day four. If you stick with four days, I would pick AK over DHS. I think there is more to do at AK right now than DHS.

 

[caroline1851]

I think you should do 6 days of parks and include all of them. For sure, 2 days at MK, a day for each of the others then decide which to go back to for your 6th day.

 

[Sheilaras]

Can you make 1 day a Park Hopper pass? I think the new Frozen sing-a-long is the bomb!

 

[Average Joes]

Can you make 1 day a Park Hopper pass? I think the new Frozen sing-a-long is the bomb!

Unfortunately you cannot make one of your ticket days a hopper. It is all or nothing. I wish you could.

 

[georgina]

At their age, DHS offers a days worth for sure.

Beauty and the Beast show
Little Mermaid show
Frozen Sing-along
Muppetvision 3d
Indiana Jones show
Toy Story Mania
Star Tours
Jedi Training
Do your girls like Disney Jr? ! There's a show for that too.

Plus unique characters from Pixar movies, Disney Jr. Sorcerer Mickey

Definitely enough to do for a day.

Don't forget Tower of Terror. My kids loved that ride as much as I do.