Not sure about a day at DHS - not understanding the draw...

[kaetra]

We have skipped HS many times. If you are doing a short trip, less than 5 days or so, it probably wouldn't be a big deal to skip it this time. Unless your children are big Frozen fans - in that case you might want to squeeze it in.

If you have a longer trip you should probably at least try it once. You never know, you might love it - there's lots of people who do.

 

[Ozzygirl]

If I didn't have park hoppers and was short on time I would skip HS. I really only like TOT and RnR there. With a Hopper I always do a half day at HS and then hit another park for the other half. I would never skip AK as it's my 2nd favorite park.

 

[HydroGuy]

I personally would never skip DHS. I read frequently about it being "a half day park" and I do not get it. DHS is my second favorite park at WDW.

I love the atmosphere there. We easily find enough to do for an entire day. When possible we visit for two days.

Now, if you are someone who skips RnR and ToT and maybe even ST, then I can see how it could be more like a half day park.

But if you are taking it all in, and including TSM, GMR, LMA, the Indy show, the Streetmosphere characters, stop and listen to the always enjoyable Mulch, Sweat and Shears, see BatB show, maybe even Fantasmic, that is a very long and full day.

 

[luvsJack]

DD has loved HS since she loves the thrill rides. I have always loved it to but do not ride either of the thrill rides. I like just the look/feel of the park. The whole Old Hollywood theme is grand to me. The street people are fun to find and watch. Love BATB and Lights, Motors, Action (but aren't they closing that soon?), and even Indiana Jones (dd had never seen the movies when she first saw the show and still enjoyed it). Animation Academy is fun and so is Muppet Vision.

And then there is just walking through the Streets of America and enjoying the theming. And meeting characters scattered throughout the park. Lunch at 50's Prime Time and Fantasmic to see at night!

We have done HS in a half day, but much prefer the whole day.

And I always want to see the park at night. Its my favorite park when the lights come on.

 

[skuttle]

We aren't big fans of DHS. We don't like the layout of the park. It's just a hodge podge of things. Several empty attractions, and other attractions that severely need updating. We always go because we usually take longer trips (at least 6 full days), but we never stay all day. Maybe because we go to WDW every 1 -2 years, we just don't feel like we need to see every show each time. Of course, we love AK and always spend two days there each trip, which I know many people would think is strange since so many look at AK as a "1/2 day park".

 

[FantasiaMagic]

With many attractions recently closed at DHS, and a full referb hopefully soon on the way, I can see your concern about the park. It is a very fun park. As PPs mentioned, they have plenty of shows and character meets to keep you busy for the whole day. Fantasmic is also spectacular. It's all about personal preference, but I think its a lot of fun to enjoy!

 

[cbellasmomma]

When are you going? How long will you be there? And what are you hoping to get out of your experience?

The Studios is my least favorite park, but I still go to it. It's my least favorite because it never feels as magical as the others...I think because it's all different movies...from different studios, not just Disney stuff. However, there are some fun attractions there. They have changed a few since my last trip, so I can't speak for all of them. It looks like they made improvements though.

If you are unsure about the park, just look at how long your there for. If it's just 3-4 days, you will probably want to skip at least one park. There's just too much to do. If you're there for 5-7, give it a try. If nothing else, use a park hopper and do Animal Kingdom in the morning, followed by the Studios in the evening.

You know your daughter best so you will have to make the best decision based on her likes. I can say that the BATB show is worth going to!! I would pay to see that if it were available outside of the parks.

Also, if you don't go to this one, it gives her something to look forward to the next time you visit!

We are going for 6 days and I have 6 day tickets with no hoppers (and we will not be buying one) . We also have a waterpark ticket so I am making that a half day with something.

Here is my proposed schedule but I am surprising dd so I plan on making our departure day her choice.
Day 1 (arrival day) Head to MK then off to GF for 1900 Park Fare res. So definitely not a full day at MK
Day 2 MK
Day 3 DHS?
Day 4 Waterpark - then meet DH when he arrives and go to Epcot half day
Day 5 AK, resort break, HDDR for 6:15 res
Day 6 (flight at 7) I want this to be DH's choice

My only other thought was to take out DHS switch Ak to day 3 and make day 5 another MK day. That will probably be her style and I'm not sure that 1.5 days is enough. I suppose if it isn't she will choose to go to MK on our departure day though..... Thoughts?

 

[cbellasmomma]

Oh and how do you get to DHS from the Poly?

 

[Robo]

Oh and how do you get to DHS from the Poly?

Bus marked "Studios."
Once underway, the actual on-the-road time is about 15 minutes.

(You may share a bus with another MK area resort or two.)

 

[Zippa D Doodah]

Every person/family is different in what they can skip. DHS is my second favorite park. My whole family just likes the way it feels there. We enjoy the few rides they do have, lunch at 50's Primetime, seeing One Man's Dream, and catching as many Citizens of Holly wood skits as we can. We usually are done with DHS before closing so that winds up being a good restful evening

 

[busymommy2pink]

We skip it most times. My girls aren't fans of it. We went this past September because it was my nephews first time and he is star wars obsessed. We did really enjoy the Frozen sing-a-long. We like TSM...but not enough to usually make a day there. We enjoy Epcot and MK much more and then would rather have a resort down day than DHS.

 

[Cando86]

Our last trip we went to HS two days. This trip we're reducing that to one. I would have a hard time completely skipping it but I definitely feel we only need one day this trip. I know there are lots of changes coming to HS but right now it's kinda struggling in my opinion. However there are some very cool things not to miss at HS including the animation classes (one of our all-time favorite things to do in Disney), the Beauty and the Beast show, Tower of Terror and Rock n Roller Coaster are two of my favorite rides in all of WDW, Toy Story Mania, Star Tours, Great Movie Ride...

I wouldn't skip it entirely but I won't spend more than one day there next trip (I know this will change in the next few years once they add the suspected Star Wars and Pixar areas).

 

[PrncessA]

DHS feels different than the other parks to us. There isn't as much rushing from ride to ride, since they are so far apart and there aren't really a lot of them, which gives us a more relaxed feeling while we are touring. It isn't our favorite park, but there are some aspects of DHS that we would never want to skip such as Star Wars, Toy Story Mania, Fantasmic and for me Tower of Terror. Plus there are some wonderful characters that you can't find anywhere else!

 

[luvsJack]

Honestly, and this is jmho, if I was going to skip any part right now, it would be AK. There is a lot of construction going on. We were only there for a half day a couple of weeks ago and it didn't really bother us too much but if I was there all day it would. The park seems even more crowded and hotter with all the walls up. Now, that's just me and you may have enough favorites of you or your child there to make it a "must do". But, I would skip AK and add in Epcot. The characters at Epcot (like Alice, Mary Poppins and Mulan) that you can't get anywhere else is enough for us to want to always do the World Showcase.

 

[Mindy Kurz]

DHS is actually one of my favorite parks!! I do with they had more, but the Beauty and the Beast show and Fantasmic just make my trip!!

 

[JenLynn]

If I *had* to skip a park, it would be HS. But I would also miss going there because there are several attractions we really like. In particular, our whole family loves Toy Story Mania, animation academy, Star Tours, Muppets 3D, and the Indiana Jones show. DH loves Rockin Roller Coaster. I love Tower of Terror. I am glad we have seen 'Lights, Motor, Action' but we don't feel the need to see it again.

 

[Fastpassminus]

We are only planning a 1/2 day there on our arrival day this trip. Last trip we skipped it. Our " plan" is to FP plus Tower of Terror Star Tours & TSM Play at HISTIK mayyyyybbbeee try to get into Frozen Sing Along standby & mayyyyybeee check out the parade. Eat dinner at Sci Fi, see Osborne lights & hightail it back to the resort for an early evening.

I love Animation Academy & Muppets but am willing to skip them in favor of more resort time & other parks.

 

[Dis703]

It's not my favorite park but we'd definitely never skip it. For one thing Fantasmic is my absolute favorite of the closing shows so we could never miss that. But we enjoy most of the shows and Beauty and the Beast is especially a favorite. TSM is also definitely in our top 3 favorite rides. So much fun. ODS this trip hopes to be doing the Jedi Training Academy and we want to do the character drawing class together. And we tend to do more M&G at this park as well.

 

[TXAKDisneyFan]

We are going for 6 days and I have 6 day tickets with no hoppers (and we will not be buying one) . We also have a waterpark ticket so I am making that a half day with something.

Here is my proposed schedule but I am surprising dd so I plan on making our departure day her choice.
Day 1 (arrival day) Head to MK then off to GF for 1900 Park Fare res. So definitely not a full day at MK
Day 2 MK
Day 3 DHS?
Day 4 Waterpark - then meet DH when he arrives and go to Epcot half day
Day 5 AK, resort break, HDDR for 6:15 res
Day 6 (flight at 7) I want this to be DH's choice

My only other thought was to take out DHS switch Ak to day 3 and make day 5 another MK day. That will probably be her style and I'm not sure that 1.5 days is enough. I suppose if it isn't she will choose to go to MK on our departure day though..... Thoughts?

I'd personally make Day 3 a full EPCOT day. There are a few rides in the futureworld section of the park, but we could spend several days in the World Showcase alone. (DD also loves the WS; and there are some good places to eat there.)

Day 4 I'd go to a water park in the morning, and then go to Hollywood Studios once your husband arrives. If you can get FP+ for it, you should be able to ride TSMM in the evening without trouble. Then you'd also have two adults and be able to each ride Rock'n'roller coaster (single rider line) if your daughter isn't interested; and you could use one of your FP+ for Tower of Terror (and take turns with your husband). A second half of the day visit to DHS would also mean you'd get to see Fantasmic, which is many people's favorite nighttime show.

 

[itchin2go]

Count me as one who doesn't understand the draw. Ideally, we do 2 days at MK, 2 days at Epcot, and then play the rest by ear.

That said, if you've never been (and considering "thrill rides" are out):

Toy Story Mania is lots of fun;
Star Tours is fun;
Voyage of the Little Mermaid is worth seeing at least once:
Beauty and the Beast is worth seeing once (and for me, probably never again);
Stunt shows are worth seeing once;
I have not seen Fantasmic, but it has lots of fans
Same with the Animation Academy - haven't done it, but lots love it.

We did one evening there on our last trip, mainly to eat at Hollywood Brown Derby (the only decent food in the park) and see Osborne Lights (Thanksgiving trip), but we're just not really fans of DHS as a whole day park.

If you're staying for 10 days, definitely give it a try. On a 5 day trip, by comparison, I'd skip it and do other parks twice.

Here are the parks in order of appeal (to my family):

EP
MK
DHS (a distant third)
AK

Sadly, I wish I liked DHS and AK more, but we just haven't found a lot that floats our boat in those parks.