One day in Disney - what would you do?

[staceychev]

It looks like we might be able to stop and spend one day in the parks (Easter Sunday, April 12) on our way to visit family in southern FL. I'd be buying our tickets with Chase Disney points, and I'm not sure yet if I'll be able to spend on park hoppers or not. I've been to Disney many times over the years, but it's been five years since our last visit. Our girls are 14 and 9 now, and not interested in most of the Disney characters or Star Wars or Toy Story, although they do really still love Tangled and Moana. The older is an artist and just loves cool experiences, while the little one is a thrill seeker and loves rides. Given the choice, they'd pick Wizarding World, but my Chase Disney points aren't gonna help there!

Any advice on what park(s) you'd choose and why?

 

[tbholc81]

Easter crowds will be pretty heavy, but we spent Easter in EPCOT last year and it was very doable. Without being into Toy Story or Star Wars that would be my next choice. We are going for 1 day later in April (mostly to go to US and see HP stuff), but we are going to spend the day at HS to see all the Galaxies Edge.

 

[Unvoiced_Apollo]

If you want quintessential Disney, then it has to be MK.

However, I would make the argument that AK might be the best park for your girls. There's some fun thrills there (Everest, Dinosaur, Flight of Passage), plenty of animal experiences (And the safari is always different each time because you never know what the animals are doing or which ones you'll come across).

For your artist, there's the animation experience at Rafiki's (I hear that's in some sort of odd limbo though so YMMV depending on what's going on there). They have some pretty cool unique experiences, most of them extra costs but a couple of them are fairly reasonable (Caring for Giants and Up Close with Rhinos are $30 and $40 respectively). There's also Pandora which just exploring the area is unique in itself.

Alternatively, you can go with the PP and do EPCOT. Test Track and Mission Space would really be the only thrill rides. I think the Flower & Garden Festival is going on then and the artist may like to see that.

 

[loves to dive]

Hmmmm, interesting question and hard to answer. I'd either do AK or Epcot. Epcot has always been our favorite park, even when my son was a toddler, and F&G is an added bonus for us. However, AK has a lot to do and is such a beautiful park I'm thinking any artist would love it.

 

[yorkieteacher]

Agree with Unvoiced Apollo on AK having more to offer your girls.

 

[gharter]

As I was reading this, my first thought was AK. Fun rides, although not likely you'll get on FoP. But enough other rides for them to enjoy.
and you can do the annimation class in Rafikis Planet Watch.
Expect it to be very crowded. But not as bad as MK or HS.

 

[Unvoiced_Apollo]

As I was reading this, my first thought was AK. Fun rides, although not likely you'll get on FoP. But enough other rides for them to enjoy.
and you can do the annimation class in Rafikis Planet Watch.
Expect it to be very crowded. But not as bad as MK or HS.

FOP is difficult if you rely on FP+ but I always see a lot of recommendations say if you can't get it, you can always try for an evening ride in standby just before close or at the very least rope drop.

 

[gharter]

That is very true. We have gotten in line about 5 minutes before close. No matter what the posted wait time is, our wait has been 15-30 minutes.

 

[texasgingerbread]

There is also the Bon Voyage character breakfast with Flynn Rider, Rapunzel, and then Eric and Ariel at Trattoria al Forno which is outside the parks. That might be a fun way to start the day if you can get an early morning res.

 

[Unvoiced_Apollo]

There is also the Bon Voyage character breakfast with Flynn Rider, Rapunzel, and then Eric and Ariel at Trattoria al Forno which is outside the parks. That might be a fun way to start the day if you can get an early morning res.

I didn't think of this since the OP since the daughters weren't interested in characters, but I re-read and saw they liked Tangled so nice suggestion.

To the OP - If you did opt for this meal & went to EPCOT, I would actually recommend doing a late breakfast/early lunch. This kind of helps split up Future World for the mornings and World Showcase in the afternoon sine the latter isn't fully open until 11. The restaurant is a really short walk from the International Gateway entrance of the park as well. It's one of the few times I can recommend a table service for a one day visit just because EPCOT typically can be explored in one day even after a nice break.

 

[staceychev]

Thanks, everyone! TBH, Epcot has been my favorite since I was a kid, and I always lean towards that. I hadn't even considered AK - my girls haven't been there, and I was only there with a senior class trip when I was a teacher, and I wasn't looking to maximize the experience. That might be a cool option for us!

 

[bryanb]

I like the idea of AK too. My friend did a road trip across the country and only had one day in Orlando. They chose AK because it has a bit of something for everyone, and even more if your kids like animals. Plus, it’s so unique among Disney parks for its atmosphere, entertainment, and design. The food is great too!

I wouldn’t bother with hoppers for a single day ticket, as there’s plenty to do in that park especially if your family is new to it.

 

[SwanVT2]

I actually would suggest MK. There is splash mountain, space mountain, thunder mountain and 7 dwarves coaster for thrills.
My DD has also outgrown characters and likes thrill rides. AK, besides expedition Everest and new pandora ride, maybe dinosaur, won't have the number of rides for your younger daughter. We live near an excellent zoo so we don't enjoy paying disney park prices to see animals. Have your girls been to disney before? If not then haunted mansion and peter pan will impress your older artistic daughter just for their effects. The afternoon parade is so impressive..and the costumes!!! Enjoy!

 

[staceychev]

I actually would suggest MK. There is splash mountain, space mountain, thunder mountain and 7 dwarves coaster for thrills.
My DD has also outgrown characters and likes thrill rides. AK, besides expedition Everest and new pandora ride, maybe dinosaur, won't have the number of rides for your younger daughter. We live near an excellent zoo so we don't enjoy paying disney park prices to see animals. Have your girls been to disney before? If not then haunted mansion and peter pan will impress your older artistic daughter just for their effects. The afternoon parade is so impressive..and the costumes!!! Enjoy!

Yes - we went twice with them before - once when the oldest was 5 and in the throes of princess-mania, and again when the second was 5 and was all about Elsa!

Your thought about the zoo is good - we live just outside of Philly, and the Philadelphia zoo is pretty fantastic.

 

[loves to dive]

Just a little more about AK. It's not a zoo. Yes, there are animals there but the entire park is not a zoo. It's a beautiful park, all sorts of little nooks and crannies to explore. We were there in Oct. with my hubby, who had never been to AK and hadn't been to WDW in probably 30 years or so. We were camping at the Fort and he really had no interest to go to any of the parks except AK. After it was all said and done, we did get him to MK, AK and HS. He enjoyed AK, could have done without HS all together and said MK was o.k. but way too crowded. Keep in mind he is a grumpy old man and has no sense of whimsy and was just as happy staying in RV with the dog or riding the golf cart around the Fort.

 

[Unvoiced_Apollo]

I actually would suggest MK. There is splash mountain, space mountain, thunder mountain and 7 dwarves coaster for thrills.
My DD has also outgrown characters and likes thrill rides. AK, besides expedition Everest and new pandora ride, maybe dinosaur, won't have the number of rides for your younger daughter. We live near an excellent zoo so we don't enjoy paying disney park prices to see animals. Have your girls been to disney before? If not then haunted mansion and peter pan will impress your older artistic daughter just for their effects. The afternoon parade is so impressive..and the costumes!!! Enjoy!

@staceychev
I think the question that needs to be asked is "Are your daughters at that age where they feel like Disney is too childish for them?" If not then I think MK is a fair suggestion. Has your thrill seeker experienced the thrills listed in the quote? Does she want unique experiences too? Is your older one able to be inspired by the history and whimsy of Disney? MK will offer unique experiences, but it is VERY Disney.

 

[staceychev]

@staceychev
I think the question that needs to be asked is "Are your daughters at that age where they feel like Disney is too childish for them?" If not then I think MK is a fair suggestion. Has your thrill seeker experienced the thrills listed in the quote? Does she want unique experiences too? Is your older one able to be inspired by the history and whimsy of Disney? MK will offer unique experiences, but it is VERY Disney.

No - my thrill-seeker was 5 when we were last there, so all she did was ride Barnstormer over and over and over and over... And that's a good point about the history and whimsey - I think that the older one would really appreciate it, actually. She's feeling very sentimental and nostalgic right now, having graduated from a school she was in for 10 years and moved into high school. MK might actually be perfect.

 

[vetrik]

My 10 year old daughter’s favorite park is AK, so she would definitely pick that for one day. I would usually pick MK, since there so much to offer and it’s quintessential Disney. We’re doing one day during our Disney cruise/Universal trip in February, but we have Star Wars fans in the family so we’ve picked HS to see Galaxy’s Edge.

 

[epcotty]

FOP is difficult if you rely on FP+ but I always see a lot of recommendations say if you can't get it, you can always try for an evening ride in standby just before close or at the very least rope drop.

Just did that 11 days ago, got into the standby line in the last hour. Still a long wait but got to ride

 

[B-Ride]

If you want quintessential Disney, then it has to be MK.

This is the only reasonable answer to the question of a 1 day visit to WDW.