Only a 3 day trip-what would you skip?

[lroger01]

I'd have them plan a day at MK and a day at Epcot (I'm assuming they specifically want that park, it's my 4th favorite). For the third day, make a best guess on what might be most appealing, and make FP's for that park. But in reality keep it open. MK and AK FP can usually be had on short notice, especially if they've already hit the must do's at MK.

Who knows? They just might find Epcot awesome and want a second day there.

 

[Anal Annie]

My friend is going on a 3 day trip to WDW. It will be her, DH, MIL. FIL, & her two kids (ages 6 & 8-girl & boy).

Which park would you skip: DAK or DHS?

Thanks!

When are they going? RoL opens Feb. 17th and the new Pandora / Avatar stuff opens May 27th. If they're going in the summer after Pandora opens I would definitely suggest picking AK over HS.

 

[DisneyWishes14]

Honestly, unless you have big Star Wars or thrill ride fans, I would skip DHS right now. AK is just beautiful and there is so much for everyone to enjoy from rides to shows. Better restaurants, too, IMHO.

 

[SaintsManiac]

We would skip AK. In fact we might be doing that on our 2018 trip since it won't be as long.

 

[Minsc]

We've done lots of 3 day trips, and we always split DHS and AK on one day in that scenario. We are thrill ride junkies, so ToT, RRC, and EE are a must. It's about a 70/30 split for us. 70% of the time spent in DHS and 30% in AK. Although Pandora may alter that this year, we really only hit AK for EE and maybe a Dinosaur or Safari thrown in for good measure.

 

[LM412]

I'm with those who would do two days at MK and skip both

 

[MichelleWDWfan]

getting each person a park hopper would add ~$360 to your trip for one day of hopping? No.

Totally agree with Eastern on this. It's not worth spending all that extra money on Park Hoppers for 3 days if only going to park hop on 1 day.
That $360 can be better spent elsewhere.

I would say do 1 day at AK, MK and Epcot.
or 2 days MK and 1 AK
With all the new things opening in AK, skipping HS this time seems a better option.

It's definatley a tough choice with a short trip.
With the kids being 6 & 8 personally I would spend 2 days at MK.

 

[ngm]

Hoppers with 1 full day at MK, 1 split day between MK and Epcot (MK morning, Epcot evening), 1 split day between AK and HS.

Otherwise, totally depends on the kids. If they want to meet all the princesses, then I'd stick with MK and Epcot (with maybe 2 days at MK). If they love Star Wars, then skip AK. If they're nerdy like my kids, then skip HS and do the Wilderness Explorers at AK.

 

[dalyes]

My family (DH, DD 7, DS 5, and I) have been 4 times, and heading down in a couple weeks. We generally skip AK. As in, we've only spent a total of about 6 hours in AK as a family although I've gone other times before we had children. Through the Disney Jr. phase, and now Star Wars phase, my kids seem to like HS more. Having said that, we probably never gave AK a fair shake with the kids because DH and I never loved it. This time we are going one day in each park - first time without park hoppers - so we can take our time and enjoy each park.

If it were me, I'd either go to HS or 2 days in MK, especially if it will be a while before you go back or if you're going during a busy time. My family also loves Epcot but my kids are geography junkies and love seeing the World Showcase.

 

[gingerfeathers]

I agree with those who are suggesting a day at MK, a day at Epcot, and a half day at DHS and AK. With half of DHS currently under construction, you can get it done pretty quick.

If they don't want to do the park hoppers, personally I would choose AK at the moment. DHS was a bit disappointing with how small it was when I visited last week, and it was annoying to constantly be hitting dead ends and having to retrace your steps to get back to somewhere you could actually go.

 

[angelinaxox]

I have done two three day trips in the past few years and chose to skip AK as it was always my least favorite park. I am going again for another three day trip and was going to skip DHS, but decided to go for a few hours on my Epcot day. I am concentrating on AK on this trip with Rivers of Light opening and before Avatar opens. I figured this was a good time to go back before it might get crazy busy with Avatar.

 

[beck00]

I agree with those who say to hop. I'm planning a 3 day trip with my oldest daughter for her bday. That's my plan.

 

[starjazz]

We have a 2-day trip planned. Tentatively planning MK and EP. But DHS came in a close third.

 

[JennaDeeDooDah]

I'd skip Animal Kingdom and not think twice about it. First, I much prefer the old Hollywood theme of DHS to the theme at Animal Kingdom. Animal Kingdom is no zoo. Sure, there are animal, but it's not like a zoo where you think to yourself, "you know, I want to go see the giraffes" and then you head off to the giraffe exhibit. You can see a number of animals on the safari. You can do the gorilla trail to see gorillas and hippos, but no other animals on the trail interest us (birds and fish... meh). You can see tigers on maharaja jungle trek, but no other animals really interest us there (more birds, I think a komodoa dragon and some bats). So really, as far as animals go, I see them on the safari which means I am constantly moving and can't stay as long as the exhibits I want and skip the ones I don't. I'd MUCH rather go to one of the 3 zoos around here that are all within a 45 minute and see what I want, when I want, for however long I want. So, for theme, DHS wins.

That brings me to the rides. In my opinion, Animal Kingdom doesn't compare to DHS rides-wise. Expedition Everest at Animal Kingdom is one of the best themed rides in the park and is a fun roller coaster. at DHS, Tower of Terror is right up there with Expedition Everest as far as amazing theming goes (and, in my opinion, is even slightly better) and a fun ride. Rock n Roller Coaster, also at DHS, is a fantastic roller coaster that I find to be more fun to Everest. So, I think that you get 2 rides at DHS to compare to only 1 at Animal Kingdom. Dinosaur at Animal Kingdom is jarring and not as much fun. When you compare that to Star Tours at DHS, well, I don't think you can compare the two. Star Tours also has the added benefit of having multiple experiences so you can do it many times and have a different ride each time. Primeval Whirl is a good family ride at Animal Kingdom, but Toy Story Midway Mania is enjoyed more by our family and doesn't have quite the same motion sickness result that Primeval Whirl causes. Great Movie Ride at DHS is my favorite ride and I also love the queue. So, for rides, DHS wins.

Regarding shows. Festival of the Lion King is a fantastic show at Animal Kingdom. No doubt about it. Fantasmic at DHS is my favorite show, though, so if I have to compare the best show in my opinion at Animal Kingdom (FOTLK) to the best at DHS (Fantasmic), DHS wins out there. I don't like Finding Nemo the Musical (AK) nearly as much as Little Mermaid (DHS). Flights of Wonder at Animal Kingdom is just meh. We have bird shows at all of the zoos around here. I've seen Beauty and the Beast Live on Stage at DHS at least a dozen times and still enjoy it. My six-year-old daughter loves Indiana Jones Epic Stunt Spectacular along with the rest of the family. So, for shows, DHS wins.

When it comes to dining, it gets a little more complicated. Counter service dining at DHS is lacking. The new Pizza Rizzo has a fun theme so I think it is better than Pizzafari at Animal Kingdom because I find that theme to be lacking. I also like seeing all of the movie artifacts at Backlot Express at DHS, but I also enjoy the theme of Restaurantosaurus at Animal Kingdom. That has to be a wash. I don't really think any of the other counter service restaurants at DHS are worth writing home about. At Animal Kingdom, I would recommend Yak and Yeti counter service along with Restaurantosaurus. So, both parks have a couple of decent counter service restaurants and a few that are just meh. Definitely a wash there. At DHS, I think that they have the 2 best themed table service restaurants in Sci Fi and 50's Prime Time (and I'd put them in that order but love eating at both). I think that the themes at those restaurants are worth eating there, regardless of the food. But, make no mistake. The food, especially at 50's Prime Time Cafe is quite good. For little ones, Hollywood and Vine is a great way to meet Disney Junior characters or Mickey and friends, but the food is average at best. When you compare that to Tusker House at Animal Kingdom, where you can also meet Mickey and friends (it is hosted by Donald) and the food is exotic and good, I have to give Tusker House the edge. Unfortunately, I don't think that the other restaurants are all that great here. As Landry's Club members, I really wanted to like Yak and Yeti as well as Rainforest Cafe. It's strange because I enjoy all of the Rainforest Cafe restaurants I've gone to except the Disney ones. The menu is limited and I don't think the food is as flavorful as at other restaurants. Yak and Yeti, sadly, was also lacking the flavor we were hoping for. I'm not saying that it was bad. Not at all. It just didn't have enough flavor. Anyway, for dining, I'm going to give the edge to DHS.


So, yeah. DHS wins in atmosphere/theme, rides, shows, and dining. Then, when you add in the location and how it feels like it takes forever to get to Animal Kingdom from any resort except Animal Kingdom Lodge and the All Stars and it's a clean sweep for DHS.

 

[CJB2002]

Hoppers with 1 full day at MK, 1 split day between MK and Epcot (MK morning, Epcot evening), 1 split day between AK and HS.

Otherwise, totally depends on the kids. If they want to meet all the princesses, then I'd stick with MK and Epcot (with maybe 2 days at MK). If they love Star Wars, then skip AK. If they're nerdy like my kids, then skip HS and do the Wilderness Explorers at AK.

This was exactly what my husband and I agreed when we were discussing this post, lol. We even discussed how we'd plan our days out to make the most of it

 

[loves to dive]

What if they had single day tickets and just added a hopper to the last day? Can you do that and do you have to pay the hopper price for the entire trip? I have APs and before that always had hoppers so I don't now the ins and outs of tickets.

 

[JennaDeeDooDah]

What if they had single day tickets and just added a hopper to the last day? Can you do that and do you have to pay the hopper price for the entire trip? I have APs and before that always had hoppers so I don't now the ins and outs of tickets.

I'm almost positive that the hopper can be added at an point in your stay up until you enter the park on your last day; however, the park hopper is a flat cost whether you add it to a 10 day ticket or a one day ticket. What I'd do if I was trying to decide whether or not I might want to hop on my DHS/AK day is have that as my second day. Then, if I start out at one park and just find myself bored, I can add the hopper and go the other. If you save it for the last day, I don't think you can add the hopper after you have entered the park as you no longer have days left on the ticket.

 

[loves to dive]

I'm almost positive that the hopper can be added at an point in your stay up until you enter the park on your last day; however, the park hopper is a flat cost whether you add it to a 10 day ticket or a one day ticket. What I'd do if I was trying to decide whether or not I might want to hop on my DHS/AK day is have that as my second day. Then, if I start out at one park and just find myself bored, I can add the hopper and go the other. If you save it for the last day, I don't think you can add the hopper after you have entered the park as you no longer have days left on the ticket.

Good to know.

 

[Eastern]

Kids are 6 & 8. Hopping is a waste unless they are rabidly talking about AK and HS. You won't have $360 worth of more fun, I can assure you. And all that running just might make you crabby.

 

[AddiesMama3]

This was exactly what my husband and I agreed when we were discussing this post, lol. We even discussed how we'd plan our days out to make the most of it

I agree with both of you. This is exactly what I would do.