skip studios or Ak with 3.5 yr old and preggo mom

[snoopy5386]

So we'll be in the world for 2 days before we head out on a 7 day Disney cruise. It will be myself, DH, DD MIL, FIL and SIL (who lives in Tampa and is a AP holder). DD will be 3.5 and I will pregnant (hopefully!). We'll be doing MK and Epcot, but I think we'll only have time for one other park. So which would you skip with a pregnant mom and a 3.5 year old. MIL and FIL don't do thrill rides either. At AK I love, love, love the Nemo show, everyone else could do the safari, I love the walking trails, etc. At the studios we could do Playhouse Disney and TSM, it will kill me to miss that! We have been tons and will be going in fall/winter 2010 for a week so whatever we miss this year we'll see next time. Advice?

 

[LuvBaloo]

If you're DD likes the Playhouse Disney shows, then I'd do Studios and Playhouse Disney. I loved watching my girls get completely absorbed in Playhouse Disney.

 

[brockash]

I'd skip AK. It's a nice park, but if you can't do all 4, that's the one I'd skip. DHS has a lot of cute shows for little ones, TSM and Fantasmic. AK also always seems much hotter than the other parks, so I think it'll be better for being pregnant as well.

 

[trennr]

I vote skip DHS. THE ONLY thing there for a 3½yo would be the playhouse Disney shows...the Muppets...You spend allot of time getting to the other Shows early to get a good seat. I just hated it...and so did my Family.

Now AK...we love it...your DD should love seeing all the animals...and the Lion King show and Nemo should be a hit too...

Another option would be spend a 2nd day in the MK. Most geared toward the kids...maybe not so rushed on Day 1...because you know there will be a day 2.

 

[MrsJ Henry]

We had this same issue. Our DD who will be almost 3 loves Little Mermaid and Playhouse Disney so we knew we had to go to DHS.
We will be doing Muppets, playhouse disney, Beauty and the Beast,American idol,Block party parade and toy story mania.
At AK we would have only done Nemo show, Lion King show and the safari.
We just knew that DHS would be much more of what she would like.
So depending on what your child likes... that's the park i would pick. And also what you think you all may want to do.

 

[brergnat]

Skip DHS.

 

[irene_dsc]

Tough call. I think my dd (then 3.75) preferred AK to DHS, but the Playhouse Disney show was closed when we were there, she was scared when she met the Little Einstein characters, and it was before TSM. She loved The Little Mermaid and the playground. (We ran out of time to do Beauty and the Beast because ds wanted to do Lights, Motor, Action)

At AK, she loved seeing all the animals, the bird show, the safari, and liked Kali River Rapids. I don't think there was anything she didn't like that we did, but not a standout favorite.

 

[snoopy5386]

yeah I don't know, I'll have to wait and see what DD is into at that time. *I* am not too into the shows at the studios, and since I can't do TOT and RNR there is not much left. She would enjoy Playhouse Disney and meeting JoJo, the little einsteins, etc and I would enjoy watching her do that, but there is not much else there for us. She was terrified of beauty and the beast last time, we'll see about this time. I could honestly skip it and the little mermaid too. We have done LMA stunt show twice and that is enough. Same thing with Indy, done it and don't need to do it again. No interest in the new AI thing. Would love, love, love to do TSM that is a blast. I may be able to convince everyone to try and do all 3 parks in one day - the studios in the morning - do TSM and see playhouse disney while DH and SIL ride TOT and RNR and then hightail it over to AK for the rest of the day, then over to Epcot for the F&W and Illuminations. Take the next day off and do MNSSHP that night, we could be in the MK at 4 that day. A little crazy but hopefully not too bad.

 

[notsosnowwhite]

I would skip AK in that situation. Although I love the park, it seems very crowded even on low days and in several places I become uncomfortable because of the "bottle necking." I know when I was pregnant I HATED when people touched me or bumped me. And while I don't love DHS quite as much, my kids rank it as their favorite park.

 

[Mickeyfollowers]

I went when I was 7 mts along with my son.and had went in Sept. I handled AK better than DHS. Even though I couldn't ride 3 of the rides I enjoyed the shows and being able to sit down cause my dogs were barking by the end of DHS and back breaking. There are more trees at AK that shaded alot of the sun off of me. So if I had to do it again and had to pick one it would be AK, that could also be because I love animals.

 

[michael's mom]

See, I would think just the opposite from Mickeyfollowers. I love AK. This has become a must see for us. But, if you're pregnant, you wouldn't be walking as much at DHS for 2 reasons...it's a much smaller park, and, you'd be sitting in shows for a lot of the time.

But, as far as which would be better for DD. It depends on her interests...does she like the shows' characters, or are the animals and shows at AK more her thing?

 

[Disneymama09]

SKIP DHS , Animal Kingdom is a lot of fun...

 

[DWFan4Life]

If I'm in your situation, I'll skip AK and go for studios. May you have a great time, have fun and enjoy in your upcoming trip. Looking forward in hearing more from you after you came back.

Have a nice day everyone.

 

[mjmoon]

This is a really tough call. My kids loved both! They especially loved the boneyard, safari, and petting zoo at AK. We spent a lot of time at DHS as well as my boys love Indy and Star Wars and those are pretty big attractions there. DHS was jam packed every time we went there, so if crowds bother you I'd skip it and do AK. My kids, while they enjoy playhouse dis didn't want to do that show so we skipped it. But the didn't care much for the shows at AK either. They hated being confided to a seat any longer than a normal ride would last.

 

[MrsJ Henry]

yeah I don't know, I'll have to wait and see what DD is into at that time. *I* am not too into the shows at the studios, and since I can't do TOT and RNR there is not much left. She would enjoy Playhouse Disney and meeting JoJo, the little einsteins, etc and I would enjoy watching her do that, but there is not much else there for us. She was terrified of beauty and the beast last time, we'll see about this time. I could honestly skip it and the little mermaid too. We have done LMA stunt show twice and that is enough. Same thing with Indy, done it and don't need to do it again. No interest in the new AI thing. Would love, love, love to do TSM that is a blast. I may be able to convince everyone to try and do all 3 parks in one day - the studios in the morning - do TSM and see playhouse disney while DH and SIL ride TOT and RNR and then hightail it over to AK for the rest of the day, then over to Epcot for the F&W and Illuminations. Take the next day off and do MNSSHP that night, we could be in the MK at 4 that day. A little crazy but hopefully not too bad.

OK... After reading this and rereading your OP I say do AK. I'm surprised i'm changing my mind but it really sounds like you all will enjoy that better.
I wouldn't do 3 parks in one day... that seems like it would be a lot for a 3 year old and you if you are pregnant. Also think of all the time you would lose going from park to park. With only two days I wouldn't want to spend too much time traveling from park to park.

 

[ameemom]

I would skip DHS. Unless you get park hoppers than you could do AK and DHS in the same day. Beside that I don't think its worth a one day ticket. Money would be better spent on a second day at MK or Epcot. We did DHS with out 2 year old and we went back to the room after about 3 and didn't come back till around fireworks time. We ran out things to do. She loved the shows, but once those were done, we were left wandering the park with nothing to do. Same with AK, especially since you will be pregnant, your options are even more limited. Hope you have a great trip!

 

[2 Little Mermaids]

I'm going in May with a 4 yr old and a 1 1/2 yr old (their 1st time) I kept going back and forth between DHS and AK. When I looked at all the attractions best suited for their age I decided that AK had more for them to see. I guess it also depends on how far pregnant you are when you travel. AK has a lot walking but also play areas where you can rest but the kids can play. Another suggestion is maybe not go to Epcot since that park isn't geared that much to younger children. I would also agree with spending two days at MK. Anyway, have fun and relax. With a 3.5 yr old they won't be in a hurry to see everything!