WDW Parks...which ones to visit?

[dfmac]

Our stay will be short, so which ones do you reccommend to visit first? Traveling with hubby, 8 and 10 yr old. no water parks and no hopper
thanks di

 

[Northstar]

If you are travelling with young kids... Magic Kingdom and Animal Kingdom.

If no young kids... Epcot and Animal Kingdom

That's what I would do. You can tell I really like Animal Kingdom!

 

[Phil'sFrontier]

I loved animal kingdom. Had a Nikon D80 with a 18-200mm vr lens. On the Safari that lens made so much difference in getting good pictures.

I would visit DHS just to ride the thrill rides there. We would also hit Epcot for sure because Test Track is my DW and DD's favorite ride in wdw.

You could give people some more information, such as how many park days you plan on, if you are getting the park hopper on your ticket, and who is in your party. The more information you give the better the response will be.

 

[bankr63]

I would say a lot depends on who you are traveling with and the tastes in your party.

Magic Kingdom: best for the younger kids and young at heart. That said, it is the quintessential Disney, and EVERYONE has to go at least once. We don't usually start here because a lot of the other parks pale after MK, and it is an exhausting park! We generally save it for the last park of our stay, and finish up with the fireworks and parade making for a very long last day, and very tired kids and adults on the flight home.

Animal Kingdom: our favorite too! Is that a Canadian thing? We often start with AK as our warm up park on a visit. It is a more relaxed pace, with not as many headliner attractions. You really can do it in a day. It also has more shade than the other parks, so it is easier to ease our pasty white Canadian hides into the Florida heat and sunshine there. Expedition Everest is still our kids favorite Disney ride.

Epcot: we can take it or leave it. It is big, spread out, and World Showcase is not overly interesting if you have kids. Still fun, but not top of our list. The whole park is a lot more educational, but also a lot more commercialized than the other parks.

DHS: Great for the older kids. ToT and Rockin' Roller Coaster are great rides for the thrill seeker set. Not as intense as some of the rides over at the Evil Kingdom (US/IOA), but still very good. Also more focus on the tween set shows from Disney (HSM etc). Enough good shows and attractions for adults too; not as much for the little tykes to do.

 

[bfamily5]

When we went in 2009 my kids were 10, 12, and 15...DHS was voted the favorite! I loved MK and AK ...They did too but DHS has to be the first park we hit next time

 

[Applemomma]

Our stay will be short, so which ones do you reccommend to visit first? Traveling with hubby, 8 and 10 yr old. no water parks and no hopper
thanks di

Not enough info! How short is short? 2 days? 4?

 

[FirstTimeDisneyDad]

Agreed that DHS doesn't seem to get enough love. There is plenty to do there on any given day - in fact , seeing all that the park has to offer in only 1 day is a challenge.

Toy Story Mania is as good as advertised, Rock N Roller Coaster is the best one at Disney World, Great stage shows like American Idol, Indiana Jones, Voyage of the Little Mermaid and Beauty and the Beast and tons of character opportunities.

The park is spread out, there are good food options and kids in your range are gauranteed to like it. A solid #2 behind Magic Kingdom...even #1 for 1 of my kids.

 

[minnie mum]

I agree with the PP who asked "how short is short?"

If you only have 2 days: MK and AK

If you have 3 days: MK, AK, Epcot

If you have 4 days: 1 day at each park.

If you have 5 days: 1 day at each. A second day at the favourite park (family vote). Because you WILL NOT see everything in a park with only 1 day.

 

[gilsan]

My picks would be Magic Kingdom and DHS. If you had 2 days my thoughts would be to to buy a Park Hopper, (I know you said none but you may want to reconsider), and do MK in am afternoon and Epcot in the evening. Next Day DHS (to do Toy Story Mania without a huge wait) and then over to AK.

You could get the flavour of each park and just do the highlights.

 

[bankr63]

No matter what you do, have a plan before you go. These parks are huge, and i have talked to people who have spent a day and been disappointed in how little they did.

Undercover Tourist guides, or Tour Guide Mike are essential and really work! I don't think it really matters which one you use, just use one. An ounce of preparation is truly worth a 100 lbs. of fun...

 

[Pams]

More info would really help as time of year makes a difference as does girls vs boys.
Here is a personal example:
I took a family with 5 children ages 10,8,8,6,4 to Disney world in March. They were only going to a park for one day and they chose Epcot. It was during the garden show and there were extra things for the kids like a butterfly house and a couple of playgrounds.
The kids loved the land pavilion with Soaring and living with the land. We spent a lot of time in the seas pavilion looking at the fish, dolphins and manatee. We walked through the countries getting stamps (and even their names in other languages) They enjoyed the movies, the rides and the outdoor entertainers. We had a big group and it worked well for us. We did the front of the park first getting a fastpass for Soaring as soon as we entered. We went out to the van for lunch and then back in to do Soaring and the lands. They got to see characters and enjoyed it all. We stayed for the fireworks at 9.
The kids would have loved MK too but there is more line waiting at MK and the oldest was interested in seeing the countries.
Animal kingdom is also good for kids and the shows there are great.
If the children are girls they might really enjoy Hollywood Studios with Beauty and the beast and Little mermaid.
What ever you choose you won't see it all. Get the kids to look up attractions at each of the park and see what they might like.
Enjoy

 

[tone.def]

You say short stay... 2 days? 3 days? 4 days?

For sure hit MAgic Kingdom! My nephews are drawn to Epcot, my daughter love Animal Kingdom, I love Disney's Hollywood Studios... You can't go wrong where ever you end up!

 

[4boyz]

DHS and MK are the two must do parks.
DHS has Toy Story Mania and the updated Star Wars ride.
MK has lots of traditional Disney stuff to be amused.

We go in the morning and back to the pool in the afternoon. Less stress and more fun.

Good Luck!

 

[dancin Disney style]

MK is a totaly must...but leave it until last unless you think you will be going there twice during your visit. Our next fav is DHS and then Epcot. We don't really like AK but we do go every few years and do a short day there.

The best thing to do is research all the parks to see what things appeal to you and your family. Then make plans accordingly. A plan is critical but still be flexibly day to day. If you are going during a really busy time you will need to have a must do list for each park that you will visit. Once the must do's are done you can then tour at leisure.

If you want any sit down meals in the parks you must book ADR's. They actually make for a nice break at lunch time if you are planning to stay in the park from morning until night.