What are the two best parks for a 4 year old boy?

[fayleigh2]

We are taking our nephew on his first Disney trip at the end of September. We are deliberately making it a short trip and getting 2-day (1 park per day) passes. Magic Kingdom is definitely one park we'll visit. What do you recommend for the other one and why? Thank you!

 

[Skippyboo]

I would go back to the Magic Kingdom again for day 2. Between the rides and characters meetings. There’s definitely enough to do over 2 days. Plus with your nephew being only 4, you will want to allow for nap breaks. September will also be Halloween Party time at Magic Kingdom which maybe something you would want to do.


My second choice would be Animal Kingdom with the dinoland area, Safari, cool shows.

Definitely not Epcot with all the construction and drunks for Food & Wine.

 

[MomOfDisneyPrincess]

Animal Kingdom! My DD was 7 when we first went and she loved the park. The animals and the safari were her favorites, but we also spent about 1.5 hours at the boneyard digging for bones and playing on the playground. She absolutely loved it, even though we were hot and tired, it helped her rejuvenate for a longer afternoon. I think you would enjoy some of the shows like "It's tough to be a Bug" and my favorite, "The Lion King". It's a marvelous way to cool off a bit and enjoy a truly spectacular show!

 

[BobbyDukes]

Magic Kingdom and Animal Kingdom. There is just soo much to do in both. Animal Kingdom has so much to see and do especially

 

[SleeplessInTO]

I’d vote for another MK day or Hollywood Studios! Not sure if he’s into Star Wars or Toy Story but both those areas and rides are pretty awesome. There’s also Disney Jr characters, Lightning McQueen, Indiana Jones, etc. Depends on your nephew.

AK is pretty great too. Love the shows. Character meets there are awesome. Last vote is for Epcot. Sorry Epcot! But honestly, every park has fun stuff to do for a 4 year old.

 

[fayleigh2]

I'm also a little worried that the MK will close early both days we are there for a Halloween party. (Friday and Saturday.)

 

[SleeplessInTO]

I'm also a little worried that the MK will close early both days we are there for a Halloween party. (Friday and Saturday.)

I find party days are less crowded (before the party). Suspect people feel they aren’t getting the full benefit of the MK ticket because it closes early.

 

[fayleigh2]

I find party days are less crowded (before the party). Suspect people feel they aren’t getting the full benefit of the MK ticket because it closes early.

Less crowded would be good. It would be good to get a party ticket too but I think that would be expensive for our party of five.

 

[Feberin]

Last time we went my son was 4. He was really into Toy Story and loved Hollywood Studios. I think it really depends on his interests. I'd talk to him about the Magic Kingdom rides to see how many he wants to ride to see if you'd need two days. Also my four-year-old never napped while we were there not even if we went back to our resort.

 

[Skippyboo]

Friday should probably be a party night. It’s usually Sunday, Tuesday and Friday.

 

[sponica]

FYI that Saturday will be bonkers crowded. Non party days are bonkers crowded at MK.

 

[Calee]

I would definitely do the party day. Last October we had one day tickets and went to MK on a party day and got everything done we wanted to do by the time we had to leave (we rode every ride in the park except Splash). Non party days are insane.

 

[musika]

Either AK or DHS. My answer would have originally been AK, but we just spent 2 full days at DHS with our 4.5 year old boy and he LOVED it. Sign him up for Jedi training! Toy Story land was also a massive hit. It's a totally different park now than even 2 years ago.

 

[Disneyfan754321]

Kinda depends what he is into, definitely MK but my kids loved toy story, and disney junior shows so HS was a great fit. HS also has some great family shows so it broke up all the walking.

 

[Moliphino]

I would've said MK and AK, but it really depends on the kid. We brought my 5 year old nephew for the first time last fall and he really wasn't into any rides. His favorite part was going around the WS at Epcot and doing all the Kidcot stations.

 

[DisLiss]

For my own kids I would have gone with AK for the 2nd day. (Or done MK both days.) I'd choose one of those simply because I view those choices as giving us the best chance to take it a bit slower on at least one of the days. The parks are a lot for anyone, especially a 4 year old.

 

[jvalic33]

What are his favorite movies? That plays a huge role in what he will love. My kids went through different phases and I also pushed certain movies on them, like just before the Beast's castle was opening, I made sure everyone was singing Be our Guest on our way to Disney so by the time we got to eat in the Grand Ballroom, everyone was mystified. For my son, Cars was huge at the time and when we went to Holloywood Studios and saw the stunt show with Lightning McQueen, there was nothing else that mattered, not even the SDMT. We watched Indiana Jones when they got older and so that showed meant much more to them than it did when they were little and we LOOOOVE the muppets and I have played all the movies for them plus the old tv shows so even the little skit in MK meant so much to them when we stopped and grabbed a hot dog and watched that show.

If he's a huge Toy Story Fan then he'll love HW Studios and you might want to take some extra time there to stop and take pics with the Toy Soldiers, etc.

If you have some guidance as to what he likes we might be able to make some cool recommendations

 

[fayleigh2]

Thanks everyone; so far all I know is he's REALLY obsessed with Paw Patrol. He lives out of state and his mother mentioned he watches Disney Junior and he knows Mickey. I'm sending his parents a must-watch list of movies to include: Toy Story & Sequels, Peter Pan, maybe Dumbo, Aladdin, Lion King, etc. Any other musts that would tie into the parks?

 

[Disneyfan754321]

Thanks everyone; so far all I know is he's REALLY obsessed with Paw Patrol. He lives out of state and his mother mentioned he watches Disney Junior and he knows Mickey. I'm sending his parents a must-watch list of movies to include: Toy Story & Sequels, Peter Pan, maybe Dumbo, Aladdin, Lion King, etc. Any other musts that would tie into the parks?

Even though it is typically a "girl" movie my boys had to watch Cinderella at the hotel. They kept asking about her castle and who she was.
( They watched the newer one)

 

[tinkerjo]

4 is my favorite age and my boys loved HS and AK at that age. Jedi trading academy was a highlight for them, but we are Star Wars fans. I have not done toy story land yet but the Disney Jr area is great for that age group as well. AK- the safari was a main attraction, as well as the shows and Dino land. BUT, that being said, I might choose 2 days at MK. There is so much to do there, and he will be able to ride almost every ride(unlike the other parks) and you can repeat favorites day 2 and introduce new rides. At 4 he won’t realize there are other parks and even though there is plenty he would like, MK will give him the most to do.