Which park do I only need one day at?

[DisneyFamily123]

We will be spending 7 days in the park, June 6th-12th. I'm planning on two days at Magic Kingdom, two days at Hollywood Studios, but I'm not sure which other park to spend two days at- Animal Kingdom or Epcot?

My children are 6 years old, if that helps, and not huge thrill riders.

A lot of people will probably say Animal Kingdom but I STRONGLY disagree. Skip Epcot. Animal Kingdom is a wonderful park. There is a lot to see and a lot of interactive things to do. Here's just a few that our DS liked between age 3 and 6...

The animal exhibits are superb... better than our zoo in Baltimore and the National Zoo. Ride Kilmanjaro safari twice in the morning and afternoon.... to have different animal experiences. Flights of wonder is a great experience with birds. You have two shows -- Nemo and Lion King. Tusker House is a great character lunch with very delicious food. Don't miss the musicians and performers in Africa who love to interact with children. There's many drums outside near the trail from Africa to Asia.. let the kids have fun banging on them for 20 minutes! Kali River Rapids is a great way to cool off in the afternoon... go during the parade and there won't be a line... you just keep riding it over and over... Then watch the parade on your other day at AK. Take your time and really look around... lots to see and miss if you rush too fast. Characters, lots of them at Animal Kingdom. Be sure to say Hi to Baloo and King Louie from Jungle Book! Oh... I could go on and on and on.....

We also like Expedition Everest a LOT. Neither DS or I are thrill riders either but we could ride EE all day. It is a step up from big thunder mountain railroad. If you haven't been on that before, try BTMRR first....if ok with that, try EE.

 

[jennifur25]

Wow thank you for all the suggestions!

I should clarify that they do like rides, just not the more extreme ones. Like at DL/CA they have never done Space Mountain, Indiana Jones, Tower of Terror, etc. I guess I like the idea of letting them decide, I was just trying to plan out ADRs. Maybe I'll make reservations at both parks and then let them decide and still have time to cancel the other reservation.

Thank you all!

 

[CrabbyPatty]

I'd do 2 days at MK, 2 days at Epcot, and one day each at DSH and AK and then decide maybe to split that last day between DHS and AK.

At AK, we'd done the early breakfast at Tusker House, then Kilmanjaro Safari, walking around the area and looking at performers, shops, etc. the flying dino ride that's just like Dumbo, then Lion King. My DD doesn't like any ride that is remotely scary, and the other rides in that area were deemed "too scary" by her (and she was 10 at the time). By the time we had done this much, DD was exhausted (mostly because of the heat), and we headed back to the hotel for swimming. If we had stayed on and done the Nemo show, PLUS the parade, PLUS more rides, I think she would have had a meltdown. If you have another 1/2 day, you can go back and do the Nemo show and catch the parade, plus another attraction. And since AK closes earlier than the other parks, you could do AK in the morning of that split day, and then head over to DHS.

 

[tndisneyfan]

I think I would leave it flexible and see how it goes. DS loved AK on our first two trips, he was seven and nine. The loved playing at the Boneyard area (I think that's what the area is called), the Safari, and the Lion King show. At the age of ten all that changed. Now we can't get him to go to AK, we spend a lot of time in Epcot.

 

[MomofKatie]

Like many others, I would go with 2 MK, 2 EP, 1 DHS, and 1 AK. Save the last day for whichever park the kids want to do again. Or, if you have hoppers, do 1 1/2 days each at DHS and AK.

DD has loved EP best since she was 5- it is definitely a minimum 2 day park for our family. There is a lot for littler kids there- try it out!!

 

[NLD]

Wow thank you for all the suggestions!

I should clarify that they do like rides, just not the more extreme ones. Like at DL/CA they have never done Space Mountain, Indiana Jones, Tower of Terror, etc. I guess I like the idea of letting them decide, I was just trying to plan out ADRs. Maybe I'll make reservations at both parks and then let them decide and still have time to cancel the other reservation.

Thank you all!

The thing is that there are very few rides at DHS to begin with, and a number of them are fast rides.

The only rides for them at DHS, if they don't do Tower and RocknRollercoaster, will be Great Movie Ride, Toy Story, and Star Tours. (Will they do Star Tours?)

 

[jlynne01]

Why not just wing it that day? Do you plan on only eating at the parks? Also maybe you could cut that day in half and do Animal kingdom the first half of the day and Epcot the second half. We like to do this sometimes because you never know what you might be in the mood for that day and you children may actually want to do a 3rd day somewhere instead... Just a thought... If that is not an option then I myself would choose Epcto

 

[DisneyFamily123]

Another thing I really like about Animal Kingdom Park... is it closes earlier than the other parks... and if not park hopping... that's a great opportunity to go back to the resort and swim and have fun (we never spend enough time at the resort...)... then it's easy to get a good night's sleep and an early start on the next day (when the parks are less crowded in the early morning)!!!

 

[Magic3forme]

You many find you want to spend 3 days at Magic Kingdom! That is by far our favorite park and we spend the most time there.

AK is a half day park for us. HS is a one day park for us too. Epcot is 2 days for us..

 

[AshleeH]

We love MK and HS - they are our favorites - and Epcot is a two day park for us the majority of the time (usually arrival night and then one full day later in the week). AK is the only park we spend a day (actually half a day) in.

 

[cnjmom]

DHS: Doing the animation academy, watching the stunt shows, taking part in Jedi Training, doing the backlot tour--if your kids really like to draw, or are fascinated by stunts or movies, make this a 2 day park.

Forgive me for hijacking, but it's been 20 years since I've visited DHS (visited only once, back when it was MGM Studios) and since we didn't go when we went three years ago, we are thinking of including it when we make a trip to visit family in June. I am wondering what the comment "if your kids really like to draw" means with respect to DHS. I have a daughter who loves to draw, so I think I might have missed something in my reading/knowledge of the parks, or maybe I have forgotten if it was there 20 years ago. Is there some attraction which includes drawing by the participants, or is it just in displays of the artwork in movies (which I have a vague recollection of seeing in 1992)?

Thanks.

 

[princesssatheart]

I personally would do AK for 1 day. My 4 and 7 year old love the Disney Junior characters at DHS, the Beauty and the Beast show, and the Indiana Jones stunt show. The is also the new parade that I believe has Pixar characters that I can't wait to see. We visited AK a few years ago and my kids really weren't interested in it. Not because they don't like animals, but because everything was hard to see. We did the safari and I thought it was a waste of time. There wasn't one animal that we haven't seen else where at other zoos.

 

[cgerdon02]

My family and I went last fall. Our plans were to do 2 days at MK, 2 days at EP, 1 day at HS and 1 day at AK. Our last day we were going to pick between HS & AK to do for a second day. After visiting EP my kids were less than thrilled with it. (We could have just been tired from our Commando trip) but we decided to skip the second day at EP and do 2 days at HS and 2 days at AK. We were so glad we did that! That being said, our next trip we decided to skip AK and give EP another shot.

 

[MomofKatie]

Forgive me for hijacking, but it's been 20 years since I've visited DHS (visited only once, back when it was MGM Studios) and since we didn't go when we went three years ago, we are thinking of including it when we make a trip to visit family in June. I am wondering what the comment "if your kids really like to draw" means with respect to DHS. I have a daughter who loves to draw, so I think I might have missed something in my reading/knowledge of the parks, or maybe I have forgotten if it was there 20 years ago. Is there some attraction which includes drawing by the participants, or is it just in displays of the artwork in movies (which I have a vague recollection of seeing in 1992)?

Thanks.

The Magic of Disney Animation attraction has the Animation Academy, a free class kids (and adults) can take. It is in the building after the Animation Tour. Classes are led by a Disney animator and participants will learn how to draw a Disney character. Classes start every 30 minutes, on the hour and half hour from 10:30am until park closing.

 

[princesssatheart]

The Magic of Disney Animation attraction has the Animation Academy, a free class kids (and adults) can take. It is in the building after the Animation Tour. Classes are led by a Disney animator and participants will learn how to draw a Disney character. Classes start every 30 minutes, on the hour and half hour from 10:30am until park closing.

Thank you so much for this information!!! My DD will absolutely adore this experience!! My excitement just keeps growing!!!!!

 

[Dziactor]

Animal Kingdom is a one day park to me.

 

[TravelAgentJen]

Epcot needs 2 days or else u won't see even half and you will still be exhausted! Plus it's a really neat place. Animal Kingdom I love and still it takes me less then a full day but I'm not doing EVERYTHING in the park every time I go. Hollywood I can do in one full day, it's probably my least favorite park to do with the kids. Everyone has an opinion though

 

[2Pirates2Princesses]

I would definitely do a second day at Epcot because it is such a huge park that involves a lot of walking. Many people don't consider Epcot a good park for young children, but it really is . It engages and entertains them in so many ways.

 

[cnjmom]

Quote:
Originally Posted by MomofKatie View Post
The Magic of Disney Animation attraction has the Animation Academy, a free class kids (and adults) can take. It is in the building after the Animation Tour. Classes are led by a Disney animator and participants will learn how to draw a Disney character. Classes start every 30 minutes, on the hour and half hour from 10:30am until park closing.
Thank you so much for this information!!! My DD will absolutely adore this experience!! My excitement just keeps growing!!!!!

Wow. Thank you for responding. My daughter will also love this. I had no idea that they did this.

 

[KristiKat]

HS is a one day park for me but my DH loves it and likes 2 days. It just depends on your kids and what kinds of things they enjoy more. Except for the rides at Epcot my DD5 got bored at Epcot so that could be a one day park also.