which two parks for 2 and 5 year old?

[jeast]

I am taking my 2 and 5 year old to disney for three days. we are going to do MK for two days. what other park should we hit? Epcot, MGM, or Animal Kingdom?

 

[AmyBeth68]

Okay...I'm torn. Let me give you what I personally feel are the toddler/pre-k highlights at each park, maybe that will help with your decision .

Epcot (probably my 3rd choice for you although I LOVE this park):
1. Turtle Talk with Crush
2. Rio de Tiempo (sp): Cute boat ride in the Mexico Pavillion
3. Journey Into Imagination (it's okay...one "gotcha" moment that still freaks out my 5 y/o)
4. Spaceship Earth: My kids love this ride.
5. Kidcot stations throughout WS

MGM (my 2nd choice):
1. Voyage of the Little Mermaid Show: Must See for Ariel fans.
2. Beauty and The Beast Show: GREAT!! Very entertaining.
3. Playhouse Disney Live! A must-see for pre-K and toddlers who watch the Disney Channel.
4. Muppet Vision 3-D: Cute 3-D show.

AK (My personal 1st Choice):
1. Kiliminjaro Safari
2. Pocohontas and her Forest Friends (cute show)
3. Flights of Wonder (another cute show)
4. Festival of the Lion King: Best show on WDW property IMHO (aside from Cirque LOL). Not to be missed!!!
5. Great character viewing areas in Camp Minnie Mickey. They are all wearing their safari clothes. Very cute....excellent way to see loads of characters!
6. Triceratops Spin: Think Dumbo w/ Dinosaurs. My kids love it. Go figure .
7. Walking the trails (White Tigers, Gorillas, Large Fruit Bats). This is always a highlight for us. My kids love to walk the trails.

I think that AK is a more relaxed park. Some folks don't enjoy it as much but it's a favorite of my kids. To break up the day you can schedule lunch at Rainforest Cafe. THe kids always enjoy that!

You can't go wrong. There is sooooo much to do at all three parks.

 

[4greatboys]

I would go to MGM. They have Playhouse Disney, Star Tours (your 5 yr old will be tall enough but probably not the 2 yr old), Indy Jones show, Great Movie Ride, Muppets, The new stunt show and you can always baby swap on RnR and Tot.
My second choice would be AK. My kids like Its Tough to Be a Bug and Festival of the Lion King. They can ride KS and Triceratops Spin.

 

[garettdoyle]

In the fall we did a trip to WDW with our 2 and 4.5 year old daughters. As the previous posts mention, EPCOT was on the bottom of the list. I would have to say Animal Kingdom. It is so much different than MK. The loved Pocohontas, Lion King, the safari and just seeing all the animals. Also was the best park to see characters (by camp mickey). They also really liked the parade at AK. As AK is a big, make sure you have a plan, otherwise you will spend the entire day walking.

Don't get me wrong, you can find fun things for your tots at any of the parks. I would suggest you go to a park other than MK first. This way they are not comparing everything to MK and disappointed.

 

[KimWDW]

I would say MGM.

 

[rt2dz]

My DS was 3.5 the last time we went and his absolute favorite park was AK. When we go again this May, this is the first place he wants to go.

 

[lbgraves]

We have only been to MK for our previous two one day stops at WDW on our way to The Magic but now are planning our first WDW only trips. We have decided on MGM after reading everything that I have been able to find about MGM & AK.

 

[NJDisneymom]

My dd was 3.5 our last trip and had no interest in Epcot whatsoever!!! I'm hoping now at 5.5 she will be a little more interested, but if you only have 3 days I would skip Epcot.

I think my first choice would be MGM, for the Playhouse Disney, Voyage of the Mermaid, Beauty & The Beast shows, etc. Second choice for me would be Animal Kingdom although a friend just came back with her 3 & 5 year olds and said she would never bother with Animal Kingdom again so its really hard to say.

 

[laughinplace199]

My kids are 5 and 3 and they love all four parks. However, if they had to choose two, they would definitely choose MK and AK. Like I said, they really enjoy all of the parks, but for them there's more to do at MK and AK.

Have fun!

 

[G8RFAN]

My 3 1/2 DS has been to all the parks and has really been very particular to certain rides/experiences. AK with their boneyard and play area, the triceratops spin (he LOVES spinner rides, ie Dumbo, Aladin carpets), safari, and the petting zoo, it is by far more enjoyable to him than the 3 things he likes at MGM.

 

[larklynn]

My kids loved all the parks ds 10 dd 7 ds 4. They really enjoyed the living seas and nemo at epcot.

 

[jeast]

Thanks for the info and opinions. Sounds like a toss-up between MGM and AK. Maybe I'll get a travelogue and see which one my 5 year old wants to see. Of course, that could bite me in the rear.

 

[HALEYSMOMMOM]

I also have a 2 and 5 year old, and they vote for Epcot! They also like AK a lot, but do not like MGM at all. MGM is all shows for them, and they would much rather ride rides!

 

[G&J's Mom]

My 3 and 5 year old LOVE AK. The 5 year old did love Mexico in Epcot when we were there in June. Got a pair of maraccas and got up and joined the band at their request It was priceless!

Denise

 

[Princess Mommy]

That is tough.
My DD's are the same age...
I would probably go with AK over Epcot. Only b/c my youngest would not appreciate Epcot as much as my oldest & would therefore make it tough depending on crowds. However- making the masks around world showcase is a huge hit with both of them... as was the Living Seas when we were there in October.
There isn't enough in MGM for my girls for an entire day- so we wouldn't go there.

 

[twinklebug]

My response is AK becasue your kids are so young, however, it really depends on your children. Are they more likely to get a kick out of seeing Ariel and the muppets and then eating at Buzz's Pizza Planet?