2 days - HS or AK?

[CynBeth]

I agree about not skipping Epcot.

 

[brockash]

Pretty excited for our trip in May... will be the first time back since I was kid back in the 90s and the first time for our family of 3 (6 year old daughter).

We bought a 5 day park package, and because of my daughter's age, I figure 2 days at MK is a must. That leaves 3 park days and we're pretty much decided on skipping Epcot. With that said, if you were going to spend multiple days, would it be at Animal Kingdom or Hollywood Studios?

No one in the household is a big fan of Star Wars (but we do want to do the rides), so it's making the decision tougher

I was actually going to vote for Epcot for the extra days. I can't imagine going to Disney and not going to Epcot. My 9 yr and I actually ended up there almost every day of our last trip. For me, I could skip AK, but it seems we're pretty different in park preferences so maybe AK for your extra park day? If you don't have to make reservations you could always pick day of.

 

[SpicyMcHaggis]

I’m not a 6 year old, but our most recent trip we did 6 days, with two each at MK and Epcot, and one at the others. I can’t imagine skipping Epcot, and if I were ever to be in a situation where I had to skip one of the four on a trip it would probably be HS.

 

[kennyl]

Thanks all... will def. look at Epcot again.

 

[jcolvin5]

Agree with most of what's already been said. Two days at MK and then one each of the other parks. If you are an early starter, you can knock out AK in the morning, have lunch and then park hop to another park if you so choose. AK is my favorite park, but it's not for everyone. If your daughter is into the animals, it can easily eat up the entire day.

You really should not miss EPCOT. There is so much to do and they do have the BEST ride in all of WDW, IMO. We park hop to EPCOT just to do Cosmic Rewind. Smoothest and most enjoyable coaster in any of the parks, hands down!

At the end of the day, this is a great "problem" to have! Planning which WDW parks to spend time at is my kind of heaven! Enjoy it and know that your daughter will love it all!

 

[mickeyluv'r]

Will rethink Epcot, but I remember not liking it much back in the day (early to mid 90's). Figured most would respond with 1 day only @ Animal Kingdom, so reaffirms my thinking as well.

My worry with HS is whether 1 day is enough or not, and I dont want to feel rushed. We're staying at Wilderness Lodge. But will do some more research on whether we should do 1 day each park, or 2 days HS and skip Epcot.

Epcot has changed a great deal since the 1990's! Many of the old attractions have been replaced with new ones.

The Flower Festival also adds some fun. It is fairly easy to spend almost a whole day just snacking around the park taking in all the topiaries. IMO, the food has been a bit up and down over the years, but this year there are some fun foods to try. We usually just buy one of each item and share. If you get the free booklet, buy the 6 items listed, and ask to have booklet stamped, you can get a bonus 'free' snack. (Buying two of same food to reach 6. is allowed if some don't appeal to your group)

The food we had at Epcot last month was by far the best/most fun WDW serves. The food in most WDW table service places is way overpriced, IMO. Though if your daughter is strict about only eating kid-meal type foods, she might find some of the Epcot booth foods too adventurous.


These were really good, in no particular order:
1. Honey-glazed Cauliflower with honey-roasted carrot purée, wild rice pilaf, spring vegetables, honey-blistered grapes, and sunflower brittle - I wasn't thinking I wanted to try this until I saw it, and it was really good.
2. Grilled Warm Water Lobster Tail with Key lime butter
3. Strawberry shortcake- delicious!
4. We tried 3 items from Swirled Showcase, and they were all decent, the strawberry basil sorbet and cheesecake were favored.
5. Orange Sesame Tempura Shrimp with orange-chile sauce was tasty.
6. We also loved the FL smoothie over by the Land- it is a blend of pineapple, orange, and mango

Look at overall number of attractions in each park. How much time each park takes, depends how much you want to see all the shows. It can sometimes be tricky to fit in all the rides plus shows. If you stick mostly to rides, then both AK and HS can usually be finished in less than a full day. Character lines also can eat up quite a bit of time. You don't have to research every attraction/show in advance, just make a rough decision in general, if you want to see no shows, some shows, all shows. Also, skipping even one headliner attraction makes touring easier. Table service meals also eat up quite a bit of time, especially if you need travel time. If you have not been to WDW in a while, I suggest mostly eating at either your resort, or the park you will visit each day. From WL, it is also not too bad to get to the monorail resorts. The Wilderness Lodge food court is small, but the hotel has a smokehouse, and the smoked meats are all pretty tasty. They had a very good turkey sandwich last time we ate there.

A fun new addition to Epcot is the Moana water attraction. It has all sorts of interactive water features. It is fun to see what happens in each section of the attraction when you participate. It'll be especially fun in warm weather.

 

[DisneyByMarriage]

I agree with the poster who said ask your 6 year old. My kids love animal kingdom and asked for our upcoming trip if we could spend more time there. And they do not ride thrill rides. For us, Epcot is the place we can do a half day because it get so crowded during festivals and we were so hot an miserable last time we were there (since we were with kids and not focusing on eating and drinking). If it’s your child’s first trip, remember they won’t know what they are missing, so you don’t have to do it all.

 

[AngieInOH]

Just in case you need another vote for "don't skip Epcot" to sway you. Don't skip Epcot!!!

 

[Landry]

You're going to want to ride Rise of the Resistance (DHS), Guardians (EPCOT), and Flight of Passage (AK). Don't skip any parks if you haven't been in 25+ years. A lot has changed.

 

[MinnieFan4ever]

Jumping on the band wagon…don’t skip Epcot. When my daughter was young, she loved it. Still does. There is a lot more space to just breathe there.

 

[Kerr84]

I wouldn't skip Epcot. Both HS and AK can be done in one day easily. Epcot is one of my 4 year old daughter's favorite parks!

 

[nighttowll]

Another vote for Epcot.

My kids loved Living with the Land. There are tons of hidden Mickeys to find while you ride, and they thought it was the coolest thing that vegetables were being grown in the shape of Mickey heads. I lost track of the number of times we rode it looking for all the Mickey heads.

They also loved The Three Caballeros. I think they just really like boats!

There is the interactive World Showcase scavenger hunt (free).

There's a Flow & Garden Festival scavenger hunt (paid with prize for completing).

Plus all the topiaries and food at the festival is great.

You've got the aquarium exhibits.

Frozen and Ratatouille rides for kids.

Test Track and Mission Space for thrills.

Moana splash garden with interactive water exhibits. My kids would have loved this if it had been here on our trip.

The Epcot Kid Cot art & craft stations are great. My kids loved those and would have stayed at them all day coloring.

There are also a number of interactive and hands-on exhibits and some movies that most people skip over.

I think you will find it is nothing like what you remember.