Animal Kingdom or Hollywood Studios?

[jaygatsby]

During our up coming trip we can only spend three days at the parks. One day for Magic Kingdom and another day for Epcot. For the third day, should we do Hollywood Studios or Animal Kingdom? Our group includes two parents, a 19 y/o son and a 17 y/o daughter. The boys love Avatar and Star Wars and we don't know which one to pick. Does Pandora make the whole park worth it? And is the current Star Wars area a let down or is it worth it?

 

[nickys]

During our up coming trip we can only spend three days at the parks. One day for Magic Kingdom and another day for Epcot. For the third day, should we do Hollywood Studios or Animal Kingdom? Our group includes two parents, a 19 y/o son and a 17 y/o daughter. The boys love Avatar and Star Wars and we don't know which one to pick. Does Pandora make the whole park worth it? And is the current Star Wars area a let down or is it worth it?

There isn't a Star Wars area at DHS yet. Thee are several fun attractions for both die hard SW fans (plus Star Tours ride) and casually interested fans. Plus 2 thrill rides, TSMM and several shows, of which Indy is the only one that immediately jumps out for your age group. I still enjoyed the park on my last visit, even though I missed things like the Backlot tour, SOA and the Lights, Motor, Action stunt show and really thought I would feel kind of on a downer.

One thing to think about is that people are finding it hard to get fastpasses for FoP at much earlier than day 4 of a trip, even at 60 days out. Obviously some people manage to get them on earlier days, but the longer your stay the better your chances. But there is lots to do at AK, and it has (imo) the best theme-img of all the parks. I haven't seen Pandora yet so can't comment on that, although really looking forward to when I can (and I have never seen the movie and don't have any interest in watching it either).

Is this a first visit? If not, why not do both? I would rope drop DHS and book fastpasses for AK only IF you can get FoP. If not, then reverse the park order and be prepared to arrive at AK at least an hour ahead of park opening.

 

[jaygatsby]

There isn't a Star Wars area at DHS yet. Thee are several fun attractions for both die hard SW fans (plus Star Tours ride) and casually interested fans. Plus 2 thrill rides, TSMM and several shows, of which Indy is the only one that immediately jumps out for your age group. I still enjoyed the park on my last visit, even though I missed things like the Backlot tour, SOA and the Lights, Motor, Action stunt show and really thought I would feel kind of on a downer.

One thing to think about is that people are finding it hard to get fastpasses for FoP at much earlier than day 4 of a trip, even at 60 days out. Obviously some people manage to get them on earlier days, but the longer your stay the better your chances. But there is lots to do at AK, and it has (imo) the best theme-img of all the parks. I haven't seen Pandora yet so can't comment on that, although really looking forward to when I can (and I have never seen the movie and don't have any interest in watching it either).

Is this a first visit? If not, why not do both? I would rope drop DHS and book fastpasses for AK only IF you can get FoP. If not, then reverse the park order and be prepared to arrive at AK at least an hour ahead of park opening.

This is the first visit in about 10 years. We would do both in one day except we are going during new years with Magic Kingdom on the 30th and Epcot on the 31st. The third park would be after two very long and tiring days so we weren't going to rope drop and show up at the park later so we could sleep in. Would you say that it's just dependent on what Fastpasses I'm able to get? If I can't get FoP I should do Hollywood Studios?

Out of curiosity, have you been seen the Star Wars theming at Disneyland in California? If so would say it's similar to the one at Hollywood Studios? Or better or worse?

Thanks for all your help!

 

[jeremyg]

I'm in the same boat as you. However, my kids are 4 and 9. I let them decide which park to choose. I pulled up a page with all the rides for each park. My kids are not into the shows as much, so they decided on Animal Kingdom over Hollywood Studios for the simple fact that there were more rides. My kids are not into starwars and there is only the one ride "star tours".

 

[belledream]

I think looking at what FPs you can get would be an important factor. It would be a bummer to commit to AK and not be able to ride the "big Avatar ride". HS, though much of the park is in transition, has some good options for older kids (Tower of Terror, Toy Story, Rock n Rollercoaster), but as a whole day, I would lean towards AK. FoP if you can get it, but also wholesome experiences and theming in the safari, Everest, and Dinosaur. There's more to just "see" there at the moment and more places to "wander".