1 or 2 days?

[Alpinecanuck]

Hi All,

Please don't flame me (Which is funny because in CANADA currently we are in a deep freeze).

My kids and I (7yo daughter and 12 yo son) are visiting Florida Feb 4-12.

We plan on visiting Disney. Some background: We have hit up Disneyland about 6x in the past few years so we have a bit of experience, but this is our first Orlando Trip.

Of course we want to hit up WDW, but we are confused on how many days or what park beyond Magic Kingdom.

We looked at the descriptions. To be honest, Animal Kingdom does not interest us.

We thought we would do two days, one day Magic and one day "Insert here'. I was thinking EPCOT but after further review it doesnt seem very exciting, expecially for a 7yo.

So I need your advice.

Do we just do one day at Magic and possibly do a day at Universal (i'm not asking advice on Universal!).

Or do we do two days, 1 day Magic +1 other day at one park.

A bit confused. At Disneyland we just stick with the Main Park, but mainly because my daughter has been so young. She's almost 8 and is able to do a lot more rides, etc.

Thanks all!

Eh

 

[Cameron1529]

Hi All,

Please don't flame me (Which is funny because in CANADA currently we are in a deep freeze).

My kids and I (7yo daughter and 12 yo son) are visiting Florida Feb 4-12.

We plan on visiting Disney. Some background: We have hit up Disneyland about 6x in the past few years so we have a bit of experience, but this is our first Orlando Trip.

Of course we want to hit up WDW, but we are confused on how many days or what park beyond Magic Kingdom.

We looked at the descriptions. To be honest, Animal Kingdom does not interest us.

We thought we would do two days, one day Magic and one day "Insert here'. I was thinking EPCOT but after further review it doesnt seem very exciting, expecially for a 7yo.

So I need your advice.

Do we just do one day at Magic and possibly do a day at Universal (i'm not asking advice on Universal!).

Or do we do two days, 1 day Magic +1 other day at one park.

A bit confused. At Disneyland we just stick with the Main Park, but mainly because my daughter has been so young. She's almost 8 and is able to do a lot more rides, etc.

Thanks all!

Eh

It’s a tough one. If you enjoy the Magic Kingdom at Disneyland you will enjoy it here in Orlando. However it does have many of the same attractions. So depending on this you could spend 1-2 days there. Personally I would spend 2 days. In relation to Animal Kingdom it recently opened Pandora (Avatar themed land) it has been cited as one of the best themed and executed experiences. Just thought I would let you know in case your kids or yourself were interested. I would stay away from Epcot if it doesn’t really interest you or any of the rides don’t interest you.

Personally for myself if I were to take into account Animal Kingdom I would do 1 day Animal Kingdom and 1/2 day Magic Kingdom. But if that doesn’t interest you do two at the Magic Kingdom (just keep in mind it does have many of the same atttactioms with a few minor differences)

 

[Think Tink]

Hello! From my personal experience, I remembered Magic Kingdom and Epcot as a little kid more than the other parks. With a 7 year old either Epcot or DHS would be great choices for a second day. Epcot does have some great rides like Soarin and Test Track. I will say, universal is a great option too so its really a tough call.

When I went with my little nephew last time we went to Epcot and Magic Kingdom as our two days.

So what I am getting at is that there is no wrong choice!

 

[Minnie Mum]

I certainly won't flame you, but a lot of Disney fans would be scratching their heads in puzzlement at the idea of only 2 days at WDW. You really need 5-6 days in the parks to see a lot ( but not all) of the attractions. MK usually needs 2 FULL days. For us, Epcot takes 2 full days. DHS can be done in a day. So can AK ( but if you want to see everything, including all the shows, it could take 1.5).

So either plan 2 days at MK, or one day there and one day at which ever park holds the most interest for the kids. Epcot has some very good rides and shows, with Mission Space Orange being the only "thrill" ride that might not be good for your younger child. If you have Star Wars fans, then DHS would be a good fit. And if they like the thrill rides, then Tower of Terror and Rockin Roller-coaster are there. Too bad you don't like the offerings at AK. It's our favorite park, where we always spend 2 full days.

I'm guessing that you aren't staying on site. With only 2 days, you'll want to arrive at least 30 min before rope drop each day. Allow extra time to park and get thru security before taking the monorail or ferry to the MK gates. Since you are inside 30 days, you'll want to buy your tickets NOW so you can book fast passes for your days. And don't be surprised if you have difficulty getting FPs for the superheadliners- those have been available for booking for over a month already. Best of luck.

 

[yensid67]

Alpinecanuck...I echo Minnie Mum...I would do 2 days at Magic Kingdom and be able to take my time. What I don't get to see the first day, I have a second day to see them! Universal would probably be great for the kids...IOA or Studios or just get a 1 day park to park ticket. Now for lodging...you did not say where you plan on staying. So may I suggest staying off site at The Clarion Inn Lake Buena Vista located 5 minutes from Disney Springs. It has pillow-top mattresses, frig, mico, coffeemaker, 2 pools, deli convenience store bar/grille, restaurant and 24 hr security.(as much as I promote this hotel you would think I work for them! But I DO NOT, I just know its a great hotel) We are going in May 2018 and reserved 8 nights for $528 INCLUDED a FULL HOT BUFFET BREAKFAST each morning. If you would like the sites, let me know and I will private conversation them to you! you may save enough money to increase your stay to 5-7 days and pick up a 3 day Disney and 1 day Universal

 

[dm11]

Last time we went my kids were 10 & 8 and they loved Universal, probably more than any WDW park except Magic Kingdom. With only 2 days I would probably pick MK one day and the two-park UNI ticket the other. If you can swing for Express Pass at UNI you can do a lot in one day.

 

[Dutch Inn '76]

The Magic Kingdom and Disneyland are similar. ...but there are 14 attractions at MK that aren't at DL. In descending order of great to blah (my rankings): Seven Dwarfs Mine Train, Enchanted Tales with Belle, Mickey's PhilharMagic (3D movie), Tomorrowland Transit Authority, Little Marmaid (in Cal Adventure), Hall of Presidents, Country Bear Jamboree, Carousel of Progress, Magic Carpets of Aladdin (similar to Dumbo), Monsters Inc Laugh Floor, Swiss Family Robinson Tree House (similar to Tarzan's), Goofy's Barnstormer, Stitch's Great Escape (closed I think)...and Cinderella Castle - which isn't really an attraction but so so big and grand, and no trip is complete without walking through and seeing the mosaics. But it should be said that everything, with the exception of "Pirates" is bigger and grander at WDW. They had all the room they needed in Florida, and it shows. The Haunted Mansion is not to be missed, even though it is almost identical on the inside. With all of that being said, you can do the above in one day, if you have good fast passes and have your jaw set. ;-)

The thing that sets WDW apart is the resort hotels, but you won't have time to see them.

Of the other three, Animal Kingdom is the most complete right now, but you're not interested in it so that leaves Epcot - which used to be two awesome theme parks in one. "The World Showcase" is as good as it's ever been. Go and enjoy it. Take your time strolling the countries. The movies in France and China are excellent, as is the Mexico boat ride. Eat at the Biergarten at night when the German band is playing. Fun! "Future World" is seriously reduced right now. Still, Test Track, Soarin' (also at CA), Spaceship Earth and Mission Space are all great attractions that take lots of time to get through. ...and The Seas with Nemo, the Land ride are worth doing. Try out Imagination, but it's a big disappointment IMHO. Oh yeah - the Frozen ride is over in the World Showcase. I guess you gotta do that, huh? Make sure you have a fast pass. Otherwise get there at opening, or forget it.

 

[DisneyDaver]

I would do 1 full day at MK and split the other day between MK and another park. If it were me, I would do AK, but given that you have ruled that one out, I would do MK in the morning and then DHS in the afternoon/evening (make sure to see Fantasmic!).

 

[Alpinecanuck]

Hi all,

Thank you very much for all this!

I'm probably more confused then ever

We are planning on staying at Disney Swan, which is not necessarily on disney but in some ways it is.

After much thought...I think we will do:

- one day Universal
-one day at Magic Kingdom, just to keep costs down

. Plus the way our hotels work out, it would be hard to do two full days at WDW as a majority of our stay is via points at Marriott branded hotels, so we only really have two paid nights to spend on, and thus the two nights at Swan, with Friday as check in, Saturday as MK, and Sunday check out (Sleep in) and then check into a close to MCO airport hotel for the night as we have a 6:30am flight back to Canada.