Hollywood Studios 1/2 day park

[lebeau]

ANY park is a half day park once you start not going into attractions and/or shows.

MK is a half day park....if all you do is go on the mountains.
Epcot is a half day park.....if you skip WS.
AK is a half day park.....You only go on the thrill rides.

This is true. But for some reason, the term "half day" park gets used frequently for DHS and DAK and rarely for MK and Epcot.

Are there enough attractions to fill an entire day at all 4 parks? Yes. But if those attractions don't interest guests enough to spend a full day there, the parks become "half day" parks for those guests.

While I'm sure some people see MK or Epcot as a 1/2 day park, those people would be in the minority. But you can find plenty of people who feel that way about DHS and DAK.

 

[WDWmazprty]

This is true. But for some reason, the term "half day" park gets used frequently for DHS and DAK and rarely for MK and Epcot.

Are there enough attractions to fill an entire day at all 4 parks? Yes. But if those attractions don't interest guests enough to spend a full day there, the parks become "half day" parks for those guests.

While I'm sure some people see MK or Epcot as a 1/2 day park, those people would be in the minority. But you can find plenty of people who feel that way about DHS and DAK.

Agreed. We always try to get the most we can out of our visit to the parks. DHS is small, but that gives us opportunities to ride Tot, TSM, RnR, various times throughout the day. We take advantage of all the time we have.

 

[Tigger1988]

I agree.. 4 - 6 hours is really all you need. I did visit HS back in '96 when it was still MGM. I went to the park again this past June and I can't say that much was different. I mean I understand that there will always be some attractions that are timeless. They take us back to our youth and we never want them to go away, but is asking for a new attraction for a new twist to an old one too much to ask? With the exception of a huge useless hat, I didn't see much difference. Who knows... maybe my memory is fading LOL

Neither Rock n Roller Coaster or Toy Story Mania were there in 1996, those would be two HUGE differences.

 

[ThinkTink721]

We usually only visit DHS 1 full day.
I always want to make sure that we see Fantasmic.

The attractions that are a must see/do for me at DHS are:
Rock N' Roller Coaster
Tower of Terror
Muppets 3D
Voyage of the Little Mermaid
Toy Story Mania
Great Movie Ride
Star Tours (will be closed during our next trip)

So, I would agree that DHS is more of a 1/2 day park.

 

[David S.]

It is only a half-day park if you choose it to be. There is plenty of stuff to do; whether you take the opportunity of all the choices provided is up to you.

:sohappy::sohappy::sohappy:

Thank you!

ANY park is a half day park once you start not going into attractions and/or shows.

MK is a half day park....if all you do is go on the mountains.
Epcot is a half day park.....if you skip WS.
AK is a half day park.....You only go on the thrill rides.

:sohappy::sohappy::sohappy:

Thank you! Master Yoda, I remember you were also very eloquent in your defense of Disney's Animal Kingdom as a full day park. I am in complete agreement!

I could maybe stretch it into a full day, but that would only be if I was forced to do so. Anyone remember when it first opened and all that was there was GMR and the backlot tour???

It wasn't even a half day park then when it first opened. I remember how disappointed I was with my first visit there. It has gotten better, but still could use some help.

I was there the first year as well (about a month or two after opening), and I agree that it was underwhelming and disapponting compared to the other parks.

To be fair to the park, though, there was more than those two attractions there that first season. There were 6! In addition to the Great Movie Ride and the Backlot Tour (which was MUCH longer than it is now and included a long walking segment which could have arguably been considered a seperate attraction unto itself!), there was also Magic of Disney Animation, Indiana Jones Epic Stunt Spectacular, Monster Sound Show, and Superstar Television.

It took me about a half day to see and do all this, considering the length of that Backlot Tour alone seemed close to 2 hours not counting the queue time!

The park has since addressed the issues of that opening season by adding more attractions. There are now more than three times the amount of attractions as that first year (most with pretty long run times) and grown to such a level that IMO it has earned it's place as a full day experience alongside the other 3 parks.

My last trip I only went to the studios to ride TSMM. We even skipped Fantasmic because we were not in the mood to wait there for over an hour. Normally i would hit TSMM, RRC and TOT.

I agree that having to wait for over an hour to get into that extremely crowded first show is not the most pleasant way to spend an hour in a theme park.

On the bright side, perhaps the only good that has come from the show no longer being offered 7 nights a week, is it seems that almost everytime they DO have the show, they usually end up doing a second show.

So instead of waiting an hour for that first show, I like to do attractions with short waits while everyone else is waiting for and watching that first show. And then, you can walk into that second show a few minutes before it starts and get a great seat! Plus since the second show starts at (or later than) closing time, you can get the maximum time on all the other attractions because you are watching the show when everything else in the park is closed!

The same strategy also works perfectly for Spectromagic/Main Street Electrical Parade in the MK when there are two parades per night!

 

[JustInTime]

Good points about all the parks being half day if you choose it. But I think DHS is a FULL day, IMO. Just waiting on TSMM is a half day. Here is how we do it:

Park Hours 9-7ish

Great Movie Ride
Star Tours
Stunt Show
TSMM
Lunch
M&G
R&R
TOT
Dinner
TOT
R&R
Fantasmic...

and we still don't have enough time to do what all we want! If we don't have time we are forced to skip Backlot, Beauty and the Beast and Indy...

 

[Stevek]

On our first and only trip so far, we left feeling it was definitely not a full day park much the way DCA feels to us here. We actually said that when we went back, we probably wouldn't visit again. Now that are finally going again in November, we have decided to give it another shot so at a min we can do TOT, GMR a couple of things missed last time and most importantly, the Osborne family lights.

 

[EpcotServo]

Opening

Backlot Tour
Great Movie Ride
Superstar TV
Animation
Sound Show
Epic

Total: 6


Now

Backlot Tour
Great Movie Ride
Epic
American Idol
Tower
Coaster
Midway Mania
Playhouse Disney
Mermaid
Narnia
Animation
LMA
Beauty and the Beast
Sounds Dangerous
Star Tours
Muppets
Fantasmic!

Total: 17


Yes, clearly it's BECOME a Half Day park.*

*If you're out of your freaking gord.

 

[lebeau]

Opening

Backlot Tour
Great Movie Ride
Superstar TV
Animation
Sound Show
Epic

Total: 6


Now

Backlot Tour
Great Movie Ride
Epic
American Idol
Tower
Coaster
Midway Mania
Playhouse Disney
Mermaid
Narnia
Animation
LMA
Beauty and the Beast
Sounds Dangerous
Star Tours
Muppets
Fantasmic!

Total: 17


Yes, clearly it's BECOME a Half Day park.*

*If you're out of your freaking gord.

I realize the point you are trying to make. But it is still possible to "become" a half day park.

A lot of those attractions are shows with limited repeatability. Also, since we had kids, we scratched a lot of attractions (thrill rides) off the list for the time being. While the number of attractions has increased, the number we will visit has decreased since our first visit.

And before anyone points out that they aren't interested in the touring habits of my family in particular, I think it's relevant. The term "half day park" is a personal judgement. For a lot of us, DHS has become a half day park in spite of the increased number of attractions.

As stated earlier, attractions with a broader appeal (dark rides) would go a long way to bridging the gap.

 

[David S.]

Opening

Backlot Tour
Great Movie Ride
Superstar TV
Animation
Sound Show
Epic

Total: 6

Now

Backlot Tour
Great Movie Ride
Epic
American Idol
Tower
Coaster
Midway Mania
Playhouse Disney
Mermaid
Narnia
Animation
LMA
Beauty and the Beast
Sounds Dangerous
Star Tours
Muppets
Fantasmic!

Total: 17


Yes, clearly it's BECOME a Half Day park.*


*If you're out of your freaking gord.

I agree! And if you also count Walt Disney: One Man's Dream and Honey I Shrunk the Kids Movie Set Adventure, you get 19! (as opposed to the original 6)

 

[Hakunamatata]

I realize the point you are trying to make. But it is still possible to "become" a half day park.

A lot of those attractions are shows with limited repeatability. Also, since we had kids, we scratched a lot of attractions (thrill rides) off the list for the time being. While the number of attractions has increased, the number we will visit has decreased since our first visit.

And before anyone points out that they aren't interested in the touring habits of my family in particular, I think it's relevant. The term "half day park" is a personal judgement. For a lot of us, DHS has become a half day park in spite of the increased number of attractions.

As stated earlier, attractions with a broader appeal (dark rides) would go a long way to bridging the gap.

I guess I dont understand why you are trying to convince everyone that DHS is a half day park in your opinion when you stated yourself that its a personal judgement.:shrug:

 

[SleepingMonk]

EPCOT is the only park we actually spend the entire day in at this point.

At all the others we just hit our favorites and move on. Even taking our time, wandering around, eating lunch, etc...the Studios is at best a half day.

 

[WDWmazprty]

:lol:

For us:


MK-Definitely one whole day
Epcot-One whole day
DHS-we make it one day, but you can easily do it in half
AK-we make it one day, but you can easily do it in half

 

[David S.]

I realize the point you are trying to make. But it is still possible to "become" a half day park.

Only in the eye of the beholder, as is the idea that the shows have "limited repeatability"! As you point out when you say the term "half-day" park is a "personal judgement"

The shows are all repeatable for me!

I understand what you mean since you clearly state that there is only enough there to keep YOU interested for a half day.

But what I (and others) disagree with is when some people make a black and white statement that (insert park here) is a "half day park" when in reality it can't possibly be finished in a half day! And then they go on to say that it's because "x attraction isn't worth doing" or "y attraction sucks"... as if these are universal truths shared and agreed upon by everyone!

Not everyone will like every attraction at every park. Heck, Magic Kingdom is my favorite park and I don't like everything there! (cough, MILF!) But looking at it OBJECTIVELY, I just don't see how anyone can make the claim that any of the parks can truly be finished in a half-day, because to TRULY immerse oneself in the story that each park is telling, and to experience the COMPLETE story that the designers intended to be told, they can't!

PS. To me, saying any of the parks is a "half day" park is like saying a 60 minute CD is only a 30 minute CD because you only like half the tracks! (Of course, me being a completist, I like to listen to my CDs in their entirety, from beginning to end, in order, to get the exact artistic experience the artist intended! )

 

[lebeau]

I guess I dont understand why you are trying to convince everyone that DHS is a half day park in your opinion when you stated yourself that its a personal judgement.:shrug:

I'm not trying to convince anyone that DHS is a half-day park. I'm just saying that for some people, it is. So there's no point making a list of attractions. We all know what's there. Even so, for some people the park has become a half-day park.

On our last trip, DHS was a half-day park that we visited 3 times. I'm not sure what that makes it. We couldn't spend a whole day there. But we spent a total of a day and a half broken up into 3 visits.

(We rode GMR 4 times. It's one of my five-year-old's favorites.)

 

[UberPlannerMom]

OK so I did a little looking at the Disney website. Here is how long they say the shows/ entertainment options are, not counting any pre or post shows.
Beauty and the Beast- 25 min
High School Musical 3- 15 min
Fantasmic- 25 min
Block Party Bash- 35 min
Indiana Jones- 30 min
Lights! Motors! Action!- 33 min
Muppetvision 3D- 13 min
Playhouse Disney- 22 min
Sounds Dangerous- 12 min
Jedi Training Academy- 30 min
Studio Backlot Tour- 35 min
Magic of Disney Animation (Just the Mushu movie part)- 20 min
Voyage of the Little Mermaid- 15 min

I am pretty sure that hits about 5 hours and 10 minutes of just watching things. That doesn't include the time for the animation academy as I couldn't find anything with a time on that.

Now, if the park opens at 9 am and you have the capability of "beaming" to the shows, AND they start one right after another, AND you don't do any of the rides, AND you never have to wait for anything at all, AND you don't shop, look around, eat or use the bathroom then you could do all the shows and be out by 2 (since you wouldn't get to see fantasmic.) I am just pointing this out for the person who claimed that they can do EVERYTHING there and still be out by two. Sorry buddy, I just don't think it is possible. I understand people not wanting to do everything, but I really can't see how people can claim they can do EVERYTHING at the park and by out by 2... just sayin'!

 

[epcotWSC]

If you don't go to all of the shows, then you can definitely do it in half a day. If you decide to go to all or most of the shows, eat a sit down restaurant, shop, etc. then it becomes a day long park.

AK if the only park I usually only spend half a day (or less) at. I then spend the evening at Epcot drinking :slurp:.

MK I usually do in one in a half days.

 

[lebeau]

But what I (and others) disagree with is when some people make a black and white statement that (insert park here) is a "half day park" when in reality it can't possibly be finished in a half day! And then they go on to say that it's because "x attraction isn't worth doing" or "y attraction sucks"... as if these are universal truths shared and agreed upon by everyone!

Not everyone will like every attraction at every park. Heck, Magic Kingdom is my favorite park and I don't like everything there! (cough, MILF!) But looking at it OBJECTIVELY, I just don't see how anyone can make the claim that any of the parks can truly be finished in a half-day, because to TRULY immerse oneself in the story that each park is telling, and to experience the COMPLETE story that the designers intended to be told, they can't!

PS. To me, saying any of the parks is a "half day" park is like saying a 60 minute CD is only a 30 minute CD because you only like half the tracks! (Of course, me being a completist, I like to listen to my CDs in their entirety, from beginning to end, in order, to get the exact artistic experience the artist intended! )

I think when most people say a park is a "half-day" park, it is implied that they are talking about their own personal experience. If someone is willing to experience everything any of the parks has to offer, they would all require at least a full day. But in practice, that is rarely the case. Especially for frequent guests.

When people say "you can do DAK in half a day" it's understood that you will be skipping things. The implication is that certain things are okay to skip.

For my family on our last trip, we could not have possibly made a full day out of DAK or DHS. The kids don't ride thrill rides (too short for some and too scared for others) and don't have the patience for more than 1 stage show in any given day. (And sometimes even one is pushing it.) When you eliminate all thrill rides and all but one show, these parks no longer have a full day's worth of offerings.

Like I said in the post above, we actually visited DHS for several half-days. We did the same handful of attractions several times. But we couldn't bring ourselves to go to DAK even once that trip. We'd would not have stayed long enough to justify the bus ride. In other circumstances, I could (and have) easily spend a full day at either park. But for all intents and purposes, those parks are currently half-day parks for us.

 

[David S.]

If someone is willing to experience everything any of the parks has to offer, they would all require at least a full day. But in practice, that is rarely the case. Especially for frequent guests.

I guess I'm the exception to the rule, because I'm a seasonal resident and EXTREME frequent guest, and my favorite type of park visits are still the open to close, rope drop to shutdown, full-day, "complete" park visits!

I like to completely immerse myself in the world of each park and get the "complete" experience. I view the parks as "works of art" so to me skipping large amounts of them feels like watching half of a movie or listening to the first half of Sgt. Pepper by the Beatles but not the second half (side 2, in the old days!)

I still do some partial-day type of visits, such as park hops after a full day at AK, or 6 PM-close type visits when I don't have the whole day free, but I find in those instances I gravitate towards the same favorites every time and end up skipping things that I actually like, but don't have time for.

What I like about full day visits is I get to experience the entire breath and scope of a park, including attractions that I like that would get left out in shorter visits, as well as savoring the "little design details" that make the parks so special.

The bottom line for me is, if I start at a park at rope drop and have the whole day free, there is enough at all 4 parks to keep me occupied for a whole day without repeating myself or getting bored! I guess I should consider myself lucky that I like nearly everything the 4 parks have to offer!

When people say "you can do DAK in half a day" it's understood that you will be skipping things. The implication is that certain things are okay to skip.

I think that's fine and good if they explain that it is their OPINION. What I disagree with is when park "newbies" are asking how much time to allow for each park, and people tell them they can finish AK in a half-day, implying, as you say, that certain things are OK to skip.

Well, maybe the person asking that question is an animal lover like me, who could EASILY spend a whole day just enjoying the self-guided "look at the animal" attractions!

I would recommend for EVERY person who has never been to WDW before to allow AT LEAST a full day for each park and try to experience as much as they can at a pace they are comfortable with, and also ideally allow a 5th or 6th day to do anything they may have missed on those full days.

Because it's best to find out for yourself what you like or what you may dislike, and also, a newcomer won't be familiar with the park layouts or "touring tricks" to maximize time that "veterans" know.

 

[lebeau]

I think that's fine and good if they explain that it is their OPINION. What I disagree with is when park "newbies" are asking how much time to allow for each park, and people tell them they can finish AK in a half-day, implying, as you say, that certain things are OK to skip.

Well, maybe the person asking that question is an animal lover like me, who could EASILY spend a whole day just enjoying the self-guided "look at the animal" attractions!

I would recommend for EVERY person who has never been to WDW before to allow AT LEAST a full day for each park and try to experience as much as they can at a pace they are comfortable with, and also ideally allow a 5th or 6th day to do anything they may have missed on those full days.

Because it's best to find out for yourself what you like or what you may dislike, and also, a newcomer won't be familiar with the park layouts or "touring tricks" to maximize time that "veterans" know.

I agree with you. Although, in certain circumstances I may tell a newb that AK is a half-day park or skippable. If they didn't have at least 4 days to spend, for example. When I'm advising newbs (which I do quite frequently) I try to ask for their interests and special circumstances. (Actually, I usually loan them a book and let them pick out the attractions that interest them.)

As a die-hard fan, I'd love to open and close a park the way you do. My family would never allow it. I'm jealous.