We are suprising our 9YO and 4YO with a birthday trip later this year. Our 4YO will just be 40 inch tall and we are excited for all the "big kid" rides. We are planning on only 3 park days. Epcot and MK are a must for our family. Our 9YO LOVES AK (Kali, Pandora, and Whirl) they both love HS and I feel like it has more for the 4YO, but of course it will be crazy with StarWars. I seriously can not make a decision on what to do. We kinda asked them by saying we would go next year and were met with lots of resistance of not doing both. UGH! Planning on a budget is hard.
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HS or AK with a 40inch kid
- Thread starter ada0801
- Start date
Club Cooloholic
Well-Known Member
Those are tough choices....I mean a park Hopper could really help. To be honest, with all the construction and the 4 yrs old height, you might want to pass on Epcot. Soarin will be out as will Test Track. You can get the cool shops and restaurant vibe by hitting Disney Springs. Just a thought because I feel that AK and HS have a lot for children.
But...you asked AK vs. HS? HS, you can do Toy Story, the Disney Jr. Dance show, ride swap the bigger stuff and it is not as weather dependent. I was in AK during a storm and it was awful. I think that might be the way to go.
Slikke
Member
Our 4 year old is just at 40" too (literally JUST hit 40" and our trip in end of September) but according to Disney sites, he can ride both Soarin and TT as the minimum is still 40"...
kimberlymautz
Well-Known Member
Between AK and HS I would probably suggest HS, which is bizarre because a year or two ago I'd have said the opposite. I love Animal Kingdom, but if your kiddo is excited for the bigger rides he'll have more luck at Hollywood Studios then he will at Animal Kingdom. 
Dreaming of Disney World
Well-Known Member
How about showing your younger kid youtube videos of the bigger rides and seeing which ones he likes better? Does he want to ride more thrilling rides such as Tower of Terror/Slinky Dog Dash/Star Wars rides or Dinosaur/Kali, or will any of those be more frightening?
MotherofaPrincessLover
Well-Known Member
At 40" there's 5 rides in Disney World that can't be ridden and 3 of those are at AK. If going on rides is the most important thing to the 4 yo, I'd go with HS. But on the other hand, AK has the Boneyard which is a ton of fun for a 4 yo. Whichever you choose, your kids will have fun.
Thank you! That was very helpful. We ended up just adding a day so we can do all 4. We are telling the kids about the trip in 2 weeks and I might burst waiting.