Taking a 16 year for first time.. need advice

[ssidiouss@mac.c]

Heading to disney world with a few people and one of them is a 16 year old boy that has never been there before. The main focus of the trip is a just a quick 2 nighter where we are doing a christmas party on the second night at magic kingdom. This leaves us one day to do something else...

I was thinking of doing magic kingdom on that empty first day even though we are going to be back there the next night for the christmas party because it'll let us get more stuff in there the day before and then let us not rush as much during the christmas party so we'll have time to relax and watch the fireworks etc without worrying that we are missing out on ride time.

But we also feel that maybe we should do Epcot instead that first day so the kid feels like he saw a more complete vision of Disney World and had a chance to see SpaceShip earth etc

What would you do in this situation?

 

[ratherbeinwdw]

Heading to disney world with a few people and one of them is a 16 year old boy that has never been there before. The main focus of the trip is a just a quick 2 nighter where we are doing a christmas party on the second night at magic kingdom. This leaves us one day to do something else...

I was thinking of doing magic kingdom on that empty first day even though we are going to be back there the next night for the christmas party because it'll let us get more stuff in there the day before and then let us not rush as much during the christmas party so we'll have time to relax and watch the fireworks etc without worrying that we are missing out on ride time.

But we also feel that maybe we should do Epcot instead that first day so the kid feels like he saw a more complete vision of Disney World and had a chance to see SpaceShip earth etc

What would you do in this situation?

Depending on the 16 year old, I would think Star Tours, Toy Story, Rock n Roller Coaster and Tower of Terror at DHS would be more fun than Epcot. Some 16-year-olds would prefer, Soarin', SpaceShip Earth, Mission Space and Test Track. Let him look at the rides on utube and decide which he would prefer. Since you can get in at 4 on party day, he will probably have time to do all the things that seem to interest a 16-year-old. If he's not a thrill rider, then, I think MK both days would be better.

 

[DisneyFans4Life]

Let him look online at the different ride offerings at each park and see what he would be most interested in. MK is obviously the most popular park and what people think of when they think "Disney," but it all depends on what interests him.

 

[lunchbox1175]

I agree with @ratherbeinwdw. I have a 16 and 14 yr olds and they both prefer HS.

 

[JIMINYCR]

If hes a typical 16 yo thats looking for action... go with MK and DHS for the rides. EP wont give him enough of a thrill and other than a few rides there, his desire to stay interested will quickly fade, he probably wouldnt find the countries very exciting.

 

[ssidiouss@mac.c]

Do you think that doing magic kingdom twice on a short two day trip is overkill and might ruin the xmas party the second day though? I was thinking maybe just hitting magic kingdom the first day for a bit as a preview almost and then hitting the rest the next night at the xmas party. We are going to be arriving so early that we won't have much sleep so i figured some rest time at the resort for a bit at some point that first day too. They probably will have zero sleep actually lol gotta be at airport at like 3:30am

 

[Courtney6682]

I have an almost 16 yr old...and her fave park is Epcot...When I started to write this I was going to suggest HS because of ToT and RnRC...but then I thought about everything that Epcot has to offer....as far as thrill rides and there are more there than HS....It's hard for me not to offer an unbiased opinion since Epcot is my fave park as well...but I think my vote will be for Epcot...lol...good luck with whatever u decide

 

[ratherbeinwdw]

Do you think that doing magic kingdom twice on a short two day trip is overkill and might ruin the xmas party the second day though? I was thinking maybe just hitting magic kingdom the first day for a bit as a preview almost and then hitting the rest the next night at the xmas party. We are going to be arriving so early that we won't have much sleep so i figured some rest time at the resort for a bit at some point that first day too. They probably will have zero sleep actually lol gotta be at airport at like 3:30am

Do you have park hopper?

 

[hollymc3]

I am the mother of 16 year old triplets (2 boys 1 girl). We are going to Disney for the 5th time in January. Their favorite park is Epcot. They love the rides as well as walking and eating in world showcase

 

[Tinkerkelle]

Do you think that doing magic kingdom twice on a short two day trip is overkill and might ruin the xmas party the second day though? I was thinking maybe just hitting magic kingdom the first day for a bit as a preview almost and then hitting the rest the next night at the xmas party. We are going to be arriving so early that we won't have much sleep so i figured some rest time at the resort for a bit at some point that first day too. They probably will have zero sleep actually lol gotta be at airport at like 3:30am

So much to do at MK that a day and night would easily be filled. Day and night have very different atmospheres too. The party has a lot of exclusive entertainment, if you plan seeing the parade and meeting characters that will eat into a chunk of your time and limit ride time.
As has been said-maybe ask the boy for his thoughts. Enjoy. I'd love to be there at Christmastime, even a flying visit.