Animal Kingdom or a 2nd day at Hollywood Studios?

[Graycie25]

Hello!
We are taking our kids for their 2nd trip to WDW this Jan/Feb 2023. We just went earlier this year in 2022 and did a ton. We are heading back and wondered if it would be better to have a 2nd day at HS again or just one day at HS and then go to AK instead. We didn't do AK on the last trip because our kids are majorly into Star Wars, so we planned 2 days for HS, and my DH and I both love EPCOT, so we did 2 days there. Only 1 day in MK on the last trip and we majorly regret that, so we are planning for 2 days at MK on this next trip no matter what. My dilemma is - we rushed so much on the last trip that we didn't get to relax and ENJOY it all. So we want a more leisurely trip this time around, hence the 2 days at MK to do it on a more relaxed schedule. We also thought maybe we could do 2 rest days this time instead of 1. However, we didn't make it to AK on the last trip and I think my kids would really like it. So we either need to add a 5th day at the parks (with one rest day instead of 2) OR cut out one of the HS days and add in AK. As much as DH and I love EPCOT, the kids just didn't dig it (minus Soarin', Remy's and TT), so we are thinking we will skip it this time around.

So do you think 2 10-year-olds would prefer 2 days in HS again or 1 day in HS and 1 day at AK? Or, should we bump our tickets up to 5 park days and do 2 days at MK, 2 days at HS and 1 day at AK? We think we could get everything we want to do at HS done in one day (if we start early and go late, which we will this time around because FANTASMIC will finally be open again!!!). Do you guys think we could do HS in one day? We aren't looking to do Droids/light sabers again, but would like to spend more time in Galaxy's Edge and also try to do the light saber training if it's back by the time we go, but we don't need to do all the shows/rides.

What is some advice you have for this? Should we plan for one day at HS and one day at AK or should we do 2 days at HS and skip AK again or change our park tickets to 5 days? I think they'd really like AK, but I'm a HS lover and hate to cut time from there

EDIT: I should add that Pandora and Avatar aren't really high on our priority lists. Might be cool to check out, but none of us have seen those movies and aren't fans. My ODS is a HUGE dinosaur fan, though, and I know he'd love the Dinosaur ride. Both would ride Everest I'm sure, but I know YDS would LOVE it.

2nd EDIT: When I say our "first" trip, I just mean our first trip as a family of 4. I've been to WDW many, many times (worked there, too, during a semester of the CP) and my DH and I were there together back in 2010 (no kids yet). Our trip this past February 2022 was the first time we went as a family of 4 with kids. It was a new experience for all of us, especially me to now be a parent. It was amazing!

DH and I are both sad to think about missing EPCOT this time around, but the kids just didn't care for it like we do. The like some of the rides, but we don't think it's enough to head back this time around. Have other families had this happen? I'm so sad!


Thank you!

 

[Miffy]

My vote goes to the 5th ticketed day. But DAK is my favorite park, so maybe I'm not the right person to ask about this!

Re Pandora: Before the first time I went, I had never seen the movie Avatar and thought I didn't care about the rides or the area. I was WRONG!!! Avatar Flight of Passage is one of the best attractions at WDW--and I think your 10-year-olds would love it. You do not need to have seen the movie or know anything about it to thoroughly enjoy the ride. The preshow gives all the necessary details. I also love the Na'vi River Journey, but your kids might think it's meh.

Meanwhile, if you and the kids like animals, the safari at DAK is fantastic. Well worth doing.

Dinosaur it lots of fun and Everest is great.

BTW, "leisurely" and "WDW" are mutually exclusive terms. You'd have to go for maybe 3 weeks to do anything like leisurely there.

You have to go!

I guess there's a 3rd choice: which is to pay for hoppers and get to DAK as early as possible and then hop to DHS in the afternoon.

Edited to fix mistake.

 

[lowlight]

I could never skip AK. It’s not a full day park for me, but it’s a very solid half day park. But if you hate Pandora and love Star Wars, I can see the tough decision.

 

[butterscotchcollins]

If your kids are into animals take them to AK, but as far as dinosaurs go you’d get better themeing from the Jurassic Park area at Universal, there really isn’t any at AK outside of the 1 ride.

In terms of whether 1 HS day is sufficient, I think it depends how much of the Star Wars experience you’re spending time on: are you doing any Droid or Lightsaber builds? Drinks at Oga’s? Those all take a full hour chunk out of your day, plus waiting in line for Fantasmic seating, so depending on the time of year it might be a bit tight!

 

[Graycie25]

If your kids are into animals take them to AK, but as far as dinosaurs go you’d get better themeing from the Jurassic Park area at Universal, there really isn’t any at AK outside of the 1 ride.

In terms of whether 1 HS day is sufficient, I think it depends how much of the Star Wars experience you’re spending time on: are you doing any Droid or Lightsaber builds? Drinks at Oga’s? Those all take a full hour chunk out of your day, plus waiting in line for Fantasmic seating, so depending on the time of year it might be a bit tight!

Thanks for your reply! Like I mentioned in my OP, they built both light sabers and droids during our trip this past February, so that is definitely something we won't be repeating. I don't think Oga's is something we will do, but I guess it's possible they would like it for 10-15 minutes, even if just to look at everything? As far as Fantasmic, I just read they are bringing back the dining packages for it, so we plan to book one of those so we have a reserved seat for the show that night.

Our kids are into animals, which is why I think they'd LOVE AK. We aren't going just for the dinosaurs, but I know my ODS would love that ride because he is so into dinosaurs. We aren't looking for dinosaurs exclusively, just know he would enjoy that ride.

 

[Graycie25]

I could never skip AK. It’s not a full day park for me, but it’s a very solid half day park. But if you hate Pandora and love Star Wars, I can see the tough decision.

I love AK myself, but with our last trip being our "only" trip and going all out for it, we decided the Star Wars stuff was more important. And, at the time, we had 2 days at EPCOT because DH and I love it. We realize that could've been a 1 day park and don't think we are even going there this trip (DH and I are super sad about it, but the kids just didn't enjoy it as much, minus Remy, TT, and Soarin'). I know they'll come around as they get older, like I did Obviously, we enjoyed our last trip so much, we started planning another one immediately for exactly one year after our first, so now we are hoping to hit up the park/attractions we missed. We didn't go to AK, so I know I want to go there no matter what, I just don't know if we need 5 parks days (2 at MK, 2 at HS, 1 at AK) or if we could get away with only spending 1 day at HS.

I don't hate Pandora, but I don't know much about it and it hasn't interested me (the movies, I mean). I know the theming is amazing!

 

[lowlight]

I love AK myself, but with our last trip being our "only" trip and going all out for it, we decided the Star Wars stuff was more important. And, at the time, we had 2 days at EPCOT because DH and I love it. We realize that could've been a 1 day park and don't think we are even going there this trip (DH and I are super sad about it, but the kids just didn't enjoy it as much, minus Remy, TT, and Soarin'). I know they'll come around as they get older, like I did Obviously, we enjoyed our last trip so much, we started planning another one immediately for exactly one year after our first, so now we are hoping to hit up the park/attractions we missed. We didn't go to AK, so I know I want to go there no matter what, I just don't know if we need 5 parks days (2 at MK, 2 at HS, 1 at AK) or if we could get away with only spending 1 day at HS.

I don't hate Pandora, but I don't know much about it and it hasn't interested me (the movies, I mean). I know the theming is amazing!

Ah, I reread it and see how I missed that part. My vote is 5 days if you can swing it. HS has a good amount of stuff I like to see/do, so I always build in 2 days there if my trip is long enough in case rides are down/busy/etc. 1 day at HS is like warp speed and I don't feel relaxed.

 

[Graycie25]

My vote goes to the 5th ticketed day. But DAK is my favorite park, so maybe I'm not the right person to ask about this!

Re Pandora: Before the first time I went, I had never seen the movie Avatar and thought I didn't care about the rides or the area. I was WRONG!!! Avatar Flight of Passage is one of the best attractions at WDW--and I think your 10-year-olds would love it. You do not need to have seen the movie or know anything about it to thoroughly enjoy the ride. The preshow gives all the necessary details. I also love the Na'vi River Journey, but your kids might think it's meh.

Meanwhile, if you and the kids like animals, the safari at DAK is fantastic. Well worth doing.

Dinosaur it lots of fun and Everest is great.

BTW, "leisurely" and "WDW" are mutually exclusive terms. You'd have to go for maybe 3 weeks to do anything like leisurely there.

You have to go!

I guess there's a 3rd choice: which is to pay for hoppers and get to DAK as early as possible and then hop to DHS in the afternoon.

Edited to fix mistake.

Yes, I've been to AK several times myself. You are correct - the safari is fantastic! And I absolutely LOVE Everest. My YDS ended up loving the coasters there (he was the only one who would do RnR with me) so I know he will love Everest, too.

I know "leisurely" and "WDW" don't always go together, but we had a VIP tour on our last trip and all we did was RUSH RUSH RUSH and, being their first time and my first time back since 2010, we didn't get to just enjoy the atmosphere of MK and Main Street. That's why we are definitely doing 2 days at MK so we can take our time a bit more. Not exactly leisurely, but not running from one thing to the next without stopping to appreciate where we are. The atmosphere and ambiance is something I love at Disney, especially at MK, so I don't want to skip out on it this next time.

We most likely won't do park hoppers. We did them on our trip back in 2010, when it was just my husband and I, and we realized that we aren't into park hopping much. We like to stay in one park per day.

 

[Graycie25]

Ah, I reread it and see how I missed that part. My vote is 5 days if you can swing it. HS has a good amount of stuff I like to see/do, so I always build in 2 days there if my trip is long enough in case rides are down/busy/etc. 1 day at HS is like warp speed and I don't feel relaxed.

This is what I'm scared of. I think we could totally do HS in one day, but then all the "What ifs..." creep in.
I think we were just thinking/hopping for 4 park days (2 at MK and 2 at HS) with 2 rest days to take it a bit slower this time (we had a VIP tour guide for 3 days on our last trip and it was CRAZY how much we rushed and missed so much), but now we don't think we want to miss AK again this time around (we didn't go on our last trip). So it's either 4 park days and 2 rest days or 5 park days and 1 rest day (we don't usually do a park on arrival or departure day).

 

[DISfam2401]

I would definitely add another park day. As another poster said, DAK can be a half-day park with some pool time in the evening (or sleep in and hit it later in the morning.) That way, they don't miss it, but still get some elements of a "rest day." It tends to close earlier as well so at least you're not out too late.

 

[Kestryl]

Go to Animal Kingdom. It is more of a relaxing park than the others.

Also, for what it’s worth, Avatar 2 is coming out this December. Your kids weren’t born when Avatar came out. This may turn into an interest for them. (Or not! Media is weird.)

 

[Graycie25]

I would definitely add another park day. As another poster said, DAK can be a half-day park with some pool time in the evening (or sleep in and hit it later in the morning.) That way, they don't miss it, but still get some elements of a "rest day." It tends to close earlier as well so at least you're not out too late.

These are all great points. I know from past experience with just me and DH, AK is not an all day park, but since I've never been with kids before, I am not sure how it will go. I love the idea of experiencing a new park we didn't make it to during their first trip (the kids), but I don't want to cut anything out of HS either.

 

[Robber Baron]

My opinion is not a popular one, but, I'd go to HS on 2 days and skip MK.

 

[butterscotchcollins]

Thanks for your reply! Like I mentioned in my OP, they built both light sabers and droids during our trip this past February, so that is definitely something we won't be repeating. I don't think Oga's is something we will do, but I guess it's possible they would like it for 10-15 minutes, even if just to look at everything? As far as Fantasmic, I just read they are bringing back the dining packages for it, so we plan to book one of those so we have a reserved seat for the show that night.

Our kids are into animals, which is why I think they'd LOVE AK. We aren't going just for the dinosaurs, but I know my ODS would love that ride because he is so into dinosaurs. We aren't looking for dinosaurs exclusively, just know he would enjoy that ride.

Oh then DEFINITELY go!! Everest is so fun, the Safari and walking trails are awesome, FoP is also cool.

 

[Ensusieasm]

I think you should go to Animal Kingdom for sure. You can always add another day to your ticket (about $50 each) even after you start using your ticket (as long as you still have a ticket day remaining and you’re within 14 days of first use). So, if you really need a second day at HS, you can still do that.

 

[Mousetopia]

Thanks for your reply! Like I mentioned in my OP, they built both light sabers and droids during our trip this past February, so that is definitely something we won't be repeating. I don't think Oga's is something we will do, but I guess it's possible they would like it for 10-15 minutes, even if just to look at everything? As far as Fantasmic, I just read they are bringing back the dining packages for it, so we plan to book one of those so we have a reserved seat for the show that night.

Our kids are into animals, which is why I think they'd LOVE AK. We aren't going just for the dinosaurs, but I know my ODS would love that ride because he is so into dinosaurs. We aren't looking for dinosaurs exclusively, just know he would enjoy that ride.

A LOT of time can be enjoyed on the animal trails many focussed on rides dont even visit them. There is world class viewing, gorillas, meerkats, tigers, giant bats...I can spend 2 full days at AK easily ..and do!

 

[ThreeKMom]

Are park hoppers an option for you?
We always do hoppers, that way we can hit any attractions that we may have missed and schedule a dinner any where we want, (usually EPCOT!).

Our plan for our upcoming trip is to do HS on our arrival day, then hop to EPCOT for dinner, MK the next day and hop to HS to hit what we missed and another late dinner at EPCOT, AK the third day hopping to EPCOT for dinner and MK for our last park day, hopping to wherever we feel like we need more time, no set dinner reservation for our last day.

Also, We haven't seen the Avatar movies but absolutely love Pandora - you should check it out. It's very cool!!

 

[Graycie25]

Oh then DEFINITELY go!! Everest is so fun, the Safari and walking trails are awesome, FoP is also cool.

Thank you! We decided to go ahead and add a 5th day to our tickets so we can go to AK this time around. I love it and I know the kids will love it. Cutting out one of our days at MK just isn't an option this trip. We went for the first time (with the kids) earlier this year and we only spent 1 day (our first) at MK and we missed so much! Since we are determined to move at a bit of slower pace this trip, we definitely want to take our time at MK. We never even got to enjoy Main Street and all the shops and details. We missed the fireworks because we were so exhausted from our early morning. So yeah, we are determined to slow down a bit and really enjoy it this time instead of just rushing. So definitely 2 days for MK. I also love HS and we all love the rides and GE at DS and, again, want to take our time with it. We barely got to explore GE last time, with all the stalls in the marketplace and intricacies of the land, because we were rushing to do rides and make our reservations for light sabers and droids. We aren't doing that this time, so we want to enjoy the atmosphere of it all!

 

[Graycie25]

I think you should go to Animal Kingdom for sure. You can always add another day to your ticket (about $50 each) even after you start using your ticket (as long as you still have a ticket day remaining and you’re within 14 days of first use). So, if you really need a second day at HS, you can still do that.

Thanks for the reply! We decided to add a 5th day to our tickets so we could enjoy AK. I love it and am super excited for my boys to enjoy a new (to them) park this time we visit. My ODS LOVES dinosaurs so I am way too excited for him to ride Dinosaur. I know they will love the safari and FOTLK and all the cool shows and details of the park. I've also never gone to Conservation Station so we plan to do that this time, too, to check it out. I think they would enjoy it.

 

[Graycie25]

Are park hoppers an option for you?
We always do hoppers, that way we can hit any attractions that we may have missed and schedule a dinner any where we want, (usually EPCOT!).

Our plan for our upcoming trip is to do HS on our arrival day, then hop to EPCOT for dinner, MK the next day and hop to HS to hit what we missed and another late dinner at EPCOT, AK the third day hopping to EPCOT for dinner and MK for our last park day, hopping to wherever we feel like we need more time, no set dinner reservation for our last day.

Also, We haven't seen the Avatar movies but absolutely love Pandora - you should check it out. It's very cool!!

Park Hoppers are definitely an option, but not one we really want to exercise. With all the rules that come along with it, we just aren't into it. Just like we aren't really "leave the park and go back to the hotel in the middle of the day" people, we just prefer to stay in one park per day. DH and I park hopped the time he and I went together for the first time back in 2010 and we realized it just isn't for us. We'd rather spend that time in the park we decided to do for that day. I understand that it's helpful/easier to get the dining reservations you want, but we also don't care about dining at specific places that much. We have a few of our favorites and will hopefully get the other ones we want, too, but we aren't heartbroken if we can't get specific restaurants either. Does that make sense?