Taking 2 toddlers for first time. Is it silly to stick to only Magic Kingdom?

[Momof2toddlers]

My husband and I are meeting his parents there for 1 week at the end of June. Our kids will be 2 and a half and 4. We were thinking of just doing Magic Kingdom. We want to give ourselves time to enjoy the park. Is it silly to only do one? And how many days would be appropriate to buy a pass for?

 

[otten]

I would definitely not skip Animal Kingdom with toddlers. It’s a great park for that age.

 

[kenthanson]

Agree with above re animal kingdom, I also found that my son loved Epcot both at 2&1/2 and at 4. If you have the time then do them but you know your kids better then we do, when we went with my my niece at 5 she didn't want to do anything.

 

[Wubar]

I'm taking my 4 year old son to WDW in 2 weeks, and we're taking him to all of the parks, although we are taking him to MK and EP twice. My wife and I have described all 4 parks to him and have shown him various pictures and videos, and he is excited to visit all 4. My parents told me I loved EP when I was a toddler as well, so I am somewhat pleased my son seems interested in going!

That being said, only you can decide what is best for your family. I will say if you are only going to MK for an entire week, you can definitely take the time to see what you want and have a less hectic and stressful trip, since you'll be able to spread things out over all of the days. So that is definitely worth something!

 

[JessicaW1234]

You will want at least two days at MK; we have been going there for 3 days
It's definitely the best park for that age!

 

[coasternut22]

My kids are 5.5 and 4. The one thing I’ve learned after taking them to theme parks since they were born is that kids want to run around and explore and play more than they want to wait in lines and ride rides. As mentioned earlier, animal kingdom is perfect for that at the dig playground and Rafikis planet watch as well as the animal exhibits. Definitely go there. What I found as well is that the kids love the hands on exhibits at the exits of test track, figment, and the seas in Epcot.

 

[DavidNYC]

If you're there a full week definitely go to other parks. AK is a must with kids and I'd say even Epcot and DHS are worth a look (especially if you have hoppers).

 

[AMB1]

My kids also loved AK at that age. It also has one of the best places to let them run around and burn off energy — The Boneyard. It is the ultimate playground for a child.

 

[DisMommyTX]

At least two days at MK and one at AK.

If they like characters, then you must do one day at EPCOT! Meet Mickey, Minnie, and Goofy on a Character Spot Fastpass. Also the shortest lines for Daisy, Pluto, and Donald. Several princesses meet in various countries, and the line for Elsa and Anna is surprisingly short. The easier princess meal is at Akershus, and our favorite character meal anywhere on property is Garden Grill (Mickey, Pluto, Chip and Dale). The Seas with Nemo, Living with the Land boat ride, and Imagination pavilion are hits with that age as well.

HS is now mostly for the street entertainment. Disney Jr is great, but not much else for littles. Toy Story Midway Mania and Voyage of the Little Mermaid maybe. Beauty and the Beast is nice if your kids are good at sitting for a 30 minute show.

Take lots of pictures! When our kids were that age we thought the vacation was for them, but it was really for the adults to enjoy making memories together. The kids probably won't remember any of it, so focus on adults having fun too, even if it means splitting up and doing a couple things adults want to do without the kids. We often travel with large parties, usually 7-12 people! We've found that spending some time apart allows everyone to have a better trip!

I would plan 5 day tickets with 2 days at MK and one at each of the others. Schedule HS towards the end, maybe second to the last day. Decide during the trip whether you want to do a couple hours at HS or go back to EP or AK to see something you missed. You cannot see everything at a park in one day, so don't even try. With that age, it is important to relax, and go at a pace that you enjoy. When they want to spend an hour climbing on a playground, let them! Take pictures, sit on a bench, and have a drink.

 

[SherriA1]

We took my daughter when she had just turned two, and we were there for a full week. We focused on Magic Kingdom but also did one day at Epcot and one day at Animal Kingdom. So we did 4 MK days, 1 Epcot day, 1 Animal Kingdom day, and one day right in the middle where we just took a break and hung out at our resort. At Epcot, she loved the Seas, and at Animal Kingdom she really liked the Safari ride. So you could definitely do only Magic Kingdom if you want, but I bet your kids would enjoy some time at other parks as well.

 

[QueenIsabella]

As others have said, I think there are things for toddlers to enjoy in both Epcot and Animal Kingdom. I would plan at least a day in each, and the balance in MK. A down day is nice, too. Keep in mind, they're not likely to go all day, so figure on a few hours in a park, then maybe a break. June will be very hot! Kids that age seem to love, love love the pool, so make sure you plan on plenty of pool time for them.

 

[DisneyWishes14]

When my DS was a toddler, his favorite park was EP (he could spend an hour just in the Living Seas pavilion looking at the fish). DS much preferred interactive activities over simply sitting on ride vehicles. I would definitely do AK as well (the safari and animal trails are fantastic. You can also do Wilderness Explorers).

 

[JK World]

Is it silly to just do one park? No, it's your vacation and you should spend it as you see fit. At those ages, your kids likely won't know what they are missing if you choose not to do other parks, and will likely want to ride some of the same attractions multiple times. Multiple days at MK also allows you to do a variety of things without squeezing them all into one crazy day (parade, fireworks, dance parties, hoedown, and various other castle shows and attractions). You could easily spend 3 days at MK and have a great time.

Depending on where you are staying, you can also do things outside of the parks with relative ease to save the expense of additional park tickets. Examples include Fort Wilderness (pony rides, playgrounds, dining shows, campfire sign-along), mini golf, character meals, carousel/train at Disney Springs.

If you do want to consider other parks, I'd recommend Animal Kingdom and Epcot (skip Hollywood Studios unless you're not going until after Toy Story Land opens this summer).

 

[PollyannaMom]

My husband and I are meeting his parents there for 1 week at the end of June. Our kids will be 2 and a half and 4. We were thinking of just doing Magic Kingdom. We want to give ourselves time to enjoy the park. Is it silly to only do one? And how many days would be appropriate to buy a pass for?

It's not silly at all, if that's what you want to do. It's your vacation! With seven days, I would get at least 4 day tickets:

travel day (arrival)
park day
park day
rest day
park day
park day
travel day (departure)

This schedule avoids the dreaded "Day 3 Curse" (which states that everyone will be cranky on the third straight park day.)

That said, each day added on is usually cheaper than the previous ones, so I might do 5 just in case (...the kids are wired and you want to see fireworks your first night, you have to cut another day short and want to do a "half-rest day," you're leaving late and want to do an in-park character breakfast before heading home...) It would depend on the final cost difference for me.

Anyway, take your time, go at your kids' pace, and "Don't sacrifice the magic for the plan."

 

[100AcreWood]

I agree with pp, give them a break mid-week. I would skip Hollywood Studios. It will be busy with Toy Story Land opening!

 

[ktlm]

My DD absolutely loved EPCOT when she was in the 2 to 4 age range, and she still does now as 11. She did not like AK as a pre- schooler and would beg to leave and go back to MK or EPCOT. I think that is because there was no Princess presence at AK and we had a good zoo at home. If you are going for a week, I would try all the parks. You would still have time to do more than one day at MK. We never took days off from the parks- DD would not have stood for that. Once she was good and awake, she would be standing at the room door with her stroller telling us to hurry up so she could get to the parks. She was always a high energy kid though.

 

[westie55]

I think that all of the parks have a lot to offer toddlers, with the exception of HS if your children have very short attention spans as most of the attractions there are shows that require sitting. However, my two kiddos have always done well there and enjoyed it. MK is my favorite park for sure, but on a longer trip I would definitely want to experience the others as well!

 

[TOBS2010]

When we took my 2.5 year old a few years ago we did all the parks. We only spent an early morning in Animal Kingdom and about 3.4 of a day in Epcot--mainly due to weather. We did spend a half day in HS---and the rest of the time we were in the Magic Kingdom. I think that there is definitely a ton to do in the other parks for kids that age. They get excited for parades, random disney cast members dancing in the street or performing or even just taking a timeout to sit in the shade and have a snack (that you either buy or bring in). There is much more in the way of rides that they can do in the MK---but I think we had an equal amount of fun visiting the other parks too. The big thing I remember learning from our trip with just one child at that age was to let them dictate the schedule. You know your family best---but we found that rope drop nearly every day worked best for us and then we were out of the park right before or after lunch for some naps/downtime and maybe a late afternoon swim before heading back in for a little more in the evening. For us we will definitely do park hoppers again this summer with a 2.5 and 5.5 year olds.

 

[Thing 1]

If you asked my boys what their favorite parks were when they were little, one would tell you Epcot and the other HS. They loved all the parks. I would do tickets for everyday you are there and add hoppers. That gives you the most flexibility. We love going to Epcot WS after dinner and I think our boys loved it because we did it in small bites. There is so much in every park kids will love and the reality is kids that age just love being with their family doing anything.