We are heading down to Disney World the fist part of May with our 3 children, ages 6, 4, & 2. We are debating about whether we should go to Epcot or Hollywood Studios. This vacation is completely about the kids, so I’m wondering which one would they enjoy the most. They are all pretty small, my oldest is only 40" and weighs 35 lbs, so none of them can do the “big” kid rides. Any help would be greatly appreciated.
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Each kid is different. However with everything closed in HS - I would say EPCOT. My kids LOVED Epcot when they were small. They loved the rides in Future World (couldn’t get my son off of spaceship earth). Honestly at 4 and 2 - they will enjoy the “smaller” things. The train in Germany, the water fountains in future world etc. So none of them are going to be “LETS GO HIT AMERICAN ADVENTURE MOM!!!” But there is KIDCOT - where get get a passport and can do little crafts at certain countries - there is also an “adventure” you can do. It used to be Kim Possible - but now think it is Fineous and Ferb - my kids loved that. Just know with kids that age - you have to go at their pace. Do go at their pace. If they want to watch the trains for 20 minutes let them
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There are lots of great things at both parks. Hollywood Studios is my favorite park. I don’t have little ones, but I think there is lots for them to do there still. There are shows, Indiana Jones live stunt show, Beauty and the beast live, Muppets 3D movie, Driving stunt show…Hunny I shrunk the kids playland, Awesome night time light and laser water show, Fantasmic. I’m pretty sure the Frozen area is still up and going. There is a new Star Wars area. It’s a tough call on which would be better. You know your kids, and their interests. But this gives you an idea of what’s available for them.
Enjoy
Is it necessary to choose one of the other? Both of them have things that will interest the younger set. If it were down to only one, I guess I would choose EP at this point because of all the closures at HS.
HS is fun! My daughter was 6 when we visited, and she enjoyed Toy Story Mania, Muppets 3D, the H&V character lunch, and M&G with the Incredibles. She was really into the Disney Jr characters, and that was her favorite character meal by far!
As for Epcot, I think they may be too young. We only did World Showcase, and that was primarily for the Princess breakfast ( we could not get a reservation for CRT) and that was great, but the other pavilions would probably only be interesting to an older child
Last time I went my kids were 5,3 and 18mo. Epcot was their least favorite besides Test Track & Soaring. The LOVED Hollywood and wanted to go back several times. My boys were way into the Star Wars stuff
Hard call. At DHS the only “ride” they could go on is TSMM, but there a number of shows. At EP there is Nemo, Turtle Talk, Imagination, SE, LwTL, Soarin (if it’s open), and Grand Fiesta, plus 3 movies, various live shows, and Kidcoft stations. Also a number of M&Gs and 2 character meals.
So I guess I would go with EP - UNLESS - you have a SW fan, and then DHS might tilt the balance
It all depends on your kids. Keep in mind also that in early May the Honey I Shrunk the Kids play park at HS will be gone. It will mostly just be shows left at HS which if your family loves shows then it is still an awesome park to visit! There’s Disney Junior Live, Frozen show, Little Mermaid Show, Beauty and the Beast. Toy Story Midway Mania is a great ride for little ones!
While you are there in May Epcot will have the Flower and Garden Festival up and running and they usually have extra play places for the kids to climb on that are not usually there other times of the year. There’s also a butterfly pavillion you can go and have butterflies flutter around you. Epcot also has the kidcot activities throughout World Showcase and Detective P missions (our 5 year old loved the secret missions when we were there in the Fall)
At the end of the day if all depends on your kids for sure.
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Thank you all for your responses! I haven’t been to Disney World in 25 years so all the input is greatly appreciated.
The sad thing is I remember the OLD EPCOT. Completely different from today. It was so awe inspiring even as a little kid. It really showed the promise of tomorrow as only Disney could do. The rides were - “more grown up” but presented so that even small children could be inspired by the magic of what could be. It is a shame that the OLD Epcot no longer exists
AMEN TO THAT!!! The “old” EPCOT was about challenges. The “new” Epcot is about feeding kids more movie tie-ins…
I think they have “dummied down” the experiences. I guess it does come down to changing to meet what people want and I can’t fault them for that. However - I loved it. It was like the old world fairs where technology and cultures of the world were concentrated in one place and each building was an amazing experience. Horizons was my favorite ride. Universe of Energy was bold. Wold of Motion was fun and informative. I still love Epcot - but it is different. Journey Into Imagination however is a mere shadow of its former self.
If your children have a good attention span for shows, then I would pick HS. As another poster said, the only ride they can actually go on there is Toy Story Midway Mania, but there are plenty of fun shows for them to see. Also, if they watch Disney Jr shows, they would probably enjoy dining at Hollywood & Vine for breakfast or lunch (I don’t think they have characters at dinner, but you could check).
I have 3 kids, and two of them are older than your oldest, and honestly the only thing they really love at Epcot is Test Track and Soarin, but when you’re there Soarin will be closed and your kids are too small for Test Track. So, my recommendation would be to go to HS if you have to pick one.