Theme park rotation schedule with 1 and 4 year olds

[Diznut]

My family and I will be there 9/6-13 and will have 6 1/2 days to spend in the parks. We do not have a hopper pass.
With this being said our original plan was to spend the 1/2 day at DHS since there is less for them there (we're firm on this). And the other 6 days rotate between the other 3 parks hitting each 2 times.
But is there enough at Epcot to warrent 2 full days with kids who are 1 and 4?
Should I do 3 days MK, 2 days AK, and 1 day Epcot?
Thanks for the feedback!

[Cheloconnell]

A 1 and 4 year old would be tough to get 2 days out of EPCOT. I would definitely do at least 3 days at MK. We usually find there is not a ton at AK or HS either for smaller kids. You could do a bunch of parent swaps and do things you would like to do. Just make sure to bring the kids back for naps daily. If not, both you and the kids will be in total meltdown mode :mickey:

[Diznut]

Thank you.
All our dinner reservations are for 5p. And then we intend to go back to the resort afterwards. We'll probably not be there for any of the night time stuff.
We'll take each day as it comes, but we do not "plan" to go back for naps. I can see us stroller napping my little one and my 4 year old too if he so chooses (I have a double unbrella stroller) and then to bed early. Granted, we'll have a better idea of what will work once we're down there and adjust if/when needed.
So I think we'll do 3-MK, 2-AK, 1-Ep. Thanks again.

[Cheloconnell]

Sounds like a plan - with their ages it is quite easy to pull 3 days out of MK and you still would want to go back for more. I have a now going on 3 year old and a 6 year old. We brought the first one when he was 18 months and the second when he was 15 months and have been going back 1-3 times a year since. It is tiring, but well worth it. Enjoy the Magic :mickey:

[KAT1811]

I would leave one day to play by ear. You never know what is going to appeal to them. They may love Epcot:
Spaceship Earth
Nemo
Turtle Talk with Crush
Living with the Land
Ellen's Energy Adventure
Innoventions
The water fountains
Kidcot Fun Stops
Mexico's 3 Amigos Ride
Maelstrom (sp?)


Our children love Epcot.

I would see what they want to do at vacation's end. For us we would have a tougher time spending two full days at AK.

[megustamex]

I agree with KAT. My 3 year old loves Epcot - the Mexico ride is one of her favorites. And she loves seeing the Pooh characters at England - if you hit it right there is no line and you can see them as long as you like. They also had Minnie and Mickey, Goofy and Pluto in one of the Future World pavilions for meet and greet every day when we last went. The toy shop in Germany...the Hello Kitty shop in Japan...even the movies in France, Canada and China. You might be surprised!

We also love AK though - you must go to the Boneyard to dig in the super-clean Disney sand. Your kids will love that.

One other thing - if you are really set on staying in the park all day, sometimes it is better to do your big meal at lunch with the kids and take a nice long break. We always like to book the Crystal Palace for a late lunch if we're planning on spending the whole day in MK. It's a great break for the parents and the kids are entertained with Pooh and friends, and everyone gets out of the heat and escapes the crowds for a while.

[SamG]

If your kids watch Disney channel, DHS might have more to offer than you think... not so much the attractions, but the character interactions. My younger ones (1 & 3 on the last trip) seemed to get more enjoyment out of meeting the characters than the rides.

[sophie peach]

i would spend most of the time in MK

[LisaP]

If your kids watch Disney channel, DHS might have more to offer than you think... not so much the attractions, but the character interactions. My younger ones (1 & 3 on the last trip) seemed to get more enjoyment out of meeting the characters than the rides.

I agree! My DS3 loved DHS, and we spent a full day there meeting the Playhouse Disney characters and getting photos and autographs. We also did the character breakfast at Hollywood & Vine. There are several attractions for the little ones, and the most character greetings readily available for that age (Handy Manny, all four of the Little Einsteins, Woody and Buzz from Toy story, JoJo and Goliath, etc).

Check out Disney's website and search for Magical Beginnings. They provide printable maps for each park with attractions which caters specifically to toddlers. This helped us tremendously target the age appropriate things to do in each park.

[LisaP]

Thank you.
All our dinner reservations are for 5p. And then we intend to go back to the resort afterwards. We'll probably not be there for any of the night time stuff.
We'll take each day as it comes, but we do not "plan" to go back for naps. I can see us stroller napping my little one and my 4 year old too if he so chooses (I have a double unbrella stroller) and then to bed early. Granted, we'll have a better idea of what will work once we're down there and adjust if/when needed.
So I think we'll do 3-MK, 2-AK, 1-Ep. Thanks again.

I had the same original game plan, but DS3 was punked out by early afternoon because of the heat so we went back for a nap and to refresh. We headed back to the parks around dinnertime, and I am SO glad we saw the nighttime festivities! He absolutely loved Spectromagic and Wishes fireworks at MK. That midday break was WELL worth it - nighttime in WDW is amazing!

[LisaP]

I agree with KAT. My 3 year old loves Epcot - the Mexico ride is one of her favorites. And she loves seeing the Pooh characters at England - if you hit it right there is no line and you can see them as long as you like. They also had Minnie and Mickey, Goofy and Pluto in one of the Future World pavilions for meet and greet every day when we last went. The toy shop in Germany...the Hello Kitty shop in Japan...even the movies in France, Canada and China. You might be surprised!

We also love AK though - you must go to the Boneyard to dig in the super-clean Disney sand. Your kids will love that.

One other thing - if you are really set on staying in the park all day, sometimes it is better to do your big meal at lunch with the kids and take a nice long break. We always like to book the Crystal Palace for a late lunch if we're planning on spending the whole day in MK. It's a great break for the parents and the kids are entertained with Pooh and friends, and everyone gets out of the heat and escapes the crowds for a while.


Thanks for the tips on Epcot! I had no idea they had so much to offer for the little ones! I haven't been to Epcot in 20 years so I didn't remember there being much to do for children. We had a brief trip in June with DS3 so we skipped Epcot :( but we are definitely adding it to the itinerary for the next trip!

[KAT1811]

Thanks for the tips on Epcot! I had no idea they had so much to offer for the little ones! I haven't been to Epcot in 20 years so I didn't remember there being much to do for children. We had a brief trip in June with DS3 so we skipped Epcot :( but we are definitely adding it to the itinerary for the next trip!

I think many have the misconception that EPCOT is geared to adults and has very little for childre. Luckily we tend to vacation in WDW for almost 2 weeks at a time giving us a lot of time to see everything and we have found a ton of things in EPCOT the children love. Believe it or not a "ride" my children really enjoy is the Living With the Land boat ride in the Land pavillion. They really enjoy seeing all of the plants and the Mickey shaped pumkins. We actually rode it two times in a row at their request. The imagineers have done a great job (IMHO) of incorporating attractions that captivate the younger audiences.

I would recommend bringing a change of clothes for the little ones when you visit EPCOT. They have these great areas where they can splash in the pop up fountains. My two youngest (10 months & 2 1/2 on our last trip) loved getting soaked in the fountains. It was a great distraction while the adults in our party rode Mission Space and Test Track. If you and your DH/W are interested in riding those rides you could do the baby swap while the other stays with the children having a snack and blowing off some steam, running a little wild.

Have a great trip!!!

P.S. - Don't forget to get them a mask to decorate in the countries.

[g8rgirl29]

In the afternoon in EPCOT around world showcase different characters appear for photo's and autographs. We met Snow White and Dopey, Genie with Jasmine and Aladin, Belle and Beast. It made for a fairly relaxing afternoon wandering around the world waiting for characters to appear. Just check with the photo pass photographers at each country and ask who is coming out and when, they usually have the info. Our 4yo (3yo at the time) loved EPCOT and kept asking to go back!!

[crmark1]

On our last trip we took advantage of all the early EMH's. At the Magic Kingdom we were able to do Peter Pan, Pooh, Small World, Snow White, Pirates, Haunted Mansion, Buzz Light Year and Indy Raceway all before noon. It was wonderful for the adults and the kids. In my experience small kids hate waiting in line
I agree with you half day at DHS, 1 day at Epcot and AK, and 3 days at MK. Have a great time

[MickeysEars]

I actually think there is a lot to do at EPCOT with small children, not to mention you guys can take the 4yo on Test Track with child swap. we did this, and she loved it. also, you can spend a lot of time in the Seas and the Image Labs. Also, ther is a huge meet and greet area.