[llama]

I also agree that you can definitely fit both parks into one day. Start early in the a.m. with AK - you should be able to fit most attractions in by noon. Try not to miss the Festival of the Lion King. It's great. I might suggest that you get a really good guide book - The Unofficial Guide is excellent. The Official WDW Guide is good, with colour pics, but as you might expect, at tad bit biased. Read the descriptions of each attraction, omit ones that don't appeal to you, and both parks will be do-able in a day.

[disneyguy]

If you are going for only 3 days then will you have a Park Hopper?? I am not very well versed in ticket options and do they have a 3 Day Park Hopper??

I would say to go ahead and do BOTH!! There are some not to be missed attractions at both parks (Tree of Life, The Lion King Show). MGM has The Great Movie Ride and RNR and ToT. I think both have things that you can not miss.

[BuzzLightBeer]

You can do both parks, but it might feel a little too "commando-y". Heck, I could stay on Sunset Blvd for a entire day thanks to RnR and ToT. I wouldn't worry about Fantasmic - DL's is better, IMHO.

AK is great in the morning, and really great if it's raining - the animals are more active. If you are ride junkies, then you can hit AK to see the Kilamanjaro Safari, Dinosaur, Kali, and then It's Tough to be a Bug. After that, it's a quick swing to MGM for RnR, ToT, Great Movie Ride. Skip Star Tours, as you're probably sick of that by now.

[Disneywife]

Thank you so much for all your replies! One question though - no one addressed the value of possibly skipping both and seeing Epcot for a 2nd today since that is totally unique from anything we have here. We are not ride junkies at all, and we are definitely used to a slower pace at Disney. Our normal routine is dinner, 1 or 2 rides, some shopping, and then going home. Running around like "commandos" (I like that) would definitely not appeal to us. But of course we do appreciate the value of a fun ride

We won't have park hopper tickets, or any tickets at all for that matter - we get in everywhere totally free. So that's not an issue. We've also seen Fantasmic a thousand and one times, so even with a special ampitheater, I'd rather spend that time doing something else that is unique to Florida. Same with the safari - we've done that several times at San Diego Wild Animal Park.

We aren't willing to give up the Space Center, so what about maybe having that third day be half Epcot, and half one of the other parks? Augh, so much to decide....

[llama]

Sounds like you might be perfect "World Showcase" people. Epcot is divided into two "worlds". Future World, which includes rides such as "Test Track", Mission: Space (both heartstoppers), Honey I Shrunk the Audience, Spaceship Earth. Future World is a good, full day, if you prefer a slower pace. World Showcase is made up of pavillions of countries around the world, Mexico, Japan, China, Norway, Germany, Canada, Italy, Morrocco, the UK, France and USA. Each pavillion is staffed by young men and women from that country. Some have small, easy rides (in Mexico & Norway), there is always great street entertainers - some of the best, Chinese acrobats, Japanese drummers, "Off Kilter" celtic band in Canada, etc. etc., some have beautiful films of their countries (France's is gorgeous). Also the best restaurants in WDW are in the World Showcases restaurants. This may be more to your liking for your last day. Your kids can also get "passports", which they can have stamped in each country and they can also do crafts in each country. So - it's just another thing for you to think about.

[GrumpyDad]

MY DW would prefer a 2nd 1/2 day at EPCOT and a 1/2 day ( morning ) at AK, my 14 year old DD would do the 1/2 day at AK and 1/2 day at MGM. I would prefer a 1/2 day at MGM, and a second 1/2 day at EPCOT, I just love strolling thru the World Showcase at night. SO we are no help at all other then to suggest the 1/2 and 1/2 split.

While AK is definitaly not-a-zoo, it is also not whole day experiance for us. Of course we have done all the attractions there multiple times, and now really tend to focus on the rides more then the Safari or trails. That said on a busy day it is pleasent to just hang out there in the shade with the slower pace of the park.

Enjoy!

[disneyguy]

That is definetly a cool ting, to be able to enter the parks for free whenever you want.

Epcot is a HUGE park, and definetly could take 2 days. Since you say that you aren't big ride junkies then I would say do either 2 days at Epcot or split your last day between Epcot and AK. I mean you could spend 1/2 a day just inside Innovations. I have to admit though I have never been inside Innovations, which is something I am quite embarrased about since my favorite park is Epcot. As much as I dislike AK, I have to say that AK is an absoloutly gourgeous park that is not to be missed while you are in Florida. There are some very unique attractions at AK so I would go with that, especially since you have some MGM rides at California.

[Disneywife]

We have Innovations here, and while my son loves it, I'm bored to tears inside there. I just follow him around while he tries all the different things... lol

[disneyguy]

Well, there is plenty other things to be done at Epcot other than Innovations.

[WishUponAStar]

I totally think both are do-able in a day. Especially if you get to AK early when it just opens, I'll bet you can do all the main things by 1pm. OR, check the Extra Magic Hours privelege. You could start your day even earlier and be sure to get everything done. MGM IMHO can be done in like 5-6 hours too. It REALLY isn't that big, especially if you Fast Pass TOT and RR. Muppets is EXACTLY the same as the CA one and don't you have "It's Tough to be a Bug" in CA now? I am suuuuuuure you can do it!

[mickeymommy]

I have to agree with everyone else...do both. My DH and I are animal people and still covered AK in half a day, and that was taking our time. We didn't see everything, but we saw all we wanted. Same experience at MGM, saw what we wanted and took about half a day. Do AK first and then stay for Fantasmic at MGM, if possible.

[Erin]

LOL, we're diggin up the old stuff, huh?

[palmickey]

Well I think that I would have to agree on 1/2 day's. I would not miss AK - it really is worth seeing. The Lion King show is a must and the Tree Of Life is simply amazing. Every time I get out our pictures I see something new in the tree of life that I had not noticed before. I just wish I had taken a lot more pictures, a must see! I also loved MGM but if you have the same type of things I would go for a 2nd 1/2 a day at EPCOT, walking around the world was amazing as well. Just do lots of research and plan according to what your family will enjoy! Since you can park hop anywhere - the sky's the limit! Have a great time!

[Princessbaby]

This was a year ago, so just curious, what did you end up doing? (I wasn't around at that time).

[blane101]

Don't miss Animal Kingdom, the tree is awesome. We got there before the park opened and left at about 5:30PM to go to Epcot. Enjoy your day.