Epcot vs Hollywood Studios

[wahm4life]

Newbie here. We will be going to Disney World next week. We have 4 kids ages 13, 11, 7, and 1.

Our Disney World trip will only be for two days and we are trying to decide between Epcot or Hollywood Studios. I'm leaning toward Hollywood Studios. What's your thoughts?

Shelia

 

[Capang]

Depends on what your kids like. HS has some fun shows for the younger kids and the biggest thrill rides (RR and ToT) for the older kids. If your kids don't like rides then maybe Epcot. Although Fantasmic at HS is pretty great.

 

[lovetoscrap]

Moved to the Theme Parks Forum

 

[Parker Clan]

I love both but based on your situation I would say HS too. Like the PP mentioned , ToT & RnR would be lots of fun for the older kids. And Toy Story Mania is a blast- I think the kids would love it. Super interactive & competitive , it's an addicting ride!

 

[wahm4life]

Is there any advantage to getting a hopper pass so we can do both the parks in one day?

 

[Epcot242]

I'd say that it depends on how long you'll be there (half a day? all day?). My vote, and I'm somewhat biased, is Epcot only because you can easily fill a day there. HS has great rides, but you can do the park relatively quickly.

 

[LiveToTravelNicely]

I love both parks. Hollywood Studios doesn't have as much to do/ground to cover, but I think it has the some of the best thrill rides of WDW. Not as much for younger kids except shows and Toy Story Mania. Epcot is more about learning with a few awesome rides mixed in. If you're wanting to go sun up to sun down, I'd say Epcot. Add the park hopper mid day only if you decide to hop. I wouldn't add it in advance. Have a great trip!

 

[wahm4life]

Wow, ok thanks! I didn't realize you could add the hopper later, that's a great tip.

 

[LiveToTravelNicely]

Yes, just know that the cost will be applied to your ticket package total. Therefore, if Epcot/HS day is your second day, you will still pay the price for a 2 day park hopper, even though you've already used up one day of tickets. However, I'm not sure if there is even a price difference between one and two day park hoppers. I know the price goes up at the four day ticket mark, just slightly.

 

[TavieP]

Epcot, Epcot, a thousand times Epcot.

 

[BrianL]

Epcot really has more to see and do, though kids might not care for the World Showcase all that much. HS has Rockin' Rollercoaster and Tower of Terror, but Epcot has Soarin' and Test Track, which aren't quite as thrilling, but still really great rides. It might come down to would you rather watch Illuminations of Fantasmic! They're both great so definitely catch one of them.

 

[jtowntoflorida]

If you only have two days total, I'd spend them both at the MK personally.

 

[Fizban]

HS is really heading to be a ghost town with all the closings. I would suggest Epcot because it too has rides that are fun such as soaring, test track etc... and it isnt being shutdown slowly.

 

[Jennytoon]

I would say Epcot if you only have one day. HS does have the thrill rides, but we have found that the fact that the shows are for larger blocks of time and with a limited selection of start times available for each can make it hard to feel like you're moving efficiently. We end up spending time stuck in limbo waiting for a show to begin / end with not enough time to ride a ride or squeeze something else in. Of course this can be ameliorated with advance planning, but we prefer the more unstructured feeling at Epcot.

Definitely have your older kids check out Agent P's World Showcase Adventure if you have time, they're just the right age for it. The only downside you may find is that the 7 yr old will probably still need some assistance / companionship, which (we find with similar ages) can sometimes lead to conflict over who is going to be solo / a team or how to play as a team ... but maybe you have more functional sibling dynamics than we do.

 

[librarymom2007]

I love both but based on your situation I would say HS too. Like the PP mentioned , ToT & RnR would be lots of fun for the older kids. And Toy Story Mania is a blast- I think the kids would love it. Super interactive & competitive , it's an addicting ride!

Agree.

 

[itchin2go]

We love Epcot, and could take or leave DHS. It's a personal preference thing. We love the World Showcase at Epcot - lots of food, drink, shopping ... and the Agent P adventures are fun. My daughter also loves Soarin and Test Track in Future World.

 

[LuvDaisy&Minnie]

Hollywood Studios...toy story, rock n roller coaster, tower of terror, Disney jr characters (can do character breakfast or lunch with them if your young kids like them), frozen sing along, little mermaid for the littles (are they girls?) fantasmic, I can take or leave star tours and great movie ride. Now I would probably get a park hopper and ride boat to Epcot and ride soarin and test track (however you will be looking at a long wait for both by the time to got there-use rider swap if you do go and older kids will be able to ride twice). Maybe eat dinner there and then boat back for fantasmic. Other than that, my family doesn't like Epcot at all. I realize some love it but we think it's extremely boring except those 2 rides. I might even do animal kingdom in the afternoon instead of Epcot if you think you are up for 2 parks. It tends to quiet down a little in the afternoon and there is more fastpass availability there in the afternoon. Or just stick with Hollywood Studios!

 

[Buddyex]

I guess I'm in the minority cos I felt on our last trip that apart from World Showcase, Epcot has become a really depressing ghost town with only 2-3 decent rides and future world seems stuck in a 90's timewarp. We found much more to do at Hollywood studios, even with closures.

 

[skipfierce]

I have no idea how to respond because I need at least two days at each park. Last year we did 3 days at Epcot and two at HS.

 

[polineedyan]

Have to say..I havent been to HS in awhile. Rock n rollercoaster is fun..Toy Story is good for the kids..The star wars stuff is good if you are there for it..Other than that..for us its Epcot. If you are planning on coming back, you could do the split park thing and see WS next time..Epcot would be a longer day (or early,rest, later) and HS would be the shorter day.Not a big fan of HS.