Disney World diehards cannot imagine skipping a single one of Walt Disney’s theme parks, but if you have a short trip, bad weather, or a hard to please group, you may want to intentionally overlook these Disney World parks to skip.
List of Disney World Parks
Unlike other Disney properties, such as Disneyland in Paris or California, Disney World offers multiple theme parks. If you’re taking a short trip, or you are otherwise short on time, you may need to skip a Disney World park or two during your visit.
There are other reasons you may want to skip one of the Disney World parks, including weather and the dispositions or attitudes of the people in your party. Before we get into that, however, let’s cover the list of Disney World parks.
4 Main Theme Parks at Disney World
Magic Kingdom: The original Disney World park patterned after the original Disneyland. Here you’ll find a great mix of attractions to appeal to young and old alike.
EPCOT: The EPCOT park was themed on Walt’s idea for a city of tomorrow, brining the future and present together in a cultural exploration. You’ll find plenty to do at EPCOT, but most of it is not ride-focused.
Hollywood Studios: Hollywood Studios once offered a working movie set. Things are much simpler now that the park operates solely as a theme park. Here you’ll find a number of thrill rides, many based on Disney movies, and big adult appeal.
Animal Kingdom: Animal Kingdom is the place for animal lovers to unite with multiple exhibits throughout the park. You’ll also find two of the most acclaimed productions here based on the animated films “The Lion King” and “Finding Nemo”. Animal Kingdom offers other shows and amazingly themed rides.
Disney World’s Water Parks
There are two water parks at Disney World: Blizzard Beach and Typhoon Lagoon. During the summer, both tend to be open. However, fall through spring one or the other is usually closed for refurbishment.
Disney World Parks to Skip on a Hot Day
No one wants to hear that Magic Kingdom is a good Disney World park to skip, but in extreme heat, you may consider it.
Magic Kingdom is very much out in the open, which means little to no shade. On a scorching Florida day full of heat and humidity, you will be scrambling for every patch of shade you can find.
Magic Kingdom also has many outdoor attractions and outdoor queues. This means less air conditioning, and fewer breaks from the extreme heat.
Inside EPCOT, you can always wait out the heat inside the indoor attractions, or while shopping at the World Showcase. In Hollywood Studios, all of the attractions (except a couple,) are indoors, and have indoor, air-conditioned queues.
Animal Kingdom might just be the best park to visit in the heat, as the vast majority of the park is under shade trees.
Disney World Parks to Skip During Bad Weather
This one may seem a bit obvious, but, during inclement weather, consider removing water parks from your plans. Disney has some of the most intricate, and most fun water parks.
That being said, no one wants to be at Blizzard Beach during an actual blizzard, or during a thunderstorm. During the early summer, Florida experiences a lot of afternoon thunderstorms that show up out of nowhere.
This means that the water slides and pools will close for minutes, or even hours if thunder and lightning are about.
Additionally, if we were to narrow this to just the four main theme parks, I would recommend skipping Animal Kingdom during rainy weather.
Animal Kingdom is the perfect Disney World park to skip in a downpour due to its lack of indoor spaces. Since the park is based on animals, nature, and conservation, many of Animal Kingdom’s attractions are outdoors and in the weather, whatever that weather may be.
Disney World Parks to Skip if You have A Group that Gets Bored Easily
If your group is a bit prone to boredom, (and maybe some whining,) you may be wondering which Disney World parks to skip. In my expert opinion, I would skip EPCOT and Animal Kingdom.
Inside Animal Kingdom, you can quickly move through all the rides and be done in a few hours. The rest of the attractions are animal exhibits and stage shows, which many guests have a harder time seeing the value in.
That all being said, if your group is full of animal lovers, then feel free to add the Animal Kingdom back in, as you can easily spend a full day just exploring the animal exhibits hidden in plain sight around the park.
If your group is prone to boredom, I also recommend skipping EPCOT. EPCOT has just a few attractions, with the rest of the park being occupied by the World Showcase.
While the World showcase offers great entertainment and dining options, it is certainly less thrilling than the endless rides at Magic Kingdom or the many new rides and themed lands of Hollywood Studios.
Skip This If You Don’t Care About I.P. Rides
Many Disney fans are excited about rides being built around Disney’s newer Intellectual Properties. However, despite the popularity of these new rides, many die-hard fans consider it a slap in the face to Walt Disney’s legacy.
If you do not keep up with Disney’s I.P., or, you prefer to ride original rides, consider skipping Hollywood Studios.
Hollywood Studios does have two very original rides: the Tower of Terror, and Rock ‘n’ Rollercoaster, but the remainder are tied to movies.
Galaxy’s Edge inside Hollywood Studios is based entirely on Star Wars, and Toy Story Land is based on, quite obviously, Toy Story.
As someone who does not keep up with the Star Wars franchise, I find myself missing out inside Galaxy’s Edge. It is beautifully constructed and detailed, and the rides are a blast, but I am sure they are enjoyed more by fans of the franchise.
Skip this Disney World Park if You are Visiting with Kids
If your Disney trip is short, and you have the kids along for the adventure, you may consider EPCOT the Disney World park to skip. EPCOT is certainly more of an adult’s playground these days.
All of the non dark-rides have a height requirement of 40” or above, and some of these rides may be intense for children, even those little who may meet the height requirement.
Additionally, half of EPCOT is made up of the World Showcase, which is most definitely geared towards an older audience. Adults love dining, shopping, and drinking around the World Showcase, but children may find it a bit dull.
Disney World Parks to Skip to Avoid Crowds
If your Disney trip is short, or scheduled during a peak time, such as a weekend or holiday, you may find yourself looking to avoid the high-profile parks, and therefore the crowds.
To accomplish this, you will want to skip Magic Kingdom. Magic Kingdom is the headliner park of Walt Disney World, and draws in the highest crowd levels, especially on weekends.
Instead, try EPCOT and Animal Kingdom. Both these parks have steadily lower crowds and wait times. EPCOT is also large, so the crowds that are there, are often more spread out.
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The Park to Skip if You Want Good Food
This one may shock some Disney fans, but if you are looking for great food during your short Disney World vacation, skip Magic Kingdom.
Magic Kingdom has some of the most bland and repetitive quick service dining options. To top it off, they do not have many dining options at all, so there is always a wait.
For table service, the options are expensive and difficult to snag an advanced dining reservation for.
Instead, try some of the diverse and unique food offerings inside EPCOT’s World Showcase, or in Africa, Asia, and Pandora at Animal Kingdom.
Still Can’t Decide?
The Magic Kingdom park is a classic beauty, filled with classic rides for all ages. EPCOT offers thrill rides in the morning, and dining, shopping, and drinking in the evening, followed by a water and fireworks show.
Animal Kingdom delivers the thrills combined with a hands-on zoo experience, that is different every time you visit. And lastly, Hollywood Studios combines classic attractions with new rides and all of the technology and ingenuity that Disney Imagineers have to offer.
In the end, if you still can’t decide which Disney World parks to skip, you may need to consider lengthening your stay so you can enjoy all that Disney World has to offer.
