3 days - which parks?

[Octobermommy]

Animal Kingdom was our least favorite park. My dd favorite was Epcot and MK, followed closely by my dh favorite HS.

[rwagdivh]

It really depends on your child -- my DS (age 5 1/2 when we went) LOVED Animal Kingdom. We had one day unallocated and he got to pick where to go -- his choice was "back to AK" and even then we never did see everything in that park. Note, this is not a "ride" park it's more of a look around and see everything park and the Finding Nemo show is wonderful! So, if your child likes animals and zoos then AK is a must see. I know . . . there are zoos everywhere, but no one does it like Disney. If you decide Animal Kingdom is out I recommend Disney Studios. There are fun shows and more geared to the younger audience. Epcot is nice, but I would save if for another trip when she is older.

I would agree with those that recommended 2 days in MK. There is so much to see and do there. And, at that age there faces just light up to see all the stuff there.

As for her birthday you can really do this at either park (or Downtown Disney) -- although I would recommend MK that day. My other DS turned 3 on our last trip. There are so many special birthday things -- if you are staying at a Disney resort make sure they put this on your reservation. Also, request a call from Goofy - he will sing Happy Birthday to her. If you are not at a Disney hotel you can do this at City Hall at MK when you walk in. You'll also be able to get her a "Birthday" button to wear. This can be great for perks -- cast members will stop her often to tell her Happy Birthday, characters will see it and we even got pulled into the Fast Pass line on Toy Story Mania at Disney Studios -- must have saved us 45 mins standing in line. Whatever restaurant you choose be sure to tell them it is her bday -- at the Crystal Palace my son got a birthday card signed by the Pooh characters, Mickey shaped confetti and a birthday cupcake. He was so excited! And, make sure you get a 1st trip to Disney button too! My boys loved these and wore them the entire week.

Have a great trip!

[fivi2]

ITA with everyone who says it really depends on the kiddos. My girls were not quite 3 when we went, but Animal Kingdom was hands down everyone's favorite. They loved it, we spent a pretty full day there and did not feel like we saw everything. They also enjoyed Magic Kingdom, but were afraid of almost all the rides. We did all we needed to do in one day (which was basically riding IASW over and over ) and I did not feel like we were missing anything that *we* wanted to see. (of course we didn't see everything!)

I feel like my girls would have loved Epcot and not cared about DHS, but I know others who have the opposite experience...