Disney Parks Showdown
Which park at Disney World is the best?
A common question I find myself asking is which park is the best park at Disney World? Disney World currently has 4 parks:
Magic Kingdom (Opened in October 1971)
EPCOT (Opened in October 1982)
Hollywood Studios (Opened in May 1989 as MGM Studios)
Animal Kingdom (Opened in April 1998)
Which of these is the best though? Of course, the answer to this question is mainly subjective, but there are some things which these parks do better than the others. So, I’m going to break the parks down into 4 categories that I think are the most important: rides, food, entertainment, and environment. For each category, I’m going to talk a bit about which parks do it best before giving each a score (3 points for 1st place, 2 points for 2nd place, etc.). At the end, I will tally up all the parks for their final score.
Rides: The first category is rides, which in my personal opinion is the best part. I talked about my favorite Disney World rides in two previous newsletters. (Click here to read rides 1-5 and here to read about rides 6-10). While Magic Kingdom has the most rides, I think Hollywood Studios has the best rides (even though it doesn't have many). In reality, though, all of the parks have great rides, so this one is pretty close: Magic Kingdom: 3 Points, Hollywood Studios: 2 Points, EPCOT: 1 Point, and Animal Kingdom: 0 Points.
Food: Disney has great food pretty much all around the parks, but I think EPCOT definitely wins for food. They have a huge selection of restaurants from different cultures! Plus, if you go during Food and Wine Festival, the food choices are amazing! Magic Kingdom has the second-best food simply because of the huge selection of restaurants! The final two parks both have great food, but I think Animal Kingdom just edges out Hollywood Studios. EPCOT: 3, Magic Kingdom: 2, Animal Kingdom: 1, Hollywood Studios: 0.
Entertainment: The next category is entertainment. This includes shows, fireworks, parades, and any other form of entertainment that isn't rides or food. I think Magic Kingdom is the clear winner here since it has a fireworks show, two parades, and tons of other shows. Hollywood Studios also has a lot of shows, which gives it second place. As for Animal Kingdom and EPCOT, both have a few shows, but neither has parades. Magic Kingdom: 3, Hollywood Studios: 2, EPCOT: 1, Animal Kingdom: 0.
Environment: Environment means two things: the theming and the average crowds present at the park. Animal Kingdom is an obvious first place here. The theming in Animal Kingdom is amazing, and it is also (for the most part) the least crowded park. Hollywood Studios and EPCOT come next, because of the theming in various areas (Galaxy's Edge and World Showcase, respectively). Magic Kingdom comes in last simply because of the crowds. Magic Kingdom is always the busiest park and can get very crowded at times! Animal Kingdom: 3, Hollywood Studios: 2, EPCOT: 1, Magic Kingdom: 0.
The results varied for each of the categories, and all the parks did well, but what happens when we add everything up? Here are the final scores…
Magic Kingdom (8): Magic Kingdom performed the best here because it is the most versatile park. It has something for everyone! It has great rides, food, entertainment, and a fun environment (though crowded). If you were only going to Disney for one day, I would recommend Magic Kingdom, since it has a bit of everything.
Hollywood Studios (6): Hollywood Studios comes in second since it has great rides, shows, and theming. I often refer to Hollywood Studios as my favorite park, but I honestly don't know what my favorite park is! Hollywood Studios has some of the best rides, though not a huge selection. It also sports great theming and good food, as well as tons of shows! It is a pretty good park all around!
EPCOT (6): EPCOT used to be my least-favorite, but that has changed after my last two visits. EPCOT has gotten a lot of new rides recently, and I have grown to appreciate the food and theming found in World Showcase.
Animal Kingdom (4): Animal Kingdom is a park that I think is very looked-down upon, but it is definitely an amazing park. It easily has the best environment, but also has a few great rides and some good food! I really love Animal Kingdom, and I am sad to see it in last!
I love all of the parks equally, and this ranking was super hard to do (and doesn't necessarily reflect the order of how much I enjoy them)! If at all possible, I absolutely recommend visiting all the parks if you go to Disney World because they are all unique and incredible! Comment below: what is your favorite Disney Park?