Let’s Discuss Disney Theme Park Tendencies
One of the best parts of Disney’s American theme parks is that they’re all distinct.
Disney didn’t simply take the lazy way out by repeatedly building the same theme park.


Photo:visitorlando.com
On the contrary, each park demonstrates its own behavior and comes with a unique style.
Let’s discuss the theme park tendencies at every American park.
Disney’s Animal Kingdom


Tree of Life
Everyone should have an open-ended approach to the parks and their behaviors. Still, some generalities apply.
For example, Animal Kingdom is indisputably the one where you walk the most. It’s unavoidable.


Animal Kingdom
When the park opened, Disney claimed it covered 500 acres. Nowadays, most sources indicate it’s 580 acres.
What can you do with that much space? Well, theoretically, you could hold the other three Walt Disney World parks inside it!


Photo: Disney
You’d still have about 35-40 acres to spare, too. And I’m mentioning that to get across the point that it’s massive.
So, you’re going to walk around a lot, and you should do it with a purpose.


Image Credit: Disney
Specifically, you should always remember the name of the park. This is Disney’s Animal Kingdom.
You’re Snow White in the forest, and the woodland creatures will come up to you and play.
I’m mostly joking, but you should prioritize the petting zoo at Conservation Station and all animal habitats.
Otherwise, you’re missing the entire point of the park. Don’t worry, though.


DINOSAUR at Disney’s Animal Kingdom
You can still experience everything at Pandora – The World of Avatar, Expedition Everest, and DINOSAUR (for now).
Still, the tendency at Animal Kingdom is to roam between the themed lands in search of more adorable critters.
Disney’s Hollywood Studios


Disney’s Hollywood Studios
The opposite is true at Hollywood Studios, which is one of Disney’s smallest theme parks.
This place is also probably the most condensed, with all the best stuff located in a few hubs.
Part of the reason why Disney is closing Muppets Courtyard and replacing it with Monstropolis involves load-balancing.
Disney wants guests to explore more of the space at Hollywood Studios, which tourists tend not to do right now.


Disney’s Hollywood Studios
So, the tendency here is to bounce around the various E-ticket attractions, which are plentiful.
More importantly, they all live up to the hype, which explains why several of them require hour-long waits.


Hollywood Studios crowds
That reality leads us to another tendency at this park. You WILL spend plenty of time standing in line.
Even when you buy the Lightning Lane Multi Pass, it’ll help, but it won’t completely eliminate your line time.


Disney
The only options that can do that are super-expensive Disney VIP Tours or a Lightning Lane Premier Pass.
The overwhelming majority of tourists won’t do that, but you will do something else.


Disney
You’ll watch more shows at Hollywood Studios, as the show-based attractions here are plentiful and very good.
On the flip side, you probably won’t eat much at Hollywood Studios or, at least, not happily.


Hollywood Studios
This isn’t the Disney dining park. That honor belongs to…
EPCOT


Festival of the Arts signs
The tendencies are EPCOT are simple and pure.
This is the park where you will eat, drink, hang out, laugh, and have fun.


Photo: Disney
You may even attend a rock concert or a Broadway show. Both these options are temporary, which leads to the main point.
EPCOT is the festival theme park. So, its tendency is to entertain guests by creating a relaxing, inviting environment.


EPCOT
Many of Disney’s recent park enhancements like World Showcase Gardens and CommuniCore Hall & Plaza play into this fact.
Park officials know how guests will act during their visits.


CommuniCore Hall
You’ll meet characters, stand in line for Figment gear, and then ride something.
So, this is the mixed usage park at Walt Disney World. You’ll ostensibly go for the rides like Frozen Ever After and Soarin’.
Some of them are E-ticket experiences such as Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind and Remy’s Ratatouille Adventure.
Still, your main purpose at EPCOT is to enjoy yourself in a multinational setting, just as Walt Disney did at the 1964 New York World’s Fair.
You’re supposed to act like a tourist here, even if you’re a local who visits the parks every week.
While you’re there, you’ll eat better than you could in your hometown, and I swear that’s true even if you’re from New York City or Chicago.
The food at EPCOT surpasses that of any other theme park in the world. And it’s not even close. This is the Disney park for foodies.
Magic Kingdom


Disney
In restaurant terms, Magic Kingdom is the buffet.
There’s something for everyone here, and you’ll wind up with a full plate.


Cinderella Castle
At this park, you can enjoy thrill rides, watch entertaining shows, or meet countless characters.
In a way, Magic Kingdom is the Best of Disney theme park because it includes several iconic attractions.


Peter Pan’s Flight
We’re talking Haunted Mansion, It’s a Small World, Peter Pan’s Flight, Pirates of the Caribbean, and Space Mountain.
These are rides with instant name recognition and a hard-earned reputation as the best theme park rides ever.
While the food isn’t anywhere near as good as EPCOT, Disney has made more of an effort over the past years.
So, you’ll find fine dining experiences such as Jungle Navigational Co. LTD Skipper Canteen and Be Our Guest Restaurant.


Photo: Disney
Disney hosts other experiences and amenities at the park as well.
Honestly, I’d describe its main tendency as being everything to everyone.
Disneyland
Then, we have the slightly smaller version of Magic Kingdom. There’s more to the story, though.
Yes, Disneyland technically lacks the space of Magic Kingdom. However, this park claims a much bigger bragging point.


“it’s a small world”
Disneyland Park is the oldest major theme park on the planet as well as one of the most popular.
The only park with higher annual attendance is Magic Kingdom. So, Disney claims the top two.
Importantly, the vibe between the parks is eerily similar, albeit with some small differences.
For starters, since Disneyland is smaller, it’s like the more efficient version of Magic Kingdom.


CenTOONial Park
Disney packs roughly the same number of attractions into substantially less space.
There’s good and bad to this change, as you’ll have ready access to everything. However, congestion can be a problem.


Disneyland Hotel
Also, Disneyland Resort shares a fairly unique tendency relative to Walt Disney World.
The latter parks signify the ultimate vacation destinations in the theme park industry.


Mickey & Minnie’s Runaway Railway in Toontown
While Disneyland slots in the top five as well, it’s much more of a park for the locals.
The Happiest Place on Earth is their home, and they definitely treat the place like they own it.
I find that behavior charming, but not everyone does.
Disney California Adventure


DCA Lunar New Year Festival – Paradise Gardens Park
Finally, we have the hardest park to pin down, partially because it’s the oddity of the bunch.
The original theme for Disney California Adventure was “California,” which is a marketing challenge when most guests are Californian.


Lightning McQueen
Later, Disney pivoted to Radiator Springs, followed by the current combo of half-Pixar and half-Marvel.
Is “hodgepodge” a tendency? Okay, I’m mostly kidding, as Imagineers have done a marvelous job reinventing the park.


Photo: Disney
Currently, I’d describe the vibe at DCA as half-EPCOT and half-Hollywood Studios.
The EPCOT aspect stems from the festivals and other gatherings here.


(Sean Teegarden /Disneyland Resort)
As I type this, the Lunar New Year festivities are in progress, and DCA’s food festival is a destination event.
The park offers everyday opportunities, too. Disney redesigned an area as San Fransokyo Square to encourage more hanging out.


(Richard Harbaugh/Disneyland Resort)
However, DCA is also half-Hollywood Studios because it hosts a disproportionate number of E-ticket attractions.
This park hosts the Incredicoaster, Guardians of the Galaxy – Mission: BREAKOUT!, and Radiator Springs Racers.


Photo: OC Register
More are coming as well, with a Coco ride and the doubling of Avengers Campus underway.
So, you’ll vacillate between your tendency to relax and enjoy yourself versus wanting to do all the top rides.
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