Right now, things at Disney’s Hollywood Studios seem a little bleak. With closures happening on a monthly basis and nothing exciting announced for the future yet, it can be easy to just write this park off as a waste of time and avoid it until all the rumored changes take effect (Which could be as late as 2020!)
However, even downsized, a trip to Disney’s Hollywood Studios is still very much worth your time. Don’t think so? Here are four compelling reasons why this park is still a must-do, even in its current state
1. It has still got the most thrilling rides at Walt Disney World
Obviously, thrills aren’t the highlight of everyone’s Walt Disney World experience, but if you love things that are fast, scary and intense, Disney’s Hollywood Studios is still the best park on property to visit. The claim can be made that the theming at Rock ‘n’ Roller Coaster is in need of an update, but despite the somewhat dated Aerosmith tracks, the Rock ‘n’ Roller Coaster is still fastest roller coaster on property and the only one that goes upside down.
And of course, we would be remiss if we didn’t mention this attraction’s next-door neighbor, the Twilight Zone Tower of Terror, which is one of the best-themed attractions in all of Walt Disney World and features an amazing ride experience whose random nature begs to be experienced over and over again.
And speaking of re-rides, while Star Tours is not exactly a thrill ride per se, this simulator-based attraction features eleven different individual ride segments, which can combine in various ways to produce 50 different ride experiences altogether, making this an easy candidate for multiple re-rides.
2. Crowds are going to be lighter
Though attendance is growing at pretty much every Walt Disney World theme park, it was recently revealed that Disney’s Hollywood Studios only rose a meager 2% in 2014, and some are predicting that this year may be the start of a period of decline at the park, especially since this 2015’s Frozen Summer Fun hasn’t hit the levels of popularity that last year’s event did.
Though this initially sounds like a bad thing, there are several ways guests can use the shrinking guest levels at Disney’s Hollywood Studios to their advantage. Though the park’s lack of attractions have already boosted wait times pretty much everywhere (especially at Toy Story Midway Mania), guests who opt to either visit this park first thing in the morning or late in the evening will enjoy much shorter wait times for pretty much everything.
Even Fantasmic!, which has lines that often begin early in the afternoon has been only filling up to half capacity during its second showing in recent weeks (although some of this could be due to some changes that have recently been in testing around this attraction). Although we are expecting some new attractions to start appearing in the near future at Disney’s Hollywood Studios, in the interim guests here can enjoy crowds that will be much lighter than those found at other parks around Walt Disney World, which could be a welcome respite for those looking to get away from the record crowd levels expected at Epcot thanks to the opening of Frozen Ever After in just a few months.
3. It’s still a full day park
Frequent Walt Disney World visitors and annual passholders may complain that there’s nothing of value left to do at Disney’s Hollywood Studios, but the fact is that this park is still very much a full day experience, especially for those who have never visited Walt Disney World before. Starting the day off with the Beauty and the Beast show, taking a drop on the Tower of Terror, a spin on the Rock ‘n’ Roller Coaster and then watching the Indiana Epic Stunt Spectacular followed by For the First Time in Forever: A Frozen Sing-a-Long is quite enough to fill an epic morning. Then after lunch, first-timers can ride Star Tours, and the Great Movie Ride, watch Muppet Vision 3D and even squeeze in Lights Motors Action before a ride on Toy Story Midway Mania and a viewing of Fantasmic!.
While it’s pretty much impossible to spend multiple days at Disney’s Hollywood Studios the same way you could at the Magic Kingdom, this park still has a decent number of attractions, and if you’ve never been to Walt Disney World before, there’s more than enough to do at this park.
4. Can’t miss special events
Though Epcot still rules the special event scene with its blockbuster Food & Wine festival crowding the park each fall and its charming Flower and Garden Festival taking place each spring, Disney’s Hollywood Studios has been carving out its own impressive roster of events.
From Star Wars Weekends in the spring to Frozen Summer Fun, Unleash the Villains in the fall, and the Osborne Family Spectacle of Dancing Lights in the winter, there’s almost always something interesting going on at Disney’s Hollywood Studios. Though each of these events has its own unique roster of activities (which can include parades, fireworks, limited-time character appearances and more), each is worth checking out on its own, not only for first-time visitors but for repeat guests as well.
After the closures of more than half a dozen attractions, the removal of the park icon, and with no real work done on creating new experiences, its understandable how fans might be disappointed with the current state of Disney’s Hollywood Studios. However, this park isn’t dead just yet, and saying that it is just a half day park (or worse, not worth going to at all) isn’t exactly true and could potentially rob first-time guests especially of some amazing experiences.
Have you been to Disney’s Hollywood Studios recently? Would you agree that this park is still worth visiting, or would you advise guests avoid it in its current state?
