Epcot

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In total contrast to Disney’s Hollywood Studios, Epcot might be the most pleasant park in Walt Disney World to visit if you can’t do thrill rides. Indeed, there are only three you really need to avoid:

• Test Track (there is definitely some jostling on this high speed attraction)
• Mission: Space Orange Team (simulates intense G-forces via spinning)
• When it opens, you’ll probably want to skip Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind (an upcoming indoor roller coaster)

One grey area attraction to keep in mind is Soarin’. Soarin’ is not really a thrill ride in any traditional sense—actually, it’s probably one of the most serene attractions at Walt Disney World with its intoxicating scents and sweeping landscapes all enjoyed from the simulation of a hang-glider. However, if you are pregnant, injured, or extremely sensitive to nausea, you may still want to skip it.

A visit to Epcot is all about celebrating the human spirit, whether through discovery, technology, communication, or engaging the senses. The park has an excellent selection of dark rides including Spaceship Earth, Frozen Ever After, Living with the Land, and the Gran Fiesta Tour. The park also includes two attractions in one at The Seas with Nemo and Friends-- a dark ride based on Finding Nemo and an expansive aquarium where you can get up close to dolphins, sharks, rays, rescued manatees, and over 70 varieties of fish and other marine life.

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World Showcase is a paradise for guests who love to explore (and especially those who also like to shop and EAT). There is so much to find in the gardens, courtyards, shops, and theaters throughout the pavilions. World Showcase still has some of the best food you’ll find at Walt Disney World, especially during the Epcot International Food and Wine Festival. Some of our favorite experiences include the Mitsukoshi department store in Japan, the Biergarten Restaurant, the American Adventure, and the gardens in Canada. If you’re looking for characters, Epcot is a great choice since each pavilion features characters with ties to individual countries, like Anna and Elsa in Norway, Snow White in Germany, Mulan in China, and Belle in France.

Depending on the time of year you visit, you may get the opportunity to check out one of Epcot’s incredible festivals: The Epcot International Festival of the Arts, The Epcot Flower and Garden Festival, The Epcot International Food and Wine Festival, and The Epcot Festival of the Holidays. Our favorite is definitely the Food and Wine Festival, both for its cooking exhibitions and for the dozens of extra pavilion booths it adds throughout the park where guests can try creative international cuisine.

Disney’s Animal Kingdom

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Disney’s Animal Kingdom might be the resort’s most balanced park and certainly the one with the widest appeal across age groups. Sadly, many visitors underestimate it as a simple zoo. Nothing could be further from the truth.

If you don’t like thrills, there are a few attractions you should outright avoid:

• Expedition: Everest (a very bumpy roller coaster)
• Dinosaur (a very bumpy dark ride with LOTS of thrills)
• Kali River Rapids (a whitewater raft ride where you will get absolutely soaked)
• Primeval Whirl (because it is terrible—okay, I couldn’t resist. It’s essentially a kiddie coaster).

Like Epcot, Disney’s Animal Kingdom actually has two grey area attractions. Ironically, both are the two most popular in the whole park. First, Kilimanjaro Safaris is not a thrill ride by any stretch, but it does include some minor jostling as the ride vehicles move about. Second and more difficult to weigh is Avatar: Flight of Passage. Similar to Soarin’ at Epcot, Flight of Passage is a glider simulator—only instead of being seated in a hang-glider, you’re riding astride a banshee. The attraction does include some intense dives and flight sequences, but the effect is almost entirely achieved through use of virtual reality and gentle simulator movements. As far as simulators go, it is quite tame, but those prone to nausea may want to avoid it.

As a side note, if you hate bugs or things crawling on you, you may want to skip It’s Tough to Be a Bug. It’s not a thrill ride but it definitely includes its fair share of scares for such a lighthearted show.

Image: Disney

Besides Kilimanjaro Safaris, the only non-thrill ride of note is the Navi River Journey. Don’t be discouraged by that. A visit to Disney’s Animal Kingdom is all about immersion in nature—even in the otherworldly nature of Pandora. The park has several outstanding walking trails where guests can observe animals at their own pace. The Gorilla Falls Trail includes hippos, exotic birds, okapi, and more. My personal favorite is the Maharajah Jungle Trek, a south Asian themed walking tour that gets you up close to tigers, Komodo dragons, flying foxes, and a huge array of birds (including the most adorably feisty weaver birds). If it is open, you may also want to take the train to Rafiki’s Planet Watch which includes a petting zoo, encounters with smaller animals, and even a working veterinary clinic where guests can watch procedures. The Discovery Island trails and the Oasis exhibits offers other opportunities to explore, as does The World of Pandora. As far as shows go, Festival of the Lion King is a must see experience at least once.

As a brief aside, Disney’s Animal Kingdom has some excellent dining choices both for counter service and table service cuisine. We would rate Tiffin’s as one of the best places we’ve eaten at Walt Disney World, and the accompanying Nomad’s Lounge is also one of the hidden gems of the park. Tusker House offers one of the best character meals in Walt Disney World, particularly for its delicious range of African cuisine. Flame Tree Barbecue and Yak & Yeti remain mainstays for great quick bites, and Satul’i Canteen also remains a unique option (even with a slight adjusted menu—no more zesty pods, folks).