Do you go to evening Extra Magic Hours during busier times ?

[maryj11]

I wanted to know how many of you go to the night EMH during busier times of the year like when kids are out of school (May through August). If we arrive just when EMH starts and not spend the whole day in the park would it be worth it or is it still to crowded ? Ops I posted this on the wrong forum !

 

[joedplumber]

We always avoid parks with EMH.

 

[twc1272]

I always plan my days around the EMH. These parks are typically busier on those days.

 

[NavaRa]

Hi... First response under new name

We (2A/13 and 12 yo) went to Disney World 07/26 to 07/29 2013 (a park a day) and we planned our days based on EMH.

So whichever park had the EMH, we went there that day.

On our first day, we went to EPCOT. Yes, there were a lot of people at the entrance. But once the gate busted open (8am), people just scattered throughout the park. We went to Soarin' first and waited about 5 minutes. Then we walked across to Mission:Space and got to ride that back to back. We still had plenty of time to walk around. One negative thing though was that the WS didn't open until 2 hours later. There was a lot of time to kill.

On the second day, we went DHS. Again, a lot of resort guests at the gate. But once opened, we just went all over the place. We were able to get through TOT with 5-minute wait. After that, we got FP for it for later time. Then we waited in line for Aerosmith ride... We waited a little bit (30 minutes?). While in line, people started to pour into that part of the park. Then we went back to TOT. The reader didn't read my card (during entry) so we walked all the way back to the entrance to get it activated. So we did all this in the first hour. Then we went to Toy Story Mania and got FP for late afternoon return.

On the third day, we went to MK. But the EMH was in the evening. There were a lot of people... TONS. But we immediately went to the Fantasy land and there were no one. We were able to ride Dumbo and had light meal at Gaston's Tavern. There was still very little traffic.

On the final day, we went to AK. We got up a little late so we didn't make it to the EMH (after 9am). Once we got there, people had already started to enter the park. We were able to grabbed FP for EE and had a light breakfast in Africa. Then we went on EE. Then people started to fill up.

All in all, yes, it was very busy in all of the parks. But I think that's a part of the Magic... being around others. I believe that may have been one of the peak times to go. But we enjoyed our times. We didn't rush into doing anything... just went with the flow. Fortunately, we were able to do what we wanted at our pace.

We talked to a family on one of the buses... They highly recommended us to download Touring Plans as it would help us plan our day. To me, that seemed to be stressful as we would have had to go all over the places. I had the Disney Experience app with me but I barely used it.

So go to the World and enjoy it. Don't stress out about the times and crowd (as we also did).

ENJOY

 

[maryj11]

Thanks everyone for your replies . I just wondered if it is crowded at the night time EMH ? Just during the EMH time frame ?

 

[joedplumber]

We talked to a family on one of the buses... They highly recommended us to download Touring Plans as it would help us plan our day. To me, that seemed to be stressful as we would have had to go all over the places. I had the Disney Experience app with me but I barely used it.

Love love love the touring plans app. Actually loading up my plans for our October and April visits. I would be lost without the app. I know the parks pretty darn well but it is nice knowing exactly what we are doing next. The amount of time saved by using it is priceless not to mention how flexible it is..

 

[MissPrice]

My DH and I always have hoppers. We avoid the EMH park until it is actually time for the evening EMH. Then we hop over. It's not bad at night time. We enjoy it. -Amanda

 

[NavaRa]

maryj11,

On that third day, we stayed from the rope drop until the last Spectromagic show. The crowd lightened up in the evening. There were people but all scattered (certainly less than during the day).

We didn't actually stay during the EMH. However, we observed that the lines to attractions were 15 mins or less.

With the darkness, we "saw" less crowd.

I'm sure that doesn't help much. But I don't think you'd have anything to worry about in terms of crowds.

 

[LMDisneygirl]

I'm wondering the same thing. I think it's almost always worth it to go to morning EMH, though we rarely make it to them!

For the EMH at the MK when it's open until 1 and 2am, the crowds definitely thin out as the time goes on. Last August we walked RIGHT onto Splash and were the only ones in our log. It was close to closing time.

I'm wondering about going to DHS on an EMH night. There are 2 Fantasmic shows, and I'm wondering if that will draw crowds from the park. I'm not a Fantasmic fan, so I won't mind missing it. Just wondering if it would be worth it, or if all the biggies would still have a long line......

 

[joedplumber]

I'm wondering the same thing. I think it's almost always worth it to go to morning EMH, though we rarely make it to them!

For the EMH at the MK when it's open until 1 and 2am, the crowds definitely thin out as the time goes on. Last August we walked RIGHT onto Splash and were the only ones in our log. It was close to closing time.

I'm wondering about going to DHS on an EMH night. There are 2 Fantasmic shows, and I'm wondering if that will draw crowds from the park. I'm not a Fantasmic fan, so I won't mind missing it. Just wondering if it would be worth it, or if all the biggies would still have a long line......

We hit the 2nd Fantasmic in July and the show was packed. After the show we wanted to hit the rocking roller coaster but it was a 2 hour wait.

 

[NavaRa]

We hit the 2nd Fantasmic in July and the show was packed. After the show we wanted to hit the rocking roller coaster but it was a 2 hour wait.

I would definitely avoid any rides that are situated within the special shows (such as Fantasmic) right after their conclusions. In this case, the Aerosmith coaster is pretty much steps away from Fantasmic.

I'm sorry for the unpleasant experience.

IMO, it'd be beneficial for you to take advantage of the EMH (as we did). The crowd will be there (only resort guests) and it may seem like a lot (bottlenecking at the entrance). But it still be FAR LESS than the amount of crowd once the general public is let in.

 

[maryj11]

maryj11,

On that third day, we stayed from the rope drop until the last Spectromagic show. The crowd lightened up in the evening. There were people but all scattered (certainly less than during the day).

We didn't actually stay during the EMH. However, we observed that the lines to attractions were 15 mins or less.

With the darkness, we "saw" less crowd.

I'm sure that doesn't help much. But I don't think you'd have anything to worry about in terms of crowds.

Thank you that may work then if we just go during the EMH

 

[maryj11]

My DH and I always have hoppers. We avoid the EMH park until it is actually time for the evening EMH. Then we hop over. It's not bad at night time. We enjoy it. -Amanda

Thanks ! This is what I wanted to do avoid it until it is time for EMH.