DCA EE- updated with another question 6/3/16

[goofy78]

Hi! We are currently booked at the Tropicana 8/6-8/11. With the type of ticket we have we can get into DL on Tuesday for MM. I'm wondering how important EE at DCA is? We could check in to PP for the first night (Saturday check in about noon- Sunday check out after using EE) but wanted to ask if it was worth it? Tropicana is $140.00 per night and for the one night at PP it is $365.67. Is the price difference worth getting into DCA early? Thanks!

 

[SMD]

If you're going to do that, you're better of staying at PPH on a night when you can get EMH on your check in and check out day.

 

[Girimama33]

Not worth it at all IMO. Just go to DCA on a non EMH morning. I do this even if I need to give up my Magic Morning.

 

[goofy78]

If you're going to do that, you're better of staying at PPH on a night when you can get EMH on your check in and check out day.

So if we get to DL on a Saturday at noon we will miss the MM. We are checking out on Thursday morning and heading to LA so Thursday is not an option. How would you rearrange the check in and check out to make it work how you're saying? Trying to think this through myself is making my brain hurt. Thanks!

 

[goofy78]

Not worth it at all IMO. Just go to DCA on a non EMH morning. I do this even if I need to give up my Magic Morning.

So you think we will be fine without it? I've read so many times how EE is so worth staying on site. But I just can't see spending that much money! If it was going to ruin our time by NOT having it, I would do the one day but if not I'd rather save my money and spend it else where.

 

[HydroGuy]

Not worth it at all IMO. Just go to DCA on a non EMH morning. I do this even if I need to give up my Magic Morning.

I TOTALLY AGREE.

 

[HydroGuy]

So you think we will be fine without it? I've read so many times how EE is so worth staying on site. But I just can't see spending that much money! If it was going to ruin our time by NOT having it, I would do the one day but if not I'd rather save my money and spend it else where.

Some people say Early Entry is worth the cost of staying at a DLR hotel. Some people say it is not.

Here are the facts according to HydroGuy:

- When EMH (aka generally as EE) is at 7AM as it will be during your dates, it is hard to get everyone up and to the park gates by 6:40AM (minimum, 6:30AM is better) to take advantage of it. If you arrive late you will have lost a big part of the advantage.

- EMH has more value when you have a shorter trip. If you are staying for 4-5 days anyways, you will have plenty of time for everything. That extra hour is not going to be very important compared to the rest of week.

- EMH has more value in off-season when the parks open later at 9AM or 10AM. Why? Because it is easier for you to make it to the parks. The DLR hotels are cheaper usually so the cost for EMH is cheaper. And the park hours are shorter so that extra hour counts for more.

You will get different opinions which is fine. I have done it both ways but when I stay at a DLR hotel it is because 1) I have gotten a discount on the rooms of 20-40%, and 2) I like the feeling and proximity. It is not primarily for EMH although that is a nice benefit.

 

[Angrose]

I agree with @HydroGuy 100%. I have stayed onsite twice now and only used the EMH once on a departure day to maximize park time before heading to the airport. I enjoy staying onsite for many other reasons and EMH to me is just another perk if you choose to use it, but not worth the price alone, IMHO. Starting at the opposite park works great. DL on an Sunday 8am rope drop is fantastic since no one wants to get up that early on a Sunday!

 

[agamble]

Not to mention the hassle of switching hotels.

 

[Nevada Jen]

How many people?) And what ages? What do you want to do at dca? I think it is worth it but dca is our favorite park and there are 4 of us and 200 bucks is a drop in the bucket to us compared to what we spend in total.

 

[NorthernCalMom]

Also, one of our early mornings at DCA pretty much everything that we wanted to do (RSR, TSMM, Screaming) was closed and did not open until regular opening time. Since we were going to stay at Disneyland Hotel anyhow, it was frustrating but ultimately not a huge deal, but I remember thinking how upset I would have been, had I spent the extra $$$ just for that one EE.

 

[SMD]

If you're thinking that losing an hour of access to DCA or lines having an hour to build up might potentially ruin your day or ruin your trip then I would suggest rethinking your entire approach to DLR. It is very easy to not do everything in 5 days. And that's without long lines, which may just happen and be unavoidable for certain attractions. Even with FP in some cases. Although many rides don't have FP at all.

 

[goofy78]

Some people say Early Entry is worth the cost of staying at a DLR hotel. Some people say it is not.

Here are the facts according to HydroGuy:

- When EMH (aka generally as EE) is at 7AM as it will be during your dates, it is hard to get everyone up and to the park gates by 6:40AM (minimum, 6:30AM is better) to take advantage of it. If you arrive late you will have lost a big part of the advantage.

- EMH has more value when you have a shorter trip. If you are staying for 4-5 days anyways, you will have plenty of time for everything. That extra hour is not going to be very important compared to the rest of week.

- EMH has more value in off-season when the parks open later at 9AM or 10AM. Why? Because it is easier for you to make it to the parks. The DLR hotels are cheaper usually so the cost for EMH is cheaper. And the park hours are shorter so that extra hour counts for more.

You will get different opinions which is fine. I have done it both ways but when I stay at a DLR hotel it is because 1) I have gotten a discount on the rooms of 20-40%, and 2) I like the feeling and proximity. It is not primarily for EMH although that is a nice benefit.

So is a better strategy to go to the park that does not have EMH? Thanks for your information.

 

[goofy78]

If you're thinking that losing an hour of access to DCA or lines having an hour to build up might potentially ruin your day or ruin your trip then I would suggest rethinking your entire approach to DLR. It is very easy to not do everything in 5 days. And that's without long lines, which may just happen and be unavoidable for certain attractions. Even with FP in some cases. Although many rides don't have FP at all.

I don't think losing one hour will ruin our trip. I should have worded that better. I do want to try and do the popular rides multiple times if possible. I know that might not even be an option with long lines and ride breakdowns. But IF the EE at DCA would help tremendously I would think about staying onsite for one night. Sounds to me like it's not worth it after reading these responses.

 

[gottalovepluto]

Absolute not worth it IMHO. I love EE, we use it every day we stay onsite, but we stay onsite for all the benefits- staying in the bubble, easy access, etc. DCA EE is so hit or miss. We've done a few 4-5 day trips over the last few years and half of our DCA EE weren't worth getting up for- let alone paying extra for! Last time all the big rides except TSMM were down and we lapped the park with no rides to show for it. DL EE is more consistent for us, there are always plenty of rides open that we want to do in a small area so it's easy to make good use of your EE, that's the EE where I see monetary value to the hour, DCA EE is a coin flip so I place $0 on the amount I would be willing to pay for EE there.

 

[msr709]

DCA MM is only for Disney's resorts, DLH, GCH and PPH. Off site MM is only good for DLR. Sorry to tell you but I was told this recently, like last week.

 

[agamble]

I don't think losing one hour will ruin our trip. I should have worded that better. I do want to try and do the popular rides multiple times if possible. I know that might not even be an option with long lines and ride breakdowns. But IF the EE at DCA would help tremendously I would think about staying onsite for one night. Sounds to me like it's not worth it after reading these responses.

So is a better strategy to go to the park that does not have EMH? Thanks for your information.

It is a good strategy to go to the opposite park unless you have access to the extra hour. I would still use your MM at DL itself, that hour is valuable especially if you want to knock out Fantasyland with minimal wait. If possible I would suggest using your MM at DL the earliest day in your trip possible. Then make sure you go to DCA first at least one day when there is no EMH. That way you have at least one day at each park where you can be one of the first in the park. Get Park Hoppers and learn to maximize FP. You can ride all of the big rides multiple times if you arrive early and use FP well. We do this, and we have little ones that force us to split up and double our time on some attractions. So it's definitely possible.

DCA MM is only for Disney's resorts, DLH, GCH and PPH. Off site MM is only good for DLR. Sorry to tell you but I was told this recently, like last week.

OP knows this. OP was asking if it was worth booking one night at a DL hotel to get the perk of EMH.

 

[Girimama33]

So you think we will be fine without it? I've read so many times how EE is so worth staying on site. But I just can't see spending that much money! If it was going to ruin our time by NOT having it, I would do the one day but if not I'd rather save my money and spend it else where.

I have stayed both onsite and off (which is preferred). My time was never ruined because I did not have access to EMH. You just start at the park that does not have EMH that day.

 

[goofy78]

DCA MM is only for Disney's resorts, DLH, GCH and PPH. Off site MM is only good for DLR. Sorry to tell you but I was told this recently, like last week.

Yes. That is why I was wondering if I should stay onsite for one night.

 

[goofy78]

It is a good strategy to go to the opposite park unless you have access to the extra hour. I would still use your MM at DL itself, that hour is valuable especially if you want to knock out Fantasyland with minimal wait. If possible I would suggest using your MM at DL the earliest day in your trip possible. Then make sure you go to DCA first at least one day when there is no EMH. That way you have at least one day at each park where you can be one of the first in the park. Get Park Hoppers and learn to maximize FP. You can ride all of the big rides multiple times if you arrive early and use FP well. We do this, and we have little ones that force us to split up and double our time on some attractions. So it's definitely possible.

Great. Thank you. I will only be able to use MM on Tuesday since we arriving on Saturday afternoon. I will plan on going to the park with no EE as best I can. Thanks for your help.