Disneyland Eliminates Early Entry for Resort Hotel Guests Beginning January 5, 2026

[gottalovepluto]

And Scott Gustin is just a DL PR flack...reporting the company line.

And he’s usually an accurate PR flack. Was the misstep on DVC his or a panicked switch from DL

 

[Tinkaboo]

I don't think this is to save money for DL Forward. I think it has more to do with profitability of the parks. Costs of goods has gone up. Wages have gone up. Where can they cut that impacts the least number of guests? Adding additional nights of Fantasmic and WOC where they can sell dining/dessert packages probably brings in more money than EE.

I agree that they are getting bit on the backside by cost of goods for construction now and going forward...we all know all that construction steel isn't coming from the US...but what's even more important...I don't think Disney gives a d*** about its customer base any longer..."if you don't like it,get outta line and let the next person go on" because they know people will still keep coming no matter how badly they are treated.

I have strong emotional ties to DL, that's why I go. Once in a blue moon, I get hit with some fairy dust and it makes it all worthwhile. But it hasn't been the place of my youth for A LONG TIME...and it makes me sad that they just keep cheapening the value of the experience for young families just starting out.

 

[StarlitNight05]

This is beyond upsetting. Onsite guests pay so much for so little. All this nickle and diming has been wearing thin on me...the constant price increases (tickets/passes and food), the shrinking of portion sizes, and now the removal of perks.

Next year I have a milestone birthday and I was initially going to do GCH club level, but instead I shifted toward planning a trip to Hawaii (and not even Aulani! Those prices are nuts). This sort of seals the deal.

 

[joseph821]

Yes, in recalling your great trip reports, I thought you always stayed onsite...what will you do now?

I always stay onsite. This is not going to change anything for me except that I am going to go to WDW or DL Paris more. How will I react to this? I will look at the higher end hotels very close to DL just to see the prices. I will go to DL once or twice a year now and spend the rest of it elsewhere.

 

[joseph821]

This is beyond upsetting. Onsite guests pay so much for so little. All this nickle and diming has been wearing thin on me...the constant price increases (tickets/passes and food), the shrinking of portion sizes, and now the removal of perks.

Next year I have a milestone birthday and I was initially going to do GCH club level, but instead I shifted toward planning a trip to Hawaii (and not even Aulani! Those prices are nuts). This sort of seals the deal.

Go to Hawaii!!! You will love it!

 

[VGCgroupie]

Go to Hawaii!!! You will love it!

This is beyond upsetting. Onsite guests pay so much for so little. All this nickle and diming has been wearing thin on me...the constant price increases (tickets/passes and food), the shrinking of portion sizes, and now the removal of perks.

Next year I have a milestone birthday and I was initially going to do GCH club level, but instead I shifted toward planning a trip to Hawaii (and not even Aulani! Those prices are nuts). This sort of seals the deal.

If you get the chance to go to Aulani I would do it. It's Hawaii meets Disney in the best way. I agree that cash prices are very very high, renting points from a DVC member here on the boards https://www.disboards.com/forums/dvc-rent-transfer.29/ or through a rental broker is a great way to go much cheaper. I will be there this weekend and I am so so excited to go again and see Mickey in his Hawaii fit.

 

[reddog21]

The news isn't going to sway me one way or the other I still prefer the Disneyland hotels.

 

[joseph821]

The news isn't going to sway me one way or the other I still prefer the Disneyland hotels.

I agree. I always stay at GCH. This won't change, I just will not go to Disneyland as much and go elsewhere instead.

 

[waltonmkb]

It might be worth it if the LLMP included Radiator Springs Racers or Rise of the Resistance.

 

[joseph821]

For me, Paris is just a sllightly longer flight from JFK to LAX.

And it gives an hour early access!

https://www.disneylandparis.com/en-usd/faq/park-hours-schedules/extra-magic-hours

Frequently Asked Questions​

---

Q.
What is Extra Magic Time*?
A.
Check in to a Disney Hotel and enjoy extra magic each day of your stay! Gain exclusive access to parts of the Disney Parks long before anyone else and meet up with Mickey, Minnie and friends. Cuddle up and strike a pose in a range of distinctive settings for snapshots to cherish forever. Have your autograph book ready, as they love making friends from all over the world. You can even enjoy attractions before the official opening times of Disneyland Park. The key to unlocking all these magical experiences is simply to stay in a Disney Hotel!
*Conditions are subject to those at the time of publishing. Extra Magic Time is subject to availability and may vary across Disney Parks.
You can check Extra Magic Time online 3 months prior to arrival.

 

[BrianL]

It might be worth it if the LLMP included Radiator Springs Racers or Rise of the Resistance.

It would be better at least. It should give both! Maybe like one use of LLSP for RSR and one for Rise per stay, plus one LLMP per DAY - then we might be talking about something. Still, I think I'd rather have the EE.

 

[midnight star]

Wow! VERY happy that I decided to stay onsite this month (first time I’m doing a DLR onsite hotel stay) before the early entry perk goes away….

 

[kkbookmom]

Oof! I just booked our 2026 stay. THEN read the news of losing EE. It is our first time going, so I wanted to do an onsite resort one time. Definitely opens up the possibilities if we ever go again. Bummer.

 

[Tomorrowland 67]

This is very disappointing news. I naively hoped the EE would go back to the original full one hour. It's clear that the Disney managers don't care about the guests, they only care about profits. At some point even their loyal guests will get fed up.

 

[Wildcat1144]

We're a Harbor Blvd family and while I feel bad for on-site guests it just make me wonder how much more competitive it will be to get rooms on Harbor now.

 

[VGCgroupie]

We're a Harbor Blvd family and while I feel bad for on-site guests it just make me wonder how much more competitive it will be to get rooms on Harbor now.

I think Harbor will be more competitive now. There are alot of people who use EE as a justification for spending more to stay on property.

 

[joseph821]

We're a Harbor Blvd family and while I feel bad for on-site guests it just make me wonder how much more competitive it will be to get rooms on Harbor now.

More competitive. All the off-site hotels will have deals to lure new hotel guests especially those who stayed on-site.

 

[KimberMama]

Hmm, I think changing early entry to LL could be a good thing, but not 1 LL per stay. I would say 2 LL per day, to make up for what you might have been able to accomplish with EE.

EE can be hard to use, you are at the mercy of the lines at security. We’ve stayed at the GC and gotten to security super early only to have a huge line and not all the stations staffed. It was so bad people were abandoning the line at the DCA entrance to go through security into DtD and use the main DCA gates, but of course that took extra time. EE for Disneyland was a little better. But once they cut it to 30 minutes a lot of the benefit was lost.

If I were in charge, I would offer LLMP everyday for every Disneyland Resort hotel guest, as a perk for staying there. No extra staffing needed, guests feel like they got something valuable, and let’s be honest, it can be baked into the price of the hotel (just like EE is).

 

[OlliePop27]

More competitive. All the off-site hotels will have deals to lure new hotel guests especially those who stayed on-site.

Good thing I already booked for next year!

It will be interesting to see what the new Harbor access will be when the eastern gateway is over. It looks like it will still be pretty similar from the renderings, but I'm curious where security will be with much of it being moved to the new garage.

 

[JerrodDragon89]

lol

I didn't even think about the fact the hotels outside the park will get more popular and most likely make prices go up and make it harder to get one....yayyyy