Does "EE" Stand for "Early Entry" or "Extra Evil"?

[ScarletIndigo]

Good folks of the DIS, I need your help!

In-between bouts of doing the ONE WEEK SHIMMY (hee hee!) I've found myself becoming more and more paranoid about my itinerary -- specifically, to EE or NOT to EE?

I realize I must uphold the DIS Board oath to stay far, far away from any EE park unless I plan on attending said EE. But I've heard so many anti-EE comments lately that I'm totally second-guessing my EE choices! Eeeeep!

As of this writing, I only have two EE's on the list -- AK and MGM. I'm banking on Tour Guide Mike's advice for MK and EPCOT:

- "Wednesdays are the slowest days of the week for MK"

and

- "EPCOT can be visited pretty much any day of the week without horrible wait times and lines"

Of course, if these suggestions prove false, I'll be kicking myself firmly in the booty-region, but I'm relying on the good folks of the DIS to give it to me straight. Is EE really worth it for ALL the parks? If you're visiting WDW during a "slower" time of year (September/October) can you get away with skipping EE days? My DF looked at me like I had 3.7 heads when I told him that "rise and shine" time would be no later than 7:00am on EE mornings. Shall I risk his groggy-n-grumpy wrath for an extra hour in the parks each morning, or is that extra hour of sleep going to keep us from maximizing our park-hopping pleasure?

( And yes, before you ask, I am FULLY going commando on this vacation. Watch out for the forthcoming trip report -- it will be a doozy! ::GRIN:: )

 

[Dan Murphy]

Not an EE person here, SI. I have gone with a few DIS'ers to EE's and was not impressed. Just me though.

Hope you have a great trip and please check out the DIS meet board for the next Chicago meet, you should be home in time for it, would love to meet you.

Enjoy!!!!!

Dan

 

[JetMom]

We love EE, especially at MK.

Our last trip, we did all of Fantasy Land and TomorrowLand Speedway before the park opened.

We were at rope drop for Frontier Land and got Fast Passes for Thunder Mtn. and Splash Mtn. and rode both twice before heading to Tom Sawyer Island.

All Before 10 a.m.

 

[ASFCurly]

if you can get there when the gates open then it is good, it is when you get there 30 mins late that it can be a pain. If you can get up that early and be on time, I say go for it, I had no problem with it in May.

 

[StrwLady]

I love EE at the MK. I love walking down Main Street and only a few people being near. The feeling is wonderful.

We head right to Tomorrow Land and to Buzz Lightyear. We ride that a few times and then my husband does Space Mountian. Then my husband and son does the Tomorrow Land Speed way. After that we head to Fantsy Land. This to is so nice to walk there when its less crowded. Seems its always crowded just from people moving throuhg. Usually by 11:00 ish we start to head out. By the the crowds are pouring in.

 

[deadheadbelle]

My DH has the same reaction as your DF when I even bring up EE . He is on vacation & will not get up early unless I have planned a breakfast (yes, food is the only thing that will get him moving ). Anyway, we usually avoid the EE parks. We still get to do/see everything we want, we just do it a little later than some!

Have a great trip!

 

[JLTYR]

My DH and I just got back and did EE at AK. We got there before they opened, not the first in the line, but not too far back either. It was neat because they had people come out with boxes on spiders and snakes and stuff. But we went to the safari and walked right on and there were TONS of animals out as well. I'd highly recommend it at AK. We also were the on the first raft on the water ride (the name escapes me right now). Really neat. - It opens an hour after the park though.

 

[novafan]

We just did EE at MK on a Thursday and AK on a Friday and had absolutely no problems. I loved the extra hour in the parks and at least in early September, it didn't make the parks more crowded.

 

[Danemom]

I think it is definitely worth it in Fantasyland. If you have small children, it is so nice to have almost no wait for their favorite rides1

 

[MinnieGi]

EE is a must for us at MK!! We head straight to Dumbo in Fantasyland. DD loves Dumbo. Then we make our rounds to the other rides w/o much of a wait and are well on our way into tomorrowland when the crowds are just starting to come in. Now we are always there before 8:00 am so we can make the most of our Extra Hour! We have used it for all the parks but got the best us out of it for MK.

 

[tjmw2727]

We usually do ee at mk once or twice a trip but we always leave by 11 or 12 at the latest as it gets so crowded. A pool break and a new park late afternoon does the trick for us.

TJ

 

[crystalb]

We have done EE and avoided EE parks that day. Either way we have had a great time.
If we happen to be up and can be ready to go anyway -- fine. But unless it something special we don't specifically plan an EE day.
We tend to not return midday to the room and go until we drop at the end of the day.
We manage to get in what we plan, and sometimes more either way.
Agree if you have kids and can get them up that early (for Fantasyland) without everyone being stressed and cranky -- go for it.
But seems we always see parents dragging their little ones out (early morning AND late evening) and the kids are having a meltdown from being too tired. I don't think that does anyone any good -- parents, kids or others.

 

[SnowWitch]

We were once a family that did EVERY SINGLE EE!! My take on it now is this:

If you have young kids MK's EE is still a great and beautiful thing. get in there and ride those small rides before the wait is a god forbid 60 mins.

AK it's still a great thing because of the number of animals on the safari first thing in the morning. And the extra hour is nice since this park has such short hours.

To me, Epcot would be a waste!

And we have experienced shorter waits at RNR and TOT on non EE days.

As someone else mentioned, get there before gates open , if your 30 minutes late the usefulness of EE is gone. If we're not doing EE we avoid that park until the late afternoon.

 

[Poohbear123]

However, now that I have been there, done that, I feel the need NOT to do it. Especially in Nov. and Feb. when crowds are LOW anyway. If you want Pictures of the Castle with NO-ONE in front of it, than DO EE! If you want Pictures of Animals waking UP at AK than by all means do THAT EE! The rest is a toss up! PLEASE no Commando, you will regret it!

 

[Tiggerlover91]

I do EE for a few reasons:

1)DH and I like to out of the parks by 1pm so we can get back to the hotel and rest a bit before heading into another park in the evening.

2)At MK, EE is a definite plus! It's great going on rides with no wait and it there's no line, the CM will sometimes let you go again without getting off!

3)The less crowds, the better picture!

EE is a plus for DH and I. I don't do it at AK as we arrive there just about an hour after they open and we head right to the safari. The line usually isn't bad at all and all the animals are out.

Commando style huh....I just can't do it. It's already enough getting out of bed at 6:30am on vacation, but commando style is just OUT OF THE QUESTION!

 

[DrTomorrow]

Originally posted by JLTYR
It was neat because they had people come out with boxes on spiders and snakes and stuff.

I don't think this will be a selling point for ScarletIndigo - in another thread she confesses a fear of all things creepy, crawly, buggy and snaky....

 

[JulesMom]

EE used to be great. They opened the park at 7:30am. We could get so much done before 9am.

Well...now that they don;t open the gates until 8am--it's almost 8:15 before you can get on a ride. So, we won't be doing any more EE. Too bad, because it was a great perk.

 

[disneefamily]

Disnee Dad Says.................................. I can't think of one bad thing to say about EE.

BTW, Hitting fantasyland at rope drop works just as well on a non EE day, as it does on an EE day.

By all means plan on a commando trip. It's easy for poeple who have been 10 times or more to say " take it easy".

Just be prepared to throw commando out the window at least a couple times during your trip. Don't plan it, you will know when to stop commando, trust me.

EE EPCOT is a waste of time.

EE MK, and over to EPCOT before World Showcase opens, priceless!

 

[rykdad]

I was going to reply that EE wasn't necessary to enjoy the parks until I read your sentance that you plan to go commando. Any good commando takes advantage of every opportunity to attack, the earlier, the better!

 

[Synonymous]

Is EE really worth it for ALL the parks? If you're visiting WDW during a "slower" time of year (September/October) can you get away with skipping EE days?

My answer to the first questions is "No, it's not worth it for all the parks." I think it's a waste at AK. You won't see a significant difference in animal activity between 8 am and 9 am, and getting there at opening on a non-EE day will allow you to get on the attractions there just as well as going to EE.

It's only useful at MGM if you plan on doing Rock-n-Roller Coaster and Tower of Terror. Be aware that most things in this park do not open until 10:00 or later, even on an EE day when they let you in at 8:00. So if you do RnR and TT, Muppets and Star Tours quickly, you will be waiting around awhile for anything else to do.

At MK, I think it is very useful, although Tour Guide Mike's advice was very good and I think going on Wednesday, getting there at opening, of course, will work just as well.

I agree with everyone else on Epcot- don't bother. Although if you plan to Ride Mission:Space or Test Track multiple times, EE might be a good bet.


In general, I'd say trust Tour Guide Mike's advice. We followed him on our trip in April (MUCH busier than when you're going) and never had any problems with waits.