Early entry or not?

[Joyfulsnuff]

Just wondering what everyones opinion is, should we do the early entry or go opposite and do which ever park isnt early entry that day? I just cant seem to make up my mind on this and since we are taking first timers I want to make a good decision. We will be there Nov. 2-8. We had planned to do MK on Monday our first day since we will have a small child with us, even though its not early entry for MK being a Monday will it be crowded anyway?

 

[CamColt]

We usually do EE for MK and AK. At AK we found it very crowded, but since we were only planning on 1/2 day there it gave us an extra hour to get a couple things done.
At MK we find we can zip right through Fantasyland with no lines whatsoever, before making a stop at the bakery for breakfast.

At Epcot & MGM theres not enough open for my kids(6 &3) that would make it worth it to us. So, we do those on the non EE days and take those days to sleep a little later.

 

[AimeeM]

We use EE days as a guide to what park NOT to do that day. I just cant get 3 kids up, fed, out the door and to the park by 8 am. We avoid EE and head to another park that day. But, we always go off season when its not really crowded and never feel like we NEED EE to ride certain rides. We get up, eat and get to the parks around 9:30 ish. I try to avoid MK on Saturdays ( except we will hop over there in the evening to see spectromagic if its not being shown any other time we are there) and we avoid Mk on Sundays now since thats an EE day. I know MK used to be crowded on Mondays and NOT on Sundays, but now that Extra Magic Hour ( EE ) is back, they made in on a Sunday. I bet Sat & Sun are both crowded and Monday's arent so bad now.

 

[tjkraz]

Since you're travelling with a small child, I would find out what his/her normal wake-up schedule is like, and tailor your touring accordingly. As the father of two little ones--trust me in that you'll have a much better trip if you don't try to force the child into a routine to which he/she isn't accustomed.

If the child is normally awake by 7am (eastern time) and you feel that you can get dressed, fed, packed and out the door by about 7:40 for EE, then go for it. But I wouldn't recommend waking the child early just to make EE. As you said, going counter to the EE days is often just as effective a strategy.

 

[MinnieGi]

We like using EE especially for MK! We have a 3yo DD and EE allows us to be in Fantasyland before the crowds. She's up early anyway and excited to get going to the parks. It's so nice to be able to complete all the Fantasyland rides before the crowds hit!!

We went last year first week in Nov. and EE was a lifesaver for us. It was way more crowded than we had expected and EE allowed us to do all those attractions without a wait.

 

[heffalump9]

We love EE at AK it allows us to ride Kilimanjaro several times with no wait and take in all the walking trails while it is cool and the animals are more active, great if you want lots of photos.

As regards to the other parks we avoid them on EE mornings.

 

[meeko_33785]

I usually will do a park that has EE in the morning and then go to a different park in the afternoon (most effective if you go to the park that has it's EE day the day before or after the current day). For instance, you could do EE in the morning at MK, see all of Fantasyland and Toontown, then go back to the hotel in the afternoon or for lunch, then come to MGM to see Playhouse Disney, Beauty and the Beast, and the parade.