EMH parks or non-EMH parks better?

[justme0729]

My family is going to Disney during Christmas from 12/23 to 12/31. I am starting to plan what days we should go to which parks. We haven't been to Disney for about 7 years now but used to go frequently. I have heard that extra magic hours are nice because you can get a lot done in that extra hour but I have also heard to avoid parks that have EMH because they tend to be more crowded. Our plan is to go to the parks early in the morning at extra magic hour opening time until about noon and then relax at the hotel and then go back to the parks at night if we want. For Christmas week, do you think that going to parks during EMH (both am and pm) are worth it or should we avoid them?

Thanks in advance!!!

 

[Robo]

My family is going to Disney during Christmas from 12/23 to 12/31. I am starting to plan what days we should go to which parks. We haven't been to Disney for about 7 years now but used to go frequently. I have heard that extra magic hours are nice because you can get a lot done in that extra hour but I have also heard to avoid parks that have EMH because they tend to be more crowded. Our plan is to go to the parks early in the morning at extra magic hour opening time until about noon and then relax at the hotel and then go back to the parks at night if we want. For Christmas week, do you think that going to parks during EMH (both am and pm) are worth it or should we avoid them?

Thanks in advance!!!

Never attending EMH's because they will be "too crowded or overly-stressful,"
is like never eating grapes because they will be "too sour."

CAN be that way.
Doesn't HAVE to be that way.

Each EMH experience can be different.

We always go to AM EMH (virtually every day of the trip
that we did not do a PM EMH late the night before)...
never ONCE regretted an AM EMH... they are amazingly
empty and easy to ride the open attractions.
If that park then starts to fill 2 to 3 hours later...
We're happy with "doing" that park for the day and we
can HOP elsewhere or do lunch and take a rest until
later.

PM EMH's are a mixed bag. I've been when they were
"packed"... but on other nights (sometimes within the
same trip), the crowds were basically so low that it
was like "free rides" on all the open attractions.

The rule seems to be, it is far easier for guests to
STAY UP at the end of the day, than it is for them to
GET UP at the start of the day.

Generally speaking:
Expect a PM EMH which begins before 10PM to be much busier than one that begins much later.
Expect the first hour of PM EMH to be busier than the last hour.

Those who have attended PM EMH's and say that "they
are too crowded" are right... but that may have been only on the nights
they have attended.
I can say from personal experience that EMH's CAN be
virtually empty, or overly full... or somewhere in-between for attendance,
often within the same week.

The crowd situation at PM EMH can change so much (either way,)
that saying it was "like X" on a given night, can have little relation
to another night in the same time-period. So, you
simply "won't know unless you go."
It's similar to saying
that you attended on a given night and it rained, so
guests should never go on that night because it will
probably be rainy.

But, it can all boil down to your particular timing.

If you just consider that EMH's are FREE to attend...
You might just take a chance.
If it's too busy, just people-watch... or hit the exit.
(Where ELSE are ya gonna go at 10pm, anyway?)

But, if its not busy... you'll be ALL SET for EXTRA FUN!

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[LSUfan4444]

The best use of EMH are when they are truly "extra". PM EMH are great when every other park is closed because you are giving up nothing to be there except rest and recovery time (which can be underrated).

Mornings are different. The first hour is unreal, the second hour is great, but by 11 am most of the time the EMH park will be busier than a non EMH park. If you are planning to hop and are okay with leaving that early you can get alot done in the first couple hours.

Personally, because we prefer to enjoy p.m. EMH, we avoid the morning EMH and opt for the extra hour of sleep to hit a non EMH recommended park for rope drop. Doing both is hard, BUT can pay dividends if you are there the first and last two hours of the day.

 

[Delirium]

Best case scenario for evening EMH at MK is to go to a different park for that day (crowds will be lower at the non-emh park) and then hop over to MK at night. You may initially experience heavier crowds, but it does clear out towards the end and you've avoided fighting it all day.

I don't recommend evening emh at any other park. The only one that has enough to disperse the crowd is World Showcase, but since that is an adult oriented crowd, it tends to stay longer than the families at MK. Future World, Holloywood Studios, and Animal Kingdom just don't have enough to spread the crowd.

 

[Dan Murphy]

I prefer lower crowds to higher crowds, therefore I avoid the emh parks.

 

[justme0729]

Thanks everyone for the advice. It seems that EMH are worth it as long as you don't mind taking breaks in the day or being there at "off" times. Our plan is to use most of the morning EMH and one or two evening EMH with breaks in the day to avoid the crowds.