EMH- to do or not to do?

[mrs.ariel]

I'm starting to plan our first ever trip to WDW!
How useful are the morning EMH? I am a DL vet and EMH are vital for fantasyland, Carsland, etc. But, there aren't nearly as many onsite guests at DL.

Is EMH worth it with so many onsite guests in the WDW bubble? We're staying at POP.

And what about nighttime EMH at epcot, for example? My parents will be with us, so if they take the kids home to bed, is it worth it for DH and I to go to late night EMH?

Thanks!

 

[mickeyluv'r]

As with so many answers, it depends.

During summer, AM emh is worthwhile because you beat the heat. In winter, you may be happier avoiding the chill.

I don't usually find EMH parks to be super crowded, because so many folks avoid them. I think most guide books suggest avoiding them, so most folks do.

That said, there's a huge difference between PLANNING to be at EMH, which is what so many folks do - and ACTUALLY being in the park DURING emh. If you aren't actually in the parks during the EMH, then being in that particular park for the day and be a disadvantage.

IT is VERY easy to underestimate how long it is going to take your family to get up&out, and how long it will take you to arrive at the park- especially if you are using WDW transportation. (driving time is more consistent, IMO, when we drive ourselves). With the exception that the monorail to MK are pretty quick, and the Epcot deluxes are quick to HS/Epcot if you are walking.

Last, you have to ask yourself how much you will rely on the EMH to hit certain rides. If you hate all the rides that are open during EMH, then they are not very useful. The most useful of the emh's- I find - is the Sunday night MK PM EMH. the MK AM EMH is also useful, but seometimes wehave a hard time getting up for it that late in the trip, especially if we've been out late the night before. DO take advantage of night time hours in the parks. I think being at MK after dark is especially useful. HM has added spook at night!

 

[minnie mum]

Is it worth it? Well, yes and no. It IS worth it in the morning because you can get on several rides in that one hour in the morning that you would stand in line for later in the day. Yes, there are a lot of on site guests, but WDW parks are also much bigger and can handle a lot more capacity that DL. And not all guests take advantage of EMH.

BUT, and it's a big but, the EMH parks tend to be busier than the non EMH parks the remainder of the day.

Best use of EMH (IMO) is to have a park hopper ticket, so you can hop to another park by late morning when the crowds have built. Or conversely, spend the day at a recommended park and only hop to the late EMH park once the extra hours begin.

We rarely get PH tickets, so we generally prefer to go to the recommended park of the day.

 

[mrs.ariel]

thanks for the advice. We only have 4 days for this trip to hit all the parks and as much as we can do.
Last December we spent 4 1/2 days in DL, so I know 4 days in WDW might not be enough to see/do everything!

We will have PH, so I think we will try to hit the AM EMH when we can, then hop to another recommended park. My kids are early risers and we are at RD or AM EMH everyday at DL....but we are on west coast time, so the early morning might be harder in FL!

I just bought tix for MNSSHP on the Friday night that we are there, I figured we could go on any rides we missed then if we have to!

 

[SandiR]

Are you an early riser? My husband is, but my kids and I like to snooze a bit. Also, we almost always stay at the park until it closes since we love the fireworks. Therefore, we can't really handle waking up early enough to catch breakfast and be at the parks in time for morning EMH. Nightime EMH is a different story and we always take advantage of those. Just keep in mind it often seems that it's just as crowded during EMH as night as it is during regular hours.

 

[soxfan040713]

If you do take advantage of EMH's, be prepared to wake up around 6-630AM every morning if you want to be ready and present for 8AM rope drops. Most resorts don't offer sit down breakfasts before 7, so more often than not you'll need to get a grab&go item or wait until you get to the park. Personally, I think it's 100% worth it to utilize them. You can walk on 1-2 major attractions without needing a FP+, and then you can use FP+'s later to ride them again. You can also get everything you want to do quicker, meaning you can leave the park earlier, rest up, and head back to another park more refreshed than you would have been otherwise.

 

[heidijanesmith]

thanks for the advice. We only have 4 days for this trip to hit all the parks and as much as we can do.
Last December we spent 4 1/2 days in DL, so I know 4 days in WDW might not be enough to see/do everything!

We will have PH, so I think we will try to hit the AM EMH when we can, then hop to another recommended park. My kids are early risers and we are at RD or AM EMH everyday at DL....but we are on west coast time, so the early morning might be harder in FL!

I just bought tix for MNSSHP on the Friday night that we are there, I figured we could go on any rides we missed then if we have to!

We use the same strategy, get up early for morning EMH when ever possible, then take a break and then to a non-EMH park for evening touring.

MNSSHP is a great time to ride the rides. We are no into character meet and greets, so we rode the rides over and over.

4 days at WDW you will not be able to do and see everything, you can still have a great time. Make priorities of what you want to see and take advantage of the early hours and FP+.