How do you use park hoppers?

[Surfinpiratee]

So we'll be going to disney next year and I think we'll get PH. We will have 5 park days. And I'm not sure how to get the most out of our PH. Last trip we noticed we could definitely spend more time at Epcot and MK. We really only need a half day at HS ans AK. But maybe 2 half days?

So mu question is..what does your PH schedule usually look like? How do you deicde what to get done some days and what to do other days..? What did you do in past trips?

Thank you!

 

[farfaraway]

We went to AK in the morning, went back to our resort in the afternoon and then headed to MK in the evening. IF it was EMH we went to that park first and then chose another park for the late afternoon/evening. Loved having a rest in the middle of the day. Whatever park you choose, it will be fun!

 

[sharonabe]

If you're staying onsite, the best way to use the PH is to take advantage of the EMH. If you're planning a midday break, and there are late and early EMH, you can do both. If you're not taking midday breaks, you may want to choose either early or late depending on your family's needs.

We like going to the park with early EMH and then hopping to a more recommended park in the afternoon. Most people do not want to get up early on vacation, so we find the early EMH much less crowded.

 

[practicallyperfect77]

On my last trip in Dec, I had 6 day PH tix. I used easywdw calendar to look at recommended parks. I would arrive at the most recommended park at RD, stay til lunch and then move to the next recommended and use my FP+ there. I did this Wlwith the exception of 2 days. One day MK was not recommended at all (it was a day with no MVMCP so had nighttime entertainment which caused it to be crazy cray). But arrived around 4 or so and did the 3 FP+, got some dinner and then it was time for the dessert party. Worked out well. The last day, I hopped to all 4 parks and rode all my favorite rides. AK, MK Ep, HS. Got on all the headliners except TT b/c I don't care for that ride with minimal waits except for Soar in' (70 min wait for that ride).

Have fun OP. I know lots of folks will hop to Epcot at night b/c dining options and just have fun walking around World Showcase.

 

[GlennN]

As with others, we use PH to change parks after an afternoon break, or to go for dinner and spend the evening (usually at Epcot). We tried one year not getting PH, and we will never do it again.

 

[Surfinpiratee]

If you're staying onsite, the best way to use the PH is to take advantage of the EMH. If you're planning a midday break, and there are late and early EMH, you can do both. If you're not taking midday breaks, you may want to choose either early or late depending on your family's needs.

We like going to the park with early EMH and then hopping to a more recommended park in the afternoon. Most people do not want to get up early on vacation, so we find the early EMH much less crowded.

Ooo that's a good idea!

Also going to Epcot in the eveningss

 

[linskypens]

We need to hit 3 parks at rope drop to get maximum benefit...MK, EPCOT, HS

Need to be at epcot one morning in order to guarantee getting Soarin and TT done without waiting

TSMM requires a morning trip to HS

And who wouldnt do RD at MK?

(This is all before FP+ but doing it this time as well)

Our PH will be this.

HS morning- break - AK afternoon to ride dinosaur from 4-6- back to HS for evening ADR and EMH

Epcot Morning- break - MK evening for another chance to see Wishes

The other 3 days we have include arrival and departure days, all MK - no hopping

EPCOT and AK hold no real charm for us, so no need to spend a lot of time there, and PH means we get maximize our time in the other parks over a short visit ( 3 full, 2 half days)

 

[W.E.D.]

OP, you mention spending more time at EPCOT. That is how PHs usual work out for us. We visit whichever park is having a.m. EMH, go back to the resort for a nap or some pool time, and then head over to EPCOT in the evening.

 

[POOHsie]

Once, we left a park early because of rain. In the next day or so, we returned for a short while and finished our wish list for that park. Then park-hopped to the park regularly scheduled for that day.

There's been a time we were at Epcot, which had EMH. We stopped over at DHS just to watch Fantasmic, then back to Epcot EMH. During our visit, Fantasmic wasn't presented every night, so this was the only way to see the show.

Another time, a friend who joined our group mentioned he hadn't seen MSEP and Wishes. Again, on an Epcot EMH night, we took the monorail to MK just for the 2 shows, then back to Epcot. MSEP and Wishes weren't scheduled for every night and our friend couldn't fit it in his vacation schedule any other way.

 

[GeorgiaHoo]

Went to Animal Kingdom this morning for EMH and were first ones on Safari (first ones in the gate actually), then rode Everest 3 times with no wait, walked the Maharaja Trek, used the water guns to squirt people on Kali and were leaving by 10:15. Had lunch at Chefs de France at noon now going to the pool at 1:45 for a couple hours then heading over to MK this evening to use our FP+. Tomorrow we'll be at MK by 7:30 for an 8AM EMH then back to the resort around 10:30, lunch in Epcot (perhaps San Angel Inn), then the pool again, late afternoon FP+ at Epcot and then over to 'Ohana at 7:45 for dinner.

 

[nkereina]

We like PH because it allows us to play things by ear - well, as much as you can at Disney!

Often, we will hit rope drop/AM EMH at one park and take a break around lunch. We'll spend the afternoon at the pool or at DTD, come back to the room and shower, and then go to a different park for dinner and the evening. Maybe go to a park with PM EMH.

We also usually have a day or two towards the end of the trip that we leave open for whatever, so park hopper lets us go between the parks we want to revisit without spending a whole day there. We usually finish our AK day by 2-3pm, so park hopper lets us check out another park at night if we want.

We like to have options, so we think park hopper is perfect for that.