How to maximize a park hopper?

[BlondeAppetit]

If I purchased a park hopper for a last minute trip what is the best way to maximize it?

I was thinking about taking advantage of early morning EMH and then hopping to the most recommended park.

How would you plan your FPs?

Start in the the park with EMH and plan the Fps at lunch time and then hop or would you hit EMH and then do the Fps in the most recommended park?

What time of day would you make the conversion?

Thank you in advance for your time!

 

[vikster1]

We hit EMH in the am, go back to resort 5-8pm and hit the club lounge. We then hit a EMH pm park. The best is when we get 1-3am EMH at MK.

 

[supersnoop]

Depending on how long you want to stay in the first park, I'd either book your FP+ for just before you leave that one, or right when you arrive at the second park. With morning EMH, you really shouldn't need FP+ except for the most in-demand rides.

 

[Farps]

We hit Am EMH and get on all of the headliners before the crowds roll in and save our FP+ for the 2nd park. For us this works very well, but we do not go during very busy times usually crowds of no more than a 6.

 

[Canuck16]

With EMH entry you should be able to get on any ride you that you want in the morning at your first park. So you might want to book your FP + for the 2nd park when the crowds are higher and the lines will be longer.

Have fun!

 

[MelanieRI]

My strategy is completely different. I use my FP + early and never do a.m. EMH. I always avoid EMH parks unless it's MK staying open till 2 or 3 a.m. I use my FP+ first and then switch over to a park that I know where the crowds are less in the p.m. W/ Epcot, the crowds are so much less after 5 pm in the front of the park, the perfect time to bang out Living with the Land, The Seas, Figment, etc. Night-time at DHS, same thing...perfect time to do Star Tours, The Great Movie Ride, Muppets that all had lines earlier in the day. AK before closing...that place is dead, perfect time to bang out rides. But hey, since no one seems to follow my strategy, that works out well for me.

 

[SplashMo]

For AK likely no FP+ and hop to DS for FP+
For MK FP+ non EMH days FP+ starting at 2 hours after park open for FP+ , rope drop park and then FP+ and then go for 4,5,6th FP+
For Epcot and DS Rope drop for one or two hours and then hit FP+ attractions. Or arrive late and then use FP+

 

[BradChristian]

Just don't do what I did last time and try to do 3 parks in one day... I parked at EPCOT and took a bus to AK for half day... Then went to HS but only wound up doing 2.5 rides before taking the boat to international gateway and trying to fit in dinner, candlelight processional, world showcase AND illuminations.

Lets just say my wife was crying and walking out of the park before illuminations fully ended. (She was 5 months preggers too... BIG FAIL ON MY PART!)

 

[ghtx]

AM EMH until about lunch (it will start getting crowded around 11 or so). Then hop to recommended park where your FPs will be waiting for you.

 

[Mikie]

Just don't do what I did last time and try to do 3 parks in one day... I parked at EPCOT and took a bus to AK for half day... Then went to HS but only wound up doing 2.5 rides before taking the boat to international gateway and trying to fit in dinner, candlelight processional, world showcase AND illuminations.

Lets just say my wife was crying and walking out of the park before illuminations fully ended. (She was 5 months preggers too... BIG FAIL ON MY PART!)

Oops! You poor guy .. . I imagine that story will be told the rest of your life. But. . . How did you do 1/2 a ride at DHS??

 

[cakebaker]

We hit Am EMH and get on all of the headliners before the crowds roll in and save our FP+ for the 2nd park. For us this works very well, but we do not go during very busy times usually crowds of no more than a 6.

This is the method we always use now and it has worked for us regardless of crowd levels. But, we do each park at least one morning and one evening each. This way we get fp+'s for the popular rides in every park and can use the mornings to get in a lot of rides with no lines at all while the crowd rushes to the hot rides of the moment. We don't do the rope drop rush, but we do get there before opening. This works for us whether it's an emh morning or not.

 

[BradChristian]

Oops! You poor guy .. . I imagine that story will be told the rest of your life. But. . . How did you do 1/2 a ride at DHS??

Backlot tour was still open, but we got through the first half and the ride 'broke down' before we got to the trams, but it was really just time for the attraction to close... So rather then letting people finish - they sent us out. Worst disney park experience ever... but illuminations/fantasmic helped make it not so bad.

 

[goofy4wdw2]

We just might have to try this strategy!

 

[alvernon90]

For AK likely no FP+ and hop to DS for FP+
For MK FP+ non EMH days FP+ starting at 2 hours after park open for FP+ , rope drop park and then FP+ and then go for 4,5,6th FP+
For Epcot and DS Rope drop for one or two hours and then hit FP+ attractions. Or arrive late and then use FP+

I feel like a real heel for asking this, but I get the impression that this is a well thought out strategy and yet I cannot understand what is being said in the last two lines. Could someone spell this out for the people like me who get lost in the abbreviations and shorthand? The MK line is particularly confusing...

 

[BrianL]

For Alvernon90, I am not the poster, but I'll translate:

For Animal Kingdom you will not need FastPasses and you could make your FastPasses for Hollywood Studios (or another park) and hop there in the afternoon.

For Magic Kingdom FastPass+ on a non Extra Magic Hours (when parks open early only for onsite guests) day, set up your FastPasses beginning at 2 hours after the park opens. Arrive at park opening (rope drop), tour for two hours with low crowds, use your FastPasses, then try to get additional FastPasses from the kiosks for the rest of the day.

For Epcot and Hollywood Studios, arrive at park opening (rope drop), tour for two hours, use your FastPasses, or you could just arrive later and use your FastPasses as you wish.

That's basically what is being said by the poster. Arriving at "Rope Drop" means right when the park opens, but actually you need to be there up to an hour earlier to have a good place in line. The early morning hours are much less crowded, so scheduling FastPasses for the first 2 hours is pretty pointless.

 

[SplashMo]

I feel like a real heel for asking this, but I get the impression that this is a well thought out strategy and yet I cannot understand what is being said in the last two lines. Could someone spell this out for the people like me who get lost in the abbreviations and shorthand? The MK line is particularly confusing...

I was typing too fast

For AK likely no FP+. Simply rope drop and hop to DS for FP+
For Epcot rope drop for one hour. First FP+ at the one hour mark. Or arrive late from another park and then use FP+ on SOARIN and try to single ride TT.
For DS Rope drop for one hour and then hit FP+ attractions. Or arrive late from another park and use FP+

For MK non EMH days rope drop and then FP+ at 2 hours after park open and once available then go for 4,5,6th FP+
For EMH days rope drop EMH and then hop to another park with full FP+

 

[angierae]

My craziest park day was last year when we were only in The World Sunday-Tuesday. Sunday night we went to the Halloween party and then monday...

Monday morning we opened MK because DD wanted to meet Peter Pan, and he was only around in the mornings. We did that, rode some things in MK, had lunch at Tony's, then hopped to Hollywood. We stayed there and closed out the park, took the bus to the Poly and had a quick dinner at Captain Cook's, then took the boat over to MK and closed them out with late EMH until 1ish, I think.

16 hours, two parks, two hops. It was fun, but exhausting. We ended up canceling our breakfast reservation the next morning.