Is EE REALLY worth it?

[Tayash]

First let me say that I am a new member of this board and thanks to all of you, I have learned a great deal. My last visit to WDW was in the 70's so I really need some help. (I believe a FEW things have changed since then!). MY DW and 2 DD's (5/8) will be heading down this Saturday and stay onsite for a week. I can't wait to utilize the many tips I have gotten from this board. I have disposable cameras for the girls, surprises for when we return to the room, PS arrangements at character dinners, and loads of other fun stuff!
ANYHOW, on to my current question. Is EE really worth it? I have read many posts that say it is, but I have also read many that say to stay away from the park with EE. My plan now is to hit EE at the MK on Sunday morning. Sould I change?
Thanks for all of your help!

 

[kdibattista]

First things first.... Welcome aboard!!!

We never go to EE. We head to a different park on that day so we can avoid the crowds and it always seems to work for us. Plus, I don't think I could get up that early

 

[punkin]

IF and I do mean IF you can get up that early, it's great, but hey, you're on vacation. If you don't want to push yourself that hard, don't do it.

 

[prince of thieves]

a rule that my family generally follows is this:

Say for instance MK is opening on EE for a Monday and MGM opened on sunday for EE. We will tend to go to MGM on monday because it will usually be less crowded because a ton of people will be at MK and will have already gone to MGM the previous day. Just makes things a little easier when getting around and not as many long lines.

Hope this helps

JAM

 

[Luv2Roam]

I would say it's handy. It's very nice to have that option. Esp when the heat and humidity kicks in.
Even if you arrive at normal park opening, it is not quite as congested.
But if you plan to stay up late, without resting in between -- pass on EE. Good way to get burned out.
EE helps me plan what days to go to the parks too. I usually go on the parks that don'thave EE. Although I have taken advantage of EE and was glad I did.

 

[donac]

If you can get up early I think that it is worth it for Fantasyland at MK. You can get more done in EE than any other time of the day. I would do it for MK and maybe skip it for the oher parks.

 

[LvsTnk]

You have 2 little girls so I would say EE at MK would be well worth it. Fantasy Land can get Very crowded do all the rides then see Ariel and do Story Time with Belle.

Also, I have heard that the Play House Disney thing can be hard to do at times so MGM might be worth it.

You didn't say when you would be going but the heat would play a major factor in deciding if we would do EE or not. Nice to be out of the parks by noon and back to the pool.

Have Fun!!

 

[BuzzMe]

We usually try to take advantage of EE. It's worth it to be able to ride our favorites a few times without having to wait on long lines and be hopping to another park before the crowds hit.

 

[jaysue]

We took advantage of EE almost every day and then in some cases left mid day and park hopped to other park or back to Hotel and pool

We were there March 9-13 - it was busy but not so busy as to spoil our fun at the EE parks

I am going to try the reverse ploy this time and avoid the EE and see how that goes

Thanks
Jason

 

[disneefamily]

Disne Dad Says...................................EE is great, this isn't vacation this WDW! Pound the rides early. Fantasyland can always be done in an hour, even without EE, if you are there at rope drop. So hit a couple majors and line up for FL rope drop. If you wait till mid day this same plan could take the rest of day to complete, 90 minutes for Peter Pan etc... Even better is EE at MK, pop Splash and Space, then attack FL, then monorail to EPCOT.
You get two majors, and all of FL, and can get to World Showcase before it opens!

 

[TreeOfLife]

EE mornings are a fantastic way to use the resort's amenities to us!
It is hard to get up earlier on vacation, but let me tell you that it is a blast to be able to enjoy the rides without any lines at all, especialy during heavy seasons! Normally we're all done and stuffed by 11:00 AM, so we either head out to lunch or back to the resort to chill in a pool or take a nap.

It is funny that some people think ee mornings make their vacations stressful. To us, it makes it much more relaxing.

 

[Magic2000]

I would also recommend EE - we get so much done in that hour!!! What my family usually does is go to the park with the EE - then around lunch time, get a relaxing lunch somewhere, head back to the hotel for nap/swim, then go to a different park that evening.

EE for the Magic Kingdom is definitely worth it! We usually get all of Fantasyland done in that time - it is so nice to just walk onto Snow White, Peter Pan, even Winnie the Pooh! Dumbo usually has a little wait, but nothing like you will find in the afternoons!

Enjoy your vacation!!

 

[Tinks]

Before I read anyone else's reply, let me say yes, yes, and YES!
With early entry we have been able to do many rides with little to no wait. When the parks get crowded around lunch - 1:00, we leave and swim or go to another park. I highly recommend EE!

 

[grinningghost]

Believe me, I am no morning person. Getting up early is downright painful for me - but we always do EE. Especially for MK. That park just gets crazy after 11:00. Getting up early is worth being able to get on the rides you want to, and then you can head out for an early lunch and beat those crowds too. Leaves a good amount of time in the afternoon to take advantage of the pools or waterparks. Then later you can go back to whatever park is open late. It really makes our vacation time seem longer taking full advantage of the whole day.

 

[Claudia Kellenberger]

I would say that if EVERYONE in your family are natural born early risers, than by all means, take advantage of EE. It's then wonderful to get there early with minimal lines.

If ANYONE in your family is the type of person to wake up grumpy, really sleepy-eyed, covering up their eyes with the sunlight in the window, DRAGGING their butts out of bed etc.,
then you should always do the non EE parks. It's nice to go to the park with the least crowds.

Only you would know which schedule would work best with your family.

 

[Gillian]

It's worth it for MK because it's almost always crowded there. And it is quite busy at all the parks now!

I'd say go to EE, hit the Fantasyland biggies, and then wait at Toontown Fair for rope drop (usually 10 AM). You'll want to be near the front of the line to get pictures taken with Mickey. Then you can head over to the big tent to see Minnie & the gang. There are 3 lines for 3 different sets of characters. Our DS loved Minnie! Then after that visit Minnie's because it's very, very cute! Pluto was out in the backyard the last 2 times we visited.

If any of you want to go on the big rides, Tomorrowland is fairly close to toontown. You can hit space mountain & Buzz before the rope drop, probably.

Soon it will be lunch time & you can relax for a while or hit another park. Or stay and use fastpass for the crowded stuff in the afternoon.

 

[Alice28]

When we were there the first week of March, we did EE at MK and MGM. I think they were both worth it- at MGM we did Tower of Terror, Rock N Roller Coaster, Star Tours & Muppets by 9:30. And we didn't walk in the gates til 8:10. We then did Who Wants to be a Millionaire, lunch, got pics with Buzz and Woody, Indiana Jones and then left to a different park (MK for the parade, Epcot for dinner). We went back another day, a non EE day, got there at 9:10 and there was already a 60 minute wait time for the Tower!!!!!!!!! Crazy!

We did MK on an EE day (thursday), and did the following by 9:00: Dumbo, Peter Pan, Pooh, the Carrousel, It's a Small World. Dumbo was the longest wait- we had to wait 3 cycles and that was our first ride! And we were there at 8:00 sharp. The rest were walk ons. I can't imagine waiting any longer for Dumbo than we did, but we have a 5 year old and a 20 month old, so it was a must. We later did Splash, Big Thunder and Pirates, then lunch, then left. We came back around 4 and hit Tomorrowland and Toon town. And the tea cups. I think EE days are great IF you get there right at opening, do a everything you can in that hour, and be willing to hop to another park. We did a lot more park hopping than I thought we would and it was fun! MK on non EE days seemed just as crowded by 11 or so as non EE days, so definitely try and take advantage of that extra hour with less people and then hurry to Splash and Big Thunder right at 9:00 and you've got a lot accomplished.

 

[Paris]

If you haven't caught on to the prevailing EE-majority mindset here it's that EE is great if you plan on hopping to a different park later.

You really can cover a good deal of ground in that first hour -- and then in the hour or two after that since the folks coming into the park will be hitting the rides that you just got out of. But, then, after that, the park (especially when it is Magic Kingdom) is filled with the largest crowd of the week.

If you're not the park-hopping type and you want to stay in the park you've chosen all day, I don't recommend EE -- especially with Magic Kingdom and to a lesser extent MGM.

For EPCOT and Animal Kingdom it's probably not a problem since there really are only 1-2 attractions that really build up long lines and you can just explore the parks at your leisure regardless of the crowds around you.

 

[gonga]

There is nothing like being there when they open the ropes and you can walk in....a must do experience every kids dream come true (of all ages). If you are not a morning person....stop at Kona Cafe in the Poly and get a press pot of Kona Coffee, that will perk you right up.