Magic Kingdom after midnight.

[boomgoesthemickey]

So just found out mk is going to be open til 2 am with emh during our upcoming stay and was curious what its like during that time period. I assume its mostly adults and teenagers in the park at that time, also what food options if any are still available, I imagine they shut down certain restaurants after 10 or 11. Also what time does bus service back to resorts stop at, thank you.

 

[Robo]

So just found out mk is going to be open til 2 am with emh during our upcoming stay and was curious what its like during that time period.

1. I assume its mostly adults and teenagers in the park at that time, also what food options if any are still available,

2. I imagine they shut down certain restaurants after 10 or 11.

3. Also what time does bus service back to resorts stop at, thank you.

1. Far fewer guests, in general.
2. Some will close. Some will be open.
3. It will continue and continue and continue until ALL guests have been transported to their respective resorts.
No guests are left stranded at a WDW park.

 

[GrumpyBelle]

Those late EMH are great. The park is much less crowded and the heat isn't an issue. I can't answer your question about food service. But the last bus departs an hour after closing.

 

[o0quirkygirl0o]

Bus service stops well after park close, as long as you leave the park at close you will catch a bus. You will also be surprised by how many kids and toddlers are still "up" at those hours. (Some of them not all that willingly.) But, yes, crowds are much less dense.

 

[Robo]

...the last bus departs an hour after closing.

Sorry, but that is a very often-posted transportation myth.

The buses run until all guests have been transported.
That is often 2 hours (and longer) after the "closing time" of a given park.

Heck, if the last bus departed an hour after closing, there would be literally thousands of guests
who were shopping at the major shops still open an hour after "closing time" left at the bus stops.

(And, don't you know that there would be hundreds of posts about THAT on these boards!)

 

[boomgoesthemickey]

awesome the bus thing was my biggest concern, mk stays open til 2am that day so I'm hoping we can catch up on some of the rides we don't get fast passes for.

 

[siskaren]

Sorry, but that is a very often-posted transportation myth.

That, and that the buses start running one hour before opening.

 

[Robo]

That, and that the buses start running one hour before opening.

Yup.

One of the main reasons for these myths to perpetuate is that they continue to be
posted on the official WDW website!

 

[jfoneld]

That, and that the buses start running one hour before opening.

Well, when DO the buses START running in the mornings? Particularly from the All Star resorts??

 

[SarahKate]

MK late at night is THE best time, in my opinion. It's the time when people start leaving in droves and the wait times go down significantly. There will be rides that you'll be able to ride over and over and over again and sometimes the CMs will just ask if you want to stay on! It's an awesome time. There will still be some kids but you'll see more older kids than younger. Some places do stay open but many close - it seems like Casey's tends to stay open pretty consistently. Some of the carts are open but later in the night they will be shutting down. The park is also beautiful at night.

 

[POOHsie]

I recall personally at Epcot World Showcase, grown DD and I had a late dinner that ended after hours, and we were slowly walking along the lake. We saw no other visitors around, but there were probably some scattered people here and there. Around Mexico pavilion, a CM asked us if we were taking the bus, and where we were staying. We said "yes" to the bus, and she said something into a hand-held radio. When we got to the depot there was a line of Disney buses, waiting to take us and others back to our resorts. Very well organized and efficient!

I read a post on one of the WDW visitor sites from a guy who took his friend to MK. His friend was a first-time visitor and a non-believer in "Disney Magic." They were extra late leaving the park and nobody else seemed to be around. Outside the gates they headed to the bus depot. No buses or taxis -- nothing. The new visitor thought they were stranded and started to panic. His "veteran" friend told him it would work out (although he didn't know how). Soon, in the distance they spotted headlights. And as the lights came closer they saw it was a Disney bus coming their way. The bus pulled up close to the guys and the driver asked where they were going. Then he said "come aboard" and drove them to their resort, on an otherwise empty bus. The newbie visitor suddenly understood "Disney Magic."

OP, no one gets left behind at WDW. Even if you drive and your car doesn't start, Disney will get involved in getting you and your car taken care of. It's really amazing.

 

[Robo]

Well, when DO the buses START running in the mornings? Particularly from the All Star resorts??

Buses from the resorts to the parks begin running every day about 6:30AM.


On the special and few days of the year when MK opens for AM EMH at the very early hour of 7AM, the buses will be running even earlier.

 

[cat5dog1]

So just found out mk is going to be open til 2 am with emh during our upcoming stay and was curious what its like during that time period. I assume its mostly adults and teenagers in the park at that time, also what food options if any are still available, I imagine they shut down certain restaurants after 10 or 11. Also what time does bus service back to resorts stop at, thank you.

It is the BEST time to go to MK! Two years ago we literally just waked right into Little Mermaid, Ariel, Thunder Mtn, Enchanted Belle, Barnstormer, Dumbo, Pirates. It was 3 adults and 3 children aged 5, 6 & 7. We rested in the afternoon so we could stay out late. Don't know about food, we were too busy riding rides and had eaten right before the fireworks. Which we happened to watch right next to the castle and Tink flew right over our head.

 

[picprincess]

We love late nights in the parks! We have stayed past the closing time on several occasions and have had no problem catching a bus. They will begin to consolidate the bus routes (have one bus make stops at different places) at some point, but you will have a ride home!

 

[JanaDee]

So just found out mk is going to be open til 2 am with emh during our upcoming stay and was curious what its like during that time period. I assume its mostly adults and teenagers in the park at that time, also what food options if any are still available, I imagine they shut down certain restaurants after 10 or 11. Also what time does bus service back to resorts stop at, thank you.

You will be simply amazed at the amount of young kids and toddlers whose parents keep them out that late.

 

[JadeDarkstar]

wow, i have tears in my eyes at the disney magic story and the they help with your cars too. Also i think I now want to make sure we do one really late night there. Just to see the park so empty and walk on rides. That means we would not come back from our rest till night time but could be alot of fun.

 

[boomgoesthemickey]

thanks everyone for the input, definitely looking forward to it.

 

[LuvGoofy6]

MK late at night is THE best time, in my opinion. It's the time when people start leaving in droves and the wait times go down significantly. There will be rides that you'll be able to ride over and over and over again and sometimes the CMs will just ask if you want to stay on! It's an awesome time. The park is also beautiful at night.

This is our experience too! We just know that with 2 teenagers we will be sleeping in because we don't get back to the resort until 2:30. We are fine with that because it is very worth it to ride over and over again, being in the park at night and less crowds. It's our favorite time to be at the parks.

 

[disneywalkers]

We are homeschool night owls and up late every night at home. So late nights at Disney are a dream come true. We were there until 1 am nightly the week of thanksgiving 2014. It was awesome.

 

[Disneyland_emily]

As for why the website says one hour vs till the last guest for the busses.. Giving a definite time tells people the MAX they should stay so when the last guest gets to the bus at one hour and say 15 min the park is still clear 'on time' vs letting people get the idea they could potentially stay hours n hours (as a bus would hypothetically be there until they are ready..) causing issues letting cast go home,cleaning start etc..