May 4th crowds and re-entry

[anaconda]

Hello all,

For May the 4th… or any day for that matter:

Is there a rule that if we arrive at the park (let’s say 2pm) and leave for supper at Goofys, we are automatically guaranteed to re-enter when coming back to the park after supper? We know there is Star Wars night as well and would leave the park after the early Mickeys Magic.

Thanks for any advice.

 

[LKing]

They can close the park if it hits capacity. If you left, you are not guaranteed back in.

That said, I'm not sure that it will reach capacity the evening of Sunday May 4. Magic Key reservations are full on May 3 but are still available for May 4.

 

[anaconda]

Thank you.

Is 2pm even a risk? How frequently are they shutting down entry? Maybe waiting until May 5 is better but arriving and going into park May 4 works better for us.

 

[brightlined]

They can close the park if it hits capacity. If you left, you are not guaranteed back in.

I'm pretty sure they don't do that anymore - that's how it was in the days prior to reservations.

Under the reservation system, you're guaranteed full-day access to the park of your reservation - so if you start at DL, you'll be able to reenter at any point. What they do is restrict parkhopping - in that case, DCA guests would not be able to enter DL, but DL guests could still get back in. (A DCA guest who entered prior to the restriction could stay, but would not be able to get back in if they left.)

But on the other point - I think they've only ever done that on like NYE to make sure that all of DCA doesn't try to get into DL to watch the fireworks. Normal operations won't see that, and even May 4th isn't that level of a day anymore. (I think July 17th would be the closest to that, and I'm skeptical they'd resort to that, unless they were doing some kind of special fireworks at DL.)

 

[LKing]

I will never say never, but it is unlikely. The reservation system helps them estimate and control crowds.

The last time I experienced the gates being closed was when they brought back the Electric Parade in April 2022. I'm not sure that the park was truly at capacity, but 99% of the people inside the park had camped out along the parade route and it was difficult to get around. The parade crew wasn't going to set up ropes and direct traffic until much later in the day. I don't remember what time it was, but they closed the park to park hoppers and new entry. After the first parade, they let people exit and opened the gates for people who were waiting in the esplanade for the second show.

 

[anaconda]

According to Disney’s website , nothing is guaranteed , but as you refer to, it is unlikely to be closed. Thanks all.

 

[brightlined]

According to Disney’s website , nothing is guaranteed , but as you refer to, it is unlikely to be closed. Thanks all.

I was writing something longer, but that's basically what I was going to convey. It's not impossible - especially in the case of a safety concern - but I wouldn't change days to avoid that. (Even at MK/WDW on its 50th, one of the busiest days at any of the Disney parks, they simply stopped parkhopping for a few hours in the afternoon - they didn't outright close the park.)

For me, the question would be more if I wanted to go back into DL after 6pm, knowing that it's a Star Wars Nite. Since the schedule doesn't go that far out, I'm wondering what they'll do with fireworks that night. In April, they're running them at 7:30pm, but sunset isn't until 7:40pm that night. (I feel like I'd head over to DCA, but it's probably something I'd decide on the fly.)

On the upside, I'm wondering if the SWN guests will mostly head over to Galaxy's Edge for Fire of the RIsing Moons rather than hanging around on Main Street.

 

[disneychrista]

Nothing at Disneyland is guaranteed. While unlikely you will have an issue with getting back into the parks. Are you planning on going to the Star Wars Night on May 4th? The park will close at 8pm that night and Star Wars night guests can being entering the park at 6pm.

 

[anaconda]

We switched to DCA for the Sunday now, it just made the most sense for the trip as a whole. Thank you.

 

[hardcorestitch]

We switched to DCA for the Sunday now, it just made the most sense for the trip as a whole. Thank you.

May 4 has a Star Wars separate ticketed event. You made a good flex switching to DCA... I don't think they have anything separate for that night. Just get on your attractions there before 8pm, since after that time standby waits will get inflated. Even Lightning Lane will do you no good at that point.

 

[disneychrista]

May 4 has a Star Wars separate ticketed event. You made a good flex switching to DCA... I don't think they have anything separate for that night. Just get on your attractions there before 8pm, since after that time standby waits will get inflated. Even Lightning Lane will do you no good at that point.

There is in fact an after dark even at Disneyland on May 4th this year.

https://disneyland.disney.go.com/ev...:10|&msclkid=50c3ec0f30381d1ff5a28bc06a1748d3