Multi Day tickets vs park hopper passes

[sharonabe]

I can't picture how that would work financially with the no expiration gone. For example, a 10 day park hopper ($456) is less expensive than a 5 day base ticket ($335) + 5 day park hopper ($403).

I think what PP means is some trips they get hoppers, some trips they get base tickets.

 

[leebee]

Back when park passes were good indefinitely (i.e., they NEVER expired), we almost always did park hoppers. We'd try to maximize our $$$ and stretch one set of tickets over 2 trips, so it was helpful to be able to park hop to save admission days (i.e., do AK and HS in one day, or do either in two separate mornings then hop to Epcot for dinner and the evening on both days, therefore having no actual Epcot "day," etc). Now that DD is older and we've discovered that our favorite restaurants are in the resort hotels, not the theme parks, we never get park hoppers. We just pick our park days and stay in that park all day/night, or leave for supper and return in the evening, because there is no way to have a non-expiring ticket anymore.

Besides, I figure, why spend the money up front? If we decide we NEED hoppers, we can add them... but we never do! We'd rather spend that money on something else (some frozen margaritas at 10pm, sitting on the Boardwalk, watching the boats, seeing the YC and BC all lit up... stuff like that!)

 

[loves to dive]

We have always gotten park hoppers, I have an AP now but DS does not. He gets the military discount, which you can only get 4 day tickets for, so he has to buy blocks but still gets park hoppers. There may be days when we don't hop but most of the time I start in one park and almost always end up at either Epcot or HS for a meal or just to shop. Like others have said, sometimes there are just circumstances that make it easier if you have them. If you are at MK and it's just too crowded for words, you hop over to another park and back to MK later.

 

[kappyfamily]

I'll be in the minority here. I always wait to see how we are feeling for that trip and just add the park hopper when/if we need them. Super easy to do. That way if we don't end up needing them it's not wasted. Have fun regardless!

 

[angierae]

No advance notice is needed to add the hopper feature. Instead of considering the rest of the day wasted you could go right to another theme park, upgrade your tickets, and go in.

BTW, if you are going to the Not So Scary party or similar, you don't need a hopper (or any other ticket at all) in addition to your party ticket. But if you are going to evening Extra Magic Hours, you do need a regular park ticket which under some circumstances may involve the hopping feature.

I'm aware of that. However, AK was our second to last day, and at that point it didn't seem worth it.

 

[BarbieGal457]

I refuse to go without park hoppers unless its a 1-2 day visit. We hate the idea of being locked to one park a day, so for us it really is worth the extra. We park hop almost every day so it really works out. I could see why some people don't like it but for us it's always been the way to go. We love the freedom of being able to dine anywhere, anytime, and if crowds are too heavy we can simply go elsewhere with the drop of a hat.

 

[seashoreCM]

I can't picture how that would work financially with the no expiration gone. For example, a 10 day park hopper ($456) is less expensive than a 5 day base ticket ($335) + 5 day park hopper ($403).

Works okay when you use just one hopper for one vacation, just one non-hopper for the next vacation, etc.

 

[Robo]

I like Hopping.

 

[Canuck16]

We always get hopper tickets when we go as it gives us way more flexibility to tour the parks.

We are a RD family so we would hit all the rides in one park in the morning when crowd levels were lower and make our FP+ for another park in the afternoon after we had a break when we knew the crowds would be heavier.

 

[Robo]

We buy both.

Can you please spell out exactly what tickets you buy for a single trip, and how you use them.

 

[subtchr]

We get the military salute tickets, so they come with hopper automatically (or WP&M, but we're not water park people generally). Even if we didn't get those tickets, we'd get hoppers, because when we travel to WDW as a family, we go at slower times of year, with shorter hours.

We are tentatively going December 8-11, and here are examples where having the hopper will greatly enhance our experience:

1. We do NOT plan to attend a MVMCP, which is being held December 8, 10, and 11. Which means Dec 9 will be much more crowded at the MK than the other days, and is the only day we can see Wishes and MSEP. With hoppers, we plan to go to the MK Dec 8, leave by about 4, when the party crowds start to arrive. Then we will hop to DHS to see the Osborne lights and F!.

2. On Dec 9, we will go to DHS until mid-afternoon, relax at the resort, and then hop to MK to see Wishes and stay for evening EMH.

Without hoppers, we would be "forced" into visiting the most crowded parks to see all the nighttime shows, which we love.

 

[Lucius Best]

Just curious how many people do with the regular multi day passes vs the park hopper passes. In the early stages of planning a trip for next November and didn't know which ones to go with.

Depends on the time of year, how you like to tour the parks, and how many in-park ADRs you're planning on making, etc. We used to always get park hoppers: do rope drop at whatever park was open early EMH, then hop to a less busy park or whatever park was open late, sometimes we'd hop to Epcot for dinner 4-5 nights out of the week. In recent years, with increased crowds and increased cost of dining, we've been avoiding EMHs, park hopping less, fewer ADRs, and having dinner at resort restaurants more.

Our last trip was first with FP+, and the first trip I can remember where we did not get park hoppers. Our strategy with FP+ was to book FP 10am/11am/12pm, and then start getting additional FPs at kiosks as early in the day as possible. There was always the option to upgrade to hoppers, but hard to justify the $64/person if we were going to hop only once or twice. Note we almost always go during low-crowd times, so we weren't worried about getting "stuck" at a crazy-busy park. If we were going during a busy period, we might think differently.

 

[newdeal]

If you are going for 5 days or more I would skip the hoppers, if you are going for 4 days or less I would get the hoppers because magic kingdom is a multi day park so then you could spend a day and a half there at least

 

[Pea-n-Me]

I can't picture how that would work financially with the no expiration gone. For example, a 10 day park hopper ($456) is less expensive than a 5 day base ticket ($335) + 5 day park hopper ($403).

Can you please spell out exactly what tickets you buy for a single trip, and how you use them.

We have some in our party who like to hop and some who prefer not to, so we buy a combination of ticket types. We have learned over the years that we like to do things around the world (and outside of the world) other than go in the parks so we usually buy the shorter number of day tickets to build in non-park days, if possible. We are ok with skipping a park here and there. Kids also like to go to Universal now, so we buy some of those.

As for the cost, I look at it sort of like buying a hamburger vs a value meal. It might make more sense financially to get the value meal, but then I get fries and a drink that I don't particularly want and I'm going to feel like I have to eat it. I know I'm better off with just the hamburger. It's the same with park tickets. It may be a better value to buy them differently but then I have more than I want and it's going to cost me in vacation/relaxation time, and money spent in the parks, etc.

It's just another way to look at it - from another park veteran. It's easy to get sucked into the Disney vortex via tickets.

BTW we've had trips buying mulit-day tickets where we haven't gotten hoppers, either. We found it made for a more relaxing trip just going to one park per day. But now that our kids are older and can go off on their own they will often go to three (as they did last month), or even four parks per day (as they did on their 16th bday).

 

[tluvstink]

We always bought PH in the past however we did not use them on our last trip. I was a little mad at myself for adding an expense we didn't need so on future trips I will add it while I'm there if necessary.

Terri

 

[bumbershoot]

We have some in our party who like to hop and some who prefer not to, so we buy a combination of ticket types.

It's just another way to look at it - from another park veteran. It's easy to get sucked into the Disney vortex via tickets.

But now that our kids are older and can go off on their own

OK, now all that makes a lot more sense. People, in the no-expiration days, would talk about having more than one set of tickets and using them based on what they were doing. But now it would have made no sense to do what it initially sounded like you were doing.

But you mean this person has a hopper, that person doesn't, etc. Because your party is old enough to do stuff on their own. Makes MUCH more sense now.

 

[goofyernmost]

What does this have to do with "MM+"...this has always been the case.

In fact, what is MM+?

True, but since FP is not set up in advance you have to take that more into consideration because if you don't and make your selections for MK and forget that you have an ADR for and Epcot Restaurant on the same day it becomes a problem.

Yes, it did happen that way before, but, since you weren't doing the FP setup 60 or 30 days out, it was a little easier to just go to the one park that had the ADR and not make a mistake and set yourself up for two parks in one day. It's a minor difference, but, one that needs to be pointed out to avoid a costly mistake at the most or a major disappointment at the least.

MM+ = My Magic+ the new system with Magic Bands and advance setups for everything, probably including bathroom visits.

 

[Geoff_M]

We used to always buy park hoppers, but FP+ changed that. With FPs limited to one park, it made no more sense to hop to us... particularly since it would have added about $450 to our costs.

 

[subtchr]

True, but since FP is not set up in advance you have to take that more into consideration because if you don't and make your selections for MK and forget that you have an ADR for and Epcot Restaurant on the same day it becomes a problem.

Yes, it did happen that way before, but, since you weren't doing the FP setup 60 or 30 days out, it was a little easier to just go to the one park that had the ADR and not make a mistake and set yourself up for two parks in one day. It's a minor difference, but, one that needs to be pointed out to avoid a costly mistake at the most or a major disappointment at the least.

MM+ = My Magic+ the new system with Magic Bands and advance setups for everything, probably including bathroom visits.

Ok...I guess...I have to admit while I have sympathy with those who become frustrated with the glitches and time investment that the new system requires (thanks for the reminder that the whole shebang can be referred to as MM+), I would have trouble engendering sympathy for someone who "forgets" that they have an ADR, and therefore want to visit that park that day.

 

[lindsmom]

We get hoppers usually, even though we go for longer (over 5 days) trips. My children are about as aware of time as a tse - tse fly, and so by having hoppers, they "magically" think they have spent two days in the park (a.m. one park, break, p.m. another park).

I'm not proud, but hey - my kids think they go for a ten day visit! Mwah hah hah......