MK/Fantasyland “Early Morning Magic” (EMM) (Thread Now Closed, See New MK EMM FAQ Thread)

[TheFloatingBear]

Seems the dark side is causing your current predicament!

And you know what they say...

"If once you start down the dark path, forever will it dominate your destiny..."

So, I'll probably miss it next spring too. I do, however, appreciate all of the information that you provide, even though reading this thread is making it tougher to pass up!

ETA: To be clear, we're really excited for Universal, just wishing I could flip things!

 

[mmtwinmama]

With some hustle and a little luck, seems pretty doable to get all of that done pretty quickly.

Except I question "x2" on Buzz!

I might even skip Buzz and head straight across the park to BTMR. Do Buzz later before you leave for your rest, or later that night.

I actually don't think eating pre-9AM is that bad an idea. I think some can hit a "saturation point" with the three rides where you're like "ok, this is great, but do I really want to ride AGAIN?" Nothing wrong with grabbing a bite and then hitting rope drop hard at 9AM! I love the 9-11 time frame and think those minutes are GOLD in the park!

Just a quick clarification, you are let in the front gates at 7:45ish. So you'll (unfortunately) eat 10ish minutes of EMM time just walking back to Fantasyland. You may know that, just want to be sure.

Have fun!

Thanks for the input. Buzz is a must. My boys (16-twins) battle to see who can max out first. They would rather do that than anything else. Wackos.
I think we will try this plan. And if Splash is too long of a wait we will skip that. But I even think if it's a 30 min wait we would do it.

 

[SanderMC]

Thanks for putting this together @GADisneyDad14 . It's extremely informative!
Please add my family to the list for the following dates:
Jan 28
May 8
May 15

 

[nicolispicoli]

I'm a bit hesitant to answer your first part because I don't have first hand experience (we've always been on site at a MK resort every time we've done EMM). Unfortunately when coming via car, the MK parking lot logistics add a bit of an unknown element to the timing. You need to park, then walk or tram to the TTC (I'm assuming that early you're close enough to walk easily?), go through security, then take the Ferry or Express Monorail to MK. I 'think' I'd be aiming to be AT the TTC around 7 at the latest (note, not pulling in the parking lot, I mean out of your car and AT the TTC ready to pick a mode of transportation to the MK). Hopefully someone who comes via car commonly can be a bit more confident in a proper strategy!



We target to be eating more like 9:50 so we can cover a some rides between 9-9:50. A few times we've run off to BTMR, then back to HM, then eat. I think once we did BTMR, SM, HM, then ate - but SM takes up a bunch of time so that's a bit risky. I'd recommend utilizing that time to hit some high demand rides first thing, that way you won't have to use a FP on them later.

When done with breakfast, we'll usually go to a certain area... maybe finish FL as you suggest, hit Tomorrowland since it's not far, etc Different schools of thought on this, but I prefer to book my FPs early and to the point where I'm actually USING my first FP towards the end of the hour and can then use my second at the beginning of that hour shortly therafter. I like to get the three done quickly so I can then search for others on the spot. Some people like to save FPs for later in the day when crowds are more intense.

Hope all of that makes sense - if any of it doesn't don't hesitate to ask!

Thank you SO much!

 

[steve_rob]

Seems like most of this group has done EMM before, so I have a question for our EMM arrival. We are staying off site (a rented house in Kissimmee) about 9 miles away. If you were doing that, what would be your plan of attack to arrive in time to make the 7:45 entry? We do have free parking, though I don't even know the logistics of parking at MK and how long it takes to get parked and to the actual gates. From checking out the maps, there seem to be a few options close by, so I'm curious to what vets would do in my situation.

We're in the same boat as you, as we're staying off-site at a hotel near SeaWorld on our EMM day. As I haven't been before, I can't tell you definitely what to do, but I can at least say what our plan is and you can see if that works for you or not.

We intend to be arriving at the Magic Kingdom parking toll booths at about 6:50am. We've done an early-ish arrival at MK by car before (probably about 7:45am?) and even then we were parked in the second row, so I'd be surprised if we weren't in the first row at 7am. It will take you under 5 minutes to drive to your parking spot from the toll booths and then another 5 minutes maximum to walk to the TTC itself - even if there was a tram available, I think you'd beat it there by walking under the bridge. Security shouldn't have a queue at this time in the morning, so I can't see that taking any time at all.

The resort monorail apparently starts running at 7am, so that is an option, but there are reports that they aren't very frequent first thing, so if there is a ferry there (or about to dock), we'd probably take that as our first choice. Just in case, allocate 10 minutes for your choice of transportation to arrive at the TTC and another 10 for it to travel to the Magic Kingdom and that will mean you should be getting to the park tapstiles at about 7:20-7:30 - or at least that's the plan!

 

[nicolispicoli]

We're in the same boat as you, as we're staying off-site at a hotel near SeaWorld on our EMM day. As I haven't been before, I can't tell you definitely what to do, but I can at least say what our plan is and you can see if that works for you or not.

We intend to be arriving at the Magic Kingdom parking toll booths at about 6:50am. We've done an early-ish arrival at MK by car before (probably about 7:45am?) and even then we were parked in the second row, so I'd be surprised if we weren't in the first row at 7am. It will take you under 5 minutes to drive to your parking spot from the toll booths and then another 5 minutes maximum to walk to the TTC itself - even if there was a tram available, I think you'd beat it there by walking under the bridge. Security shouldn't have a queue at this time in the morning, so I can't see that taking any time at all.

The resort monorail apparently starts running at 7am, so that is an option, but there are reports that they aren't very frequent first thing, so if there is a ferry there (or about to dock), we'd probably take that as our first choice. Just in case, allocate 10 minutes for your choice of transportation to arrive at the TTC and another 10 for it to travel to the Magic Kingdom and that will mean you should be getting to the park tapstiles at about 7:20-7:30 - or at least that's the plan!

Thank you, that is very helpful! I didn't really think of all these logistics when booking EMM. Getting 12 people out of the house and there by 6:50 will be my new mission in life

 

[Nala83]

I have EMM booked for January. I'm staying at POP and relying on Disney transportation. The confirmation email says that guests staying at wdw resorts will have transportation but I'm nervous...anybody tried using buses? Would I need to confirm somehow? I REALLY don't want to be late.

 

[KrazeeK120]

I have EMM booked for January. I'm staying at POP and relying on Disney transportation. The confirmation email says that guests staying at wdw resorts will have transportation but I'm nervous...anybody tried using buses? Would I need to confirm somehow? I REALLY don't want to be late.

We did EMM in May. We weren’t at Pop, but we did use a bus from our resort and made it in plenty of time. I believe we were at the bus stop around 7 (Wilderness Lodge). They start running buses early to get people to PPO ADRs.

 

[GADisneyDad14]

Thanks for putting this together @GADisneyDad14 . It's extremely informative!
Please add my family to the list for the following dates:
Jan 28
May 8
May 15

Ok, I’ll state the obvious... you must REALLY like EMM!

Have fun!

 

[GADisneyDad14]

I have EMM booked for January. I'm staying at POP and relying on Disney transportation. The confirmation email says that guests staying at wdw resorts will have transportation but I'm nervous...anybody tried using buses? Would I need to confirm somehow? I REALLY don't want to be late.

Disney park buses start running every day of the year around 6:30ish, so you should be fine. You will see statements such as “buses start running 45 minutes before park opening” throughout Disney literature, but this is laughably wrong.

Uber/Lyft/Taxi can give you more specific control over your timing, but otherwise I wouldn’t worry about taking the bus if you leave adequate time to account for waiting for a bus, etc.

 

[SanderMC]

Ok, I’ll state the obvious... you must REALLY like EMM!

Have fun!

Actually we've never done it before. However with everything we've heard and our trip in May being offsite I thought it was a good use of money to get some popular rides in with little wait.

 

[tarak]

For those interested in June, they just added dates for the 10th and 12th. I booked it on the 12th for four of our party (my husband and oldest daughter aren’t interested).

Oops - I see the first page is already updated with that info!

 

[SarahC97]

I just booked Jan 28, but I have to admit I'm still perplexed about when the best time to eat would be. My impulse was to eat closer to 10, but now I'm seeing that eating before 9 may be the way to go so we can enjoy other attractions with short lines at rope drop. Hmmm...

 

[steve_rob]

Thank you, that is very helpful! I didn't really think of all these logistics when booking EMM. Getting 12 people out of the house and there by 6:50 will be my new mission in life

To be honest, you could probably get there at 7am, maybe even 7:10 and still make it to EMM in plenty of time - I've built a lot of leeway into my timings because I'm a very "just in case" sort of person! Also I'm lucky that there's only the two of us on this trip - I know how hard it can be with a larger group trying to get everyone organised of a morning!

 

[GADisneyDad14]

I just booked Jan 28, but I have to admit I'm still perplexed about when the best time to eat would be. My impulse was to eat closer to 10, but now I'm seeing that eating before 9 may be the way to go so we can enjoy other attractions with short lines at rope drop. Hmmm...

I’m generalizing, but ‘most’ people are going to squeeze out every last second of EMM time so aren’t going to eat pre-9AM. That’s what we’ve typically done, even if I’m borderline sick from too many 7DMT rides on an empty/only coffee-filled stomach!

Since you don’t really get back to Fantasyland until 7:55ish, that roughly hour of time will go by very quickly!

 

[SarahC97]

I’m generalizing, but ‘most’ people are going to squeeze out every last second of EMM time so aren’t going to eat pre-9AM. That’s what we’ve typically done, even if I’m borderline sick from too many 7DMT rides on an empty/only coffee-filled stomach!

Since you don’t really get back to Fantasyland until 7:55ish, that roughly hour of time will go by very quickly!

So do you think hitting a few other rides after 9 and then going to eat at about 9:30/9:45 is a good plan? My fastpasses don't start until 10:45.

 

[GADisneyDad14]

So do you think hitting a few other rides after 9 and then going to eat at about 9:30/9:45 is a good plan? My fastpasses don't start until 10:45.

I have generally tried to eat more like 9:50AM. At rope drop we’ll run off to some rides, then circle back. We’ve done things like BTMR, HM, then back to eat. One time we did BTMR, SM, HM, then back to eat - but SM is a long ride that ate up a lot of time and made that timeline very tight.

I think the 9-9:45 time is a great window to go hit some other rides first thing, which can then help maximize FP usage later in the day.

Have fun!

 

[SarahC97]

I have generally tried to eat more like 9:50AM. At rope drop we’ll run off to some rides, then circle back. We’ve done things like BTMR, HM, then back to eat. One time we did BTMR, SM, HM, then back to eat - but SM is a long ride that ate up a lot of time and made that timeline very tight.

I think the 9-9:45 time is a great window to go hit some other rides first thing, which can then help maximize FP usage later in the day.

Have fun!

Thanks for the advice!!

 

[kmc8826]

I agree that the best option is to do all the EMM rides you want and then at 9 when the rest of the park opens do some other things. When D9 and I did it in August we went and rode Buzz a couple times and then did Flying Carpets and Jungle Cruise. We then were at breakfast about 10. At 9 though before we headed out of Fantasyland we went in and grabbed a couple muffins and croissants. The CM's were good with us taking some food and then heading back out...they just said we will see you soon when you come back for the rest of your breakfast. So just an option if you have someone in your party that is fading fast and needs nourishment...

 

[ArielSRL]

I just booked us for Sunday, 06/10! (I know so very early, but I loved it in Sept. and don't want to miss out! )

I wonder if week before did not have EMM due to it being a busy time for Gay Days? And there will be 8am openings?

Also, just wanted to mention, I was not able to make any PPO times for BOG. The earliest my whole trip was 9am. It wasn't even an option on the 10th where EMM would guarantee a 9am opening. If they do away with the BOG PPO option, I wonder what the impact on EMM would be? Or maybe something new is coming? Who knows!

They did not offer the first week of June this year and no 8am openings on either of those days (Sunday and Tuesday). I know bc we were there that week and we went to MK on both of those days.