To hop or not to hop....

[ms.ojo]

We have always had the hoppers. Our children are young (7 &4) and have been 4 times. Our trip earlier this mth was our 1st w/out hopping. I planned well, and for the most part we didn't miss it until... our last 2 days.

Fri at AK w/ evening EMH was a zoo!!!!!!!!!! We arrived late (normally never do that) and just found it miserable. VERY HOT and VERRRRRY CROWDED. We did the few key rides we wanted to like EE, Kali, etc...and bailed. I wish we could have hopped to another park. Instead we hit Downtown Disney and our hotel pool.

The next day (Sat) was our last day. We planned on doing MK bright and early for a few final favorites, figuring we'd be out before the crowds really got bad at lunchtime. Should mention this was Columbus Day weekend and MK had been closed early the last 2 nights for MNSSHP. We did our favorites and just couldnt' believe how crowded it was by 10am. By 11am we felt like the walking dead- shoulder to shoulder w/ the masses. We used up our FPs and left by 11:30 to relax at the hotel pool until our flight. Had we had hoppers, I would have abandoned MK at 10 and gone to Epcot.

The money we saved however paid for MNSSHP! And that was a great evening! What will we do next time? I'm not so sure. If I manage to squeeze in a trip in 2007, I'll probably skip the hoppers, but if I have to wait until 2008 to return....we're springing for the hoppers!

 

[cobbler]

I think it really si about touring preferences. We have bought AP's and have hardly hopped. I think maybe 1 time in the last 4 trips we did any hopping.

This year I was the only one to get an AP as I was taking an extra trip without hubby and the kids, they have non-hoppers and we will be just fine.

Just find a style that suits you and go with it.

 

[Our2Girls&Disney]

I agreee that most will say to hop. but our first time we got the hopper and never used it. Second time, we did not get it and did not miss it. This time, I am thinking HOP because like you said, we already know what we like and don't so, we cna use our time more valuably.

 

[Step]

We bought the hoppers and never used them at all. It was a waste of money considering we went in october and there simply were no crowds. It might be different if the parks had been busier and we wanted to leave.

 

[edwardsmt]

but a friend mentioned that when they park-hopped, it gave them some down time (the ride from park to park on their own or Disney transportation) and they weren't quite as tired at night.

 

[Twinprincesses]

We always hop the day we do Animal Kingdom since it closes early. Plus we enjoyed the Wishes fireworks so much that we hopped back to MK a couple times.

 

[mill4023]

but a friend mentioned that when they park-hopped, it gave them some down time (the ride from park to park on their own or Disney transportation) and they weren't quite as tired at night.

I could see this being true if we didn't have young kids.
But with 4 kids and the youngest being 2 yrs old, getting them all out of the park, onto a bus or into a car, and back into another park, is just too much work. On our first trip, we bought hoppers because everyone said we should, then we never hopped during the whole 10 night trip. On our second trip, we didn't buy them and didn't miss them.
For things like AK closing early, we like to take that opportunity to have a nice dinner(Boma the last 2 trips), then get to bed earlier that night. I could see getting hoppers if you wanted to use EMH's and not be stuck in the EMH park all day, but again, with young kids, touring the parks during the regular hours are tiring enough. I don't think getting up extra early or staying up extra late would work very well for us.

Once the kids are all older, it will be much easier to move from one park to another and they'll be able to stay up later and get up earlier, so I can see wanting to get hoppers. But for now, it just isn't something we need.

 

[minnierocks]

It depends on the length of your trip...
If you are only going to be there four days then it probably doesn't make sense to spend the extra $$$

We always get the option...I love options!!!
We usually spend a day at MGM, MK, and Epcot...but the AK closes early, so we still have time to get to another park...
Then on our extra days...day 4, 5, 6, 7 & 8....
we hop, hop, hop!!!

 

[NotSoMini]

The more we've gone to WDW, the less inclined we are to park hop. Our last vacation this past spring, we had seven day tickets with no hopping options, and we were delighted with this choice.

Our trips to the parks are more laid-back now - we meander between shows, attractions and rides, and don't feel the need to maximize our number of rides, for example, on anything.

However, if we had tickets for fewer days (say 3 or 4) we'd likely purchase the hopping option.

 

[tripletots]

We don't park hop mainly because of the cost because there are 7 of us. It really wasn't an option. We're going back in August and are not park hopping. The only time I could see using it would be after visiting AK because they close early. But I just see that as an opportunity to monorail ride or actually rest.

Good luck with your decision. And remember you can always add the hopper feature on after you are there.

 

[pepe of ohio]

My family has always used this feature. This is something that we enjoy doing. We almost always do one park in the morning and another one in the afternoon.

We do the same thing, one park morning and a different one in the evening then on another day we switch them around. Gives us mornings in every park and evenings too. Breaks up the monotony of staying in one park all day, plus if the park is crowded or fills up fast, we just hop to another. We seem to hop to EPCOT alot for this, not too many people like it or wait till evenings but its a big park and spread out better than the other 3.

 

[hollyb]

We don't park hop mainly because of the cost because there are 7 of us. It really wasn't an option. We're going back in August and are not park hopping. The only time I could see using it would be after visiting AK because they close early. But I just see that as an opportunity to monorail ride or actually rest.

Good luck with your decision. And remember you can always add the hopper feature on after you are there.

I did'nt know you good add once you buy the tickets. That is very cool!!! We will take that into consideration when we buy ours.

 

[Denicio]

Dear Java,

We ALWAYS have a park hopper BUT also have a stratgy!

We will plan our week out with each day and 2 parks per day and specific rides we plan on hitting.

Monday: MK (Space Mountain, Alien Encounter, Buzz, POTC) do lunch, then hop to Epcot (Mission Space, Honey Shrunk Aud, Soarin') then do dinner.

Breaking the parks us ASSURES us many Multi-Park Experiences and we always feel like we get our moneys worth. And by the end of the week, we will have done everything in each park...and some rides we will work in a 3rd and 4th ride (R&R Coaster anyone?)

Planning your "Plan of attack" is crucial. We dont plan down to the minute, but we have a scetch of what we'd like to do.

Plus it allows you to put a monorail in the middle of your day too....part of the disney experience for sure.

What we dropped this year is the 'and more' part of the passes. We generally dont have time to hit the water parks or Pleasure Island.

Good luck on planning,
Dennis

 

[U2_rocks!]

I did'nt know you good add once you buy the tickets. That is very cool!!! We will take that into consideration when we buy ours.

This is the reason we are buying non-hoppers - we know we can add hopping if we find we really, really want it! I have planned an itinerary that doesn't hop (if we take a break at lunch time we then go back to the same park for the evening), but if something happens to mess it up (illness etc.) and we find that our last couple of days (currently unplanned) need to be used to hit all the attractions we missed at all the parks, then we will consider adding hopping. It will be a judgement based on how badly we want to accomplish everything on our list, how much stamina we have left etc. I'd much rather do it this way than pay for hopping and not really need to use it. There are 5 of us, and the cost does add up! We will be there for 2 weeks as it is, and that's pretty costly already!

 

[MermaidMommy]

We've gotten park hoppers in the past when it was 7 days of Disney. This trip we're spending a few at Universal, so decided to get non-hoppers for DW. At a savings of $100 per person ($400) -- that's two thirds of the cost of our room at Pop Century! For that amount of money, we'll just have to "settle" for one park per day. We can manage

I'm a little confused. The way I'm reading this, it sounds like the poster is saying the hoppers are $100 per person. Aren't they $45 (added to the base price of the ticket), or am I mistaken?

 

[pezpam]

No, it's still $45 per person. Still not a bad savings if you won't hop.....

I do usually get the Hopper option, but it's just me and DD9. The $90 doesn't make or break the trip and we both really like the option. The first time we went, we really didn't use it and shouldn't have let friends talk us into getting it, but now we do. I don't like to plan my park days as far out as I plan my ADRs, so hopping lets us have an ADR anywhere and decide at the last minute which park we want to go to for the day. There are days when either DD or I wake up and just really want to do something different from what we'd planned. We've also had days where we just wanted to switch parks for some reason - crowds, catching fireworks at another park, a favorite ride, etc. I guess we use it enough that just having it for peace of mind is worth it to us. All depends on your style of WDW travel.....

 

[supersuperwendy]

We always stay at an Epcot resort and wind up spending our evenings at Epcot...therefore we get hopppers! There have also been many times we'll walk to and through Epcot then jump on the monorail to MK! That is really nice during the food and wine fest!!!!

 

[MissionMouse]

We always get the hopper. We also have small children and it is not a hard task to jump from one park to another. Sometimes we go to one park in the morning (Early Entrance), go back to the resort for their nap and hit another park afterwards. It also comes in handy on the late night park offering planning too. Other times we use the hopper to allow us to dine in various locations around WDW. While other times it just allows us to change our plans and hit another park where everyone wants to visit. We find the hooper option has value, providing a piece of mind that allows us to change our plans for the day without notice or further thought or hesitation.

 

[hollyb]

Can someone please help me? I have tried to figure out how much the park hoppers are and the non park hoppers would be. I am so bad at math and all the numbers are giving me a migraine. This is what we looking to do.

5 nights 6 days
2 adults, dd6,ds9.

Want to do: MK,AK, Epcot and a water park. We are leaving some down time just in case.

Thank you so much.

 

[mickeyluv'r]

We always get the hop feature, but it isn't for everyone. I'm glad Disney made it a feature you can choose to add. Our family likes to take advantage of EMH and extended hours at MK. Often we have to go during the more crowded times of year, so being able to hop into MK after dinner until midnight is a big plus. It's during those hours that we're often able to hit a lot of the rides quickly, especially if we skip the parade.

I also see it as insurance. Sometimes you get lucky and crowds aren't bad. AS a first timer, you wouldn't knwo what type of croeds to expect, so it woudl be impossible to judge - but the more you go, the more you know what to expect -so you can judge when a park is more crowded than it ought to be, and when it's time to bail and trnsfer to another park. WE don't always need it, but it's nice to havet to option to switch parks.

Keep in mind for your next trip, youcan always add the option after your at WDW. So if you don't think you'll need it, don't ge it unless you do decide you want to use it.