When Parks Open Early

[fant98]

WHICH PARK SHOULD YOU GO TO FOR EARLY OPENING. ALL OR JUST SOME AND IS IT REALLY LESS CROWDED AT THIS TIME IN THE MORNING. ARE ALL THE RIDES RUNNING OR JUST SOME.

 

[Harambe]

Only one park per day has the Early Magic Hour (EMH), and only a certain number of rides are open then. For example, MGM has Star Tours, RRC, and ToT open - but you can't see the Indiana Jones Show. Magic Kingdom has most of Fantasyland, but also Space Mountian, BuzzLight Year, Splash Mountain and Big Thunder. So when you do EMH here you have to decide which part of the park you want to go to so you can really enjoy that first hour. You're not going to be able to do all the rides in MK without running and stressing out. MK is EMH two mornings a week (Thur. and Sun.?) so do both.

We don't typically do EMH at Epcot, but now with Mission Space, we may decide to try it!

 

[MAGICinMYHEART]

We also do AK for the Kilimanjaro Safaris because the animals seem to be more active earlier in the day. Plus AK just is so humid and hot by 1:00pm I'm ready to go back to the resort and cool off.
But that would only be from March-October here in Florida.

 

[JamesD]

You can find a list of Extra Magic Hour days and attractions open on this site. Here is the link: Early Entry You must be a resort guest and you usually have to show your resort ID at the gate.
By far, the best park to take advantage of Extra Magic Hour is the Magic Kingdom, probably followed by MGM Studios, then Animal Kingdom and Epcot. The important thing to remember is, if you are going to an Extra Magic Hour park, get there early (before 8 am), and ride as many attractions as you can before the official opening. The extra hour opening will cause that park to busier than the others later in the morning, so if you're not going to arrive early, then it would be wiser to pick another park and be there at the 9 am opening. We usually choose this tactic, and go to a less busy park and see just as much.
But as always, your mileage may vary!

 

[Armadillo4]

While reading some of the recent trip reports, one user posted that the parks with Magic Hour openings seemed more crowded than usual. Could the Magic Hour become so popular that it becomes counter-productive?

We'll be going next weekend for our first visit in nearly 4 years, and I can't wait! We have currently planned to visit the appropriate parks on their Magic Hour days (and getting their early), but that trip report put a sliver of doubt in my mind. Has anyone else tried the Magic Hour recently? Did the crowds seem high for early entry?

Thanks,
Carlos

 

[Harambe]

Still do the EMH! If the scheduled park is slated to open at 9am, be there at 7:30am. You'll get in and get tons done before the crowds beef up. Clear out by 11:30-ish. Go somewhere else for lunch or back to your resort.