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Rise and shine! Hop off the press — Disney World's Early Theme Park Entry benefit will debut Oct. 1, 2021! This benefit will give Walt Disney World Resort hotel guests access to any of the resort's theme parks — Disney's Hollywood Studios, Magic Kingdom, EPCOT and Disney's Animal Kingdom — 30 minutes before the parks open to the public. Get your to-do lists (and coffee!) ready!
While this new benefit is toadally exciting, there's more to know than which ride you're heading to first (though that's definitely also a priority). This benefit extends to select partner hotels, and Disney Deluxe and Villa guests will also have access to the parks on select nights after they close. So, what else should you know about Early Theme Park Entry and Extended Evening Theme Park Hours at Disney World? Let's jump in!
All About Disney World's Early Theme Park Entry Benefit
Extra Magic Hour benefits have been suspended since Walt Disney World's reopening last July. Instead, guests at official Disney Resort hotels and select Disney partner hotels will be able to enjoy 30-minute early entry to ANY theme park, EVERY day. Yep, this is a big change that has implications for all park-goers! The benefit will become available Oct. 1, 2021, just in time for Disney World's 50th Anniversary Celebration.
While giving on-site hotel guests more flexibility — and probably a better benefit than the original Extra Magic Hours, which was limited to one park each day — the new early theme park entry will also help Disney better spread visitation across all four theme parks. Note that hotel guests will still need valid admission and a park reservation made via the Disney Park Pass system to enter a theme park through January 2023. Don’t froget to jump over to our full reopening post for all of the details you need to know before you go!
For those who might have frogotten, Extra Magic Hours were extended theme park hours available to Disney World Resort hotel guests and some Disney partner hotel guests. Each day of the week, these hotel guests were typically allowed to enter one park one hour early or stay up to two hours later than non-hotel guests. Like EMH, this change will most likely impact all park-goers.
This new Disney early entry benefit will give hotel guests the flexibility to decide which park they want to visit 30 minutes ahead of regular park opening. By allowing hotel guests to enter all parks early, it will most likely lessen the benefit of arriving ahead of opening for non-hotel guests, who typically could have arrived at a non-EMH park and had a couple of hours with lower ride wait times.
Which Hotels Will Offer Disney Early Theme Park Entry?
All of Disney World's Resort hotels and Villas will offer Early Theme Park Entry beginning Oct. 1. The following non-Disney hotels have also been confirmed to offer the new Early Theme Park Entry benefit:
- B Resort Located in the Walt Disney World Resort
- DoubleTree Suites by Hilton Orlando
- Four Seasons Resort Orlando
- Hilton Orlando Bonnet Creek
- Hilton Orlando Buena Vista Palace
- Hilton Orlando Lake Buena Vista
- Holiday Inn Orlando
- Shades of Green on Walt Disney World Resort
- Waldorf Astoria Orlando
- Walt Disney World Swan Resort Hotel
- Walt Disney World Dolphin Resort Hotel
- Walt Disney World Swan Reserve (opening Sept. 2021)
- Wyndham Garden Lake Buena Vista Disney Springs
- Wyndham Lake Buena Vista
Which Hotels Will Offer Extended Evening Theme Park Hours?
Guests of Disney Deluxe or Deluxe Villa Resorts and a few select hotels will also have access to extended evening hours on select nights in select theme parks beginning in October (similar to evening Extra Magic Hours of years past). If you've been wanting to check out the reimagined rooms at either Disney's Contemporary Resort or Disney's Polynesian Village Resort, here's an extra perk! Here's a full list of participating hotels:
- Disney's Animal Kingdom Lodge and Jambo House and Kidani Village Villas
- Disney's Beach Club Resort and Disney's Beach Club Villas
- Disney's BoardWalk Inn and Disney's BoardWalk Villas
- Disney's Contemporary Resort and Bay Lake Tower at Disney's Contemporary Resort
- Disney's Grand Floridian Resort & Spa and The Villas at Disney's Grand Floridian
- Disney's Old Key West Resort
- Disney's Polynesian Village Resort and Disney's Polynesian Villas & Bungalows
- Disney's Riviera Resort
- Disney's Saratoga Springs Resort & Spa
- Disney's Wilderness Lodge and Boulder Ridge Villas and Copper Creek Villas
- Disney's Yacht Club Resort
- Walt Disney World Swan Resort Hotel
- Walt Disney World Dolphin Resort Hotel
- Walt Disney World Swan Reserve (opening Sept. 2021)
- Shades of Green on Walt Disney World Resort
The current schedule for Extended Evening Theme Park Hours is:
- Oct. 4: 10 p.m. to midnight at EPCOT
- Oct. 6: 9 p.m. to 11 p.m. at Magic Kingdom
- Oct. 11: 10 p.m. to midnight at EPCOT
- Oct. 13: 9 p.m. to 11 p.m. at Magic Kingdom
- Oct. 18: 10 p.m. to midnight at EPCOT
- Oct. 20: 9 p.m. to 11 p.m. at Magic Kingdom
- Oct. 25: 10 p.m. to midnight at EPCOT
- Oct. 27: 9 p.m. to 11 p.m. at Magic Kingdom
Guests will need valid admission and a Disney Park Pass reservation for the same park on the same day to experience extended evening hours. Or guests may visit with a ticket or annual pass with the Park Hopper option as long as they entered their first park where they made their reservation earlier in the day.
By the way, we offer discounts on hotel rooms at all of these Orlando hotels and more, so you can get a hop on the savings!
Much like EMH, guests will need to present some sort of resort ID, such as a MagicBand, Disney MagicMobile pass or Key to the World card linked to their stay to access the parks.
Disney also announced that it would be ending its Magical Express airport service, starting with arrivals Jan. 1, 2022. Free transportation options – such as buses, monorails and Disney Skyliner – will continue to be available within Walt Disney World Resort for Disney Resort hotel guests, including to and from all four theme parks. Some familiar faces will be visiting Walt Disney World Hotels during the 50th Anniversary Celebration, too — favorite Disney pals such as Goofy and Pluto will be dropping by in their EARidescent best to say hello!
While more information is still forthcoming, we are toadally excited for the opportunity to get a hop on our mornings with Early Theme Park Entry! What are your thoughts? Be sure to drop us a line in the comments below!
Related: Park Hopping Has Returned to Walt Disney World! Here's How It Works with Your Disney Park Pass
Hoppy planning!
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