Extended Evening Hours

[kimwoje]

It really does feel like Disney is actively trying to break the pre-planning mentality that a lot of us have with WDW trips.

 

[Delirium]

agreed....this perk is useless for small children....on these nights the park should close at 7pm for the general public and stay open 7 - 10 for deluxe guests....that would help the little kiddo's

When my kids were smaller, they loved being in the park from 11:00-1:00. So, no it's not useless. They would much rather stay up late and walk on rides than wait in lines in the hot sun during the middle of the day. Sure, if parents, have their kids at the park for rope drop, let them swim 3-4 hours at the pool, schedule a character breakfast early the following morning, etc. the kids will be tired.

But, careful planning of that day and the day after and even young kids can have a wonderful time on those late nights. Many of our best memories as a family occurred during those late nights at Magic Kingdom.

 

[abtahime]

When my kids were smaller, they loved being in the park from 11:00-1:00. So, no it's not useless. They would much rather stay up late and walk on rides than wait in lines in the hot sun during the middle of the day. Sure, if parents, have their kids at the park for rope drop, let them swim 3-4 hours at the pool, schedule a character breakfast early the following morning, etc. the kids will be tired.

But, careful planning of that day and the day after and even young kids can have a wonderful time on those late nights. Many of our best memories as a family occurred during those late nights at Magic Kingdom.

im glad this worked for your family, but I think most people with young kids will tell you that this was the exception, and not the rule. I don’t care what I do (or don’t do for that matter) during the day, my toddler and 6 year old aren’t going to be awake at midnight - it’s just not physically feasible for their little bodies. Their sleep clocks don’t simply change on a dime like that. And it seems even for families for kids who can achieve this, they have to alter both their day of and after to catch up on downtime and sleep. So even if you can technically take advantage you have to give up some of otherwise good and usable time. Forgive me, but that’s not really a perk for a lot of families, and shouldn’t be advertised as such.

 

[Pinnochio]

Disney can fill deluxe resorts easily. They would lose out on a lot of money (dinner, snacks, souvenir shopping) by closing to everyone but deluxe at 7pm.

I get that point but gee, is it always about money....don't they already make billions?......i think they could afford this little perk for the kiddies....after all, those kiddies will become future customers....

 

[MainMom]

im glad this worked for your family, but I think most people with young kids will tell you that this was the exception, and not the rule. I don’t care what I do (or don’t do for that matter) during the day, my toddler and 6 year old aren’t going to be awake at midnight - it’s just not physically feasible for their little bodies. Their sleep clocks don’t simply change on a dime like that. And it seems even for families for kids who can achieve this, they have to alter both their day of and after to catch up on downtime and sleep. So even if you can technically take advantage you have to give up some of otherwise good and usable time. Forgive me, but that’s not really a perk for a lot of families, and shouldn’t be advertised as such.

Getting up early for EE also isn’t a perk for some families. My family has only ever tried to do one of the extra evening hours and we bailed after an hour. It just wasn’t for us. However, we were at every morning EE. Just because the evening perk didn’t work for me doesn’t mean it’s still not a perk.

 

[abtahime]

Getting up early for EE also isn’t a perk for some families. My family has only ever tried to do one of the extra evening hours and we bailed after an hour. It just wasn’t for us. However, we were at every morning EE. Just because the evening perk didn’t work for me doesn’t mean it’s still not a perk.

I get that, and obviously no perk is going to be convenient for everyone. Sure, waking myself up at 6:30 every day may not be ideal, or families with teens may not utilize it because their kids want to sleep to 10am, but in CAN be done. It’s at least usable for everyone even if not ideal for some. But I’m not really talking about lack of convenience with extended evening hours 11-1. I’m talking about a literal inability to use it. I’m not saying their aren’t some families who can’t use it, maybe even a handful with small kids. But it’s just physically not possible for many at those times. And when you are paying $700+/night and the advertised hours and/or days of the posted hours change within a couple weeks of your trip you’ve been pre planning for months making something you thought you paid for now unusable really stinks.

 

[MonaMN]

It really does feel like Disney is actively trying to break the pre-planning mentality that a lot of us have with WDW trips.

Which would be fine if it was more possible to make dining reservations, park reservations, etc at the last minute… but they have created a scenario that combines the worst of both worlds: forcing some things to be planned pretty far out but not allowing others to happen until day of. All of this equals extra frustration.

 

[wdhinn89]

Getting up early for EE also isn’t a perk for some families. My family has only ever tried to do one of the extra evening hours and we bailed after an hour. It just wasn’t for us. However, we were at every morning EE. Just because the evening perk didn’t work for me doesn’t mean it’s still not a perk.

Agreed! My family does not do early mornings so the EE isn't a perk for us. Now there is something available for the morning families and the late night families.

 

[DJFan88]

I get that point but gee, is it always about money....don't they already make billions?......i think they could afford this little perk for the kiddies....after all, those kiddies will become future customers....

Not sure all of the people who are also paying a lot of money but cannot afford deluxe would be too pleased if now they have to leave the park early.

 

[gkeable]

To me those 2 hour EEH just seem too attractive a perk NOT to plan around. And by that I don't mean full on days and then hope that the kids are still up for it at 2200/2300, I mean don't go to the park at all until 1600-ish maybe even later. I just think 30 mins in the morning is a bit of a joke, especially with increased rope droppers generally. Should be at least an hour, even 2.

 

[zillayen]

Agreed! My family does not do early mornings so the EE isn't a perk for us. Now there is something available for the morning families and the late night families.

Same here! There is 0% chance my night owl husband is getting up early for an extra 30 minutes in the park, but the late night works well for us! We're going to shift our schedule later the days before and have the kids sleep in / break / nap whatever we need to have them push it late that night.

 

[Neverbeast]

We are not morning people either. I appreciate having a later option. When we did a Halloween party late night with my 2 and 6 year olds they each took a nap in the stroller for part of the evening but enjoyed the evening immensely. Now with 7, 9, 10, 11, and 17 year olds the EE are what we’re most looking forward to.

BUT all of that is contingent on being able to plan for them! If we have to adjust our rest before and after that all becomes much more of a hassle than a perk. I think for all it’s failings, the best part of early morning entry is that it’s every park every night. If EE was every park every night it would give back that flexibility.

 

[abtahime]

To me those 2 hour EEH just seem too attractive a perk NOT to plan around. And by that I don't mean full on days and then hope that the kids are still up for it at 2200/2300, I mean don't go to the park at all until 1600-ish maybe even later. I just think 30 mins in the morning is a bit of a joke, especially with increased rope droppers generally. Should be at least an hour, even 2.

Totally agree the morning hours for on sight guests need to be extended. It would help capacity throughout the day, seems like a no brainer. Especially in HS

 

[Pinnochio]

Not sure all of the people who are also paying a lot of money but cannot afford deluxe would be too pleased if now they have to leave the park early.

Agree to that but extra magic hours are once a week....they can always go to the MK on another night

 

[T.G.I.Friday]

We *want* to use the evening hours, but it’s very hard to plan in advance for the Magic Kingdom. First, they moved them from the typical Wednesday to Tuesday for our trip. While a bit of an inconvenience, we were far enough out to adapt. Now, we are 3 weeks out, and I don’t know the hours. Should I assume they will stay 9-11? Or will they extend the park hours as they have done for the past few weeks? Will they be 10-12 or the full 11-1? I assume we will find out Friday, but for our family, what time we head to MK, how long of an afternoon break we take and what our plans are for the next morning are all significantly contingent upon the hours. None of this is insurmountable, but it just makes the ability to plan our days in advance a little harder.

Not going to lie, I’m getting older and a late night on Monday at Epcot and then on Tuesday at MK are going to take a toll on me!

 

[MainMom]

Agree to that but extra magic hours are once a week....they can always go to the MK on another night

Unless they have a 4 day trip with no hoppers and one park per day.

 

[Tbella]

Just came back from a WDW trip. The extended evening hours at MK last week were almost useless the first hour. I was standing behind a group of 8 people who were boasting that only 2 of them were staying at the Beach Club while the rest were off site. When it came time for them to scan in, the cast member scanned the first person and asked how many in the party, he said 8. All were let on the ride. When I made the cast member aware of this, I was told that it was the way it is done now because "guest satisfaction surveys," showed that this was the preferred method for guests. I found the half hour early entry at MK useless as well. With only Fantasyland and Tomorrowland open, the lines were instantaneously long. Through reading these boards and listening to multiple Disney podcasts, I expected crowds, but not Christmas break crowds. It really is ridiculous that Disney requires park reservations but doesn't seem to be limiting capacity at all.

 

[zillayen]

Just came back from a WDW trip. The extended evening hours at MK last week were almost useless the first hour.

That sounds so frustrating! Were they 9-11 or 11-1?

 

[pigletto]

.

 

[kc51570]

Just came back from a WDW trip. The extended evening hours at MK last week were almost useless the first hour. I was standing behind a group of 8 people who were boasting that only 2 of them were staying at the Beach Club while the rest were off site. When it came time for them to scan in, the cast member scanned the first person and asked how many in the party, he said 8. All were let on the ride. When I made the cast member aware of this, I was told that it was the way it is done now because "guest satisfaction surveys," showed that this was the preferred method for guests. I found the half hour early entry at MK useless as well. With only Fantasyland and Tomorrowland open, the lines were instantaneously long. Through reading these boards and listening to multiple Disney podcasts, I expected crowds, but not Christmas break crowds. It really is ridiculous that Disney requires park reservations but doesn't seem to be limiting capacity at all.

I would contact guest relations and let them know your experience and the CM’s reply. I don’t think a generic guest satisfaction survey is dictating the correct procedure for a CM to scan wrist bands at Deluxe after hours. Sounds like a CM taking license on feedback on what could be a completely different area and applying how he/she sees fit.