Staying at a Disney World hotel certainly comes with its benefits and extra time in the parks is one of the biggest perks there is!
If you visited Disney World prior to 2020, you probably remember Extra Magic Hours. This perk offered guests staying at all Disney hotels the ability to enter a park 1 hour before the park opened or stay 1 hour after the park closed on select dates at specific theme parks. Well, after a long pause on the perk, Disney completely changed how it worked in 2021 and created TWO different benefits – Early Theme Park Entry and Extended Evening Theme Park Hours.
With Early Theme Park Entry, every guest staying at any Disney World hotel (and select off-property hotels) can enter every single theme park 30 minutes early any day of the week. So, instead of checking the My Disney Experience app and planning your park days around which specific ones are offering extra time each day, it’s a lot simpler – just pick your park and start riding rides 30 minutes earlier than everyone else!
Here are all the Disney Resorts that provide you with access to Early Theme Park Entry in Disney World:
- Disney’s All-Star Movies Resort
- Disney’s All-Star Music Resort
- Disney’s All-Star Sports Resort
- Disney’s Art of Animation Resort
- Disney’s Pop Century Resort
- The Campsites at Disney’s Fort Wilderness Resort
- Disney’s Caribbean Beach Resort
- Disney’s Coronado Springs Resort
- Disney’s Port Orleans Resort – French Quarter
- Disney’s Port Orleans Resort – Riverside
- The Cabins at Disney’s Fort Wilderness Resort
- Disney’s Animal Kingdom Lodge
- Disney’s Beach Club Resort
- Disney’s BoardWalk Inn
- Disney’s Contemporary Resort
- Disney’s Grand Floridian Resort & Spa
- Disney’s Polynesian Village Resort
- Disney’s Wilderness Lodge
- Disney’s Yacht Club Resort
- Bay Lake Tower at Disney’s Contemporary Resort
- Boulder Ridge Villas at Disney’s Wilderness Lodge
- Copper Creek Villas & Cabins at Disney’s Wilderness Lodge
- Disney’s Animal Kingdom Villas – Jambo House
- Disney’s Animal Kingdom Villas – Kidani Village
- Disney’s Beach Club Villas
- Disney’s BoardWalk Villas
- Disney’s Old Key West Resort
- Disney’s Polynesian Villas & Bungalows
- Disney’s Riviera Resort
- Disney’s Saratoga Springs Resort & Spa
- The Villas at Disney’s Grand Floridian Resort & Spa
- Walt Disney World Dolphin Hotel
- Walt Disney World Swan Hotel
- Walt Disney World Swan Reserve
- Shades of Green on Walt Disney World Resort
Prefer to stay off-site? Here are all the off-site hotels near Disney that provide you with access to Early Theme Park Entry in Disney World:
- DoubleTree Suites by Hilton Orlando
- Hilton Orlando Buena Vista Palace
- Hilton Orlando Lake Buena Vista
- Holiday Inn Orlando
- Wyndham Garden Lake Buena Vista
- Wyndham Lake Buena Vista
- Four Seasons Resort Orlando
- Signia by Hilton Orlando Bonnet Creek
- Waldorf Astoria Orlando
- B Resort & Spa Lake Buena Vista (Only available through December 31st, 2023)
- Drury Plaza Hotel Orlando Lake Buena Vista (Only available through December 31st, 2023)
So, as you can see, Early Theme Park Entry is a perk that any guest staying at any Disney World hotel can take advantage of. PLUS, some off-site hotels (also known as Disney Good Neighbor Hotels) can even get in on the benefits!
Now, 30 extra minutes in the morning may not seem like a lot if you’re used to Extra Magic Hours, but you just need to be a bit more strategic to really maximize that time! The park will usually open about 30 minutes prior to the posted early entry time (so 60 minutes before the park officially opens for the day). This means that you can deal with the crowds at the main entrance well before you’re able to actually get in line for rides.
Once Early Theme Park Hours begin, just look for the signs inside the park leading you to the Cast Members who will scan your MagicBand or park ticket and let you into the areas where you can start riding rides. You can see the full list of attractions that are usually open here.
Don’t forget that you will still need to have a valid park ticket and park pass reservation for the park that you intend to take advantage of early theme park entry prior to visiting. And, stay tuned to The VacationEAR for more on how to maximize your Disney World hotel stay!