Extra Magic Hours - Love 'em or Leave 'em?

[invelvetshoes]

Hi! First trip to Disney since 1987 coming up in September at POR. So much has changed since then!! I can't wait! Love this board!

Do the EMH days always stay the same?

And.... do you suggest GOING on an EMH day to that park, or avoiding the EMH? Will it really matter in mid-September?

Thanks!!

 

[chicknoodle99]

Hi there!

DH and I go frequently in Sept as Sept 11 is our anniversary. We were married in 1999. Anyway, WDW is my favorite so DH tries to take me there for our anniversaries.

The kids are back in school so its really not a bad time to go. DH hates crowds so its perfect for us and he enjoyes it so much more. Since early entry depends on which park and which days, we usually go because we like the early start to the day and we usually head to the hotel for a rest/swim/nap in the afternoon before venturing out at night.

I really dont remembering it ever being REALLY busy when we have been there (around the 2nd week of Sept) so early entry may not matter too much anyway. We seldom wait too long for lines and have actually got off Splash Mountain and walked right back on. DH has been able to do Space Mountain a few times in a row also. Of course, it all depends, but its not near as bad as peak times.

Enjoy your trip...we will be there Sept 14-19!

Stephanie

 

[CamColt]

As a family, we usually do EE at MK & AK. If it were just DH & I we would probably do MGM instead of MK as Fantasyland wouldnt be so important to us, and RNR & TOT would be priority. Then again if it were just DH & I we would probably be out a lot later at night and may not make it for any EMH.

In general we do Epcot & MGM on the days the other one has EE.

 

[candykisses]

We like the EMH. We are awake between 5 - 6 every morning anyhow, so we have breakfast and head to the EMH park. We stay to around !:00 and go back to the resort. We swim or nap and go back out for dinner.

 

[wdwgoofeeee]

It really depends on your family situation. If you have smaller children then you will probably want to use EMH at the MK for Fantasyland. If you have no children or they are older (like my almost 14yr old DS) we skip EMH there but use it for Epcot and the Studios.
I don't know about September, but during the summer when we hit the early opening park we stay there for a few hours and get out before it gets jammed.
I have read that there is not much to do at the AK during the EMH and most people suggest going on an non EMH day.
Unless they go back to the EMH test they did in May, days usually stay the same for each park.

 

[Geoff_M]

EMH at MK rocks. You can "blitz" Fantasyland in nothing flat. An hour or two later those same rides will show a 30+ minute wait time each. If your concern is that the crowds will be heavier at the EMH park, then show up and do EMH and if the crowds get outta hand... then park hop to another park.

 

[Leota]

At the beginning of the trip, I do EMH, as I'm still on my normal schedule of waking early....

After a couple days of playing hard & staying up late, I start sleeping in & skipping EMH.....

 

[arizonacolbys]

We take advantage of EMH every morning with the exception of Epcot. We don't feel there's enough to do there that early, especially since the World Showcase doesn't open until much later. I think EMH might be even better during the non-busy months like Sept. That way you can finish Fantasyland easily during the EMH & likely finish the rest of the MK by lunchtime. We have done this many times & then been able to enjoy a swim in the afternoon before heading to another park.

MGM our priorities are TOT, RNRC, & the Muppets.

AK we really enjoy doing the Safari first thing - especially on hot days - I think sometimes the animals are more active before they get too hot. Then we stroll some of the great paths & head over to do Dinosaur before the line gets out of hand (we also like to do this one on an empty stomach .) After we enjoy a breakfast at Donald's we can go to Tough to be a Bug and everything else we may not have done yet.

I am definitely a big fan of the EMH at WDW - I think you'll enjoy them, too!

 

[mic_key_mouse]

I use EMH at the MK. It may also be worth doing at MGM IF you do both ToT and RnRC). At the AK and Epcot it isn't worth it IMHO. Both parks are easier to tour more quickly and in a less crowded environment on non-EMH days.

Blessings.

 

[minmate]

I agree with the all of the above... in a nutshell EMH is good for MK (primarily Fantasyland) and possibly MGM (if RNR and TOT) are on your list... from there it depends on how long you're staying and what else is important to you. You can do just as well getting to a non-EMH park at their opening and getting in 2-3 faves before lines grow very long.


Best wishes!

 

[jacksonsmom]

I guess I am in the minority when it comes to EMH.
We for the most part avoid them. I have noticed crowd levels are higher on EMH days.

Example. On June 5th (Saturday) it was EMH at MGM. We decided to head over to Animal Kingdom. While waiting for the bus, there was a HUGE line for the MGM bus.
We got to Animal Kingdom & the crowd was very manageable. We were able to do every thing with minimual waits or just use a fastpass.
I felt the crowds were VERY manageable!

The same thing happened on Thursday when we went to Epcot. Epcot has EMH on Wednesdays, we decided to hit Epcot on Thursday instead & the crowds were very manageable.

So as a general rule we aviod EMH days because it seems that when everyone goes to the park