To Park hop or not to park hop?

[ItsBril]

I haven't seen a thread on this yet (so sorry if there is one) I am planning my first ever trip to WDW for this December, and I will be traveling with my fiance (27) and a few friends (all 25-28) **We want to do Disney before kids come along** But, I have seen so many different options on the Parks. I've read that there is so much to do in one park. You don't really need to pay for the park hopping. Any tips?

 

[ravenclawtrekkie]

Since you've never been to the parks before, you'll probably find plenty to do in each one, especially if you guys want to watch the shows and live entertainment.

My advice: Don't pre-purchase park hoppers. If you get there and decide you want to hop, you can upgrade your tickets at that time. That way, you haven't paid for something you might not use.

 

[minnie mum]

This is a very frequent question, especially from WDW newbies, and I agree completely with ravensclawtrekkie. On other threads you see lots of Disers who wouldn't dream of going to WDW without PHs. But these are the folks who are very familiar with the parks and are just hitting a couple of rides in one place before moving to another park for more rides or dining. Once AK begins its new night time safari and Rivers of Light show all of the parks will truly be "all day parks".

Unless you are going to be there for a long stay ( more than a week), I wouldn't recommend spending the money up front for PHs. We've been going to WDW for decades, usually staying 10 days, and rarely buy them.

 

[disneyktee]

I would just keep in mind as you're planning any in-park places you might want to eat and make sure your park & meals line up. You should be able to get back in the SAME park without a park hopper later in the day so you can go, leave, and come back. (But if you change your mind about what park you want to go to keep this in mind so you don't miss your reservation!). Personally I've always been a hopper but that's because it's worth the money to me to have options & that added flexibility in my schedule.

 

[Chelley00]

We've never park hopped. We pick a park and stay there. For me, if I leave for a break or something, I'm going to sit by the pool and stay there

 

[gdrj]

I can't tell you to Park Hop or not, but will tell you why we always purchased park hopper before switching to AP's. It is true as a veteran WDW visitor, we visit the parks differently.

Reasons to possibly Park Hop:
1- Crowds- Since you are going in Dec crowds can be pretty crazy. We tend to hit 1 park early and another later in the day.
2- HS and AK may or may not require a full day.
3- Drinking- If you are at MK during the day you may want to visit the Countries at EPCOT in the evening, of course you could just go to hotels or Disney Springs.
4- Dining Options- Just gives you more flexibility on where to dine.
5- Extra Magic Hours (if staying on Property). You may be at EPCOT but MK may have EHH's that evening. You can go to MK long after EPCOT closed.

There are other reasons as well. With that said I think it is personal preference. When you leave a park you can pretty much plan on losing an hour of park time. It is a valid option to wait and upgrade your tickets but that also limits your pre-planning for Dining or FP's. Either way you will have a great time.

 

[maryandthemouse]

I haven't seen a thread on this yet (so sorry if there is one) I am planning my first ever trip to WDW for this December, and I will be traveling with my fiance (27) and a few friends (all 25-28) **We want to do Disney before kids come along** But, I have seen so many different options on the Parks. I've read that there is so much to do in one park. You don't really need to pay for the park hopping. Any tips?

Hi! There is a lot to do at each of the parks, that is for sure. The great thing about the Park Hopper option is that it allows you flexibility. You can spend time at Hollywood Studios and then take a little boat ride over to Epcot and eat in a wonderful country and then watch Illuminations, for example. Hope you have a fabulous vacation!

 

[loves to dive]

I agree with others that you can just wait and upgrade after you get there if you decide you want to hop. Having said that, we have always had park hoppers since there was a second park to hop to. I don't think we have ever, in all the years we have been going stayed in one park all day. My son and I (he is an adult now but we've been going since he was 3) tend to end up in Epcot every night, no matter where we start out. We've been known to start out at AK, hop over to HS and spend the afternoon then hop over to Epcot for supper or a drink. Of I may get a hankering to see the MK fireworks while we are at another park,, so we hop on over there. Or maybe we've spent the day at one park but MK has late EMH, so what the heck,, let's hop over there. We like the freedom and it makes it a whole lot easier to avoid crowds and get ADRs. We never book in advance, we go to guest services in the morning in whatever park we are at and see what's available that night. Since we are adults and have hoppers, it doesn't matter what park or if it's late in the evening.

 

[SCPixie]

The only reason to pre-purchase Hoppers is if you are just set on eating at certain restaurants. Otherwise, you can easily plan to be in Magic Kingdom one day and eat there or at a resort, be at EPCOT one day and eat there, etc. We only purchased Park Hopper one time and it just wasn't worth the extra cost for us. We hopped from MK to EPCOT to eat one night and then hopped back from EPCOT to MK to watch the fireworks on the same night. Totally not worth the cost.

 

[katt789]

I haven't seen a thread on this yet (so sorry if there is one) I am planning my first ever trip to WDW for this December, and I will be traveling with my fiance (27) and a few friends (all 25-28) **We want to do Disney before kids come along** But, I have seen so many different options on the Parks. I've read that there is so much to do in one park. You don't really need to pay for the park hopping. Any tips?

\
Our first trip we did one park per day and it worked out great, we still found enough to do in every park and it was great! The biggest thing with park hopping is crowds, too crowded, go somewhere else! or if you managed to get that ONE dining ressie you'd been waiting for, but you're supposed to be at a different park that day. However you can always add it on when you're down there!

 

[NeedMoreMickey]

We love having the option to park hop especially if you are staying on property. Often we will spend the day at Animal Kingdom or Hollywood Studios and head over to MK for the extra magic hours. My longest trip was 6 nights so we always get the hopper so we can hit as much as possible. One thing to think about is the hours, parks seem to close early in December and MK has the holiday party so the park closes at 7:00 on those nights. Maybe skip the hopper and get tickets to the party. Party tickets sell out on certain nights so you will need to plan that but you cad add the park hopper at anytime.

 

[Tinkerchelli]

Hi there, you should most definitely park hop. Even if you have two days you should park hop, one good reason is the expense. The other good reason is depending on the weather different parks offer different ways to enjoy the parks even in the rain.

 

[quagmire0]

This will be our third trip, but first time with Park Hoppers. Honestly, I just kind of got them to have it as an option this time, in case we got bored at one park. IMO, they're probably wasted on a first time visitor because you'll probably be so overwhelmed with the parks as it is. Having said that, it would probably also depend on how long you are staying. We usually do 7-8 days, and that'll include 1 day each in Animal Kingdom and Hollywood Studios and 2+ days at Epcot and Magic Kingdom. If you're doing a shorter stay and wanted to see all the parks multiple times, then a park hopper might be a good choice.

As someone else mentioned, the nice thing about Disney is that you can add onto your tickets after you get there, and you'll just pay the difference per ticket. You can also add days onto your ticket as well.

 

[ForeverAlice]

We couldn't do without park hoppers- I am a bit nuts and like going to MK each night no matter what park we go to in the morning. But we do take the direct boat from the resort there though.

 

[Cinderelli16]

I personally can't do without the park hopper. I like the idea of being able to go to one park during the day and then another at night for dinner or the shows. I think it's a wonderful investment, but there is always enough to do in one park for the whole day. It's just a personal preference! I hope you all have a wonderful trip, you're gonna want to go back again and again after this lol

 

[princesskaycee]

I would say it depends on how long you'll be staying. If you'll be there a week or more, definitely park hop!

 

[hjvigz72]

Our first visit to Disney we opted not to have them. NOW - We always get the hoppers so we aren't tied down to one park. With that said, our vacations are always 6+ days, and at this point in our lives, we don't have little ones that need naps during the day. It gives us the flexibility to go where we want, when we want and for how long we want. It also allows us to book our dining wherever we choose without "HAVING" to spend the day in the park that the restaurant is located in. If we do leave because we're tired, or it's hot, or it's busy or for whatever reason, we can go back there or choose to visit somewhere else.

With the amount of different experiences there are at Disney, we just like to have options.

 

[slbgnb]

I keep going back and forth with this too. I've never had them and decided this trip, we would get them. But, we are going in September and now I'm second guessing them again, because the parks all close pretty early. So, I'm back to not being sure again!

 

[bcbmommy]

I think a lot of it depends on the ages of your kids. We've never bought PH before, but this trip we are, because our oldest 3 may want to run over to Epcot or HS some evening without us. We'll be staying at the YC. Also, with the discount available at Park Savers, the price isn't that bad.

 

[DaisyDuck001]

Since the OP and party are in their twenties with no kids, I think it's a good opportunity for them to park-hop, because they probably have the energy and they won't have to deal with pushing strollers, tired kids, etc. If they can afford it, may as well, but if the cost is an issue, there should be enough in each park to keep them entertained.