To park hop or not to park hop...

[BK2014]

DW and I like it for the flexibility it allows in planning. We tend to book our FP for one park in the morning and then take a break at the resort for a couple of hours. The park hoppers allow us the flexibility to see where we can/want to get additional fast passes, or decide which evening show we want to see. Do we hop every day, no, but the price for two people is not as prohibitive as it is for larger groups. It does start to add up. A lot of people get concerned about time lost in travel, but we have never found it to take that long. Especially if you are just going straight from one park to another since there are buses going from park to park. It really is a matter of preference.

 

[J and R's mom]

1) For the more informed on the specifics of ticketing...Can OP add-on Park Hopping at some point during their trip if they decide that Park Hopping would be a good option for them once they are there...instead of trying to figure it out right now without previous experience on what their travel party might prefer once they get there? IF SO...I'd recommend THAT route (going to guest relations at any park and adding park-hopping onto your tickets at that time instead of worrying too much about it now).

2) My opinion...which is worth zilch outside our family's preferences really...I have NEVER visited WITHOUT park hoppers (or annual passes which include park hopping) so it is all we know. I first visited in the '80s when I was young. My mom opted for the Park Hoppers during that trip. And 24 trips (and over three decades later) I still use them with my family. HOWEVER, our touring priorities are probably different than most. We no longer tour commando-style (haven't in over 15 years). We actually like spending time at the resort itself. Mid morning to mid afternoon we do one park...early evening to close (or exhaustion) we do another park after our resort break.

But if it is an option, you might just go with non-park hopping tickets for now...and if you decide on day two or so of your trip that you wish you had park-hopping...then stop by a guest relations window at any park (or Disney Springs) and pay to add it on at that time...assuming this is an option (which I bet it is).

 

[JenLovesMM]

You can add-on Park Hopping at anytime during your trip. We have never bought it in advance. However we know that once we are there, if we want to have it, we just have to visit guest relations to add it. It's the same price whether you add it for 1 day or 10. My reasoning is, if I buy it in advance but don't end up using it, then I spent all that money for nothing. Plans change? Need a hopper? It's quick and easy once onsite. So my vote is to not get it until you are there and see how you feel about it.

BTW, in case you aren't aware, you can also add days to your tickets as long as you still have at least 1 day left. I do that almost every time too. I think we want to be in the parks for 5 or 6 days, but plans can change, someone can be sick or weather can be yucky... so I buy 4 days for example, and after 2 or 3, we have a better idea how it's going, then we add whatever days we are missing.

I always prefer keeping $ in my pocket instead of in Disney's if I am not going to use a service.

 

[shyjade]

For us, hopping is always worth it because we can't control crowds, weather, and ride malfunctions. We normally visit Disney for 3-4 days, and have actually done all 4 parks in one day (although I don't recommend doing that often!). We love the freedom to park hop.

 

[3gr8boys]

I always go with PH, and we use it daily. As PPs have said, it really depends on your group and touring style. My boys don't care about getting more accomplished, they care about what they get to do. I plan one TS ADR each day along with 3 FP+ (occasionally another hard-timed activity). Beyond that, we do whatever. Like After 1/2 a day at MK, if someone says "let's go to Expedition Everest," we check for FP and head for the busses. With an 8 1/2 year age spread oldest boy to youngest.....4years between each, we also split up if they want to focus on different things. Our trips would be totally different without hopping.

FWIW, I also like being able to prioritize evening shows based on weather predictions and other things knowing I don't have to be in only that park for the day.

 

[MickeyWaffles]

We like park hoppers because of the flexibility they offer. We usually get them.

We like them in certain situations ... for example, we don’t like to be at AK when it is really rainy. Maybe it’s ok in the morning and there’s going to be rain for the rest of the day. We’ll go, do a couple things then hop to MK or Epcot instead, where we prefer to be when it rains.

We love hopping between Epcot and DHS.

When we stay at a MK resort, we like to have hoppers so we can pop in to MK for a bit if we want after we spend the day at another park. When we have quick and easy access to a park, we like to have hoppers.

The lost transportation time doesn’t bother us - we kind of like the little breather in between parks. But .. we are pretty laid back and not ever checking off a long list of rides, so taking a little time for transportation to park hop isn’t a big deal for us.

 

[Jessirip]

We have a 4 and 7-year-old and bought hoppers for our April trip in 2018, and only used them once, and only because of the way I made ADR's. So I'm planning better and opting out for our June trip. I think it is one of those things that I felt we needed "just in case", but am telling myself we'll spend the money on an early morning magic day instead. I think the only way we'll get them again is if we stay at a resort that is walking distance to a park, like Contemporary to MK or Boardwalk to Epcot. Then I would get hoppers just because it would be so easy to spend time at more than one park in a day.

 

[jaiminee krikit]

I only PH when we have a short trip. We typically stay for a week, so we have 3 days at MK, 2 days at Epcot, and 1 day at HS and AK. We like to take afternoon breaks, so we'll get to the parks early, stay until lunch, head back for our break, then go back to the park for dinner and stay as late as our legs will carry us. I'd rather spend that money on a dessert party or tour.

 

[deedubb]

I think it depends on what you want to get out of your trip. We never used to hop, but now with all the great rides and the way the FP+ are tiered, we prefer to hop so we can get the rides in but not be stuck in that park for the rest of the day. Plus, we love the fireworks, so with hoppers, we can catch either HEA or Illuminations every night. Totally worth it for us.

 

[raraavis]

On our last trip, we had park hoppers. The main reason we did this was to be able to hop to another park in the evening for their fireworks/shows. We didn't have kids at the time though, and we didn't take midday breaks either. So we literally went from one park directly to another. I didn't feel like it was a waste of time to grab a bus to the second park because it was a chance to sit and relax for 30 minutes. We got to do and see everything we wanted with no problems. We're going again next year and bringing our kid (who will be 5 at the time). We're doing hoppers again only because my DH and I still have park hoppers from our last trip to use. If we didn't already have tickets to use, I would probably go with base tickets, more so because of the cost than any other reason. I personally think the transportation from one park to another might be beneficial to your 6 yr old because it gives them a little time to relax and be in AC while not being overstimulated with Disney.

 

[cakebaker]

We always have hoppers. We ride at the morning park standby on secondary rides, then do headliners at the evening park. Since we make multiple visits to each park, it’s easy to get a lot of rides in without long lines. We also like to make use of the amenities at our resort and midday breaks allow for that as well. We usually go in the summer so a break from the hottest part of the day is nice. If we stayed offsite, I doubt we’d get them as it’s such a hassle to go back to a hotel that isn’t on site. We do rope drop and park closings every day and need that break. It really depends on your own style, neither way is wrong.

 

[Jimmy Mouse]

We have hopped a few times in the past but our last visit Christmas week we stayed at BC and hopped over to Epcot more than a few times. It was always "Hey, want to go to Epcot?" and off we went. We have AP so no additional cost but even if I don't renew, I don't think I will ever go again without the hopper option.

 

[captaindavidhook]

I love Hoppers. Favorite thing to do is park hop.

 

[gharter]

We go twice a year and time our trips to get 3 trips out of our APs.
Even with that, rarely do we park hop.
We have so many things that we enjoy seeing in every park that park hopping rarely makes sense.
Except when we go in the fall and MNSSHP is going on. Then we park hop to see HEA on the few evenings that it is on.

 

[mco65]

I love reading everyone's touring style. It gives me ideas of things to try!

 

[QueenElinor]

DW and I like it for the flexibility it allows in planning. We tend to book our FP for one park in the morning and then take a break at the resort for a couple of hours. The park hoppers allow us the flexibility to see where we can/want to get additional fast passes, or decide which evening show we want to see. Do we hop every day, no, but the price for two people is not as prohibitive as it is for larger groups. It does start to add up. A lot of people get concerned about time lost in travel, but we have never found it to take that long. Especially if you are just going straight from one park to another since there are buses going from park to park. It really is a matter of preference.

We really started hopping when we began staying at the EPCOT resorts, they're ideal for it if one always takes a midday break. We always include EPCOT or DHS in the day, so if we're visiting MK or AK there's very little time lost in transportation as compared with just staying at MK or AK all day- just one round trip ride on the bus whether you hop or not.

 

[DisLiss]

It depends on how you like to vacation. A lot of people view hoppers as a waste of time & money. Many people gauge the success of their WDW trip by how much they get done while they are there. And that typically means how many attractions they rack up each day. And that type of vacation style tends to pay close attention to how much time is spent not in a park. They may feel that it's illogical to go to a park for extra hours and then spend an equal amount of hours moving from one park to another during the day. Hopping definitely reduces park time because there's no way to simply snap your fingers and magically appear in another park.

On the flip side are those who view vacations as a time to relax and reduce stress, and they don't care if they hit less attractions per day using hoppers. They aren't keeping tally of how many rides they go on or how many hours they are in a park. They may even view checking out new modes of transportation as fun, and enjoy hopping from Magic Kingdom to EPCOT or EPCOT to Hollywood Studios via non-bus transport. They may be the type to want some resort time every afternoon, and so since they're already leaving the parks for a bit, figure why not switch to a new one for the evening. Or, they might just really love the evenings at one park above all others and opt to visit different parks each morning, but return to MK or EPCOT each and every night. And for any single or combo of those reasons and countless others, hoppers make the trip better for those folks.

And for some folks, it comes down to the cost. They'd rather spend that amount of money on a character meal or a dessert party, and skipping the hoppers allows them to that.

So you basically need to ask yourself (and maybe your family as well) what sounds best to them, and then make your decision. Good luck and have a great trip!!

 

[North of Mouse]

Park hoppers definitely - would never go without them - or AP's - same thing. We would never want to be restricted to one park.

But, as you can see, it depends on how you like to tour - everyone has a definite reason why they do/do not use them. To each their own.

To us, dessert parties are a total rip off, yet others gladly spend the extra $$$'s for them, so it's what 'worth' is to you. Spend your $$'s on what means the most to you.

 

[disneyseniors]

Another vote for park hoppers
It does depend on your touring style. If you are happy with one park a day, then it's good.
However, we go to one set park with fp's in the am, then rest for a while, then to where we want to go in the pm. Sometimes, it's another park, others it's Disney springs or another resort, or just stay and enjoy our resort.
We like the flexibility with PH's. If a certain park is super crowded, or you are just "done" with it, then you can go somewhere where you want to be instead. There are a lot of variables, but for us, it works. Wouldn't do it any other way.

 

[captaindavidhook]

Epcot to me is best example of a park hopper Park. I really like that, is one of my favorite Parks but to me it offers the best places to eat. A lot of times I will just stop there for a late dinner and just go from there. I won't even go on any of the rides I might have a dinner there at 7 or so and after that leave for extra magic hours at MK or just head to Boardwalk area for something fun but I think Epcot was made for the prime example of why you get a park hopper.