How do you get into Disney before it opens?

Guests who are checked in and staying at one of the Disneyland Resort hotels can enter Disneyland Park or Disney California Adventure Park 30 minutes before regular park opening to enjoy select attractions, dining and shopping locations.



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The parks open at between 7:30 AM and 7:45 AM, depending on the park. This makes it a better opportunity to ride attractions continuously. About those attractions, the park is not completely open. Only select rides are available during Early morning magic.

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With every park participating in Early Theme Park Entry, expect the first bus of the day to arrive to your resort between 45 minutes to 1 hour before Early Theme Park Entry starts.

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Early Entry at Magic Kingdom is a good way for on-site guests of Walt Disney World hotels to get a head-start, accomplishing a few attractions with low waits.

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Splurge on after-hours events In 2023, Disney's Hollywood Studios and Magic Kingdom are selling tickets for dates early in the year at prices that rival a full day's admission. “That is an enormous time saver,” said Jeffrey Merola, a Walt Disney World guidebook author and owner of Mouse Vacation Planning.

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So if you don't already know, Disney wants you to wake up at seven a.m. ON YOUR VACATION. If you weren't already up and out at rope drop before, you're getting up now!

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OPENING PROCEDURE The Magic Kingdom generally opens Main Street, U.S.A., to guests up to a full hour before the park's official opening time. Thus, if the park opens at 9 a.m., the Magic Kingdom will allow guests to enter the park and roam Main Street and the Central Plaza starting at 8 a.m.

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Unlike the old Extra Magic Hours perk (which was only at 1-2 parks per day), Early Entry happens every day, at every park, including at Magic Kingdom. Because of the sheer number of extremely popular attractions, we highly recommend you plan to use Early Entry at Magic Kingdom if you are eligible.

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If you drive, the Magic Kingdom Transportation and Ticket Center (TTC) parking lot opens about 2 hours before the park's official opening. After paying a fee, you're directed to a parking space, then transported by tram to the TTC, where you catch either a monorail or a ferry to the park's entrance.

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You won't need a Disney Park Pass theme park reservation or a regular theme park ticket to get in as long as you enter the park no earlier than 7:00 PM. If you want to drop in earlier, you'll need a standard theme park ticket — and a park reservation (if your ticket type requires one).

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Genie Plus is definitely worth it for Magic Kingdom and Hollywood Studios, and if you don't like early starts, you might consider it for Epcot and Animal Kingdom. If you are park hopping, Genie+ is even better value as it maximises the number of rides you have access to.

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Park hours are added to DisneyWorld.com's 5-day calendar on a rolling basis, typically 60 days in advance. Walt Disney World also has a monthly calendar that isn't as easy to find, and this currently has hours dumped in 'batches' much further in advance.

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When is the show? Magic Kingdom Fireworks are at 9pm on most nights.

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Early Theme Park Entry is a perk of staying at a Disney hotel or select other hotel that allows these guests access to every park, every day, for 30 minutes before the park opens.

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Magic Kingdom has fireworks every night of the year. Most of the time they are free with your park admission. However, there are a few nights in the fall and winter where you'll need a special ticket.

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  • You can't really skip lines.
  • You can buy the Genie Pass to buy access to the lightning lane (or whatever they call it these days), but even with that you will still be waiting in line.
  • You can pay for a private tour which may include fast access to select rides.


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However, there are three keys to avoiding long lines that do not involve spending extra money:
  1. Learn about and use Disney's Genie app – it's free.
  2. Get to the parks well before they open.
  3. Stay in the park as late as possible.
  4. Bonus tip – plan your meals ahead using Disney's mobile ordering.


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There are also bonuses for the number of queues someone stands in during one day. Once they hit 5 rides they get a $5 bonus for the day. At 10 rides they get a $10 bonus and so on. The story gets deeper.

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If you arrive at a ride early, you can tap into the Lightning Lane five minutes BEFORE your window. You won't even need to talk to a Cast Member to take advantage of these grace periods. Just scan into the Lightning Lane like normal and go!

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Our complimentary Resort transportation—including buses, monorails and boats—generally operate from 45 minutes before a theme park's opening time until one hour after a theme park's closing time.

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When can you park hop? Before Disney World's closure and reopening, you could park hop at any time. However, that has changed. You now can only park hop AFTER 2PM.

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