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View Full Version : To hop or not to hop?



csdavis
12-27-2009, 01:35 PM
We are heading down on Friday. We have always done hoppers but this year we are trying to cut back wherever we can. Will we be sorry if we do not do the hopper option? Has anyone ever not done hoppers?

caryrae
12-27-2009, 01:57 PM
We have never done the hoppers and it works for us. We can find enough to do at one Park for the day but you will probably get mixed answers. Hard to know since everyone is different and does things different ways. We like to just take our time going through the Parks and see what we can since we never know for sure when or depending even if we will make it back. I think we have hopped only once and that was when all tickets you could hop with.

wdwnutz
12-27-2009, 02:03 PM
We have done hoppers one time and have never done it again. Just way too much running around. We have no problem finding enough things in one park per day to do. Just arrange your days so that your ADR's, shows, parades and extra magic hours accomodate the time you will be spending in each park every day. This makes your trip so much less stressful than running all over the "world". Our trip in November was very busy, but we found time a few days to actually head back to the resort in the afternoon to use the pool, freshen up, head out to dinner and back to the park.

olivegirl
12-27-2009, 02:08 PM
We do not do hoppers. If you plan it out right you can make the most from each park on that day. We make sure we correspond EMH with a certain park. :)

JohnnyNovo
12-27-2009, 02:19 PM
This time of year, the hoppers would help with the crowds. If a park is or gets too crowded for your comfort, you can head to a less crowded one. MK is usually the one that gets the most crowded. If it does, you could just hop on the monorail over to EPCOT and possibly come back for EMH.

TheRustyScupper
12-27-2009, 02:20 PM
1) Lots of folks like to hop and that's fine.
2) As others above, we find enough at one park.
3) Besides, it costs 1 to 1½ hrs to hop.
4) That is a lot of idle/wasted time.

NOTE: Additionally, for the cost of all of us to add the hopper option, that is a lot of food or souvenirs.

d_m_n_n
12-27-2009, 05:15 PM
We added the hopper option (+waterparks etc.) to our tickets thinking we might use them now that the boys are older and can last longer through the day...we didn't. I'm not worried as we bought 10 days with no expiration...we'll use them eventually. This is the first time we had the option since going in 2000. In our trips since then, we haven't missed them at all! If you need to keep the prices in check, skipping the hopper option is an easy way to do it! :mickey:

Gator
12-27-2009, 06:10 PM
My first two trips, my wife and I used hoppers quite a bit. I was a lot of fun going all over the place. But the last two trips we didn't use them. We have kids now, and piling all that stuff into a bus more than necessary seems like a bad idea. And I enjoy it. I just go to a park and stick around all day. It seems a little more relaxing this way, though not as much fun. But that's OK. I'd give it a try.

mom2morgan
12-27-2009, 06:55 PM
My experience - we have never actually changed parks during the day. Our trips have always been early December - manageable crowds, but short operating hours. Therefore, not a lot of time or need for hopping. HOWEVER, we've always ended up with the park hoppers anyway - the main reason we got them is that we eat in Epcot 2 or 3 times throughout our stay. So the theory was we may do all of one park, then head to Epcot just for dinner.(However, we ended up not needing them for that because we spent 4 days off site going to Universal, Seaworld, and Discovery Cove and just did Epcot dinners on those days!) And my teenage daughter enjoyed herself spending a whole day hopping to SHOP in different parks (an idea that seems just...crazy!...to mom ;-) All that said, I think I could forego hoppers to save money and just plan my dining differently. But if I went during a season with much longer park hours I might use them more.

JPL
12-27-2009, 07:13 PM
For me hopping is essential since I like to get the most out of my time. I will often hit a Morning EMH and then go to another park later in the day. I will also spend my day in one park and then hop to a park with evening EMHs to finish out my day. I plan my hopping around park hours all the time. As stated it does take some time to hop but I wouldn't have gotten nearly as much done on my recent trip without hopping.

The perfect example of this plan is AK. The park usually closes alot early than the other 3 parks so I can stay there until about 4:30-5:00 and then head to another park and get at least 3-4 more hours in a park even with the commute time to the other park

Genie1953
12-27-2009, 07:18 PM
We hopped all over the place on our last trip and plan to do the same on our upcoming trip, however it is just my husband and I. If we had our kids (all grown now) with us we might think differently as it would be alot harder to hop from park to park with kids in tow.

gauvin4
12-27-2009, 08:49 PM
We have never hopped. As a prevoius poster said, it wastes alot of time to hop. I would rather spend the extra money somewhere else. Just my :twocents:.

CleveRocks
12-27-2009, 09:05 PM
The good news is that you don't need to decide this in advance!

At ANY time during your vacation, you can add the park hopper to your ticket for $52 + tax, the exact same price it costs to add it when you buy/book the original ticket.

In other words, if you feel the itch to hop, just go and hop! Pay for the upgrade at any theme park ticket window. You can also do it at the water parks, the Transportation & Ticket Center ticket windows, the Downtown Disney guest relations centers, and your Disney resort's Lobby Concierge desk.

bxrluv
12-27-2009, 10:03 PM
This past Feb is the first time we didn't hop and we did just fine. Good point about busier times though, needing to just duck out to another park. :bolt::bolt::bolt::bolt:

#1donaldfan
12-28-2009, 09:49 AM
.....we have never NOT hopped...it's too much comfort to know if you get bored you can move to another park...I'm sure we can find enough to do at one location, just never thought about it till now....that's $ 52 X 5 = a lot of money ....uhmmmm....now you got me thinking that $ 260ish could feed my brood a few dolewhips n fish n chips....??? :secret:

bruin1344
12-28-2009, 09:59 AM
the main reason we got them is that we eat in Epcot 2 or 3 times throughout our stay. So the theory was we may do all of one park, then head to Epcot just for dinner.

Same here. I need park hopper because I eat most of meals at World Showcase. Also, I like to split the park visits into 2 a day. MK is the only one I could spend a whole day at. I cant picture spending a whole day at DHS, AK, or possibly Epcot.

Ms. Mode
12-28-2009, 10:08 AM
We purchased hopper tickets our first trip and never used them, the second trip we didn't purchase them and wished we had, the third trip we purchased hoppers and used them every day. Our upcoming trip we purchased hoppers and plan to use them, but after this trip we will probably rethink the hopper option. Right now our teenage daughter calls the shots :)

Mr_Increddieble
12-28-2009, 10:23 AM
When we book our trips (usually in May) we have a morning park scheduled and an evening park scheduled. We always have afternoon pool time mixed in. It sure is nice (for about $6.40 per day/per person) to have ultimate flexibility.
Truthfully, though, I've never thought of not getting it. I thought my trip was completely complete. Now I've got something else to consider - an ultimate planning challenge.
DOLEWHIPS FOR EVERYBODY!

wdwfansince75
12-28-2009, 10:53 AM
Park Hoppers are our friends.....
They let us leave crowded parks or parks that have un-chaperoned youth groups;
and they let us make ADR's before we decide which parks, which days;
and they let us take breaks, without need for reboarding buses;
and they let us be spontaneous (throw away our touring plan);
And they allow us to work around shutdowns of Must Do's (Especially useful for early years of Test Track)

We always get hoppers, but we usually stay at the CR or SoG, convenient to the Monorail and MK. We usually go during the summer, and we invariably use the hoppers to do one park until we decide to take a break. We usually eat in EPCOT or at a monorail, Resort, and head to MK for the evening...most days, but not every day. We just like the flexibility...
Last trip, with TSMM open, I was at DHS for Rope Drop on three different days...While the rest of the family joined me one day, and we stayed at DHS until about supper time, the other two days, I did TSMM, and then, headed to MK (bus to TTC, monorail to park) or to EPCOT, by boat, to meet some of the family at R&C for lunch.
We rarely tour the parks as a single group, but we usually either rendezvous on purpose, or by chance, for meals, and certain attractions, such as POTC, CoP, and TTA....PH's allows each family group to do their own thing....Those who love AK more than EPCOT can spend extra time there, while the EPCOTnutz spend extra time waiting for Soaring or Test Track...or just strolling WS....And if some of the family decided to head back to the resort, other members could make a quick trip to DHS for just one more ride on RnRC, or to EPCOT, to find that shirt that they couldn't find at any of the other stores.....Or to MK, for Splash, during Wishes, or to see if the line was shorter for Space Mtn.....Ah, for the days when you could do Space M back to back to back....
After all, we are on vacation...we relax and enjoy!

disneyworld55925592
12-28-2009, 11:09 AM
I think either way works. If you don't hop just plan it around extra magic hours. For example if you do AK during the day try to make it on a day where there are AK extra magic hours at night because normally the park closes at 5 so you would have nothing to do. You can always go to Downtown Disney at night! I'd go for it to save!

phillydan
12-28-2009, 11:12 AM
This has been a recurring question for us. We always had the hopper pass and it has worked out very well in the past - especially when working around the unexpected (ride closures, weather problems, meltdowns, etc).

Although we don't hop every day, I like the option of changing up our plans when the situation arises. It has been extremely helpful on days where we go to AK (not a full day) or want to do EMH at another park or catch a show we may have missed.

I fully realize that we are not getting our money's worth, but it is a concession that I make to avoid limitations once we are on vacation. I guess I could try without and always upgrade on-site once I felt the need, but I prefer having everything worked out before we arrive.

Disney4us2
12-28-2009, 11:24 AM
I love the park hoppers. While I have only been to WDW 2 times. They came in handy both times. On our last trip DD and I did 4 parks in one day. She wanted to see the areas we missed on our first trip. Started at AK for the Boneyard. On to DHS for the Honey I shrunk the kid play area/Great Movie Ride. Boat ride to Epcot to finish stamping her passport from our first trip. Dinner and then MK. It was busy but it was fun.

For us personally, I would not do WDW without a parkhopper. I don't like being limited to only 1 park per day. I like to eat at Epcot so a parkhopper is for us.

It really just matters what you are looking for and which option works better for you. That is what make the Magic Your Way so great.... you get to do WDW your way.

Goes4FastPass
12-28-2009, 11:55 AM
We always buy the hopping add-on though we maybe shouldn't.

It is an extra cost but we're pretty avid park goers. We like flexibility like a few adults attening a late night EMH after our little guy has gone to bed.

I Would consider 2 points:

1. Hopper add-on is same for long or short MYW tickets so better value on 10 day then 4 day*

2. Are you really (really really) going to go to 2 or more parks or are you, in effect, ordering 2 desserts when you haven't had the entree yet?

*Exception to point 1: If you really (really really ) wanna pound the parks commando-style and your WDW vacation MUST be limited in length - it your clan wants to check off every headliner in all 4 WDW parks and you have a 4-5 days to do it - get park hoppers... and take vitimins!

Finally, more park days is cheaper than hopping, in otherwords, if you're staying a week then get a MYW base ticket for as many days as you'll be at WDW including the day you arrive and the day you leave even if you can go to a park just a few hours those days. When you compare 8 day base ticket to 4 days and hopping it's easy to see 8 days costs much less AND your park visits are spread out and less hectic.

Mr_Increddieble
12-28-2009, 01:02 PM
I could save $193 for the 4 of us (7day Park Hopper vs. Non) or I could delete the park hopper and add the Water Park option for the same price.
A coupla trips to the ater parks in May would be nice.
Hmmm.....

MississippiDisneyFreak
12-28-2009, 01:05 PM
I would never go without the hopper but we've always gone during the busy holiday season. It is nice to be able to leave one park and go to another if one is too busy. I would keep the hopper.

syndrome
12-28-2009, 02:21 PM
If it is a quick trip of 4 days or less then we go without the hopper option. Trips of 5 days or longer then we always have the hopper option on our tix. The reasoning for us is simple--on short trips we usually do not hit every park. But on the longer trips we like to be able to start in one park, go back to the hotel/resort and relax and then hit another park for the late afternoon/evening time. Regardless of what you do you are at Disney so there really is not a wrong choice!

Mr_Increddieble
12-28-2009, 03:02 PM
I will not listen to anything Syndrome has to say.
I work alone!

Goes4FastPass
12-28-2009, 03:08 PM
I will not listen to anything Syndrome has to say.
I work alone!

OK Kids, this is Intercot. Facebook is spelled differently...

wdwnutz
12-28-2009, 03:17 PM
When planning our WDW trips, we look at the hours each park is open during our trip, EMH and what days each park has their shows, parades, etc. Then we plan our days around this and decide where we'd like to plan our ADR's. We do all this WITHOUT hoppers. For us it would be another $200 which I could use for other things. Some days when the parks have EMH at night we head back to the resort to swim, take naps, whatever. We also hop buses or monrails to head to other resorts for dinner or like this last trip take a look at their Xmas decorations or get ideas where to stay for our next trip. You can waste so much time park hopping sometimes up to 2 hours when I could be doing something else.

mom2morgan
12-28-2009, 03:59 PM
.....we have never NOT hopped...it's too much comfort to know if you get bored you can move to another park...I'm sure we can find enough to do at one location, just never thought about it till now....that's $ 52 X 5 = a lot of money ....uhmmmm....now you got me thinking that $ 260ish could feed my brood a few dolewhips n fish n chips....??? :secret:

uhh...yeah! I was thinking the same thing reading Cleverock's post. It seems less "real" somehow when you add it on at the beginning - but sounds like a lot more money when you think about it as money out of pocket on that day!

Mr_Increddieble
12-28-2009, 04:10 PM
OK Kids, this is Intercot. Facebook is spelled differently...

Well, you know, Syndrome tried to KILL my whole family!!!
I think I'm entitled.

TheVBs
12-28-2009, 07:23 PM
The next trip we plan will be the first where we'll seriously consider not adding the hopper. When our kids were little, we always were back at the hotel by mid-day or early afternoon. That made it easy to hit another park later in the day after swimming and naps. We also used to get the dining plan, which meant a lot of nights would be spent in Epcot eating.

The last two trips we've gotten the hopper option and haven't used it, I think because our girls have gotten a little bigger and don't need that mid-day break any more (at least not all the way back to the hotel). On the last trip we skipped the dining plan as well because we really just decided we didn't need a sit down every single day. Combine the girls having more endurance with us eating at a more normal pace for us, and I think we could easily ditch the park hoppers next trip. Not to mention, we now stay at least 9-10 days as opposed to our original 4-5 days. Plenty of time to hit the parks!

And, like someone else already pointed out, you can always add it while you're there if you decide you need it! :mickey:

A Big Kid
12-28-2009, 08:04 PM
We always get a hopper. But then again, all out evenings usually end up in the world showcase.

LudwigVonDrake
12-28-2009, 08:46 PM
I always want the hopper since I almost always end up in a different park than when I started. I need the option to be more flexible :mickey:

mom2morgan
12-28-2009, 09:13 PM
Well, you know, Syndrome tried to KILL my whole family!!!
I think I'm entitled.

LOL :-) Well, I always thought that if you were a bit nicer to him in the first place, this might not have happened...

DisneyFr33k
12-29-2009, 07:14 AM
It depends on how long your at the World and what you have planned. We always did the hoppers as we stayed a week each trip. This past trip, we only stayed 5 days. So we didn't get the hopper and didn't miss it one bit. I think if you are experiencing WDW for the first or second time, the hoppers are nice to be able to move around. We've been there so many times, we knew what we want to hit at each park and left knowing we hadn't missed anything.

Jenemmy
12-29-2009, 09:02 AM
Glad you asked the question.....I have always, ALWAYS been a big proponent of hoppers. But, I just booked a May trip and, like you, am foregoing the hoppers in order to cut costs a bit. Been great to read all the responses -- so, thanks everyone!

Gregandmel
12-29-2009, 09:19 AM
We went the very first time 12 years ago and purchased the park hopper option and did not use them ONE TIME. This was before fastpass and during the summertime and we were pooped by 5pm just standing in the heat with the lines and crowds. This past trip last October, we did not purchase the park hopper and it worked out just fine for us. We don't like being on the go all day long and preferred to stay at one park from the time it opened, till about 3 or 4pm - then we hit our resort and relaxed the rest of the day. The one time we went BACK to a same park after 5pm- it was simply too long of a day and we were exhausted the next morning. It really does depend on how you enjoy your time at Disney and if you have kids that have the stamina to be on the go for days at a time. Our decision was based on the extra cost, as well as knowing ourselves well enough to know we have to be "done" around 4 or 5pm. If we purchased the hopper option this last time, then I think we would've felt like we HAD to hop to get our moneys worth. I think they are great for those that enjoy going from open to close and the variety of hopping around, just isn't for us! :mickey:

csdavis
12-29-2009, 11:33 AM
Thanks everyone! Very helpful! Haven't decided yet though. We are starting the drive down tomorrow then off to root for our Auburn Tigers on the 1st so we still have a little time to talk and debate! Thank you again!

Stu29573
12-29-2009, 01:25 PM
We always hop because I like the option of hitting favorites at several parks on the last couple of days of my stay. In other words, we first do each park as a day each, but then on the last few days (2-4, depending on trip length) we hop like crazy. This past trip we hit AK, MK, and Epcot all on the same day!

grumpyguy
12-29-2009, 02:09 PM
i like the comfort of knowing i can hop if need be.but,i can see that with enough planning in advance you can "skip" the "hop" if you're looking to trim expenses.
one trip we had made plans to hit mk early one monday morning and the entrance line was longer than i had ever seen so we got off the bus hopped over to epcot and hit some attractions we ran out of time for the day before.by noon we grabbed our counter service meal,people watched a bit (rested)then hit mk all in the same day,ahhhh:cloud9:

AlvyOT08
01-03-2010, 01:50 PM
I always get the park hopper option. we might start out at one park. go back and get changed and then go to another park for dinner or fireworks. also, sometimes a park gets to crowded so we just go to another one. i think it all depends on your family and what you like to do. sometimes we might also finish a park earlier than expected and if we don't want to go on anymore rides there, we hop over to a different park. i also just like the idea of having more freedom to do what i want, instead of knowing that I can only stay in that one park for the day.

r4kids
01-03-2010, 11:07 PM
HOP! It is so much easier to make any dining ressies. This way you can be flexiable with your times and dates. Plus if one park is too crowded hop over to another.

csdavis
01-10-2010, 01:23 PM
For the first time ever we did not hop. We really didn't miss it. We got to do everything several times that we wanted to do. We are going back next year and will hop again. This trip was a shoestring trip. We knew we were going back next year so we didn't stress about it. It worked out well for us. Thanks for all the advice.

Ksmith75
01-10-2010, 05:00 PM
we always do the hopper..we like to be one of the first ones in a park in the morning...then we leave around 2p...then the hopper gives us a chance to do another park at night...and give us more dinner options too...

WVParkfan
01-12-2010, 10:10 AM
Hop like bunnies!

We always parkhop, and spend the morning at one park and the evening at another.

We wouldn't do it any other way.

tnpoohbear
01-12-2010, 11:55 AM
When we first started going to WDW years ago, we would hop. But we found it to be too rushed and now after 20 trips we do not hop any longer, we take our time and do one park per day and it is so much better. I always felt like I had to plan and schedule every minute of the trip and try to see and do as much as possible. I have learned, with the help of my kids to take easy and relax and now our trips are so much more enjoyable. We are going in March for 5 days and will not park hop.:mickey:

c&d
01-12-2010, 12:26 PM
Hoppers, always have been and probably always will be. If we go in the morning we'll head back to the hotel and then after dinner head over to the park with EMHs.

We've also been known to hop to do one ride. One of us will say I really want to do this ride and then off we go to that park. Not the most efficient way to do the parks but it works for us.

I also have to say that most of our hopping is usually between Epcot and Studios.

Touchdown
01-12-2010, 01:25 PM
Our rule is that no night spent at WDW can ever be spent without seeing Fantasmic, Wishes and Spectro, or Illuminations. So we always park hop at least one day (Animal Kingdom day) and depending on how the schedule works out we sometimes do it a few other days as well.

RBrooksC
01-12-2010, 01:49 PM
I may be late to the game on this but I like to have the ability to hop, even if I don't use it on a certain day.

I like the idea that I can go to the MK in the morning and then have dinner in Epcot at night. Or I can spend the morning in AK and then go over and spend the late afternoon in DHS. If I feel like spending the whole day in MK, I can. But knowing I am not locked into that one place gives me this feeling of freedom that I really enjoy.

ltjrrich
01-12-2010, 07:26 PM
My family always hops, but that's a function of how we plan our trips. We start the planning process going by where we want to eat. We think of the restaurants we want to go to, we decide where we will go for lunch and dinner, and then we plan the rest of the trip around that. It's often the case that we have lunch in one park and dinner in another - usually Epcot. If I couldn't park hop, then I'd never do AK. The park closes so much earlier than the others that it would feel like a wasted day to me if I had to stay there. I'd be done with the park by early afternoon, and then would have nowhere to go later.

Mr_Increddieble
01-14-2010, 08:34 AM
We always hopped for all the above reasons but as a result of the original post on this thread decided to rethink the hop strategy. In the end this change doesnt save money but shakes things up a bit for no added cost.
We changed from ParkHopper passes to WaterPark Fun passes. Now we will go to each Waterpark on 2 different days (no hopper needed on those days).
The day we arrive - no hopper needed.
The night we do Hoop Dee Doo - no hopper req'd. The other 3 days we'll mix in some mini-golf (since we can walk to fantasia from Beach Club) and some DTD so we won't feel like were forced to stay longer at a park than we really want to.

I hope it works. Shake it Up!

brownie
01-14-2010, 12:16 PM
We've always park hopped for most of the days on our trips. We usually ended up at Epcot in the evening.