Park Hours

[waymickey]

Why do the parks close early ? I get why AK closes early but why do the other parks close early? Getting dark earlier shouldn't matter in the MK Or EPC or DHS.

[Buttercup]

It has nothing to do with getting dark early in the winter months. It has to do with the time of year and how crowded the parks tend to be.
For instance, it costs them X-number of dollars for every hour the park is open. But during the slower times of year when the crowds are lighter, it's not economical for them to stay open late if only a few people are going to be wandering the parks. Only a certain amount of people tend to be in the parks after dark, so they have to figure out if the amount of people there will be worth them paying allll those cast members to work later, plus the electricity to keep the rides running if they're mostly empty, etc.

I'm sure they have a calculation of some sort where they can estimate the number of people who will be there, vs. how much it costs to keep the park running, and whether or not they can re-coup their costs.

Busy/Peak times of the year = parks are open late.
Quiet/Value times of the year = parks close early.
Economics I'm afraid.

[faline]

When are you going? The Magic Kingdom often closes early for separate ticket events such as Mickey's Halloween Party or Merry Christmas Party.

[WDWdriver]

Disney can predict with amazing accuracy how many guests will be in the parks on any given day. The look at historical attendance, climatology, resort room bookings, area events (Daytona 500, etc), school vacation schedules, and several other factors to arrive at their predictions.

The results determine not only park hours, but also which attractions will offer FastPass and which food service and merchandise kiosks will be open.

[waymickey]

I guess I did not think of it that way. I always go in the summer and the parks are open late . I would love to go in the winter months but my schedule would not allow it. I am a teacher so school closings dictate when I can go. I was looking at the park hours for this month. I was surprised to see that the park closes early. How much are the extra things like MVMCP ?

[faline]

How much are the extra things like MVMCP ?

Here's (http://www.intercot.com/infocentral/holidays/christmas/mvmcp.asp) information on the party and current costs.

[Buttercup]

The thing to consider is, if you're going at a slower time of the year, you're able to accomplish more in less time... so it doesn't really matter that the parks aren't open late. That's what we've found anyway. If the crowds are light, we manage to fit everything in before the parks close.

The only thing I miss is that there is something magical about being in the park really, really late at night! So it's a trade off!