To park hop or not?

[angyl15]

So, we have not had a trip with park hopping since it was added as an extra cost to tickets. With usually having little ones and staying off-site at wyndsor bonnet creek, we never felt tied down with one park per day. But, this trip we are staying at the contemporary BLT. I am trying to plan our dining reservations for tomorrow and am struggling with what parks to do in the evenings if we park hop. I feel like being on-site we have more freedom to go to different places. Or will we end up feeling like all we are doing is riding buses? Do you normally plan your evening park if you park hop or do you see what everyone feels like? Do you plan a nighttime show at a different park than the one you were at in the morning? I don't want to be completely locked down, but my kids are little (8,6,2) and will go wherever I say we are going.

[WiltonJohn]

Of late we have stayed "on property" all the time. During the Food and Wine Festival we park hop back to Epcot in the evenings many nights to eat dinner. Hollywood Studios (at the moment) we usually spend less than a full day there ...so that one usually gets a hop.

These days there is always Uber/Lyft/Minnie Vans or cabs to make the transit aspect faster (with the application of some $).

Our first night there in October this year we'll do Epcot all day and then head to MK for the fireworks since it has extra magic hours that night.

But we are a couple.... no young kids anymore. Easier to just pop around.

best,

...............john

[Speedy1998]

I personnally think park hoping is a waste of perfectly good in park time with just two exceptions.

1. You are going back to your resort for an afternoon break anyway, then it really does not waste any additional time to go to a different park in the evening. We usually only do the afternoon break thing if we are there in the summer.

2. The park you are spending your day in closes early. I used to hop from AK to another park to watch Fireworks when AK closed at dusk. Now that AK stays open later, I am not sure there will be many of these days anymore.

[kathleen.talamantes.7]

Staying at contemporary you can use the monorail to Epcot and magic kingdom. We always park hop. You will get many different opinions though. Do what works for you.


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[PopPhan]

Always hop. No matter what your plans are initially, things can change as crowd levels change, or on a whim. Easier to have the option.

[#1donaldfan]

We always stay on property and 9 out of 10 times park hop. Like mentioned, you have that added luxury of changing mid-stream and going to another park or parks ... it's less stressful to me, actually. The expense stinks, but all things Disney come with added expenses ....

[mgmnut]

We always park hop and like PopPhan said, if the park you are in is super busy you have the option to move to another. We normally end up seeing 2 parks a day for the most part on our trips making good use of the option.

[Tippy987]

Hi - we use to park hop in the past. The last few times we went to Disney we stopped park hopping. We typically stay at the MK resorts and really like the Contemporary. We go to the parks (MK, HS & AK) morning thru early afternoon, take a swim/relax and then go to one of the reports on the monorail loop for dinner. We use that time to check out the resort grounds, shops and eat dinner at Chef Mickey, Ohana or Grand Floridian. We will go back to MK one evening for the evening. We will head over to Epcot around 1 pm and stay thru illuminations. I like relaxing at the resort and just taking some time away from rides and the crowds. -Hope this helps

[texas211]

For us, the park hop (which buy with the intent to use) has seldom been used. Usually, we are more like, "well, we paid for it, better at least use it once." So by and large, we don't get it, and don't miss it. Once I leave a park we are done. We prefer, if we aren't doing a night time activity at the park, then enjoy dinner and pool/resort time.

[Cinderelley]

We don't park hop any more. There is more than enough to do in most parks (DHS being the exception now) and that night I use for non-park things like Hoop Dee Doo, Disney Spring, Boardwalk, etc.

[angela2679]

We like park hopping, but we are just a couple with no children, so that does make it easier.

[Giggy]

We like having the option to park hop though don't do so every day. As Typhoon Lagoon and Blizzard Beach close early we tend to go to another park after them (though I am not sure if you actually need it for water parks). We also usually have one day of the vacation where we start in Magic Kingdom and then head to Epcot for the evening via the monorail and may have other park hops as appropriate. It's nice to have the option we feel but we can also spend a whole day in one park and not get bored.

[ransam]

I think the price park hopping is well worth the cost if for nothing else the luxury of being able to do it. One park may be so crowded, you might want to switch to another park.
You can go to one park and eat at another.
You may have done everthing at one park, but just one or two attractions, so you can always go back and do those and then move to another park.

[mom2morgan]

I've had to face that really only reason I hop is to eat at Epcot more often. And on this upcoming trip we just don't want to waste that much time travelling back and forth. I'd rather do ONE park, and if I have a break mid-day it is just to the hotel and then back. With carefully chosen fastpasses and good dinner reservations, I think you can maximize your time enjoying your vacation instead of travelling around.

[MouseHouser]

We like to park hop. During a given trip, we like to visit all 4 parks; however, when it comes to evening shows, we have a strong bias toward Wishes and IllumiNations. In order to attend these more than once, we need to hop sometimes.

[Park Hopper]

I realize I am late to the thread, but we typically like the freedom of hopping (as my screen-name suggests). I absolutely agree with Speedy1998 that it is a particular advantage in the Summer, or when the parks are open late. However, if we were going over the winter and looking to save money, then we may consider not paying for it. Here are the main reasons we like it:

1. We like to go to the parks somewhat early,go back to our resort to take a break (in the summer), and then go back in the early evening. We have found this to be a good way to mitigate the exposure to the heat/crowds and to stay somewhat rested. Obviously, using this model, transportation is the same whether or not you are going to the same park (we typically have a car anyway). We like the variety of splitting up the day and going to a different park in the morning and night.

2. It allows us to split-up (especially later in the vacation) and go different places, but still meet-up for a meal or whatever together.

3. I really hate the thought of having to wait until day 4 (midway through our typical vacation) to get to one of the parks for the first time. I know that may sound stupid, but I guess I am just impatient that way.

4. Similarly, I hate the thought of saying goodbye to one of the parks while still midway through the vacation.

5. As others have said, it gives you the flexibility of changing up plans if a park seems overly crowded, or if a park is expected to be low crowds in the morning, but high crowds at night. Furthermore, things like weather can greatly change crowd patterns and ride availability. It is nice to be able to change if needed.


I view adding the park hopping option similarly to staying on-site. It is more expensive, but it is kind of a luxury - not really in terms of accommodations, but for convenience.

[SBETigg]

We always hop, or we always have park hopper and most days we do hop but not all. For reasons others have stated well- the spontaneity/flexibility. I like changing parks midday and having the option just to enter a park for nothing more than dinner reservations, which we often do. It cuts down on my advance planning and makes me feel more relaxed to know I'm not stuck in whatever park I choose that morning.

[BriarRose0708]

If you're going during a busy time of year (which now is virtually all year!) then hopping may be worth it especially if you're staying on the monorail. It will make hopping from EPCOT to the MK fairly easy. Right now Hollywood Studios doesn't have much going on, so you could visit that early in the morning and then hop somewhere else for the afternoon/dinner.

I haven't hopped recently because my last couple trips have been short and I packed one park per day into my schedule, but when I have gone for 4-8 days the park hopper was great. It does afford more flexibility.