Why I love Walt Disney World Extra Magic Hours!

When it comes to Walt Disney World and Extra Magic Hours, the debate is endless!  There are strategies about how to make the most of your Extra Magic Hours (EMH), there are debates over which is better, morning EMH or evening EMH, and there are people that avoid them like the plague!  For those that don’t know, Walt Disney World opens up a park either one hour early in the morning, or keeps a park open up to three hours later in the evening, just for guests of the Walt Disney World Resorts.  So, if you are staying on property, this is included to you for no additional cost.  The beauty of it is that if you plan it properly, you can get a lot extra time in the parks (and consequently, enjoy a lot of rides without really long lines!)

Ironically, my family has only enjoyed the Extra Magic Hours a few times in all the years that we’ve been staying on property.  Primarily this was because our daughter was a little too young to be staying out so late, and also because we would wake up to late to get to a park in time for morning extra magic hours.  So, as a result, our experiences with them are somewhat limited.

The first time we experienced EMH was in 2007.  Since this was the first time that we stayed on property, that put us off to a good start.  Disney’s Animal Kingdom had evening extra magic hours for part of the park, and we were able to enjoy a block party over at Dinoland, U.S.A.!  We had character dancing, meet and greets, music, and just a whole lot of fun, and out of that I got this photo of my daughter!

Not long after that, though, the Animal Kingdom stopped offering up extra magic hours in the evening, so we haven’t experienced that again.  We then went a few years without experiencing any extra magic hours, but in June, 2010, when we took my niece Stephanie to Disney World, we decided that it was time to experience them to a greater degree!  We had been going all day, we were at Animal Kingdom in the morning, we got wet on Kali River Rapids and poured on by an afternoon rainstorm, and to top it all off, we were racing to get over to Epcot in order to eat at Akershus for dinner!  We made it over there, and after we ate, we decided that we had just had enough of our cold wet clothes (we were really drenched!) so we went back to Port Orleans French Quarter to change.  After we did that, we decided that it was a perfect time to head over to the Magic Kingdom to watch the Main Street Electrical Parade, and then enjoy the evening, so that’s what we did.  Since it had rained for quite a while during the afternoon, the park wasn’t as busy, and since it was extra magic hours, we decided to enjoy them to the fullest!  It was when Stephanie and Sophie were going to ride Dumbo, and my wife Cindy and I were going to ride the Carrousel that we saw Mickey and Minnie Mouse over at Dumbo, where they surprised a family by riding with them on the ride.  That’s where my opening photo originated from.  Here are some others from that magical moment!

I guess what I’m trying to say here is that, if you are inclined to not bother with Extra Magic Hours, either morning or evening, you might want to give it a second look.  You never know when the incredible Disney Magic will jump up and transform your vacation from wonderful into a memory that you will never forget!

Related articles

• Disney in Pictures — Disney Magic (mydreamsofdisney.com)
• Disney World Planning – Extra Magic Hours Strageties (chipandco.com)

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