EPCOT Hidden Gems: The Best Kept Secrets of World Showcase

If you want to beat the massive crowds and ride the most popular attractions at Disney World without paying extra for Lightning Lanes, your best weapon is Disney World Early Entry. However, using this perk incorrectly can actually put you behind thousands of other people before the park even officially opens.

Key Takeaways

• Early Theme Park Entry allows on-site hotel guests to enter any of the four theme parks 30 minutes before the official park opening.
• You must arrive at the park gates 45 to 60 minutes before your Early Entry time to actually be at the front of the pack.
• Not all rides are open during Early Entry (e.g., Jungle Cruise and Big Thunder Mountain are closed during Magic Kingdom’s Early Entry).

What is Disney World Early Entry?

Early Theme Park Entry is a perk available to guests staying at a Disney resort hotel (and select Good Neighbor hotels). It replaced the old “Extra Magic Hours” system. Instead of one specific park opening an hour early for hotel guests on specific days, every park opens 30 minutes early, every single day for eligible guests.

This 30-minute head start allows you to ride high-demand attractions like Seven Dwarfs Mine Train, Avatar Flight of Passage, or Slinky Dog Dash with a minimal wait time before the general public is allowed inside.

Who gets the most value from Early Entry?

If you are not purchasing Lightning Lane Multi Pass or Lightning Lane Single Pass, Early Entry is practically mandatory if you want to ride the top-tier attractions without standing in 2-hour lines. It is incredibly valuable at Hollywood Studios and Animal Kingdom, where the majority of guests are rope-dropping one or two specific rides.

If you are traveling with toddlers and only plan to ride Dumbo and the teacups, Early Entry is less critical, though it still provides a wonderfully empty, peaceful park for taking photos.

How to use Disney World Early Entry the Right Way

The biggest mistake people make with Early Entry is showing up exactly when it starts. If Early Entry begins at 8:30 AM, and you arrive at the security checkpoint at 8:30 AM, you are already too late.

Disney usually opens the tap points (the scanners where you scan your MagicBand+++ or ticket) well before the actual Early Entry time. They will hold guests at specific points inside the park. You need to be at the physical park gates 60 minutes before Early Entry begins. This means if Early Entry is at 8:30 AM, you need to be at the gates by 7:30 AM, which means you need to be on a Disney bus, Skyliner, or Monorail by 6:45 AM.

Best ways to think about Early Entry strategy

Do not use your 30 minutes of Early Entry to ride something that will have a low wait time later in the day (like Spaceship Earth or Pirates of the Caribbean). You should exclusively use this time for the most popular ride in the park that does not use a virtual queue.

In Magic Kingdom, head straight to Seven Dwarfs Mine Train or Peter Pan’s Flight. In EPCOT, go directly to Remy’s Ratatouille Adventure or Frozen Ever After. In Hollywood Studios, you must choose between Slinky Dog Dash or Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance.

When Early Entry is probably not worth it

If you are not a morning person and cannot physically get your family out of the hotel room by 6:45 AM, do not try to rope drop Early Entry. Showing up 10 minutes after Early Entry starts puts you at the absolute back of the massive wave of hotel guests, and you will wait in the longest line of the day.

If you prefer to sleep in, a better strategy is to purchase Lightning Lane Multi Pass, stack your selections for the afternoon and evening, and stay in the parks until closing time when wait times naturally drop again.

Frequently Asked Questions

Do off-site guests get Early Entry?
No. Only guests staying at official Disney World Resort hotels and select partner hotels (like the Swan, Dolphin, and Disney Springs resort area hotels) are eligible.

Can I ride TRON or Guardians of the Galaxy during Early Entry?
No. Both TRON Lightcycle / Run and Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind require a Virtual Queue or Lightning Lane Single Pass. They do not offer standby lines during Early Entry.

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