Disney After Hours at Magic Kingdom : A Simple Guide


Disney After Hours at Magic Kingdom : A Simple Guide Magic Kingdom 1

Disney After Hours is a special ticketed event, meaning that you need to purchase a special ticket, where you get to stay after the park is closed to regular guests and have 3 hours of walk-on rides, character meet and greets and tasty treats! You get a special lanyard ticket that allows you to stay in the park after the main crowd leaves. If you are a BIG Disney Fan like I am this is something you have to do at least once.

cinderellas castle disney after hours

Eating at the Magic Kingdom During After Hours

While you are enjoying riding all of your favorite rides, over and over again you can have unlimited Mickey Ice Cream bars, popcorn, and select beverages included in the price of the ticket. If popcorn and ice cream isn’t your thing, there are select menu items available for purchase at the Main street bakery as well as other locations around the park.

When is Disney After Hours at Magic Kingdom? (Dates and Times)

The event times may change with the hours of the park, but it is always 3 hours after park closing. Guests with event tickets are not required to have regular admission, so it is kind of nice that you are able to enter the park at 7 pm on the day of the event and have access to everything the park has to offer before the event starts and the crowds thin out. This gives you a chance to ride something that won’t be open during the event or grab a meal at a restaurant that will be closing with the park.

Disney After Hours at Magic Kingdom : A Simple Guide Magic Kingdom 2

What Characters Can You Meet?

If you like meeting Characters then this is a very opportune time to meet Mickey, Minnie, and Tinkerbell at Town Square Theater as well as the Princesses at Princess Fairytale Hall will all be available for meet and greets during the event. What is better than being able to meet all of them without the long lines? As the most popular meet and greets you will save hours of waiting by visiting during the After Hours event.

What Attractions Are Open During Disney After Hours?

Unfortunately, not all of the rides are open during these events, but over 25 of your favorites are included with this list. We found that there were plenty of rides open to fill the 3 hours. In fact, you shouldn’t have any problem riding all of these rides at least once. Not only that but the crowds are usually so low at these events that you may be able to get off a ride and then go again right away! There’s nothing like walk-on-ride opportunities at Disney World!

  • Astro Orbiter
  • Big Thunder Mountain Railroad
  • Buzz Lightyear’s Space Ranger Spin
  • Haunted Mansion
  • “it’s a small world”
  • Jungle Cruise
  • Mickey’s PhilharMagic
  • Peter Pan’s Flight
  • Pirates of the Caribbean
  • Seven Dwarfs Mine Train
  • Space Mountain
  • Splash Mountain
  • And much more!

If you want to see how easy it is to get on these rides or what the experience is like in general check out this video from Tim Tracker…

How Much Does After Hours Cost?

If you buy your tickets ahead of time you can save a few dollars and get them for $125 per person, any age. If you buy them the day of the event they are $129 per person. Personally, I would not wait until the day of. These events are popular and only a limited amount of tickets are available and they can sell out.  If you are an Annual Pass holder or a DVC member you can get a discount on your tickets and pay just $95 per person.

How To Get Tickets

If you are visiting Disney world when Disney After Hours is happening there are a few ways that you can get tickets. You can book them online directly from Disney Worlds website, or you can call (407) 939-7795 or purchase them at the parks. I recommend getting the tickets when you book your trip to guarantee that you have them.

Do Any Other Disney Parks Do After Hours Events?

Throughout the year you’ll find that the Magic Kingdom, Hollywood Studios, and Disney’s Animal Kingdom all hold Disney After Hours events. They are all basically, all the same, each park chooses the rides and attractions that are open. As with the Magic Kingdom, they are always held for 3 hours after the park closes.

fireworks disney after hours event

Is Disney After Hours Worth It?

Is Disney After Hours worth it… In my opinion yes, I feel that it is totally worth the cost. To be honest, the first time that I heard about it I was skeptical as to whether it was worth it or not, but then we encountered long lines during our trip and waited 2 hours to meet Anna & Elsa… if we had gone to the After Hours event we would have waited around 10 minutes. We could have done a ton more rides or meet and greets in those 2 hours, instead of waiting in line.

An average 1-day park ticket will cost you just over $100. For a few dollars more you can have FAR fewer people in the park and get to rise the most popular rides with little to no wait times. Most of the time the wait times listed are the amount of time it takes you to walk through the queue. I call that walk on. You will almost NEVER have wait times like that for Seven Dwarfs Mine Train, Space Mountain or splash mountain. If you are only able to travel to Disney during super busy times I think the ticket for this event is totally worth it.

Click here for more information about the Magic Kingdom

Heather

Heather Noyes, the visionary behind this website and a former Disney travel agent, has woven her lifelong passion for Disney into the fabric of her daily life. Nestled just 3 miles away through the enchanting trees lies Cinderella's Castle, a magical neighbor to Heather's everyday adventures. From her earliest days, Disney has captured her heart, and this enduring love has translated into the meticulous planning of numerous trips for her family, friends, and cherished clients, all destined for the enchanting realm of Walt Disney World.

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