Everything You Need to Know About Early Park Entry In Disney World
We all know Disney World is expensive. Which means, when they provide a free perk, we definitely want to take advantage of. This includes Early Park Entry in Disney World.
I’m going to be completely transparent with you here. I am not an early morning person, so I have never done Early Park Entry in Disney World.
However, just because it’s not my thing, doesn’t mean it can’t be your thing. And I know enough about it to share everything you need to know if you want to make this experience part of your trip.
Who this applies to
Guests staying any ANY Disney World Resort Hotel are able to take advantage of Early Park Entry. There are also a handful of good neighbor hotels that are included.
Below, you’ll find a list of hotels that are included as of 2026. However, you should always verify information with Disney before you go to make sure you’re included.
- All the Disney World Resort Hotels
- Walt Disney World Dolphin Hotel
- Walt Disney World Swan Hotel
- Walt Disney World Swan Reserve
- DoubleTree Suites by Hilton Orlando
- Drury Plaza Hotel Orlando Lake Buena Vista
- Four Seasons Resort Orlando
- Hilton Orlando Buena Vista Palace
- Hilton Orlando Lake Buena Vista
- Holiday Inn Orlando
- Renaissance Orlando Resort and Spa
- Shades of Green® on Walt Disney World Resort
- Signia by Hilton Orlando Bonnet Creek
- Waldorf Astoria Orlando
- Wyndham Garden Lake Buena Vista
- Wyndham Lake Buena Vista
What it is
Early Park Entry is a magical perk for select Disney World guests. These guests are allowed to enter the parks 30 minutes early during the length of their stay.
You can go to ANY Park of your choosing 30 minutes early.
This replaces the old Extra Magic Hours system where guests were about to get an extra hour or two in a designated park each day.
Sometimes this meant getting access to a select park an hour before opening. Other times it meant being allowed to stay two hours after closing.
When this new program was first rolled out, some people were upset to be going from getting 1 hour down to just 30 minutes. However, I think this new approach has it’s pros.
One of the down sides to Extra Magic Hours was that it was on available at one park per day. This meant everyone staying at a Disney World Resort was incentivized to go to that one specific park on the same day.
So while you go more time, you were also faced with larger crowds. This new system allows visitors to go to ANY park, which spreads out the crowd.
However, unlike Extra Magic Hours, all Disney World Resort guests are only allowed to get extra time in the mornings.
Extra Evening Hours do exist, but they’re only reserved for a select number of guests. (More on this in a future post.)
What’s open
This is very important! While the parks may be open early and avaliabe to you, not every ride and experience is.
However, the most popular attractions are typically on the list, as long as they’re operational.
You can find the complete list of rides that are open in each park here.
Disney also often offers extra perks and benefits during the summer when it’s more crowded. 2025 saw additional character meet and greets with popular characters.
This has already been announced to return in 2026, though Disney is keeping quiet on the characters set to appear.
Other important details
You do need a valid park ticket to take advantage of this offer. If you have a date-based ticked, which is what most people have when they book a package, then you’re good to go!
If you’re an annual passholder or have a different type of non date-based ticket, you’ll need a valid park reservation to enter the parks early. You can learn more about what type of tickets require reservations here.
Have you ever taken advantage of Early Park Entry in Disney World? Do you plan to try it in the future? Tell us about it in the comments!