Extra Magic Hours are a great benefit that you get for free just for staying at a Walt Disney World Resort. Every day one of the Disney Parks either opens one hour early or stays open up to three hours later (after regular closing hours), so that guests who are staying at Disney resort hotels can have easy access to certain attractions. By taking advantage of Extra Magic Hours, you can worry less about long lines and cranky guests and really make the most of your time at a much more relaxed pace.
One thing to keep in mind when planning to take advantage of Extra Magic Hours is the park ticket you’ve chosen. If you’ve purchased the basic Magic Your Way Ticket, you’ll want to be sure to spend your day at the theme park that will have Extra Magic Hours on that particular day.
For example: If you have a Magic Your Way ticket and decide to spend the day at the Magic Kingdom but Extra Magic Hours are at EPCOT after closing, you’re out of luck. If you used your ticket at the Magic Kingdom first, that is the only park you can visit that day.) If you want to visit two parks in one day, you’ll want to get your ticket with the Park Hopper option that will allow you to visit as many parks as you want on any given day. If you’d rather save a few dollars, just watch this blog at the end of each month for the Extra Magic Hours schedule for the following month.
Extra Magic Hours at the water parks (Disney World has several) adds another small twist. In order to take advantage of Extra Magic Hours at a water park you must be sure to have a Resort I.D. (issued at check-in) and either the Water Park Fun & More Option on your Magic Your Way Ticket or a One Day Water Park ticket for the water park offering the Extra Magic Hours benefit that day.