Do you use extra magic hours or avoid them? We are staying on property with no park hoppers. Last time we avoided them, which seemed to work well. We are early risers so we could definitely make morning EMH. Just worried that the benefit of low early crowds will come back to bite us later in the day. I’m curious to hear what others experienced. We will be going in June this time and I’m wondering if we should give them a shot.
I think that if you are going to be there right at RD then mEMH are a good thing, as you can get so much done during the EMH and the initial part of “regular” hours. The park may be more crowded than it would have been without mEMH later in the day, but by that point you can be doing low wait attractions, enjoying a relaxing TS meal, taking a break back at the resort, or hopping to a lower-crowd park (although this would not be your case).
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I think AM EMH are great. Evenings are so-so. Depends on the park and the EMH times. Most people are willing to stay at HS or Epcot from 9-11 so there are definetely more people then.
I always use AM EMH, as much as is practical. Although I always have hoppers or an AP, even on those days when I DON’T hop (which is actually most of them) I have not noticed a significant difference in crowds later in the day. But if you’re not going to be there 20-30 min before EMH RD, I would probably choose a different park. AM EMH is VERY valuable for MK and DHS; less important for EP and AK. PM EMH at EP is one of my favorite times in WDW. It’s a great time to enjoy WS in the relative cool (and WS is beautiful at night).
We have always used am EMH when on site, but our most recent trip has given us new insight: When crowds are at their lowest, a higher proportion of park guests are staying on-site, and those people tend to flock to am EMH. As a result, EMH is a great idea when crowds are moderate or higher, but relatively less so when crowds are lower since non-EMH parks tend to be, relatively, even quieter on days when everyone is heading to the am EMH park. EG Last Thursday morning, MK (CL2) with am EMH was unexpectedly busy, but reports from AK suggested it was basically deserted over there.
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Good point. Would have never guessed that.
I was at WDW at Easter and AM EMH were critical in our touring plan. We aren’t night owls so can’t speak to PM EMH. Usually use them , but will have to reevaluate with low crowds expected this week.
That is an interesting observation. Regardless of the CL, the WDW resorts are almost uniformly full because of the deals that are offered during slower periods. Therefore it makes sense that a greater proportion of visitors would be taking advantage of EMH during slower times.
Exactly what we realized just a moment too late, on our packed bus en route to (what ended up being a very busy) MK EMH.
I always have worked under the assumption that EMH works well in conjunction with park hopping - you can hop out of an AM EMH park once it starts getting crowded, or hop into a PM EMH park late for the after-hours.
With single-park tickets, I would avoid EMH, personally.