New Extra, Extra Magic Hours at Disney World (Including Star Wars Land!)
Walt Disney World has announced that beginning this fall, resort hotel guests will be able to take advantage of free morning “Extra, Extra Magic Hours” starting at early as 6 a.m. in Magic Kingdom, Animal Kingdom, and Hollywood Studios–including Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge.
The Extra, Extra Magic Hours benefit will include Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge at Disney’s Hollywood Studios, as well as other experiences at Disney’s Animal Kingdom and Magic Kingdom theme parks. Here’s the rundown:
- Disney’s Hollywood Studios – Daily from September 1 through November 2, 2019 the park will have Extra, Extra Magic Hours from 6-9 a.m., including Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge, plus Toy Story Land, and select other attractions.
From August 29 to 31, 2019, Disney’s Hollywood Studios will open at 6 a.m. for all guests. There will not be Extra, Extra Magic Hours on those days.
- Disney’s Animal Kingdom – Extra, Extra Magic Hours will happen daily August 29 to November 2, 2019, from 7-8 a.m., featuring Pandora — The World of Avatar and other attractions throughout the park (same as today’s morning Extra Magic Hours offerings).
- Magic Kingdom – Extra, Extra Magic Hours will happen daily from August 29 to November 2, 2019, from 7-8 a.m., featuring Fantasyland and Tomorrowland attractions (the same as today’s morning Extra Magic Hours offerings).
Extra Magic Hours will also continue to be available on select days at Epcot.
This is huge and unanticipated news. Well, at least the Magic Kingdom and Animal Kingdom aspect of the announcement. We fully expected Disney’s Hollywood Studios to open super-early for the initial opening period of Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge, but even then, we didn’t anticipate such a prolonged period of scheduled 6 a.m. openings.
For a while, we’ve been harping on the point that Star Wars Land will not draw guests away from the other lands or parks–it’ll draw more tourists to Walt Disney World, and those people aren’t going to just do Galaxy’s Edge. Remember, a rising tide lifts all boats. If you had any lingering doubt about this “prediction,” the new Extra, Extra Magic Hours for Magic Kingdom and Animal Kingdom should put that issue to bed.
May 6, 2019 Update: Lots of readers have asked about priority access for on-site guests opening day; unfortunately, I would not expect anything. Many guests will camp out overnight to enter Disney’s Hollywood Studios, and from an operational/crowd-flow perspective, there’s really no good way to handle that aside from letting everyone in the park at once. (I’d expect the actual, unpublished opening to occur around ~5 a.m. to help deal with folks camped out, but that’s just a guess.)
Evening Extra Magic Hours that night (and thereafter) are a possibility, but I wouldn’t expect anything to be announced on that front right away. To be honest, I’m surprised Disney announced these hours before seeing how things went at Disneyland.
If you’re an on-site guest who doesn’t care about being among the “first” to experience opening day, I’d recommend visiting a different park August 29 and 30, and doing Disney’s Hollywood Studios on September 1 or thereafter. You will be at a huge advantage by virtue of waiting a couple of days.
The downside to these “Extra, Extra Magic Hours” is that Walt Disney World is doing this for a reason. Whether that’s because internal attendance projections are showing a tremendous surge in attendance or because they are simply anticipating heavy crowds (a third, totally different motive would be that this is a clever attempt to entice more people to stay on-site), there is a reason. Disney wouldn’t extend park hours to this degree “just because” or as a nice perk.
The upside is that this creates some exceptional opportunities for early-risers. We’ve taken advantage of extended Extra Magic Hours like this (albeit not as extreme) a few times, and the advantages they offer cannot be overstated. Super-early Extra Magic Hours is better than a paid hard ticket event in terms of efficiency.
We’ve done the ‘extended’ morning Extra Magic Hours for both Pandora – World or Avatar and Toy Story Land (read about our DHS experience here), and they are glorious. More recently, we did two rounds of 7 a.m. morning Extra Magic Hours at Magic Kingdom for spring break and Easter, and that was likewise a wonderful experience. (Read about our ‘Before Sunrise in Magic Kingdom’ experience here.)
The reality is that most Walt Disney World hotel guests are on vacation, and waking up at ~4 a.m. to get ready and to a theme park by ~5:30 a.m. is simply not the ideal way of relaxing or is impossible due to kids. (In reality, you should probably arrive before 5:30 a.m.) Consequently, pretty much any opening time before 8 a.m. is always a joyous experience, with low crowds, pleasant weather, and minimal wait times.
Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge is totally unprecedented and as a franchise, Star Wars has some absolutely diehard fans. Accordingly, we expect larger crowds for these super early morning hours at Disney’s Hollywood Studios, and lines in Star Wars Land even right when the park opens. That’s just the likely reality.
However, 6 a.m. lines at Tower of Terror, or lines pretty much anywhere in Magic Kingdom (save for Seven Dwarfs Mine Train) or Animal Kingdom (save for Pandora), are unlikely. Those who make the effort of rising early will almost certainly be handsomely rewarded, and will get more done between 6 a.m. and 10 a.m. than will someone who arrives at 10 a.m. and stays until park closing. (That might sound like hyperbole, but it is absolutely not.)
The biggest losers here are off-site guests and those who don’t get up early. By the time 9 a.m. rolls around at Disney’s Hollywood Studios, wait times for Millennium Falcon: Smugglers Run should be at close to their peak for the day. That could be over 180 or even 240 minutes. Without FastPass.
The difference between waiting ~20 minutes for Smugglers Run at 6 a.m. and ~3 hours at 9 a.m. is probably alone enough to justify the cost premium of staying on-site. (While other quibbles still exist, this pretty much undercuts our entire ‘Is Walt Disney World’s On-Site Advantage Disappearing?‘ article.)
The other loser in all of this is Epcot, and this should really underscore a couple of things about the park. First, that expectations are much lower about demand for the park. (It’s the one park we think could have its attendance cannibalized a bit by the increased popularity of Disney’s Hollywood Studios.) This explains why the park is essentially being re-imagined–with more announcements to come–even if we don’t like some of the new direction for the park.
Second, even during the popular Food & Wine Festival, earlier opening times at Epcot are not “needed.” It’s been obvious for a while that festivals are what’s buoying Epcot attendance (just wander around “Diet Epcot” this summer for that on full display), and those booths don’t open until 11 a.m.
Ultimately, there’s a lot of upside in this for those guests who are visiting in September. As we covered in our updated-for-Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge 2019 Walt Disney World Crowd Predictions: When to Go & Avoid, we still don’t think September is going to be as bad as many people are expecting.
We think this is being driven by the initial opening week plus demand from peak October travel dates driving this, along with expectations that this tremendous perk will help spike September hotel bookings. Moreover, we’d expect at least some of these Extra, Extra Magic Hours to be extended for November and December once those travel dates draw nearer.
There have been a lot of complaints from those who booked Walt Disney World trips for September or early October trips hoping to experience the ‘calm before the storm’ prior to the opening of Star Wars Land being announced. If you’re an early riser–or can force yourself to become one–we think this pretty much obviates all of that.
Visit the parks for those first few hours to experience minimal waits (and avoid oppressive heat!), go back to your hotel and nap by the pool for ~8 hours, then return to the park at night. You could conceivably only spend a few hours in the parks during daylight hours (hence all the night photos here) and still do more than normal. Maybe it’s just because I’m a morning person who detests midday sun and heat, but that sounds wonderful to me!
If you’re planning on visiting the new land, you’ll also want to read our Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge Guide. This covers a range of topics from basics about the land and its location, to strategically choosing a hotel for your stay, recommended strategy for the land, and how early to arrive to Disney’s Hollywood Studios to beat the crowds. It’s a good primer for this huge addition.
Planning a Walt Disney World trip? Learn about hotels on our Walt Disney World Hotels Reviews page. For where to eat, read our Walt Disney World Restaurant Reviews. To save money on tickets or determine which type to buy, read our Tips for Saving Money on Walt Disney World Tickets post. Our What to Pack for Disney Trips post takes a unique look at clever items to take. For what to do and when to do it, our Walt Disney World Ride Guides will help. For comprehensive advice, the best place to start is our Walt Disney World Trip Planning Guide for everything you need to know!
Your Thoughts
Do you agree or disagree with our advice? Any questions we can help you answer? Hearing your feedback–even when you disagree with us–is both interesting to us and helpful to other readers, so please share your thoughts below in the comments!
Does anyone know if the extra, extra magic hours will be extended for Rise of the Resistance? Or how likely will they extend?
I’m hoping they release hours before FastPass+ selections open at the 60 day mark. It was hard enough trying to figure out dining when I didn’t know what was going on with the park hours.
Our family of four, including a 14 year-old and 11 year-old, have a trip planned for Oct. 14-Oct 18th and are staying onsite. We have been a few times before, but I am a little indecisive about planning our day and our fast passes. In your opinion, if we are not taking advantage of the early EMH, should we avoid that park for the day? We do have park hopper so we are not tied to one park. Or should we try our best to take advantage of the early EMH? Thank you for any advice and help you can give.
Hey Tom,
I know you already wrote that EMH may linger over into November and December. I’m just wondering if it’s common practice for WDW to stop EMH at the beginning of November? Also if they do add more in November and December. When would I expect to see that? (I understand you’re not Voltar lol)
My husband and I are planning (I’ve mostly planned) a short trip for my birthday the first week of November. I’m really trying to take advantage of all the things we can’t normally do when we have the kids with us. We usually stay offsite and this will be our first time staying at a WDW resort. I was really hoping to get the added perk of EMH one of the days. Thank You so much! Love all your blogs and how incredibly helpful you are!
I wonder… will the extra-extra hours truly come to an abrupt end on November 2.. especially with the second ride opening later on…
Can we expect lots of extra-extra hours at DHS into the future? Maybe not daily.. but several days per week for months? Maybe longer?
I’m expecting to visit late next June, just before July 4th….
Does anyone know if rider (child) swap will be allowed for smuggler’s run?
PS Love the blog Tom–a lot of useful info and insight on many WDW topics!
I’m a little bummed cos we had specifically booked a PPO Breakfast Res at Be Our Guest to beat the crowds into Fantasyland, and now that is totally irrelevant! We had originally planned to rope drop Toy Story Mania on our Studios day and now I’m not sure how that’s going to play out… We love Star Wars but are like many others who booked a September trip to avoid that opening, so will most likely steer clear GE while we’re there. Hopefully our late Sept dates won’t be too crazy!
Tom,
Are we going to be able to use our sons DAS pass for returns on the Star Wars ride(S) do you think? He’s a huge Star Wars fan but realistically he won’t cope with all the crowds for long so hoping this is a possibility or he will miss out greatly.
Yes I contacted Disney’s disability office and return times will be given for Millennium Falcon for those with a DAS pass. I encouraged them to setup a kiosk outside of Galaxys Edge to get the return time instead of having people with disabilities fighting through the crowds all the way into Galaxys Edge just to get a return time. Hopefully they will.
My wife and I booked a long day weekend at WDW 8/29 – 09/02 a couple of weeks before the announcement that SWGE would open early (on 8/29). We are now thinking of cancelling our trip and going to Universal instead due to the anticipated crowds. Does anyone have any thoughts one way or the other? Thanks.
Tom, love the article as usual. I’m a little concerned with our daily plans now. I chose park days based on several crowd calendars and I think the crowd calendars are determined, at least in part, on EMH. How will this work now that every park (except Epcot) has morning EMH every day. Also, will MK, AK and HS continue to have evening EMH in addition to the morning Extra EMH? I am booked mid Sept. I still plan to avoid Epcot on the weekends and I plan to go to MK on party days but otherwise, I’m not sure what variables will make AK, HS and MK stand out one day to the next. Thank you for your help.
I’m not sure I particularly agree that a rising tide lifts all boats, at least on a permanent basis. I agree that it will in the short and intermediate term. Pandora has made Expedition Everest much more tolerable. Although it’s not quite the same comparison because Disneyland has a different tourist base, Cars Land absolutely reduced the lines at the rest of the park. I have pics during early morning entry of the walk to Toy Story Mania and California Screamin (now Incredicoaster) that show the walk to be nearly empty. Cars Land is always crowded with RSR waits typically at 40 to an hour on off peak days.
I think in the long term, Galaxy’s Edge will reduce the crowd size at the remainder of the parks. (albeit, that depends on how Disney runs the park hours and the rides). But Galaxy’s Edge will never ever be not crowded.
So this may come across as a dumb question (I’ve just woken up) but I’m going to ask anyway. Lol. Are the extra extra hours for everyone or just those staying on property?
Right? Who would bother reading the FIRST LINE OF THE ARTICLE?!?!?
Ugh, people.
Just those on property.
Am I right in assuming the transportation will be up and running before the 6 am park openings?
Thank you for this information, I am just wondering if you think it would be wise to book our fastpasses earlier in the day now that every park will be open extra early?
Thank you for this info… I have two young kids (2 and 4) and we want Toy Story Land (we don’t plan on doing anything Star Wars) so we are postponing our trip 1 year to let the crowds die down (if they will). Love your blog!! Thanks for all the helpful tips!
We booked the last week of August as our first family vacation as a blended family, and because of personal circumstances, could not alter our dates. I was so sad when I first heard about Galaxies Edge opening right in the middle of our holiday, but we all decided to deal with it, and just not go to Hollywood Studios after the Wednesday. I am optimistic!
Soooo….if you need a hotel id it would make sense that the early am hours are for off site hotels as well, that have that privilege already!
I was initially upset when I heard of this opening so early, since we are staying at Yacht Club….but now I’m pumped! I am an early riser and I could JUST WALK to Hollywood Studios. I’m going to ditch my husband and check it out. If it’s worth it, I’m waking him up the next day to join me. Plus, since we are at the Yacht Club, I may just lazy river during the day!
I wonder if there will be some 24 hour days during that time frame. Either way, it’ll make for some early mornings. We are planning for a trip in Mid November, hopefully the hours are not as intense during that time.
You indicated a hope for these extra-extra magic hours to become available in December as well, and since we are there Christmas week, we can only hope such hours are offered! Keep us posted!
Hummm no! I’m sorry but that ridiculous . What happened to late night magic hrs? Love those, we are on vacation, we want to sleep in!
Disney is definitely not a sleep in vacation. Add a resort day or two to your trip to get some time to sleep in.
I can understand your point, but those of us with children under 10 can’t really take advantage of EMH that are late evening. A mix of both would be nice, though
With the extra, extra early morning hours, I’m just worried that there will be a lot of smelly people around me! I don’t go out the door without a shower but I’m thinking there will be people that will wake up and roll out the door at 4AM! Ugh!!!
I take my shower at night and go to bed clean,thank you! lol
Good, I hope others shower too! I myself take more than 1 per day in that heat! I remember one 24 hour MK day…so many smelly people! Bathrooms and monorail smelled so bad!
I’ll be showering at night. Hopefully those that don’t want to waste time in the morning all shower at night.
The online reservation system for Disneyland SWGE may have given them a good prediction. We waited 45 minutes with a ‘do not go back or refresh this page’ warning to get a reservation. At this point, the only way to get into SWGE is a Resort Hotel reservation (until the end of June).