Help with driving to MK for morning EMH

[Mickey & Minnie Mom]

Scenario ...

Arriving at MK Friday morning after staying offsite Thursday night.

Have a reservation for ASMovies Friday night so want to take advantage of morning EMH at MK (8-9 am).

Have already completed online check in, have MagicBands and tickets are attached in MDE account.

My understanding is once parked at TTC, will need to enter the Resort Monorail line (showing MB) to get to MK and enter for EMH. All other guests are being held at ferry and express monorail gates until regular park opening.

Has anyone had a problem doing this lately? If denied access, do you suggest walking over to Poly and accessing monorail that way? Although I haven't been since new security procedures have been put in place, I understand this might have them doing bag check twice but better than not getting to EMH in time.

Appreciate any help you can provide to pass along to friends about to visit. We usually stay onsite but don't do morning EMH so I'm not sure I'm giving the correct advice.

 

[Robo]

Scenario ...

Arriving at MK Friday morning after staying offsite Thursday night.

Have a reservation for ASMovies Friday night so want to take advantage of morning EMH at MK (8-9 am).

Have already completed online check in, have MagicBands and tickets are attached in MDE account.

1. My understanding is once parked at TTC, will need to enter the Resort Monorail line (showing MB) to get to MK and enter for EMH. All other guests are being held at ferry and express monorail gates until regular park opening.

Has anyone had a problem doing this lately?
2. If denied access,
3. do you suggest walking over to Poly and accessing monorail that way?

1. Yup.
2. I doubt that you will be denied, but you MIGHT end up behind a lot of other guests.
3. That's a decent workaround in the unlikely event that its needed.
The walk, BTW, will take at least 10 minutes at a constant deliberate pace so arrive with plenty of time before
the EMH begins.

 

[Quellman]

Scenario ...

Arriving at MK Friday morning after staying offsite Thursday night.

Have a reservation for ASMovies Friday night so want to take advantage of morning EMH at MK (8-9 am).

Have already completed online check in, have MagicBands and tickets are attached in MDE account.

My understanding is once parked at TTC, will need to enter the Resort Monorail line (showing MB) to get to MK and enter for EMH. All other guests are being held at ferry and express monorail gates until regular park opening.

Has anyone had a problem doing this lately? If denied access, do you suggest walking over to Poly and accessing monorail that way? Although I haven't been since new security procedures have been put in place, I understand this might have them doing bag check twice but better than not getting to EMH in time.

Appreciate any help you can provide to pass along to friends about to visit. We usually stay onsite but don't do morning EMH so I'm not sure I'm giving the correct advice.

You seem to have this well thought out, as well as a back up plan. You should not need to go through security twice if you just go to Polynesian directly after getting off the Tram. We walked from the Poly to TTC and had to go through the screeners there.

 

[StraightToDumbo]

You won't be denied access to the resort line. No one is denied. Whether you can get in to EMH isn't sorted out until you get into the park. Literally anyone can get onto the resort line, just not everyone can get into the park for EMH. If you've ever noticed at the TTC, the gates say "Resort" and "MK".

They do this so that the masses won't flood the resort line, since most people don't understand that both lines actually go to MK. They aren't worried about the small number of people (proportionally) that spill over to the resort line.

 

[summerlvr]

Why not just go directly to ASMo, then take the bus to MK?

 

[Mickey & Minnie Mom]

Why not just go directly to ASMo, then take the bus to MK?

It may be a wash to do that ... drive to resort then take the bus ... but their plan was to just drive over from the offsite hotel in the morning. They will be leaving in the afternoon for a break, drive to resort then, get checked into room, and return to MK via bus.

 

[summerlvr]

True that it probably wouldn't save time, I just hate driving to MK, LOL. Also didn't see the info in the original post about them leaving for an afternoon break.

 

[Robo]

You won't be denied access to the resort line. No one is denied. Whether you can get in to EMH isn't sorted out until you get into the park. Literally anyone can get onto the resort line, just not everyone can get into the park for EMH.

Sorry, but that is no longer necessarily true for at least the first 30 min. of AM EMH.
With MK's new "one-hour-early" opening of Main St., AM EMH entry procedures have changed.

 

[StraightToDumbo]

Sorry, but that is no longer necessarily true for at least the first 30 min. of AM EMH.
With MK's new "one-hour-early" opening of Main St., AM EMH entry procedures have changed.

So they don't let non-resort guests near MK until after EMH?

 

[Robo]

So they don't let non-resort guests near MK until after EMH?

They delay guests at TTC until much closer to 8:30 (on 8AM EMH days.)
After 8:30-ish, the CMs start to screen WDW resort guests at the Tomorrowland and/or Fantasyland bridges at the castle hub.

By far, the most WDW resort guests arrive at MK via the Disney buses.
Conversely, the most off-site guests arrive at TTC.

 

[wareagle57]

They delay guests at TTC until much closer to 8:30 (on 8AM EMH days.)
After 8:30-ish, the CMs start to screen WDW resort guests at the Tomorrowland and/or Fantasyland bridges at the castle hub.

By far, the most WDW resort guests arrive at MK via the Disney buses.
Conversely, the most off-site guests arrive at TTC.

So what time are non-resort guests let into main street. It sounds they would be able to get into and enjoy EMH pretty easily if they are only scanning at 2 access points in the hub, and if they don't start until 8:30

 

[Robo]

So what time are non-resort guests let into main street. It sounds they would be able to get into and enjoy EMH pretty easily if they are only scanning at 2 access points in the hub, and if they don't start until 8:30

I don't understand your meaning.
The point is that they basically don't deliver non-resort guests to the MK gates until about 8:30...
Main St. is locked closed at the Hub at about that time.
At that point, only WDW resort guests would be admitted into Fantasyland and Tomorrowland (the only sections open for AM EMH.)

 

[wareagle57]

I don't understand your meaning.
The point is that they basically don't deliver non-resort guests to the MK gates until about 8:30...
Main St. is locked closed at the Hub at about that time.
At that point, only WDW resort guests would be admitted into Fantasyland and Tomorrowland (the only sections open for AM EMH.)

I forgot only those two areas are open during EMH. I was also thinking about the multiple ways into FL, but you did say bridges plural so it was just a brain fart on my part. I know they control the access at the monorail, but it would still be possible for a non-resort guest to get to MK without taking the ferry/monorail.

Basically I just misinterpret your post and thought only SOME of the access points in the hub were being checked by CMs.

 

[Thing 1]

We have been in that situation several times. We get up super early and arrive at the hotel we are checking into. We don't do online check in but rather check in super early at the resorts. It has resulted in us either getting the exact room we want or an update every.single.time. A time or two our room was ready then, other times we dropped our luggage and had it delivered when our room was ready and we return for a late afternoon break. We jump on the bus and head to the park... easy peasy.

 

[Mickey & Minnie Mom]

We have been in that situation several times. We get up super early and arrive at the hotel we are checking into. We don't do online check in but rather check in super early at the resorts. It has resulted in us either getting the exact room we want or an update every.single.time. A time or two our room was ready then, other times we dropped our luggage and had it delivered when our room was ready and we return for a late afternoon break. We jump on the bus and head to the park... easy peasy.

Thanks ... I will pass along your experience as an option for them in case they decide to forgo the drive directly to MK.