Park Hopping - Observations + Thoughts 2021

[Dug720]

Ya fairly simple example but Disney likely has a ton of data on guest movement. Also with scanning bands it helps even more as they likely can see what percentage of individuals are onsite vs offsite have hoppers, in addition they can likely see that the prior day when you park hopped you used the bus system to do so.

Not having park closures right now is a good sign though for everyone going until Spring Break.

Presidents’ Week might be a test given that MardiGras is the same week this year apparently.

 

[sethschroeder]

Presidents’ Week might be a test given that MardiGras is the same week this year apparently.

Good point could see a spike and we might see bigger crowds based on some people thinking its less busy.

Personally I am in the group that thinks Disney will just bypass their 35% capacity specific to park hopping if it comes down to it. I mean at a certain point they likely would have a hard cap but don't think that many people will have park hoppers this year.

 

[Dug720]

Good point could see a spike and we might see bigger crowds based on some people thinking its less busy.

Personally I am in the group that thinks Disney will just bypass their 35% capacity specific to park hopping if it comes down to it. I mean at a certain point they likely would have a hard cap but don't think that many people will have park hoppers this year.

I know I’m not bumping up to a hopper for my Feb trip (already scheduled before I realized it was MardiGras too, and dang it I am GOING on vacation after two cancelled ones this summer). I pondered and realized that even when I had an AP I really did not hop all that much - mainly one day when I had breakfast at Garden Grill but was waaaaay early on the Skyliner so I went and rode Tower and RnRC before breakfast, did a couple of things in Epcot, and decided to just go for 4 in one day just once. Other than that I am usually a one park/day girl. FOTA did make me ponder it, and once the menus are out fully (with pricing and what is gluten-free) I MIGHT decide to upgrade, but likely not.

 

[Mzpalmtree]

We hopped from Epcot to the other 3 parks then back to Epcot today. We walked from Epcot to HS and used the park to park buses for the rest and it was an easy process. We got a snack and rode a ride in each park except HS (only got a snack there). The parks seemed more crowded overall today and we had a bad morning in Epcot so the hopping saved the day for us.

 

[eeyoreandtink]

Presidents’ Week might be a test given that MardiGras is the same week this year apparently.

Possibly, but we are 6 weeks out and there is availability in every park, and rooms available with a significant discount at every hotel that is open. A lot of people who normally have Mardi Gras off don’t because we have had 2 hurricanes close school for a week each, and parades in many places aren’t running so no accessibility issues for schools. A lot of districts have chosen to cancel or vastly shorten the break.

 

[Turk February]

Does anyone know if Club 33 members and their guests who have multiple park passes for the same day but NOT hoppers can use park-to-park transportation? Technically they don't have the correct tickets to be allowed on the bus, but they are hopping nonetheless.

 

[TheMaxRebo]

Good point could see a spike and we might see bigger crowds based on some people thinking its less busy.

Personally I am in the group that thinks Disney will just bypass their 35% capacity specific to park hopping if it comes down to it. I mean at a certain point they likely would have a hard cap but don't think that many people will have park hoppers this year.

Possibly - though if the thinking is most of the hopping is TO EPCOT, EPCOT can hold 110,000 people so their 35% cap is the largest already of any of the parks, so they should be able to absorb taking on some from the other parks

(e.g., 1% of DHS is only like 1/2% at EPCOT)

 

[skeeter31]

Possibly - though if the thinking is most of the hopping is TO EPCOT, EPCOT can hold 110,000 people so their 35% cap is the largest already of any of the parks, so they should be able to absorb taking on some from the other parks

(e.g., 1% of DHS is only like 1/2% at EPCOT)

Not to mention that Epcot is the park with the least park reservations per day as well. I think it’s only hit capacity maybe once or twice since July. It’s always the last park available on the busy days.

 

[sethschroeder]

I can see them trying to reinforce going to Epcot as well by having later hours there. If it's open an hour later people might opt to just hop there.

 

[jess20k]

We are going in April 2021. My package currently has the hoppers added to it, but unless things change by then, I am going to remove them. I do not think it is worth the extra $$ to hop if you are not sure that a park might be full or if the closing park times are earlier. No thank you!

 

[Day-Day]

We hopped from Epcot to the other 3 parks then back to Epcot today. We walked from Epcot to HS and used the park to park buses for the rest and it was an easy process. We got a snack and rode a ride in each park except HS (only got a snack there). The parks seemed more crowded overall today and we had a bad morning in Epcot so the hopping saved the day for us.

• What was your process for reserving each park for hopping?
• Did you reserve hopping for your return visit back to the original park (EPCOT)?

 

[Mzpalmtree]

• What was your process for reserving each park for hopping?
• Did you reserve hopping for your return visit back to the original park (EPCOT)?

You don’t have to have reservations for the parks you hop to—just a reservation for your original park which in our case was Epcot. I believe the only requirement is that you need to have entered the park your reservation was for before hopping. From there it was just a matter of them confirming that you had hoppers which was done before we got on the park to park bus by scanning our magic band.

 

[BarbLynnM]

We're doing the hopper for our June trip. We don't usually spend the whole day in one park in past trips, mainly because with a few exceptions, we like to eat at the restaurants at Epcot no matter what park we're in. It just makes sense for us. For example, we don't do much at MK; I like to do a few of the rides, but then (in past times) we book it to a different park. I was happy to see the hopper start up again.

 

[MMSM]

I am super conflicted with my tickets. I currently have 2 Park Hoppers Plus. The plus kind of stinks because NBA is out, one mini park open, and in March only Blizzard Beach open (my kids love Typhoon). We obviously had these from last April that we didn't get to use. My kids didn't want to go to parks 4 days so 2 with hopping made sense. We now know we will not be going to HS and will not try to get the Rise of Resistance. This makes me sad but my kids still like MK AND AK so that is what we did reservations for. If we were unable to go to those parks, my kids would be sad. So now, with the new rules of having to have a HS reservation and be there for first park selection, we have opted not to go. Epcot we can still hop to. However, if Ratatouille comes out my kids want to go on that. I suspect that they will make the same rules for that as they did for Rise. With shortened hours, I have thought about going down to a 3 day or 4 day park and then going to Volcano Bay. However, there is a significant increase to a 4 day park. One of the things my kids love is AK at night. It won't even be dark by close if hours remain for March. Any thoughts? Any thoughts about Ratatouille opening near March 27th?

 

[Heather07438]

WDW site just added a new third bullet point to hopping:

• We will set specific Park Hopper hours during which this option will be available. Park Hopper hours will start at 2 PM each day and end at the park’s scheduled close time. Guests are now able to check the Park Hours calendar and soon will be able to check the My Disney Experience app for the most up-to-date Park Hopper hours, as they could start earlier at a later date, depending on the day and park.
• With the updated Park Hopper experience, Guests must make a Disney Park Pass reservation for the first park they plan to visit AND enter that first park prior to visiting another. At this time, a park reservation is not required after the first park, however, reservation requirements are subject to change.
• Dining reservations do not guarantee access to a park, and Park Hopper availability changes daily, we recommend Guests make dine reservations at the park where they have a Disney Park Pass reservation. Guests can make dine reservations or add their party to the walk-up list at select table-service restaurants via the My Disney Experience app after they enter the second park.

 

[Day-Day]

You don’t have to have reservations for the parks you hop to—just a reservation for your original park which in our case was Epcot. I believe the only requirement is that you need to have entered the park your reservation was for before hopping. From there it was just a matter of them confirming that you had hoppers which was done before we got on the park to park bus by scanning our magic band.

I got mislead by a blog I read. Your post and one a little later cleared it up for me...

Thanks for sharing.

 

[wdw&sonny]

There is currently a hotline to check park availability before hopping
(407) 560-5000

 

[jillyh]

We've been hopping daily since the 1st and have had no issues. Even hopped to HS yesterday with no problem.

 

[Rich M]

We've been hopping daily since the 1st and have had no issues. Even hopped to HS yesterday with no problem.

Have you found that you have gotten your money worth? Curious to know how many rides you have been able to do in the park you have hopped too?

 

[LalaLane]

We are staying at CBR. I’m hoping to hop to Epcot at the end every night because
A- skyliner back to room
B- reduced food options at CBR, so Epcot dinner nightly and ride the gondola back instead of buses