Shorter hours means Happily Ever After could be earlier You want to get the most out of every second of your Walt Disney World vacation. For many people, that means staying from rope drop until the park closes for the day. That also means an exhausting vacation! It’s hard to spend 12 to 15 hours in a park each day, several days in a row. That’s part of the reason why you should consider traveling during a non-peak season.
There is no such thing as not crowded at Walt Disney World. The days of being able to walk onto rides if schools are in session are long gone. But there are still times that are much busier than others. You could spend 8:00am until 1:00am at the Magic Kingdom in the middle of July and get a lot done. At the end of September, the park might only be open 9:00 until 9:00, but because it isn’t as crowded you’ll be able to do just as much, if not more. You’ll still wait in lines, and you’ll still feel a crowd, but it won’t be wall to wall people, which makes a big difference.
When the park hours are shorter, some of the fireworks and nighttime shows are earlier. That means that you’ll be more likely to stay for them. The end of the night entertainment is fantastic, you don’t want to miss it. If the park closes fairly early, you won’t have to.
If a park closes early, you can take the time to explore Disney Springs or stop by Disney’s BoardWalk. Consider making a late dinner reservation at a signature restaurant for after the park you visited closes for the day. The theme parks are great, but there is plenty to do outside of the parks that you might miss when the hours are longer.
What I think is the best part of shorter hours is that you’ll have more down time. You might actually be able to get a good night’s sleep! That won’t happen during the summer months if you decide to stay until the park closes. You will walk for miles each day of a Walt Disney World vacation, it’s nice to be able to be refreshed instead of being exhausted.