Is the "park hopper" option worth the cost?

[Buckeye]

I am in the process of planning my family's 2009 trip to WDW. Originally, I was going to get the Magic Your Way Premium passes. However, the Park Hopping option and the Water Parks and More option both add $50 per person to the package cost. I'm OK with the $50 for the water parks as we will probably go to them twice during the trip. Therefore, it is a bargain. My problem is deciding whether or not the park hopping option is worth $200. I like the flexibility it provides, but maybe that money would be better spent elsewhere.

What are your thoughts on the Park Hopper option?

 

[Bug715]

I don't remember a trip my family hasn't gotten the park hopper option. We have only gotten water park option a few times since we stay at DVC resorts there are slides at the awesome pools so we don't feel the need to go to the water park.

We like the park hopper option so if a park gets crowded part way through the day we can hop to another park and for those parks that we want to re visit to finnish things up or ride favorite rides again.

 

[Master Yoda]

For short trips where you are trying to squeeze every last minute of Disney fun the park hopper can be worth it. It will allow you to go to another park after the one you are at closes, hit EMH, etc. For longer more, laid back trips it is not needed as much.

What I would do is leave it off for now, hang on to the $200 and add it on if and when you need it.

 

[C.M.O]

I always get the park hopper. I like the freedom of being able to go where I want. If one park closes early we might then go to the one that is open later, or like someone else said, if one park seems busy just go to a different one. I think its a nice option

 

[bidnow5]

We always get it just in case one park is crowded. We always use it one our last trip Magic Kingdom was so packed one day we left after an hour to go to Epcot which was not busy at all

 

[tigsmom]

We always get the hopper option. We rarely spend the entire day in one park and also we are not at the mercy of lousy ADR's...we can go anywhere we want and not have to settle.

Since we only stay for 4 days at a time, this works well for us, maybe others feel differently..whatever works for you is worth it.

 

[imamouse]

Which month are you going in 2009 and how long are you staying?

 

[jjgoo]

I think you really have to look at your plans for while you are there. Do you really want to be able to visit more than one park in a day?

Here are some things to think about.
The length of your trip: If it is a short trip (4 days for example) you may be happy to just go to one park a day; or you may want to maximize extra magic hours and be able to go to multple parks. For example on one short trip I want to the Animal Kingdom during the day which closed at 5, I went back to my hotel and ate and went to Magic Kingdom at 7 and stayed to the extra magic hours that lasted until 1 am.
If it is a longer trip you could be happy repeating your favorite parks or you might want to give each family member the opportunity to go back on their favortie ride which could take you to many parks in a day.

Food: You might want to be in one park all day, but have dinner in another. Sometimes with the crazy ADR system you may only be able to get a reservation in one park on a day that you planned on being in another park.

Kids: Your kids might really want to go back to a certain park for something, a ride, a show, a toy and you have plans for another park that day. Or that may be you or your spouse really wanting to go back.

Fireworks: Spend the day at DHS or AK and go to MK or Epcot for the fireworks. (Although you can get a view of the MK fireworks from the Poly or GF and Epcot from the bridge between BC and Boardwalk, its just not exactly the same experience)

No hopper can really be done but it my opinion takes a little more planning and discipline. I like the hopper because I can be more free with my plans and change them on a whim without much problem.

Good luck with your decision. And like Master Yoda said you can always get the base ticket now and upgrade when you get there if you change your mind.

 

[FBullock]

DW and I have AP so we don't need it, but I took my sister & her 2 kids down in October & didn't get it. We were only there for 4 days. We wanted to hop one day so we did the Halloween Party that day and it worked out. We did AK in the AM and then about 4 PM headed to MK for the Party.

On other trips where we've been with other family members, we strongly recommend the Hopper option. It's well worth it. We got it all the time prior to getting our AP.

 

[Mick G.]

On our trip last October, we didn't get the Park Hopper option, for the first time in years. We had 7 days total, and the lack of a Park Hopper wasn't a problem. In a way, it simplified the trip, and I was surprised that it wasn't missed.

I think the principle applies, that on a shorter trip, it would be better to Hop. 6 days or more, and with a couple of trips to the water parks, you might not miss it.

Mick

 

[Philo]

Coming from the UK, we have it built in to our tickets! If it wasn't included then I would defiantly buy it. I think there are far more days when I hope than days where I just stay in one park.

It's nice to have the freedom

 

[ToTBellHop]

I always get the park hopper--the last thing I want is to go to AK and have to leave at 5 pm and have that be it for the day (especially problematic now that Pleasure Island is gone--there would literally be nothing to do). Also, if you want to take advantage of EMH, you end up stuck in that park all day, and most parks are busier on their EMH days. That said, as Master Yoda mentioned, you can always get tickets w/o the park hopper option now and add it to your ticket when you arrive if you decide you need it.

 

[durangojim]

Depends on what your trips are like. If you are the type to go from sunrise to sunset and spend all day in one park, racing to get to everything, then it's probably not worth it. If you're like us, we like to go to a park in the AM, then rest or go to the pool in the early afternoon, and then go to a different park in the evening, so for us it's worth it.

 

[disneynut4u]

We always get the Park Hopper. We tend to leave AK and go to DHS for Fantasmic, that way, we don't have to do it the day we go all day to DHS & we can ride while the show is going on. We like the option of being able to leave to go to another park. If we do everything we wanted in one park, we can leave and go to another. Last year, we did more hopping for meals. I had planned more character meals & it was necessary to hop to accommodate them.

 

[CAPTAIN HOOK]

Its something we've always had as its a feature of the UK tickets but its something that we've seldom used - until this trip. We're planning on making full use of the hopping facility on this shorter-than-usual Xmas trip

 

[TurboCaroline]

For short trips where you are trying to squeeze every last minute of Disney fun the park hopper can be worth it. It will allow you to go to another park after the one you are at closes, hit EMH, etc. For longer more, laid back trips it is not needed as much.

What I would do is leave it off for now, hang on to the $200 and add it on if and when you need it.

Exactly...In June we did a short 2 day trip and we bought an annual pass since we are going in Dec also so the hopping availablity was very useful on that trip. When we usually go it is for 4 days and we just do one park per day and that suits us just fine...someone mentioned that there is nothing to do after AK closes at 5pm...that is when we go to MVMCP. It works great for us...

 

[MKCP 1985]

If money is really a concern, dropping the park hopper is a real easy way to save on your budget.

Is it nice to be able to jump on the monorail and head from Epcot to Magic Kingdom? Sure! Is it vital? Well, maybe not if your trip is long enough that you will get to go to all the parks you want to visit and dedicate as much time in the day as you want to each one.

I've done it both ways and haven't felt like I had less of a magical experience because I couldn't park hop on the trips I didn't buy that extra.

 

[wannabeBelle]

For short trips where you are trying to squeeze every last minute of Disney fun the park hopper can be worth it. It will allow you to go to another park after the one you are at closes, hit EMH, etc. For longer more, laid back trips it is not needed as much.

What I would do is leave it off for now, hang on to the $200 and add it on if and when you need it.

Exactly!!!! Belle

 

[Buried20KLeague]

You're getting a lot of advice, and normally I wouldn't muddy it up further, but... :lol:

I would pay close attention to the entertainment schedule for the time you're intending to go. With things as slow as they are projected to be, there are lots of entertainment cutbacks on the way.

For example... There has been rumor that Illuminations might go to only a few nights a week. I don't think it'll happen, but let's use it as an example.

That would mean that you, along with everyone else that has planned well for the trip, would have to be at Epcot one of those three days that week to see it. To me, that would mean that Epcot will be much busier those three days of the week. That's when you have to ask yourself: Might it make more sense to go to a park that you know won't be crowded that day because there's no night time show, then hop to Epcot in time to see Illuminations? Is the extra cost justified by the much shorter lines you'll spend the day in?

Or... Let's say they're only showing Spectromagic two nights while you'll be there, and you've planned to spend one of your days at the MK in order to see it. But it rains that whole night so it's canceled. And since you don't have park hoppers, the only other night it's being shown, you've already got planned to be in a different park that day.

The park hopper option gives you the flexibility to make on-the-fly changes as needs arise. I couldn't imagine visiting without it.

 

[Mickey&Minnie]

We really enjoy the park hopper option. That way you aren't tied down to one park if it gets too crowded or if for some odd reason someone gets bored:shrug:
Another good thing about it is...you can have better options as far a eating arrangements. Epcot has a lot of great eating spots and especially if you plan on getting the dining plan you might end up getting more bang for your buck.
End the end you have to decide what is best for you and your party, but you have been given a lot of good facts to consider.